Mathew Clemens & Barbara Nigon

FAMILY LINE AND HISTORY

Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens
7th of 7 living children of Mathias/Mathew Clemens & Anna Mary Reiland
Born: Mar 1, 1874, Mazeppa, Wabasha Co., Minnesota
Died: Mar 30, 1947 (age 73), Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota; during throat cancer surgery; bronchopneumonia, pharyngeal esophageal diverticulum
Buried: Apr 2, 1947, Calvary Cemetery in Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota
Occupation: Farmer
Married: Apr 19, 1898, Barbara Nigon, St. John’s Church in Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota
Eleven children: (stillborn twins), Mary Ann Clemens, Elizabeth Barbara Clemens, Amelia Rose Clemens, Dorothy Clemens, Aloysius Michael Clemens, Carl John Clemens, Cecelia Helen Clemens (Sister Ann Clemens), Agnes Catherine Clemens, Anna Frances Clemens, Lawrence Matthew Clemens, Joseph William Clemens

Barbara Nigon
1st of 13 children of Nicholas Nigon & Barbara Leinen
Born: May 19, 1873, Schwemlingen, Saarland, Germany
Died: Nov 8, 1937 (age 64), Pepin Township, Wabasha Co., Minnesota; stroke
Buried: Calvary Cemetery in Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota
Immigrated: May 6, 1881, from Antwerp, Belgium to New York aboard the SS Jan Breydel
Naturalized Citizen: 1890
Married: Apr 19, 1898, Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens, Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota
Eleven children: (stillborn twins), Mary Ann Clemens, Elizabeth Barbara Clemens, Amelia Rose Clemens, Dorothy Clemens, Aloysius Michael Clemens, Carl John Clemens, Cecelia Helen Clemens (Sister Ann Clemens), Agnes Catherine Clemens, Anna Frances Clemens, Lawrence Matthew Clemens, Joseph William Clemens

00. stillborn twins (female & male)
1898 on the family farm in Cascade Township, Olmsted Co., Minnesota

1. Mary Ann Clemens
1st of 11 children of Mathew Sylvester Clemens & Barbara Nigon
Born: Oct 29, 1899, Cascade Township, Olmsted Co., Minnesota
Died: May 7, 1994 (age 94), Pepin Township, Wabasha Co., Minnesota
Buried: May 10, 1994, Saint Felix Cemetery in Wabasha, Wabasha Co., Minnesota
Occupation: Ran farm w/husband, housekeeper for priests of St. Mary’s Catholic Church
Married: Sep 9, 1924, Francis Peter “Frank” Wallerich, Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota
Five children: Joseph Matthew Wallerich, Mary Lou Wallerich, Robert Michael Wallerich, Francis Carl Wallerich, Norbert John Wallerich

2. Elizabeth Barbara Clemens
2nd of 11 children of Mathew Sylvester Clemens & Barbara Nigon
Born: Oct 15, 1900, on the family farm in Cascade Township, Olmsted Co., Minnesota
Died: Dec 21, 1996 (age 96), Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota; from pneumonia after breaking her hip
Buried: Dec 24, 1996, Calvary Cemetery in Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota
Never married, no children
Occupation: Medical Secretary at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN and St. John’s Hospital in Lynwood, California

3. Amelia Rose Clemens
3rd of 11 children of Mathew Sylvester Clemens & Barbara Nigon
Born: Jan 17, 1902, on the family farm in Cascade Township, Olmsted Co., Minnesota
Died: Jul 7, 1972 (age 70), Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota; stroke
Buried: Jul 11, 1972, Calvary Cemetery in Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota
Married: Nov 22, 1927, Patrick Henry Conway, II, Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota
Nine children: Patrick Henry “Pat” Conway III, Daniel Matthew “Dan” Conway, Gerald William “Jerry” (Father Gerald) Conway, John Joseph Conway, Bernard Michael “Bernie” Conway, David Laurence Conway, Marilyn Ann Conway, Terrence James “Terry” Conway, Elaine Margaret Conway.

4. Dorothy Clemens
4th of 11 children of Mathew Sylvester Clemens & Barbara Nigon
Born: Feb 16, 1903, on the family farm in Cascade Township, Olmsted Co., Minnesota
Died: Jun 18, 1903 (age 4 months), on the family farm in Cascade Township, Olmsted Co., Minnesota; spinal meningitis
Buried: Jun 20, 1903, at St. John’s (now Calvary) Cemetery in Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota

5. Aloysius Michael “Louie” Clemens
5th of 11 children of Mathew Sylvester Clemens & Barbara Nigon
Born: May 5, 1904, on the family farm in Cascade Township, Olmsted Co., Minnesota
Died: May 5, 1929 (age 25), Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota; auto accident
Buried: May 7, 1929, Calvary Cemetery in Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota
Occupation: Auto mechanic at Buick garage

6. Carl John Clemens
6th of 11 children of Mathew Sylvester Clemens & Barbara Nigon
Born: Sep 25, 1905, on the family farm in Cascade Township, Olmsted Co., Minnesota
Died: Sep 16, 1986 (age 80), Santa Rosa, Sonoma Co., California; prostate/bone cancer
Buried: Calvary Catholic Cemetery in Santa Rosa, Sonoma Co., California
Occupation: Farmer, construction laborer, iceman, store owner, managed Sprouse Reitz stores
Married (1): Feb 4, 1933, Noreen Ellen “Babe” Chatfield, Colusa, Colusa Co., California
Divorced: Legally separated Dec 1953, divorced May 1954
Five children: Gordon Lawrence Clemens, Carleen Barbara Clemens, Elizabeth Ann Clemens, Claudia Clemens, Catherine Frances Clemens
Married (2): 1957, Irene Venita (Tregear) Whitehed (Irene was 18 years his senior)
No children
Married (3): Sep 25, 1961, Marie Lenore (Macdonald) McCartney, San Francisco, California
No children

7. Cecelia Helen (Sister Ann) Clemens
7th of 11 children of Mathew Sylvester Clemens & Barbara Nigon
Born: Jan 25, 1908, on the family farm in Cascade Township, Olmsted Co., Minnesota
Died: Nov 1, 2003 (age 95), Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota; acute leukemia
Buried: Calvary Cemetery in Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota
Vocation: Sisterhood; Catholic Nun, Sisters of St. Francis

8. Agnes Catherine Clemens
8th of 11 children of Mathew Sylvester Clemens & Barbara Nigon
Born: Jun 27, 1909, on the family farm in Cascade Township, Olmsted Co., Minnesota
Died: May 21, 2005 (age 95), Seal Beach, Orange Co., California; suffered from dementia
Buried: Good Shepherd Cemetery in Huntington Beach, Orange Co., California
Married: Aug 18, 1932, William Francis “Bill” Hauser, Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota
Three children: Richard Francis “Dick” Hauser, Barbara Ann Hauser, William John “Bill” Hauser

9. Anna Frances Clemens
9th of 11 children of Mathew Sylvester Clemens & Barbara Nigon
Born: Jan 9, 1911, on the family farm in Cascade Township, Olmsted Co., Minnesota
Died: Jun 14, 1995 ( age 84), Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota; heart attack
Buried: Jun 17, 1995, Calvary Cemetery in Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota
Occupation: Hospital purchasing department, advertising company accountant
Married: Jun 17, 1933, Francis Sylvester “Frank” Walsh, Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota
Three children: James Lawrence “Jim” Walsh (twin), Joseph Mathew “Joe” Walsh (twin), Leonard Francis “Len” Walsh

10. Lawrence Matthew Clemens
10th of 11 children of Mathew Sylvester Clemens & Barbara Nigon
Born: Jul 28, 1912, on the family farm in Cascade Township, Olmsted Co., Minnesota
Died: Sep 1, 1978 (age 66), Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota; cancer
Buried: Grandview Memorial Gardens in Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota
Occupation: Farmer, also worked for General Farm Supply
Married: Jul 15, 1942, Pearl Louise Herrick, Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota
Four children: Ruth Ann Clemens, Darlene Mary Clemens, Thomas Lawrence “T.C.” Clemens, Richard Matthew Clemens

