hegnauer.family

H0038 · A life in the study

Susanna Katharina Hirschi

Born at Amsoldingen in 1846, emigrated to America in 1850, and died at Pleasant Gap Township in 1918.

born 15 May 1846 at Amsoldingen, Bern died 12 Feb 1918 at Pleasant Gap Township, Bates

Also written Susan, Susanna Catharina Hirschi, Susanna Katherine Hirschi, Susan K. Hirschi, …

Susanna Katharina Hirschi was born on 15 May 1846 at Amsoldingen, in Canton Bern, Switzerland, a daughter of Christian Hirschi and Magdalena Stocker.1, 2 She came to Illinois as a child, married the Civil War veteran Leonhard Hegnauer in 1866, and raised their family on a farm in Bates County, Missouri.3, 4, 5, 6

Canton Bern and the voyage

Her parents had married at Thun on 26 October 1833, after banns read at Reutigen. Her father, a Küher or dairyman, was the son of Peter Hirschi and a citizen of Schangnau; her mother was the daughter of Johannes Stocker, of Boltigen.7, 1 They made their home in the parish of Amsoldingen, a village beside the Amsoldingersee in the district of Thun, which had about 650 inhabitants in 1850.8, 9 Susanna was born at the family's home at Lilachen, a hamlet of the parish, and was baptised Susanna Catharina in the Amsoldingen church on Friday, 5 June 1846.1 She was the eighth of ten children born in Switzerland: before her came Christian, Magdalena, Johannes, Friedrich, Elisabeth, Rudolf and Margaritha Rosalia, who was very probably the sister known in America as Rosina, and after her came Gottlieb and Jakob.10, 8, 11, 12

The farming crisis of the 1840s helped to set off the first mass emigrations from Switzerland to America,13 and in the summer of 1850, when Susanna was four, her family left too. Her grandfather Peter, her parents and ten children sailed from Le Havre on the ship Belmont and landed at New York on 1 August 1850.3 Two weeks later, on 14 August, they reached Highland, in Madison County, Illinois,14 a town founded in 1836 as the centre of a Swiss colony begun in 1831.15

Highland

Her father farmed near Highland, and in 1860 Susan, fourteen, was keeping house at home and going to school, with her brothers Rudolph and Gottlieb and her little sister Mary.16 On 4 July 1866, at Highland, she married Leonhard Hegnauer, of Igis in Graubünden, who had come to Madison County the year before. The pastor of the German Evangelical congregation, Nicolas Schupbach, entered her in his register as Susanna Katharina Hirschi of Amseldingen, Kanton Bern; the witnesses were Johann Zimmermann and Elisabeth Mollet.17, 4, 18, 19 Their first two children were born in Illinois: Mary Christina, late in 1866 or early in 1867, and Christian, in 1868.20, 6, 18

Pleasant Gap, Bates County

In 1869 the young family moved to Bates County, Missouri, and settled in Pleasant Gap Township, where they farmed until about 1907.21, 18 The county had been emptied in 1863 by the Union army's General Order No. 11, and many of its exiles never returned.22 In August 1870 Susan was keeping house for Leonhard, Mary and Christian in Prairie City Township.20 Three more children who grew up followed: Leonard on 22 March 1872,23, 24 Katherine Susanna on 17 August 187725 and Robert Lucius in November 1887.26 In 1880 the family of six was in Pleasant Gap Township, and the county directory of 1884 listed Susan there with Leonhard.6, 27 In all she bore seven children, two of whom, including a daughter Margaret M., died before 1900.26, 18

Her father died at Highland on 14 November 1885. His will, written in 1874, left an equal share of his estate to each of his children, among them "my daughter Susan[na]", and when the estate was settled in 1889 "Susan Hegnauer" received her seventh share, $1,955.61.12

In 1900 Susan, fifty-four and married thirty-four years, was living on the farm with Leonhard and their sons Leonard and Robert. The enumerator recorded that she could read and write but did not speak English.26

Later years

About 1907 Susan and Leonhard retired from the farm to Appleton City, just across the county line in St. Clair County, where the 1910 census found them with their youngest son Robert.28, 21 A studio portrait of the couple with their five surviving children, taken about this time, survives in the family.29 Leonhard died at Appleton City on 31 October 1916. On 17 November Susan applied for a widow's pension on his Civil War service, for which she obtained a copy of their marriage certificate from the church records at Highland; she was granted certificate no. 851,144.5, 30, 31 Afterwards she went back to the Prairie City neighbourhood to live with her daughter Mary Hammer and her son Christian.21, 18

Early in February 1918 Susan fell ill with pneumonia; she died at Christian's home near Prairie City, in Pleasant Gap Township, at 11:30 in the morning on Tuesday, 12 February 1918, aged seventy-one.2, 21 Her brother Gottlieb Hirschi was kept away from the meat market for several days by her death, and he came to the funeral.32, 33 The Pleasant Gap correspondent wrote that the community "was shocked when the news came over the telephone that Grandma Hegnauer had gone to her reward."34 On Friday, 15 February, after a service at the Reformed Church conducted by its pastor, Rev. Vollprecht, she was buried beside Leonhard in the Reform Cemetery near the church.2, 21, 35 Their double stone calls her "Susanna K. seine Frau", his wife.36 She was survived by her five children, twenty-one grandchildren, a brother and a sister.21

“was shocked when the news came over the telephone that Grandma Hegnauer had gone to her reward.”

