Reckel Genealogy

The American Reckel/Roeckel family originated in Trulben, Germany.  Trulben is near the French border and south of Frankfurt and west of Stuttgart.  Two brothers, Jacob and Andreas Roeckel immigrated to Philadelphia in 1879, 80, or 81.

Their parents were Nicholas II and Anna Maria Roeckel.  The German spelling of the name was Röckel. Note the umlaut over the "o".  (Some browsers won't show the umlauted "o".  It is an "o" with the "snakebite" accent over it)  The English spelling was Roeckel when the umlaut was not used.  Letters from Germany to Andreas contained both variations.  In all variations, it was pronounced "reckel" as in "freckle".

Envelope dated 1898/02/21

Johann Roeckel was another of the brothers that came to America, but I have not been very successful in tracking him.  He is mentioned several times in the letters from Germany.  He was referred to as "Hans".  He appears on Censuses living at 595 Madison Avenue with Jacob and Anthony (Anton).

Anton Roeckel appears in the same Census living at 595 Madison Avenue with Jacob and Johann.  The letters from Germany do not mention him.  Therefore, I am unable to determine if he is a brother or a cousin or uncle or who knows?  For the time being, I'm listing him as a brother.

Andreas and Jacob made their way to Indianapolis, Indiana.  I don't have any evidence of when they arrived or how they got there.

Andreas was married at Sacred Heart Church in Indianapolis, Indiana on June 30, 1885.  Obviously, they arrived some time before then.

Jacob retained the English variation of his last name, Roeckel.  Jacob was 14 or 15 when he immigrated to America with his brother, Andreas. He stowed away on a boat to America and was caught. He was made to wash dishes to pay for his passage.

Jacob worked on the Fletcher estate when he first came to America. The estate was on Bluff Road in Indianapolis. He later worked at the brass works at Fountain Square in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Jacob owned three lots on Shelby St. at McDougal St. He built a house on the middle lot. He later sold the other two lots to pay medical bills incurred for his wife, Phillippine.

Jacob's children were:

Herman
Louis
Frances Catherine

Andreas Americanized his name to Andrew Reckel sometime after his marriage.

Andreas had served a hitch in the army. The country was gearing up for war and he was going to have to go back into the army. Andreas was 19 and Jacob was 14 at the time. Andreas's son, John Reckel, related that his father had told the story that he and Jacob were sitting under a tree watching a column of soldiers march by. He said the soldiers were sweating like race horses. They decided it was time to go. The two swam across a river to get to France. They eventually made their way to England. Andreas worked his way over on a cattle boat as a stockman to get to America. Jacob stowed away on the same boat and was caught. He was made to wash dishes to pay his way.

At the port of entry in Philadelphia, it was required for immigrants to have $100.00 before the could gain entry. This was apparently to keep out the indigent. Between the two, they had only one hundred. One brother took all the money and gained admission. He then handed the money through the fence to the other brother who then used it again to gain his entry.

They ended up in Indianapolis, Indiana where Andreas worked as a stable hand at the Fletcher estate (of the American Fletcher National Bank family).

Somehow Andreas ended up with a small "truck garden" farm on Bluff Road. The farm is said to have been 30 acres. The farm now lies under the I-465 interstate highway.

Andrew worked the farm where he raised vegetables and trucked them to the Farmer's Market  in Indianapolis and sold them.

Andrew's children were:

Elizabeth
John
Mary
Julia