Henry and Anna Requardt

Henry Frank Requardt was born on April 12, 1875 in Laveme (Saveme), Germany. He is the son of Henry Requardt and Minnie Lerman (Lorman), both believed to be bom in Laverne, Germany. He had one brother, William Fritz Requardt. After the death of his father, it is believed that his mother remarried a man by the last name of Cook. Apparently, he did not get along with his stepfather, so he went to live with an aunt and uncle. He went to work in a cigar factory at the age of 11. Henry and Fritz came to America when Henry was 17 in the year 1892 by way of Galveston. It is not known what ship they came on. Henry came to the Needville area in 1893. He worked for the Ratke family in the Foster School area as a farmhand.

On February 20, 1900, he married Anna Katzer. Anna was the daughter of John and Caroline (maiden name unknown) Katzer. Anna was bom on November 18,1877 in Grulich, Austria. She had two brothers, Frank and Adolph. Her mother died (possibly in Germany) and John later married Francisco (maiden name unknown). John brought his family to America in 1889 by way of New York. They made their home in Schulenberg, TX for 7 years before moving to Needville, TX. The Katzer s bought 320 acres of land from H. Hackstedt for a total of $400. The land was located about 3 miles south of Needville across from the Needville High School. John Katzer was a farmer and had hired Henry Requardt as a farmhand.

Henry and Anna Requardt made their home with John and Francisco Katzer. John Katzer died on September 9, 1904 of asthma at his residence and is buried in the Needville Public Cemetary. Church records show his date of birth as March 20, 1846. When the County started making public roads, many graves in the Needville Public Cemetary were dug up and moved to make way for the roads. Either John's grave was not dug up or it was not marked after it was moved, so the location is unknown. It is not known if Henry farmed the Katzer place after John's death or what happened to the property after his death. While living in Needville, Henry helped form the Evangelical and Reform Church and was a charter member. It is now known as Immanuel United Church of Christ.

On October 9, 1911, Henry and Anna bought 159.1 acres of farmland near Rosenberg from F. Forster for $4,900. By this time. Henry and Anna had 6 children, Caroline, Twins John and Rudolph, Henry Jr., Anna, and Elsie. With the help of his brother and neighbors, they proceeded to build their house. When it was finished, the family crossed the prairie from Needville to move into their home. Francisco Katzer lived with them until her death in 1917 or 1918. She was buried in the Modena Cemetary as it was rainy weather and they could not cross the prairie to bury her in the Needville Public Cemetary. Henry and Anna had three more children; Minnie, Frieda, & Hugo. Henry also helped form the Friedens Evangelical and Reform Church in Beasley. Henry and his sons farmed this land until 1947 when their youngest son, Hugo, bought the farmland from them. Henry and Anna then bought a house in Needville.

Henry suffered blindness from glaucoma and later lost his hearing. Anna later lost her hearing, but was the eyes for Henry. She loved working in her garden and it was always full of blooming flowers and vegetables. She cared for her garden until the age of 91 when she fell and broke her collarbone. Since she was so feeble, she was admitted to Polly Ryon Hospital in Richmond. Henry could not bear being separated from her so he too was admitted to the hospital where they shared the same room. On July 20, 1968, Henry died of a stroke. He was buried in the Friedens United Church of Christ Cemetary in Beasley. After Henry's death, Anna was admitted to the nursing home in Needville where she lived to the age of 99. She died on January 4, 1977.


Henry Frank Requardt married Anna Katzer
February 20, 1900