11. Joseph William “Joe” Clemens
11th of 11 children of Mathew Sylvester Clemens & Barbara Nigon
Born: Oct 1, 1914, Cascade Township, Olmsted Co., Minnesota
Died: Aug 7, 2010 (age 95), Chatfield, Fillmore Co., Minnesota; polycythemia vera (bone marrow cell mutation cancer), old age
Buried: Aug 11, Calvary Cemetery in Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota
Occupation: Farmer
Married (1): Apr 20, 1942, Elizabeth Ann “Betty” McGeary, Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota
Ten children: Joan Elizabeth Clemens, Martha Jean Clemens, William Joseph Clemens, Michael James Clemens, James Matthew “Jim” Clemens, Gerald Clair “Jerry” Clemens, David Joseph Clemens, Charles Paul “Chuck” Clemens, Neil Robert Clemens, Katherine Barbara “Kate” Clemens
Married (2): Dec 7, 1991, Rita (Pyffereon) Rhoten, Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota
No children

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Timeline and Records

Spellings and information in the census and other records
are retained as in the original documents.
(italicized clarifications or corrections are in parentheses)

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Seven children of Mathias/Mathew Clemens & Anna Mary Reiland:

0. infant Clemens
1860–1860
1. Maria Elizabeth “Mary” Clemens
1861–1874
2. Catherine “Kate” Clemens
1863–1934
3. Peter Daniel Clemens
1864–1956
4. Margaret Elizabeth Clemens
1866–1954
5. Angeline “Annie” Clemens
1869–1962
6. Rose Clemens
1871–1943
7. Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens
1874–1947

Thirteen children of Nicholas Nigon & Barbara Leinen


1. Barbara Nigon
1873–1937
2. Lena Nigon
1874–1915
3. Catherine Nigon
1876–1876
4. Maria “Mary” Nigon
1878–1966
5. Nicholas “Nick” Nigon
1880–1968
6. Michael “Mike” Nigon
1882–1971
7. John “Jack” Nigon
1884–1969
8. Katherine Nigon
1885–1940
9. Anna Clara Nigon
1887–1948
10. Francis “Frank” Nigon
1890–1953
11. Margaret Mary Nigon
1892–1992
12. Teresa Anna Nigon
1894–1990
13. Elizabeth Susanna “Jane” Nigon
1897–1930

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Apr 24, 1858: Marriage of Mathias/Mathew Clemens & Anna Mary Reiland, the parents of Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens, in Mazeppa, Wabasha Co., Minnesota
Eight children, seven living: (infant Clemens), Maria Elizabeth “Mary” Clemens, Catherine “Kate” Clemens, Peter Daniel Clemens, Margaret Elizabeth “Maggie” Clemens, Angeline “Annie” Clemens, Rose Clemens, Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens

1865: Minnesota State Census, Mazeppa, Wabasha Co., Minnesota:

Mathias Clemens Male (Mathias/Mathew Clemens, born 1836)
Maria Clemens Female (wife, Anna Mary (Reiland) Clemens, born 1832)
Maria Clemens Female (daughter, Maria Elizabeth “Mary” Clemens, born 1861)
Catharine Clemens Female (daughter, Catherine “Kate” Clemens, born 1863)
Peter Clemens Male (son, Peter Daniel Clemens, born 1864)

Aug 31, 1870: U.S. Federal Census, Pine Island, Goodhue Co., Minnesota:
Name Matthias Clemens (Mathias/Mathew Clemens)
Birth Date abt 1833
Birthplace Luxembourg
Home in 1870 Pine Island, Goodhue, Minnesota
Race White
Gender Male
Post Office Zumbrota
Occupation Farmer
Father of Foreign Birth Yes
Mother of Foreign Birth Yes
Personal Estate Value 300
Real Estate Value 1000
Clemens Matthias Age 37, Male, White, Farmer, born Luxemburg (Mathias/Mathew Clemens)
Clemens Anna M Age 40, Female, White, Keeping House, born Luxemburg (Anna Mary (Reiland) Clemens)
Clemens Mary Age 9, Female, White, at home born Minnesota (Maria Elizabeth “Mary” Clemens, died in 1874)
Clemens Catherine Age 7, Female, White, at home born Minnesota
Clemens Peter Age 5, Male, White, at home, born Minnesota
Clemens Margaret Age 4, Female, White, at home, born Minnesota
Clemens Angeline Age 1, Female, White, at home, born Minnesota
Riland John Age 80, Male, White, born, Luxemburg (John Reiland, father of Anna Mary (Reiland) Clemens)

Aug 7, 1872: Marriage of Nicholas Nigon & Barbara Leinen, parents of Barbara (Nigon) Clemens, at St. Gangolf Parish in Trier, Fitten, Saarland, Deutschland (now Germany)

Thirteen children: Barbara Nigon, Lena Nigon, Catherine Nigon, Maria “Mary” Nigon, Nicholas “Nick” Nigon, Michael Nigon, John “Jack” Nigon, Katherine Nigon, Anna Clara Nigon, Francis “Frank” Nigon, Margaret Nigon, Teresa Anna Nigon, Elizabeth Susanna “Jane” Nigon

May 19, 1873: Birth of Barbara Nigon, 1st of 13 children of Nicholas Nigon & Barbara Leinen and future wife of Mathew Sylvester Clemens, in Schwemlingen, Saarland, Germany

Mar 1, 1874: Birth of Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens, 7th of 7 children of Mathew Clemens & Anna Mary Reiland, in Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota

Tales told: My grandfather was nearly a year old when his family moved from Mazeppa into the new farmhouse just west on the outskirts of Rochester in 1875. He grew up in this house, and when he married, their children were all born and raised in it, too. It was on a 210-acre dairy farm that in the first white of winter was a Norman Rockwell picture of snow-covered paradise. Theirs was the first farm west of the outskirts of the city of Rochester in Olmsted County. The rolling prairie land was purchased in the early 1870s by my great-grandfather, Mathew Clemens. In 1874, he and one of his three brothers, Peter, both stonemasons from Luxembourg, built the original three-story, nine-bedroom stone house. It was four rooms square, built from rocks collected from nearby land that needed to be cleared. The stones were layered like a jigsaw puzzle, stuccoed and pebble-dashed on the outside and plastered smooth on the inside, the walls thick enough for window seats. The 18-inch thick walls made it a deep freeze in the wintry Minnesota weather, so a huge wood-burning stove heated the entire house day and night.
Told to Catherine (Clemens) Sevenau by her uncle, Joseph William “Joe” Clemens (11th of 11 children of Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens & Barbara Nigon)

May 1, 1875: Minnesota State Census, Olmsted Co., Minnesota:
Clemens M Age 38, Male, born Luxembourg, father born Luxembourg, mother born Luxembourg (Mathew Clemens)
Clemens Mary Age 41, Female, born Luxembourg, father born Luxembourg, mother born Luxembourg (Anna Mary Reiland) Clemens, wife of Mathew and daughter of John Reiland)
Clemens C Age 12, Female, born Minnesota, father born Luxembourg, mother born Luxembourg (Catherine Clemens, daughter)
Clemens P Age 11, Male, born Minnesota, father born Luxembourg, mother born Luxembourg (Peter Daniel Clemens, son)
Clemens M Age 8, Female, born Minnesota, father born Luxembourg, mother born Luxembourg (Margaret Elizabeth Clemens, daughter)
Clemens A Age 6, Female, born Minnesota, father born Luxembourg, mother born Luxembourg (Angeline “Annie” Clemens, daughter)
Clemens R Age 4, Female, born Minnesota, father born Luxembourg, mother born Luxembourg (Rose Clemens, daughter)
Clemens M Age 1, Male, born Minnesota, father born Luxembourg, mother born Luxembourg (Mathew Sylvester Clemens, son)
Miller, John Age 35, Male, born Prussia, father born Prussia, mother born Prussia (unknown relationship)
Reiland, John Age 77, Male, born Luxembourg, father born Prussia, mother born Prussia (father of Anna Mary (Reiland) Clemens)

Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens:

Jun 15, 1880: U.S. Federal Census, Cascade, Olmsted Co., Minnesota:
Name Matthew Clemmens (Mathias/Mathew Clemens)
[Mathew Clemens]
Age 44
Birth Date Abt 1836
Birthplace Netherlands (Luxembourg)
Home in 1880 Cascade, Olmsted, Minnesota
Race White
Gender Male
Relation to Head of House Self (Head)
Marital Status Married
Spouse’s Name Anna M. Clemmens (Anna Mary (Reiland) Clemens)
Father’s Birthplace Netherlands (Luxembourg)
Mother’s Birthplace Netherlands (Luxembourg)
Occupation Farmer
Household Members (Name) Age Relationship:
Matthew Clemmens Age 44, Self (Head) Farmer, born Netherlands, father born Netherlands, mother born Netherlands (Mathias/Mathew Clemens)
Anna M. Clemmens Age 46, Wife, Keeping house, born Netherlands, father born Netherlands, mother born Netherlands (Anna Mary (Reiland) Clemens)
Catherine Clemmens Age 17, Daughter, born Minnesota, father born Netherlands, mother born Netherlands (Catherine Clemens)
Peter Clemmens Age 16, Son, works on farm, born Minnesota, father born Netherlands, mother born Netherlands (Peter Daniel Clemens)
Margarite Clemmens Age 13, Daughter, born Minnesota, father born Netherlands, mother born Netherlands (Margaret Elizabeth Clemens)
Angeline Clemmens Age 11, Daughter, born Minnesota, father born Netherlands, mother born Netherlands (Angeline “Annie” Clemens)
Rosa Clemmens Age 9, Daughter, born Minnesota, father born Netherlands, mother born Netherlands (Rose Clemens)
Matthew Clemmens Age 6, Son, born Minnesota, father born Netherlands, mother born Netherlands (Matthew Sylvester Clemens)
John Reiland Age 84, Father-in-law, widowed, born Netherlands, father born Netherlands, mother born Netherlands (father of Anna Mary (Reiland) Clemens

circa 1880: Family of Mathew Clemens & Anna Mary Reiland:

Standing: Catherine “Kate” Clemens, Margaret Elizabeth “Maggie” Clemens, Angeline “Annie” Clemens, Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens
Seated: mother Anna Mary Reiland, Rose Clemens, father Mathias/Mathew Clemens, Peter Daniel Clemens

TALES TOLD: In the late afternoon of August 21, 1883, a tornado rolling upward to fantastic heights ripped through the area and ransacked rural Olmsted County. The funnel-shaped blackness demolished much of Rochester and the countryside around it. When it struck the Clemens house, it tore off the entire gabled roof and part of the third floor, leaving the rest of the solid stone building standing. When the devastation was over and the town and farms began to rebuild, Matthew Clemens, Sr., my great-grandfather, who had suffered a broken leg in the tornado, removed the remainder of the third floor and re-roofed it to a two-story, five-bedroom structure. My grandfather, Mathew Sylvester Clemens, was nine at the time.

The farm was taken care of by Grandpa and his father until 1910, when my grandparents, Mathew Sylvester Clemens and Barbara Nigon, purchased the farm from them. My great-grandparents, Mathias/Mathew Clemens and Anna Mary Reiland, moved to Rochester to live with their older son, Peter, until their deaths several years later.

In 1899, Mathew and Barbara’s first child, Mary, was born. Their last, Joe, was born in 1914. The four boys shared a bedroom with two double beds; the six girls shared three to a room. My father’s grandparents Mathias/Mathew and Anna Clemens occupied the fourth bedroom; the fifth room was reserved for company. It was always occupied. My great-grandparents lived with the family until 1910, when my father was five, and Carl, at the time their youngest grandson, was their favorite. He slept in their room and they took care of him when he was little. They spoke German at home, which is why he spoke only German until he started school. From that point forward, he was only allowed to speak English.
Told to Catherine (Clemens) Sevenau by her uncle, Joseph William “Joe” Clemens (11th of 11 children of Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens & Barbara Nigon)

abt 1882: brothers Peter Daniel Clemens (age 18?), Mathew Sylvester Clemens (age 8?):

Note: Matt’s brother, Peter, appears to have suffered from acromegaly, starting in his late teens. As he grew older, his symptoms notably progressed, notably his enlarged hands and feet as seen in his pictures.

circa 1889: Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens with parents Anna Mary Reiland & Mathias/Mathew Clemens:

abt 1889: brothers Mathew Sylvester Clemens and Peter Daniel Clemens

Oct 21, 1889: Marriage of Peter Nei & Rose Clemens, 6th of 7 living children of Mathias/Mathew Clemens & Anna Mary Reiland, in Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota
Pictured: Peter Nei, Mathew Sylvester Clemens, Rose (Clemens) Nei, unkn relative:

circa 1891: Mathias/Mathew Clemens & Anna Mary Reiland family:

Standing: Mathew Sylvester Clemens, Rose (Clemens) Nei, Peter Daniel Clemens, Angeline “Annie” (Clemens) Schabo
Seated: Catherine “Kate” (Clemens) Hoeft, Anna Mary (Reiland) Clemens, Margaret Elizabeth (Clemens) von Ruden, Mathias/Mathew Clemens

Mar 29, 1898: Marriage License of Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens & Barbara Nigon:
;

Apr 19, 1898: Marriage of Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens & Barbara Nigon at St. John’s Catholic Church in Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota

Eleven children: (stillborn twins), Mary Ann Clemens, Elizabeth Barbara Clemens, Amelia Rose Clemens, Dorothy Clemens, Aloysius Michael Clemens, Carl John Clemens, Cecelia Helen (Sister Ann) Clemens, Agnes Catherine Clemens, Anna Frances Clemens, Lawrence Matthew Clemens, Joseph William Clemens

Apr 19, 1898: Minnesota Marriage Index:
Name Matthew Clemens
Marriage Date 19 Apr 1898
Marriage Place Olmsted, Minnesota
Spouse Barbara Nigon
Certificate Number L249 (B05347aa.av7)
URL https://moms.mn.gov/

In the spring of 1898, Mathew Sylvester Clemens, the youngest of his family, and Barbara Nigon, the oldest of hers, were married in St. John’s Church in Rochester. Blessed with eleven children, they raised crops, cows, and kids on the family farm for the next forty-some years.

Apr 22, 1898: The Record and Union, Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota:

1898: Stillborn twins (female and male) to Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens & Barbara Nigon, on the family farm in Cascade Township, Olmsted Co., Minnesota

Oct 29, 1899: Birth of Mary Ann Clemens, 1st of 11 children of Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens & Barbara Nigon, on the family farm in Cascade Township, Olmsted Co., Minnesota

Jan 1900: Mathew Sylvester Clemens, the youngest son of Mathias/Mathew Clemens & Anna Mary Reiland, purchased the family farm from his parents. In 1910, Mathias & Anna Mary moved to Rochester to live with their son, Peter, and his family, where they resided until they died in 1918 and 1920.

