DIEDRICH - "DIERK" LAMPING SECOND MARRIAGE - A CATASTROPHE

After his wife Anna Marie Brinkmann's death November 9, 1884, at the age of 67 years, Dierk as 68 years old and alone on his farm. All his children were married, and has homes of their own; naturally he was quite lonely.
On the adjoining farm, the Trenkamp family, recent immigrants from Germany, with six or more children had established their home. They were very poor. Mr. Trenkamp had been married before, so there were two sets of children. Mr. Trenkamp died, leaving the widow with young children of the second marriage. Even though she had two grown sons able to do the farming, making a living on this small hilly farm was hard at its best, especially so snc Mrs. Trenkamp ( nee Kroger) was an ignorant woman and a poor manager.
Old Dierk was considered well off, and being charitable gave his poor neighbors a helping hand. The widow, now in destitute circumstances, and not very intelligent, nevertheless possessed a certain cunning usualy attribute to the female sex. She played her cards well, as the story goes.
Their hog lots adjoined, so the widow, age 44 ( 24 years Dierks junior) always happened to feed her pigs the same time Direk did, so while the hogs licked up their food, she aimed her oral licks acrosse the fence at her target, Dierk.

Hog lot flirations lead to marriage.
The widow must have been endowed with a natural ability for salesmanship, imagine, a man of Diedrich Lamping intelligence, and otherwise a man of common sense, a person held in high esteem in church and community; being convinced he was getting a bargain, by marrying a poor widow with several children and some of them tuburculer and one weak of mind. But nevertheless he fell her victim. He married her, one early spring morning, and she and her family moved into the Lamping homestead.
The news of Dierks wedding, was a shocking surprise to his children, who resented it greatly, it caused consternation among them. His neighbors amazed, but also amused the event. furnish a topic for much gossip and newsmanagers were busy.
Dierk awakens from his trans, realizes he got a very bad bargain.
Soon after the marriage, Dierk realized his mistakes, and became a despondent man. The new wife was anything but economical, now had means to feed and clothe her family. Dierk was not in the habit of having store bills, but now store bills were mounting, and Dierks's savings dwindling.
Diedrich by nature a proud person, now came crying to his daughters and admitted he had made a terrible mistake; he wanted to leave his wife; he couldn't stand it no longer.
The daughters after consulting each other, came to the conclusion that their father, even though he had made this awful mistake nevertheless married the woman, and it was his duty to live it out with her and her family. He should make a new will and will her his farm, so the woman and her children coudl make a living after his death. They, the Lamping daughters reasoned, they all had married well and did not need nor want any inheritance from their father under the circumstances.
So Dierk took the advice of his daughters, and resigned himself to his fate. The Trenkamp sons, Ben and Frank, soon grew up, and were good farmers. Diedrich lived about seven years after his unfortunate marriage. This once egocentric personality, "to some extent," died a dejected man. He was layed to rest beside Anna Marie, his beloved wifte and mother of his children, in Holy Family cemetery, Oldenburg [IN, USA], June 19th 1897, at the age of 81.

NOTE: Grandfather Lamping did will the farm and everyting he owned to his second wife, with provision that the executor of his estate, must pay all debts, first before she could get the farm. Diedrich, had been informed, that his wife had accumulated store bills unbeknown to him, amounting to USD 800.00 a tremendous sum in those days. He refused to pay them while living. So the executor sold 40 acres of the 120 acre farm, to pay these debts and his funeral expense.

To Helen Rose and Mary Alice, this ends the story of your great grandfather Lamping.

F.J. Hoelker
May 1957

By F.J. Hoelker, May 1957 - as oftern told by Amanda Schmidt Hoelker, about her maternal Grandfather Lamping