Social Class, Education and Fate: History of a Miner‘s Family in Ottfingen, South Westphalia, around 1900

Abstract

This study reconstructs the history of the Chreschten family in the village of Ottfingen in South Westphalia. The focus is on Josef Eichert, a miner born in 1874, whose life ended prematurely due to his work in the mines. The study then takes a closer look at the life of his wife Maria and, representative of the family's eleven children, the life stories of Rosa and Johann. While Rosa, born in 1901, followed the path of a woman of that time, she gained access to other worlds by reading novels, which was rather atypical for her background. In the course of her life, Rosa developed a personality from which there is much to learn for our present day as well. Johann, born in 1905, was one of the few from his social class to attend a renowned grammar school, thanks to the support of his primary school teacher. The early death of his father put an end to his education due to a lack of financial resources. He found fulfillment in civil society leadership roles and offices, including as an honorary mayor of the municipality of Wenden. In recognition of his lifetime achievements, Johann was named an honorary citizen of the southwestern community. These life stories are narrated in a fanned-out fashion, including their interweaving with the events of contemporary history. Everything is interconnected: the social class we come from, the respective social, political, cultural and economic realities, our educational and career opportunities, our life possibilities and the role of fate, which additionally intervenes in everything.

Full text

Social Class, Education and Fate:
History of a Miner‘s Family in Ottfingen, South Westphalia, around 1900
Poster for attending the annual conference of the Life History and Biography Network, ESREA (European Society for Research on the Education of Adults)
Participation, Beauty and Meaning: A Research Retreat on the Past, Present and Future of Biographical Inquiry
Organized by the Department of Human Sciences for Education, University of Milano-Bicocca in
Costa Rainera (Imperia, Liguria, Italy), 4-7 March 2025
Joachim Bröcher and Lissa Eichert-Klute, Europa-Universität Flensburg
Results: This study reconstructs the history of the
Chreschten family in the village of Oingen in South
Westphalia. The focus is on Josef Eichert, a miner born in
1874, whose life ended prematurely due to his work in the
mines. The study then takes a closer look at the life of his
wife Maria and, representave of the family's eleven child-
ren, the life stories of Rosa and Johann. While Rosa, born
in 1901, followed the path of a woman of that me, she
gained access to other worlds by reading novels, which
was rather atypical for her background. In the course of
her life, Rosa developed a personality from which there is
much to learn for our present day as well. Johann, born in
1905, was one of the few from his social class to aend a
renowned grammar school, thanks to the support of his
primary school teacher. The early death of his father put
an end to his educaon due to a lack of nancial re-
sources. He found fulllment in civil society leadership ro-
les and oces, including as an honorary mayor of the mu-
nicipality of Wenden. In recognion of his lifeme achie-
vements, Johann was named an honorary cizen of the
southwestern community. These life stories are narrated in
a fanned-out fashion, including their interweaving with the
events of contemporary history. Everything is interconnec-
ted: the social class we come from, the respecve social,
polical, cultural and economic realies, our educaonal
and career opportunies, our life possibilies and the role
of fate, which addionally intervenes in everything.
Context, goal, and theorecal framework: Reconstrucon of the history of a miner's
family from South Westphalia, incorporang sociological, philosophical, historical and literary refe-
rences. Relevant aspects are the precarious living condions and the dicult access to educaon
for the lower social classes, the somemes life-threatening working condions of men in mining,
and the intertwining of life stories with the polical, social and economic condions of Wilhelmine
Germany, the Weimar Republic, the Third Reich and the post-war period.
Method: Intergeneraonal dialogue; narrave exploraon and invesgaon; document analysis,
cultural mapping; historical reconstrucon; supplemented by the methods of conjecture and ima-
ginaon, in order to be able to narrate the ndings in a coherent way.
Literature (Selecon):
Allgemeiner Knappschasverein zu Bochum (Hrsg.) (1904). Die Auguste Viktoria Knappschas-Heilstäe in
Beringhausen bei Meschede i. W. Denkschri zur Feier der Erönung der Anstalt. Berlin: Wilhelm Greve.
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Tokarczuk, O. (2022). The books of Jacob or: A fantasc journey across seven borders, ve languages, and
three major religions, not counng the minor sects. Told by the dead, supplemented by the author, drawing
from a range of books, and aided by imaginaon, the which being the greatest natural gi of any person.
That the wise might have it for a record, that my compatriots reect, laypersons gain some understanding,
and melancholy souls obtain some slight enjoyment (original Polish edion „Księgi Jakubowe“, 2014). New
York: Riverhead Books.
The book: Joachim Broecher and Lissa Eichert-Klute: Social class, educaon
and fate: History of a miner‘s family in Oingen, South Westphalia, around 1900.
Norderstedt: Books on Demand 2025, Print and E-Book (in preparaon, a German
version is already available: Soziale Schicht, Bildung und Schicksal. Geschichte ei-
ner Bergmannsfamilie in Oingen, Südwesalen, um 1900, published 2024).
How are we sll shaped by the living condions of our ancestors today, what has
been passed on to us without us being aware of it? In the mine of family history,
the book sets about making connecons between the precarious and repressive
circumstances of the me and their psychological consequences, and not just for
one generaon. A psychosocial history in the form of specic life courses (Dr.
Roland E. Koch, lecturer in creave wring, University of Siegen, and writer, Co-
logne).
I stand with respect for what people have done back then. It is impressive to see
how the complex social connecons and interdependencies are broken down and
made readable in this book (Dr. Inge Hofsommer, literary scholar, Cologne).
Origin of the images used: Map top le: Preuß. Geologische Landesanstalt,
Berlin 1911; painng in the upper right: Käthe Krähmer, 1979, private ownership Lissa
Eichert-Klute; pictures from the sanatorium in Meschede-Bering-hausen: Allgemeiner
Knappschasverein zu Bochum, 1904; the wring at the boom le with the report
on the death of Peter Eichert, 1885: hps://data.matricula-online.eu/de/; thanks to
Astrid Stahl; far le center: workforce at the mine Vahlberger Zug, 1910: private ar-
chive Mahias Reinhardt, Drolshagen; at the boom le: miners in Gammelgruva,
Løkken Verk, Norway, 1900-1910; hps://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File: Gam-
melgruva_L%C3%8kken_Verk.jpg; hps://digitaltmuseum.no/0110128 70841/
transport-i-gammelgruva-lokken-verk-med-hest-og-skinnegaende-vogn; right: excerpt
from the transcript of Norbert Eichert from 1927, photo at the boom right: miners
in the Storch & Schöneberg mine near Gosenbach, 1936; Mahias Reinhardt private
archive, Drolshagen; with many thanks for the permission granted to use it; all other
photos: private photo collecons of the families involved.