Georg SCHIMPF 1812-1889
At the age of almost 43 Georg Schimpf undertook a long and uncomfortable journey on the tiny barque “Luise” to the colony of Victoria. Among 20 other Nieder-Weiselerns aboard was his older son Johann Georg. His older daughter, Katharina, had married in 1852; her sister, Anna Elisabetha, 8 years old, was left with her brother Konrad in the care of their mother, Anna Elisabetha nee Haub.
Georg was from a background of innkeepers on each side of his family and his wife’s father, Philipp Haub V, had been proprietor of ‘The Swan’. In spite of this favourable ancestry, Georg had to work as a farmhand and his sons faced a difficult future. It was this concern that influenced Georg to join other family men of his age group in a trip, which was intended to assess the potential of the goldfields of Victoria for providing a livelihood for the young men of their village.
“Luise” reached Port Philipp on 23rd February 1855 after a journey of over 19 weeks. Her 131 unsteady but thankful passengers tested their land legs on the long and dusty trek to Ballarat. Here, and on the other diggings in the Golden Triangle, they began to learn the skills of prospecting.
Late in 1856 Georg received news that his wife had died in May that year; he returned home as soon as he could but before he got to Nieder-Weisel, Konrad was also dead; his daughter Anna Elisabetha was at her married sister’s home.
Johann Georg had elected to remain in Victoria; he later moved to New South Wales and settled there.
Georg married again on 12th February 1861; his wife was Margaretha Thoma, a native of Nassau. Although there were no children to their marriage, Georg was able to watch his three grandchildren from Katharina’s marriage growing up.
Georg died in his home on the Hauptstrasse on 6 May 1889 at the age of 77.
View Georg's Family Chart
