Today I'd like to move on with our series about German Schochenmaiers who had dwelled in Germany before they moved to the Russian Empire. In the last post we got to tknow abou the staff sergeant Johann Christian Schochenmayer (1680s-1750s) who had lived around Stuttgart and served in the Infantry Regiment Alt-Württemberg (founded in 1716). As we know he had got al least 4 kids (highly unprobable because in the 18th century normally they had more children as lots of them didn't survive in their early childhood). I didn't find out what happened to Johannes (1719), neither to Johann Friedrich (1721), nor to Maria Katharina (1736) but I've collected some information concerning Johann Christian (1724). And he was pretty interesting person and he had an amazing job. Let's get start it!!!
1. Years of life
First how can we be sure when he was born and how long he had lived? It's easy. Although I didn't find any birth certificate, in his death register you can see how long was his life:
Now it's clear: Johann Christian had died on February 22, 1799. If he had lived for 75 years, he could have been born in 1724 (from March to December) or in 1725 (from January to February). He died in Ludwigsburg. By the way, it's noticed that he died from "Schwindsucht" - it's old German word for wasting (med.), consumption or phthisis which all mean "pulmonary tuberculosis". Well, now I understand why he died in the winter(((.
2. Wedding
The next document demonstrates who he had married to:
On July 28, 1750 he got married to Anna Margaretha Wolf. If you read German, it's simple to decipher that she was daughter of Johann Georg Wolf (Wolffen is Wolf's, the old genetive case in the Southern German dialect). Her father was silk weaver ("Seidenweber" in German) that more or less corresponds to the profession of our ancestor and that's why it's very important.
Anna Margaretha was born on December 6, 1724 in Weiler and that is the same where her father worked as you can read off from the scan (Weiler, district of Schorndorf, about 30 km from Ludwigsburg and Stuttgart).
She had lived for 75 years and died on October 27, 1800 in Ludwigsburg. She worked as midwife (in German "Hebamme"). For me this fact is really impressive. I thought that up to the 20th century all "ladies" were sitting at home and doing nothing but it's not the case here! She died from "Naturnachlaß" what can be translated as "frailty of old age" or "give-up of nature". Let's count now: Johann Christian was 26 and Anna Margaretha 25 years old when they got married.
3. Job
And now the most important thing - his occupation)))
He worked as "Tuchmacher" - cloth-maker but where he worked is more interesting than that as he worked in "Arbeitshaus" (workhouse) and Zuchthaus (house of correction). I know what you think of. Of Oliver Twist and all stuff of that kind))) The associations we get while hearing or reading such things are not so positive but just imagine that the situation in the 18th century was considered from another view. For that time it was a new concept of treating the orphans through letting them to work and therefore to pay for themselves. However, we should be precise. Our forefather Johann Christian worked not like a teacher or priest in the Workhouse but he was master of the cloth manufactory (factory for flannel and towels) where the children without parents should be working and trained in order to get their future profession.
There is another question: if we take into account that Johann Christian Sr. was staff sergeant, in this case why Johann Christian Jr. had radically changed his family's occupation. I can think of two answers. First, the 18th century was the time of industrial revolution and lots of new branches had been "opened". Second, the Infantry Regiment had been created only in 1716 although made up of volunteers from the existing household groups. I suggest those military groups could have their own professional occupation if they were just household ones. So, Johann Christian Sr. could have been a sort of weaver or cloth-maker before he entered the Alt-Württemberg Regiment.
As Workhouse was an official place where those unable to support themselves were offered accommodation and employment, there should be some info about it. What do we know about the workhouse in Ludwigsburg. There is no info in English, so I have to translate:
Cloth Manufactory in Ludwigsburg
In 1736 the cloth factory was founded together with the Ludwigsburg house of correction, workhouse and orphanage school. At the end of the 18th century it became independent. In 1826 the cloth manufactory was privatized for economic reasons. Files of the cloth factory before 1806 are in the stock A 244.
