Research suggests that almost everyone with the surname Rafert is descended from two brothers who emigrated from Germany to Indianapolis in the 1840s and 50s. They were the sons of Heinrich Friedrich Wilhelm Röver & Anna Sophie Eleanore Mönkhoff.
Heinrich Röver (1800-1891) arrived with his wife and children in 1843
Wilhelm Röver (1797-1886) arrived with his wife and children in 1852.
Both settled in Indianapolis, Indiana.