Meet the 12 Currently Oldest Living Members of the Hans Schmidt Family

Here are the eleven currently oldest-living, known descendants, or spouses of descendants, of Hans Schmidt (1594-1680) of Nentershausen/Blankenbach, Germany!

12. Betty Ann (Banwart) Schmidt Wirtz, age 92

Betty Wirtz, of West Bend, Iowa, was born on July 22nd, 1929 in Ottosen, Iowa, daughter of Silas W. Banwart and Ida Emily (Benninger) Banwart. On May 8th, 1955, at the age of 25, she married Richard Walton Schmidt at the Apostolic Christian Church of West Bend, Iowa. Together, they had six children: Rodney, Mary Beth, Dawn (died in infancy), Twyla, Joleen, and Ellen (died in childhood). After Rich passed away in 1971, Betty remarried to her second husband, Verner Emil Wirtz (who passed away in 2002).

Betty is a daughter-in-law of Fred Schmidt, granddaughter-in-law of Henry Schmidt Sr., great-granddaughter-in-law of Conrad Schmidt, 2xgreat-granddaughter-in-law of Dietrich Schmidt Sr., 3xgreat-granddaughter-in-law of Friedrich Schmidt, 4xgreat-granddaughter-in-law of Johannes Schmidt Jr., 5xgreat-granddaughter-in-law of Johannes Schmidt Sr., 6xgreat-granddaughter-in-law of Hans Heinrich Schmidt, and 7xgreat-granddaughter-in-law of Hans Schmidt.

11. Ramona Edith (Woodworth) Kuyrkendall, age 93

Ramona Kuyrkendall, of San Antonio, Texas, was born on October 1st, 1928 in Barclay, Iowa, daughter of Carl Albert Woodworth and Lois Louise (Raub) Woodworth. On July 4th, 1946, at the age of 17, she married John J. Kuyrkendall at the Little Brown Church in Nashua, Iowa. Together, they had two sons: Dennis and Donald. Her husband John passed away in 2006.

Ramona is a daughter of Lois (Raub) Woodworth, granddaughter of Adam Raub, great granddaughter of Franz “Frank” Raub, 2xgreat granddaughter of Johannes Raub Jr., 3xgreat granddaughter of Johannes Raub Sr., 4xgreat granddaughter of Catharina (Raub) Raub, 5xgreat granddaughter of Johann Georg Heinrich Raub, 6xgreat granddaughter of Anna (Schmidt) Raub, 7xgreat granddaughter of Hans Heinrich Schmidt, and 8xgreat granddaughter of Hans Schmidt.

10. Ruth Marie (Bohn) West, age 93

Ruth West, of St Paul, Minnesota, was born on July 1st, 1928 in St Paul, Minnesota, daughter of William Arthur Bohn I and Ruth Ellen (Anderson) Bohn. In 1949, at the age of 21, she married Richard James West. Together, they had four children: Susan, Barbara, Katherine, and John.

Ruth is the daughter of William Arthur Bohn I, granddaughter of Dietrich Bohn, great granddaughter of Anna Barbara (Schmidt) Bohn, 2xgreat granddaughter of Dietrich Schmidt Sr., 3xgreat granddaughter of Friedrich Schmidt, 4xgreat granddaughter of Johannes Schmidt Jr., 5xgreat granddaughter of Johannes Schmidt Sr., 6xgreat granddaughter of Hans Heinrich Schmidt, and 7xgreat granddaughter of Hans Schmidt.

9. Rosabelle Margaret (Schmidt) Johnson, age 94

Rosie Johnson, of New Ulm, Minnesota, was born on October 9th, 1927 in West Bend, Iowa, daughter of Charles George Schmidt and Kathryn Elizabeth (Krug) Schmidt. On November 21st, 1947, at the age of 20, she married John Alvin Johnson at the Presbyterian Church in West Bend, Iowa. Together, they had two children: Janet and Jerry.

Rosabelle is a daughter of Charles Schmidt, granddaughter of Karl Schmidt, great granddaughter of Dietrich Schmidt Jr., 2xgreat granddaughter of Dietrich Schmidt Sr., 3xgreat granddaughter of Friedrich Schmidt, 4xgreat granddaughter of Johannes Schmidt Jr., 5xgreat granddaughter of Johannes Schmidt Sr., 6xgreat granddaughter of Hans Heinrich Schmidt, and 7xgreat granddaughter of Hans Schmidt.

