Mary Josephine STROBEL was born 20 Oct 1864 near New Albany, . She was not yet three years old when her mother, Geneviva Zipf Strobel, died in 1867, from complications of childbirth. In 1880, at the age of sixteen, Mary moved to Arkansas with her father, step-mother, and at least seven brothers and sisters. The Strobels settled in the Subiaco area in the early days of the .

Mary Josephine’s brother Joseph Strobel became the first American-born brother of the new at Subiaco, Arkansas. He was "a welcome addition. Not only was he a breakthrough in local vocations, but he was the first man, and for a long time the only one, who had practical experience in American farming. Brother Maurus, despite his stately and elegant appearance, was quite capable of doing anything from making ax-handles from a tree limb to running the sawmill." (from A Place Called Subiaco by Hugh Assenmacher OSB)

Mary Strobel married Theodore Burgert in 1884 and subsequently had two sons, Joe and Leopold. Joe Burgert would eventually become a Catholic priest and of (Abbot Edward). Leopold Burgert lived in the Altus area for a time. In January 1887, Mary's husband, Theodore, died of pneumonia. Later that year she was married to Joseph Duerr. Joseph and Mary Duerr lived in Morrison Bluff for the first ten years, and their five children were born during this time.

In 1898, they moved their family to Altus, Arkansas, where Joseph was the school teacher at St. Mary's. In 1926, Mary's son, Joe Burgert, became Abbot Edward of Subiaco Abbey. Mary traveled to attend the ordination, but on the trip home to Altus a snowstorm hit. Mary caught pneumonia, and died a week later at her home in Altus on February 7, 1926. February 7th was a Sunday, and her husband played the organ at mass that morning. Mary died a few hours later with her husband and her son (Abbot Edward) at her side. É

Augustine J Fredrich of Little Rock, Arkansas wrote further in 2008: “The Strobel family has been closely linked to the abbey for the entire 130 years of the abbey's history in Arkansas. In addition to Brother Maurus and Abbot Edward, there have been three other at the abbey with a Strobel connection: Father Stephen Eckart (deceased) was my mother's first cousin; Father Placidus Eckart (presently retired at the abbey) was also a Strobel cousin; and, of course, Brother Adrian Strobel, who you have communicated with. is also presently a of the abbey. In addition, more than a dozen Philip Strobel grandchildren and great-grandchildren are graduates of ; three Philip Strobel children (my uncles Andrew, Bill and Eugene) were laborers on the construction of the present abbey church, and their sister (my aunt Cecilia who died last week) worked in the abbey kitchen for many years. My brother Phil and I and our cousin Tom Strobel (Uncle Eugene's son) have all served on the Board of Directors of the Subiaco Alumni Association. Finally, just last week I was elected President of the Board of Trustees of Subiaco Academy.”

He also supplied this picture of the current interior of the abbey church at Subiaco. É

Subiaco's History (from http://www.subi.org/history.htm)

Benedictine Monasticism in Switzerland (Abbey Maria-Einsiedeln)

Despite the fall of the old Roman Empire, monasticism survived and Benedictine abbeys began to flourish throughout Europe chiefly though the vision and hard work of great monk-missionaries. Switzerland was, of course, involved in this monastic expansion, and the Benedictine traditions at Subiaco Abbey in Arkansas originate from the Abbey of Maria-Einsiedeln in the Dark Forest of Switzerland.

Founded in 934, by Eberhard of Strasbourg Cathedral, a Benedictine community blossomed on the site of "meinradszelle"--the hermitage of St. Meinrad, martyr of hospitality. Einsiedeln (pronounced ein-seed-uln) means hermitage, and for over 1,060 years, the Maria-Einsiedeln monastic community has developed into one of the most beloved Benedictine abbeys and Marian shrines in the world.

For the purpose of ministering to German-speaking settlers in the United States and starting a seminary, Benedictine missionaries of Maria-Einsiedeln crossed the Atlantic in the 1850s. The first Swiss missionaries of Einsiedeln purchased a tract of land in Indiana and dedicated their new monastery to the patronage of "St. Meinrad" on March 21, 1854, the feast of St. Benedict. Though the early years at St. Meinrad were harsh and financially unstable, the monastic community there grew in numbers and gained the status of an "abbey" on September 20, 1870, under their first abbot , OSB. É

Subiaco Abbey--A foundation of Saint Meinrad and Maria-Einsiedeln

While traveling back to St. Meinrad from missionary activities in the Dakotas, Abbot Martin Marty, OSB, struck a deal with the agent of LR&FS Railroad Company and in November, 1877, was granted 640 acres for the establishment of a Benedictine monastery for men and was granted 100 acres for the foundation of a monastery for Benedictine women as well. This agreement met with the blessing of Bishop Edward Fitzgerald of Little Rock, who was in need of German speaking priests in his diocese.

On Ash Wednesday, March 6, 1878, three monks - Fr. Wolfgang Schlumpf, Br. Casper Hildesheim and Br. Hilarin Benetz - departed St. Meinrad for Arkansas in a mule-drawn wagon. The three monk-missionaries arrived in Logan County, Arkansas, on March 15, 1878. Though the land was rough and overgrown, the monks were inspired by the breathtaking view from their new home in the Ouachita Mountains.

The early years of St. Benedict's --later called Subiaco Abbey in 1891--were indeed difficult ones due to limited funds and personnel from St. Meinrad, but Fr. Wolfgang never gave up on the project or ever lost sight of his pastoral duties. In cooperation with the abbot of St. Meinrad, Fr. Wolfgang wrote to the Abbey Maria-Einsiedeln, Switzerland, for help. The only way that St. Benedict's Priory in Arkansas could survive depended on Einsiedeln taking over the project. The Abbey Maria-Einsiedeln desired that the Arkansas mission continue therefore, throughout the years Swiss monks arrived to assist Fr. Wolfgang. The success of the mission in Arkansas was assured in the fall of 1887, when Fr. Gall D'Aujourd'hui and eight novices from Einsiedeln--called the "Eight Beatitudes"--arrived on the scene. The dream was now realized with Fr. Gall's arrival; he is considered the co-founder of Subiaco Abbey.

After the successful establishment of a monastery and several German speaking Catholic Churches in the Logan County area, the monks opened a school for young men, which has evolved over the last 100 years into the present Subiaco Academy, a college-prep boarding school. The abbey also developed a strong retreat ministry with the opening of Coury House Retreat Center in April of 1963, which continues to flourish with visitors, retreatants, and wayfarers from across the nation.

Subiaco Abbey is certainly a place of varied ministries; its rich historical and spiritual traditions are a gift to Arkansas.