Hans Reimer Claussen was a native of Schleswig-Holstein, Germany, where he was born February 23, 1804.  There he was raised on a farm until he had reached the age of sixteen years, when he entered the college at Meldorf.  In 1824 he matriculated in the university of Kiel.  In 1829 he passed his examination as a law student and in 1830 was admitted to the bar.  He practiced his profession in the neighborhood of his birthplace until 1834, when he located at Kiel.  In 1851 he was exiled by the king of Denmark who then ruled over Schleswig-Holstein, which is now an integral part of the German empire.  From 1840 until 1851 he was a member of the Holstein legislature and in 1848-49 was a member of the German parliament which convened in May, 1848, at Frankfort-on-the-Main, and framed the constitution for the united Germany.  The reason of his exile was on account of his participation in the struggle of Schleswig-Holstein for independence from the Danish king.  He came to the United States in 1851 and located in Davenport in the fall of that year.  He then began the study of the English language and at the same time read law and was admitted to the bar two years later.  For a short interval he was in the milling business, in which he lost all that he possesed..  His law business soon began to increase and then he took his son Ernst into his office as a partner.  He served his county in the state senate four years, was a member of the judiciary, university, orphans' home and constitutional amendment committees of that body, and took an active part int he revision of the code in 1873. Debbie Clough G-erischer G-erischer Family Web Site http://gerischer.rootsweb.com/ Assistant CC, Iowa Gen Web, Scott County http://www.celticcousins.net/scott/ List Manager for: IASCOTT-L * G-erischer-L * D-encker-L Fitzpatirck-L * V-lerebome-L * Huntington-L * Otis-L * Algar-L EIGS-L * Pickens-L * McNab-L * Patris-L - Rankin-L