ORIGIN OF THE LEDERER NAME
(as written by CHARLES GOTTLIEB LEDERER)
About the year 1400, there lived in the Province of Wortemberg, Germany a man who worked in leather, corresponding to the modern shoemaker or harness maker.
He was a journeyman worker and became as well know in the vicinity of what is now known as the Village of GERADSTETTEN. Thus, as he went from home to home in search of employment, people would say, "There goes the leatherer, as we today might speak of one who works in the Mason trade as a plasterer. As he repeated his trips, it became more common for people to speak of him as The Leatherer, than to recall his name. Soon they began to refer to him as Carl the Leatherer. (Repetition is a well recognized principle of teaching, as by hearing anything over and over, it becomes firmly fixed in our minds).
So with Carl, who because he so often heard himself thus addressed, began signing his name as Carl Leatherer. The name was pronounced --- Letterer and was so often misspelled that during the next generation, it had become contracted to LEDERER --- and there you are....
Footnote by Velma Lederer:
Take this as you will. I found it in a journal of Grandfather’s and thought others might not know about it. I thought it interesting, so am passing it on to others, whom I hope will enjoy it, too.
(No clue of his original name was given) I wondered if German pronunciation might have changed sound of letters, also ("T"s to "D"s).
Today, 1992, not all LEDERERS pronounce their name the same, as do many other people. The double "er" sorta gets lost in the shuffle. Oh, well, as Grandfather said, "It became LEDERER, and there you are....". Happiness to Lederers, whatever you call yourself. You’re great....
Hope to see you in 1995. God Bless.
Love - Velma (Mrs Archie Lederer)