Life in time

with the history around it
Order No. 11 empties the border counties

15 May 1846

Birth , Amsoldingen, Bern, Switzerland

proven Sources 1 , 2 , 18 , 21 , 26 , 31 , 36

How we know

At Lilachen (today Lilache), a hamlet in the parish and municipality of Amsoldingen, where her parents were living; baptised at Amsoldingen on 5 Jun 1846. Her place of citizenship (Heimatort) was her father's, Schangnau.

The Amsoldingen baptism register (Staatsarchiv Bern, K Amsoldingen 5, p. 167, no. 16; original, image read) records Susanna Catharina, born 15 May 1846 and baptised 5 Jun 1846, daughter of Christian Hirschi, Peter's son, of Schangnau, living at Lilachen, and Magdalena Stocker, Johannes's daughter, of Boltigen. Her death certificate, the 1900 census, the 1918 county history, her obituary and her gravestone all give 15 May 1846. The register gives the parents' home rather than a separate place of birth; Lilachen lies in Amsoldingen parish, and her 1866 marriage record calls her "of Amseldingen". The FamilySearch tree's Schangnau is the family's place of citizenship, not her birthplace.

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Places in this life

8 places, in order

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  1. 1 Amsoldingen, Bern Birth 15 May 1846 · Baptism 5 Jun 1846
  2. 2 New York, New York Immigration 1 Aug 1850
  3. 3 Highland, Madison Residence 1860 · Marriage 4 Jul 1866
  4. 4 Prairie City Township, Bates Residence 1870
  5. 5 Pleasant Gap Township, Bates Residence 1880 · Residence 1884 · Residence 1900 · 2 more
  6. 6 Madison, Illinois Inheritance between 4 Dec 1885 and 11 Apr 1889
  7. 7 Appleton City, St. Clair Residence 1910
  8. 8 Missouri, United States Widow's Pension 17 Nov 1916

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

Family

Father Christian Hirschi Sr. 1814–1885 Mother Magdalena Stocker 1814–1881
This page Susanna Katharina Hirschi 1846–1918
Husband · m. 4 Jul 1866 Leonhard Hegnauer 1843–1916
Daughter Mary Christina Hegnauer c. 1866–1920 Son Christian Hegnauer 1868–1957 Son Leonard Hegnauer 1872–1963 Daughter Katherine Susanna Hegnauer 1877–1961 Son Robert Lucius Hegnauer 1887–1969 Son Emil Hegnauer c. 1870–bef. 1880
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Records

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Births and baptisms 3

Marriages 5

Deaths and burials 11

Census, land and residence 5

Military 2

Newspapers 9

Also cited as evidence: 17 records filed under relatives
The evidence 14 facts with their grades, 44 sources, and the research notes

Facts

Fact Date Place Grade Sources
Birth 15 May 1846 Amsoldingen, Bern, Switzerland proven 1 , 2 , 18 , 21 , 26 , 31 , 36
Baptism 5 Jun 1846 Amsoldingen, Bern, Switzerland proven 1 , 37
Immigration 1 Aug 1850 New York, New York, United States proven 3 , 14
Residence 1860 Highland, Madison, Illinois, United States proven 16
Marriage with Leonhard Hegnauer 4 Jul 1866 Highland, Madison, Illinois, United States proven 4 , 17 , 18 , 26 , 31
Residence 1870 Prairie City Township, Bates, Missouri, United States proven 20
Residence 1880 Pleasant Gap Township, Bates, Missouri, United States proven 6
Residence 1884 Pleasant Gap Township, Bates, Missouri, United States proven 27
Inheritance between 4 Dec 1885 and 11 Apr 1889 Madison, Illinois, United States proven 12
Residence 1900 Pleasant Gap Township, Bates, Missouri, United States proven 26
Residence 1910 Appleton City, St. Clair, Missouri, United States proven 21 , 28
Widow's Pension 17 Nov 1916 Missouri, United States proven 5 , 30 , 31 , 41
Death 12 Feb 1918 Pleasant Gap Township, Bates, Missouri, United States proven 2 , 18 , 21 , 32 , 33 , 41 , 43
Burial 15 Feb 1918 Pleasant Gap Township, Bates, Missouri, United States proven 2 , 21 , 35 , 36 , 43