8. Donald Kenneth Messner, age 94

Donald Messner, of Peoria, Illinois, was born on August 1st, 1927 in Winthrop, Minnesota, son of Levi Messner and Mae Mattie (Miller) Messner. On February 14th, 1954, at the age of 26, he married Viola Mae Schmidt at the Apostolic Christian Church of Winthrop, Minnesota. Together, they had five children: Philip, Mary, Paul, Ruth, and Carol.

Donald is the widower of Viola (Schmidt) Messner, son-in-law of Henry Schmidt Jr., grandson-in-law of Henry Schmidt Sr., great-grandson-in-law of Conrad Schmidt, 2xgreat-grandson-in-law of Dietrich Schmidt Sr., 3xgreat-granddaughter-in-law of Friedrich Schmidt, 4xgreat-grandson-in-law of Johannes Schmidt Jr., 5xgreat-grandson-in-law of Johannes Schmidt Sr., 6xgreat-grandson-in-law of Hans Heinrich Schmidt, and 7xgreat-grandson-in-law of Hans Schmidt.

7. Wendell Dean Fortner, age 95

Wendell Fortner, of Humboldt, Iowa, was born on September 29th, 1926 in Humboldt, Iowa, son of Floyd and Lillian Fortner. On September 14th, 1952, at the age of 25, he married Carol Leona Lindemann at Carol’s parents’ home in Humboldt. Together, they had three children: Paul, Barbara, and Joyce.

Wendell is the widower of Carol (Lindemann) Fortner, son-in-law of Carl Lindemann, grandson-in-law of Lizzie (Schmidt) Lindemann, great-grandson-in-law of Conrad Schmidt, 2xgreat-grandson-in-law of Dietrich Schmidt Sr., 3xgreat-grandson-in-law of Friedrich Schmidt, 4xgreat-grandson-in-law of Johannes Schmidt Jr., 5xgreat-grandson-in-law of Johannes Schmidt Sr., 6xgreat-grandson-in-law of Hans Heinrich Schmidt, and 7xgreat-grandson-in-law of Hans Schmidt.

6. Mary Ann (Schmidt) Thiem, age 95

Mary Ann Thiem, of San Marcos, California, was born on August 7th, 1926 in West Bend, Iowa, daughter of Henry John Schmidt Jr. and Celina Pearl (Wirtz) Schmidt. On September 6th, 1946, at the age of 20, she married Darold Milton Thiem at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Gibbon, Minnesota. Together, they had one daughter: Brenda.

Mary Ann is a daughter of Henry Schmidt Jr., granddaughter of Henry Schmidt Sr., great granddaughter of Conrad Schmidt, 2xgreat granddaughter of Dietrich Schmidt Sr., 3xgreat granddaughter of Friedrich Schmidt, 4xgreat granddaughter of Johannes Schmidt Jr., 5xgreat granddaughter of Johannes Schmidt Sr., 6xgreat granddaughter of Hans Heinrich Schmidt, and 7xgreat granddaughter of Hans Schmidt.

5. Richard James West, age 95

Richard West, of St Paul, Minnesota, was born on June 7th, 1926 in Lincoln, Nebraska, son of Robert and Eleanora West. In 1949, at the age of 23, he married Ruth Marie Bohn. Together, they had four children: Susan, Barbara, Katherine, and John.

Richard is the husband of Ruth (Bohn) West, son-in-law of William Arthur Bohn I, grandson-in-law of Dietrich Bohn, great-grandson-in-law of Anna Barbara (Schmidt) Bohn, 2xgreat-grandson-in-law of Dietrich Schmidt Sr., 3xgreat-grandson-in-law of Friedrich Schmidt, 4xgreat-grandson-in-law of Johannes Schmidt Jr., 5xgreat-grandson-in-law of Johannes Schmidt Sr., 6xgreat-grandson-in-law of Hans Heinrich Schmidt, and 7xgreat-grandson-in-law of Hans Schmidt.

4. Dorothy Ann (Capeder) DeFlorin, age 95

Dorothy DeFlorin, of Anchorage, Alaska, was born on May 15th, 1926 in St Paul, Minnesota, daughter of John Joseph Capeder and Elizabeth Susan (Bohn) Capeder. In 1949, at age 23, she married John LeRoy DeFlorin. Together, they had two children: Diane (who passed away in 2019) and Lee.

