The Muench Family Association
The Muench Family Association is an organization devoted to the exploration and preservation of the Muench family, its history and genealogy. Its primary purpose is to promote all things Muench and to facilitate family events.
Membership in the Muench Family Association is open to all descendants of the children resulting from the marriage of Johann Rudolf Muench (born January 15, 1707, in Beienheim; died June 6, 1772, in Hermannstein) and Katharina Lucretia Stockhausen (born June 30, 1715, in Hermannstein; married May 15, 1733, in Hermannstein; and died in 1777 in Ober-Mockstadt). The association also includes, as non-voting members, friends who are not descendants but who are interested in the history or genealogy of the Muench family. We welcome all who want to help add to our understanding of all things Muench!
The organization hopes to arrange for a family reunion, so we need your contact information. Please fill out the contact form and send it so that we may keep you informed of events as they develop. Please include your phone number and address as part of your message. Friends: please send us your information too!
The site is meant as a communications hub for family information. If you have information you would like to place on the website to share with the family, please contact me either via the form on the "contact" page or via email.
We welcome all who wish to participate. Come explore with us the fascinating story of the Muench and Follenius families!
--James F. ("Jim") Muench, provisional chairman
Friedrich Muench Homestead Purchased in May 2024
The Friedrich Muench homestead, located beside Lake Creek in Dutzow, Mo., was purchased by Steve and Denelle Fechter.
Muench purchased the farm soon after immigrating to Missouri in 1834. Near the farm once owned by Gottfried Duden, it would became one of the centers of German-American social and political influence in the 19th Century. Known as "Papa Muench" in those days, Friedrich was one of the early "Latin farmers" -- highly educated German immigrants who came to America to participate in enlightened democracy. Muench family members Iris Roberts and Jim Muench applied to the State of Missouri to purchase the property, but the state declined citing lack of available funds.
Muench purchased the farm soon after immigrating to Missouri in 1834. Near the farm once owned by Gottfried Duden, it would became one of the centers of German-American social and political influence in the 19th Century. Known as "Papa Muench" in those days, Friedrich was one of the early "Latin farmers" -- highly educated German immigrants who came to America to participate in enlightened democracy. Muench family members Iris Roberts and Jim Muench applied to the State of Missouri to purchase the property, but the state declined citing lack of available funds.
The Rev. Dr. Richard F. Vieth, dead at 96
Richard F. Vieth, author and retired professor of systematic theology, died December 8, 2023, at the Lakeside nursing care facility at Willow Valley Senior Living Community. He was a long-time resident of Lancaster, PA.
See full obituary on the News page.
See full obituary on the News page.
Dr. Karl H. Muench, geneticist and
MFA genealogy chief, dead at 88
Dr. Karl Hugo Muench, retired professor of medicine at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, died March 26, 2023, from multiple organ failure caused by underlying chronic lymphocytic leukemia at Mercy Hospital near his home in Coconut Grove. He was 88.
In recent years, he served as the Muench Family Association’s chief genealogy officer tracking down descendants. When people contacted the association asking if they were connected to the Muench clan, Karl would make the determination.
Until last year, Dr. Muench served as a professor of medicine teaching genetics to students at the University of Miami, where he began as an instructor in 1965. Three years later, he became the first chief of the Division of Genetic Medicine, a position he held until 2009 alongside appointments in the departments of biochemistry and pediatrics. He would also serve as director of the sickle cell center, chief of the Gaucher disease treatment program, and head of the Ph.D.-to-M.D. program.
See full obituary on the News page.
In recent years, he served as the Muench Family Association’s chief genealogy officer tracking down descendants. When people contacted the association asking if they were connected to the Muench clan, Karl would make the determination.
Until last year, Dr. Muench served as a professor of medicine teaching genetics to students at the University of Miami, where he began as an instructor in 1965. Three years later, he became the first chief of the Division of Genetic Medicine, a position he held until 2009 alongside appointments in the departments of biochemistry and pediatrics. He would also serve as director of the sickle cell center, chief of the Gaucher disease treatment program, and head of the Ph.D.-to-M.D. program.
See full obituary on the News page.
Muench Elected to Deutschheim Verein Board
Jim Muench has been elected to the board of the Deutschheim Verein ("association" in German), an organization that supports the Deutschheim State Historic Site in Hermann, Mo. He participated March 13 in the board's first 2022 meeting.
Although Hermann was formed by a different emigration society based in Pennsylvania, Missouri's German towns, especially those along the Missouri River remained in close contact with each other. For instance, Friedrich Muench's articles were often published by newspapers and journals based in Hermann, and his work with other Missouri Germans in the abolitionist movement prior to the Civil War has been well documented as in this recent display: German Immigrant Abolitionists: Fighting for a Free Missouri.
As Missouri's German Heritage Corridor project continues to develop, such connections amongst Missouri's German descendants may be further explored. Perhaps, in the future, other Missouri German sites such as Friedrich's Lake Creek farm and Georg's Mount Pleasant farm may receive similar state recognition or even become part of the Deutschheim SHS.
