Edward Laessig, Sr. the patriarch of our central Wisconsin USA Laessig clan, was born in Saxony, Germany 5 July 1835. As a young man he came to America in the year 1855 according to the 1860 Chicago, Cook County, Illinois census records. It is possible that he came with his brother, as a record of two young men has been found, "Eduard Lessig age 21" and "Robert Lessig age 24" sailed from Bremen to New York on the ship "Orpheus" arriving in the USA 1 September 1855. His naturalization papers have not been located. According to family, it was in Chicago that Ed met Jeanette Baenen, born 6 January 1836, an immigrant from s'Hertogenbosch, Holland. Her parents were Francis J.J. Baenen b. 15 Oct. 1806 - d. 14 Nov. 1887 and Clara Vande Vaart b. 28 Sept. 1803 - d. 24 Jan. 1851. Jeanette immigrated with her father, step-mother, Cornelia (Van Grunderbeek) and siblings. Jeanette remained in Chicago and married Edward circa 1856 or 57, and her family moved to the town of Scott, Brown County, Wisconsin, to a small village known as Bay Settlement, near Green Bay.

Ed and Jeanette's first child, Edward M. Laessig was born in Green Bay on 10 March 1858. Their next three children: Mary, Henry and Augusta, were born in Chicago. A family story that was handed down told how Jeanette would smuggle each baby out of the house to be baptized Catholic a few weeks after it was born, without Ed's knowledge. He was Lutheran and did not want the children baptized Catholic, however records at a little church located near their home was once a German Catholic Church, and verify the family lore. At several weeks of age, each baby was baptized.

The family lived between sets of railroad tracks, and it is believed that is why their location was sometimes overlooked for census taking. The address was 81 West Liberty Street. It is described as the `north side of West Liberty, between South Canal and South Jefferson' and 'N.B. Mitchell is the street one block south of Liberty', in a Chicago city directory of 1860-1861. That address today, and since 1909, would be 550 W. Liberty Street. The directory also stated that Edward worked at J.C.W. Bailey & Co. as a laborer 1865 - 1866 edition.

Birth records indicate that the family relocated to Green Bay, Wisconsin by the year 1867 when daughter Philomena "Minnie" was born. Cornelia, Fred, Frank and Charles were likewise born in that area. Son Louis, "Stoner", daughters Julia and Anna were later born in Marathon County, Wisconsin where the family relocated to Wausau for a number of years, then to Webertown (Weber), a small settlement on the Big Eau Pleine River, on the north side of the river. A sawmill, Catholic Church, store, post office and homes were located on the south side of the river.

Edward and Jeanette's family consisted of the following:

Edward M. Laessig born 10 March 1858 married 6 April, 1884 to Amelia Frick born 30 Nov. 1865, daughter of Frederick Frick (mother's name unknown).
Mary Laessig born 5 July 1859 married 27 July 1884 to Emil R. Ruder, son of George and Louisa Schmidt Ruder of the Ruder Brewery in Wausau.
Henry F. Laessig born 3 March 1863 married 7 Jan. 1888 to Agatha "Yette" Wagner, born 7 Dec. 1863, daughter of Michael and Susanna Fischbach Wagner of Manitowoc, WI.
Augusta "Gustie" Laessig born 23 Jan. 1865 married 29Aug 1884 to Michael B. Wagner born 11 Dec. 1860, son of Michael and Susanna Fischbach Wagner.
Fred Laessig born 24 June 1870 married in 1894 to Olga Polege born 19 July 1875, daughter of Julius and Louise Usadel Polege.
Charles (or Carl) Laessig born 28 April 1876 married 28 Nov. 1896 to Jeanette McDonald born 23 June 1876, daughter of Frank and Cass (MacDonald) McDonald.
Philomena "Minnie" Laessig born 15 May 1867 married *Henry Weber born in 1860, son of Michael and Elisabeth Kaiser Weber.
Louis "Stoner" Laessig born 2 April 1877, remained unmarried.
Julia Laessig born 24 March 1879 married 26 June 1900 to Daniel Vandehey born 29 Dec. 1874, son of Herman and Mary Curtain Vandehey of Hollandtown, WI.
Anna Laessig born 16 March 1881 married 19 Sept 1905 to John D. Kissinger born 14 Feb. 1882, son of Jacob and Elizabeth Harth Kissinger of Wisconsin Rapids, Wood County, WI.
Cornelia Huberta "Nellie" Laessig born 22 July 1869 - died 2 Nov. 1870, age 15 months.
Francis Hubert" Frank" Laessig born 30 March 1873 married Mary K. Sawyer born 22 Oct. 1873, daughter of Joseph Sawyer. She died 13 Aug. 1907. Frank then married Mary Weber on 29 September 1909. Mary Weber was born 21 March 1887, daughter of Christian and Anna Kaiser Weber.

*Henry Weber, husband of Minnie Laessig, was the son of Michael Weber and Elizabeth Kaiser Weber. Henry's brother Christian Weber was the founder of Weber Settlement. Christian Weber and his wife Anna Kaiser, daughter of Andreas Kaiser and Magdalena Esslinger Kaiser, were the parents of Mary Weber Laessig.

On September 13, 1884, the township of Brighton in Marathon County was divided in two. The new township that was formed was Eau Pleine, named after the big Eau Pleine River that flows through the township and Weber Settlement. In the spring of 1885, Edward Laessig, Sr. was elected the first chairman of the town of Eau Pleine.

Edward was also responsible, at least in part, for the establishment and building of the first Lutheran Church, St. Paul's, just east of where he made his home. Although the church building no longer remains standing, a small cemetery, maintained by the Lutheran Church in Stratford, remains. It is located about a mile and a half north of the village of Stratford.

Edward Laessig worked as a stone mason and laborer for much of his life, and he farmed after moving to Marathon County. He remained in that location for the remainder of his life, passing on 10 April 1915. He was laid to rest in the Webertown cemetery maintained as the Eau Pleine Cemetery by St. Joseph's Catholic Church. As a final choice, Edward converted on his deathbed. Jeanette lived until 13 May 1924. She is buried beside her husband.

anaquea@dwave.net