Clemens Vonnegut Sr. (November 20, 1824 – December 13, 1906) was a
German emigrant to the United States and successful businessman. He was the patriarch of the prominent German-American Vonnegut clan (later Schnull-Vonnegut) of
Indiana
Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...
– he was the father and grandfather of architects
Bernard Vonnegut I and
Kurt Vonnegut Sr., respectively, and great-grandfather of scientist
Bernard Vonnegut and author
Kurt Vonnegut Jr.[Carl Runyo]
Clemens Vonnegut Sr.
Early life
Vonnegut was born in
Münster
Münster (; ) is an independent city#Germany, independent city (''Kreisfreie Stadt'') in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is in the northern part of the state and is considered to be the cultural centre of the Westphalia region. It is also a ...
,
Westphalia, to a tax collector father who was an official for the
Duke of Westphalia. Instead of continuing his university education to
Ph.D. level, he decided to work as a salesman for a textile firm in
Amsterdam
Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...
. In 1851, at the age of 27, he emigrated to the United States, and arrived in
Indianapolis
Indianapolis ( ), colloquially known as Indy, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Indiana, most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana, Marion ...
in 1851.
[ Another source states that he arrived in ]New York City
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
in mid-1851.
Vonnegut Hardware Company
In Indiana he formed Vollmer & Vonnegut retail hardware and sundry merchandise store with a German immigrant named Charles Vollmer (who left for the Wild West in 1853). After 1853, the firm was renamed Vonnegut Hardware Company, and remained under his family's control after his death.[
]
Personal life
He married Katarina Blank in 1852 and moved to a modest house on West Market Street, Indianapolis. He had four sons: Clemens Jr., Franklin, Bernard, and George. He was the sometime chairman and chief administrative officer of the Board of School Commissioners of the City of Indianapolis. A city school was named for him. "He greatly admired Benjamin Franklin, whom he called an American saint, and named his third son after him...." He died aged 82 on December 13, 1906, in Indianapolis.[ He was buried March 29, 1907 at Crown Hill Cemetery in the Vonnegut family plot.][
]
Derivation of name
The family name is derived from a distant forebear who had an estate ("ein Gut" in German) on the river Funne, hence the surname Funnegut. Subsequently, Funnegut was changed to Vonnegut since Funnegut sounded too much like "funny gut" in English.[
]
References
1824 births
1906 deaths
Burials at Crown Hill Cemetery
Businesspeople from Indianapolis
Prussian emigrants to the United States
People from Münster
Vonnegut family
19th-century American businesspeople
{{Kurt Vonnegut, state=collapsed