SCHWENK FAMILY ASSOCIATION IN GERMANY
Family Day of Schwenks In Ulm: 1936
The following was sent by email in early March, 1997, to the some current
eight "members" of the SchwenkNet John Schwenk Clan. The reader will
see here the beginnings of a Schwenk Association in the Ulm region. This
association lasted only a few years, for the turmoils of World War II brought
it to an early end in around 1940.
****
Dear fellow members of the John Schwenk Clan:
Heinrich Schwenk faxed me in Oct. 1996 a newspaper article printed
on May 7, 1936 in Laichingen. I will do my best to translate this for you. The
print is very small, and several lines or parts of lines became corrupted in
the fax transmission. Words in parentheses are mine.
Don Schwenk
WUERTTEMBERGISCHE CHRONIK
FAMILY DAY OF SCHWENKS IN ULM
3 May 1936
Last Sunday, more than 250 bearers of the family name Schwenk
accepted an invitation to meet at the Casinosaal in Ulm. They came from all
parts of Württemberg, but principally from Stuttgart, Reutlingen,
Geislingen, Freudenstadt, Münsingen, Langenau, Leipheim, Augsburg,
Pforzheim, Heidelberg and above all from Ulm. Of all these Schwenks, 50 of
them came from the cradle of Schwenkdom, Laichingen. These included those
Schwenks with the added-on names, such as Schwenkglenks, Schwenkedel,
Schwenkkraus, Schwenkmezger and Schwenkschuster whose forefathers in the
distant past were Schwenk. With great interest the various cousins (male &
female) joined in on tours though our Münster City, and then all met
together for a midday meal at the Casinosaal. As an indication of the great
interest in such family days - reunions, the nominee and director of this
Schwenk Family Day, Herr Gottlob Schwenk, manufacturer in Ulm, read the many
letters and telegrams received from Schwenk members within and outside of Württemberg
who could not attend this get-together. In addition, he stressed the
importance of the research of ancesty and family history, and he spoke briefly
about the meaning and purpose of ancestry research which is in part to reveal
the lives, the achievements and characters of our forefathers.
In addition to becoming acquainted with each other and refreshing
old memories and relationships, the day was devoted to serious research work.
The central point of the day was a speech by the well-known Ulm genealogist
and candidate for PHd degree, Albrecht Rieber. This speech related to the
extensive family and ancestry research of Herr Dr. C. Schwenk of Ulm (readers:
this is the grandson, b. 1883, of the founder of the Schwenk Zement Company).
There is likely no other clan of the Schwenks with a more complete family tree
than this one. And so the other Schwenk cousins listened with great interest
to Herr Rieber who told of the earliest known founder of this clan, a Bartle
Schwenk, farmer in Merklingen in 1538, and then his son, also Bartle, who in
addition to operating a large farm there was a lawyer and freight business
owner/operator. The exigencies of the 30 Years War caused them to flee to the
safety of the walled city of Ulm, however Bartle's son Johannes went to
Leipheim, married, and thereby founded a new branch, line of the Schwenks.
About one hundred years, that is until 1728, this family remained in Leipheim.
At that time, a descendant, again a Johannes Schwenk moved to Langenau and
took over the brewery & inn the "Hasen." Besides the "Hasen",
during the course of years he acquired the "Die Sonne" , "der
Ochsen" (also inns I believe).
His son, also named Johannes (b. 1730), a highly respected merchant,
acquired the large Amthaus (administrative center?) in Ulm in 1805, while his
son Sylvester went to Nerenstetten (this town and Langenau are about 12 mi.
NNE of Ulm) and became the postmaster of the Holy Roman Empire as well as
acquring the inn, "Adler" in Nerenstetten. In 1802, Sylvester's son
Johannes, took over from his aunt the century-old copper mill in Ulm which
today is the well-known Zementwerke E. Schwenk. Under Johannes' direction,
this earlier copper mill flourished, and later a brass foundry was added to
this. These businesses prospered, esp. because of the building of walled
fortifications around the city of Ulm.
