PIONEER WOMAN DIES IN MUENSTER

MOTHER OF LARGE FAMILY A RESIDENT OF COOKE COUNTY FOR OVER 55 YEARS.

MRS. CAROLINE SCHMIDT PULTE died at her home here at 9:30 a.m. on March 21, 1933. She had reached the age of 84. Funeral services were held on the 23rd by Father Frowin Koerdt. Pallbearers were her grandsons JOE and EDWARD KNAUF, EDWARD and RAYMOND PULTE, and PAUL and HARRY FISHER.

CAROLINE SCHMIDT, was born in Karlsruhe, Germany, on June 12, 1848, and came to the United States at the age of seven, her parents settling at Grand Rapids, Mich. There she married AUGUST PULTE and in 1877 came with her husband to Cooke County, Texas. They purchased a farm 8 southwest of Gainesville. There they had charge also of the post office, kept a general store and wagon yard, and raised livestock.

In order to fulfill their religious duties the Pultes had to travel fifty miles to Sherman in a wagon over the prairies. They shunned no trouble or sacrifice for their Faith. People used to modern modes of travel can scarcely appreciate the hardships which their courageous ancestors had to overcome in order to preserve the Faith. When the parish at Gainesville was established, the PULTE family were conspicuous for their zeal and their loyalty to the priests. Their children are among the leading citizens of the community. In 1911 the Pultes wished to retire from business. They had a large house near the church in Muenster remodeled, and were ready to occupy it when Mr. Pulte died suddenly of heart failure. The widow moved to Muenster, where she kept open house for all her kinsfolk and friends. Breakfast was always ready at "Grandmas." She devoted much of her time to prayer. Last June she fell and hurt her hip. Since then she was bedridden. She was faithfully nursed by Mrs. Frances Bins and her children. Mrs. Pulte bore her pains with edifying patience, always preserving her amiable disposition until death crystallized the sweet smile on her gentle face. A succession of slight strokes brought her saintly life to a close.

Surviving relatives are a daughter, MRS. MARY KNAUF, of Muenster; six sons, AUGUST, of Chicago, and JOE, CHARLES, ALEX, MAT, and WALTER, of Cooke County, besides 43 grandchildren and 17 great-grandchildren. Two brothers, AUGUST and ANTON SCHMIDT, live in Grand Rapids.

Three daughters of Mrs. Pulte are dead; AUGUSTA, an infant; LINA, aged 18, and MRS. EMMA FISHER, aged 50, who died three years ago, leaving a husband and 12 children who still mourn her loss.

"May their spirit of charity and piety be Perpetuated in their succeeding generations, and may those whose loss we mourn remember us at the throne of God!"

~~NEWSPAPER SOURCE OF OBITUARY, UNKNOWN

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LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT?

Shortly after Grandpa AUGUST PULTE arrived in Grand Rapids, Michigan in 1866, he went hunting in the countryside. Because he was cold, he stopped by the nearest farmhouse to get warmed up.

Upon talking to the man of the house, it didn't take him long to find out that the family had also emigrated from Germany 11 years earlier and were also Catholic. But what really interested Grandpa was the young lady he saw in the next room. Before he left that house, he asked the man if he could marry his daughter. He said "Yes."

Grandpa went home without saying a word to the girl, but he did stop by the local rectory to tell the pastor he would be getting married soon. The following Sunday, Grandpa went back to the farm to start courting the lady. Three weeks later, AUGUST PULTE and CAROLINE SCHMIDT were married - a marriage that lasted 44 years until his death here in Texas in 1911. God was with them. ~submitted by JOE KNAUF

MUENSTER TEXAS: A CENTENNIAL HISTORY, 1889-1989, Compiled & Edited by The History Division, Muenster Centennial Committee, Muenster, Texas, 1989, Pgs. 630-631

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GERMAN BIRTHS & BAPTISMS, 1558-1898
Name: CAROLINA SCHMIDT
Gender: Female
Baptism/Christening Date: 18 Jun 1848
Baptism/Christening Place: Karlsruhe, Baden, Germany
Birth Date: 12 Jun 1848
Birthplace: Karlsruhe, Baden, Germany
Death Date:
Name Note:
Race:
Father's Name: PETER SCHMIDT
Father's Birthplace:
Father's Age:
Mother's Name: CATHARINA GOETZ
Mother's Birthplace:
Mother's Age:
Indexing Project (Batch) Number: C94960-4
System Origin: Germany-EASy
Source Film Number: 1053798
Reference Number:
NOTE: The entry can be seen on Page 429, Record #95, of the original record book.

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Mr. and Mrs. John Schmidt, Mrs. Charles Schmidt and August Pulte will leave today for Gainesville, Texas, to visit MR. and MRS. AUGUST PULTE.

THE EVENING LEADER, Grand Rapids, Mich., Mon., Feb. 1, 1892, Pg. 4, Col. 2, Item 5 (Brief Mention.)