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Frederick Oelwein

Frederick Oelwein, a German pioneer of Fayette county, Iowa, was born in Saxony, Germany, on the 2d day of September, 1808. He was reared to manhood in his native land, and there learned the trade of silversmith. In 1832 he was married to Cecelia Schmidt, a daughter of William Schmidt, and five years later, in 1837, emigrated with his family to America, and settled in Baltimore, Maryland, where he secured work at his trade, continuing operations in that line until 1848. Mr. Oelwein then determined to try his fortune in the West and resuming his travels, continued his journey until he reached Dubuque, Iowa, where he again worked at his trade for four years. At the expiration of that time he removed to a farm in the township of New Vienna, Dubuque county, where he resided until 1855, which year witnessed his arrival in Fayette county. Purchasing a farm in Jefferson township, situated three miles north and a mile and a half west of the site of the city of Oelwein, he began preparations for a home and removed his family to his farm, where he resided until 1857, when he bought the land on which the city of Oelwein is now located, from James Burch, and removed his family to this place. In 1866 he sold this land to his son, Gustav A., who still owns a portion of the original purchase. The only surviving child of the family is a son, Gustav A., whose sketch is given elsewhere in this work. The mother died in March, 1866. Mr. Oelwein died September 12, 1900.

~transcribed for the Fayette Co IAGenWeb Project by Ann Borden