Eduard Schwenk ( b. 1812, son of Johannes) thus founded the cement
company,then one of the first in Germany (year not ledgible, but around 1847).
His son Dr. Carl Schwenk (b 1852) expanded this business into other locations
in the region; a plant in Allmendingen (ca. 8 mi. ENE of Mundingen - straight
north of Ehingen) and one in Mergelstetten, and later a Terrazzofabrik (clay
tile factory?) in Ulm, the first of its kind in Germany.
Dr. Carl Fritz Schwenk (b. 1883), son of Dr. Carl Schwenk, is today
the head of this large and successful conglomerate.
The family tree of Dr. C. Fritz Schwenk, which Herr Rieber is
currently working on, gives us also a glimpse into the lives of the female
ancestors and their lineages. In these more than 3000 ancestors which have
already been documented, we see them having lived in many parts of Swabia and
other parts of Württemberg, and from Franken (area then NE of Württemberg)
and other places far outside the boundries of our small Heimat (homeland
area). All classes and professions, from high nobility to the day laborer, are
to be found in this family tree.
Now as to the question of the origins of the family name Schwenk,
Herr Rieber disagrees, and probably rightly so, that this name comes from the
old German word for swan, Swan or today Schwahn.
It is more likely, according to the the well known researcher Semle
from Laichingen, that this name is a derivation of the old Allemannen first
name, Swanuco. Unfortunately, there is no proof of this derivation. It is then
more likely that this family name derives from the frequently used Swabian
word, "schwenken."There are a great number of domestic and
work-related terms and objects of every-day life which incorporate this verb,
schwenken, which could have given rise to this family name.
To find the origins of the Schwenks, one would most likely look
there on the "Alb" between Heidenheim (ca. 20 mi. ENE of Ulm), Ulm
and Reutlingen (SE of Stuttgart) and above all in Laichingen where the highest
concentration of Schwenks is to be found. However, there are also
likely-connected Schwenks in Freudenstadt (NE Blackforest area), and one on
the Nahe and Lahn (Rivers). Likewise, in earlier centuries, the name Schwenk
was widespead in the region of Franken, Hall and Gaildorf. There in
Laichingen, the central seat of the Schwenks, we find a Schwenk mentioned in a
latin document written in 1427 (since this was written in 1936, other research
in Laichingen has found a Ruoss Schwenk there in 1383). And in a Ulm church
document, the name Schwenk - Swenco - is seen in a document dated in 1239.
In a display in an adjoining room in the Casinosaal, many family
trees, pictures of ancestors and of ancestral villages and homes of ancestors
brought great joy to the visitors. The displayed family tree of Herr Gottlob
Schwenk, manufacturer in Ulm (related perhaps to the Zement Schwenk, but not
in the same clan as I understand it) showed the Laichingen, Münsingen,
Reutlingen families; Those of the Zement Pourer Schwenk showed the Merklingen,
Leipheim, Langenau and Ulm branches. Meanwhile, the likenesses of the
ancestors of Dr. Carl Schwenk were displayed on a large chart.
The well-known humorist, Gustav Rohnle, appeared before the
gathering and sang a self-composed Schwenklied (song) which received loud
applause. As an outward sign of the bond between all these Schwenks, a badge
was presented to each Schwenk participant upon which appears the image of the
leaping hound and the two cross beams in the family coat of arms.
§§§
Kin Association Schwenk: 1938
Dear Cousins!
Our appeal in December, 1937 found a lively response from a
great number of cousins, male and female. Many letters have arrived, and a
considerable number of member contributions and donations have also come in.
We hope that the enclosed invitation to a Family Day in Freudenstadt will have
even a greater response, so that this will be a real Schwenk Day.