Mathias/Mathew Clemens & Anna Mary (Reiland) Clemens:

Jan 6, 1900: Warranty Deed from Mathias/Mathew Clemens to his son, Mathew S. Clemens, for the family farm for $2,000:

Jan 6, 1900: $1.00 Bill of Sale from Mathias/Mathew Clemens to his son, Mathew S. Clemens:

Jun 2, 1900: U.S. Federal Census, Cascade, Olmsted Co., Minnesota:
Name Mathew Clemons (Mathew Sylvester Clemens)
[Mathew Clemens]
Age 26
Birth Date Mar 1874
Birthplace Minnesota
Home in 1900 Cascade, Olmsted, Minnesota
Race White
Gender Male
Relation to Head of House Head
Marital Status Married
Spouse’s Name Barbara Clemons
Marriage Year 1898
Years Married 2
Father’s Name Mathew Clemons
Father’s Birthplace Belgium
Mother’s Name Anna Mary Clemons
Mother’s Birthplace Belgium
Occupation Farmer
Can Read Yes
Can Write Yes
Can Speak English Yes
House Owned or Rented Own
Home Free or Mortgaged F
Farm or House F
Household Members (Name) Age Relationship:
Mathew Clemons Age 26, Head, born Mar 1874, married 2 years, born Minnesota, father born Belgium (Luxembourg), mother born Belgium (Luxembourg, farmer (Mathew Sylvester Clemens)
Barbara Clemons Age 27, Wife, born Mar 1873, married 2 years, 1 child born, 1 child living, born Germany, father born Germany, mother born Germany (Barbara (Nigon) Clemens)
Mary Clemons Age 7/12, Daughter, born Oct 1899, born Minnesota, father born Minnesota, mother born Germany (Mary Clemens)
Mathew Clemons Age 64, Father, born Mar 1836, married 27 years, born Belgium (Luxembourg), father born Belgium (Luxembourg), mother born Belgium (Luxembourg), immigrated 1854 at age 46, boarder (Mathew Clemens)
Anna Mary Clemons Age 67, Mother, born Mar 1832, married 27 years, 8 children born, 6 living, born Belgium (Luxembourg), immigrated 1857 at age 43, boarder (Anna Mary (Reiland) Clemens)
Note: The Clemens’ are living next door to Barbara (Nigon) Clemens’ parents and family (see following census)

Mathias/Matthew Clemens & Anna Mary Reiland, parents of Matthew Sylvester Clemens:

Jun 2, 1900: U.S. Federal Census, Cascade, Olmsted Co., Minnesota:
Name Nicholas Nigon (father of Barbara (Nigon) Clemens)
Age 50
Birth Date Nov 1849
Birthplace Germany
Home in 1900 Cascade, Olmsted, Minnesota
Race White
Gender Male
Immigration Year 1881
Relation to Head of House Head
Marital Status Married
Spouse’s Name Barbara Nigon (mother of Barbara (Nigon) Clemens)
Marriage Year 1873
Years Married 27
Father’s Birthplace Germany
Mother’s Birthplace Germany
Years in US 19
Naturalization Naturalized
Occupation Farmer
Months Not Employed 0
Can Read Yes
Can Write Yes
Can Speak English Yes
House Owned or Rented Own
Home Free or Mortgaged F
Farm or House F
Household Members (Name) Age Relationship:
Nicholas Nigon Age 50, Head, born Nov 1849, married 27 years, born Germany, father born Germany, mother born Germany, farmer immigrated 1881, 19 years in U.S. (father of Barbara (Nigon) Clemens)
Barbara Nigon Age 46, Wife, born Aug 1833, married 27 years, 12 children born, 12 children living, born Germany, father born Germany, mother born Germany, immigrated 1881, 19 years in U.S. ((Barbara (Leinen) Nigon), the mother of Barbara (Nigon) Clemens)
Lena Nigon Age 25, Daughter, born Sep 1874, dressmaker, born Germany, father born Germany, mother born Germany, immigrated 1881, 19 years in U.S.
Mary Nigon Age 22, Daughter, born Mar 1878, dressmaker, born Germany, father born Germany, mother born Germany, immigrated 1881, 19 years in U.S. (Maria “Mary” Nigon)
Nicholas Nigon Age 20, Son, born Mar 1880, farm laborer, born Germany, father born Germany, mother born Germany, immigrated 1881, 19 years in U.S. (Nicholas “Nick” Nigon, Jr.)
Mickle Nigon Age 18, Son, born Apr 1882, farm laborer, born Minnesota, father born Germany, mother born Germany (Michael “Mike” Nigon)
John Nigon Age 16, Son, born Mar, 1884, at school, born Minnesota, father born Germany, mother born Germany (John “Jack” Nigon)
Catharine Nigon Age 14, Daughter, born Nov 1885, at school, born Minnesota, father born Germany, mother born Germany (Katherine Nigon)
Anna Nigon Age 12, Daughter, born Dec 1887, at school, born Minnesota, father born Germany, mother born Germany (Anna Clara Nigon)
Frank Nigon Age 10, Son, born Jan 1890, at school, born Minnesota, father born Germany, mother born Germany (Francis “Frank” Nigon)
Mary Nigon Age 8, Daughter, born Mar 1892, at school, born Minnesota, father born Germany, mother born Germany (Margaret Mary Nigon)
Augusta Nigon Age 6, Son, born May 1894, at school, born Minnesota, father born Germany, mother born Germany (Teresa Anna Nigon)
Lizzie Nigon Age 3, Daughter, born Apr 1897, at school, born Minnesota, father born Germany, mother born Germany (Elizabeth Susanna “Jane” Nigon)
Note: The Nigon family is living next door to their daughter Barbara and her husband Matt Clemens (see above census)

Oct 15, 1900: Birth of Elizabeth Barbara Clemens, 2nd of 11 children of Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens & Barbara Nigon, on the family farm in Cascade Township, Olmsted Co., Minnesota

Oct 15, 1900: Minnesota Birth Index:
Name Elizabeth Barbara Clemens
Birth Date 15 Oct 1900
Birth Place Olmsted, Minnesota
Mother Maiden Name Nigon
Certificate Number Dc-48231
URL https://www.mnhs.org/search/people

Jan 17, 1902: Birth of Amelia Rose Clemens, 3rd of 11 children of Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens & Barbara Nigon, on the family farm in Cascade Township, Olmsted Co., Minnesota

1902: Clemens sisters: Mary, Amelia, and Elizabeth:

1902: Clemens sisters: Mary, Amelia, Elizabeth:

Feb 16, 1903: Birth of Dorothy Clemens, 4th of 11 children of Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens & Barbara Nigon, on the family farm in Cascade Township, Olmsted Co., Minnesota

Jun 18, 1903: Death of Dorothy Clemens (age 4 months), on the family farm in Cascade Township, Olmsted Co., Minnesota; spinal meningitis

Jun 20, 1903: Burial of Dorothy Clemens at St. John’s (now Calvary) Cemetery in Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota; Section CC 30 15

Minnesota Cemetery Inscriptions:
Township Cascade
County Olmsted
Name Dorothy Clemens
Birth Date 16/Feb/1903
Death Date 18/Jun/1903
Cemetery Calvary Rochester
Comments WITH MATHEW & BARBARA
Section CC 30 15

abt 1903: Nicholas Nigon & Barbara Leinen family (daughter Barbara (Nigon) Clemens, seated, 2nd from left)

May 5, 1904: Birth of Aloysius Michael “Louie” Clemens, 5th of 11 children of Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens & Barbara Nigon, on the family farm in Cascade Township, Olmsted Co., Minnesota

May 5, 1904: Minnesota Birth Index:
Name Aloysius Michael Clemens
Birth Date 5 May 1904
Birth Place Olmsted, Minnesota
Mother Maiden Name Nigon
Certificate Number 1904-18187
URL https://www.mnhs.org/search/people

Jan 28, 1905: Minnesota State Census, Cascade, Olmsted Co., Minnesota:
Clemens Mathew S Age 31, born Minnesota, father born Luxenburg (Luxembourg), mother born Luxenburg (Luxembourg) (father, Mathew Sylvester Clemens)
Clemens Barabor Age 32, born Germany, father born Germany, mother born Germany (mother, Barbara (Nigon) Clemens)
Clemens Mary Age 5, born Minnesota, father born Minnesota, mother born Germany (Mary Ann Clemens)
Clemens Elizabeth B. Age 4, born Minnesota, father born Minnesota, mother born Germany (Elizabeth Barbara Clemens)
Clemens Aamelia R. Age 3, born Minnesota, father born Minnesota, mother born Germany (Amelia Rose Clemens)
Clemens Aloysious M. Age 1, born Minnesota, father born Minnesota, mother born Germany (Aloysius Michael Clemens)

