Messerschmidt, Gertrude Rosina
Association: Pioneers of Alaska, Juneau Igloo Auxiliary No. 6
Role: Charter Member
Associated Places: Gosheim, Württemberg, Germany; San Francisco, California; Juneau, Alaska
Biography
Gertrude Rosina Messerschmidt, born Gertrude Rosina Hermie, was a charter member of the Juneau Igloo Auxiliary No. 6 of the Pioneers of Alaska.
She was born on March 10, 1873, in Gosheim, Württemberg, Germany. In 1893, she immigrated to the United States.
In late June of 1899, she arrived in Juneau from San Francisco to work as a clerk in the bakery operated by Gustav Messerschmidt. On September 21, 1899, Gustav and Gertrude were married and lived above the bakery shop.
The couple had nine children: Gertrude (born July 1900), George (born September 1901), Henry Theodore (born 1903), William Howard (born 1904), Francis (born 1907), twin daughters Katherine Elizabeth and Elizabeth Katherine (born 1909), and Rosina (born 1912). Rosina was the first of their children to be born in a hospital.
Gertrude Messerschmidt died on May 13, 1926.
Sources
- 1920 U.S. Federal Census, Juneau, Alaska
- Gastineau Channel Memories, Vol. 1, p. 334
- Alaska Daily Empire, May 14, 1926