The following history is from a pamphlet entitled "Brief Historical Sketch of the Dieringer Family" by John Wiest and H.J. Dieringer. It traces the family back to a location in what is now the area of Baden-Württemberg in Germany. The date of this writing is uncertain. Grant Mottice's wife, Frances, was the daughter of Andrew Dieringer the great-great-grandson of Christoph Dieringer identified below.
"The name Dieringer originated from a ruler VonThuringen who lived in the town Thuringen, about thirty miles south of Rangendingen, both towns being situated in the territory ruled by this Duke. A man was sent from Thuringen to Rangendingen to collect the taxes, which were one-tenth of all the people raised, and as this tax collector later lived in Rangendingen he was called by the inhabitants the Dieringer or Thuringen man, the two being pronounced the same in German, although spelled differently.
From a copy of the church register, which was sent from Rangendingen, Germany, by George Dierenger to John Wiest of Canton, Ohio, we find the record of the Dieringer family in the sixteenth century.
Christoph Dieringer and his wife, Katharina, nee Smith, were the first names mentioned. To this union one son Xaverius, was born November 18, 1756, and he was married May 3, 1780 to Lucia Gress, who was born in the same town on October 13, 1756. To them six children were born: Leo, May 4, 1782; Hironimus, May 18,1791; Ursula, October 3, 1793; Katharina, July 11, 1795; Vaverius, August 9, 1797 and Jackobus, July 27, 1801.
The oldest son Leo, married Franziska Strobel, February 4, 1811, to which untion were born six children: Magdalina, September 9, 1811; Xaver, December 23, 1812; Katharina, July 17, 1816; Mathaus, November 21, 1819; Felizitas, May 29, 1824; and Prizila, May 6, 1827.
The daughter, Katharina, on Janyary 25, 1842, was married to Jacob Bamer (whose father's name was Andreas Bamer and mother's maiden name, Maria Dieringer) and to this union were born three children: Matimilina, May 15, 1843; Maria, November 4, 1849 and Andrias, January 5, 1861, and died two days later. Their father died November 18, 1887 and their mother November 30, 1888.
From the family of Leo Dieringer and his wife Franziska, two sons and one daughter, Xaver, Mathaus and Magdalena, immigrated to the United States in May 1847. The party was composed of Xaver Dieringer, his wife, whose name was Ursula Heck, and one child Katharina; Mathaus Dieringer, his wife whose maiden name was Katharina Stroble; and two sons Andrew and Gervatuius; Magdalina and her husband, Joseph Kern and five children. The three sisters who remained at home all married and each had several children, four of whom are still living in Rangendingen. They are Matimilina Baldauf, Anna Marie Shilling, Mrs. Smith and Mrs. Schwenk.
The immigrants left Rangendingen because of hard times, due to crop failures for several years, and traveled 150 miles by covered wagon to Amsterdam and to Antwerp, Holland by boat, then across the Atlantic by boat to New York which voyage took over 40 days. there they met with further difficulties before being able to land, as there the captain of the boat made his escape to avoid being arrested for violation of sanitary rules and for carrying passengers in excess of the ship's capacity. From New York they went up the Hudson River to Albany, and thence to Cleveland and down the Ohio Canal to Zoar.
Joseph Kern and family remained in Zoar where he worked at his trade as a cooper, and here another child was born to them. He died Spetember 16, 1849, leaving his widow with a family of six small children. Upon invitation of Joseph M. Bimeler, founder of Zoar, she became a member of that community, first on probation and afterwards joined the Zoarites and rose to the highest rank of membership, which she enjoyed until the time of her death in January 1892. For a hundred years this communist colony existed without a divorce or a crime, and although the property was divided about 25 years ago among its 222 members, yet many landmarks of interest exist there today.
The Kern children were Carolina, Ottillia, Fidele, Leo, Carl, and Joseph.
Xaver Dieringer with his family moved to Morges and to them were born nine children, Katharina, Constantine, Augustus, John, Leo, Simon, Franzika, Mary, and Magdalina. Xaver Dieringer died May 10, 1885 and his wife, Ursula, April 7, 1874.
Mathaus Dieringer and family located at Mineral City where he worked at his trade as a stone mason, and among many pieces of work left as monuments to his memory are the tunnel on the C.& P. railroad, near Mineral and the Octagon school house between Sandyville and Magnolia. Besides the two sons, Andrew and Gervatus, who accompanied them from Germany, the following children were born, John Franciska, Frank, Jacob and Theodore. Mathaus Dieringer died August 18, 1898 and his wife Katharina, March 25, 1889.
The first reunion of the Dieringer family was called in June 1904 by John Wiest of Mineral City, a nephew of Mrs. Mathaus Dieringer. The reunion was held at Zoar, and about 60 people attended. Since that time the family has met annually in June in Zoar, Canton and several years past in Waynesburg. About 300 members of the family are present annually."