They always said it playfully, like it was the best inside joke.

My Dad (1933-2007) and his brother Donn (1926-2014) used to sometimes refer to their pops as “Heinie-Frantz.” I recall an occasion or two they said it directly to him. I don’t think he minded. Maybe his own parents used the pet name.

I was reminded of this nickname recently as my grandfather Carl’s 123rd birthday came and went on the late October 2024 calendar.

Heinie-Frantz almost didn’t have a birthday. Or at least not one he could prove back in 1946 when he needed to.

As we documented elsewhere on this site, Carl Henry Frank Hanneman wrote to the Wood County (Wis.) register of deeds on Feb. 22, 1946, asking for a copy of his Oct. 28, 1901 birth certificate.

Register of Deeds Henry Ebbe wrote back to say there was no birth certificate on file. He returned Grandpa’s 50 cents.

There was a record for a Ruben Hanneman born a week earlier. To the same parents, Chas. and Rosine Hannemann. Well, there’s your problem. A week off with the wrong name.

Heinie-Frantz went on a mad scramble to find evidence of his birth. He found an indirect record in the Moravian Church of Wisconsin Rapids. The 1910 U.S. Census incorrectly listed his name as “Harold.”

Wood County Health Officer Frank Pomainville finally fixed the record in 1960, crossing out the errors in red ink and writing in the correct information.

I’m so glad Mr. Pomainville corrected this small but important piece of history.

So Happy Birthday in Heaven, Heinie-Frantz.

We sure miss you here.

©2024 The Hanneman Archive

Cover images: Inset photos show Carl “Heinie-Frantz” Hanneman after a fishing outing in the late 1950s, Carl as a toddler in the early 1900s, and on a fishing expedition with son David in 1942.