Research notes

  • Sources: Her birth, baptism and parents rest on the Amsoldingen baptism register and Schangnau's copy of it, read on the images that the Staatsarchiv des Kantons Bern publishes online (27 Sep 2026).1, 37 Her marriage rests on the Highland church register and the Madison County marriage register, both read on the images.17, 4 Her death, burial and the family's life in Missouri rest on her death certificate, censuses, her father's probate file, the pension index and local newspapers; the historical background is from the Historisches Lexikon der Schweiz, Brink's history of Madison County (1882) and the State Historical Society of Missouri.
  • Name: Her death certificate, the only official record to give both her given names in full, spells them Susanna Katharina; her son's University of Illinois alumni record (published about 1913, in her lifetime) and family trees give the English form Susanna Katherine. Her baptism of 1846 spells them Susanna Catharina, an older spelling of the same German names.1 Katharina, the form of her own death certificate, is kept as the preferred spelling. American records mostly call her Susan or Susan K., and her children's records name her as Susanna Katherine Hirschi or Susan K. Hirschi.23, 24, 38, 25 Spellings of her maiden name: Hirschy (1850 passenger list), Herschi (1860 census), Hirschi (1866 marriage register and 1917 duplicate certificate), Hershi (1884 directory), Hirsch and Hirsehi (her children's records). Her married name appears as Heyrauer (1870 census, indexed "Heyraeur") and Hegnaner (pension index).
  • Parents (tree correction): Her parents were Christian Hirschi (1814–1885) and Magdalena Stocker (1814–1881). Five records show this independently. (1) Her death certificate names them.2 (2) Her father's will and the 1885 affidavit name "Susan[na]" and "Susanna Hegnauer" as his daughter, and the will names his wife Magdalena.12 (3) The 1860 census has "Susan" in the household of "Chas" and "Mena" Herschi.16 (4) The 1918 county history calls her "a daughter of Christian Hirschi".18 (5) Her baptism names them, with their fathers and places of citizenship: Christian Hirschi, Peter's son, of Schangnau, and Magdalena Stocker, Johannes's daughter, of Boltigen.1 The Ancestry tree gives her parents as Philipp Jakob Hirschi and Katharina Elisabetha Gerber. That pair came from an accepted hint for a different woman, "Germany, Select Births and Baptisms, 1558–1898" (Ancestry 9866/89258803): Susanna Katharina Hirsch, born 17 December at Heidelberg, Baden. Her birth date, place, surname and parents all differ from Susanna's, so the link was wrong; it was removed from the Ancestry tree in Sep 2026, and the index row was unlinked on 28 Sep 2026.
  • Birth and baptism (proven): The Amsoldingen baptism register (Staatsarchiv Bern, K Amsoldingen 5, p. 167, no. 16) records Susanna Catharina, born 15 May 1846 and baptised on Friday, 5 Jun 1846, with her parents living at Lilachen (today Lilache, a hamlet in the municipality of Amsoldingen); Schangnau's register of its citizens baptised elsewhere copies the entry.1, 37 The register gives the parents' home, not a separate place of birth, so the birth at Lilachen is an inference, but a strong one: the family was there in 1844 and 1846, and her 1866 marriage record calls her "of Amseldingen".11, 31 The register makes Schangnau her place of citizenship (Heimatort), which she took from her father; that is why the FamilySearch tree, which follows a compiled register of the Hirschi of Schangnau, gives Schangnau as her birthplace.39 The same register proves the birth date given in every American source (death certificate, 1900 census, county history, obituary, gravestone); the 1884 directory gives Switzerland, 1846.27 Her age is 3 on the 1850 passenger list (she was 4) and 16 in the 1860 census (she was 14).
  • Parents' marriage: At Thun on 26 Oct 1833, as three Amsoldingen baptisms of the couple's children state (1836, 1844, 1846); the banns were read at Reutigen on 29 Sep and 6 and 13 Oct 1833, and the wedding column there is blank.7, 8, 11, 1 FamilySearch's index of the Reutigen register ("1833, Reutigen") is the banns, and Find a Grave's "26 Oct 1833, Amsoldingen" has the right day but the wrong place.40, 14 Thun's marriage register for 1833 is not among the Staatsarchiv's online volumes (they begin in 1839).
  • Arrival: 1 Aug 1850, ship Belmont (the passenger list; her father's Find a Grave biography names the same ship and date).3, 14 The identification rests on thirteen names in family order. The children's ages on the list run two to six years low, and the two men's given names are transposed, so the list is accepted on the family pattern rather than on the ages. Her obituary gives 184921 and the 1910 census (as indexed) 1859; both are rejected. The family has not been found in the 1850 census of Madison County.
  • Marriage (proven): The church entry (German Evangelical congregation of Highland, register 1860–1870, p. 363, 1866 no. 2) gives the date, 4 Jul 1866, the officiant, Pfarrer Nicolas Schupbach, the witnesses, Johann Zimmermann and Jungfer Elisabeth Mollet, and "Licenz zurückgesandt den 5 Juli 66".17 The Madison County register (vol. 6, p. 204) has licence no. 187 of 26 Jun 1866, the marriage on 4 Jul 1866 by N. Schupbach, M.G., and the return, as read, on 27 Jul 1866.4 The duplicate certificate of 1917 drawn from the church records agrees, but its "page 213" is not the page of this register (363); the book number there was cut off.31