The preparations for the founding of the family association have
likewise shown good results. Upon many requests, Cousin Gottlob Schwenk, Ulm
a. D., Wielandstrasse 41, has already declared to take over chairmanship of
the total combined kin association. For his support, a vice chairman, a
secretary, a treasurer and a family councilman will be nominated. Further, the
individual clans and districts will be assigned to sub groups, for example,
the Black Forest, Laichingen, Ulm, northern German groups, and so forth.
The chief tasks of the family assocation will be: The determination
and compilation of all people bearing the family name of Schwenk and the
appertanent variations of this name, this for the maintenance and fostering of
family relationships, the identification of ancestry and history of the
individual Schwenk clans and the mutual connections, research of the
individual family lineages and branchings, and the informing of these results
to the individual members through the publication of a newsletter.
We hope that all Schwenk namebearers will cooperate gladly with the
kin association and encourage those non-members to join, and request at the
same time that each share what is already known about his ancestry and that of
his family.
May the Family Day in Freudenstadt run a successful course so that in
the future at regular Family Days, the relations between the joined clans will
strengthen.
In clan-related unity our heartfelt greetings,
Ulm, in April, 1938:
Gottlob Schwenk, Ulm a.D.
Karl Schwenk, Lossburg, O.A. Freudenstadt
Heinrich Schwenk, Hannover, Wörthstrasse 28
§§§
Sippenverband Schwenk: 1938
Liebe Basen und vettern!
Unser Aufruf vom Dezember 1937 hat bei zahlreichen Vettern und
Basen ein lebhaftes Echo gefunden. Viele Zuschriften liefen ein und eine
stattliche Zahl von Mitgliedsbeiträgen und Stiftungen ist auch schon
eingegangen. Wir hoffen, dass die beigelegte Einladung zum Familientag in
Freudenstadt einen noch lebhafteren Widerhall findet, damit es wirklich ein
allgemeiner Schwenktag wird.
Die Vorbereitungen zur Gründung des Familienverbandes haben
gleichfalls gute Ergebnisse gezeitigt. Auf mehrfachen Wunsch hin hat sich
Vetter
Gottlob Schwenk, Ulm a.D., Wielandstrasse 41
bereit erklärt, den 1. Vorsitz des Gesamtsippenverbandes zu übernehmen,
wenn ihn der Sippentag dafür bestimmen wird. Zu seiner Unterstützung
wird ein 2. Vorsitzender, ein Schriftführer und Chronist, ein Kassier und
ein Familienrat berufen werden. Weiterhin sollen die einzelnen Stämme und
Gaue in Untergruppen eingeteilt werden, z. B. die Schwarzwälder,
Laichinger, Ulmer, norddeutsche Gruppe usw.
Die Hauptaufgaben des Familienverbandes werden sein: die Ermittlung
und Zusammenfassung aller Namensträger Schwenk und den dazugehörenden
Abwandlungen zur Pflege und Förderung der Familienbeziehungen,
Feststellung der Herkunft und Geschichte der einzelnen Schwenkstämme und
der gegenseitigen Beziehungen, Erforschung der genauen Geschlecterfolge und
Verzweigungen und Mitteilung der Ergebnisse and die einzelnen Mitglieder durch
Herausgabe eines Meitteilungsblattes.
Wir hoffen, dass alle Namensträger Schwenk freudig an dem
Sippenverband mitarbeiten und die noch Fernstehenden zum Beitritt ermuntern,
und bitten zugleich, dass jeder mitteilt, was ihm über seine Abkunft und
seine Familie bereits bekannt ist.
Möge der Familientag in Freudenstadt einen erfolgreichen Verlauf
nehmen, damit in Zukunft bei regelmässigen Familientagen die geknüpften
Bande sich festigen.
In stammesverwandter Verbundenheit grüssen herzlich
Ulm, im April 1938
Gottlob Schwenk, Ulm a. D., Wielandstrasse 41
Karl Schwenk, Lossburg, OA. Freudenstadt
Heinrich Schwenk, Hannover, Wörthstrasse 28
§§§
