It was in this community he met Katherine Hein. A romance flourished which, ultimately, resulted in marriage. They were married a few miles away in 1891 at St. Mark's Church, in St. Marks, Kansas. Five children were born in Alleppo. Their names were Anthony, William, Theresa, Sophia, and Mary. Although Edward did not make the 1893 Oklahoma Land Rush, he soon after moved to Oklahoma and bought 160 acres in Grant County. The land was located two and one-half miles north of Clyde and the deed is dated January 4, 1898 and acknowledged by President William McKinley.

Using a team of horses and a wagon, the family moved from Alleppo to their new farm in Oklahoma. There the family of seven lived in a small, two-room house. There was also a small shed on the farm. 

A year or two later times were better so Edward returned to Oklahoma and purchased another 160 acres of land. This land was located one and 1/2 miles north of Clyde and one mile west. Again, the family moved back to Oklahoma but this time to live in a two-story house. Life was better and  they settled there for good. Shortly after that they were blessed with two more children, Anne and Amelia.

As the years moved forward, Ed increased his farming operations to 400 acres and he located his blacksmith shop at his farm.  

Ed was known as a mighty man with brawny arms. He was known to do a great deal for the community. He blacksmith work included sharpening plowshares, fixing wagon-wheel spokes, welding, shodding horses, and much more.

The family never owned a tractor because Ed did all of the farming with horses even in the heat of the blistering Oklahoma summers. When the wheat harvest was good and tall, a binder was used to cut the wheat and bundles were shocked. When the crop was short, a header was used to cut the wheat and it was pitched and stacked by hand. 

In 1912 tragedy struck the family when Ed’s beloved wife, Katherine, was burned severely by an explosion caused by a coal stove. There were no hospitals back then, however, Doctor Miller from Wakita made the 6-mile trip each way every day to provide care for her. Sometimes he even made the trip twice a day.  

Katherine passed away on May 9, 1912 after several weeks of unimaginable suffering. She was buried in S. Anthony”s Cemetery in Clyde. 

Ed was involved in community work and was always ready to help a friend in need. He was also instrumental in helping to build the St. Anthony Catholic Church in Clyde. 

When Ed’s health failed in 1918, he retired from the farm, closed his shop, and moved back to Cowlick, KS. After a few years, he came back to the homestead and died there on October 1, 1921. He was also buried in St. Anthony”s cemetery in Clyde. 

Edward and Katherine's oldest son, Anthony, “Tony,” was a farmer in the Clyde community. He married Veronica Ronck and was buried in Calvary Cemetery in Medford, OK. 

William, “Bill” Weber served in World War I and later was a businessman in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He married Marie Mansmunn and was buried in Pittsburgh. 

Teresa Weber married John Francis Ronck who was a farmer in the Wakita community. She was buried in St. Anthony's Cemetery in Clyde.

Sophia died as an infant and was buried in St. Mary’s Cemetery in Aleppo, KS.

Mary Weber married Victor Ronck and they were farmers in the Wakita area. They were both buried in St. Anthony’s Cemetery in Clyde. 

Anne became a nurse and lived inTulsa, OK.

Amelia “Molly” was a nurse in training in Tulsa. She died at the age of 20 and was buried in St. Anthony Cemetery in Clyde.

(As of the time this article was written) Edward and Katherine have 99 descendants. This includes 7 children, 18 grandchildren, 68 great grandchildren and 6 great-great grandchildren. 

In memory and respectfully submitted by Mary Weber Ronck.

(More from the article above) Listing all the descendants of this man from Austria is almost impossible. The records we posses today reach back to the year 1690. The old barn and farm house—which are still standing—were built by Georgius Ronck who was born in 1690 and died on March 18, 1745 in Mensdorf. The structures were later renovated by Jacques Ronck and his wife, Maria Dondelinger, after a fire in 1823.

The chapel next to the road was built by Nicolas Ronck on November 21, 1794.

Next to these old buildings, a new family house was built in 1972 by Joseph Ronck, my father. 

During the 19th century, our family was constantly growing while the social situation in Luxembourg was worsening. The difficult times caused 4 of the brothers and sisters to leave their home for the New World around 1875. These four were:

• Maria ( Mary) Ronck ) Born April 28, 1852

• Magdalena Ronck born July 21, 1858

• Margaret Ronck born July 20, 1861

• Jean (John) Pierre born July 23, 1863

Unfortunately, we have almost no records of the three sisters. However, they kept up a lively correspondence for 40 years with Jean (John Pierre) until he died in 1929. 

Jean Pierre, together with his wife, Maria, did visit visit Luxembourg with the last visit being in 1910.

The years went by and there was another bitter war. In 1980 our doorbell rang and we were facing a man and a woman we couldn't understand because they were speaking English. 

The man and the woman were John Ronck and his wife, Betty. They confirmed their Ronck relationship with an old family photo that my grandfather, Nicolas, recognized. It included his father together with his brothers and sisters. The relationship was restored--one we thought was dead forever. 

John Ronck is the grandson of Jean (John) Pierre Ronck. A year later, Jake  Ronck, his wife, Frances, and their daughter, Norma, came to visit us. During a two-hour visit they even recounted some prayers they had learned from their parents in the Luxembourg language. This was the first and only meeting of Jake Ronck, Nicolas Ronck, and Victor Kolber. Victor who was from Hassel, Luxembourg, is the son of John Pierre Ronck's sister, Catherine. Nicolas died on January 1, 1985 and Jake in 1986.