  • Death date (conflict): The death certificate (signed by the attending physician on 12 Feb 1918, filed 20 Feb) gives 12 Feb 1918.2 The Appleton City Journal obituary and its correspondent ("last Tuesday"), the pension payment card and the county history agree.21, 41, 18 Three sources differ. The Rich Hill Mining Review says "Wednesday, Feb 13".42 The gravestone clearly reads "12. APR. 1918", presumably a cutting or ordering error, since the Butler Republican Press reported her death on 15 Feb 1918.36, 32 The Missouri State Archives and Ancestry indexes read 21 Feb, a misreading of the certificate. 12 Feb 1918 is accepted.
  • Death place: Pleasant Gap Township, Bates County, at the home of her son Christian near Prairie City (death certificate, and three separate newspaper items).2, 21, 33, 42 Find a Grave, WikiTree, the Ancestry tree and member trees give Appleton City, where she had lived until her husband's death. That place is wrong.
  • Burial: 15 Feb 1918. The certificate's burial date was read as "2/15" from the contributor's copy;43 the State Archives scan is unclear there and was earlier read as 13 or 14 Feb. The Appleton City Journal's "buried … Friday" (15 Feb) settles it. Reform Cemetery, gravesite H228.35 The FamilySearch tree has 18 Feb.
  • Children: She had seven children, five living, in 1900.26 The 1910 census gives five born and five living, and Find a Grave says "nine children"; the 1900 figure is preferred. The five survivors are Mary Christina (Mrs. Fred Hammer), Christian, Leonard, Katherine Susanna (Mrs. J. M. Link) and Robert Lucius. The county history names a deceased daughter, Margaret M., with no dates.18 An Emil, born 1870, has a Find a Grave memorial (78556009) without a marker, linked to her; he is not in the Aug 1870 census. He is a possible second child who died young, not proven. Neither has been added to the tree.
  • Siblings: The ten Swiss-born children are all in the Amsoldingen baptism register and Schangnau's copies:10 Christian (born 28 Oct 1834; died 1882), Magdalena (born 4 Feb 1836; Mrs Jacob Kamm; died 19038), Johannes (born 2 Jan 1838; died before Oct 1863), Friedrich (born 21 Aug 1839; died 1907), Elisabeth (born 24 Mar 1841; Mrs Jones Tontz; died 1870), Rudolf (born 8 Jan 1843; died 1861), Margaritha Rosalia (born 12 Sep 1844; very probably Rosina, Mrs Christian Tontz, died 192411), Susanna herself, Gottlieb (born 31 Mar 1848) and Jakob (born 1 Dec 1849); then, in Illinois, Maria (1854–1872) and Gottlieb (1856–1950). Find a Grave dates the first Gottlieb and Jakob 1848–1849 and 1849–1850, yet a Gotfried of 11 months and a Jacob of 6 months are on the Aug 1850 passenger list, so both were alive at the landing. The evidence for each is on their father's profile. The brother and sister who survived her in 1918 were Gottlieb, of Rockville, and Rosina Tontz.33, 32 The "G. Hirschi" who owned 164 acres next to Leonhard's Prairie Township tract in 1895 is probably Gottlieb (see Leonhard's profile). Leonhard's sister-in-law "Mrs. F. Hirschi", probably Frederick's wife, and her daughter Clara were living in Bates County by 1904.44 The Kamm marriage may be the link to the Kamm family into which Leonhard's sister Barbara married (unproven).
  • Her husband's debt to her father: Christian Hirschi's estate held a note of Leonhard Hegnauer for $600 (31 May 1884, 7%), which Leonhard repaid with interest ($662.65) during the settlement.12
  • Obituary figures: The obituary gives 21 grandchildren and "21 great grandchildren". The second figure is possible, since her eldest grandchildren (Mary's and Christian's) were born from 1886 on, but it has not been checked, and the two identical figures may be a slip of the typesetter.
  • Records rejected: The Heidelberg baptism of Susanna Katharina Hirsch (above; its index row is no longer linked to her). A 1901 marriage at Villeurbanne, Rhône, France, where Catherine Hegenauer is the groom's mother. "Miss Catherine Heorsch, of Highland" (Greenville Advocate, 7 Jul 1887), an unmarried woman. A Greenville item of 22 Apr 1881 says "John Hegnauer, of Poppinville, Mo." visited his father-in-law Chris Hirschi Sr.; this is probably an error for Leonhard, since no daughter of Christian Hirschi married John Hegnauer (see John).
  • Leads: the Billeter register (FHL film 599705, images restricted); the widow's pension file (NARA, certificate 851,144), which holds her declaration and the 1917 marriage copy; Madison County Probate Record O, p. 39; the unread "Hirschi Hegnauer" newspaper items of 1897–1908 (Butler Daily Democrat 19 Jan 1897; Appleton City Journal 22 Aug 1901, 28 Jan 1904, 26 Dec 1907; Rich Hill Tribune 29 Aug 1901; Appleton City Tribune 28 May 1907, 3 Mar 1908; Republican Press 27 Dec 1907); the Reform Cemetery records for Margaret M. and Emil; and the 1850 census of Madison County under garbled spellings.
  • This profile is part of the Hegnauer one-name study.

