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I was told by my grandmother Alice Silverman Benioff and her cousin Betty Hamburger, that Theresa Sanger was born in Alsace. However, her gravestone says it was Bavaria. So at this point I still do not know exactly where she was born or who her parents were. We know that French was spoken in the Hess household in New Orleans and Donaldsonville. But at this point many mysteries remain about her life, her marriage and her death. She came to New Orleans sometime before 1833. I don’t know if she came alone or with her parents or with her siblings.
I believe she was the sister of David Sanger and Henrietta Sanger. However we do know that David Sanger was born in Klingenmunster, Germany and Henrietta Sanger Jacobi was born in Ingerheim, Bavaria. So perhaps that is where Theresa was born as well. Interestingly, the 19th Govenor of Louisiana, Michael Hahn (who was probably Jewish) was also born in Klingenmunster. Klingenmunster is quite near Alsace.
Theresa married Levi Hess, around 1833 and had at least 8 children between 1834 and 1851, when she died. Six of those children survived.
With her husband Levi Hess, she purchased slaves. Please read more about enslavement by this family.
We believe that she traveled from New Orleans to New York City in 1851 and died there a month after arrival.
Putting together the details of her life has been difficult with very little information. I have begun a timeline below to show the “breadcrumbs” leading to some tentative conclusions.
circa 1814 – birth in Alsace or Klingenmunster
circa 1834 – Emmigration to New Orleans
1830 – Louisiana State government moved to Donaldsonville from New Orleans
1834 – L. Hess comes with family from Bremen on ship SS Olbers
circa 1834 – Theresa Sanger marries Levi Hess
1835, Nov 10 – birth of son Louis Hess in New Orleans
1838 – Levi Hess Naturalized in Donaldsonville, LA
1838 – Levi Hess clothing store on Girard and New Levee Streets in Gibson’s Guide and Directory
1839 – Levi hess takes out a $35 mortgage on a slave Millie, aged 35
1839, Aug – Infant Hess born
1840, Sept 6 – unnamed Hess infant dies in New Orleans
1840 – Federal Census – L. Hess with 1 male under age 5 (Louis), 1 male 20-30 (Levi), 1 female 20-30 (Theresa) and one female slave aged 10-24
1840 – Store at corner of Lafayette and Church Streets in Baton Rouge belonging to L.Hess and D. Sanger in Baton Rouge Gazette April 11
1840-above partnership dissolved and it becomes D. Sanger and Straus – April 25, 1840
1840 – D. Straus leaves partnership – announced Oct 3 1840 in Gazette
1841 – D. Straus leaves partnership – Jan 16 1841 (who is D. Straus?)
1841 – Birth of son Joseph Levi HESS: 8 Feb 1841, Louisiana
1842 – L. Hess buys the slave Ruthe in Donaldsonville
1844 – Birth of daughter Pauline HESS: 25 Oct 1844, Donaldsonville, LA
1845 – Birth of son Uri Henry HESS: 13 Mar 1845, Louisiana
1846 – Birth of Rachel and maybe Bertha Hess in Louisiana (children of Levi’s brother Abraham Hess)
1847 – Birth of dau Melanie HESS: abt 1847, Louisiana
1848 – Birth of dau Sarah HESS: 4 Mar 1848, New Orleans
1849 – Birth of dau Bertha HESS: abt 1849, Louisiana
1850, Jun 1 – L. Dinkelspiel travels from SF to Panama
1850, 25 Jul – Levi Hess, Theresa, 7 children and 2 servants living in New Orleans
1851 – Most or all of slaves sold
1851, 13 Jun – Theresa Hess sails on the steamship Cherokee to NY from Panama with 6 children and a servant (youngest child Bertha probably died in New Orleans)
1851, June 24 – Levi Hess sails from NY to Panama
1851, July 23 – Theresa Sanger Hess dies in NY, NY (814 Greenwich St.) of dysentery and is buried at the Beth Olom Cemetery in Queens
1851, Oct 2 – Levi Hess arrives in SF on the “North America”
1851 – L. Hess is at Temple Emanuel in SF
1854, Jan 28 – her son Louis Hess age 18 returns from France on the Eastern Queen
1855, 4 Feb – Levi Hess marries Ricka Wertheimer in San Francisco
1855, June – Pauline, Henry and Melani Hess are boarders at the Palache School in Manhattan
Page 407
State of Louisiana, Parish of Ascension, Know all men by those present that on this twenty seventh day of April in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and forty two. Before me Victor Joubert Pujos Notary Public in and for the parish of Ascension State of Louisiana, duly commissioned? & sworn, Personally same? and appear M. W. S. Green** of Hart County Kentucky, acting here as partner of M. Vaughn of Green County Kentucky & in the absence of his said partner, who declared and said that he has this day, sold, conveyed assigned, set over & delivered, and does by these present sell, convey, assign, set over and deliver, with ?
to guaranty the buyer of all troubles, debts, mortgages, evictions, substitutions, alienations whatsoever they may be or might be, as against all the maladies and vices prescribed by law, unto M. L. Hess of this aforesaid parish here present and accepting? said sale for himself, his heirs & assigns, the following slave: A Negro girl, Ruthe about thirteen years of age, their property, after what he says, by an act of sale passed in their favor by M. Wm Barnett of Green County Kentucky. The vendor guaranties said Slave, in binding himself, his heirs & assigns, to be sound in body and mind and slave for life. —The vendee acknowledges to be in possession of said Slave as of a thing belonging to him by virtue of these presents, and declares to know her for having visited and examined her. —
The present sale is Made concluded and accepted for and in consideration of a sum of four hundred and forty dollars payable in cash, and whereof a receipt is hereby given to the vendee by the vendor by these present before the Notary & witnesses __Both parties having agreed to what has been done and said, they discharge the aforesaid Notary of all guarantee for having not required any certificate of No Mortgage? of the parish judge in conformity with law—. Sold, done and signed and passed at the parish of Ascension, in the presence of M. Leblanc and Marcel Melancon*** competent witnesses, who have signed with the parties and me? Notary, after having read out, on the same day and year before written/ signed to the original Green and Vaughn, _L. Hess_ M. Leblanc_Marchel Melancon_Victor Joubert Pujos Notary Public. I certify the foregoing to be a true copy of the original in my office given under my law and the impress of my seal office****, at the parish of Ascension on the twenty eighth day of April one thousand eight hundred and forty two. L.S. signed Victor Joubert Pujos Notary Public___Recorded this day Parish of Ascension May Sixth 1842. The words “concluded & accepted” – “& forty” interlined and approved – — (this means that in the document, those words were inserted above the line of text as an afterthought-dsf)
* Edward Duffel – Parish Judge.
** W.S. Green – a slaveowner of many slaves
*** Genealogy of a Marcel Melancon that is likely the above person
**** Seemed weird that he said “the impress of my seal office” …perhaps meant “of my seal of office”. when I searched for the phrase “the impress of my seal office” I found it came up several times in Ascension Parish during that time period.
