Page last updated: April 2, 2013
All pages copyright © 2013 by Acquired Intelligence, Inc.
Help support our free offerings... Shop at Pinyon Publishing.
Thanks!
Insming, Alsace/Lorraine
We can't be entirely certain, but it’s probable that the name (Ensming, Entsminger, Entzminger) in its variations denotes a former inhabitant of Insming, a village in Moselle, France.
1. Our Name
Most descendents of this line originated from Alsace, a region depending on the period of time, that has been part of both France and Germany. Currently, it's part of the Department of Bas-Rhin, France.
The earliest known Ensmingers are two men (both named 'Hans') who lived in what is now Alsace, France about 25km west of the Rhine River.
Hans Gerber Ensminger died December 26, 1630 in Diemeringen, Alsace.
Hans Meyer der Einssminger died August 29, 1621 in Bockenheim. At his death, his name was recorded as Hans Ensminger. There is no evidence that these two families were related.
The relationship between these two families sharing an identical surname, living in Alsatian villages less than two miles apart, is lost in the mists of time.
However, both surnames have meanings associated with cattle ('gerber' means tanner; 'meyer' means dairy farmer), and their shared surname suggests that both came from the village of Insming (Ensming) in what is now called Lorraine.
Notably, both families sent emigrant families to the United States, and each line has books devoted to the founding American families that include detailed research on descendants.
In our history, we are indebted to the fine research and work of Raymond Martin Bell and Brendan R. Wehrung for their decades of work tracing the Entsminger family. Although their primary interest was in tracing the Pennsylvania Ensmingers, their wonderful work in Alsace is responsible for the French/German information we include here. We highly recommend their book (Ensminger of Alsace and Pennsylvania, 1994) for detailed information about other Ensminger clans.
Our family comes from the Ensminger, Entsminger, Entzminger line of Hans Meyer der Einssminger (1575-1621).
2. The Area, a Religious Crossroads
Alsace/Lorraine is a farming region, and our ancestors were primarily associated with farming through their many generations in France-Germany.
The French-Germany border was an area of strong and often conflicting religious enthusiasm. The French side is well-known for its strong Catholic faith. The German side in recent history is known for Martin Luther's break from the Catholic church and the subsequent Thirty Years War. Our family, both in Alsace and in Pennsylvania where they immigrated, were primarily Lutherans.
3. Hans Meyer
Hans Meyer 'der Ensminger' came to Bockenheim, Alsace about 1600. He was born in 1575 in Ensming, Lorraine, France. He died in 1621 in Sarre Union, Alsace, France. He married Margaretha Wagner August 5, 1617 in Sarre Union, Alsace, France.
According to Raymond Bell, Hans had at least two children, Jacob and Adam, and one of them was Georg’s likely father. But according to other sources, Georg was Hans Meyer’s son. Given their relative ages (Georg was born in 1620 when Hans was 43), it’s possible Hans was father of Georg not grandfather. A mystery, not likely to be cleared up, since records were lost during the Thirty Years War.
Regardless, Hans Georg Ensminger was born ~1620 in Waldhambach, Alsace, France. He died in 1708. He married Catherine ~1635 in Waldhambach, Alsace, France. Georg Ensminger was the richest man in the village of Waldhambach (just east of Diemeringen) at the time a tax list was drawn in the summer of 1662. They had six children:
1. Philip—b: July, 1639 in Waldhambach, Alsace, France.
2. Hans Nicolaus—b: October 21, 1642 in Waldhambach, Alsace, France.
3. Catharina—b: ~1646.
4. Appolonia—b: ~1652 in Waldhambach, Alsace, France.
5. Georg—b:~1653 in Waldhambach, Alsace, France.
6. Barbel—b:~1655 in Waldhambach, Alsace, France.
Our line descends through Philip Ensminger (later referred to as Philip Sr.). Philip was born on July 1639 in Waldhambach, Alsace, France. He died January 15, 1712 in Waldhambach, Alsace, France. He was married ~1663 in Waldhambach, Alsace, France. As often is the case in long ago records, his spouse is unnamed in the records. They had six children:
1. Matthias—b: ~1664 in Waldhambach, Alsace, France.
2. Philip (Jr.)—b: 1666 in Waldhambach, Alsace, France.
3. Hans Daniel—b: ~1668 in Waldhambach, Alsace, France
4. Anna Elisabetha—b: ~1670 in Waldhambach, Alsace, France
5. Anna Margaretha—b: ~1672 in Waldhambach, Alsace, France.
6. Weintraud Magdalena.
Our line descends through Philip Ensminger (Jr.). Philip married Elisabetha Quirin (b. September 21, 1671 in Wolfskirchen, Alsace, France.) They married ~1691 in Waldhambach, Alsace, France, and had eight children:
1. Philip—b: ~1692 in Waldhambach, Alsace, France—c: March 3, 1692 in Waldhambach, Alsace, France.
2. Johan Peter—b: January 28, 1694 in Waldhambach, Alsace, France.
3. Hans Jacob R—b: ~1695 in Durstel, Alsace, France—c: June, 1696 in Durstel, Alsace, France.
4. Catharina Margaretha—b: September 21, 1696 in Durstel, Alsace, France—c: March 1, 1697 in Durstel, Alsace, France.
5. Johan Nicholas—b: October 4, 1699 in Diemeringen, Bas-Rhein, Alsace, France
6. Anna Elisabeth—b: ~June 2, 1701 in Durstel, Alsace, France.
7. Maria Catharine—b: ~June 1, 1702 in Durstel, Alsace, France.
8. Johan Heinrich—b: 1705 in Mattstal, Alsace, France—c: March 10, 1705 in Matstall, Alsace, France.
Our line descends through Johan Henirich Ensminger. He married ~ 1724, and had at least one child, our ancestor, John Henry, Jr. in 1725. For the next 16 years, John Henry (Sr) and John Henry (Jr). (apparently) lived in Alsace.