Working notes

  • death cert 4170: parents Christian Hirschi and Magdalena Stocker; state index misreads 21 Feb
  • baptised Amsoldingen 5 Jun 1846, born 15 May 1846 (StABE K Amsoldingen 5 p. 167 no. 16): parents Christian Hirschi, Peter's son, of Schangnau, at Lilachen, and Magdalena Stocker, Johannes's daughter, of Boltigen, married Thun 26 Oct 1833 - birthplace and parents proven; sisters Magdalena H2250 and Margaritha Rosalia H2251
  • M1 (28 Sep 2026): the church entry of the 1866 marriage found - German Evangelical congregation of Highland, register 1860-1870, p. 363, 1866 no. 2, married 4 Jul 1866 by Pfarrer Nicolas Schupbach, witnesses Johann Zimmermann and Jungfer Elisabeth Mollet (O06754); county register vol. 6 p. 204, licence no. 187 of 26 Jun 1866 (O06751); home-parish copy of her baptism, K Schangnau 9 p. 68 no. 45 (O06736); O00190 (Heidelberg baptism) unlinked as another woman

Sources

  1. 1

    Staatsarchiv des Kantons Bern (StABE), K Amsoldingen 5, Taufrodel [baptism register] 1832–1862, p. 167, no. 16 of 1846 (online PDF image 85 of 187): baptism of Susanna Catharina, Friday 5 June 1846, born 15 May 1846; parents Christian Hirschi, [son] of Peter, of Schangnau, at Lilachen, and Magdalena Stocker, [daughter] of Johannes, of Boltigen, married at Thun 26 October 1833; godparents Peter Gassner, Susanna Anken and Catharina Schneiter. query.sta.be.ch/detail.aspx?ID=241384 (register image read 27 September 2026).

    In the archive: O06087

  2. 2

    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 ("2/15", read from the clearer member copy; unclear on the State Archives scan); 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); also "Missouri, U.S., Death Certificates, 1910–1971," database with images, Ancestry.com, indexed as Susana Katherine Hegnauer, 21 February 1918.

    In the archive: O04067 Ancestry

  3. 3

    "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 Belmont, Le Havre to New York, arrived 1 August 1850, lines 70–82, "Hirschy": Christian 71, Peter 36 [the two men's given names transposed], Madeline 36, Christian 10, Madeline 9, Johanna 8, Friedrich 7, Elizabeth 6, Rudolph 5, Rosine 4, Susanna 3, Gotfried 11 months, Jacob 6 months, Swiss; citing NARA M237; image NYM237_91-0216 (ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/7488/images/NYM237_91-0216).

    Ancestry

  4. 4

    Madison County, Illinois, Marriage Register vol. 6, p. 204: licence no. 187, 26 June 1866, Leonard Hagnauer and Susan K Hirschi; married 4 July 1866 by N. Schupbach, M.G.; returned 27 July 1866 (as read); "Illinois, County Marriages, 1810–1940," database with images, FamilySearch (image read 27 September 2026) FamilySearch record QK9L-7HXL FamilySearch record QK9L-7HX2; Illinois Statewide Marriage Index, vol. 006, p. 0204, licence 187; also "Illinois, U.S., County Marriage Records, 1800–1940," and "Illinois, U.S., Marriage Index, 1860–1920," Ancestry.com.

    In the archive: O06751 , O00196 Ancestry

  5. 5

    "United States, Civil War and Later Pension Index, 1861–1917," database with images, FamilySearch, Leonhard Hegnauer, Co. E, 4th Missouri Infantry, and Co. C, Gasconade Co. Battalion, Mo. H.G. and U.S.R.C. Infantry: invalid application 1,301,547, certificate 1,097,644; widow Susan K., application 1,086,039 filed 17 Nov 1916, certificate 851,144; citing NARA T289, Organization Index to Pension Files. FamilySearch record NHQL-HNP

    In the archive: O02988

  6. 6

    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 (34), children Mary C., Christian, Leonard and Susan; citing NARA T9; database with images, Ancestry.com.

