Michael and Andreas Eitelmann left Germany in 1852 for the United States. Speculation has it that Michael and Andreas left to avoid conscription into the army. However, there is room for doubt in this theory since, at ages 30 and 13 respectively, they would appear to have been too old and too young to be drafted into military service. Plus, Andrew (as Andreas became known in America) voluntarily served in the Union army.

The brothers were raised in and around the villages of Ruchheim and Ungstein, about 10 miles west of the Rhein River near the cities of Mannheim and Heidelberg. Their parents, Johann Georg Eitelman and Elizabeth Bähr, raised nine other children in addition to Michael and Andreas:

Maria, born 28 Apr 1819 Elisabetha (b.31 Dec 1820) Justina (b.14 Jul 1833, d.4 Jul 1856) Susanna (b.7 Sep 1836) Magdalena (b.24 Jan 1838)

Johann Phillipp (b.7 Jun 1825, d.9 Jun 1825) Hermann (twin to Johann, same dates) Jakob (b.11 May 1827) Samuel (b.10 Apr 1830, d.6 Dec 1836)

Thanks to research by Seymour Ingerson, his daughter Christine, Monique Fowler, and Jay Eitelman, they've traced this Eitelmann lineage back to Johann's grandfather, Conrad Eitelmann (1731-1795). This house reportedly belonged to Conrad in Ungstein. They also determined that "the earliest recorded use of the name 'Eitel' or 'Ytel' as found in History of the Upper Rhein means fire, burn or hearth. In 1421, Dietrich Vogt zu Radolfzell named his son 'Ytel Dietrich'. In 1550 Dietrich von Gemmingen named a son 'Eiteldietrich'.

Michael and Andreas's ancestry included:

Prepared by Steve Stockdale

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