Jun 13, 1905: Minnesota State Census, Pine Island, Goodhue Co., Minnesota:
Peter Nei Age 38, born Minnesota, father born Germany, mother born Germany, farmer
Rose Nei Age 34, born Minnesota, father born Germany, mother born Germany (Daughter of Mathias/Mathew Clemens & Anna Mary Reiland)
Peter Nei Age 13, born Minnesota, father born Minnesota, mother born Minnesota
Clemens Mathew Age 70, born Germany, father born Germany, mother born Germany, resident 5 months (Mathias/Mathew Clemens (father of Rose (Clemens) Nei)
Clemens Mary Age 73, born Germany, father born Germany, mother born Germany, resident 5 months (mother of Rose (Clemens) Nei, Anna Mary (Reiland) Clemens)
Note: Mathew S. Clemens’ parents are in the household of his sister, Rose (Clemens) Nei

Peter Nei, Jr. & Rose (Clemens) Nei, son Peter Cletus Nye (taken abt 1899):

Sep 25, 1905: Birth of Carl John Clemens, 6th of 11 children of Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens & Barbara Nigon, on the family farm in Cascade Township, Olmsted Co., Minnesota

Sep 25, 1905: Minnesota Birth Index:
Name Carl John Clemens
Birth Date 25 Sep 1905
Birth Place Olmsted, Minnesota
Mother Maiden Name Nigon
Certificate Number Dc-48519
URL https://www.mnhs.org/search/people

Jan 14, 1906: Death of Barbara (Leinen) Nigon (age 51), 1st of 6 children of Jacob James Leinen & Maria Fritz, and the mother of Barbara (Nigon) Clemens in Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota

Jan 1906: Burial of Barbara (Leinen) Nigon at Calvary Cemetery in Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota; Section CC 39 26

Note: Barbara was born Aug 3, 1853; her headstone reflects her birth year as 1854
She is also later named on the cenotaph erected for her husband, Nicholas/Nikolas

Jan 28, 1907: Death of Nikolas Nigon (age 57), son of Johann Nigon & Magdelena Sellen and the father of Barbara (Nigon) Clemens, in Hilbringen, Landkreis Merzig-Wadern, Saarland, Germany

1907: Burial of Nikolas Nigon in Friedhof Hilbringen Cemetery in Hilbringen, Landkreis Merzig-Wadern, Saarland. Nikolas died intestate on Jan 28, 1907 (headstone reflects death date of Jan 27, 1907), in Hilbringen, Germany. His home was in Cascade, Minnesota, but he’d returned to Germany in search of a new wife and died while there.

A headstone (cenotaph) for Nicholas/Nikolas Nigon is erected in memory at Calvary Cemetery in Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota; it reflects Nicholas’ birth as Nov 8, 1849, however, his German birth and marriage records list his birth date as Nov 30, 1849. His wife, Barbara, is also included on the memorial. Section CC 39 26.

In Memory of
NIKOLAS NIGON
BORN NOV 8. 1849.
DIED IN
HILBRINGEN GERMANY
JAN 27. 1907.

---

BARBARA
WIFE OF
NIKOLAS NIGON
DIED
JAN 14. 1906.
AGED 52 YS. 5 MS. 11DS.
__________
NIGON

Jan 25, 1908: Birth of Cecelia Helen Clemens, 7th of 11 children of Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens & Barbara Nigon, on the family farm in Cascade Township, Olmsted Co., Minnesota

Jun 27, 1909: Birth of Agnes Catherine Clemens, 8th of 11 children of Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens & Barbara Nigon, on the family farm in Cascade Township, Olmsted Co., Minnesota

1909: Agnes Catherine Clemens & Cecelia Helen Clemens:

1910: Mathias/Mathew Clemens & Anna Mary Reiland move to Rochester to live with their son, Peter, and his family.

Apr 18, 1910: U.S. Federal Census, Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota:
Name Matthew Clemens (Mathias/Mathew Clemens, father of Mathew S. & Peter D. Clemens)
Age in 1910 74
Birth Date 1836
Birthplace Germany
Home in 1910 Rochester Ward 3, Olmsted, Minnesota
Street Hunter Street
Race White
Gender Male
Immigration Year 1856
Relation to Head of House Father
Marital Status Married
Father’s Birthplace Germany
Mother’s Birthplace Germany
Native Tongue English
Occupation Own Income
Able to read Yes
Able to Write Yes
Years Married 51
Enumerated Year 1910
Household Members (Name) Age Relationship
Peter D Clemens: Head, Age 45, Married 1, 23 years, born Minnesota, father born Germany, mother born Germany, Teamster Country Roads (son of Mathias/Mathew & Anna Mary (Reiland) Clemens)
Elvina Clemens: Wife, Age 43, Married 1, 23 years, 3 children born, 2 living, born Germany, father born Germany, mother born Germany, immigrated 1868 (wife of Peter D. Clemens, Alvina (Priebe) Clemens)
Matthew Clemens: Father Age 74, Married 1, 51 years, born Germany, father born Germany, mother born Germany, immigrated 1856 (Mathias/Mathew Clemens)
Mary A Clemens: Mother Age 76, Married 1, 51 years, 8 children born, 6 living, born Germany, father born Germany, mother born Germany, immigrated 1858 (Anna Mary (Reiland) Clemens)
Lena A Clemens: Daughter Age 19, Single, born Minnesota, father born Minnesota, mother born Germany, Clerk at Dry Goods Store

Apr 18, 1910: U.S. Federal Census, Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota:
Name Matthew Clemens
Age in 1910 74
Birth Date 1836
Birthplace Germany
Home in 1910 Rochester Ward 3, Olmsted, Minnesota,
Street Hunter Street
Race White
Gender Male
Immigration Year 1856
Relation to Head of House Father
Marital Status Married
Father’s Birthplace Germany
Mother’s Birthplace Germany
Native Tongue English
Occupation Own Income
Able to read Yes
Able to Write Yes
Years Married 51
Enumerated Year 1910
Household Members (Name) Age Relationship:
Peter D Clemens: Head, Age 45, Married 1, 23 years, born Minnesota, father born Germany, mother born Germany, Teamster Country Roads (son of Mathew & Anna Mary (Reiland) Clemens)
Elvina Clemens: Wife, Age 43, Married 1, 23 years, 3 children born, 2 living, born Germany, father born Germany, mother born Germany, immigrated 1868 (wife of Peter D. Clemens, Alvina (Priebe) Clemens)
Matthew Clemens: Father, Age 74, Married 1, 51 years, born Germany, father born Germany, mother born Germany, immigrated 1856, (Mathias/Mathew Clemens)
Mary A Clemens: Mother, Age 76, Married 1, 51 years, 8 children born, 6 living, born Germany, father born Germany, mother born Germany, immigrated 1858 (Anna Mary (Reiland) Clemens)
Lena A Clemens: Daughter, Age 19, Single, born Minnesota, father born Minnesota, mother born Germany, Clerk at Dry Goods Store (daughter of Peter D. Clemens & Alvina (Priebe) Clemens)

Apr 27, 1910: U.S. Federal Census, Cascade, Olmsted Co., Minnesota:
Name Mathew Clemmons (Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens)
[Mathew Clemens]
Age in 1910 36
Birth Date 1874
Birthplace Germany
Home in 1910 Cascade, Olmsted, Minnesota
Race White
Gender Male
Immigration Year 1881
Relation to Head of House Head
Marital Status Married
Father’s Birthplace Germany
Mother’s Birthplace Germany
Native Tongue English
Occupation Farmer
Industry General Farm
Employer, Employee or Other Employer
Home Owned or Rented Own
Home Free or Mortgaged Free
Farm or House Farm
Naturalization Status Naturalized
Able to read Yes
Able to Write Yes
Years Married 12
Enumerated Year 1910
Household Members (Name) Age Relationship:
Mathew Clemmons Age 36, Head, Married 1, 12 years, born Germany (Minnesota), father born Germany, mother born Germany (Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens)
Barbara Clemmons Age 36, Wife, Married 1, 12 years, born Minnesota (Germany), father born Minnesota (Germany), mother born Germany (Barbara (Nigon) Clemens)
Mary Clemmons Age 10, Daughter, born Minnesota (Germany), father born Germany, mother born Germany (Mary Clemens)
Elizabeth Clemmons Age 9, Daughter, born Minnesota, father born Germany (Minnesota), mother born Germany (Elizabeth Barbara Clemens)
Amelia Clemmons Age 8, Daughter, born Minnesota, father born Germany (Minnesota), mother born Germany (Amelia Rose Clemens)
Alvinia Clemmons Age 6, Daughter (Son), born Minnesota, father born Germany (Minnesota), mother born Germany (Aloysius Michael Clemens)
Charles J Clemmons Age 4, Son, born Minnesota, father born Germany (Minnesota), mother born Germany (Carl John Clemens)
Celia H Clemmons Age 2, Daughter, born Minnesota, father born Germany (Minnesota), mother born Germany (Cecelia Helen Clemens)
Agness C Clemmons Age 0, Daughter, born Minnesota, father born Germany (Minnesota), mother born Germany (Agnes Catherine Clemens)
Sebastian Bosneyk Age 26, Hired Man, born Austria, father born Austria, mother born Austria, farmer laborer on general farm

