Letter to Private Lehnhard Winkler in 1864

On her fifty-third birthday, September 26, 1864, Mrs. Justina Winkler of Sandusky, Ohio wrote a letter to her son, who was serving in Company I of the Third Ohio Cavalry. Mrs. Winkler told her son Lehnhard (sometimes spelled Lenhart; later he was called Leonard) about a recent plot to free some prisoner’s at the Johnson’s Island prison. She told her son how the Winkler home was saddened without Lehnhard’s presence, and that she and the family wished him well. John Schwab, another Civil War soldier who had recently returned home from war, also sent greetings to Lehnhard.  The Winklers’ neighbor’s son was unable to adapt to the rigors of life in military service. Mrs. Winkler assures Lehnhard that the family back home was well, and she was most anxious to be re-united with her son.

Dr. Norbert A. Lange translated Justina Winkler’s letter to her son from the German:

Private Winkler did return safely from the Civil War. He was discharged from the service on August 4, 1865. He brought home with him a photograph album which contained several tintypes of soldiers that he had met.

In 1871 Leonard Winkler married Theresa Weber.

Mrs. Justina Winkler passed away in 1877. She was buried at St. Mary’s Catholic Cemetery. Her son Leonard died on May 29, 1893, and the G.A.R. conducted burial services for him at Oakland Cemetery. Theresa Weber Winkler lived well into her 80’s; she died on January 5, 1935 and was buried in the Winkler family lot in Block 76 of Oakland Cemetery. Leonard and Theresa (Weber) Winkler named one of their daughters Justina, in honor of Leonard’s mother.

Captain Otto J. Biemiller

Otto J. Biemiller was born in Sandusky, Ohio on March 28, 1865 to Christian and Margaret (Weber) Biemiller. He worked on Great Lakes fishing boats for over fifty years, having served as master of boats operated by the Post Fish Company and Lay Brothers Fisheries. Earning his first-class pilot papers in 1891, some of the boats that Captain Biemiller served on as Master were: the Anna Roberson, Erie, Silver Spray, Maythan, Markwell, the Driscoll, and the Canadian steamer Thistle.

On December 25, 1909, Captain Biemiller rescued the sons of Erie County Auditor, John Deist. William Deist, age 13, and Carl Deist, age 8, were ice skating on the Jackson Street slip when Carl fell through the ice, and William fell into the icy bay as he tried to rescue his brother. Though the ice was cracking, Captain Biemiller walked across the thin ice and grabbed Carl. William was then able to remain afloat while he waited for Biemiller to assist him. The April 23, 1911 issue of the Sandusky Register reported that Captain Biemiller had also rescued a party in distress on Lake Erie in Vermilion in June of 1902.

In January 1938, Captain Otto Biemiller retired as Master of the Shearwater, a vessel used by the Ohio Department of Conservation, in conjunction with the fish hatchery at Put in Bay. Otto Biemiller died on January 2, 1942, after having been in failing health for some time. Funeral services were conducted by Dr. Donald Wonders at the Keller Funeral Home, and burial was at Oakland Cemetery.  

The Biemiller family was well known in Sandusky. Otto’s uncle, Andrew Biemiller, was a prosperous fisherman, and was owner of the Biemiller Opera House which he had built in the 1870s.

  

Leonard and Theresa Winkler

This tintype picture of Theresa Weber Winkler was most likely taken before her marriage to Leonard Winkler in 1871. The couple was married in Monroeville, Ohio.

Theresa was born in Germany in 1847. Her future husband, Leonard Winkler, was also a native of Germany. During the Civil War, Leonard Winkler served in Company I of the Third Ohio Cavalry. Here he is in a picture taken in 1863:

Leonard and Theresa Winkler had a large family of children which included three sons and three daughters. Mr. Winkler worked as a delivery man for a brewery. 

These portraits of Leonard and Theresa Winkler were taken later in life.

Leonard Winkler died on May 26, 1893, following a bout of bronchitis. He was buried at Oakland Cemetery. Following his death, some of his military items were donated to the historical museum of the Sandusky Library, and are now housed at the Follett House Museum.

  

A daughter of Leonard and Theresa Winkler, Justina Winkler, was a nurse who served in World War I and later worked at Providence Hospital. A grandson, also named Leonard, was a teacher for several years, and he was known as the “Voice of Sandusky Athletics."