Selma was the third daughter of 9 children born to Herman Friedmann and Wilhelmina Stone. The family lived in Leipzig, Germany.

In the mid-1870's, Selma's mother died while giving birth to twins. Neither of the babies--a boy and a girl--survived, and they were buried in their mother's arms. As was the custom in Germany, a needle, thread and scissors were placed in the casket with Wilhelmina and the children. Selma's father remarried after the death of his wife.

Selma married Moritz Bernhardt "Morris" Hölzel on 20 Feb 1888 in Saxony, Germany. While still living in Germany, Selma gave birth to the couple's first child, a boy named Conrad. He died of convulsions at the age of 2 weeks. Another son, Georg Moritz (George Morris), was also born in Leipzig on 21 Nov 1891.

During this time, her husband, Moritz, supported the family by working in a bakery that he owned and operated, while his older brother, Oskar, ran some apartment houses. A younger brother, Max "Emil" Hoelzel, owned and operated the Hölzel Brick and Lumber Yard.

Emil moved to the United States in late October of 1891, and it was his excitement and enthusiasm that tempted Moritz and Selma to follow. Even more convincing was an uncle, Wilhelm F. Hoelzel, Sr., who also glowingly described a land of boundless opportunities.

Selma was entering her third trimester of pregnancy when she, Moritz and their 16-month-old son, Georg, left home from the port of Bremen, Germany and headed for the United States on board a ship named the Dresden. Selma was the only one of her siblings to ever leave Germany for the U. S. They arrived in New York on 25 Apr 1893, and the Hoelzels made their way through customs at Ellis Island.

The family continued their journey to the Kansas City, Jackson County, Missouri area where the family of Moritz's uncle, Wilhelm Hoelzel, lived. Selma gave birth to another son, Elmer, less than 2 months after their arrival in America.

The Hoelzels lived in Kansas City for 6 years. Their first daughter, Rose, was born there before the family moved to Melzo, Jefferson County, Missouri in March 1899. A second daughter, Minnie, was born there that May. In the years that followed, 4 more children--Katheryn, Carl, Frank and Herman--were born at their home in Melzo in 1901, 1904, 1907 and 1910 respectively.

Morris, as he was known after coming to America, and his brother, Emil, built a home on the family farm. It was destroyed by a tornado on 11 Apr 1911 and had to be rebuilt, which the family did, using stones.

In 1912, several members of the Hoelzel family became ill with typhoid fever, and Selma did the best she could to nurse everyone back to health. Her 48-year-old husband, Morris, was the only one who died of the disease, and the family later speculated that he had had a harder time in part because he was still distraught over the loss of their house to the tornado in 1911.

Selma remained on the family farm until she became ill in late 1935. She then moved in with a daughter in University City, St. Louis County, Missouri until her death in January 1936. She was 70 years, 9 months and 28 days old.

She was survived by 5 sons and 2 daughters-in-law, George and Ann Hoelzel, Elmer and Maud Hoelzel, Carl Hoelzel, Frank Hoelzel and Herman Hoelzel; 3 daughters and 3 sons-in-law, Rose and Clay Eads, Minnie and Lee Vint, and Katheryn and Harold Killebrew; 6 grandsons and 4 granddaughters; and extended family members in Germany.

Selma was buried on 13 Jan 1936.

Children: 6 sons, 3 daughters.

Mother of:
Conrad Hoelzel
George Moritz Hoelzel
Helmuth Emil "Elmer" Hoelzel
Rose Marie Hoelzel Eads
Wilhelmina "Minnie" Hoelzel Vint
Katheryn Martha Hoelzel Killebrew
Carl Wilhelm Hoelzel
Frank Henry Hoelzel
Herman Julius Hoelzel

Selma's siblings:
Lina Friedmann Schreier
Emma Friedmann
Martha Friedmann
Bruno Friedmann
Klara Friedmann Zetzsche
Gustav Friedmann
Infant Son Friedmann (twin)
Infant Daughter Friedmann (twin)

----------

Excerpts from obituary:

OBITUARY

Selma M. Hoelzel, nee Friedemann [sic], was born March 13, 1865 in Kingdom of Sachsen, Germany, and departed this life at the home of her oldest daughter, being 70 years, 9 months and 28 days of age. She had been ill two months.

She was united in marriage to the late Morris B. Hoelzel, in Germany on Feb. 20, 1890 [sic]. To this union nine children were born, one dying in infancy. Those surviving are, namely: Helmuth E., Carl W., Frank H. and Herman J. Hoelzel of Melzo, Mo.; George M, of South Pekin, Ill.; Mrs. Rose Eads, Mrs. Minnie Vint and Mrs. Katheryn Killebrew, all of St. Louis; also her sisters.

She and her husband came to America in the year 1892 [sic]. They settled in Kansas City where they became naturalized citizens of the United States. They later moved to Jefferson County, near Melzo. Her husband preceded her in death 23 years ago, on August 15, 1912.

The deceased was christened into the Lutheran Church in Germany as a child and remained true to her faith until her death.

(Jefferson County Republican; 16 Jan 1936; p. 5)
Note: All spelling, capitalization and punctuation marks in obituary are exactly as they appeared in the original text.