To Celebrate all of our blessings and rich Glattfelder Family Heritage
Glattfelden
Glattfelden, a picturesque Swiss village, lies in the canton of Zurich near the banks of the Rhine River. Surrounded by lush greenery and rolling hills, it offers a serene escape from city life. With its charming blend of traditional architecture and modern amenities, Glattfelden attracts visitors seeking outdoor adventures, cultural experiences, and a taste of authentic Swiss hospitality amidst stunning natural beauty.
by Koni Ulrich
No Glattfelders in Glattfelden any more
If in the future Americans with the family name of Glattfelder walk the footsteps of their ancestors, they will not find residents by that name in Glattfelden any longer. Liesel and Reini Meier–Glattfelder have moved out of Glattfelden. As so often in recent years, at the end of June, an illustrious group of seven Americans visited our village tracing the footsteps of their ancestor Casper Glattfelder. In 1743, with his family, he crossed the Atlantic and settled in Pennsylvania where the Glattfelders thrived. The large family group led by Lois and Larry Gladfelter spent two days in the lowlands accompanied by Henry and Myrtha Glattfelder, Mayor Pier-Luigi Quattropani and Koni Ulrich.
If in the future Americans with the family name of Glattfelder walk the footsteps of their ancestors, they will not find residents by that name in Glattfelden any longer. Liesel and Reini Meier–Glattfelder have moved out of Glattfelden. As so often in recent years, at the end of June, an illustrious group of seven Americans visited our village tracing the footsteps of their ancestor Casper Glattfelder. In 1743, with his family, he crossed the Atlantic and settled in Pennsylvania where the Glattfelders thrived. The large family group led by Lois and Larry Gladfelter spent two days in the lowlands accompanied by Henry and Myrtha Glattfelder, Mayor Pier-Luigi Quattropani and Koni Ulrich.
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Translated from the 2010 Issue of the Glattfelder, a yearly chronicle of village happenings.
For the complete 25th Anniversary Edition Issue (which is in German/Swiss German) please click the link.
American Glattfelders Tracking Their Roots
(Translation of the text of May 30th 2013 Swiss Newspaper „Der Glattfelder" by the author Koni Ulrich, for the many friends in America who asked for it, specially on facebook)
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On May 23rd two young couples from Virginia came for a visit to our town. They followed the tracks of their pre-pre-pre-pre-ancestor Casper Glattfelder, who migrated with his family to America in the year of 1743.
Last Thursday two young American Couples arrived in our town (or rather village, of 4500 inhabitants). They came from a business-trip to Frankfurt, Germany and thought to invest at least one day following their roots in the person of their ancestor far back, Casper Glattfelder. The four people were enthusiastic about the old center of the town, the « grey house », (built 1526), the Gottfried Keller Center (Swiss author 1819 to 1890) and the church where Casper once had been baptized, before he left his hometown.
Donnie Gladfelter, his wife Helen and their friends John and Andrea Frankovich, all in their thirties, had to do some work in the neighboring country and thought: Why not try to wander for a while on the tracks of good old Casper, our grand-grand-grand-grandfather down south in Switzerland? As they were used from their home-country, the young people from Virginia just jumped in their rental car and drove all the way south into the larger area of Zurich, (not the capital, but the biggest town in the country). So, on Thursday-morning they made it out to the Zurich Underland. They took a walk to the river Glatt (that gives the name to the village) and its newly rebuilt wooden bridge. They looked at the old logs in the grey house. Postcards with sights of the town were stamped at the near post-office, so they could later be sent home from the hotelroom.
Where Casper was baptized
When reverend Christian Birkner lead the young people into the near protestant church, it was going to be somewhat solemnly. „The baptismal font has been moved sometime and may not be the original one from the 18.th century", explained Birkner in English. But nevertheless, in this church, the ancestor at least of the couple with the name Gladfelter has been baptized and later was married to his wife.The Americans were impressed. One could speculate, how the name Glattfelder changed into Gladfelter over all these years. Glatt (the river) changed into glad, which means happy. Felt ist the participle of feel, so with a healthy portion of proudness and patriotism, I risk to say: The Gladfelters are the ones who feel happy in America.Later, while walking along the „Fränzli"-quarter on top of the village (where the author lives in a 87 years old house), we drink a beer together in the garden. This is a surprise for the Swiss guide, since the yearly meetings of all the Glattfelders near York in Pennsylvania used to operate without alcohol. Three times, a delegation of Swiss Glattfelders took part there, the last time together with the major, Pier-Luigi Quattropani in 2005, when it was the 100th meeting.In the meantime, many of the older representants of the „Casper Glattfelder Association" have died and our American friends must be careful, not to loose this worthy contact between the continents because of the lack of younger people growing into the group. Those who want to know more about this can inform themselves on the website www.glattfelder.org.
