hegnauer.family
hegnauer.family
H0010 The study's number for this person. Cite it and it will always lead here, whatever the spelling.
· A life in the study

Christian Hegnauer

Born at Madison County in 1868 and died at Butler in 1957.

born 3 May 1868 at Madison County, Illinois died 6 Sep 1957 at Butler, Bates

From Igis to the Pacific
Also written Chris Hegnauer, Criss Hegnauer

Christian Hegnauer was born on 3 May 1868 in Madison County, Illinois, near the villages of Grantfork and Alhambra, the eldest son of Leonhard Hegnauer, a Swiss-born Union veteran, and Susanna Katharina Hirschi.1–4 Through his father he was a grandson of Luzius Hegnauer, who had brought his family from Igis, in Graubünden, to America in 1856.5–6 Christian came to Bates County, Missouri, as a baby and spent the rest of his long life there, farming near his parents in Pleasant Gap Township and later living in the towns of Rockville and Butler.1, 3–4, 7–8

Madison County and Pleasant Gap

His parents had married in 1866 at Highland, in Madison County, the centre of a Swiss colony founded there in the 1830s,9–10 and his sister Mary Christina had been born a year or so before him.11 In 1869, when Christian was a baby, the family crossed Missouri in wagons drawn by ox-teams, a three-week journey, to settle in Bates County.1 The county, on the Kansas border, had been emptied in 1863 by the Union army's General Order No. 11, and many of its people never came back.12 In August 1870 the census found Christian, aged two, on his father's farm in Prairie City Township.11

He grew up on that farm in Pleasant Gap Township, where the 1880 census lists him with his parents, his sisters Mary and Katherine and his brother Leonard.13 About 1879 his parents were among the first members of the German Reformed church built near Prairie City.14 A younger brother, Robert, followed in 1887.15 Their mother bore seven children in all, and by 1900 two of them had died: a daughter, Margaret M., and probably a son, Emil, born about 1870.1, 15–16

Farmer

On 15 November 1886, aged eighteen, Christian married Anna Wirz, a Swiss-born woman nearly eight years older than he, who had lived in the Rockville neighbourhood since about 1880.17–18 They made their home in Pleasant Gap Township, close to his parents. The 1895 plat book shows a "C. Hegnauer", almost certainly Christian, with 80 acres in the same section as his father's farm, near the German Reformed church, and in March 1896 "Chris Hegnauer" was one of the township's delegates.19–20 By 1900 Christian and Anna had seven children: Lena, Clara, Leonard Samuel, Rosa, Lizzie, Christian Herman and the baby, Marie.2 Their elder son bore the names of both his grandfathers, Leonhard Hegnauer and Samuel Wirz.18, 21 Christian was still farming in the township in 1910, and he and Anna belonged to the Reformed Church.1, 7

“, almost certainly Christian, with 80 acres in the same section as his father's farm, near the German Reformed church, and in March 1896”

When his father died at Appleton City in October 1916, Christian was living near the old home place, and Leonhard's body lay at his house until the relatives arrived.22–23 His widowed mother came back to the neighbourhood to live with her children, and she died at Christian's home near Prairie City on 12 February 1918.24–26

Rockville

By January 1923 Christian and Anna had moved into the town of Rockville; that month they spent a Sunday at the home of Fred Stevener, the husband of their daughter Lena.27–28 In March 1927 their youngest daughter, Marie, came to stay with them with her husband, the Rev. Sterling W. Whitener, and their family; the Whiteners had been missionaries in China and had been "driven out by the hostilities" there.29–30 The censuses of 1930 and 1940 find Christian and Anna still in Rockville; in 1930 his work was given as manager.8, 31 Anna died at their home on 20 August 1943, after almost fifty-seven years of marriage, and was buried at Prairie City.18

By 1957 Christian was living on East Dakota Street in Butler, the county seat. He died there at the Boyd Rest Home on 6 September 1957, aged eighty-nine, and was buried on 8 September at Prairie City, where Anna lay.3, 32 His obituary reckoned that he had lived in Bates County for more than seventy-five years. Three of his children had died before him: Marie, Lizzie and Christian. He was survived by his son Leonard, a minister at Canton, Ohio, by his daughters Lena, Clara and Rosa, by his brothers Leonard and Robert and his sister Katy, and by grandchildren and great-grandchildren.4

What we know

Proven

  • Birth at Madison County, 1868
  • Marriage to Anna Wirz at Bates County, 1886
  • Property at Pleasant Gap Township, 1895
  • Death at Butler, 1957
  • Burial at Prairie City, 1957
  • 8 homes, from the census and other records

What's still open

  • Sources. His death certificate and his wife's were read on the images.
  • Birth year (conflict). 3 May 1868 is given by the 1918 county history and Find a Grave, May 1868 by the 1900 census, and his age of 2 in Aug 1870 fits only 1868.
  • Leads. 36, T39N R30W; the 1886 marriage register; a fuller obituary in the Butler papers of Sept 1957.

