Margret Wittmer (12 July 1904–21 March 2000) was one of the original settlers of

Floreana Island Floreana Island () is a southern island in Ecuador's Galápagos Archipelago. The island has an area of . It was formed by volcanic eruption. The island's highest point is Cerro Pajas at , which is also the highest point of the volcano like most ...

Early life

Wittmer was born in

Cologne Cologne ( ; ; ) is the largest city of the States of Germany, German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with nearly 1.1 million inhabitants in the city pr ...

on 12 July 1904.

Career

She wrote about her experiences of being an early settler in the book ''Postlagernd Floreana. Erlebnisbericht deutscher Siedler'' (1959) (English title: ''Floreana: A Woman's Pilgrimage to the Galapagos''). She returned to Germany in 1960 to present her book. Margret's book attracted more German tourists to

. She built several bungalows to host different tourists and scientists that visited Floreana.

Personal life and death

Wittmer, her husband Heinz, and her stepson Harry moved to Floreana Island in 1932, following the arrival of German doctor Friedrich Ritter and his wife, Dore Strauch. Wittmer was in the fourth month of her first pregnancy, and she gave birth to a son and a daughter while living on the island. Margret died on 21 March 2000, at the age of 95. She was buried on Floreana Island.

In popular culture

Actress

Diane Kruger Diane Kruger (; Heidkrüger; ; born 15 July 1976) is a German actress. Early in her career, she gained worldwide recognition and received the Trophée Chopard from the Cannes Film Festival. Kruger became known for her roles in films such as ...

portrayed Wittmer in the 2013 documentary '' The Galapagos Affair''.

Sydney Sweeney Sydney Bernice Sweeney (born September 12, 1997) is an American actress. She first gained attention in 2018 for appearing in the television series '' Everything Sucks!'' and ''The Handmaid's Tale'', and in the limited series '' Sharp Objects'' ...

portrays Wittmer in the 2024 film '' Eden''.

References

German women writers 1904 births 2000 deaths German emigrants to Ecuador {{Germany-writer-stub