Although Hermann was formed by a different emigration society based in Pennsylvania, Missouri's German towns, especially those along the Missouri River remained in close contact with each other. For instance, Friedrich Muench's articles were often published by newspapers and journals based in Hermann, and his work with other Missouri Germans in the abolitionist movement prior to the Civil War has been well documented as in this recent display: German Immigrant Abolitionists: Fighting for a Free Missouri.
As Missouri's German Heritage Corridor project continues to develop, such connections amongst Missouri's German descendants may be further explored. Perhaps, in the future, other Missouri German sites such as Friedrich's Lake Creek farm and Georg's Mount Pleasant farm may receive similar state recognition or even become part of the Deutschheim SHS.
Pronunciation of "Muench" name helped decide 1860 election
Is it "Minch," "Munch" or something in between? Karl Muench, M.D., explores a little-known story about how the pronunciation of our name as either "Minch" or "Munch" affected an important U.S. Senate race in Missouri on the eve of the Civil War.
Editor's note:
Karl Muench's story, written a year or two before his death, provided two different versions of the Rollins v. Henderson tale. A third version recently discovered by Jim Muench in a July 4, 1976, story in the archives of the Columbia Missourian has Henderson spelling the name "M-e-u-n-c-h," providing a different explanation that rings true because the "Minch" pronunciation sounds similar to "Me-unch."
According to this article, which relies on historian William Switzler as its source, James Rollins angrily responded to the accusation from his rival John Henderson that he had elicited the support of Frederick Muench: “The name is Muench, not Minch. You can’t cheat the people. You can’t play tricks on me with impunity; you have changed his name.”
Editor's note:
Karl Muench's story, written a year or two before his death, provided two different versions of the Rollins v. Henderson tale. A third version recently discovered by Jim Muench in a July 4, 1976, story in the archives of the Columbia Missourian has Henderson spelling the name "M-e-u-n-c-h," providing a different explanation that rings true because the "Minch" pronunciation sounds similar to "Me-unch."
According to this article, which relies on historian William Switzler as its source, James Rollins angrily responded to the accusation from his rival John Henderson that he had elicited the support of Frederick Muench: “The name is Muench, not Minch. You can’t cheat the people. You can’t play tricks on me with impunity; you have changed his name.”
Book about German Immigration for sale
A recently published book about 19th-century German immigrants to Missouri by three St. Louis area historians, and a descendant of Friedrich Muench, is still available. “The Historic 1830s German Immigration to Missouri” by Anita M. Mallinckrodt, Marc Houseman, Cathie Schoppenhorst and James F. Muench provides a clear understanding of German immigration and the culture they created.
Mallinckrodt, who is related to the Muenches, Houseman and Schoppenhorst are historians in the Missouri towns of Augusta, Washington and Marthasville. Muench, the great-great-great grandson of Friedrich Muench, is a writer in Columbia. Published by Footnoted Legacies Ltd. of Augusta, Mo., the book costs $10 plus postage. It can be purchased from the printer, B&J Printing of Washington, Mo., www.bjprintingonline.com, 636-239-3512. It is also available from the history societies in Augusta, 636-228-4821; Marthasville, 636-359-6175; St. Charles, 636-946-9828; and Washington, 636-239-0280; or from Far West Enterprises in Columbia, Mo., 573-864-0484, [email protected] or www.jamesfmuench.com.
Mallinckrodt, who is related to the Muenches, Houseman and Schoppenhorst are historians in the Missouri towns of Augusta, Washington and Marthasville. Muench, the great-great-great grandson of Friedrich Muench, is a writer in Columbia. Published by Footnoted Legacies Ltd. of Augusta, Mo., the book costs $10 plus postage. It can be purchased from the printer, B&J Printing of Washington, Mo., www.bjprintingonline.com, 636-239-3512. It is also available from the history societies in Augusta, 636-228-4821; Marthasville, 636-359-6175; St. Charles, 636-946-9828; and Washington, 636-239-0280; or from Far West Enterprises in Columbia, Mo., 573-864-0484, [email protected] or www.jamesfmuench.com.
Book on Muenches Also Available
Richard Vieth's Adventure into Hope: the Founding and Fate of the Giessen Emigration Society and its Organizers Friedrich Muench and Paul Follenius, is now available as an e-book on Amazon for $4.99. See the story on the News page. The book explains in a nutshell the historical and political circumstances that led Muench and Follenius, and other Germans, to emigrate to the U.S.
Editor's note regarding SEO
It has come to the website editor's attention that Internet Explorer's main search box may be having trouble finding our site. If you use Internet Explorer as your browser, I therefore suggest that you either type the website address (http://www.muenchfamilyassociation.com) directly into the address box or use a stronger search engine such as Google or Yahoo. The browsers Firefox and Chrome also appear to find our site with ease. I will continue to do what I can (recognizing budgetary constraints) to optimize the site for search engines. --Jim Muench