Sources

Sources 1–4

1 History of Bates County, Missouri, 1918
2 1900 U.S. Federal Census, Pleasant Gap Township, 1868
3 Missouri Division of Health, Standard Certificate of Death, 1957
4 Appleton City Journal, 1957

Sources 5–6

5 Switzerland, Catholic and Reformed Church Records, 1843
6 New York, U.S., Arriving Passenger and Crew Lists, 1856

Sources 7–8

7 1910 U.S. Federal Census, Pleasant Gap Township
8 1930 U.S. Federal Census, Rockville, 1869

Sources 9–10

9 Illinois, U.S., County Marriage Records, 1866
10 History of Madison County, Illinois, 1882

Source 11

11 1870 U.S. Federal Census, Prairie City Township

Source 12

12 Missouri-Kansas Border War, 2020

Source 13

13 1880 U.S. Federal Census, Pleasant Gap Township

Source 14

14 FamilySearch Full-Text, county history, 1883

Source 15

15 1900 U.S. Federal Census, Pleasant Gap Township, 1846

Source 16

16 Find a Grave, memorial 78556009, 1870

Sources 17–18

17 Missouri, County Marriage, Naturalization, and Court Records, 1886
18 Missouri State Board of Health, 1943

Sources 19–20

19 Plat of Pleasant Gap, Township 39 North, Range 30 West, 1895
20 The Butler Times-Press, 1896

Source 21

21 U.S., World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1891

Sources 22–23

22 Appleton City Journal, 1916
23 Gone to His Reward, 1916

Sources 24–26

24 Missouri State Board of Health, 1918
25 Appleton City Journal, 1918
26 Rich Hill Mining Review, 1918

Sources 27–28

27 Rich Hill Mining Review, 1923
28 Missouri, County Marriage, Naturalization, and Court Records, 1906

Sources 29–30

29 Appleton City Journal, 1927
30 Missouri, County Marriage, Naturalization, and Court Records, 1919

Source 31

31 1940 U.S. Federal Census, Rockville, 1868

Source 32

32 Find a Grave, memorial 54201853, 1868

Life in time

with the history around it

3 May 1868

Birth , Madison County, Illinois, United States

proven Sources 1, 2, 3, 4, 11, 13, 32

How we know

  1. 1868 Birth 3 May 1868 · Madison County, Illinois · proven

    Near Grantfork ("Granfork, Ill.", death certificate) or Alhambra (obituary), neighbouring villages in Madison County. His death certificate and obituary give the year as 1867 (see Research Notes).

    The 1918 county history, published in his lifetime and evidently from family information, gives 3 May 1868 in Madison County, Illinois, and Find a Grave gives the same date. The 1900 census gives May 1868, Illinois, and his age of 2 in the 1870 census (taken in Aug 1870) fits May 1868 but not May 1867. His death certificate (informant his son, 1957) and his obituary give 3 May 1867, a year earlier, with birthplaces near Grantfork and Alhambra, both in Madison County; the day and month agree. 1868 is accepted on the contemporary census evidence. No birth or baptism record has been found.

    Sources 1, 2, 3, 4, 11, 13, 32

  2. 1870 Residence Prairie City Township, Bates · proven

    Post office Pleasant Gap. Age 2, born Illinois, in the household of his parents Leonard and Susan, with his sister Mary.

    His parents, his sister Mary and the Illinois birthplaces of both children identify the household. The family had moved from Illinois to Bates County in 1869.

    Source 11

  3. 1880 Residence Pleasant Gap Township, Bates · proven

    Age 11, in the household of his parents, with his sisters Mary C. and Susan [Katherine] and his brother Leonard.

    His parents and brothers and sisters identify the household. The age, 11, is a year low for his May 1868 birth.

    Source 13

  4. 1886 Marriage, with Anna Wirz 15 Nov 1886 · Bates County, Missouri · proven

    Marriage of Christian Hegnauer and Annie Wirz. FamilySearch's index gives the place as Butler, the county seat, where licences were issued; the family tree gives Rockville Township. The register itself has not been read.

    FamilySearch's index of the Bates County marriage records and Ancestry's indexes of the Missouri marriage records give the marriage of Christian Hegnauer and Annie Wirz on 15 Nov 1886. The 1900 census, whose index computes the marriage year as 1887 from the years married, has Christian and Anna together with their seven children, the eldest born in May 1887, and his 1957 obituary says he married Miss Anna "Wertz". Index only; the register has not been read.

    Sources 2, 4, 17

  5. 1887 Daughter born: Lena Hegnauer family event

    Their page →

  6. 1889 Daughter born: Clara Hegnauer family event

    Their page →

  7. 1891 Son born: Leonard Samuel Hegnauer family event

    Their page →

  8. 1893 Daughter born: Rosa B. Hegnauer family event

    Their page →

  9. 1895 Property Pleasant Gap Township, Bates · proven

    "C. Hegnauer 80": 80 acres in Sec. 36, T39N R30W, in the same section as his father's farm, near the German Reformed church (1895 plat book).

    The plat gives only the initial. It is attributed to him because he was married and farming in Pleasant Gap Township, was a Pleasant Gap delegate as "Chris Hegnauer" in March 1896 and was there in 1900; his uncle Christian (H0007), the only other C. Hegnauer in the county, had moved to Oregon by about 1891. Almost certain, not proven: the Bates County deed records have not been searched.

    Sources 2, 19, 20

  10. 1895 Daughter born: Lizzie K. Hegnauer family event

    Their page →

  11. 1896 Residence Mar 1896 · Pleasant Gap Township, Bates · proven

    Named as "Chris Hegnauer" among the delegates of Pleasant Gap Township (Butler Times-Press, 21 Mar 1896).

