Francis was born as Franz in Weslarn, in the German state of Westfalia. In 1844, Franz traveled to Bremerhaven and boarded the three-mast sailing ship named Albert. The double deck ship was 110 feet long by 27 feet wide and held 200 passengers. On July 15, the Albert sailed into the North Sea to begin a five week trip to Baltimore, Maryland. On August 19, 1844, the ship Albert docked in Baltimore and following inspection by health officials, Franz boarded a narrow gauge train to York, Pennsylvania, then to Wrightsville, where he boarded a canal boat. He traveled 40 miles up the Susquehanna River to Duncannon then began a 130 mile journey by boat up the Junita River and through canal locks to Hollidaysburg. The canal boats were then loaded on railroad flatbed cars and hauled 36 miles over the Allegheny Mountains. At Johnstown, the canal boats were put into the Conemaugh River and floated 100 miles to the Allegheny River. The passengers then boarded a river boat to Pittsburg. From there, Franz traveled the Ohio River to the Mississippi then to Saint Louis, Missouri. He settled in Adams County, Illinois, changed his name to Francis, and on February 26, 1846, married Rebecca Heidenreich. They lived thirteen miles east of Quincy, in Columbus, where they had:
1) Louis in Jul 1848
2) John #1 in Jul 1850 (died in Oct 1850)

They moved to Coatsburg, where was born:
3) August on Mar 3, 1851
4) Caroline Louise on May 25, 1854
5) John #2 on May 12, 1856
6) Christina on Jan 18, 1859

Frank died in a farm accident on July 27, 1859.

I've written a book on this ancestral line and a free PDF copy is available on Google at:
https://drive.google.com/open?id=0Bx6tqsQIFQYxUnBEVGdaUmt2UXM&resourcekey=0-jbliFYdMf6erKSyZmQuVSA