Photo of Gep and Theresa Durrenberger

Gebhard and Theresia Durrenberger (c 1890's)

This website is dedicated to documenting the descendants of Martin Durrenberger (C 1695-1755) of Germany.  His great grandson, Gebhard Ignatius Durrrenberger (1818-1900), came to America in 1855.  He settled and farmed  in Henderson Township, Sibley County, Minnesota for almost 20 years. He probably arrived their via New Orleans by travelling up the Mississippi River to Saint Paul and the farming regions of southern Minnesota, as did many German immigrants did at the time.

Gebhard's family was Roman Catholic which was unusual in the predominant Lutheran Germany.  He was baptized in the Rhein Parish of Wangan-Primisweiler, Württemberg .  It appears that the family had lived in that area for at least three generations or more..

Gebhard and his wife Theresia were married in Minnesota about 1859 and had a family of five sons and four daughters.  Many of the descendants of these children still live in Minnesota while others are spread across the United States.  

It is interesting to note that "family legend" states that Gebhard came to New York with a brother.  As the story goes, one brother went south to Texas and one went west to Minnesota.  While there is a large Durrenberger population in Texas, this family is NOT related to the  Minnesota group as proved by DNA testing.  See DNA Test Results Page.

Another family story says that there was an argument among several of the sons of Gephard and as a result some of the siblings dropped an "r" from the spelling of their last name.  These Durenbergers (Gebhard II, Joseph Theodore) are of the same family just with a different spelling.  Meanwhile, Anton and August retained the two "r" spelling.    Any hard feelings that developed a hundred years ago are now long forgotten.

Hope you enjoy your family history and be sure to  send me updates of you family or genealogical research.


My other web pages are as follows:

  • Gordon-Durrenberger Genealogy - My full genealogical database including over 5,000 names.
  • "Texas" Durrenbergers  - Some descendants of the Texas line as they have been brought to my attention.