    Ancestry

  7. 7

    StABE, K Reutigen 7, Eherodel [marriage register] 1827–1875, p. 19, no. 15 of 1833 (online PDF image 12 of 102): banns of Christian Hirschi, [son] of Peter, of Schangnau, Küher [dairyman], and Magdalena Stocker, [daughter] of Johannis, of Boltigen, read on 29 September and 6 and 13 October 1833; the wedding column is blank. query.sta.be.ch/detail.aspx?ID=230825 (register image read 27 September 2026).

    In the archive: O06090

  8. 8

    StABE, K Amsoldingen 5, Taufrodel 1832–1862, p. 52, no. 11 of 1836 (online PDF image 27 of 187): baptism of Magdalena, 21 February 1836, born 4 February; parents Christian Hirschi, son of Peter, of Schangnau, at Amsoldingen, and Magdalena Stocker, [daughter] of the late Johannes, of Boltigen, married at Thun 26 October 1833; godparents Johannes Stocker, the child's mother's brother, Susanna Stutzmann née Simon, of Uebeschi, and Magdalena Hirschi née Oesch, the child's aunt. query.sta.be.ch/detail.aspx?ID=241384 (register image read 27 September 2026).

    In the archive: O06089

  9. 9

    Anne-Marie Dubler, "Amsoldingen (Gemeinde)," Historisches Lexikon der Schweiz (HLS), version of 1997 (print-edition article, updated 11 November 2016), hls-dhs-dss.ch/de/articles/000520/2016-11-11 (accessed 27 September 2026).

  10. 10

    StABE, K Amsoldingen 5, Taufrodel 1832–1862, pp. 36, 52, 76, 94, 110, 130, 151, 167, 182 and 199, and the copies in K Schangnau 8 and 9, Auswärts Getaufte: the baptisms of the ten Swiss-born children of Christian Hirschi and Magdalena Stocker at Amsoldingen, 9 November 1834 – 4 January 1850 (register images read 27 September 2026).

    In the archive: O06724 , O06089 , O06725 , O06726 , O06727 , O06728 , O06088 , O06087 , O06729 , O06730

  11. 11

    StABE, K Amsoldingen 5, Taufrodel 1832–1862, p. 151, no. 46 of 1844 (online PDF image 77 of 187): baptism of Margaritha Rosalie [or Rosalia], Sunday 13 October 1844, born 1[2 or 8] September 1844 [the second figure unclear; her 1924 death record gives 12 September]; parents Christian Hirschi, [son] of Peter, of Schangnau, at Lilachen, and Magdalena Stocker, [daughter] of Johannes, of Boltigen, married at Thun 26 October 1833. query.sta.be.ch/detail.aspx?ID=241384 (register image read 27 September 2026).

    In the archive: O06088

  12. 12

    Madison County, Illinois, Probate Court, estate of Christian Hirschi [Sr.] of Highland, deceased, case file (box 152): last will dated 3 June 1874 (share "to my daughter Susan[na]"); affidavit of the executor Fridrich Hirschi, 4 December 1885, naming the surviving children "Magdalena Kamm, Frederick, Rosina Tontz, Susanna Hegnauer, Gottlieb" and the children of Christian Hirschi Jr. and of Elisabeth Tontz, deceased; inventory and notes (including a note of Leonhard Hegnauer for $600, 31 May 1884); final account and distribution, 13 March 1889 ("Susan Hegnauer 1/7", $1,955.61 paid), approved 11 April 1889, recorded in Admr. Acc. Rec. A, pp. 291–295; in "Illinois, U.S., Wills and Probate Records, 1772–1999," database with images, Ancestry.com, images 007658310_01384–01411.

    Ancestry

  13. 13

    Anne-Lise Head-König, "Auswanderung," Historisches Lexikon der Schweiz (HLS), version of 1997 (print-edition article, updated 15 October 2007), hls-dhs-dss.ch/de/articles/007988/2007-10-15 (accessed 27 September 2026).

  14. 14

    Find a Grave, memorial 52693825, Christian Hirschi Sr. (14 Aug 1814, Schangnau – 14 Nov 1885, Highland), with a biography naming the ship Belmont, the landing at New York on 1 Aug 1850 and the arrival at Highland on 14 Aug 1850 (findagrave.com/memorial/52693825); and memorial 52693920, Magdalena Stocker Hirschi (5 Dec 1814, Boltigen – 11 May 1881, Highland), married 26 Oct 1833 at Amsoldingen (findagrave.com/memorial/52693920); Highland Cemetery, Highland, Madison County, Illinois; both created by R. Marti.

  15. 15

    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).

  16. 16

    1860 U.S. Federal Census, Township 4 North Range 5 West, Madison County, Illinois, post office Highland, page 285, dwelling 2061, family 2037, enumerated 25 August 1860: Chas [Christian] Herschi (47, farmer, born Switzerland), Mena [Magdalena] (47), John (28), Susan (16, housekeeper, attended school), Rudolph (18), Mary (6, Ill.) and Gaudeloup [Gottlieb] (4); citing NARA M653; database with images, Ancestry.com (images 4213713_00735–00736).