The cloth manufactory, which had been connected with workhouse and orphanage, had gradually decayed until it was newly established under the reign of King Frederick. It provided all the forced laborers and general laborers of the Kingdom with woolen spinnings and supplied cloths, horse blankets (or carpets?) etc. for the military and the court. Fine cloths were also made for sale.
Oh, now I can see the link between Johann Christian Sr. and Johann Christian Jr.: the first was military and the second provided military cloths, stuff and horse wraps)))
The Ludwigsburg Workhouse was founded in 1736 by Duke Karl Alexander and received numerous privileges. A detailed historical description of the institution with a list of names of the staff can be found in the official register of the office: Büschel 13. The poor and orphan children were accommodated in addition to the prisoners of both sexes who had to wok in the cloth manufactory and other enterprises of the Workhouse like tobacco, silk, pile, porcelain and faience factories. Its own butchery and bakery, among other things, cared of the food of inmates. The workhouse was arranged for the reception of 290 male and 160 female prisoners.
The weaving took place in the Workhouse of learned clothmakers. The inmates of the male sex cleansed, caressed and combed the wool (after lessons) while the inmates of the female sex (mostly orphan girls) spun it. The children were admitted to the age of seven and remain until the age of fourteen, for girls somewhat longer. Then the boys are sent to artisans, and the girls go into service. Besides the lessons, the boys have to do the necessary services in the house, and the girls get the household, cooking, cleaning the rooms, making the beds, etc. Besides taht, the boys spin cotton and the girls knit and spin cotton and flax.
The work in the Workhouse looked like that ( clickable photos of the Workhouse in England):
In 1746 an insane asylum was attached to the Workhouse. In 1752 the church and the school were built for the children as well. The male prisoners were separated from the female ones and transferred to the Gotteszell House of Correction in 1809, and the madhouse was relocated to the monastery of Zwiefaltenin in 1812. Two adjoining buildings, of which the southern part containing bakery, were formerly part of the cloth manufactory, served as a bread-bakery and bread-house with three baking ovens, two bakeries, two flour magazines and a cloakroom. Today it's on the Schorndorfer Street. A spinning house built in 1754, which was later used for straw-work, was later given to the inmates of the institution, as well as to a guard.
Besides that, the military orphanage was united with the orphanage in 1779 and expanded to accommodate 200 children. One more possible link with the Infantry Regiment.
The cloth manufactory contains woolen spinning and hand-spinning mill, tapestry and cloth weaving factory, linen and cotton weaving mill, cobbler's (shoe repairing) and tailor shop. Their production was used by inmates, but floor carpets, winter shoes, male cloths, woolen socks etc. were sold to others in the city.
The entrepreneurs were therefore probably useful people for the country. Yet they complained bitterly about religious grievances. As a reformed, they were promised free religious practice on entering the country, and the court church in Ludwigsburg had been granted.
One of the oldest photos taken around 1900:
The entrance how it looks today:
And the main building:
I've found the names of other masters working there, maybe possible colleagues of Johann Christian, who knows:
Christoph Fronmüller, widow, born in 1710, was the first cloth-maker in the Workhouse. He should be 26 years old when the Manufactory was founded.
Peter Wallschmitt from Fritzlar, cloths manufacturer in the Ludwigsburg House of correction up to 1808
Karl Friedrich Jentsch from Neuruppin (Prussia) was the Master after 1808.
I think Johann Christian Schochenmayer could have worked with Peter Wallschmitt or prior to him because the lapse of time between 1736 and 1808 is pretty much long. The entrepreneurs and masters were therefore probably useful people for the country, but they complained bitterly about religious grievances. As reformed believers, they were promised free religious practice on entering the country by the Court Church in Ludwigsburg.
As the manufactory doesn't exist anymore, you can imagine how it looked like if you visit the Industrial Museum in Euskirchen:
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