Theodor's emigration to the USA; the list of children; Willi and Friedrich
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Translated from Ludwig Distel's German.
[interior photograph of the shop, captioned:]
Interior view of the butcher's shop as rebuilt in 1905
Theodor, the only child of the first marriage, learned the butcher's trade. In
1923 he emigrated to the USA. With his wife Else he lives today, at a great age,
in Rochester in the state of New York.
The six children of Robert Distel from his second marriage, to Anna Zeller, are
recorded here with their dates:
Adolf born on 9 June 1904
Willi born on 3 April 1906, died on 27 July 1972
Friedrich born on 26 July 1907, died on 13 April 1974
Alfons born on 2 April 1909
Balthasar born on 7 January 1911, died on 2 February 1919
Bernhard born on 16 June 1925, died on 4 July 1978
Veronika and Robert junior had already died as small children.
Before I report on the continuation of the butchery, I should like to set out
briefly what became of the other children of Robert and Anna Distel:
Willi learned the hairdressing trade. He decided to emigrate during the years of
the world economic crisis. His destination was Australia, where he runs a
hairdressing business in the Melbourne area. Willi died in 1972. Three children,
Derek, Alan and Kay, with their families - some of them large - live on the fifth
continent today.
Friedrich was a trained merchant. He changed trades during the world economic
crisis and likewise became a master butcher. With his wife he ran a butcher's
shop for decades in the south of Villingen, at Herdstrasse 27. Friedrich died in
the year 1974.
[shop sign:] DISTEL
The German as printed in 1986, as transcribed.
[Innenaufnahme des Ladens, darunter:]
Innenansicht der 1905 neugestalteten Metzgerei
Theodor, das einzige Kind aus erster Ehe, lernt das Metzgerhandwerk. 1923
wandert er in die USA aus. Mit seiner Frau Else wohnt er heute hochbetagt in
Rochester im Staat New York.
Die sechs Kinder von Robert Distel aus zweiter Ehe mit Anna Zeller sind hier mit
ihren Daten verzeichnet:
Adolf geboren am 9. Juni 1904
Willi geboren am 3. April 1906, gestorben am 27. Juli 1972
Friedrich geboren am 26. Juli 1907, gestorben am 13. April 1974
Alfons geboren am 2. April 1909
Balthasar geboren am 7. Januar 1911, gestorben am 2. Februar 1919
Bernhard geboren am 16. Juni 1925, gestorben am 4. Juli 1978
Als Kleinkinder starben bereits Veronika und Robert jun.
Bevor ich ueber die Weiterfuehrung der Metzgerei berichte, will ich kurz
darlegen, was aus den anderen Kindern von Robert und Anna Distel wurde:
Willi lernt das Friseurhandwerk. Er beschliesst in der Zeit der
Weltwirtschaftskrise auszuwandern. Sein Ziel ist Australien, wo er in der Gegend
von Melbourne ein Friseurgeschaeft betreibt. Willi stirbt 1972. Drei Kinder,
Derek, Alan und Kay, bewohnen mit ihren zum Teil zahlreichen Familien heute den
fuenften Kontinent.
Friedrich ist gelernter Kaufmann. Er sattelt zur Zeit der Weltwirtschaftskrise
um und wird ebenfalls Metzgermeister. Mit seiner Frau betreibt er
jahrzehntelang eine Metzgerei in der Villinger Suedstadt, in der Herdstrasse 27.
Friedrich stirbt im Jahre 1974.
[Schild:] DISTEL
Interesting facts
What 1905 changed. Tiled walls, piped water, electric light and ice-cooled storage arrived in German butchers' shops around the turn of the century, driven by new public health law. A shop rebuilt in 1905 is the first one a modern eye would recognise as clean.
Six sons, one shop. Only one child could inherit a trade. The rest were placed in other trades or left the country - which is the mechanism, repeated across Europe for centuries, by which families spread across continents.
Why 1928 and not later. German unemployment reached roughly a third of the workforce by 1932. Someone leaving in 1928 was ahead of the collapse, and the shipping lines were still selling cheap passages to Australia to people who would soon not be able to afford one.
People: Theodor Distel (1896-1990), Else Distel, Adolf Distel (b. 1904), William Robert 'Willi' Distel (1906-1972), Friedrich Distel (1907-1974), Alfons Distel (1909-1988), Balthasar Distel (1910-1919), Bernhard Distel (1925-1978), Veronika Distel (1920-1920), Robert Junior Distel (1909-1909), Derek Blundell Distel (1939-2008), Alan Distel (b. 1941), Kay Distel (b. 1943)
Places: Villingen, Rochester, New York, Melbourne, Australia, Herdstrasse 27
