Much of the information on this page was made available to us through the work of Robert Gieber of Des Moines, Iowa who, in 1973, traveled to St. Remi Parish in Schorbach, France, and painstakingly copied hundreds of church records of the Gieber and related families. He has compiled his findings into "The Gieber-Gibbar Family Register." 

JEAN NICHOLAS GIEBER was born on September 17, 1799, in Schorbach, Moselle, Loraine, France. He was the son of Maurice Gieber and Anne Barbe Wagner. Maurice Gieber, Jean Nicholas' father, was born on October 22, 1772 in Schorbach, and was baptized on October 23, 1777 in the Catholic church of St. Remi. On January 10, 1797, he married Anna Barbe Wagner (pronounced Vah-NYAY), daughter of Jean Nicolas Wagner and Anne Marie Beck.​ Maurice's occupation in Schorbach was a woodcutter. Maurice's father, Jean Nicholas Kippert's father, made his living as a wooden shoemaker and his grandfather, Nicolas Gipper, was a stone cutter.​​

The birth document above names Jean-Nicholas' parents as "Moritz Giber, age 28, a day laborer, and Barbra Wagner, age 22, housewife." Witnesses were Antoni Obringer, a farmer, and Peter Beckrich, a linen weaver.

St. Remi Parish of Schorbach, consecrated in the year 1143, is the location of many of the early records of the Gieber Family, the first entry of which occurs in 1739. The name appears in many forms, including Gypper, Gipper Guber, Guper, Kypper, Kippert, Giber, Guiber, Guibert, Gippert, Guibber and Gieber. 

Anna Marie Drouard was born on January 14, 1803, in Schorbach, France. She was the daughter of Jean Drouard and Anne Marie (nee Guillaume) Drouard.   NEED MORE RESEARCH HERE.

On November 21, 1826, Jean Nicholas married Anna Marie Drouard in the Town Hall in Schorbach, France.

Later that same year, probably in later November or early December, Jean Nicholas, his wife Anna Marie and their children, along with his brother Peter and his family, departed for America. The Giebers boarded the ship, the ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Tallahassee, originally out of New York, under the master Stephen E. Gibson, and sailed out of the Port of Le Havre, France, bound for New Orleans, Louisiana. The ​​​​Tallahassee arrived in New Orleans on January 6, 1832.

Jean Nicholas' wife, Anna Marie, was approximately four months pregnant when they made the voyage to America. Their son (and our great great grandfather), Henry R. Gibbar was born in early to mid 1832 and was baptized in Perryville on June 9, 1832, the first member of the Gibbar line to be born in their new country.

There is evidence to support the theory that Henry was possibly born in New Orleans, Louisiana, the city of the port in which they docked. Having arrived in the New World in the dead of winter and with a pregnant wife, the Gieber family may have decided to wait until warmer weather to embark up the Mississippi River to their final destination of Perry County, Missouri.​

On September 18, 1835, Jean Nicholas Gieber remarried to Mary Mattingly, daughter of Bartin (Bartholomew) Mattingly and Elizabeth Cambron. Mary was born in Kentucky sometime in 1816.  

In 1790, Congress passed laws regarding Naturalization which became a three step process: 1) a Declaration of Intent (first papers) which renounced allegiance to foreign sovereignties, 2) a Petition for Naturalization, which required a waiting period (usually 2-5 years) after which a petition was filed in a federal court requesting formal citizenship, and 3) a formal Certificate for Citizenship was issued to the petitioner.​​ 

In Perry County, Missouri on Monday, March 26, 1838, six years after they arrived in the United States of America, Jean Nicholas and Peter Gieber submitted their ​​​Intention of Naturalization. The document was signed by Clerk of the Circuit Court, Gerald L. Popp. 

On April 19, 1834, Peter Gieber remarried in Perry County to Theresa Doll. On February 3, 1849, Peter Gieber sold his property and, with adult children in tow, moved his family to Knox County near Edina, Missouri and eventually settled in Strawberry, Kansas, where he became the postmaster in 1868.

