Maunz Family

c. 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
In October of the year 1843, Johann Michael Friedrich Maunz (age 27)  and his wife, Eva Maria Maunz (pronounced Mounce or Mounts), left their home in Wiesenbach, (District Office of Gerabronn) in the Kingdom of Württemberg, to emigrate to North America.  Specifically, their destination is the North American Republic of Ohio.  They are travelling with their 7-month-old daughter, Magdalena Barbara Maunz; their older daughter died in infancy.  At the time, Michael is a third-generation maurer meister, a master stonemason and master brickmason.

The next record of the Maunz family is the 1846 Cincinnati City Directory (Robinson & Jones), which lists Michael Maunz as a Stone Mason on the East side of Freeman, between Barr and 8th Streets, a few blocks from the Ohio River.  Michael and Maria’s son, George Frederick “Fritz” Maunz was born in Ohio in September 1846.  There may have been another child, a girl, born shortly after the family arrived in Ohio.  According to family tradition, Maria became pregnant on the journey to America.  The family has not been located in the 1850 Federal census.

By 1855, the Maunz family had migrated to Jackson County, Alabama.  It is possible that employment with the railroad brought Michael to Stevenson, AL.  Michael and Maria appear in the remaining Jackson County deed records (approx. years 1845 to 1854 deed records were destroyed by Union troops, along with County marriage records) in 1855 selling a tract of land.   In Nov. 1855, Michael purchases a tract of land in Jackson County with a man identified as G. F. Miller.  The purchase includes “all the appurtenances thereunto…belonging to the said G. L. Miller and Michael Mounc” which indicates Miller and Maunz had improvements on the land.

In 1860 Michael receives a fee patent for the purchase of 160 acres in Jackson County.  Again, the family is missing from the Federal census of 1860.

In September 18, 1860, Maria’s brother, Georg Friedrich Vogt, marries Margaretha Barbara Krafft [daughter of Georg Michael Krafft and Barbara (Wolz) Krafft, born in NJ] in New Jersey.  By September 1861, The newlyweds and the Krafft family have returned to Wurttemberg.  Georg Friedrich Vogt died in Gammesfeld in the year 1882.  This is the only family member that has been documented in the United States.

March 25, 1861, Michael Maunz volunteers at Stevenson, AL, for a 12-month enlistment in the Jackson Guard, along with other men from Jackson County, Alabama.  He is about to turn 46 years of age, too old for conscription.  On April 1, 1861, the Jackson Guards report to Lt. Francis Shoup, Com’d Artillery, at Fort Morgan, AL.   Most likely, they receive artillery training under Lt. Shoup.

The unit is redesignated Co. G, 7th AL Regiment.  Mike is listed on extra duty as cook at general hospital at Fort Morgan – which nearly doubles his pay.

November 6, 1861, Michael Maunz, along with Tony Douthit, voted at an Election held at Barranacas Barracks, near Pensacola, Florida, for Electors for the Pres.,  Vice Pres., & for Members to Congress, under an Act passed by Confederate Congress, Oct. 30, 1861, 3^rd Cong. Dist. of Alabama.

Fritz Maunz was 14-years old when his father, Michael, enlisted in the Jackson Guards.  Fritz also “wanted to fight for the South, but his parents said he was too young” and would not allow him to enlist.  After Michael departed for Mobile Bay with the Jackson Guards, Fritz lied about his age and enlisted.  Another family story is that Fritz was very intelligent, well educated, and had beautiful penmanship.  He began forging railroad passes or military orders so he could ride the trains with the Confederate soldiers.  This makes sense as Stevenson, Alabama, was a major railroad hub, being the juncture of the Memphis & Charleston Railroad and the Nashville & Chattanooga Railroad.   A great number of the soldiers could not read or write, so while riding the trains Fritz would teach them how to write their names.  The identity of the unit in which Fritz enlisted without his parents’ consent isn’t known. (The spelling “Mounce” has been misinterpreted as “Maurice” on some records, while “Maunz” is misinterpreted as “Moony”.   Spelling errors in 1861-1862, compounded with transcription errors today, complicate research efforts.)  Fritz may have used a false name or the records may not have survived.

Upon the expiration of his 12-month enlistment with the Jackson Guard, Michael enlisted in the Lookout Artillery, in early May, 1862.  He was given leave of absence for July & August, and Fritz enlisted in the Lookout Artillery in Knoxville, on Aug. 30, 1863, the last day of Michael’s leave.  Also on leave was Isaac Roe, also of Jackson County, AL, whose son, James Roe, was the same age as Fritz.  James Roe joined the Battery in the Spring of 1864.

Michael’s daughter, Magdalena Barbara Maunz, called “Maggie”, married John Burch Cook, a member of the Jackson Guards and Lookout Artillery, sometime in 1862.  John Burch Cook’s father, John Cook, and brother, George A. Cook, were also in the Lookout Artillery.  In December 1875, Fritz married Nancy Jane Cook, niece of John Cook, and cousin of John Burch Cook and George A. Cook.

Johann Michael Friedrich Maunz was 5th Sgt. of the Lookout Artillery at the time of his death, March 6, 1863.  He died of a fever at Camp Pollard, AL.  Fritz remained with the Battery until the Company was surrendered by Gen. Richard Taylor in May 1865.  John Burch Cook was wounded around May 18, 1864, at the Battle of Resaca, while manning one of the guns.  He arrived at Enterprise Hospital in Atlanta on May 19, 1864, and died a few weeks later.   During the Atlanta Campaign, Maggie and Maria were in the Atlanta area and in contact with the Lookout Artillery, and also in the City of Atlanta.  Captain Barry applied for death benefits for monies due Mike Maunz and John B. Cook on behalf of Maggie and Maria in July, 1864.

Stevenson, AL from Alabama Dept. of Archives & History (ADAH)

About Johann Michael Friedrich Maunz and Eva Maria Maunz:

Michael Maunz was born in Wiesenbach on April 3, 1816, to Johann Philipp Maunz and Maria Barbara Maunz (maiden name Zimmermann).  His father died in 1834, leaving Michael with his mother and five sisters.  Research indicates  three of the sisters remained in Wurttemberg.  The remaining two sisters are still a mystery.   Johann Philipp Maunz had a brother named Johann Michael Maunz.  Several children of the uncle Johann Michael Maunz immigrated to Ohio in 1854, however it is unknown if they had any contact with Michael and Eva Maria Maunz.

Eva Maria Vogt was born in Steinkirchen on January 21, 1815, to Friedrich Benedikt Vogt and his wife, Eva Maria Vogt (maiden name Hub).   The family lived in Steinkirchen, Wiesenbach, and Gammesfeld, where Maria’s parents died in 1867 and 1868, respectively.  It appears Eva Maria Maunz had one brother,  George Friedrich Vogt, who also came to the United States.  He married Margaretha Barbara Krafft, daughter of a German immigrant, in New Jersey on September 18, 1860.   Within the next 12 months, the newlyweds returned to Gammesfeld where they remained the rest of their lives.  Maria’s remaining siblings never left Wurttemberg.  No other relatives of Eva Maria Maunz or Michael Maunz have been found in the United States.  She was known as “Maria,” although Captain Barry referred to her as “Mary.”  She died in Independence County, Arkansas, December 29, 1876, and is buried at the Osborn Cemetery.   The inscription on her headstone reads, “Truthful unto death.” (For access to Osborn Cemetery, go to Future Fuels plant near Batesville, Arkansas, and ask for Security Guard on duty.  He will escort you to the property where Osborn Cemetery is located and unlock the gate for access.)

Headstone of Eva Maria Maunz