Theodore and Julia

Theodore "Theo" Heinen
Parents: Anton and Elisabeth (Huppan) Heinen
Born: April 17, 1839 in Bockum, Krefeld, Nordrhein-Westfalen, present-day Germany
Died: February 11, 1928 in Loose Creek, Osage County, Missouri, United States of America
Buried: February 13, 1928 in Immaculate Conception Catholic Church Cemetery, Loose Creek, Osage County, Missouri, United States of America

Married: Juliana Backes on August 6, 1867 in Immaculate Conception Catholic Church, Loose Creek, Osage County, Missouri, United States of America
Children: Amelia Louise, Hugo August, Sabine Elizabeth, Ida Conradina, Rudolph John


Juliana "Julia" "Juelchen" Backes
Parents: Goswin and Catharina Margaret (Ingmans) Backes
Born: November 3, 1846 in Deulken, Moenchen-Gladbach, Rheinland, present-day Germany
Died: September 21, 1900 in Loose Creek, Osage County, Missouri, United States of America
Buried: 1900 in Immaculate Conception Catholic Church Cemetery, Loose Creek, Osage County, Missouri, United States of America

Married: Theodore Heinen on August 6, 1867 in Immaculate Conception Catholic Church, Loose Creek, Osage County, Missouri, United States of America
Children: Amelia Louise, Hugo August, Sabine Elizabeth, Ida Conradina, Rudolph John


On April 17, 1839, a baby boy was born to Anton and Elisabeth (Huppan) Heinen in Bockum, Crefeld, Nordrhein-Westfalen.   The baby was named Theodore and was probably baptized at Sankt-Gertudis Katholische Kirche in Krefeld.  Theodore's father, Anton, was a farmer.  It is not known how many siblings "Theo" had, but it is definite that he had at least one brother.

He was taught to read and write, and probably arithmetic and German.  In his teen years he helped on his father's farm.  At that time, many people from his area were immigrating to America, in particular to a state called Missouri.

While he was plowing his father's fields one day in 1859, when he was 20 years old, he became so anxious to leave for the Americas, with the thought of plenty of farming land, that he dropped the plow in the field and sneaked back to the farmhouse.  At the house, he took his father's revolver and gold watch, and without telling his family goodbye, left for the shipyard.  At the port, he stowed away on a ship, but was found once the ship was out to sea.  Once he was discovered, he took a job as cabin-boy to pay for his passage across the ocean.

The ship landed in Mexico, where the ship stayed for a while until it headed on to Galveston, Texas, where his records are located.  He worked as a ranch hand, rounding up cattle, and as a schoolteacher in the town of Comfort, Texas.

After working in Texas, he caught a ship for New Orleans, Louisiana.  In New Orleans, he rented a team of oxen to take him to Missouri.  Because the oxen understood commands in English and not in German, and also to get the team of oxen back to New Orleans, a slave came with Theodore to act as a guide.

Pro-slavery Missourians did not want Germans coming to their state, because Germans tended to be Catholic and anti-slavery.  In the high-tension days before the start of the American Civil War, they wished Missouri to remain a slave-holding state.  So at night they would camp in a trench, and stretch a rope across from side-to-side. When the bandits would gallop down in the night at full-speed to shoot the immigrants, they would be flung up by the unseen rope, into the air, and land dead or seriously injured.

Theodore farmed in the Loose Creek, Osage County, Missouri area from the time of his arrival until 1875.  During that time, he married Julia Backes Brinkman, the widow of the late Bernard Brinkman who had died in 1867, at Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Loose Creek on August 6, 1867.

On June 20, 1869, their first child Amelia Louisa was born in Loose Creek.  One year later, on May 3, 1870, he became a citizen of the United States of America. On August 12, 1872, Sabina was born in Loose Creek.  Hugo was born on June 8, 1873 in Loose Creek, and their fourth child, Ida Conradina, was born on July 17, 1875 in Loose Creek.

In December, 1875, Theo was appointed the fifth postmaster of Loose Creek, a position which he served at for 27 years until 1902.  As the post office was also located at the general store purchased from his wife's brother-in-law Henry Haslag, Theodore also managed that.  As there was no bank, he often loaned money to Loose Creek citizens.  The building is still standing today and serves as the Loose Creek post office.  Theodore managed the store until his death in 1928.  The 1880 US Census lists him as a merchant.

