Boßler [], also written Bossler or Bosler in some family branches or testimonies of earlier centuries, is the name of a Germanic languages, German family of merchants, Entrepreneurship, entrepreneurs and Business magnate, industrialists, originally from southern Hesse, who were particularly active in the manufacture of air guns, in American cattle breeding and in passenger and

freight Cargo consists of bulk goods conveyed by water, air, or land. In economics, freight is cargo that is transported at a freight rate for commercial gain. ''Cargo'' was originally a shipload but now covers all types of freight, including tran ...

shipping on the Neckar and

Rhine ), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland , source1_coordinates= , source1_elevation = , source2 = Rein Posteriur/Hinterrhein , source2_location = Paradies Glacier, Graubünden, Switzerland , source2_coordinates= , so ...

. In addition, individual members of the family achieved importance in

scientific Science is a systematic endeavor that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe. Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earliest archeological evidence for ...

or cultural terms over the course of time. The unbroken line of the family dynasty, which has had a branch in

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

since 1738, a branch in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

since 1791 and another branch in Neckarsteinach in the Bergstrasse district since 1822, has been documented in the area of the historic

district A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municipa ...

of Lichtenberg (district

Darmstadt-Dieburg Darmstadt-Dieburg is a Kreis (district) in the south of Hesse, Germany. Neighboring districts are Offenbach, Aschaffenburg, Miltenberg, Odenwaldkreis, Bergstraße, Groß-Gerau, and the district-free city of Darmstadt, which it surrounds. Histor ...

) since 1616. Members of the dynasty appeared there as local lower and higher judicial court officials, as princely state officials in the

forestry Forestry is the science and craft of creating, managing, planting, using, conserving and repairing forests, woodlands, and associated resources for human and environmental benefits. Forestry is practiced in plantations and natural stands. ...

and cameral system of the

Landgraviate of Hesse-Darmstadt The Landgraviate of Hesse-Darmstadt (german: Landgrafschaft Hessen-Darmstadt) was a State of the Holy Roman Empire, ruled by a younger branch of the House of Hesse. It was formed in 1567 following the division of the Landgraviate of Hesse bet ...

and as

burgrave Burgrave, also rendered as burggrave (from german: Burggraf, la, burgravius, burggravius, burcgravius, burgicomes, also praefectus), was since the medieval period in Europe (mainly Germany) the official title for the ruler of a castle, especia ...

s belonging to the hesse court officials. Due to their social standing, they belonged to the regional

notables An Assembly of Notables (French: ''Assemblée des notables'') was a group of high-ranking nobles, ecclesiastics, and state functionaries convened by the King of France on extraordinary occasions to consult on matters of state. Assemblymen were ...

History

The Origin of the Family

The

family tree A family tree, also called a genealogy or a pedigree chart, is a chart representing family relationships in a conventional tree structure. More detailed family trees, used in medicine and social work, are known as genograms. Representations of ...

begins in 1616 in the hessian ''Amt Lichtenberg''. The family's

ancestral home An ancestral home is the place of origin of one's extended family, particularly the home owned and preserved by the same family for several generations. The term can refer to an individual house or estate, or to a broader geographic area such as a ...

is Asbach, now a district of the municipality of

Modautal Modautal is a municipality in the Darmstadt-Dieburg district, in Hesse, Germany. Approximately 5,050 inhabitants live in 11 districts on an area of 31 km2 with about 38.7% wood. The first historical chronicles date back to the 13th century. H ...

. There the family survived the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history, lasting from 1618 to 1648. Fought primarily in Central Europe, an estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died as a result of battle ...

unharmed. Martin Boßler (1616–1694) is the progenitor of the family. He had four sons: Christian (1643–1690)

and gunsmith, Matthaeus (1645–1716), Peter (1654–1697) and Johann Valentin (1661–1719).

cultural and social significance

In the field of music and drama, the

fine art In European academic traditions, fine art is developed primarily for aesthetics or creative expression, distinguishing it from decorative art or applied art, which also has to serve some practical function, such as pottery or most metalwor ...

s were shaped by two descendants of the South Hessian dynasty who were among the cultural elite of their time. The first was the renowned

music publisher A music publisher is a type of publisher that specializes in distributing music. Music publishers originally published sheet music. When copyright became legally protected, music publishers started to play a role in the management of the intellect ...

Heinrich Philipp Boßler (1744–1812), a figure who shaped music publishing in the 18th century. On the other hand, there was

Friedrich Maximilian Klinger Friedrich Maximilian von Klinger (17 February 1752 – 9 March 1831) was a German dramatist and novelist. His play ''Sturm und Drang'' (1776) gave its name to the Sturm und Drang artistic epoch. He was a childhood friend of Johann Wolfgang von ...

