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Many of the Harnisches in Wisconsin have descended from Henry Harnisch, a German immigrant. Henry, according to records in this author's archives, was married twice: His first wife was Wilhemenia Ready; his second, Rebecca Houston.
His first wife, Wilhemenia Ready, is believed to have passed away from natural causes, while his second wife, Rebecca Houston, disappeared in circa 1895 while traveling the route beteen the communities of Holmen and La Crosse/Onalaska Wisconsin. Some say she met with foul play; others say she left the hard life of the farm.
This author's branch begins with Henry's marriage to Rebecca Houston at the James Houston home in La Crescent, MN. Dave Harnisch, this author, is the great great grandchild of Henry and Rebecca Harnisch. Although other descendants have accomplished genealogical studes and accumulated research on Henry's descendants, Dave Harnisch appears to have consolidated existing research and has coordinated and built up research to the Harnisch Family Tree archive that he possesses on FamilyTreemaker.
Some family members elected to remove the 'c' in their surname, but all of Henry's records are signed "Harnisch," the spelling that he preferred in his legal records. It is apparent that the family that buried Henry may have used the "Harnish" spelling, as the name engraved on his stone is of the same spelling. Of course, those who have used the Harnisch surname have become accustomed to having many people leave the 'c' out when copying the name as being told to them, so it is possible that the Harnish spelling may have been a mistake by the stone maker.
Unfortunately, to date, this Harnisch Family Tree contains no information on Henry's parents or siblings, other than his birthplace of "Saxony" on his death certificate. Also, his certificate only contain's 'do not know' in the line that requests the names of his parents. One can only conclude that those who buried Henry knew little about his past, or that he shared little about his immediate family. Did other family members come with him on his trip to America?
The assumption being made at the moment is that Henry arrived in Minnesota via the Mississipi River, as he has not been found by this author in any ship records off the East Coast. How and when did Henry arrive? It is again assumed that he arrived in this country circa 1855, as shortly after early records show his puchase of land in Minnesota. From here he eventually moved to a farm outside of Holmen, Wisconsin where he lived out his life until his passing in 1912 (1836-1912).
Where possible, living descendants are not listed to protect their privacy and to assure them of their confidentiality. The caretaker of the Henry Harnisch Archive invites all the 'cousins' to an exchange of information, theories, and stories.
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