Ford “Huck” Hagenbuch and His Ohio Roots

I recently stumbled upon an obituary for Ford “Huck” Hagenbuch from 2011. I wasn’t familiar with Huck, and I was surprised to hear that he had spent many years living in Gilroy, California—a town I had passed through while in that state. I was curious how Huck and his family were related, so I began digging.

Huck’s obituary mentioned his wife, Fran; his daughters, Kira and Krista; two sons in law; and several grandchildren. However, it lacked any details about his parents, which would have made tracing his lineage more straightforward.

Still, I was able to find his connection to our family tree without too much difficulty. The December 21, 1993 edition of the New Braunfels Herald-Zeitung newspaper included an obituary for Huck’s mother, Ethel C. Hagenbuch (misspelled “Hanenbuch”) and explained that she was predeceased by her husband, George E. Hagenbuch.

Obituary for Ethel (Canning) Hagenbuch from 1993

These names, along with a line in Huck’s obituary about his Ohio roots, helped me to connect him to our family tree. His line is as follows: Andreas (b. 1715) > Henry (b. 1737) > Joseph (b. 1778) > Henry (b. 1812) > Edwin (b. 1850) > George Edwin (b. 1881) > Ford “Huck” Howard (b. 1934).

Portions of this line have been discussed in previous articles. Andreas and his son, Henry, have been explored in numerous pieces. Joseph (b. 1778) was touched upon in the “Family on the Move” series, which followed how he moved from from Lehigh County to Northumberland County, PA in 1802 and then from Northumberland County to Tioga County, PA around 1829.

Joseph’s son, Henry (b. 1812), eventually left Tioga County and moved west to Champaign County, Ohio near Urbana in the mid-1840s. In 1848, he married Martha Jane Long (b. 1827) and the couple had two children: Edwin (b. 1850) and Mary Ella (b. 1853). Henry was a successful farmer and owned nearly 500 acres of land. The sad story of his death was told on this site in 2021.

Edwin Hagenbuch, c. 1900

Henry’s son, Edwin, stayed in Ohio and lived in Urbana. He had a knack for bookkeeping and finances, working for the United States Rolling Stock company as a clerk. He later raised livestock, was a landlord, and won election to the Urbana city council. He married Nellie Mary Howard (b. 1854) in 1880. Together they had two children: George Edwin (b. 1881) and Frank (b. 1884).

Huck’s line is through their eldest son, George Edwin. George studied to become a lawyer. In 1917, he joined the Army and was sent to France as part of the American Expeditionary Force during World War I. According to military records, he was in Company D in the 121st Machine Gun Battalion and fought in the battle of Meuse-Argonne near the end of the war. He returned home in 1919, worked as a lawyer in Cleveland, and married Ethel A. Canning (b. 1897) in 1933.

Ethel had been married previously to Fred Pumphrey (b. 1890) in 1920, and they had a daughter together—Sonia Madeline—who was born on February 25, 1921. Fred Pumphrey has a fascinating story and was, by all accounts, a charlatan. Fred wasn’t even his real name. He was born Ralph Fleming Pumphrey and assumed several aliases during his life, including Fred Duke Browne. He was married four times, with each wife leaving him after less than a year of marriage. Ethel was one of the wives and filed for divorced from Fred in 1922. Learn more about Fred Pumphrey’s life of deception.

After they were married in 1933, George Edwin Hagenbuch adopted Ethel’s daughter, Sonia. The couple then had a son together, Ford “Huck” Howard Hagenbuch, who was born on August 17, 1934 in Shaker Heights, Cuyahoga County, OH. Yearbook photos show that in school he was part of the Hi-Y club, which was a service organization affiliated with the YMCA. After graduating, Huck served in the Navy.

Ford “Huck” Hagenbuch (second row, center) from a 1951 yearbook photo

By the early 1960s, he had moved to California. Huck married Francine Archer on July 13, 1962, and the two lived for a time in San Jose, CA. Their daughters Kira and Krista were born, and Huck worked for FMC Corp./United Defense. The family later resided in Gilroy, CA. Here, Huck was an important part of the community and contributed to the local newspaper as a columnist.

Ford “Huck” Hagenbuch died on July 17, 2011. According to his obituary:

Huck had a gift for writing, storytelling and finessing a punch line. He had a deep appreciation for inspired music, good food and rich conversation. He embodied the words husband, father, friend, neighbor. He touched countless hearts and lives with his wisdom, humor and principles.

We can now place Huck and his descendants on our family tree. His Ohio roots connect him to a unique Hagenbuch line, one that stretches back to Pennsylvania before the Civil War. Although I am disappointed that I never made contact with this group of California Hagenbuchs when I was living in the state, I hope that they may find this article and share more of their family’s story!