Ludwig D. Sonnenberg
and his wife Barbara Fetzer
and Some of Their Descendants


PAUL MYRON SONNENBERG (Ludwig2-1) was born at Lincoln Valley, Ward County, North Dakota on 22 December 1924 a son of Ludwig Reinhold Sonnenberg and his wife Bernice Eva Sanders. He died at Minot, Ward County, on 9 May 2010.[1] He married at Moorhead, Clay County, Minnesota on 16 February 1946 SYBIL JEANETTE ANDERSON.[2] She was born at Flaxton, Burke County, North Dakota, on 5 January 1926, a daughter of Enoch Andrew Anderson and his wife Margarethe Marie Christensen. She died at Minot on 22 August 2004.[3]

Paul Sonnenberg, the third of four children, grew up in various locations in northwestern North Dakota, where his father farmed and operated a blacksmith shop. Jeanette Anderson, the fourth of six children, five of whom reached adulthood, grew up in Richland township, Burke County, where her father farmed.

Paul Sonnenberg served in the Army Air Corps in World War II, from 22 July 1943 to 9 March 1944.[4]

The obituaries of Paul and Jeanette tell many more details of their lives:

Jeanette Sonnenberg, 78, 1308 S. Main., Minot, ND., and formerly of the Flaxton, ND. area died Sunday, August 22, 2004, in a Minot health care center. Jeanette was born January 5, 1926, on the family homestead in Burke County, ND., the daughter of Enoch and Margarethe (Christensen) Anderson. She was raised on the family farm and graduatedfrom Flaxton High School and received her standard teaching certificate from Minot State Teachers College. 

Jeanette was united in marriage to Paul Sonnenberg on February 16, 1946, at Moorhead, Minn. They made their home throughout the years in san Francisco, Calif., Denver, Colo., Jamestown, ND., Flaxton, Bowbells, ND., and Minot. Jeanette was most recently employed in civil service at the Minot Air Force Base as a secretary in the dental clinic. She retired in 1978.

Some of her greatest pleasures were making homemade "goodies" that she would share as gifts and for special occasions for friends and family. She enjoyed sewing and made many gifts with her sewing expertise. Jeanette especially loved spending time with her great-grandchildren, who were a great source of pleasure for her.

She was a member of the local Venus Chapter No. 14 of the Order of Eastern Star.

Her loving family includes her husband of 58 years, Paul Sonnenberg, Minot; daughter Paulette (Michael) Sunday, Surrey, ND; granddaughters, Michele (Les) Goldade, Minot, and Christine (David) Maxfield, Fargo, ND. great-grandchildren, Mathew, Alexander and Rebekkah Maxfield and Megan and Amanda Goldade; sisters, Audrey Cobb, Sebastopol, Calif., and Eunice Mattson, Kenmare, ND.; and several nieces, nephews and cousins.

Jeanette was preceded in death by her parents; brothers, Curtis and Sylvan Anderson; and sister Marcia Mae Besselievre. . . .[5]
findagrave.com

Paul M. Sonnenberg, 85, Minot, soared up to heaven on eagle's wings on Sunday, May 9, 2010. 

Paul was born December 22, 1924 at his parents' home in Lincoln Valley, ND to Ludwig Reinhold (L.R.) and Bernice Eva (Sanders) Sonnenberg. He was the third of four children. At one time, his father farmed where the present day, Minot Air Force Base is located. Because it was the dirty 1930's, financial hardships were happening to all farmers and with much difficulty to new farmers. The family moved to Burlington, where L.R. tried his hand at farming again. They moved to Donnybrook, where he L.R. owned a blacksmith shop. This is where Paul received his work ethic at his dad's blacksmith shop.

Paul entered into active duty service with the U.S. Army Air Corps in 1943, and honorably served his country until receiving a medical discharge in 1944. He returned to North Dakota and attended Minot State Teacher's College and later North Dakota State University. He was united in marriage to Jeanette Anderson on February 16, 1946 at Moorhead, MN. They lived at Denver, Co for a short time, where he attended and graduated from watchmaker's school and was awarded the Orville R. Hagen Award for excellent workmanship on escapement models. 