    A contemporary newspaper list of township delegates; the name and township fit him.

    Source 20

  12. 1897 Son born: Christian Herman Hegnauer family event

    Their page →

  13. 1900 Residence Pleasant Gap Township, Bates · proven

    Farmer; born May 1868, Illinois. With his wife Anna and their children Lena, Clara, Leonard, Rosa, Lizzie, Christian and Mary [Marie], all born in Missouri.

    His wife and the seven children named in his 1957 obituary identify the household.

    Source 2

  14. 1900 Daughter born: Marie A. Hegnauer family event

    Their page →

  15. 1910 Residence Pleasant Gap Township, Bates · proven

    Farmer. With his wife Anna and five of their children, Leonard, Rosa, Lizzie, Christian and Marie.

    His wife and children identify the household (index entries attached to the family tree; the image has not been read).

    Source 7

  16. First World War, 1914–18
  17. 1916 Residence between Nov 1916 and Feb 1918 · Pleasant Gap Township, Bates · proven

    On the farm near Prairie City, near the old home place. His father's body lay at his home before the funeral in Nov 1916, and his widowed mother died at his home on 12 Feb 1918.

    His father's 1916 obituaries say that Christian lived near the old home place and that the body lay at his home until the relatives arrived. His mother's death certificate places her death in Pleasant Gap Township, and three newspaper items say she died at the home of her son Chris near Prairie City.

    Sources 22, 23, 24, 25, 26

  18. 1923 Residence between Jan 1923 and 1943 · Rockville, Bates · proven

    "Criss Hegnauer and wife of Rockville" (Jan 1923). In Rockville at the censuses of 1930 (occupation indexed as "manager") and 1940 (occupation indexed as "Bouling Egg", probably a misreading) and in 1935. His wife died at their home there in Aug 1943.

    A Prairie City newspaper column of Jan 1923 calls him and his wife "of Rockville", and the Rockville column of Mar 1927 reports his daughter and her family staying at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Chris Hegnauer. The 1930 and 1940 censuses place Christian and Anna in Rockville (1940 also for 1935), and her death certificate gives Rockville as her usual residence, with her husband Chris living.

    Sources 8, 18, 27, 29, 31

  19. 1957 Residence Sep 1957 · Butler, Bates · proven

    Usual residence East Dakota [Street], Butler; he died at the Boyd Rest Home, Butler.

    The usual-residence entry of his death certificate.

    Source 3

  20. 1957 Death 6 Sep 1957 · Butler, Bates · proven

    At the Boyd Rest Home, Butler, at 2 p.m., aged 89 (his certificate, reckoning from 1867, says 90). Generalized bronchial pneumonia of two days, due to general senility and nephritis of ten years. Widowed. Missouri death certificate, state file 57-027445.

    His Missouri death certificate (image read), signed by the attending physician on the day, gives 6 Sep 1957 at the Boyd Rest Home in Butler, with his parents Leonard Hegnauer and [Susanna] Hirschi; the informant was his son Leonard of Canton, Ohio. His obituary ("died Friday, September 6, in Butler") and Find a Grave agree.

    Sources 3, 4, 32

  21. 1957 Burial 8 Sep 1957 · Prairie City, Bates · proven

    Prairie City Cemetery (Find a Grave), where his wife Anna was buried in 1943. The death certificate names the cemetery as "Eddie [?] Cemetery, Prairie City, Mo." Funeral director Oscar Eckhoff of Appleton City.

    The death certificate gives burial on 9-8-57 at Prairie City, and Find a Grave places his grave in the Prairie City Cemetery. The certificate's cemetery name has not been matched to a cemetery of that name; it may be a local name for the Prairie City Cemetery.

    Sources 3, 32

  • proven
  • family event
  • history around the life

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Places in this life

7 places, in order
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
  1. 1 Madison County, Illinois Birth 3 May 1868
  2. 2 Prairie City Township, Bates County Residence 1870
  3. 3 Pleasant Gap Township, Bates County Residence 1880 · Property 1895 · Residence Mar 1896 · 3 more
  4. 4 Bates County, Missouri Marriage 15 Nov 1886
  5. 5 Rockville, Bates County Residence between Jan 1923 and 1943
  6. 6 Butler, Bates County Residence Sep 1957 · Death 6 Sep 1957
  7. 7 Prairie City, Bates County Burial 8 Sep 1957

Hollow markers are placed approximately, at the town, county or region.

Family

Father Leonhard Hegnauer 1843–1916 Mother Susanna Katharina Hirschi 1846–1918
This page Christian Hegnauer 1868–1957
Wife · m. 15 Nov 1886 Anna Wirz 1860–1943
Daughter Lena Hegnauer 1887–aft. 1957 Daughter Clara Hegnauer 1889–aft. 1957 Son Leonard Samuel Hegnauer 1891–1978 Daughter Rosa B. Hegnauer 1893–aft. 1957 Daughter Lizzie K. Hegnauer 1895–c. 1950 Son Christian Herman Hegnauer 1897–1951 Daughter Marie A. Hegnauer 1900–bef. 1957
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Records