1910: Elgin Commander timepiece belonging to Mathew Sylvester Clemens, passed down to Mathew’s son Carl John Clemens, then to Carl’s only son and my brother, Gordon Lawrence “Larry” Clemens, and then to Gordon’s nephew and my oldest son, Mathew Robert Sevenau.

Jan 9, 1911: Birth of Anna Frances Clemens, 9th of 11 children of Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens & Barbara Nigon, on the family farm in Cascade Township, Olmsted Co., Minnesota

Jul 28, 1912: Birth of Lawrence Matthew Clemens, 10th of 11 children of Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens & Barbara Nigon, on the family farm in Cascade Township, Olmsted Co., Minnesota

Jul 28, 1912: Minnesota Birth Index:
Name Lawrence Mathew Clemens
Birth Date 28 Jul 1912
Birth Place Olmsted, Minnesota
Mother Maiden Name Nigon
Certificate Number 1912-19788
URL https://www.mnhs.org/search/people

Fall of 1912: Clemens’ farm in Cascade Township, just outside of Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota:

Mathias/Mathew Clemens, Sr., Matt Sylvester Clemens (Grandpa), mid-rear is Elizabeth Susanna “Jane” Nigon, Grandma’s youngest sister), the nine children (Joe, the youngest, was not yet born) Barbara (Nigon) Clemens (Grandma) holding Lawrence, Anna Mary at far right (Grandpa’s mother); (Carl, my father, is the blonde headed boy in the middle of all the kids)

Tales Told: My grandfather, Mathew Sylvester Clemens, was less than a year old when his family moved from Mazeppa into the new farmhouse on the outskirts just west of Rochester in 1875. He grew up in this house, and when he married, their children were all born and raised in it, too. It was on a 210-acre dairy farm that, in the first white of winter, was a Norman Rockwell picture of snow-covered paradise. Theirs was the first farm west of the outskirts of Rochester in Olmsted County. My great-grandfather, Mathew Clemens, purchased the rolling prairie land in the early 1870s. In 1874, he and one of his three brothers, Peter, both stonemasons from Luxembourg, built the original three-story, nine-bedroom stone house. It was four rooms square, built from rocks collected from nearby land that needed to be cleared. The stones were layered like a jigsaw puzzle, stuccoed and pebble-dashed on the outside and plastered smooth on the inside, the walls thick enough for window seats. The 18-inch thick walls made it a deep freeze in the wintry Minnesota weather, so a huge wood-burning stove heated the entire house day and night.
Told to Catherine (Clemens) Sevenau by her uncle, Joseph William “Joe” Clemens (11th of 11 children of Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens & Barbara Nigon)

abt 1914: Clemens siblings: Carl, Anna, Agnes, Amelia, Lawrence, Aloysius, Cecelia:

Oct 1, 1914: Birth of Joseph William “Joe” Clemens, 11th of 11 children of Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens & Barbara Nigon, on the family farm in Cascade Township, Olmsted Co., Minnesota

abt 1915: The three oldest Clemens sisters with cousin Jane Nigon:
standing: Mary Clemens, Amelia Clemens
seated: Elizabeth Clemens, Elizabeth Susanna “Jane” Nigon (cousin)

abt 1917: Clemens siblings: Agnes Clemens, Frances Nigon (older cousin), Anna Clemens, Amelia Clemens, Cecelia Clemens, in front: Lawrence Clemens, Joseph Clemens with cat

1917: Clemens sisters, Anna, Agnes, and Cecelia:

Sep 12, 1918: WWI Draft Registration Card:
Name Matthew Sylvester Clemens Jr
Race White
Age 44 years
Birth Date 1 Mar 1874
Residence Date 1917-1918
Street Address R – 6
Residence Place Olmsted County, Minnesota
Native born
Present Occupation Farmer
Employer Self
Place of Business Rochester, Minnesota
Physical Build Medium
Height Medium
Hair Color Brown
Eye Color Gray
Relative Mrs Matthews Clemens

abt 1918: Clemens siblings, children of Mathias/Mathew Clemens & Anna Mary Reiland:

Standing: Peter Daniel Clemens and Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens
Seated: Catherine “Kate” (Clemens) Hoeft, Rose (Clemens) Nye, Margret Elizabeth (Clemens) Von Ruden, Angeline Anna/Annie (Clemens) Schabo

Mar 16, 1918: Death of Anna Mary (Reiland) Clemens (age 85), wife of Mathias/Mathew Clemens, in Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota, at the home of her son, Peter Daniel Clemens, of chronic nephritis and endocarditis

Mar 24, 1918: Burial of Anna Mary (Reiland) Clemens at Calvary Cemetery in Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota; Section CC 31 15

Mar 25, 1918: Obituary, Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota:

Jan 12, 1920: U.S. Federal Census, Cascade, Olmsted Co., Minnesota:
Name Mathew S Clemens (Mathew Sylvester Clemens)
Age 45
Birth Year abt 1875
Birthplace Minnesota
Home in 1920 Cascade, Olmsted, Minnesota
House Number Farm
Residence Date 1920
Race White
Gender Male
Relation to Head of House Head
Marital Status Married
Spouse’s Name Barbara Clemens
Father’s Birthplace Germany
Mother’s Birthplace Germany
Able to Speak English Yes
Occupation Farmer
Industry General Farming
Employment Field Own Account
Home Owned or Rented Owned
Home Free or Mortgaged Free
Able to read Yes
Able to Write Yes
Household Members (Name) Age Relationship:
Mathew S Clemens Age 45, Head, born Minnesota, father born Germany, mother born Germany, farmer on general farm
Barbara Clemens Age 46, Wife, Immigrated 1881, Naturalized 1890, born Germany, father born Germany, mother born Germany
Mary A Clemens Age 20, Daughter, born Minnesota, father born Germany, mother born Germany
Elizabeth Z Clemens Age 19, Daughter, born Minnesota, father born Germany, mother born Germany, Chamber at Mayo Clinic (Elizabeth Barbara Clemens)
Amelia R Clemens Age 18, Daughter, born Minnesota, father born Germany, mother born Germany
Aloysius M Clemens Age 15, Son, born Minnesota, father born Germany, mother born Germany
Charles J Clemens Age 14, Son, born Minnesota, father born Germany, mother born Germany (Carl John Clemens)
Celia H Clemens Age 12, Daughter, born Minnesota, father born Germany, mother born Germany
Agnes C Clemens Age 10, Daughter, born Minnesota, father born Germany, mother born Germany
Anna F Clemens Age 9, Daughter, born Minnesota, father born Germany, mother born Germany
Laurence M Clemens Age 7, Son, born Minnesota, father born Germany, mother born Germany (Lawrence Michael Clemens)
Joseph W Clemens Age 5, Son, born Minnesota, father born Germany, mother born Germany

Dec 22, 1920: Death of Mathias/Mathew Clemens (age 84), 1st of 4 children of Peter Clemens & Maria Mary Reding, the husband of Anna Mary (Reiland) Clemens, and the father of Mathew Sylvester Clemens in Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota; lobar pneumonia

Dec 31, 1920, Mazeppa Journal, Mazeppa, Wabasha Co., Minnesota:
Pioneer Dies of Pneumonia
Mathew Clemens, who first came to Rochester sixty-four years ago passes on
Mathew Clemens, a pioneer resident of Olmsted county, died Wednesday at 5:30 o’clock of double pneumonia, at the home of his son, Peter Clemens, 115 Fifth Avenue NW.

