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Ronk History

Ronk Cross
Outskirts of Ellange Luxembourg erected by the Ronk family prior to emigrating to America in 1849. Photo MMFE

Ronk Cross
Inscription: Familie Ronk 1849
Photo Emile Louis Wies

Ronk Cross
Oil painting on canvas
Gabriell Marie

Haus a Steemesch
"House of Stone Masons"
The Ronk home in Ellange Luxembourg built by Paul Ronk 1709
Heimat und Mission 1985

Luxemburger Pier Company established in Belgium Wisconsin on December 27, 1858 by the Ronk family. Area residents invested in the company funding the construction of a large pier in Lake Michigan. Brothers Nicholas and Paul seated at Ronk's Pier 1860s. Restored from an original print cared for by Arthur "Art" L. Ronk (1918 - 2007).

Paul Ronk
b. 1820 Ellange Luxembourg
m. 1849 Anna Risch
d. 1880 Ponca Nebraska

Anna Ronk (Risch)
b. 1827 Ellange Luxembourg
m. 1849 Paul Ronk
d. ~1890 Ponca Nebraska

Anna Ronk (Risch)
Original painting of Anna at the home of her son Nicholas P. and Anna Ronk located at 1427 Virginia Ave Sheboygan, WI approximately 1905. Also pictured daughter Marie Ronk (top hat) with a friend and a baby picture of Rosa Ronk born 1903.

Paul Ronk
Southcreek St. Paul Catholic Cemetery, Dixon County, Nebraska. Died December 29, 1880, age 60 years.

Paul Ronk
Jeannine Meyer and Rodney Ronk traveled to Southcreek Nebraska to view the grave of Paul Ronk in the 1980s.

Nicholas Ronk
b. 1816 Ellange Luxembourg
m. 1841 Maria Hemmer
m. 1850 Catherine Ellenbecker
m. ~1855 Maria Schumacher
d. 1884 Lake Church Wisconsin

Maria Ronk (Hemmer)
b. 1816 Ellange Luxembourg
m. 1841 Nicholas Ronk
d. 1849 Lake Church Wisconsin

Catharine Ronk (Ellenbecker)
b. 1823 Colpach-Haut LUX
m. 1850 Nicholas Ronk
d. 1854 Lake Church Wisconsin

Maria Ronk (Schumacher)
b. 1822 Bous Luxembourg
m. ~1855 Nicholas Ronk
d. 1906 Lake Church Wisconsin

Nicholas Ronk
Lake Church Cemetery, Ozaukee County, Wisconsin. Died February 14, 1884, age 68 years.

Ronk Graves
Lake Church Cemetery prior to restoration

Ronk Graves
Lake Church Cemetery after restoration 2022

Maria Schumacher Ronk
Third wife of Nicholas Ronk

Ronk Family 1883
Nicholas, Maria and daughter Josephine.

Michael and Anna (Hemmen) Groff
Younger photo

Michael and Anna (Hemmen) Groff

Nicholas Ronk II
b. 1858 Belgium WI
m. 1881 Mary Hubing
d. 1891 Belgium WI

Nicholas has a twin sister Mary Ann Ronk (Doll)

Mary Hubing (Ronk)
b. 1858 Belgium WI
m. 1881 Nicholas Ronk
d. 1916 Belgium WI

Nicholas P. and Anna Groff Ronk Family
Sheboygan Wisconsin
Left to Right: George, Olga (Baumann), Nicholas P., Michael, Matthew, Anna, Anna Dorothea (Heinzen), Marie (Hoffman), not pictured Rosa (Resch) born 1903.

John Nicholas and Mary Ronk Hamm Family 1897
Ponca Nebraska
Left to Right: Anna, Michael, Margaret, Mary, Lou, John Nicholas Hamm, Mary Ronk Hamm, Agnes, Catherine, Paul, Joe. John Hamm died at age 7 of appendicitis 1892.

Mary Ronk (Hamm)
Age 16 Belgium Wisconsin

Josephine Ronk
b. 1883 Belgium Wisconsin
d. 1908 Belgium Wisconsin at age 24 years

Michael and Mary Reinl Ronk
Married Sheboygan Wisconsin July 16, 1901

Viola Ronk (Pfeil)
b. March 22, 1904
m. Allan Pfeil 1925
d. March 28, 1926

Nicholas J. Ronk III and Mary Burmesch Ronk
Married May 1913 Belgium Wisconsin

Burmesch Family
Belgium Wisconsin

Schooner Northerner owned by Nicholas Ronk until November 29, 1868 when it capsized five miles southeast of Port Washington while in tow to Milwaukee for repairs after hull damage. The wreck was discovered by divers in 1976 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2010. Photo Wisconsin Historical Society

Cuyahoga
1856 propeller hired to transport the Northerner to Milwaukee for repairs. The Cuyahoga rescued the crew and transported them back to Port Washington.

