Siegmund Freudenberg (1828-1908) aka Sigmund Freudenberg was a worker at the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company in New York and Philadelphia. (b. 1828, possibly Berlin, Germany - March 23, 1908, Harlem, Manhattan, New York City, New York, New York, USA)
Birth:
He was born in 1828 in Berlin where his children were born. He listed "Prussia" in the 1870 census as his place of birth.
Religion:
Sigmund Freudenberg was Jewish.
First marriage:
Sigmund married Clara Horwitz (1835-c1861) on January 3, 1856 in Eisleben, Germany. Eisleben was the hometown of Martin Luther. The wedding was Jewish and Sigmund and Clara were listed as Jewish. Clara was transcribed as "Anna". Sigmund Freudenberg was working as a "kaufmann", or tradesman. The full text in German is as follows: "1857. Laut Verhandlung vom 22. Dezember 1856, (Vol I, fol. 258, den Akten der Beglaubigungen der Heiraten unter den Juden betreffend) haben der Kaufmann Siegmund Freudenberg zu Berlin und die Jungfrau Clara Harwitz, Tochter des verstorbenen Kaufmanns Aronn Harwitz, zu Eisleben geboren, am vierten März 1832, welche zu der jüdischen Glaubensgemeinschaft zugehören, erklärt, daß sie fortan als ehelich miteinander verbunden betrachten wollen. Eisleben, am dritten Januar eintausend achthundert siebenundfünfzig. Schnorbusch Protokollführer." Translated into English it reads: "1857. According to law of December 22, 1856, (Volume I, folio 258, the files of the legalization of marriages among Jews) have the merchant Siegmund Freudenberg of Berlin and the virgin Clara Horwitz, daughter of the late businessman Aronne Horwitz of Eisleben, born on the March 4, 1832, which belong to the Jewish community, declared that henceforth it will consider as legitimate linked. Eisleben, January 3, 1857. Schnorbusch, secretary."
Berlin:
By 1858 he was living in Berlin where his children were born. The first clue that the family was from Berlin came from the World War I draft registration of Richard F. Freudenberg (1896-1988) in 1918. Richard was his grandson.
Children:
Maximillian S. Freudenberg I (1858-1921) who was born in Berlin, Germany; Alfred Freudenberg (1859–?); and Gertrude Freudenberg (1867–1940) who married Martin Schoenwald (1861-1941). All the children were born in Berlin. That information comes from the 1870 census.
Death of first wife:
Clara most likely died in childbirth in Germany or when she arrived in the US between 1861 and 1863.
Emigration:
Sigmund and his children came to the United States around 1863-1865 and they appear in the 1870 US census.
Second marriage:
He married Augusta Hermann (1835-1904) between 1865 and 1868. Augusta was from Walldorf, Saxon, Germany according to the 1870 census.
Children:
Kate Freudenberg (1869–bef1880); Carry Hildise Freudenberg (1871–bef1880); Harriette Freudenberg (1871–bef1880); and Jennie Freudenberg (1872–1943) who married an Eidelman. All were born in Manhattan.
Manhattan and Philadelphia:
In 1870 he was living in Manhattan, New York City, New York and was listed as "Siegmund Freudenberg". He was an agent for the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company. He resided in Ward 15, District 12 in Manhattan. In 1880 he was living in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania at age 51. Siegmund resided at 935 North 6th Street. His occupation was listed as "life insurance". In 1905 he was living in Manhattan, New York City, New York and was listed as the retired father-in-law of Joseph Eidelman.
Death:
He died on March 23, 1908 at 2 East 116th Street in Harlem in Manhattan. His death certificate was number "9795" and he died of asthma with chronic bronchitis.
Burial:
Washington Cemetery in Brooklyn, New York.
Relationship:
Sigmund Freudenberg (1828-1908) was the second great-grandfather of Richard Arthur Norton (1958- ).
Source:
Researched and written by Richard Arthur Norton (1958- ) for Findagrave starting on September 10, 2003.
Updates:
"Siegmund Freudenberg" (1830-1908) who died on March 23, 1908 in Manhattan was a suspect for being our Sigmund but there was no evidence. The family oral tradition was the Max came alone as crew on a ship and stayed on in the US illegally by "jumping ship". Sigmund never appeared in the 1880 or 1900 census with other family members and he was not buried with the other family members in Cypress Hill Cemetery in Brooklyn; or in Flower Hill Cemetery in North Bergen, New Jersey. On June 6, 2011, Kevin Borland discovered more information on Sigmund Freudenberg from the 1870 census that contained both Max and Sigmund together. The information was improperly transcribed at Ancestry.com but was correctly transcribed at Familysearch.com. This let him connect the Sigmund that died in 1908 to our Sigmund. He wrote: "I also found Sigmund Freudenburg's second wife Augusta, after Clara died. Sigmund had a [daughter] Gertrude, and a [daughter] Jennie, hence the origin of the name Jenny Gertrude. We'll have to search Philadelphia records to prove it's the same family, but I think it is, because Max is in the household in 1870 when they lived in New York, before Sigmund shows up in Philadelphia 1880. Sigmund sold life insurance. His office was across the street from the US Mint. Siegmund Freudenberg died March 23, 1908 in Manhattan. Up until then, he was living with his daughter Jennie (Freudenberg) Eidelman." Kevin then found him in the 1880 census and the 1905 census and found the names of the children from his second wife. On June 8, 2011, I found the marriage online and found that Max and Clara were married in a Jewish ceremony. I also found the death date for his second wife, Augusta. The information makes sense since Max ended up working at the same company as Sigmund, the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company. The name Sigmund Freudenberg is very rare so that the odds of two of them born around the the same time being confused is remote.