, a childhood friend of

Goethe Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German poet, playwright, novelist, scientist, statesman, theatre director, and critic. His works include plays, poetry, literature, and aesthetic criticism, as well as tr ...

and one of the most important

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems ( oral or wri ...

s in

literary history The history of literature is the historical development of writings in prose or poetry that attempt to provide entertainment, enlightenment, or instruction to the reader/listener/observer, as well as the development of the literary techniques ...

, whose work ''

Sturm und Drang ''Sturm und Drang'' (, ; usually translated as "storm and stress") was a proto- Romantic movement in German literature and music that occurred between the late 1760s and early 1780s. Within the movement, individual subjectivity and, in particul ...

'' gave its name to an entire literary epoch in the

Age of Enlightenment The Age of Enlightenment or the Enlightenment; german: Aufklärung, "Enlightenment"; it, L'Illuminismo, "Enlightenment"; pl, Oświecenie, "Enlightenment"; pt, Iluminismo, "Enlightenment"; es, La Ilustración, "Enlightenment" was an intel ...

. Klinger found a connection to the Boßler family through his paternal grandmother's line. Both descend from the gunsmith Christian Boßler. The baltic knighthoods itself points out that Klinger was married to an

illegitimate Legitimacy, in traditional Western common law, is the status of a child born to parents who are legally married to each other, and of a child conceived before the parents obtain a legal divorce. Conversely, ''illegitimacy'', also known as '' ...

daughter of the russian empress Catherine the Great. In addition, branches and twigs of the Boßler family share ancestors with important personalities from the fields of

theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

science Science is a systematic endeavor that Scientific method, builds and organizes knowledge in the form of Testability, testable explanations and predictions about the universe. Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earli ...

politics Politics (from , ) is the set of activities that are associated with making decisions in groups, or other forms of power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of resources or status. The branch of social science that stud ...

and culture in earlier centuries or are closely intertwined with their family trees. These include, for example, the outstanding

chemist A chemist (from Greek ''chēm(ía)'' alchemy; replacing ''chymist'' from Medieval Latin ''alchemist'') is a scientist trained in the study of chemistry. Chemists study the composition of matter and its properties. Chemists carefully describe t ...

Justus Liebig Justus Freiherr von Liebig (12 May 1803 – 20 April 1873) was a German scientist who made major contributions to agricultural and biological chemistry, and is considered one of the principal founders of organic chemistry. As a professor at the ...

or Georg Gottfried Gervinus (1805–1871) as well as

Friedrich Ludwig Weidig Friedrich Ludwig Weidig (15 February 1791 – 23 February 1837) was a German Protestant theologian, pastor, activist, teacher and journalist. Initially working as a teacher in Butzbach, he then spent a short time as a pastor in Ober-Gleen, a dis ...

. At this point, the social-genealogical reference to the internationally known

Merck family The Merck family is a German family of industrialists and bankers, known for establishing the world's oldest pharmaceutical company Merck, its American former subsidiary Merck & Co. (MSD), which is now an independent company, as well as the H ...

of Darmstadt also seems remarkable. In addition, there are recurring genealogical links to families of forestry and

hunting Hunting is the human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, or killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to harvest food (i.e. meat) and useful animal products ( fur/ hide, bone/tusks, horn/antler, ...

officials or members of the

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Cathol ...

clergy Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

. The Paris branch, i.e. the French part of the family descended from Matthäus Boßler. The most famous scientific representative was the

astronomer An astronomer is a scientist in the field of astronomy who focuses their studies on a specific question or field outside the scope of Earth. They observe astronomical objects such as stars, planets, moons, comets and galaxies – in either ...

Jean Bosler Jean Bosler (24 March 1878, Angers – 25 September 1973, Marseille) was a French astronomer and author of several books. Recruited by Deslandres as an astronomer at l’observatoire de Paris, Bosler discovered in 1908 in the spectrum of Comet M ...

(1878–1973), whose work was shaped by his work as director at the

Marseille Observatory Marseille Observatory (french: Observatoire de Marseille) is an astronomical observatory located in Marseille, France, with a history that goes back to the early 18th century. In its 1877 incarnation, it was the discovery site of a group of gal ...

. His scientific work was award-winning, even the

Nobel Prize The Nobel Prizes ( ; sv, Nobelpriset ; no, Nobelprisen ) are five separate prizes that, according to Alfred Nobel's will of 1895, are awarded to "those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind." Alfr ...

winner

Erwin Schrödinger Erwin Rudolf Josef Alexander Schrödinger (, ; ; 12 August 1887 – 4 January 1961), sometimes written as or , was a Nobel Prize-winning Austrian physicist with Irish citizenship who developed a number of fundamental results in quantum theo ...

considered him for his work. Jean Boslers great-grandfather came from

Reinheim Reinheim is a town in the Darmstadt-Dieburg district, in Hesse, Germany. It is situated southeast of Darmstadt. International relations Twin towns - Sister cities Reinheim is twinned with: * Licata, Italy (since 29.6.2001) * Cestas, France ...

and went to

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

. In France the surname Boßler was changed to the form Bosler.