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Marriages 3 records · 1886–1907
  • 15 Nov 1886 probable Marriage “Christian Hegnauer” Rockville Township, Bates County 2 index entries: Ancestry O00089 · Ancestry O00090
  • 15 Nov 1886 confirmed Marriage “Christian Hegnauer” Butler, Bates County FamilySearch · O03173
  • 27 Dec 1907 confirmed Marriage notice “Chris (Mr.) Hegnauer”, bride's father Butler, Bates County Newspapers.com · O06567
Deaths and burials 25 records · 1916–1957
  • 9 Nov 1916 confirmed Obituary of father Leonard “Christian [Hegnauer]”, son Appleton City, St. Clair County Newspapers.com · O06100
  • 10 Nov 1916 confirmed Obituary of father Leonard “Christian Hegnauer”, son Butler, Bates County Newspapers.com · O06660
  • 30 Nov 1916 confirmed Administrator's notice “Christian Hegnauer”, administrator Appleton City, St. Clair County Newspapers.com · O06676
  • 7 Dec 1916 confirmed Administrator's notice “Christian Hegnauer”, administrator Appleton City, St. Clair County Newspapers.com · O06678
  • 14 Dec 1916 confirmed Administrator's notice “Christian Hegnauer”, administrator Appleton City, St. Clair County Newspapers.com · O06680
  • 21 Dec 1916 confirmed Administrator's notice “Christian Hegnauer”, administrator Appleton City, St. Clair County Newspapers.com · O06682
  • 12 Jul 1917 confirmed Probate calendar “Christian Hegnauer”, administrator Appleton City, St. Clair County 2 index entries: Newspapers.com O06690 · Newspapers.com O06692
  • 19 Jul 1917 confirmed Probate calendar “Christian Hegnauer”, administrator Appleton City, St. Clair County Newspapers.com · O06694
  • 26 Jul 1917 confirmed Probate calendar “Christian Hegnauer”, administrator Appleton City, St. Clair County Newspapers.com · O06696
  • 2 Aug 1917 confirmed Probate calendar “Christian Hegnauer”, administrator Appleton City, St. Clair County Newspapers.com · O06698
  • 9 Aug 1917 confirmed Probate calendar “Christian Hegnauer”, administrator Appleton City, St. Clair County Newspapers.com · O06700
  • 10 Jan 1918 confirmed Probate calendar “C. Hegnauer”, administrator Appleton City, St. Clair County Newspapers.com · O06705
  • 17 Jan 1918 confirmed Probate calendar “C. Hegnauer”, administrator Lowry City, St. Clair County Newspapers.com · O06707
  • 24 Jan 1918 confirmed Probate calendar “C. Hegnauer”, administrator Appleton City, St. Clair County Newspapers.com · O06709
  • 21 Feb 1918 confirmed Obituary of mother Susanna “Chris [Hegnauer]”, son Appleton City, St. Clair County Newspapers.com · O06217
  • 21 Feb 1918 confirmed Death notice of mother Susanna “Chris Hegnauer”, son Appleton City, St. Clair County Newspapers.com · O06221
  • 21 Feb 1918 confirmed Death notice of mother Susanna “Chris [Hegnauer]”, son Rich Hill, Bates County Newspapers.com · O06225
  • 11 Apr 1918 confirmed Probate notice (final settlement) “C.; Christian Hegnauer”, administrator Appleton City, St. Clair County Newspapers.com · O06512
  • 1936 probable Probate inventory “Hegnaner”, mentioned Nemaha County, Kansas FamilySearch Full-Text · O04100
  • 27 Nov 1951 confirmed Death “Chris Hegnauer”, father Mankato, Blue Earth County 2 index entries: FamilySearch O02606 · FamilySearch O02690
  • 1957 possible Burial “Christian Hegnauer” Bates County, Missouri FamilySearch · O03315
  • after 6 Sep 1957 probable Burial “Christian Hegnauer” Bates County, Missouri Ancestry · O00088
  • 6 Sep 1957 probable Burial “Christian Hegnauer” Prairie City Cemetery, Bates County Find a Grave · O03981
  • 6 Sep 1957 probable Death “Christian Hegnauer” Bates County, Missouri Missouri State Archives · O04072
  • 12 Sep 1957 confirmed Obituary “Christian Hegnauer” Appleton City, St. Clair County Newspapers.com · O06228
Census, land and residence 8 records · 1900–1940
  • 1900 probable Residence “Christian Hegnauer” Pleasant Gap, Bates County Ancestry · O00083
  • 1900 confirmed Census “Christian Hegnauer” Pleasant Gap Township, Bates County FamilySearch · O02870
  • 1910 probable Residence “Christian Hegnauer” Pleasant Gap, Bates County Ancestry · O00084
  • 1930 probable Residence “Christian Hegnauer” Rockville, Bates County Ancestry · O00085
  • 1930 confirmed Census “Christian Hegnauer” Rockville, Bates County FamilySearch · O03504
  • 1935 probable Residence “Christian Hegnauer” Rockville, Bates County Ancestry · O00086
  • 1940 probable Residence “Christian Hegnauer” Rockville, Bates County Ancestry · O00087
  • 1940 confirmed Census “Christian Hegnauer” Rockville, Bates County FamilySearch · O02753
Newspapers 12 records · 1892–1927
Also cited as evidence: 16 records filed under relatives
The evidence 13 facts with their grades, 32 sources, and the research notes

