Spemann Family Collection
Two other German families - Spemann and Warns - enter the Gebauer circle
From 1933 the bloodlines of two other German families , Spemann and Warns , mingle with the Gebauers . Adolf Spemann ( in photo left ), hailed from Karlsruhe and was born in 1878 . He appears to have arrived in Samoa in the early 1900 ’ s . Mr Spemann married Lucy Warns ( pronounced ‘ Vance ’ in German ), also pictured , who was from Aleipata , on the east coast of Upolu .
Lucy Warns Spemann was born in Aleipata ( shown below ) in 1888 , the daughter of Julius Warns , from Eppendorf , near Hamburg , and Lucy Barry ( or Bell-Schwenke ). Julius was one of the early German pioneers in Samoa and is mentioned by Harry Moors , in his book , “ Some Recollections of Early Samoa ,” as one of the exclusive club of pre-1880 settlers . The Warns family reportedly raised seven children in Aleipata , including three boys . Despite this fair representation of males the Warns name faded out in Samoa in the 20th century through predominantly female offspring and emigration . The family ’ s copra plantation was at Satitoa , and and is still partly in the ownership of Warns descendants . It stands directly behind the Catholic Church on the coast . The only connection with Apia in those days was by boat or track . This photo shows a large Aleipata copra plantation taken in the colonial period .
| To Walk Under Palm Trees - The Germans in Samoa : Snapshots from Albums | Tony Brunt
Hufnagel-Betham Family Collection , photographer Kurt Hufnagel-Betham
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