Serious illnesses, many premature deaths and hardship in times of war in no way slowed down the further development of the family business. August Hofmann’s son married Frieda Emmert from Veitsrodt in 1928. As Rudolf, August’s father, lost the fingers on one hand in an accident at work in 1912 and his mother Lydia died after a serious illness in 1932, August had to carry out extremely heavy labour from an early age. Great tenacity and diligence were also required of his wife Frieda. She never overcame the death of her 10-year-old daughter Herta during her lifetime.
Despite all the setbacks, August and Frieda, like their ancestors, continued to expand the house: A grocer’s shop was built in the main house to replace the former cowshed, a stable and barn were added and more guest rooms were built. August was drafted into the Volkssturm in the last days of the war. Until 1948, when August returned from captivity as a prisoner of war, Frieda had to cope with a time of great hardship alone with her children and various billeting arrangements.
In 1956, the bakery moved with Rudi to the house of his parents-in-law. In 1958, the mill was closed.
Extract from the guest book (summer 1951):
“… The Hofmanns are travelling to the mill. There are mountains, deckchairs, lots of forest and delicious cheesecake and everything else they’re looking for. So we roared through hill and dale from place to place in our Ford and arrived in Schwollen at midnight. Who would have thought that we would find such a friendly welcome at this late hour. First we had to eat, then a room was assigned to us. We sank into a deep sleep, and then life began here. We roamed through the beautiful forests, villages, meadows, fields and often stopped for a bite to eat in beautiful Idar Oberstein. Almost every day began with a swim in the Schwollebach stream, where the water was quite cool to compensate, but not by much. … And then to do the work of eating all the food that Mrs Hofmann served us without a break in her beautiful home. … And why is it so beautiful here? It’s the Hofmanns, we’ll see. First of all, Hofmann Sr. is here, very lively, even if he is a grandfather, his old age’s wisdom, dignity and love lend balance to the business. His son owns the farm and mill. All his strength belongs to his work. He is always full of the greatest kindness. His main pleasure is the tractor. … Now comes Mrs Hofmann: her art immediately wins Guste’s favour, because what she creates in the kitchen is truly more than fabulous. She is always loving and peaceful and tireless in her work and what she creates and what she does is done with a cheerful mind and good. … So we were able to enjoy not only the marvellous nature of the Hochwald with all our hearts and minds, but also people such as you can only rarely find here and there. So we think back with joy to all the beauty, all the happiness, all the joyful hours that we found in Hofmann’s house. And if the good Hofmanns want us to, then we will return to Schwollen to spend our next holiday surrounded by so much friendliness. And to all our friends we should say: ‘On sunny and rainy days, the most beautiful place in the world is Schwollen, Birkenfeld district!’
