Person:Frederick Teutsch (2)

Teutsch family records in church in Sulsfield date back to the 1300's. Frederick is the earliest ancestor anyone can recall. No one knew his wife's name but we have heard talk of her impatience with things that interferred with her own style of living. She heartily disliked the mess her husband, Frederick made with his experiments in horticulture and plants all around. She lived to be 96 years old and enjoyed excellent health to the very end. However, she embarrassed the family in her later years because when she got tired of company or visitors, and she felt they had been there long enough, she would quietly walk about the room and say, "Nun gehen Sie,"-----"Now they can go."

Frederick was very different. He seemed to take a very active part in public affairs. He was Burgermeister of Sulzfeld, Baden, Germany, their home. He also held office in Karlsruhe, keeping the county records of properties, etc. We are not sure what his title was. His daughter assisted him with the books. During the Revolution of 1848 when the mob burned part of the city court house, he slipped away with the most pertinent records and hid them and himself in empty wine barrels in a wine cellar for three days until the soldiers came and restored order. Many of the books were so damaged that he and his daughter had to re-copy them.

At the time when Napoleon marched to Russia, they conscripted soldiers all along the way. Frederick Teutsch was out in the yard chopping wood when they came through Sulzfeld. Without any delay they ordered Frederick and his neighbor to join ranks and all he could do was wave goodbye to his wife and march on. He and his neighbor both made a vow that if they were able to return, they would fast every Saturday until noon on Sunday after they attended church. They both lived through the hardships of Napoleon's retreating army and Frederick never broke his vow.

His work in horticulture and agriculture won him the attention of Leopold, Grand Duke of Baden, who, in recognition of his service, presented him a medal which is now in possession of the Charles Antritter family in Watertown, South Dakota. (It has been learned since that the Antritter sisters have given this medal to Stanley Beal, Round Lake, Minnesota.