    Ancestry

  17. 17

    German Evangelical congregation, Highland, Illinois (now Evangelical United Church of Christ), register 1860–1870, marriages by Pfarrer Nicolas Schupbach, p. 363, 1866 no. 2: Leonhard Hegnauer, farmer, of Kanton Graubünden, Switzerland, and Susanna Katharina Hirschi, of Amseldingen, Kanton Bern; witnesses Johann Zimmermann and Jungfer Elisabeth Mollet; married 4 July 1866; licence sent back 5 July 1866; Family History Library film 1433226, item 4 (DGS 8198847, image 594), image read 27 September 2026. FamilySearch image 3Q9M-CSLL-QPR4

    In the archive: O06754

  18. 18

    [W. O. Atkeson], History of Bates County, Missouri (1918), pp. 719–721, sketch of Christian Hegnauer, including his father Leonard Hegnauer and his mother Susan K. (Hirschi), "a daughter of Christian Hirschi," born in Switzerland 15 May 1846, died 12 February 1918; scan shared by Susanna Vogt, "Bates History - Hegnauer excerpt," Ancestry member tree 37158608, 4 December 2023.

    Ancestry

  19. 19

    "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).

  20. 20

    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, keeping house, born Switzerland), Mary (3, Ill.), Christian (2, Ill.) and Peter Grob (31); citing NARA M593; database with images, Ancestry.com.

    Ancestry

  21. 21

    "Mrs. L. Hegnauer Dead," Appleton City Journal (Appleton City, Missouri), 21 February 1918, p. 5, with a "Local News" item and a correspondent's column on the same page; image, Newspapers.com (newspapers.com/image/863299249).

  22. 22

    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).

  23. 23

    The Alumni Record of the University of Illinois, p. 384, entry 2681, Leonard Hegnauer, born 22 March 1872, Prairie City, Mo., son of Leonhard (born Canton Graubünden, Switzerland) and Susanna Katherine (Hirschi) Hegnauer (born Canton Bern); in "U.S., Family History Books," database with images, Ancestry.com.

    Ancestry

  24. 24

    "United States, Social Security Numerical Identification Files (NUMIDENT), 1936–2007," database, FamilySearch, Leonard Hegnauer, born 22 March 1872, Prairie City, Missouri; parents Leonard Hegnauer and Susanna K. Hirsch[i]. FamilySearch record 6KWB-GLFJ Also "U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index," Ancestry.com.

    In the archive: O02329 Ancestry

  25. 25

    Missouri Division of Health, certificate of death, state file no. 61-010303, Katherine Susanna Link [indexed "Fink"], died 5 April 1961, Appleton City; born 17 August 1877, Bates County; father Lenard Hegnauer, mother Susanna Hirschi [written "Hirsehi"]; in "Missouri, U.S., Death Certificates, 1910–1971," database with images, Ancestry.com.

    Ancestry

  26. 26

    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

  27. 27

    Newsom's County Directory for Bates County, Missouri (1884), Pleasant Gap Township: "Hegnauer L.", born Switzerland 1843, post office Papinville, farmer, wife "S. Hershi", born Switzerland 1846; in "U.S., City Directories, 1822–1995," database with images, Ancestry.com (image 41199_1220706242_4152-00086).

    Ancestry

  28. 28

    1910 U.S. Federal Census, Appleton Ward 2, St. Clair County, Missouri, E.D. 124, sheet 7A, dwelling 171, family 174, Susan Hegnauer (wife, 63, married 44 years, mother of 5 children, 5 living, born Switzerland, immigrated 185[9]) in the household of Leonard Hegnauer, with son Robert L.; citing NARA T624, roll 801; database with images, Ancestry.com. Also FamilySearch record M2BX-SW3

    In the archive: O00191 , O00193 , O02855 Ancestry

  29. 29

    Studio portrait of Leonard Hegnauer, his wife Susanna Katherine (Hirschi) and their children Mary, Leonard, Christian, Katherine and Robert Lucius, about 1905–1910; shared by MaggieOhio, Ancestry member tree 9815048, 16 September 2012. The same portrait, labelled "Susan Katherine (Hirschi) 1846-1918", shared by gloriaroach866, Ancestry member tree 56662186, 13 December 2016.

    Ancestry

  30. 30

    "United States, General Index to Pension Files, 1861–1934," database with images, FamilySearch, Leonhard Hegnauer and widow Susan K. Hegnauer; citing NARA T288. FamilySearch record KDYT-YGS Also "U.S., Civil War Pension Index: General Index to Pension Files, 1861–1934," Ancestry.com, "Leonhard Hegnaner," widow "Susan K Hegnaner."