Northerner 1865
Enrolled September 15, 1865 by Nicholas Ronk of Ronksville Wisconsin and Nicholas Cauten (Kauten) of Ronksville. Ship Master Fred Edmonds.

Northerner 1866
Enrolled December 7, 1866 by Nicholas Ronk of Ronksville Wisconsin (sole owner). Ship Master Fred Edmonds.

Northerner 1867
Enrolled May 22, 1867 by Nicholas Ronk of Ronksville Wisconsin and Andreas Ryerson of Milwaukee. Ship Master Markers Gunnerson.

Northerner 1868
Final enrollment June 1, 1868 by Nicholas Ronk of Ronksville Wisconsin and Andreas Ryerson of Milwaukee. Ship Master Andreas Ryerson.

Schooner Northerner National Register of Historic Places December 10, 2010 (47-OZ-0194)

National Register of Historical Places – NorthernerShipwreck

Ronk’s Pier

Designated an archaeological site for the State of Wisconsin on July 26, 2019 (47-OZ-0361)

Ronksville Pier

Ronk Notorial Act March 10, 1849

Notorial Act 1849

Searching for Signs of Ronksville July 2019

Searching for Signs of Ronksville

Searchers waste no time Finding Historic Lake Church Pier July 2019

Searchers waste no time finding historic Lake Church Pier

A Lake Church Landmark lost to fire.https://www.ozaukeepress.com/content/landmark-lost-fire

Northerner Diorama

Half hull model diorama created by Jeremy P. Taylor in 2020 (jeremyptaylor@yahoo.com). The lines were interpolated from underwater photos taken by Cal Kothrade (calsworld.net) and research done by the Wisconsin Historical Society (wisconsinshipwrecks.org). Other details were borrowed from scale drawings of the Schooner Challenge provided by the Manitowoc Maritime Museum (wisconsinmaritime.org). The background photo is of the “Cornelia” which was built in Clayton, NY, in 1880 by Edward Bertrand. It was acquired from the Historical Collection of the Great Lakes at Bowling Green State University (bgsu.edu).

Ronk's Pier
1870s photo of the pier possibly after it was abandoned.

Margaret Ronk Hirn
Daughter of Nicholas Ronk and Maria Schumacher Ronk
b. 1861 Belgium WI
m. 1881 Franz Karl Hirn (widowed)
m. 1896 Frank Brand (divorced)
d. 1900 Lake Church WI

Franz Karl Hirn
Son of Johann Hirn and Barbara Mehring Hirn
b. 1857 Belgium WI
m. 1881 Margaret Ronk
d. 1895 Lake Church WI

Margaret Ronk Hirn and
Mary Ronk Doll
Daughters of Nicholas Ronk and Maria Schumacher Ronk

Margaret (standing)
b. 1861 Belgium WI
m. 1881 Franz Karl Hirn (widowed)
m. 1896 Frank Brand (divorced)
d. 1900 Lake Church WI

Mary (seated)
b. 1858 Belgium WI
m. 1882 Jacob John Doll
d. 1931 Milwaukee WI

Lake Church, WI Sept 15, 1896
First Mass Reception for Fr. Michael Groff at the home of his parents Michael and Anna (Hemmen) Groff. House is located at 716 County Rd D Lake Church, WI.

Fr. Michael Groff
Ordination Sept 15, 1896 St. Mary's Lake Church, WI.

Groff Family
St. Mary's Church Sept 15, 1896

Back row L-R: Mathew, Anna, Sr. Yolanda, Nicholas, Fr. Michael, John Baptiste, Sr. Natalia, John, Joseph
Seated: Michael and Anna Hemmen Groff

Alois Bares and Melvina Ronk
Married November 20, 1941

Donald Ronk WWII
Tribute to Donald Ronk WWII Veteran and Liberator. Shared by Barbara and Mark Kropp

A young Rodney Ronk

Marie Ronk
Daughter of John B. and Lizzie Ronk killed at a railroad crossing August 17, 1917.

Marie Ronk
Brother of Paul Ronk and sister of Esther Ronk also friend Ward prior to traveling back to Bancroft Nebraska August 17, 1917. The Sixth regiment issued to Private Paul Ronk a furlough to return to Omaha for a period of seven days to attend Marie's funeral.