Facts

Fact Date Place Grade Sources
Birth 3 May 1868 Madison County, Illinois, United States proven 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 11 , 13 , 32
Residence 1870 Prairie City Township, Bates, Missouri, United States proven 11
Residence 1880 Pleasant Gap Township, Bates, Missouri, United States proven 13
Marriage with Anna Wirz 15 Nov 1886 Bates County, Missouri, United States proven 2 , 4 , 17
Property 1895 Pleasant Gap Township, Bates, Missouri, United States proven 2 , 19 , 20
Residence Mar 1896 Pleasant Gap Township, Bates, Missouri, United States proven 20
Residence 1900 Pleasant Gap Township, Bates, Missouri, United States proven 2
Residence 1910 Pleasant Gap Township, Bates, Missouri, United States proven 7
Residence between Nov 1916 and Feb 1918 Pleasant Gap Township, Bates, Missouri, United States proven 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 , 26
Residence between Jan 1923 and 1943 Rockville, Bates, Missouri, United States proven 8 , 18 , 27 , 29 , 31
Residence Sep 1957 Butler, Bates, Missouri, United States proven 3
Death 6 Sep 1957 Butler, Bates, Missouri, United States proven 3 , 4 , 32
Burial 8 Sep 1957 Prairie City, Bates, Missouri, United States proven 3 , 32

Research notes

  • Sources: His death certificate and his wife's were read on the images. The census facts come from the Ancestry tree's attached records and the FamilySearch indexes, and his marriage from indexes; those images have not been read. The historical background is from Brink's history of Madison County (1882) and the State Historical Society of Missouri.
  • Identity: The Christian who was 2 in his father Leonard's household in 1870 and 11 in 1880 is the Christian Hegnauer of the 1900 and 1910 censuses (born May 1868 in Illinois, with his wife Anna) and of the 1930 and 1940 censuses at Rockville (with Anna).11, 13, 2, 7, 8, 31 His 1957 death certificate names his parents as Leonard Hegnauer and [Susanna] Hirschi, and Anna's 1943 certificate names her husband as Chris Hegnauer.3, 18 The 1918 county history's sketch of Christian Hegnauer of Pleasant Gap Township is of this man.1
  • Birth year (conflict): 3 May 1868 is given by the 1918 county history and Find a Grave, May 1868 by the 1900 census, and his age of 2 in Aug 1870 fits only 1868.1, 32, 2, 11 His death certificate (informant his son) and his obituary give 3 May 1867, and his wife's 1943 certificate (husband aged 76) leans the same way.3, 4, 18 The 1880 census age (11) is a year low for 1868 and two years low for 1867.13 1868 is accepted. Earlier notes rejected 1867 because his sister Mary Christina was born on 18 Dec 1866; that date comes from the family tree and has not been checked against her own records, so it is not relied on here.
  • Birthplace: The county history gives Madison County, Illinois; the death certificate "Granfork" [Grantfork], Ill.; the obituary "near Alhambria [Alhambra], Ill." Both villages are in Madison County, a few miles apart, and his parents married at Highland, in the same county, in 1866.1, 3, 4
  • Marriage: Only index entries have been seen. The place is Butler in FamilySearch's index and Rockville Township in the family tree.17 He was eighteen, so the licence may record his father's consent; the register should be read.
  • The 1895 plat and the 1896 delegate: see the reason on the Property fact. The "C. Hegnauer ... of Prairie" who was in Butler on 9 Jun 1892 (Bates County Democrat, 9 Jun 1892, p. 7) was probably also this man.
  • Occupations in 1930 and 1940: The indexes read "manager" (1930) and "Bouling Egg" (1940); the second is probably a misreading, perhaps of a poultry-and-egg business. The images should be read.8, 31
  • Burial: The death certificate's "Eddie [?] Cemetery, Prairie City" has not been matched; Find a Grave places both Christian and Anna in the Prairie City Cemetery.3, 32
  • The county history's sketch: Only the parts of pp. 719–721 about his father and mother, and the note on the Reformed Church, have been abstracted. The sketch should be read again for Christian's own farm and family.1
  • Brother Emil (probable): A son of his parents born about 1870, known only from a Find a Grave memorial in the Reform Cemetery; the argument is on his profile.16
  • Unexplained entry: FamilySearch's Find a Grave index has a "Christopher H. Hegnauer" (born 1853, died 23 Aug 1943) buried at Prairie City, and Ancestry's Bates County cemetery index a "Christopher H. Hegnaur" (1853–1943, Zion Lutheran). The death date falls three days after Anna's. The entry is not this Christian, who died in 1957, and it should be checked against the cemetery.
  • Leads: the 1920 census (not yet found for Christian and Anna); the Bates County deed records for Sec. 36, T39N R30W; the 1886 marriage register; a fuller obituary in the Butler papers of Sept 1957.
  • This profile is part of the Hegnauer one-name study.

