Familie Scheuber

The Scheuber family of Nidwalden

The Scheuber roots lie on the mountain farm Wilershöchi above Wolfenschiessen in central Switzerland. Old records spell the name Schöiber or Schöüber, and in the Nidwalden dialect the family is still called «Scheiber» today.

Brochure of the Hotel Pension Schweizerhof in Nervi: a yellow house with a tower among palm trees, the Kursaal building by the sea in front
Brochure of the Hotel Pension Schweizerhof in Nervi, marked «Dir. P. Scheuber». From the digitised Scheuber photo album.

Key years

Years marked in blue have a longer story below.

  1. 1481

    A grandson of Brother Klaus

    Konrad Scheuber is born in Wolfenschiessen, son of Dorothea von Flüe.

    Read the story

  2. 1593

    From the Altzellerberg to the valley

    Citizenship of Büren nid dem Bach, and of Buochs from 1660.

  3. 1798

    The raid

    Josef Scheuber, a grain lord, dies and the house in Ennetmoos burns down.

  4. 1823

    The gypsum mill in the Betti

    Anton Mariä Scheuber buys the mill and goes bankrupt in 1828.

    Read the story

  5. 1856

    The foremother

    Josef Mariä Scheuber marries Franziska Barmettler of Buochs.

    Read the story

  6. 1878

    Paulina runs away

    At fourteen she secretly travels from Büren to Nervi.

    Read the story

  7. 1885

    To Argentina

    Josef Scheuber emigrates; a large family grows up around Buenos Aires.

    Read the story

  8. 1903

    The Gips-Union

    The Scheuber brothers contribute the Löchlimühle in return for shares.

    Read the story

  9. 1918

    Councillor against his will

    Jakob Scheuber is elected at the Landsgemeinde, the open-air cantonal assembly.

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  10. 1934

    The fight for Bannalp

    The Landsgemeinde decides on a power plant of Nidwalden’s own.

    Read the story

  11. 1997

    The Book of the Scheuber

    Peter Steiner and Anna Scheuber-Röthlin publish the descendants of the gypsum miller.

    Read the story

Stories from the family

1823 to 1903, Ennetmoos

The gypsum millers in the Rotz gorge

In 1823 Anton Mariä Scheuber bought the gypsum mill in the Betti and overreached himself. After the bankruptcy he had to stand on three council days at the fish scales on Stans village square, wearing the green bankrupt’s cap, with his debt on a note around his neck.

His son Josef Mariä expanded the neighbouring Löchlimühle into a factory whose gypsum won a diploma at the Zurich exhibition in 1883. In 1903 his sons contributed it to the newly founded Gips-Union.

Source: Peter Steiner, «Notes on the family history», in the Book of the Scheuber.

Paulina Scheuber in old age
Photo: Emil Christen picture archive

1864 to 1953, Büren, Nervi, Buenos Aires

Paulina, who ran away at fourteen

Without telling her parents, Paulina boarded the stagecoach to Lucerne in 1878 and travelled on to Nervi on the Riviera. She went to Buenos Aires as a nanny, where she happened to find her long-lost brother Josef.

Back in Italy she worked her way up from the hotel kitchen to owner of the Hotel Schweizerhof in Nervi, lost it in the First World War and won it back afterwards.

Source: Peter Steiner’s notes on the 3rd edition of the Book of the Scheuber.

1918, Landsgemeinde

«One man, one word!»

Jakob Scheuber was elected to the cantonal government against his will and at first refused to take his seat on the government bench.

1934, Bannalp

A power plant of Nidwalden’s own

Christian Scheuber fought on the initiative committee for the reservoir on Bannalp and designed the needle weir himself.

from 1885, Argentina and California

Emigrated

Josef Scheuber moved to Argentina, where a large clan grew up around Buenos Aires. In California, Adolf called himself «Bill» so as not to be mistaken for the poacher of the same name.

Related to Brother Klaus, through the foremother

Konrad Scheuber, Landammann and hermit, was a grandson of Niklaus von Flüe. But he had only daughters, so there is no direct line through the name Scheuber.

The link runs through Franziska Barmettler, who married the gypsum miller Josef Mariä Scheuber in 1856. Her ancestors lead through the Christen family back to Konrad’s daughter Christine.

After Peter Steiner, «Notes on the family history», in the Book of the Scheuber

  1. Niklaus von Flüe 1417–1487

    Brother Klaus, hermit in the Ranft

  2. Dorothea von Flüe and Hensli Scheuber

  3. Konrad Scheuber 1481–1559

    Landammann, later a hermit, father of two daughters

  4. Christine Scheuber and Melchior Christen

    continuing through several generations of Christen

  5. Stanislaus Anton Christen

    Landammann in Wolfenschiessen

  6. Anna Katharina Christen and Kaspar Barmettler

    married 1787, he later a bailiff

  7. Kaspar Barmettler and Josepha Achermann

    customs officer and councillor in Buochs

  8. Franziska Barmettler and Josef Mariä Scheuber

    married 1856, founding parents of all descendants in the book

The Book of the Scheuber

Peter Steiner and Anna Scheuber-Röthlin collected the descendants of the gypsum miller Josef Mariä Scheuber, first in 1997 in Stans and most recently in the 5th edition of 2002, covering seven generations.

Every person in it has a number. Each digit stands for a generation and tells which child that person was.