Their fifth child, Rudolph John, was born on October 4, 1886 in Loose Creek.

In 1887 he built the famous Heinen-Muenks house.  The bricks were fro a limestone quarry along the Maries River and were hauled into Loose Creek by team and wagon at the rate of four to a load.  Stephan Eickhoff and others were stonemasons.  There was also a barn that Theo built.

On September 21, 1900, his beloved wife Julia died of breast cancer in Loose Creek.  She was buried at the Immaculate Conception Catholic Cemetery.

In 1898 he was elected Osage County Judge, (now Commissioner) and remained in that position for two terms until 1902, when he married a widow, Louise Ladner, in San Antonio, Texas.  Louise was born about 1845.

The warm climate of Texas reminded him of the warm winters he spent in his youth, and he ended up spending much of his time in San Antonio.  His son, Rudolph, visited vim from Iowa in 1923, and Theo had a lot of fun with his seven year old grandson, Lester, an his three year old granddaughter, Evelyn, whom he met for the first time.  Theodore was also Lester's godfather, but because of the distance, someone had stood in for him at the baptism.

In 1926, Theo sent the funds for his young nephew, Max Heinen, to come from Germany.  Max then returned to economically depressed Germany.

Theodore Heinen died on February 11, 1928 at his home in Loose Creek Missouri after a long and joyful life.  He was 87 years and 10 months.  He was buried next to his first wife Julia in Immaculate Conception Church Cemetery in Loose Creek on February 13, 1928.  His funeral ceremony was held by the Rev. H. Kuper, pastor of the parish.



Early 1860- Theodore immigrates to the USA.

May 3, 1870- Theodore gains his US citizenship.

circa 1875-1928- opened a general store, continued by his son Hugo.

December 1875-1902- Theodore is the 5th postmaster of Loose Creek for 27 years.

1887-Famous "Heinen-Muenks" house is built.

1898-1902-  Theodore is County Judge (now Commissioner) for two terms

1902-married Louise Ladner in San Antonio, Bexar County, Texas

1926- A nephew, Max Heinen of Anenheim, Germany visited his uncle Theodore.  Max's parents (Theodore's brother and sister-in-law) were killed in 1945 when a bomb was dropped on their house in World War II.

"Former Judge Theodore Heinen, one of Osage County's wealthiest and most venerable citizens, died at his palatial home in Loose Creek Saturday morning at an early hour. A paralytic stroke was the immediate cause of death.

"Judge Heinen lacked but a few weeks of attaining the unusual age of 89 years. He was certainly a landmark in the little town of Loose Creek. Coming to that village more than 60 years ago as a penniless youth., he parted this life there the wealthiest citizen of the place and one of the wealthiest in Osage County.
In his early manhood Mr. Heinen was a school teacher and later a merchant, following the latter avocation until only a few years ago when age and physical infirmities made it incumbent to quit the active life of a county merchant.
Judge Heinen cared little for public office, but nevertheless he was elected judge of the county court for the second district in 1898 and 1900, and was one of the pioneers in the building of rock roads."
UNTERRIFIED DEMOCRAT 
Linn, Missouri 
16 FEB 1928 



Hubert Bescheinen, the owner of Bescheinen Furniture and Loose Creek Historian states that the Old Cemetery received burials from about 1850 until 1938 at which time all burials switched to the New Cemetery. Both cemeteries are known as Immaculate Conception Catholic Cemetery.

The Old Cemetery next to the Church has no sign. The New Cemetery with burial from 1938 to the present has a large gate and is located about a mile from the old cemetery outside town.


Louisa Ladner
Born: Between 1854-1855 in Texas

Louisa's father was born in Switzerland, and her mother in Alsace-Lorraine, Germany.  After Theodore Heinen died in 1928 Louisa is listed as living with her sister Josephine, aged 63, on Montana Street in San Antonio, Texas.  Series T626 Roll 2297 Page 160 of the 1930 US Census.

Her step-grandson, Warren Heinen, believes that she died about 1935.