Working notes

  • Death cert 57-027445: parents Leonard Hegnauer and Hirschi; cert says born 1867, impossible (sister b. Dec 1866); 3 May 1868 per Find a Grave
  • Called "Christopher" locally (daughter Lizzie K.'s grave listing: "dau of Christopher and Anna (Wirtz) Hegnauer"); 1936 Nemaha Co., Kans., probate: Chris Hegnauer's $1,000 note of 1931 secured on Bates Co. land. NOT RESOLVED: the Find a Grave index "Christopher H. Hegnauer, b. 1853, d. 23 Aug 1943, Prairie City" (O03014) - age 90 fits neither Christian (b. 1868) nor Anna Wirz (b. 1860, d. 20 Aug 1943) (FamilySearch full text)

Sources

  1. 1

    [W. O. Atkeson], History of Bates County, Missouri (1918), pp. 719–721, sketch of Christian Hegnauer of Pleasant Gap Township: born in Madison County, Illinois, 3 May 1868, son of Leonard Hegnauer, "a native of Switzerland and a Union veteran"; came to Bates County with his parents in 1869; he and his wife members of the Reformed Church; scan shared by Susanna Vogt, "Bates History - Hegnauer excerpt," Ancestry member tree 37158608, 4 December 2023.

    Ancestry

  2. 2

    1900 U.S. Federal Census, Pleasant Gap Township, Bates County, Missouri, E.D. 18, sheet 1, Christian Hegnauer (head, born May 1868, Illinois; farmer; the index computes his marriage year as 1887), with Anna (wife, born Sep 1860, Switzerland) and their children Lena (May 1887), Clara (Jan 1889), Leonard (Mar 1891), Rosa (Apr 1893), Lizzie (Jan 1895), Christian (Mar 1897) and Mary (Mar 1900), all born in Missouri; NARA T623, roll 839; database with images, Ancestry.com. Also "United States Census, 1900," FamilySearch. FamilySearch record M3HK-SJP (index read; image not read).

    In the archive: O00083 , O02870 Ancestry

  3. 3

    Missouri Division of Health, Standard Certificate of Death, state file no. 57-027445 (1957), registrar's no. 101, Christian Hegnauer: died 6 September 1957 at the Boyd Rest Home, Butler, Bates County; usual residence East Dakota [Street], Butler; male, white, widowed; born May 3, 1867 [sic], "Granfork" [Grantfork], Ill.; age 90 years, 4 months, 3 days; retired farmer; U.S. citizen; father Leonard Hegnauer; mother's maiden name Hirschi; informant Leonard Hegnauer, Canton, Ohio; cause generalized bronchial pneumonia, 2 days, due to general senility and nephritis, 10 years; attended 3 August to 5 September 1957 by Carter N. Luter, M.D., Butler; burial 9-8-57, "Eddie [?] Cemetery," Prairie City, Mo.; funeral director Oscar Eckhoff, Appleton City; filed 12 September 1957; image, Missouri State Archives, Missouri Death Certificates, 1910–1975 (sos.mo.gov/images/archives/deathcerts/1957/1957_00027447.PDF).

    In the archive: O04072

  4. 4

    "Christian Hegnauer Dies in Butler," Appleton City Journal (Appleton City, Missouri), 12 September 1957, p. 8: a resident of Bates County more than 75 years, died Friday, 6 September, in Butler, aged 90; a son of Mr. and Mrs. L. Hegnauer, born [May] 3, 1867, near "Alhambria" [Alhambra], Ill.; came to the county with his parents; married Miss Anna "Wertz" [Wirtz]; of their seven children three had died, Mrs. Marie Whitener, Lizzie Durst and Christian; survived by a son, the Rev. Leonard Hegnauer of Canton, Ohio, three daughters, Mrs. Lena "Stevens" [Stevener] of Rockville, Mrs. Clara Sweezy of Adrian and Mrs. Rosa Steiner of Butler, two brothers, Leonard of Spokane, Wash., and Robert of Banning, Calif., a sister, Mrs. Katy Link, and grandchildren and great-grandchildren; image, Newspapers.com (newspapers.com/image/863906271). Indexed, with garbled names, in "U.S., Newspapers.com Obituary Index," Ancestry.com.

    Ancestry

  5. 5

    "Switzerland, Catholic and Reformed Church Records, 1418–1996," database, FamilySearch, baptism of Leonhard Hegnauer [his father], 25 April 1843, Igis, Graubünden; born 25 April 1843; parents Luzius Hegnauer and Margreth Bernet. FamilySearch record 6F8C-L4C6

    In the archive: O01639 , O01733 , O02053

  6. 6

    "New York, U.S., Arriving Passenger and Crew Lists (including Castle Garden and Ellis Island), 1820–1957," database with images, Ancestry.com, manifest of the ship Chase [Chace], Le Havre to New York, list dated 30 September 1856 (the ship arrived 29 September), lines 155–161, "Hegemann" family: Lucie 36, Marguerite 37, Johann 15, Leonhard 13 [his father], Christian[e] 10, Martin 8, Christian 5, Swiss; citing NARA M237, roll 167; image NYM237_167-0280 (ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/7488/images/NYM237_167-0280).

    Ancestry

  7. 7

    1910 U.S. Federal Census, Pleasant Gap Township, Bates County, Missouri, E.D. 18, sheet 3B, Christian Hegnauer (head, married, farmer), with his wife Anna and their children Leonard (laborer), Rosa, Lizzie, Christian and Marie; NARA T624, roll 768; FHL microfilm 1374781; database with images, Ancestry.com (index entries attached to the family tree; image not read).

    In the archive: O00084 Ancestry

  8. 8

    1930 U.S. Federal Census, Rockville, Bates County, Missouri, E.D. 27, sheet 1A, Christian Hegnauer (head, born about 1869, Illinois; married; occupation indexed as "manager") and Anna (wife, born about 1860, Switzerland; immigrated 1862); FHL microfilm 2340911; database with images, Ancestry.com. Also "United States Census, 1930," FamilySearch. FamilySearch record XHXS-BBH (index read; image not read).

