ARNOLD BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD

FROM ALSACE, FRANCE TO NEW JERSEY:
ARNOLD, ARBOGAST, CHAPPON, GAECKLE, AND ALLIED FAMILIES

BY Lorraine Arnold Rechten

JEAN JACQUES ARNOLD AND THE ARNOLD FAMILY

Click on the map of Alsace to enlarge. The towns that are circled include:
Dettweiler, from which the Arnold family originates;
Buchweiller/Bischwiller from which the Gaeckle family originates;
and Luneville, the location of the military academy that Jacob/Jacques attended.

Alsace-Lorraine is a region of France located in the northeastern tip of France just over the border of Germany. The two regions are shown by the red outlines on the map. Lorraine is the arm of the region that juts out to the west, and Alsace runs from north to south along the Germany border touching Switzerland at the southern tip. Alsace is divided into two districts; Haut-Rhin and Bas-Rhin. Our Arnold roots from the mid 1800's stem from the two towns, Dettwiller and Bischwiller just north of Strasburg in Bas-Rhin, Alsace.

German occupation of Alsace began in the late 700's when Charlemagne's grandsons divided his empire. During the 1500's the French began to take over the region in stages culminating during the French Revolution of 1789. Jean Jacques (b.1826) emigrated to the United States in 1865 with his daughter Marguerite. It is purported that 50,000 Alsatians migrated to France when Germany retook Alsace-Lorraine in 1871. In 1891, when Alsace had been German occupied for 20 years, Jacob/Jacques, at age 29 left for America.

The name Arnold is German in origin and comes from are or ehre, "honor, and hold, faithful or devoted to?faithful to his honor." Though the name appears to be German in origin, the Arnold family from which we have descended appears to be French at least from the mid-1800's.

In researching our Arnolds through the Family Search International Index, information regarding Jacob/Jacques Arnold has been located along with parent's names and aunts and uncles. Jacob's birth name was Jacques. Both his grandfather's and father's name was Jean Jacques; mother's name Marguerite. A German form of Jacques would have been Jakob, and Jean would have been Johann. Jacques' brother was Frederic; sister Marguerite. His uncle's names were more telling with names such as Jean Jacques, Jean George, and Philippe. On the 1910 U.S. Census where Jacob/Jacques is asked what language was the common language spoken in their native home, it was noted to be "French." All documents including census forms and ship manifests stay consistent with our French heritage regardless of the current Alsace occupation of German or French.

Jacob Arnold was born Jacques Arnold to Jean Jaques Arnold and Marguerite Arbogast on 4 July 1861 in Dettweiler, Bas-Rhin, Alsace, when it was controlled by France.¹ In 1871, when Jacob was 10 years old, France was handed over, as a concession, to the Germans following the Franco-Prussian War. He was enrolled in the military academy at Luneville, France sometime thereafter. The academy photo that is posted on the site under his profile shows him to be somewhere around the age of 16.

Jacob immigrated to the United States in the year 1891 from Alsace.² Not all individuals were aliens or first timers that are listed arriving at Ellis Island. His 1891 entry may have been the first even though we see that the 1894 listing is the earliest posted in Ellis Island records. Ellis Island would not be in operation until 1892, therefore most likely his earlier entry was through Castle Island. The earliest indication that we have of a name change from Jacques to Jacob is in the 1910 census. His 1894 entry in Ellis Island still shows his name as Jacques and even in 1919 he is listed as an alien, France being listed as his citizenship home. Cancel

November 11, 1918, saw the end of World War I. On 12 October 1919, less than a year after the end of World War I when Alsace was returned to French control, Jacob arrived in port at Ellis Island after having visited France for an unknown amount of time. The least that we know is that he visited with his nephew, Charles Reeb of Quatzenheim, France. The ship's manifest indicates that he was of French nationality and was born in Dettweiler, Alsace-Lorraine, France. The locality is now known as Dettwiller in Bas Rhin. Though having lived in the United States for close to thirty-eight years, the ship manifest indicates that he is still a citizen of France. At this time he was living in the city of New York at 502 West 130 Street, New York, New York and working as a baker. This appears to have been his occupation for some time as the 1894 Ellis Island ship manifest entry indicates that he was a baker and the 1910 census indicates the same. The ship of travel in 1919 was called the La Savoie and departed from Le Havre, Seine-Inferior, France. Jacob was 5'7" tall with brown hair and blue eyes. CloseEdit

Jaques? future wife, Sophie was born in Bischwiller, Alsace, Bas-Rhine, France on 27 February 1867 to Guillaume "William" Gaeckle and Louise (Chappon) Gaeckle. Sophie was the youngest of four children; Caroline born in 1862, Louise born in 1864, and Guillaume born in 1865. As is indicated in the 1910 census for William Gaeckle (Sophie's father)immigrated in 1888. The 1910 U.S. census for Sophie would support the idea that she immigrated with him in 1888 as well. It is not known at this time whether or not any of the other Gaeckle family immigrated with them. FileWhen f

Jacques Arnold and Sophie Gaeckle married later in life; he being 33, and she 27 around 1894. On 26 June 1903, Jacob Arnold, Sophie's brother August Gaeckle, & her sister Louisa (Gaeckle) Riechers, bought 100 acres of land in Bridgewater township for $6,000.³ Sophie was pregnant at the time and it was during President Theodore Roosevelt's first administration, on 22 October 1903, that Frederick Jacob William Arnold was born in Bridgewater Township, Somerset County, New Jersey to Sophie and Jacob. Jacob's occupation on Frederick's birth certificate indicating that he was a "farmer." Four years later on 14 November 1907 the land was sold for one dollar plus "other valuable consideration" to Martin Stieler and his wife Catherine.⁴ Jacob & Sophie along with 4 year old Frederick moved back to the city.

In 1929 Frederick Jacob William Arnold and Zofia Helen Samek, an immigrant from Poland, married and rented a home at 51 Vista Avenue, Vista, Staten Island, New York. Frederick "Fred" was working as an electrician and Helen as a sewing machine operator for a factory that manufactured handkerchiefs.

By 1930 Sophie and Jacob Arnold had settled on West 130 Street. 1931 Frederick William and Helen Arnold saw the birth of their first child. Several years later another son would be born. Less than 14 years later Fred and Helen settled at 226 Prall Avenue, Staten Island. inished, click

Some time after Sophie's death in 1941, Jacob moved from their Staten Island residence at 212 Brall Street to 1033 Huguenot Avenue. He only lasted 3 years without his companion and died in Goldwater Hospital, the same as his wife in 1941. They both are buried in Ocean View Cemetery in Staten Island.

After many years at Prall Avenue, Fred and Helen Arnold moved to Bricktown, New Jersey and some time later to 1 Brenda Lane, Round Rock, Texas.

In the current year the Arnold families that relate to Jacob Arnold reside in New Jersey and Texas.