Pin up Helvetia
Before the young people started towards the Rhinefall in Schaffhausen and then to Germany, they took a light lunch together in the „Gottfried-Keller-Stube". There, they admired the good looking Swiss money of which they had none in their purses. Specially mother Helvetia on the piece of two franks impressed them very much. Finally a lively changing of Euros (the money in Germany and many other countries in Europe, but not in Switzerland), American Dollars and Swiss Francs lead to a lucky ending, without dishwashing in the kitchen of the restaurant.
(Picture, from the left: Andrea and John Frankovich, Koni Ulrich, Helen and Donnie Gladfelter)
A Day in Glattfelden 2019
Americans on the trail of their origins
The photo (by Koni Ulrich) to commemorate the visit of Americans, Glattfelder, Winterthur and Alsatians at the Reformed Church in Glattfelden
Koni Ulrich, the long-time friend, host, and guide for descendants of Casper Glattfelder making the Pilgrimage to Glattfelden Switzerland wrote this article in the 19 September, 2019 issue of Der Glattfelder . Following is a rough translation of his article:
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For the umpteenth time, a tour group of the "Casper Glattfelder Association" from the USA spent a day in Casper's homeland. The guests loved the village of their ancestors - despite the prolonged rain.
Throughout the week, the 16 American guests and their guide, Debra Krebs, had been on a tour of Switzerland by bus and enjoyed beautiful weather. They had seen the Matterhorn as well as Lake Lugano. On Sunday they made a visit to the hometown of their ancestor, Casper Glattfelder. He had left his country on a ship with his family in 1743 via Rotterdam in order to gain a foothold in the district of York, Pennsylvania. Ironically, the weather on this last day of travel was not the greatest, however, this did not affect the enthusiasm of the travelers. As planned, they were picked up in the morning at their temporary place of residence, the hotel Mövenpick at the airport, and transported by tram, S-Bahn and PostBus to the village known for Gottfried Keller, where then because of the rain only small strolls, more or less in the village center, were possible. At the Gottfried Keller Center, the group was first greeted by the mayor of the municipality, Ernst Gassmann, and his wife Claudia. The Zurich-based Henry Glattfelder and the Alsatian Jean Pierre Glattfelder, like the writer, also made up the reception committee. For the special day, a trio with surname Glattfelder from Winterthur had registered. For decades, Edith and Teddy had run the photo shop of the same name on Marktgasse in Winterthur.
Seven generations back
During their lunch of Zurich sliced meat, Sandra Glattfelder, the daughter of the two from Winterthur, told of the difficult times which the emigrants experienced after their several-week crossing to Pennsylvania. She found an equally dedicated researcher in Alsatian Jean Pierre, who, like her, is well versed in the family trees of the Glattfelder over seven generations back. Talk around the table turned to the story with Meghan Markle, the member of the British royal family who is said to be a descendant of Casper Glattfelder. After lunch, the company strolled to the cemetery, where unfortunately no Glattfelder family grave could be found. The Americans were surprised that the tombs are cleared after about 25 years and thus cannot be seen by later generations. The covered wooden bridge which was rebuilt in 1980 and crosses the river Glatt, which gave the family its name, turned out to be a favorite photo subject. It should be added that of the 16 guests, just two of them still bore the family name Glattfelder. The others were still related, most of whom had registered for the trip via the website of the Association, www.glattfelder.org.
Visit to the Reformed Church
After their lunch break, they visited the Reformed Church where Church official, Anthony Christen, explained when and how the building was built and what is happening in the church throughout the year. As a souvenir, the visitors received the almost traditional certificate with their name and a picture of the stained-glass church window. In the evening, the group enjoyed a last dinner together before flying home Monday morning.
An evening look into the guest book of the cultural center in Glattfelden showed on three full pages how much the tour group appreciated the hospitality of their namesake in Switzerland. Patty Rogers, for example, wrote: "What a pleasure to be a real Glattfelder in this beautiful place for a day!"
