Heinrich Carl Obenhaus was born November 27, 1803 in Salzuflen, Lippe. He was the son of Heinrich Arnold Obenhaus and Hanne Florentine Kloeppers.

Heinrich married Anne Marie Wilhelmine Christine Klinksieck October 12, 1828 in Westfalen Germany. The marriage record was recorded in Kirchlengern and Buende, Westfalen. Kirchlengern and Buende are about 3 miles apart in northern Westfalen.

Five children were born to Heinrich and Anne: Julius, Johanna, Martha, Charles, and Wilhelmina Hanna. Oral history is that these children were born in Lippe Detmold. Lippe Detmold wasn�t far from Kirchlengern, Westfalen (although at that time they were in different states of Germany).

The principality of Lippe is a historical German state located between the Weser River and the southwest part of the Teutoburger Wald (Teutoburg forest). The capital of Lippe was the town of Detmold. Today Lippe is part of the Bundesland, Nordshein-Westfalen. Since 1538 Lippe has been almost exclusively Lutheran.

The family emigrated from Germany to Texas in 1843 and/or 1844. My Heinrich Carl Obenhaus family emigrated to Colorado County, Texas about the same time as Heinrich Carl's brother Friedrich Arnold emigrated to Colorado County, Texas. In a biography about Arnold Obenhaus' son Charles, they wrote that he emigrated in 1843. In the 1900 Census of Fayette County Texas, son Julius listed emigration as 1844. Heinrich Carl and his wife and children could have emigrated separately. In the Republic of Texas poll lists of 1846, there is an H. C. Obenhaus and an Arnold Obenhaus listed as residents of Colorado County, Texas. The whole family was in Texas by 1845.

Anne died in Colorado County, Texas, November 7, 1848. C.H. married Maria (Mary) Shulz in 1849. According to the 1850 census, C.H. was 47, and Mary was 45. The children were listed as Julius age 21, Martha age 16, Charles age 12 and Wilhemine age 10. Johanna was listed in the census separately with her husband, Frederick Gustav Shultz.

Mary must have died because in 1853 we found a marriage record of Henry C. marrying Diana Miller nee Strawsneider (She was previously married to Travis Miller). C. H. lived with his family on a farm near Weimar, Texas in Colorado County close to Sandy Creek. In two articles by Bill Stein, Henry is listed as having slaves. In Part 5 of Colorado County, Texas history Bill Stein mentions that Henry owned 7 slaves. In Part 6 he stated that Henry owned 5 slaves.

Henry died January 1873 in Colorado County, Texas.

Sources: Robert Moore, Carol Crockett, marriage record of Heinrich Carl Obenhaus and Anna Klinksiek, Republic of Texas Poll lists of 1846, 1850 Colorado County Census Record, 1860 Colorado County Census Record, 1900 Fayette County Census record, Marriage record for C. H. Obenhaus and Maria Shulz, Marriage record for Henry C. Obenhaus and Diana Miller, History of Otto Obenhaus written by his daughters, http://www.bad-salzuflen.de,Consider the Lily: The Ungilded History of Colorado County, Texas, marriage record of Friedrich Arnold Obenhaus and Charlotte Schafer, History of Southwest Texas,�and http://www.genealogienetz.de/reg/NRHE-WFA/lippe.html

Written by Angie Collier, March 2002
updated January 11, 2007

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