According to the 1840 U.S. Federal Census, the Gibbar family  lived in Perry County, Missouri. The census enumerator spelled the surname Kabar. Whether that was the spelling he was given or he chose to spell it phonetically is unknown. The 1840 census didn't specify which township was enumerated. It listed the head of the household by name and other household members as tallies within specific age groups, the ages correctly correspond to the following individuals:

Jean Nicolas Gieber, age 41, Mary Ann (Mattingly) Gieber, age 22, Peter, (9), Henry (8) and Sophia (6), who were children with his first wife, Anna Marie Drouard, and Joseph (2) and Elizabeth Ellen (less than 1 year) who were children with his current wife, Mary Ann Mattingly. Jean Nicolas' daughter, Elisabeth (with Anna Marie Drouard), was not represented in the census reports and there was no other information in Perry County to indicate what became of her. This would suggest that she had most likely died between 1832 and 1840.

The spelling of the family name took on another transformation in the Federal Census of 1850. At that time, the census enumerator spelled the name Giebear. Whether this was how the family chose to spell their name was unknown, but perhaps it is an insight into the preferred pronunciation. This was the last census upon which Jean Nicholas was listed as head of the family. The census reported that he was 51 years of age. His occupation was listed as farmer and his birthplace was listed as France. His wife, Mary, was recorded as 30 years old and as having been born in Kentucky.

The last known record of Jean (John) Nicholas Gieber was from 1851, when he and his wife traveled to Knox County, Missouri, to serve as godparents for their nephew, James Gieber, in May of that year. 

There was a listing for him in the St. Mary's of the Barrens Cemetery, the oldest Catholic cemetery in Perry County, indicating the year of his death as 1851.

Although our 3X Great Grandfather, Jean Nicholas Gieber, never served in the military, four of his sons served in the Civil War. John Nicholas, Henry, John Henry and Jacob. The remaining son, Joseph Benedict, was too young to serve. All four sons survived the war. 

Nicholas Gibbar served as a Private in Company C, (Simpson's 6 Month Militia) 8th Regiment of the Missouri Militia with his brother, Henry. He also served in Company 4 of the Missouri Militia under Captain Brewer.

Henry, (our 2X Great Grandfather) served as member of "Simpson's 6 Month Militia, Company C under Captain Nations as well as in the 64th Regiment of the Enrolled Missouri Militia, Company B under Captain William H. Bennett.

John Henry served as a Private in Company L, 5th Regiment of the Missouri State Militia Cavalry. He also served in Company E of the 12th Missouri State Militia Cavalry. John was described on his enlistment papers as being 5' 10" with light hair and gray eyes. He is buried in the Texas Bend Cemetery near Charleston, Missouri.

Jxacob Gibbar served in the 47th Infantry AG. He enlisted at 18 years of age. 

The 1880 Federal Census indicated that Mary Ann Mattingly Gieber was living in the home of her son, Nicholas Gibbar and his wife, Sarah Ann Miles and their children in the Central Township, Perry County, Missouri. Nicholas' occupation was listed as farmer and Sarah was listed as "keeping house." However, under "occupation" for Mary Ann (now 64 years of age) it said "her house," implying perhaps that her son and his family were living with her in her own home.

There iwass also a "Mary Gibbear" listed as living with Joseph Benedict Gibbear in 1880 that was listed as "mother." It is unlikely that this was Mary Ann Gieber and that the person transcribing the written census was inaccurate. There iwass no last name included on the written census for Mary, she iwass the wrong age for Mary Ann, widow of Jean Nicholas Gieber, and she was from Indiana, whereas Mary Ann Mattingly Gieber was from Kentucky. In addition, Mary Ann Gibbar (of the correct age and birth location) was found living with her son, Nicolas Gibbar, and his wife, Sarah Ann Miles, in the same census year. A more likely explanation is that the Mary was the mother of Joseph Benedict's wife.​ 

Mary Ann Mattingly Gieber died on September 22, 1895. She is buried in St. Mary's of the Barrens Cemetery, the same cemetery in which her husband, Jean Nicolas Gieber, is buried.