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A Tribute to Augusta Emilie Nipkow Mesenbrink

Augusta Nipkow was my great grandmother, although she died long before I was born, and I never knew her. She was an immigrant from Germany, coming over as a child with her parents. She was born in Pomerania, which was a German speaking region, a part of Prussia at the time. The Potsdam agreement at the end of World War II gave Pomerania to Poland and expelled the Germans living there. So, if you look at a map of the area now, you will see Polish, not German, city names.

Augusta was born in Butow, and it was a little tricky to find this place as there were a couple other larger Butows that don't really make sense to be her birthplace. I haven't found a birth record for her, but her family was in the area around Stargard, and there is a Butow about 25 miles east of there which I believe to be her birthplace. See Finding the Nipkows. Her obituary states she was born February 2, 1865.

Here is an 1872 passenger list showing her with her family. The top of the right side shows her parents, Frederick, age 44, Wilhelmina, age 38, siblings Otto, 9 Albert, 5, and Wilhelmina, 3/4 year. She is listed as Augustina, age 7.



The Nipkows settled in Jackson County, Iowa. Augusta taught Sunday School at the Bellevue church, according to her obituary. This was likely St. John Lutheran Church, formed in 1864 according to their website. The Spragueville church was formed in 1872, around the same time that the Nipkows arrived in the U.S. When Augusta was confirmed at Spragueville in 1879  her home was listed as Higginsport, which was about five miles north of Spragueville and in the direction of Bellevue. The short trip to Spragueville may have been difficult as they had to cross the Maquoketa River using a ferry service. So I suspect they established themselves with the Bellevue church until well after the bridge was built in 1873.

The Mesenbrinks had settled in Jackson County a few years before the Nipkows arrived, and in 1882, Augusta married Henry William Mesenbrink. Here is the record from Salem Lutheran Church in Spragueville:

And here are some wedding photos:
Augusta Emilie Nipkow

Otto Nipkow, Henry William Mesenbrink

Augusta Emilie Nipkow with mother Wilhelmina Nipkow (This photo came from Marge Hoster)

Henry William Mesenbrink and Augusta

The Mesenbrinks moved to Denison shortly after marrying, and lived in Dow City and Dunlap. She was mother to nine boys and three girls. Their rented farm near Dunlap must have been quite the operation. No doubt it helped having all the kids to help out with the farm work. Here is a picture of the farm

This photo from Marge Hoster


Here is the family, around 1910.

H.W Mesenbrink family


Henry William and Augusta ca. 1925
Augusta died November 17, 1929 while visiting her son Rudolf in Omaha who was preparing to move to California. She had had a stroke a few years earlier.

Following is a copy of an obituary for her. It's a bit difficult to read.


A remarkable life and family...

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