I recently received a box of papers belonging to the Rauch & the Reinhard families who originated in Bavaria and settled in Buffalo, Scott Co., Iowa, in 1871 and 1855, respectively. In the box, was a letter written 30 March 1885 from "Mühlau near Innsbruck, Tyrol."

It was written by a young lady named Mathilda to her brother, Adam. In it, she mentions Ludwig, Kätherla and Rosa. (Perhaps siblings of Mathilda?) She also mentions "Brother Johann" who has a position of pastor.

She states she can be written to at:
Anna Herb
at the house of the honorable Mr. Evers
Mühlau near Innsbruck
Tyrol

I have no idea what the surname of Adam, Mathilda & Johann is. The honorable Mr. Evers is also a mystery to me. I am quite stuck & have no idea where to find information on the persons mentioned in this letter. Any suggestions from my fellow researchers would be most appreciated.

I will gladly scan & post the letter if anyone is interested.

Lynnea Dickinson

Mühlau is a district of Innsbruck now:
http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/M%C3%BChlau_%28Innsbruck%29
http://maps.google.at/maps?hl=de&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.r...

can it be that there is a connection to Rauch-mill, which still exists in Mühlau.
as you have stated also the name Rauch? only a guess.
http://www.rauchmehl.at/
the Rauch have their orgin in Kauner-valley:
In 1809 the Tyrolean tried to expel the Bavarian and French occupation of the country. Franz Rauch from Kaunerberg, the father of the founder, was among the crowd Tyrolean farmers in Pontlatz undertook a daring raid on the enemy troops passing through. He was killed in action, leaving a large family. The oldest son, Anton, left the Tiroler Oberland, to look for work.

After much wandering, he found employment at the mill Kindl in Mühlau at Innsbruck. The owner of the company had no successor and sold the young miller operation against annuity. The mill on the creek near the church has been called since it was established in 1831 "Rauch(smoke) mill". Under the new owner of the operation grew and prospered. The water power of the mill-wheel set of the power line.

The founder's son, Leopold Rauch was delighted by the modern technology. At the World Exhibition in London, he saw that it is possible to transmit electrical power over long distances with a power cable. In 1888 he was several hundred meters away from the mill to build a power plant that supplied the operating power. So the first electric power transmission originated in Tyrol. The power station is still in operation today.
http://www.rauchmehl.at/index.php?group=unsere-Muehle&pa...
http://maps.google.at/maps?hl=de&cp=4&gs_id=1z&x...

Thank you so much for your reply and information regarding the Rauch-mill. Katharina "Katie" Herberth, whose mother was a Rauch, traveled from the US to visit relatives in Germany, Bavaria and Austria in 1923. Katie was born in Wiesenfeld, Karlstadt, Bavaria in 1873. Her parents, John and Katharina (Rauch) Herberth, married in Wiesenfeld in 1849. This is the earliest date with a corresponding location that I can find on the family. Again, thank you so much. Every clue helps, as I've been researching this family since 1973.

some history more for the Rauch-family of Rauch-mill.
the mill was once on another place on Mühl-creek like now. nearly after WW1 a new mill was build on valley-ground in Mühlau directly at railway and river Inn. from time WW1 to WW2 the first factory became almost a ruin. the firm Rauch, through which the U.S. occupation after World War II supplied the population with wheat, also received corn. The family began to press at first on a small scale maize germ oil > factory was named Olea. it looks like meanwhile now demolished for new housing, how stated in this articel in 2010.their Kronen-Öl/ crown-oil was very wellknown. i remember when was a child also this oil and it still exists. but now is outsourced to Wels in Upper-Austria to a bigger location.
http://www.kronenoel.at/html/index.aspx?page_url=allgemein&a...
http://www.echoonline.at/index.php?option=com_content&vi...
Anton Rauch > Georg and Leopold Rauch > 3 sons (firstnames?)
http://www.rauchmehl.at/pdf/artikel1.pdf

as you don´t know if a connection from your Rauch to the Mühlauer Rauch-mill and you have no idea who the persons at letter are, maybe ask at parish-church Mühlau if there was a pastor with english lastname that time. think this can be a possibility. no idea if they take time for such things, but make attempt.
http://www.pfarre-muehlau.com/pfarre_infos.php
http://www.pfarre-muehlau.com/

more a chapel - Mariahilf am Grabenstein, belonging to castle Mühlau (Sternbach or Sterbabach). think it´s not an own parish, not far away from Mühlau-church: http://de.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Datei:Innsbruck,_K...
http://www.burgen-adi.at/ansitz_sternbach_nord/sternbach_ges...
http://maps.google.at/maps?hl=de&q=Sternbach+M%C3%BChlau...

parish-churches Innsbruck: http://www.dibk.at/index.php?id=43

some pictures of Rauchmühle to find: http://www.google.at/search?hl=de&q=Pfarre+M%C3%BChlau&a...

a very good link showing the complete history.
maybe you take a translator. fact also is that Leopold was in London at World Expo. >>>
Anton Rauch gave the mill in 1884 to his sons George and Leopold. The latter especially was fascinated of the rapid development of electricity in the second half of the 19th Century. Leopold left after he had thrilled at the World Expo in London, the uses of electricity in 1886 to install a lighting system in various areas of the Rauch-mill. Even with the establishment of the Upper Rauch plant and the first power transmission system in Tyrol Leopold Rauch was fairvof his leadership.
http://www.tecneum.eu/index.php?option=com_tecneum&task=...

Wiesenfeld, Bavaria: http://maps.google.at/maps?hl=de&q=Wiesenfeld+Bayern&...

maybe you ask at an diocesan-archive.
Bavaria has 7 Bistümer: http://www.bayern-katholisch.de/bistuemer.php
looking on map my guess would be for Würzburg: http://www.bistum-wuerzburg.de/bwo/dcms/sites/bistum/index.h...
so ask there for your ancestors from Wiesenfeld. and ask how much it will cost: http://sgv.bistum-wuerzburg.de/bwo/dcms/sites/bistum/informa...

>>> She states she can be written to at:
Anna Herb
at the house of the honorable Mr. Evers
Mühlau near Innsbruck
Tyrol <<<
maybe you also get info about her at registry-dates in Innsbruck. no idea if they have so far back and if they have for Mühlau: http://www.innsbruck.gv.at/page.cfm?vpath=verwaltung/magistr...