Martha Cordes married William Kirmse on February 11, 1904 in the Salem Lutheran Church at Farrar, Perry County, Missouri.

• WHAT: Wilhelm and Martha (Cordes) Kirmse marriage portrait
• LEFT TO RIGHT: Martha Margaretha Cordes, daughter of Heinrich and Margaretha (Meier) Cordes; Wilhelm Kirmse, son of Julius and Barbara (Kraus) Kirmse
• WHEN: 11 Feb 1904 – marriage date
• WHERE: Farrar, Missouri – where married.
• SOURCE: Scanned from Dale’s Ancestors Album, February 2, 2015.

Marriage Documents

• WHAT: Martha (Cordes) and William Kirmse – Wedding Party
• BACK ROW, LEFT TO RIGHT: Johanna Katharina Kirmse, daughter of Barbara Kraus and Julius Kirmse. She is a sister of the groom, William; Immanuel “Emanuel” Hermann Meier, son of Maria “Mary” Bertha Eggers and Johann Heinrich Meier. He is a cousin of the bride, Martha Cordes;  Louis Kirmse, son of Barbara Kraus and Julius Kirmse. He is a brother of the groom, William; Marie “Mary” Christina Cordes, daughter of Margaretha Meier and Heinrich “Henry” Cordes. She is a sister of the bride, Martha.; Joseph “Joe” Kirmse, son of Barbara Kraus and Julius Kirmse. He is a brother of the groom, William
• FRONT ROW, LEFT TO RIGHT: Bride: Martha Margaretha Cordes, daughter of Margaretha Meier and Heinrich “Henry” Cordes; Groom: Wilhelm “William” Kirmse, son of Barbara Kraus and Julius Kirmse
• WHEN: February 11, 1904
• WHERE: Farrar, Missouri
• SOURCE: Shared by Helen (Kirmse) Hacker October 2003.

• WHAT: “Hochzietesbitter” (wedding inviter) for the Martha Cordes and William Kirmse – Wedding
• WHO: Louis Kirmse, son of Barbara Kraus and Julius Kirmse. He is the brother of the groom, William
• WHEN: February 11, 1904
• WHERE: Farrar, Missouri
• SOURCE: Shared by Helen (Kirmse) Hacker October 2003.
• NOTE: Helen (Kirmse) Hacker said that her dad [Louis Kirmse] was the “Hochzietesbitter” [wedding inviter] for his brother William’s wedding. He was dressed in wedding attire plus a hat decorated with a garland of flowers and a horse to ride which also was decorated with garlands of flowers. He would ride from place to place to invite the guests. Upon arriving, he would shout “Hochziete Hochziete Hochziete” [Wedding Wedding Wedding]. Then the names of the wedding pair, with details of where and when, etc were announced. This was the highest honor of the wedding party (even higher than the best man).

Following A Dream

William and Martha decided to move to the Oklahoma Territory to follow William’s dream of owning land in Oklahoma. Stories of the Indians in the Oklahoma and Indian Territories were well known in Missouri. And, at William and Martha’s wedding in Farrar, Missouri, “Friends and relatives implored them not to move to Oklahoma to make their home because the people thought Oklahoma was wild Indian country and they feared for the couple’s safety.”[1]

However, William and Martha Kirmse were an adventuresome couple and did not take advice about moving to Oklahoma.  I remember Grandmother Kirmse telling this story and then following up by saying “But we never saw even one Indian”.

Notes

1. Source Information – Ancestry.com. Missouri, Marriage Records, 1805-2002 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2007. Original data: Missouri Marriage Records. Jefferson City, MO, USA: Missouri State Archives. Microfilm.
2. Source: Marriage Records. Salem Lutheran Church, Farrar, Missouri.  Copied September, 2003.