Our Beginning Point

Our beginning point in the research for our German roots started in the small city of Ochsenfurt with the family of Franz X. Grunewald (1903-1985) and Rosa Schmittner (1907-1985).

Franz was born in Frickenhausen on February 8, 1903, a small village across the Main River from Ochsenfurt. 

On April 13, 1907, Rosa was born in Ochsenfurt.

 The two married in December of 1928. Their marriage produced 6 children
(3 girls and 3 boys).

The women from left to right - Hildegard, Eleanor, Rosa (mother) and Erna

The boys from left to right - Rudolf, Siegfried and Franz

Their home was located at Hohestadter Str. 17 in Ochsenfurt, Bavaria, Germany

Above photo is of the front of the home and the bottom photo is of the backside of the home and the entrance into the cellar.

My grandfather built the 2nd building on the property which I believe was always used for storage. This is how it looked during the time they owned the home.

My grandfather Franz placed his initials and the year he built the building on the sidewall.

My sister, daughter and I returned to Ochsenfurt in the summer of 2016 to visit family still living there and to revisit the places we had seen during our childhood visits. The people that own the home now were gracious enough to let us come and visit. They have taken very good care of  the house and have remodeled the interior very nicely. We were happy to see it looking so good.  

I remember this walkway that leads from the street down to the front door. My memories are of the rose bushes and peonies that flanked each side of the steps. I believe my mom told me that Opa brought the rose bushes home from a building site.

When we walked inside I was transported back 40 years to the memories I have as a child when visiting this house. After all these years, you can still see it in your mind, but it's emotional to walk into it and see it again. The hallway leads directly to the kitchen,

and to our right was the staircase leading upstairs,

and right next to it, divided by a wall, is the staircase leading down to the cellar.

This is a bird feeder that my grandfather Franz built more than 50 years ago. The new owners have left it in the garden.

The additional building on the property - what used to be a shed - has been renovated into an apartment and is, also, very nice. They left my grandfather's initials and the year he built the shed on the front of it, which is really neat. He would be happy about that.

Here's a close-up of his handywork.