Ferdinand Willius's Childhood

Ferdinand's mother died in 1832, when he was two years old and his father died in 1838, when he was eight. After the children were orphaned, they were sent to live with various family relatives. The following letters from the collection of "Ferdinand Willius Papers" in the Minnesota Historical Society describe bits of Ferdinand's childhood.

Correspondence

This is a letter written in 1839 from Johanne, one of Ferdinand's sisters, to his other sister, Conradine. the two girls were older than Gustav and Ferdinand. As you can see Johanne was lonely for her siblings. The children were with different relatives. Their father had died the previous year.

These three letters were written to Ferdinand by Louise Knippenberg, a sister of his mothers. He was living in Bremen and had an apprenticeship with Carl Schaller. He was in his teens at the time.

More on Ferdinand's Childhood

Go to Ferdinand Willius Siblings for photographs and more information.