    In the archive: O02790 Ancestry

  31. 31

    Duplicate marriage certificate of Leonhard Hegnauer of Kanton Graubünden and Susane K Hirschi of Amseldingen [Amsoldingen], Kanton Bern, married at Highland, Illinois, 4 July 1866, by Rev. Nicolas Schupbach; witnesses Johann Zimmermann and [Ann?] Elisabeth Mollet; drawn from the church records (page 213; book number cut off) and sworn at Highland, 21 April 1917, for the widow's pension claim (original in the NARA pension file); photograph shared by jnel126, "Hegnauer - Hirschi Marriage," Ancestry member tree 154982007, 10 November 2018.

    Ancestry

  32. 32

    [Local news], The Republican Press (Butler, Missouri), 15 February 1918, p. 5: "Mr. G. Hirschi has been out of the Meat Market the past few days, on account of the death of his sister, Mrs. Leonard Hegnauer, of near Prairie City"; image, Newspapers.com (newspapers.com/image/999638462).

  33. 33

    "Rockville Department," Appleton City Journal (Appleton City, Missouri), 21 February 1918, p. 4: her funeral attended by "Gotlieb Hirschi of this city, who is a brother of the deceased"; image, Newspapers.com (newspapers.com/image/863299245).

  34. 34

    "Pleasant Gap," Appleton City Journal (Appleton City, Missouri), 21 February 1918, p. 2; image, Newspapers.com (newspapers.com/image/863299237).

  35. 35

    Find a Grave, memorial 56820862, Susanna Katharina Hirschi Hegnauer (15 May 1846 – 12 Feb 1918), Reform Cemetery, Pleasant Gap, Bates County, Missouri, gravesite H228, with a gravestone photograph by Larry Spangler (findagrave.com/memorial/56820862); also "U.S., Find a Grave Index, 1600s–Current," Ancestry.com.

    In the archive: O04055 , O00194 Ancestry

  36. 36

    Gravestone of Leonhard Hegnauer (25 Apr 1843 – 31 Oct 1916) and "Susanna K. seine Frau" (15 May 1846 – "12. APR. 1918"), Reform Cemetery, Pleasant Gap, Bates County, Missouri; photograph shared by jnel126, "Leonhard Hegnauer Grave," Ancestry member tree 154982007, 10 November 2018; the inscription read from Larry Spangler's full-size photograph on Find a Grave, memorial 56820862.

    Ancestry

  37. 37

    Staatsarchiv des Kantons Bern (StABE), K Schangnau 9, Auswärts Getaufte [citizens baptised elsewhere] 1841–1860, p. 68, no. 45 (online PDF image 36): home-parish copy of the Amsoldingen baptism of Susanna Katharina, daughter of Christian Hirschi, Peter's son, of Schangnau, and Magdalena Stocker, of Boltigen, 5 June 1846. query.sta.be.ch/detail.aspx?ID=423418 (register image read 27 September 2026).

    In the archive: O06736

  38. 38

    "Illinois, County Marriages, 1810–1940" and "Illinois, Marriages," databases, FamilySearch, Leonard Hegnauer and Clara Edith Baker, 24 December 1901, Watseka, Iroquois County, Illinois; groom born 1871, Prairie City, Bates County, Missouri; parents Leonard Hegnauer and Susan K. Hirschi. FamilySearch record QPMP-J8RH; FamilySearch record KF2S-4KV

  39. 39

    Julius Billeter, "Hirschi Family of Schangnau, Bern, Switzerland" (manuscript genealogy, October 1919), Family History Library microfilm 599705; not viewed; cited for her name and birth on FamilySearch Family Tree person LCTS-LN1.

  40. 40

    "Switzerland, Catholic and Reformed Church Records, 1418–1996," database, FamilySearch, marriage of Christian Hirschi (father Peter) and Magdalena Stocker (father Johannis), 1833, Reutigen, Bern [the place of the banns; the wedding was at Thun]. FamilySearch record 68V1-7361

    In the archive: O05924

  41. 41

    "United States, Veterans Administration Pension Payment Cards, 1907–1933," database with images, FamilySearch, Leonhard Hegnauer and widow Susan K. Hegnauer (card closed at her death, 12 February 1918); citing NARA M850. FamilySearch record K64R-X2Q

    In the archive: O02748

  42. 42

    "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).

  43. 43

    Copy of Missouri death certificate no. 4170, Susanna Katharina Hegnauer, 1918, shared by Jason Flynn (heatherflynn0705), "Susanna K Hirschi Hegnauer Certificate," Ancestry member tree 42364812, 24 September 2016; original at the Missouri State Archives.

    Ancestry

  44. 44

    Edwardsville Intelligencer (Edwardsville, Illinois), 18 November 1904, p. 5: "Leon[hard] Hegnauer, accompanied by his sister-in-law, Mrs. F. Hirschi, and his niece, Miss Clara Hirschi, of Bates county, Mo., visited relatives here on Sunday"; image, Newspapers.com (newspapers.com/image/1303514980).