Mr. Clemens was born March 15, 1836, in Construf, Luxumberg. He left for America March 10, 1854, and landed in New York, June 28, and remained there about one year. He then left for Aurora, Illinois, where he remained about nine months. Then he came to Minnesota and settled in a farm near Mazeppa. He came to Rochester in 1856 to work for Charles Cole in the American House. He remained there two years until he was married to Anna Mary Reiland April 24, 1858. They removed to a farm and remained there till 1874 when they bought another farm two miles west of Rochester where they lived until 1908. They came to Rochester to live with their son, Peter. There were eight children, six living and two dying in infancy. Those who survive are Mrs. John Hoeft, Pine Island; Mrs. John Von Ruden and Mrs. Charles Schabo of Reynolds, N.D.; Mrs. Peter Nei of Kenmare, N.D.; and Peter and Mathew of Rochester. Mrs. Clemens died March 16, 1918.

The funeral of Mr. Clemens will be Monday, Dec. 27 at 9 o’clock from St. John’s church.

Dec 27, 1920: Burial of Mathew Clemens at Calvary Cemetery in Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota; plot CC 31 16
Note: Mathew’s death year on his headstone is incorrect; he died in 1920

Apr 28, 1923: Silver (25th) Wedding Anniversary of Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens & Barbara Nigon

Apr 1923: Mathew & Barbara Clemens family: Amelia, Lawrence, Barbara (mother), Mary, Agnes, Aloysius, Cecelia, Joe (young boy in front), Mathew (father), Elizabeth, Anna, and Carl

Apr 1923: Clemens and Nigon cousins:

Slightly different photo with all present identified:


Note: #37 (infant Clair Nigon) is in the arms of #1 (Mary (Clemens) Wallerich)

Tales Told: In the 1920s, Matt and Barbara Clemens improved and modernized the stone farmhouse. Albert and William Ramthum, brothers from Byron, were hired to do the renovations. In the bedrooms, they built large double clothes closets. Between the dining area and living room, they created beautiful open colonnades. They tore down the stone wall between the parlor and the dining room and replaced it with full-sized wood cupboards that opened with doors to both sides, reaching from floor to ceiling. They removed the small, narrow porch on the west side of the house and built a large screened porch that extended along the north side and half of the west side of the structure. Kids rode their tricycles there. When Matt & Barbara celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary on April 28, 1923, housing twenty-five relatives for six weeks, the new porch was a welcome addition. They dug out the rest of the basement and put in a coal-burning furnace, a water heater, and another bathroom. They tore out the shed on the south side of the kitchen where the washhouse toilets had been. A whole new garage and laundry room were built. A large septic tank was dug, and the house was piped for modern plumbing and water on both floors, with running water throughout the house, the barn, the milk house, and the laundry area. The kerosene lamps on the first floor were replaced with valuable gas lamps.

In the mid 1920s, Doctor Charles Mayo wanted to install electricity in his rural 3,000-acre Mayowood estate, and to do that he needed to get power from the City of Rochester. The line crossed the Clemens’ property, so they were allowed to hook up to it. The house, barn, and all other buildings were wired, giving the family the great luxury of electric power.

The huge oak north of the house had a rope swing hanging from the largest branch. The concrete water storage tank was at the top of the hill behind the barn. The arched root cellar, doubling as the tornado cellar, had an outside entrance. Every year it was filled with vegetables from the garden, including 50 heads of cabbage and 100 bushels of potatoes. Grandma made whatever cabbage was leftover into sauerkraut. They butchered three hogs a year, salting, smoking, and canning their own meat, and putting pork patties down in a 10-gallon crock of lard. They made head cheese from the feet, tails, and everything else left over, wasting nothing.

With ten kids and a revolving house full of aunts, uncles, and dozens of cousins, there were constant chores to be done beyond farm activities. One hot summer, 20 people were quarantined in the house because one had smallpox. Washday was every Monday morning. In the washroom next to the barn, Grandma and the girls boiled clothes, sheets, and towels over the big stove, scrubbed them on the metal washboard, then hung them on lines to dry. During the winter everything on the lines would freeze, so the girls stacked the laundry like cardboard cutouts to carry it in. They hung these in the attic to dry.

A hundred odd-shaped earthenware jugs filled a whole corner of the attic. Trunks lined the dusty walls. Matt Clemens’ old harpsichord rested in the rear. In the early 1930s, Agnes and Anna were spring cleaning. They threw everything out the window into the garden, built a bonfire, and burned it all: books, photographs, gilded mirrors, framed portraits, the harpsichord, the Victrola, rocking chairs, old cards, letters, and love notes. It was considered junk.
Told to Catherine (Clemens) Sevenau by her uncle, Joseph William “Joe” Clemens (11th of 11 children of Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens & Barbara Nigon)

Apr 1923: Mathew & Barbara Clemens family: Amelia, Lawrence, Barbara (mother), Mary, Agnes, Aloysius, Cecelia, Joe (young boy in front), Mathew (father), Elizabeth, Anna, and Carl

Apr 1923: Clemens and Nigon cousins on the family farm outside of Rochester:

Slightly different photo with all present identified:

circa 1926: Clemens sisters: Anna (abt 15), Agnes (abt 17), Cecelia (abt 18):

circa 1926: Clemens sisters: Amelia, Betty Rose (friend), Anna, Elizabeth, Agnes:

1927: U.S. City Directory, Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota (pg 111):
Name Clemens, Matt S. (Barbara)
Residence Year 1927
Street Address r Bryon rd 1 mi SW
Residence Place Rochester, Minnesota
Occupation Farmer
Publication Title Rochester, Minnesota, City Directory, 1927

May 5, 1929: Death of Aloysius Michael “Louie” Clemens (age 25), 5th of 11 children of Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens & Barbara Nigon, Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota; auto accident on his 25th birthday

May 5, 1929: Minnesota Death Index:
Name Clemens, Aloysius 
Record Type Death
Death Date 5 May 1929
Death Place Olmsted, Minnesota
Death Registration Date 1929
Certificate Number 010199
Record Number 537081

May 7, 1929: Burial of Aloysius Michael “Louie” Clemens at Calvary Cemetery in Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota; CC 31 13

May 1929: Minnesota Cemetery Inscription Index:
Township Cascade
County Olmsted
Name Aloysius Clemens
Birth Date 1904
Death Date 1929
Cemetery Calvary Rochester
Comments WITH MATHEW & ANNA MARY
Section CC 31 13

Apr 16, 1930: U.S. Federal Census, Cascade, Olmsted Co., Minnesota:
Name Mathew S Clemens (Mathew Sylvester Clemens)
Birth Year abt 1874
Gender Male
Race White
Age in 1930 56
Birthplace Minnesota
Marital Status Married
Relation to Head of House Head
Home in 1930 Cascade, Olmsted, Minnesota
Dwelling Number 122
Home Owned or Rented Owned
Radio Set Yes
Lives on Farm Yes
Age at First Marriage 24
Attended School No
Able to Read and Write Yes
Father’s Birthplace Luxembourg
Mother’s Birthplace Luxembourg
Able to Speak English Yes
Occupation Farmer
Industry General Farm
Class of Worker Working on own account
Employment Yes
Household Members (Name) Age Relationship:
Mathew S Clemens Age 56, Head, Married 24 years, born Minnesota, father born Luxemburg, mother born Luxemburg, farmer on general farm
Barbara Clemens Age 56, Wife, Married 24 years, born Germany, father born Germany, mother born Germany, immigrated 1881
Agnes C Clemens Age 20, Daughter, born Minnesota, father born Minnesota, mother born Germany
Anna F Clemens Age 19, Daughter, born Minnesota, father born Minnesota, mother born Germany
Laurence M Clemens Age 17, Son, born Minnesota, father born Minnesota, mother born Germany, farm laborer on general farm
Joseph W Clemens Age 15, Son, born Minnesota, father born Minnesota, mother born Germany

Tales told: My paternal grandparents, Mathew & Barbara (Nigon) Clemens, were tall, sturdy, farming stock. Grandma had a reputation as a relentless taskmaster and she was always thinking of something for her husband to do. He could never sit down. even in the middle of the winter. It would be after 7:30 at night and she’d chase him out to clean the chicken coop. She then chased the boys out to help, but the boys would hide behind the cows where it was warm and read western comics. You didn’t dare waste a minute until you went to bed. But Grandpa was easygoing and got along with everybody, including Grandma. Neither ever raised their voices.