    In the archive: O00085 , O03504 Ancestry

  9. 9

    "Illinois, U.S., County Marriage Records, 1800–1940," database, Ancestry.com, Leonard Hagnauer and Susan K Hirschi, 4 July 1866, Madison County, Illinois (his parents' marriage at Highland; index entry, the same event as the FamilySearch register entry cited on their profiles).

    Ancestry

  10. 10

    History of Madison County, Illinois (Edwardsville, Ill.: W. R. Brink & Co., 1882), pp. 428–429, Helvetia Township: "Under the leadership of Dr. Caspar Koepfli, of Sursee, canton Lucerne, Switzerland, a cluster of Swiss parties arrived in 1831"; in 1836 the foundation of the town of Highland made the north of the township "the centre of life and activity of this Swiss colony" (archive.org/details/historyofmadison00brin, accessed 27 September 2026).

  11. 11

    1870 U.S. Federal Census, Prairie City Township, Bates County, Missouri, post office Pleasant Gap, page 24, dwelling 173, family 174, Leonard "Heyrauer" [Hegnauer] (27, farmer, born Switzerland), Susan (24), Mary (3, Ill.), Christian (2, Ill.) and Peter Grob (31); citing NARA M593; database with images, Ancestry.com.

    Ancestry

  12. 12

    Jeremy Neely, "Missouri-Kansas Border War," Missouri Encyclopedia (State Historical Society of Missouri, published 24 June 2020, updated 29 June 2020): four days after the Lawrence raid of 21 August 1863, General Order Number 11 "authorized the Union army to eject the residents of Jackson, Cass, Bates, and northern Vernon Counties"; observers called the empty border counties the "Burnt District", and "Thousands of exiles would return after the war, but many others would not", missouriencyclopedia.org/events/missouri-kansas-border-war (accessed 27 September 2026).

  13. 13

    1880 U.S. Federal Census, Pleasant Gap Township, Bates County, Missouri, E.D. 160, dwelling 72, Leonard Hagn[a]uer [indexed "Lenerd Waguner"] (37, farmer, born Switzerland), wife Susan, children Mary C., Christian, Leonard and Susan; citing NARA T9; database with images, Ancestry.com.

    Ancestry

  14. 14

    FamilySearch Full-Text, county history, Bates County, Missouri, 1883 [probably History of Cass and Bates Counties], account of the German Reformed church near Prairie City, built about 1879: "A. Hammer and wife, Leonard Hegenaur and wife, Peter Kamm and wife, and Christopher Hegenaur, were among the first members" (machine transcription); image familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-L9DF-KWST; the same names, garbled, in a 1958 cemetery survey ("Leonard Hegnauer and w[ife] Christopher Hegnaur"), familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CSY6-B9HN-G

    In the archive: O04084

  15. 15

    1900 U.S. Federal Census, Pleasant Gap Township, Bates County, Missouri, E.D. 18, sheet 11, dwelling 225, family 230, Susan K. Hegnauer (wife, born May 1846, Switzerland, 54; married 34 years; mother of 7 children, 5 living; cannot speak English) in the household of Leonhard Hegnauer, with sons Leonard and Robert L.; citing NARA T623, roll 839; database with images, Ancestry.com. Also indexed by FamilySearch (Leonhard's entry): FamilySearch record M3HK-FKS

    In the archive: O00189 , O00192 , O00195 , O02866 Ancestry

  16. 16

    Find a Grave, memorial 78556009, Emil Hegnauer (1870 – unknown), Reform Cemetery, Pleasant Gap, Bates County, Missouri, linked as a child of Susanna Katharina Hirschi Hegnauer (memorial 56820862) (findagrave.com/memorial/78556009). Also "Find a Grave Index," database, FamilySearch, Emil Hegnauer, birth 1870, burial place standardised as "Prairie, Greene, Alabama". FamilySearch record QV2K-NN17

    In the archive: O03996 , O03279

  17. 17

    "Missouri, County Marriage, Naturalization, and Court Records, 1800–1991," database, FamilySearch, Christian Hegnauer and Annie Wirz, 15 November 1886, Butler, Bates County, Missouri. FamilySearch record QKZ7-XXTS Also indexed in "Missouri, U.S., Marriage Records, 1805–2002" and "Missouri, U.S., Compiled Marriages, 1851–1900" (ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/16499:4474), Ancestry.com (index entries; the register has not been read).

    In the archive: O03173 , O00089 , O00090 Ancestry

  18. 18

    Missouri State Board of Health, Standard Certificate of Death, state file no. 27614 (1943), Anna Hegnauer [state index "Hegnaner"]: died 20 August 1943, 6:30 p.m., Rockville, Bates County; 63 years in the community; usual residence Rockville; married; husband Chris Hegnauer, living, aged 76; born 17 September 1860, Switzerland; age 82 years, 11 months, 3 days; housewife; father Samuel Wirtz, born Switzerland; mother's maiden name unknown, born Switzerland; informant L. S. Hegnauer, Canton, Ohio; burial 22 August 1943, Prairie City, Mo.; funeral director Oscar Eckhoff, Appleton City; filed 9 September 1943; image, Missouri State Archives, Missouri Death Certificates, 1910–1975 (sos.mo.gov/images/archives/deathcerts/1943/1943_00027606.PDF).