Entrepreneurship

Bosler brothers and cattle breeding on the Plains

The Pennsylvania Dutch branch, i.e. the US-American part of the family, descends from Johann Wilhelm Boßler, the youngest son of Johann Valentin Boßler from Ernsthofen near Darmstadt. Johann Wilhelm emigrated to

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

on the Bilander ''Thistle'' from

Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte'') is the second largest city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the province of South Holland, part of the North Sea mouth of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, via the ''"Ne ...

in 1738. His personal

signature A signature (; from la, signare, "to sign") is a handwritten (and often stylized) depiction of someone's name, nickname, or even a simple "X" or other mark that a person writes on documents as a proof of identity and intent. The writer of a ...

was ''Johann Wilhelm Boßler'' and he was married to a née Longenecker. His descendants included important

cattle baron Cattle baron is a historic term for a local businessman and landowner who possessed great power or influence through the operation of a large ranch with many beef cattle. Cattle barons in the late 19th century United States were also sometimes re ...

s who are considered pioneers of cattle breeding and the

cattle Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, cloven-hooved, herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus ''Bos''. Adult females are referred to as cows and adult ma ...

trade with reference to the Great Plains. In addition, members of the Bosler family were active as

bank A bank is a financial institution that accepts deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital markets. Because ...

ers,

real estate Real estate is property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this (also) an item of real property, (more general ...

entrepreneurs,

philanthropists Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives, for the public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private good, focusing on material ...

and

patrons Patronage is the support, encouragement, privilege, or financial aid that an organization or individual bestows on another. In the history of art, arts patronage refers to the support that kings, popes, and the wealthy have provided to artists su ...

. With the cattle baron John Herman Bosler (1830-1897), a family member also belonged to the Electoral College for the Democrats. His brother James Williamson Bosler (1833-1883), himself a cattle baron, served as a member of the

Iowa General Assembly The Iowa General Assembly is the legislative branch of the state government of Iowa. Like the federal United States Congress, the General Assembly is a bicameral body, composed of the upper house Iowa Senate and the lower Iowa House of ...

, was a delegate to the Democratic National Convention in Charleston and subsequently acted for the Grand Old Party, of which he was a member of the

Republican National Committee The Republican National Committee (RNC) is a U.S. Political action committee, political committee that assists the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party of the United States. It is responsible for developing and promoting the Republi ...

. The Boslers from Carlisle, descended from the Pennsylvania Dutch branch, are also documented in literature under the surname Bossler. High-ranking

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking ...

s and statesmen belonged to the

Social network A social network is a social structure made up of a set of social actors (such as individuals or organizations), sets of dyadic ties, and other social interactions between actors. The social network perspective provides a set of methods for ...

ers and agro- Business magnate, industrialists Bosler. The

ghost town Ghost Town(s) or Ghosttown may refer to: * Ghost town, a town that has been abandoned Film and television * ''Ghost Town'' (1936 film), an American Western film by Harry L. Fraser * ''Ghost Town'' (1956 film), an American Western film by All ...

of Bosler in Wyoming was named after James Williamson Bosler.

Court gunsmith of the landgraves of Darmstadt

Members of the dynasty and descendants of the gunsmith Christian Boßler made a name for themselves as hesse-darmstadt

court A court is any person or institution, often as a government institution, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between parties and carry out the administration of justice in civil, criminal, and administrative matters in acco ...

gunsmiths. They created rifles that can still be found in public or private collections throughout

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...

and have even found their way into the catalogues of Christie's, the global auction house. All in all, these family members have achieved a high

social standing Social stratification refers to a society's categorization of its people into groups based on socioeconomic factors like wealth, income, race, education, ethnicity, gender, occupation, social status, or derived power (social and political). As ...

, are part of Hesse-Darmstadt's hunting history and have attained pioneer status through their famous creative art in the manufacture of air rifles. The air rifles of the hesse-darmstadt court gunsmiths Johann Peter (1689–1742) and Friedrich Jacob Boßler (1717–1793) so famous that they were copied during the lifetime of their creators. Logo Gebr

Inland shipping company in Neckarsteinach

The Neckarsteinach branch, ergo the entire family from Neckarsteinach, is divided into an older and a younger family line and belongs to the history of shipping on the Neckar. The older line was active in cargo shipping on the Rhine and its tributaries. The Boßlers in Neckarsteinach are also descended from Matthaeus Boßler through the

schoolmaster The word schoolmaster, or simply master, refers to a male school teacher. This usage survives in British independent schools, both secondary and preparatory, and a few Indian boarding schools (such as The Doon School) that were modelled afte ...

and merchant Johannes Boßler (1796–1834) from Nieder-Modau (near

Ober-Ramstadt Ober-Ramstadt is a town in the Darmstadt-Dieburg district, in Hessen, Germany. It is situated 9 km southeast of Darmstadt. As of 2020, its population was 15,127. Geography Location Ober-Ramstadt is situated 9 km away from Darmstadt ...

