This is the church in Hüffenhardt where Johann Michael Volck (sometimes given as Folg) and Johann Georg Utz went to church.  After Michael Volck died, George Utz married his widow, Anna Barbara Majer.  All of these people lived on the Wagenbach farm, about two miles outside of the village.  Maria Sabina Charlotta Barbara Volck, who married John Huffman, in 1714, as his second wife, was baptized here in 1710.
(May, 2000)
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Approaching Hüffenhardt, there is a strange building, which first gives the impression that it might be a windmill that has lost its blades.  The tower, although it may look like a "communications tower", is, in reality, a "water tower".  Fulfilling its secondary purpose, on its top are mounted two base stations of a mobile communications net.  The primary function of the tower, however, is to keep the water pressure constant for the water supply system of Hüffenhardt.  A clue to its communications functions are the two yellow panel trucks in front of it.  Throughout Germany, one sees these towers, but never are two of them alike.
(May, 2000)
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Outside the village, within walking distance, is the Wagenbach Farm.  It is a named location on detailed maps, and was a large estate farm employing many people.  This is where Michael Volck and George Utz worked.
(May, 2000)
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Many families still live and work on the Wagenbach farm today.  Most of the housing is new, but two buildings look as they may have been on the place in 1717, and, therefore, could have been the residence of Michael Volck or George Utz.  This is one of the buildings, which is constructed on the Germanic principle of combining house and barn.  The building has probably been modified much since then, and most of the barn functions have been relocated.  [Not only was it handy to have the farm animals and implements near one's house, heat from the animals helped warm the human living quarters in the winter.]
(May, 2000)
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Today, the most numerous residents on the farm go by the surname of SCHWEIN, which would be PIG in English.  The Wagenbach farm is into hogs (another family, with the surname of HAUSSCHWEIN) in a big way, from brood sows to market animals.  They are very friendly, but our surprise visit caught them unawares and they did not have time to take a bath.
(May, 2000)
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John Deere garden tractors are to be found around the world.  This one demonstrates the scale of operations on the Wagenbach farm.  Conditions are slightly different from when Volck and Utz were toiling there.
(May, 2000)
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