They returned to North Dakota, where he owned a jewelry store in Bowbells. He worked there every weekend repairing and cleaning watches, while spending the weekdays in Minot working for DuPaul's Jewelry. In 1954, he sold out his jewelry business and moved the family to Minot. He later worked at Straus Brothers Jewelry. He started working with Diebold Safe and Lock, traveling around the state selling and repairing security equipment for banks. He found that he enjoyed this so much that he started his own business of Dakota Safe of North Dakota, which he later sold and retired. 

Paul earned his pilot's license in 1970 and flew many times for his business. He built an airplane called a Volksplane, which had a Volkswagen engine and held only the pilot. The maiden flight was held in 1974, and that same plane is now displayed at the Dakota Air Museum, of which he was an avid supporter. Paul and Jeanette took many long distance flights and trips to see relatives until she was unable to go with him due to ill health. She died on August 22, 2004. Paul was a lifetime member of the Star in the West Masonic Lodge #33, Minot, where he had served as a Master Mason for over 57 years. 

During his retirement, he did many special favors for his friends and was always willing to help someone out. He was well known for being able to help out others by making parts for obsolete equipment when parts could no longer be found. He also built miniature steam engines, which he showed at many threshing shows around Minnesota, North Dakota and Saskatchewan. He met and became fast friends throughout his career as a watchmaker, in sales and repair for banking equipment, flying and in showing his working engines. He will be dearly missed by family and friends. 

His loving family includes: daughter, Paulette (Michael) Sunday, Surrey; granddaughters, Michele (Les) Goldade, Glenburn, Christine (David) Maxfield, Fargo; great-grandchildren, Matthew, Alexander & Rebekkah Maxfield, Megan & Amanda Goldade; sisters, Eleanor Vise, Burlington and Helen (Duane) Peterson, Minot. 

Paul was preceded in death by his parents, wife, brother, Robert and several aunts and uncles. . . .[6]
findagrave.com

Paul Sonnenberg and his wife Jeanette Anderson had the following child:

  1. PAULETTE JEAN4 SONNENBERG b. at San Francisco, California, on 21 January 1947.


NOTES

1Social Security Administration, "U.S. Social Security Death Index," database, Ancestry (ancestry.com : accessed 15 April 2017), Paul M. Sonnenberg. United States, Department of Veterans Affairs, Washington, DC, "Beneficiary Identification Records Locator Subsystem (BIRLS) Death File, 1850-2010," database, Ancestry (ancestry.com : accessed 17 February 2019), Paul Sonnenberg. "Paul M. Sonnenberg," obituary, 2010, Created by: Herb Schwede, Find a Grave (findagrave.com " accessed 31 January 2019).
2"Paul M. Sonnenberg."
3"U.S. Social Security Death Index", Jeanette Sonnenberg, 501-20-8317. "Jeanette Sonnenberg," obituary, Created by: Herb Schwede, Find a Grave, (findagrave.com : accessed 31 January 2019).
4BIRLS, Paul Sonnenberg.
5"Jeanette Sonnenberg."
6"Paul M. Sonnenberg."


BIBLIOGRAPHY

"Jeanette Sonnenberg," obituary, Created by: Herb Schwede, Find a Grave, (findagrave.com : accessed 2019).

"Paul M. Sonnenberg," obituary, 2010, Created by: Herb Schwede, Find a Grave (findagrave.com " accessed 2019).

United States, Department of Veterans Affairs, Washington, DC. "Beneficiary Identification Records Locator Subsystem (BIRLS) Death File, 1850-2010." Database. Ancestry. ancestry.com : 2019.

United States Social Security Administration. "U.S. Social Security Death Index." Database. Ancestry. ancestry.com : 2017.


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