The family did not go without, but they had little money for anything past the basic necessities. They rented out part of their land for pasture, sold the male calves for veal, and sold eggs in town. They sold milk to the creamery, delivering it every other day in 10-gallon milk cans kept cooled in cisterns of cold water. They raised pigs (there were five brood sows with 25 to 30 piglets), turkeys, chickens, and two roosters. The eggs were kept in incubators for three weeks until they hatched. It was the kids’ job to turn them every morning. With two hundred chickens laying a hundred eggs a day, and eggs getting sixty cents a dozen, the eggs alone paid for the grocery bills for flour, salt, sugar, coffee, and tea, the only outside provisions they bought. They had Sunday summer and birthday chicken dinners. Grandpa, catching six to ten squawking chickens, grabbed them by their red legs and carried them all in one hand upside down out to the tree stump, wildly flapping, feathers flying. Then with his free hand, he held dinner one at a time across the stump so the boys could behead each with the ax, then the chickens all ran around with their heads cut off.

The soil was rich and the family grew wheat, barley, hay, flax, oats, and corn. The crops were rotated and at times sections of land were used for cattle, sheep, and horse pastures before the dairy farm was developed. There were a couple of acres of garden flourishing with sweet corn and cabbages, beets and broccoli, asparagus and onions, parsley and peas, rutabagas, radishes, and rhubarb. There was an acre of potatoes. The family lived off the garden and Grandma’s old-fashioned German fare: meat and potatoes, meat and potatoes, meat and potatoes. She was a good cook. My grandfather made wine cider from the apple orchard, plum trees, and grape vines. There was one crabapple tree that had enough apples for Grandma to make one pie a year. The cow yard was below the orchard, the pigpen was south of cow yard, and the row of mulberry trees were south of the pigpen. The fifty acres south of the mulberries were used for pasture and fields. Portions of the property were left as natural woods.

Nov 8, 1937: Death of Barbara (Nigon) Clemens (age 64), 1st of 13 children of Nicholas Nigon & Barbara Leinen and the wife of Mathew Sylvester Clemens, in Pepin Township, Wabasha Co., Minnesota; of a stroke

Tales Told: In November of 1937, at the age of 64, Ma (Barbara (Nigon) Clemens) died. She was visiting her daughter in Wabasha, had a stroke in the middle of the night, and died within two hours. Ten years later, in March of 1947, at 73, about the age when most farmers wore out, Pa (Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens) died. He had suffered for some time and died after having surgery in the Colonial Hospital for lip and throat cancer; he smoked cigars and pipes his whole life.
Told to Catherine (Clemens) Sevenau by her uncle, Joseph William “Joe” Clemens (11th of 11 living children of Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens & Barbara Nigon)

Nov 8, 1937: Rochester Post-Bulletin, Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota (pg 5):

Nov 1937: Burial of Barbara (Nigon) Clemens, at Calvary Cemetery in Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota; CC 30 13

1937: Minnesota Cemetery Transcription Index:
Township Cascade
County Olmsted
Name Barbara Clemens
Birth Date 1873
Death Date 1937
Cemetery Calvary Rochester
Comments SP. MATHEW (spouse Mathew)
Section CC 30 13

abt 1937: Clemens sisters: Agnes Catherine (Clemens) Hauser, Elizabeth Barbara Clemens, Anna Frances (Clemens) Walsh, Mary Ann (Clemens) Wallerich, Sister Ann Clemens, Amelia Rose “Mele” (Clemens) Conway

Mar 30, 1947: Death of Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens (age 73), 7th of 7 living children of Mathias/Mathew Clemens & Anna Mary Reiland and husband of Barbara Nigon, at the Colonial Hospital in downtown Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota; bronchopneumonia, throat cancer, during surgery

Mar 30, 1947: Minnesota Death Index:
Name Matthew Clemens (Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens)
Record Type Death
Death Date 30 Mar 1947
Death Place Olmsted, Minnesota
Death Registration Date 1947
Certificate Number 010841
Record Number 1033200

Mar 30, 1947: Minnesota Death Certificate:

1947: Mathew Clemens Probate (cover page):

Mar 31, 1947: Post-Bulletin, Rochester Olmsted Co., Minnesota (pg 6):

Apr 2, 1947: Burial of Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens at Calvary Cemetery in Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota; Section CC 30 14

Mathew Sylvester Clemens Prayer card:

1947: Minnesota Cemetery Transcription Index:
Township Cascade
County Olmsted
Name Mathew Clemens
Birth Date 1874
Death Date 1947
Cemetery Calvary Rochester
Comments SP. BARBARA (spouse Barbara)
Section CC 30 14

Tales Told: As Mathew left no will, his estate wasn’t settled easily or harmoniously. Quite a fight ensued as to what was going to happen to the farm. Hands were raised against one another, along with screaming, hollering, and cussing one another out. Elizabeth slapped Amelia, or was it Amelia who slapped Elizabeth? Elizabeth was involved in taking care of her father’s finances and the sisters were in great disagreement; it didn’t matter that it was Sunday. Bill Hauser spoke up as he and his father-in-law were good friends. Shaking his head, he said Pa and Ma would not want to witness this. When he announced that he and Agnes didn’t want anything, things settled down. Carl, who’d come from California for the funeral, suggested to his brothers and sisters that Bill and Agnes get an acre of land for taking care of their parents, for which they were forever grateful. When the disbursement issues were worked out, the farm took on a different landscape. Joe, along with Amelia and Pat Conway, purchased a portion of the land, Elizabeth owned an acre, Agnes and Bill Hauser had their gifted acre, the golf club purchased four, and Mr. Vincent Lilly purchased five acres and all the buildings. The kids received equal proceeds from the sale. ~ Told to Catherine (Clemens) Sevenau by her uncle, Joseph William “Joe” Clemens (11th of 11 living children of Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens & Barbara Nigon)

However, apparently unknown at the time, Mathew S. Clemens did in fact have a will, dated June 26, 1945, filed April 10, 1947:
Mathew left all of his personal property to his daughter, Agnes (Clemens) Hauser, bequeathed to the Catholic Church in Rochester $200 for masses for the repose of their souls of both him and his wife, Barbara (Nigon) Clemens, who died in 1937, and the balance of his estate to be handled as prescribed by law. He named Margaret Mary Nigon, his wife’s younger sister (a bookkeeper by profession), as Executrix of his estate.

Apr 10, 1947: Last Will and Testament of Mathew S. Clemens (3 pages):

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2025: Researched and compiled by siblings Catherine (Clemens) Sevenau and Gordon Clemens, the grandchildren of Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens & Barbara Nigon and the children of Carl John Clemens & Noreen Ellen Chatfield.
Thank you to our uncle Joseph William “Joe” Clemens, our father’s brother, for imparting to me the tales told.

Catherine (Clemens) Sevenau and Gordon Clemens

Direct line of Catherine and Gordon:
Peter Clemens & Maria Mary Reding (gg-grandparents)
Nicholas/Nikolas Nigon & Barbara Leinen (gg-grandparents)
Mathias “Mathew” Clemens & Anna Mary Reiland (great-grandparents)
Mathew Sylvester “Matt” Clemens & Barbara Nigon (grandparents)
Carl John Clemens & Noreen Ellen Chatfield (parents)

Note: The cemetery headstone photos from Find A Grave contained herein are the property of those who photographed them.