). The younger line concentrated on the business of passenger shipping (''white shipping''). It operated a passenger shipping company based in

Bad Friedrichshall Bad Friedrichshall () is a town in the district of Heilbronn in Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. It is situated at the confluences of the Jagst and of the Kocher into the Neckar, some north of Heilbronn. Bad Friedrichshall arose by ...

as well as two shipping companies in Neckarsteinach and

Heidelberg Heidelberg (; Palatine German language, Palatine German: ''Heidlberg'') is a city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the river Neckar in south-west Germany. As of the 2016 census, its population was 159,914 ...

. In the process, the family tradition of operating passenger transport on the Neckar since 1796 was advertised for tourist purposes. Members of the younger family line are considered pioneers of passenger shipping on the Neckar, as they were already active in this business field in the 1920s. The guest list of the passenger companies run by the younger line included high personalities from the state and politics as well as furthermore foreign representatives. Descendants of the shipping entrepreneur Andreas Boßler (1884–1961) are today shareholders in the passenger shipping company ''Weisse Flotte Heidelberg''. Thus a family branch of the younger line is involved in one of the largest tourism companies in the shipping industry in

southern Germany Southern Germany () is a region of Germany which has no exact boundary, but is generally taken to include the areas in which Upper German dialects are spoken, historically the stem duchies of Bavaria and Swabia or, in a modern context, Bavaria ...

.Daten und Fakten – Weiße Flotte Heidelberg
(PDF; 76 kB)

Bibliography in German language

* Johannes Feick: Lichtenberg im Odenwald in Vergangenheit und Gegenwart – nach den Quellen geschildert. Band 2. Kommissionsverlag Ludwig Saeng, Darmstadt 1903, p. 106. * Europa-Verkehr = European transport = Transports européens. Band 18, Otto Elsner, Darmstadt 1970, p. 122–123. * Helmut Betz: Historisches vom Strom Band. V – Die Neckarschiffahrt vom Treidelkahn zum Groß-Motorschiff, Krüpfganz, Duisburg 1989, p. 53, 122, 128, 142–148. * Günter Benja: Personenschiffahrt in deutschen Gewässern – Vollständiges Verzeichnis aller Fahrgastschiffe und -dienste, mit 115 Schiffsfotos, Gerhard Stallinger Verlag, Oldenburg 1975, p. 34–35. * Christie's: FINE ANTIQUE FIREARMS FROM THE W. KEITH NEAL COLLECTION. London 9. November 2000, (), S. 160. * Marcel Christian Boßler: Er war nicht zu Zella geboren! Der Hessen-Darmstädtische Hofbüchsenmacher Johann Peter Boßler und seine Dynastie, In: Waffen- und Kostümkunde - Zeitschrift für Waffen- und Kleidungsgeschichte, Sonnefeld 2020, p. 151–174, . * Hans Schneider: Der Musikverleger Heinrich Philipp Bossler 1744–1812. Mit bibliographischen Übersichten und einem Anhang Mariane Kirchgeßner und Boßler, Tutzing 1985, . * Beethoven-Haus Bonn: Die musikalische Welt des jungen

Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classic ...

. Beethovens Verleger Heinrich Philipp Boßler, Bonn 2001.

External links

freighter ships of the family Boßler in ''Vereniging de Binnenvaart''
(

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

) * th
Boßler family
in literature (

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

)
The Boßler family
in the

Consortium of European Research Libraries The Consortium of European Research Libraries (CERL) is a consortium of research libraries, primarily in Europe, that facilitates access to historians with an interest in the history of the book by providing online resources. The organisation also ...

Bosler family papers, 1864-1930
at the

American Heritage Center The American Heritage Center is the University of Wyoming's repository of manuscripts, rare books, and the university archives. Its collections focus on Wyoming Wyoming () is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United ...

of the

University of Wyoming The University of Wyoming (UW) is a public land-grant research university in Laramie, Wyoming. It was founded in March 1886, four years before the territory was admitted as the 44th state, and opened in September 1887. The University of Wyoming ...

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bossler family German families People from Bergstraße (district) History of Hesse Firearm designers German-language surnames Businesspeople from Hesse Carlisle, Pennsylvania American cattlemen Political families of the United States