    In the archive: O04070

  19. 19

    "Plat of Pleasant Gap, Township 39 North, Range 30 West," 1895 plat book of Bates County, Missouri, page 44, Sec. 36: "L. Hegnauer 80" and "C. Hegnauer 80"; scan shared by Susanna Vogt, "Bates County, MO 1895 Atlas," Ancestry member tree 37158608, 31 October 2023.

    Ancestry

  20. 20

    The Butler Times-Press (Butler, Missouri), 21 March 1896, p. 3: delegates of Pleasant Gap Township, including Chris Hegnauer; image, Newspapers.com (newspapers.com/image/999415728).

  21. 21

    "U.S., World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917–1918," database with images, Ancestry.com, Leonard Samuel Hegnauer, Bates County, Missouri; born 21 March 1891, Rockville, Missouri; married (index entry attached to the family tree; the card has not been read).

    In the archive: O00137 , O00140 Ancestry

  22. 22

    "Passing of a Pioneer: Leonard Hegnauer, Well Known German Citizen Succumbs to Paralysis After Brief Illness," Appleton City Journal (Appleton City, Missouri), 9 November 1916, p. 1; image, Newspapers.com (newspapers.com/image/863313858).

  23. 23

    "Gone to His Reward," obituary of Leonard Hegenauer, reprinted from the Rockville Booster (Rockville, Missouri), November 1916 (reprinting paper and date not visible); photograph of the clipping shared by jnel126, "Leonhard Hegnauer Obit," Ancestry member tree 154982007, 10 November 2018.

    Ancestry

  24. 24

    Missouri State Board of Health, certificate of death no. 4170, Susanna Katharina Hegnauer, died 12 February 1918, 11:30 a.m., Pleasant Gap Township, Bates County; widow; born 15 May 1846, Switzerland; father Christian Hirschi, mother Magdalena Stocker, both born Switzerland; informant Mrs. Mary Hammer, R.F.D. 1, Rockville; physician W. B. Reynolds, Prairie City; burial Reform Cemetery, 15 February 1918; undertaker Frank Lee, Appleton City; filed 20 February 1918; Missouri State Archives, Missouri Death Certificates, 1910–1975 (sos.mo.gov/images/archives/deathcerts/1918/1918_00004307.PDF).

    In the archive: O04067

  25. 25

    "Mrs. L. Hegnauer Dead," Appleton City Journal (Appleton City, Missouri), 21 February 1918, p. 5, with a "Local News" item ("the death of his mother, the late Mrs. L. Hegnauer, which occurred at the home of her son Chris near Prairie City") and a correspondent's column on the same page; image, Newspapers.com (newspapers.com/image/863299249).

  26. 26

    "Prairie City Pick-Ups," Rich Hill Mining Review (Rich Hill, Missouri), 21 February 1918, p. 8: "Mrs L Hegnauer, mother of Chris, died at his home Wednesday, Feb 13 of pneumonia"; image, Newspapers.com (newspapers.com/image/1000192633).

  27. 27

    "Prairie City Pick-Ups," Rich Hill Mining Review (Rich Hill, Missouri), 11 January 1923, p. 8: "Len Vogt and family, Fred and Arthur Hammer and Criss Hegnauer and wife of Rockville, spent Sunday at the Fred Stevener home"; image, Newspapers.com (newspapers.com/image/1000206484).

  28. 28

    "Missouri, County Marriage, Naturalization, and Court Records, 1800–1991," database, FamilySearch, Lena Hegnauer and Fred Stevener, 20 December 1906, Butler, Bates County, Missouri. FamilySearch record QKZ7-F3K8 (index entry; the record has not been read).

    In the archive: O03167

  29. 29

    "Rockville Department," Appleton City Journal (Appleton City, Missouri), 31 March 1927, p. 6: "Rev. Whitner and family have returned from China where they were missionaries, and are at the home of her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Chris Hegnauer. They were driven out by the hostilities in China."; image, Newspapers.com (newspapers.com/image/863945723).

  30. 30

    "Missouri, County Marriage, Naturalization, and Court Records, 1800–1991," database, FamilySearch, Marie A Hegnauer and Sterling W Whitener, 12 June 1919, Butler, Bates County, Missouri. FamilySearch record QKZ7-FDK7 (index entry; the record has not been read).

    In the archive: O03168

  31. 31

    1940 U.S. Federal Census, Rockville, Bates County, Missouri, E.D. 7-28, sheet 4B, Christian Hegnauer (head, born about 1868, Illinois; married; residence in 1935 Rockville; occupation indexed as "Bouling Egg") and Anna (wife, born about 1861, Switzerland); roll m-t0627-02084; database with images, Ancestry.com. Also "United States Census, 1940," FamilySearch. FamilySearch record K736-WPZ (index read; image not read).

    In the archive: O00086 , O00087 , O02753 Ancestry

  32. 32

    Find a Grave, memorial 54201853, Christian Hegnauer (3 May 1868 – 6 Sep 1957), Prairie City Cemetery, Bates County, Missouri (findagrave.com/memorial/54201853). Also "Find a Grave Index," FamilySearch. FamilySearch record QVK1-HNRX

    In the archive: O03981 , O03315 , O00088 Ancestry