Dorothy is the daughter of Elizabeth (Bohn) Capeder, granddaughter of Dietrich Bohn, great granddaughter of Anna Barbara (Schmidt) Bohn, 2xgreat granddaughter of Dietrich Schmidt Sr., 3xgreat granddaughter of Friedrich Schmidt, 4xgreat granddaughter of Johannes Schmidt Jr., 5xgreat granddaughter of Johannes Schmidt Sr., 6xgreat granddaughter of Hans Heinrich Schmidt, and 7xgreat granddaughter of Hans Schmidt.

3. Eleanor Virginia (Rauck) Fenwick Griffin, age 95

Eleanor Griffin, of Berlin, Maryland, was born on November 13th, 1925 in Baltimore, Maryland, daughter of Henry William Rauck and Myrtle Virginia (Swann) Rauck. On January 26th, 1946, at the age of 20, she married Nelson Edgar Fenwick. Together, they had two children: Nelson Jr. and Shelley. Nelson Sr. died in Korea in 1952, and two years later, Eleanor remarried to Abraham Claude Griffin Jr. (who died in 2014). Together, they had one daughter: Virginia.

Eleanor is the widow of Nelson Fenwick, daughter-in-law of Evelyn (Smith) Fenwick, granddaughter-in-law of Minnie (Schmidt) Smith, great-granddaughter-in-law of George Ernst Schmidt, 2xgreat-granddaughter-in-law of Johann George Schmidt, 3xgreat-granddaughter-in-law of Ludwig Schmidt, 4xgreat-granddaughter-in-law of Johannes Schmidt, 5xgreat-granddaughter-in-law of Martin Schmidt, 6xgreat-granddaughter-in-law of Hans Heinrich Schmidt, and 7xgreat-granddaughter-in-law of Hans Schmidt.

2. Bernadine Ruth (Schmidt) Messner, age 96

Bernadine Messner, of Brownton, Minnesota, was born on June 14th, 1925 in Winthrop, Minnesota, daughter of Henry John Schmidt Jr. and Celina Pearl (Wirtz) Schmidt. On September 12th, 1945, at the age of 20, she married Raymond Daniel Messner at the Lafayette Parsonage in Lafayette, Minnesota. Together, they had six children: Sandra (died in infancy), Gary, Stanley, Jeffrey, Steven (passed away in 2008), and LouCinda.

Bernadine is a daughter of Henry Schmidt Jr., granddaughter of Henry Schmidt Sr., great granddaughter of Conrad Schmidt, 2xgreat granddaughter of Dietrich Schmidt Sr., 3xgreat granddaughter of Friedrich Schmidt, 4xgreat granddaughter of Johannes Schmidt Jr., 5xgreat granddaughter of Johannes Schmidt Sr., 6xgreat granddaughter of Hans Heinrich Schmidt, and 7xgreat granddaughter of Hans Schmidt.

1. Betty Jane (Troth) Fiebelkorn, age 97

Betty Fiebelkorn, of Monterey Park, California, was born on September 19th, 1924 in Alhambra, California, daughter of Ralph Troth and Carrie (Garelime) Troth. On August 13th, 1944, at the age of 19, she married Kenneth Luther Fiebelkorn at Grace Lutheran Church in Alhambra, California. Together, they had two children: Michael and Sally.

Betty is the widow of Kenneth Fiebelkorn, daughter-in-law of Clara (Bohn) Fiebelkorn, granddaughter-in-law of Balthasar Bohn, great-granddaughter-in-law of Anna Barbara (Schmidt) Bohn, 2xgreat-granddaughter-in-law of Dietrich Schmidt Sr., 3xgreat-granddaughter-in-law of Friedrich Schmidt, 4xgreat granddaughter-in-law of Johannes Schmidt Jr., 5xgreat-granddaughter-in-law of Johannes Schmidt Sr., 6xgreat-granddaughter-in-law of Hans Heinrich Schmidt, and 7xgreat-granddaughter-in-law of Hans Schmidt.

Did We Miss Anyone?

Do you know of another individual who descends from Hans Schmidt (1594-1680) of Nentershausen/Blankenbach, who is older than any of these cousins and deserves to be included on this list? Send us an email to let us know!

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