Ramcharan-Crowley

The Schnebelins, probably from the Aargau (Argovie in French), Lucerne, or Solothurn areas of Switzerland were given lands in Alsace by Louis XIV after 1648 in an attempt to repopulate the Rhine Valley with Catholics after the devastation of the Thirty Years War (1618-1648). Apparently that land was at Bantzenheim, a village 10 miles northeast of Mulhouse and less than two miles west of the Rhine. Although we don't yet know the names of the migrant generation, we do know the names of their children. Like much of the work on the Strauel and Wendling family trees, this research was done by the indefatigable Abbe Raymond Seemann, the parish priest of Grussenheim, to whom we all owe a great debt of gratitude.

By going through 10,000 passport applications from between 1830 and 1860 in the Archives of Colmar, he [Abbé Raymond Seemann] found the Schnébelin name and traced it to Bantzenheim, then followed up with visits to the church and court house there. An ancient village, Bantzenheim lies only 3 kilometers from the Rhine crossing of Chalampé, and 10 miles northeast of Mulhouse, and has a church originally built in 795 dedicated to St. Michael the Archangel, explaining why so many Schnébelins in early days were named Michael.

The name of Bantzenheim in a 1754 map (Par Le S'Robert, Geographe ordinaire du Roy) was Bäntzenen (see image in Sources).

Bantzenheim Synonymes : Bansenheim, Bantzana, Bantzen, Bantzenen, Bantzenheimb, Banzenh., Banzenheim, Banzenhemiana, Banzenhemiensis, Pansenheim, Panzenheim.