The first Heise, spelled Heyse, of which we have record based on the records of the Lutheran Church in Liebenau, is John Andrew Heise, born in May 1769 and who was a Soldier in the 6th Hannover Infantry Regiment. Perhaps the reason that there is no prior record of Heise's in Liebenau, is that he was born in another town, served in the Army and settled in Liebenau after his marriage 9 August1803 which is the first record we have of him. He married into a family that lived in Liebenau but originally came from Bremen where the father was a Water Miller. His death record in Liebenaustated where he was born. His death records say that he was a widower, so his wife died prior to 1836 and in fact we have a record of her death in 14 April 1817 when she was 40 years old.

It is interesting to note that, John Ludwig was listed as aMaster Tailor when he married in 1829. We know that he had something to do with a meat market on Broadway when he came to the U.S.  His wife Betha Marqarethe Rabbe, was born in Bremen, Germany on15 August 1809 and she died in Baltimore on 27 December 1868 but we do not have the date when she came to the U.S.

John Ludwig was born in 1804 in Liebenau in the Kingdom of Hannover a small village about 40 miles northwest of Hannover in line with Bremen, Germany. He arrived in Baltimore on May 25,1847 on the French Brig BERRINGER from St. Preire, Martinique.  He arrived alone on the ship according to the passenger list. When his children arrived is not known.

Ludwig was naturalized on September 23, 1870. At the time of his death he was living at 2121 East Pratt Street in the 3rd District about two blocks west of Patterson Park. According to his obituary in the Baltimore Sun on September 30th, 1897, "Mr. Ludwig Heise, aged ninety-five years, was probably the only man in Baltimore who could boast of having seen Napoleon Bonaparte, died yesterday at his home, 2121 East Pratt street. Born in 1802 at Lebenan, Hannover, Germany, Mr. Heise, when a boy of thirteen, saw the great commander, with his military escort, pass through a Germantown some time before the battle of Waterloo. He often, related this circumstance to his friends."

100 page book, including maps and pictures of people, softcover, 8 1/2 x 11 inches. The price is $20.00 including shipping and postage. Order from:  RJN Family History Co., P.O. Box 114, Richland, SC. 29675-0114.  See home page for my email address.