Guide to the Reiber-Sachs Family Oversized Papers , 1891-1957
- Repository
- Heinz History Center
- Title
- Reiber-Sachs Family Oversized Papers
- Creator
- Reiber-Sachs Family
- Collection Number
- MSO 577
- Extent
- 2 linear feet (1 oversize box)
- Date
- 1891-1957
- Abstract
- The Reiber family originated in Germany, immigrating to the U.S and settling in the Pittsburgh area at the end of the nineteenth century. The daughter of Gustav and Louisa Reiber, Margaret, then married William Sachs. This collection documents several members of the Reiber and Sachs families, containing personal and professional papers and a number of photographs spanning over fifty years. The papers are primarily composed of certificates and official documents showing membership to churches and schools for multiple family members.
- Language
- The material in this collection is in English and German.
- Publisher
- Heinz History Center
- Address
- 1212 Smallman St.
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15222
library@heinzhistorycenter.org
URL: https://www.heinzhistorycenter.org
History
Gustav Adolph Reiber was born in Groningen, Germany, on April 15, 1853. Shortly after the Franco-Prussian War, Gustav enlisted in the German military on December 5, 1873, at the age of twenty, entering into the service of the 12th company, 8th Wittenberg Infantry, 126th Regiment. On October 1, 1874, he was promoted but only a year later was discharged from the regular army, entering the reserves in 1875 after two years of active service. His official release from the army came eleven years later in 1886 at approximately thirty-three years of age. His military pass suggests that during his time in active service he was stationed in the occupation army in Strasbourg, France, which was under the control of Germany for a period of time following the war. During his time in the reserves, he married Elizabeth Louisa Schwedler on December 17, 1884. Elizabeth was born in Heilbronn, Germany, on November 26, 1862. The couple immigrated to the United States prior to 1891. Gustav was granted citizenship in 1904, although there is no evidence whether Elizabeth was also granted citizenship. Evidence suggests Gustav held a position as a drug clerk sometime after settling in the Pittsburgh area.
Gustav and Elizabeth Reiber had eight children: William, Adolph, Eugene, Richard Oscar Conrad, Anna, Freda, Theodore and Margaret. They settled in Allegheny, Pennsylvania (now Pittsburgh's Northside), becoming members of St. Peter's German Evangelical Church before moving to Millvale, Pennsylvania. There they switched their religious affiliation to the First Evangelical Church of Millvale, where several of their children were confirmed. According to a family tree included with the collection, Gustav died in 1917, and Elizabeth Louisa Reiber died on December 25, 1949. Richard Oscar Conrad Reiber, son of Gustav and Elizabeth Reiber, was born on August 17, 1893. He married Helen Beck on January 12, 1918. They had two children, Virginia (b.1919) and Richard Daniel (b.1924), both born in Millvale, Pennsylvania where the family was living. They divorced in July of 1927. Richard Oscar Conrad Reiber died in 1965.
Margaret Reiber, daughter of Gustav and Elizabeth Reiber, was born on August 9, 1903, and later wed William Sachs, born November 1, 1902. Prior to their marriage, both Margaret and William attended the same church and high school. The two were confirmed on the same day and graduated with the same class in 1919 from Millvale High School. William had a long career as a professional engineer from 1919-1967 working for the American Bridge Division of the U.S Steel Company in Pittsburgh. Born in Millvale, he had studied business administration at the University of Pittsburgh, also taking night classes for structural engineering for four years at the American Bridge Apprenticeship School. His career at American Bridge began with an apprenticeship at the Shiffler Tower Plant. He was recognized as a professional engineer in 1943 by the Department of Public Instruction State Registration Board for Professional Engineers. He continued on to become chief engineer in 1956, building two notable towers, each weighing over 500 tons, said to be the largest ever built at the time of their construction. Over his career he would design forty different types of towers, numbering 3,500 in use across the United States, Mexico, South America and Canada. He was a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers until his retirement in 1967 and authored a book titled "Transmission Towers." The couple remained active in the First United Church of Christ in Millvale, Pa. (formerly known as the First Evangelical Church of Millvale, Pa.). The couple did not have any children and Margaret Reiber Sachs died in 1993, followed by her husband William Sachs in 1999.
The other Reiber children and family members are mentioned in a family tree included with the collection, but aside from some baptismal and confirmation records little if anything is known about them, including years of death and birth from some, but not all, of the Reiber children.
Scope and Content Notes
The oversized papers of the Reiber-Sachs family include twenty documents housed in one oversized archival container. The documents are arranged in alphabetical folders titled according to the family member whom the documents regard. For those folders containing a single document, the document type is listed on the folder. For the folders containing multiple documents, a description of each document can be found in the container list of this finding aid. A family tree of the Reiber-Sachs family can be found in Folder 11 of MSS# 577 and will be helpful for researchers consulting the oversized papers. The documents relate to various members of the Reiber and Sachs family. For a number of the Reiber children their baptismal and confirmation certificates are the only documents in the collection, specifically Anna Louisa Reiber, Eugene Reiber, and Virginia Mary Reiber. The oversize portion of the Reiber-Sachs family papers is largely comprised of church certificates such as baptismal and confirmation records, along with high school diplomas and other assorted certificates of membership or achievement. Many of the church records are in German and do not include a translation. Lastly, there are a few name variations found across the oversized documents. William Sachs' baptismal records include the German spelling of his first name, Wilhelm, and Richard Oscar Conrad Reiber's baptismal certification puts his middle names, Oscar Conrad, before his first, which is not the case for any of his other papers.
Conditions Governing Access
No restrictions
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of Louise Malakoff in 2000.
Acc. # 2000.0054
Preferred Citation
Reiber-Sachs Family Collection 1871-1999, MSO # 577, Library and Archives Division, Senator John Heinz History Center
Processing Information
This collection was processed by Amy Lazarus in February 2011.
Conditions Governing Use
Property rights reside with the Senator John Heinz History Center. Literary rights are retained by the creators of the records and their heirs. For permission to reproduce or publish, please contact the Library and Archives of the Senator John Heinz History Center.
Related Materials
Of note is that several baptismal certificates are from St. Peter's Church in Allegheny, which has a related collection held by the Heinz History Center Archives. The collection was also accompanied by a donation of multiple volumes, including family bibles and a book authored by William Sachs, which can be found in the stacks.
Separated Materials
The Reiber-Sachs family collection also includes a letter sized archival box containing two series of materials, the Reiber-Sachs family papers and the Reiber-Sachs family photographs. These can be found under MSS# 577.
Subjects
- German Americans--Pennsylvania--Pittsburgh.
- Immigrants--German--Pennsylvania--Pittsburgh.