Then again no more letters. Then Keith and his wife, Pamela, visited us. After that many more family members came from America. These included: 

• Wilford and Joy Ronck

• J. B. And Mary Houghton, Pamela Ronck’s parents

• Keith’s son, Matthew, and his daughter, Jessica

• Brian Davisson, the son of Pamela

• Mercedes Ronck accompanied by her son, Larry Alles, and John Ronck

• Norma Dempewolf with her daughter and her son in law

• Margret Ronck

I hope I didn't forget anybody.

We, on the other hand, visited our relatives in the states in 1995 and met many more family members. Our journey led us to the gravesite in Clyde, OK, where many of our American relatives were buried including John Pierre Ronck.

These few lines shall be dedicated to our family spread all over the world in the hope that after the big meeting from the 10th to the 13th of July in Dallas, Texas, (the 1997 Ronck/Weber Reunion) that family ties will be even stronger. 

Eleven generations of Ronck’s—this means eleven generations of hope and worries, joy and mourning, love and misery, happiness and destiny. It also means 300 years with human destinies and tragedies but just as much joy and laughter especially through the many family celebrations. 

300 years in which many family members were born and many have died. It is impossible to count them because the number is so large. All of them have written a piece of family history. They have lived so that their children could have a better life. We all want to thank all of them for their labor and the love they given to their families.

I want to close my little story about the family in the hope that we may spend a long and hearty time together.

GOD SAVE OUR FAMILIES.

Frank Ronck

In 1882, John Pierre joined two sisters in Iowa who had preceded him to America. From Iowa, he went to work in a lumber camp in southeast Missouri. By 1888, Grandfather John had saved enough money to send for and marry his fiancee, Maria Magdalene Engel (born February 13, 1863) also from Mensdorf, Luxembourg. Three oftheir children were born in Missouri: John Francis  (December 11, 1889). Nickolas (Мау 13, 1891), and Kunagunda (March 19, 1893).

The opening of the Cherokee Strip on September 16, 1893, lured John and Maria to Oklahoma. Leaving Maria and three children in Bluff City, Kansas, John staked claim SE8-28-6 seven miles northeast of the present town of Wakita, Oklahoma, for which they received a patent from the United States government. Lumber was brought from Bluff City to build a home on their claim.

In that first home in Oklahoma Territory. Daughter Veronica was born on July 19, 1894, later followed by Victor on February 18. 1896, Magdalena on August 24, 1897, and Jacob Pierre on March 12, 1899.

Fields were tilled, an orchards was planted, livestock was raised to make a pioneer family as self-sustaining as possible. Tragedy struck the family May 8, 1898 when Marla, with nine-month-old Magdalena and an older son, was driving a horse and buggy on a rare visit to a neighbor. The buggy’s wheel hit a hard rut, throwing the baby from her mother's arms under the buggy wheel, killing her instantly. This was the ultimate hardship for the brave and courageous parents. 

Life goes on. Eagle School District #322 was built, which all the Ronck children attended—and some of the grandchildren. Grandfather John was instrumental in building St. Anthony's Catholic Church near Clyde, Oklahoma.

When John Pierre worked for the railroad that was being built through Wakita, he would ride a horse 14 miles each way for 75 cents a day. Eventually more land was acquired. In 1908, a bigger home was built. 

In 1910, John and Maria returned to Luxembourg for their one and only visit with relatives there. The elder children were left in charge of the home and younger children. 

Romance found its way close to home. Weddings were big, happy, social occasions with bountiful dinners, and sometimes dances in the barn hayloft.

John II Ronck married Theresa Weber (1913). They lived on the original homestead claim. They has seven children; John Ill is the present heir. There are five generations of Johns. John II died December 11, 1946, and Theresa died July 28, 1971.

Kunagunda Ronck married Charles Conrady (1913)—a double wedding with John lI. They had five children. Kunagunda died January 16, 1975. She was the family musician and church organist. Charles died January 5, 1946. 

Veronica Ronck married Anthony Weber (1914). They were married 63 years. Anthony died December 25, 1977. They has four children. Veronica, of Caldwell, KS is the eldest living child of John and Maria.

Nickolas Ronck married Clara Meier (1915). They has five children and lived on the second home place. Nickolas died June 17, 1948, and Clara died August 19, 1961.

Victor Ronck married Mary Weber (1918). They had four children and lived adjacent to the original claim. Victor died February 2, 1957 and his wife, Mary, died, and they are both buried in St. Anthony's Cemetery in Clyde, OK.

Jacob Ronck married Frances Ciskowski. They had five children and were prominent farmers in the Blackwell, Oklahoma area. They celebrated their sixtieth wedding anniversary on October 19. 1980.

After leaving the farm, grandparents John and Maria Ronck lived briefly in Wichita, Kansas, (streetcars were a grandchild’s delight). Later they moved to Medford, Oklahoma. While waiting at the Medford Depot, on September 14. 1924, a sad lonely train whistle from a train that night coming from Enid told us that our tender Grandmother Maria was making her last journey.

Grandfather John lived with son, Nickolas, and his family until his death on January 18, 1929. They are both buried at St. Anthony's Cemetery in Clyde.

The 268 direct descendants of John and Maria Ronck are grateful for their gift of America and their freedom.

Gratefully: Eldest granddaughter, Delores Weber Metzinger