Genealogy Is An Adventure

Author: Yvonne Scholz

  • Theresia Kunze Kieslich 1814-1887

    Theresia Kunze was my husband’s paternal 3rd Great Grandmother. She was born 24 April 1814 in Peterwitz Kreis Leobschütz, Silesia, Germany nowadays called Pietrowice in Poland. Kartenmeister is a great resource of finding information about former and current names of villages. An example for Peterwitz below.

    Theresia’s parents were the farmer Joseph Kunz and his wife Magdalena Schenk. She married my husband’s 3rd Great Grandfather, Johann Kieslich, 2 September 1834. They had eight children, all born in Schönwiese, Silesia, Germany nowadays called Krasne Pole, Poland.

    • 1. The oldest, Franziska Kieslich, my husband’s 2nd Great Grandmother, born 1838 and died 1914 in Schönwiese. She was married to Franz Scholz, my husband’s 2nd Great Grandfather. They had 11 children, one of them was Adolph Scholz, my husband’s Great Grandfather who immigrated to Tennessee. A picture showing Franziska Kieslich Scholz with some of her grown children, including Adolph, circa 1911.
    • 2. Franz Kieslich born 1839, died 1909.
    • 3. Josefa Kieslich born 1841, died 1919. She was married to Johann Hanke. They had 3 children.
    • 4. Josef Kieslich born 1843, died 1918. He was married to Josepha Lichtblau. They had 3 children. Josef was also married to Karolina Kleiber and Anna Schokala.
    • 5. Johann Kieslich born 1845, died 1918. He was married to Marie Kunze. They had 4 children.
    • 6. Johanna Kieslich born 1846, died 1922. She was married to Josef Ludwig. They had 2 children.
    • 7. Robert Kieslich born 1847 in Schönwiese, died 1910 in Burlington, Vermont, United States. He was married to Josepha Hofrichter. They had 9 children.
    • 8. Anna Kieslich born 1852, died 1922. She was married to Joseph Kastner. They had 5 children.

    Theresia died 11 September 1887 in Schönwiese.

    Peterwitz (Pietrovice) to Schönwiese (Krasne Pole) is only 5.6 km or 3.4 miles.

    Sources I have used for this article:

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  • Katherine “Kate” Bleser Hoefling 1833-1920

    Katherine Bleser also know as Kate was my brother in law’s 2nd Great Grandmother. She was born in March of 1833 in Prussia. We don’t know her maiden name. The first time we met Kate was in the 1870’s federal census in Honesdale, Pennsylvania. Kate and my brother in law’s 2nd Great Grandfather, William Bleser owned a grocery store and they had four children. One child was born after 1870.

    All of their children were born in Pennsylvania, most likely in Honesdale.

    • 1. William born August 1859, died 21 March 1925 in Jersey City. He was married to Anna Egan. They had 2 children.
    • 2. Jacob born 1862, died 18 October 1876.
    • 3. Josef born September 1866, died 26 December 1933 Irvington, New Jersey. He was married to Augusta.
    • 4. Catherine E., my brother in law’s Great Grandmother, born 6 Oct 1868, died 30 March 1963 in Jersey City, New Jersey. She was married to Adam Joseph Dittmar Junior. They had 10 children. A picture taken on their 50th anniversary.
    • 5. Catherine born 1873. She was married to Bernard William Vanderminde. They had 2 children.

    Kate’s husband died 31 December 1872 in Honesdale.

    In 1873 Kate applied for a saloon license

    Source: Wayne County Herald

    Honesdale, Pennsylvania • Thu, May 8, 1873Page 3

    By August 1874 Kate was already married to her second husband, as seen in a newspaper notice about her first husband’s estate.

    In 1878 Kate’s daughter Annie Hoefling is born. In 1880 Kate, her husband Adam Hoefling and her son William got into trouble with the law. They did not have a liquor license.

    In 1893 her daughter, Catharine E. Dittmar travelled from Jersey City, New Jersey for a visit and Kate also was selling the grocery store.

    I wonder how long it would have taken her daughter to travel to Honesdale in 1893?

    In 1900, Kate, her husband Adam Hoefling, her widowed daughter, Catherine Bleser Kelleher, her daughter Annie Hoefling and her grandson Edward Kelleher lived in Jersey City, New Jersey. Kate immigrated in 1860 and her husband in 1870 from Prussia.

    In 1910 Kate and Adam lived by themselves. Kate’s immigration year is now 1856 in stead of 1860.

    In the 1915 New Jersey State Census Kate was a widow and lived together with a daughter and a grandson.

    Kate died in April 1920 according to Find A Grave.

    I still have so many questions about Kate. When was her exact birthday, where was she born in Prussia, what was her maiden name, when did she immigrate and who were her parents? I couldn’t find obituaries for her and her husbands. May be in the future I will be able to answer some of these questions.

  • Happy St. Patrick’s Day! Mary Elizabeth Collins Davis 1832-1912

    My husband has a couple of ancestors from Ireland, one of them is his paternal 3rd Great Grandmother, Mary Elizabeth Collins born 4 April 1832. I do not know her parents. In some of the censuses it stated that she was born in New York. On her death certificate it said Ireland.

    Mary Elisabeth was married to my husband’s 3rd Great Grandfather, Henry Davis. They had 4 children.

    • 1. Mary E. Davis, my husband’s 2rd Great Grandmother, born 1857 in La Salle County, Illinois, died 1920 in Colfax, Washington. She was married to my husband’s 2nd Great Grandfather, Henry Hickman. They had 7 children.
    • 2. Jewel “Julia” Davis born 1860 in Illinois, died 1936 in Palouse, Washington. She was married to Stephan A Bowers. They had 5 childrens.
    • 3. George Avery Davis born 1863 in Iroquois County, Illinois, died 1932 Colfax, Washington. He was married to Sara Florence Hickman. They had 8 children.
    • 4. Carrie Davis born 1864 in Illinois, died 1892 in Rockford, Washington. She was married to Rena Hyatt. They had 1 child.

    In 1870 the family lived in Prairie Greens, Iroquois County, Illinois. Mary and her husband can read but not write. Mary’s birth place was New York and her parents were from a foreign country.

    Washington State and Territorial Censuses, 1857-1892

    NameMary Davis
    GenderFemale
    RaceWhite
    Marital StatusMarried
    Residence Age50
    Birth Dateabt 1835
    Birth PlaceNew York
    Residence Date1885
    Residence PlaceWhitman, Washington, USA
    Line37
    NameAge
    Henry Davis55
    Mary Davis50

    In the 1900 federal census Mary was 62 years old and lived with her husband, an adopted daughter and a grandson in Turnbow, Washington. Her birth country and that of her parents was given as England, not Ireland. It also stated that she immigrated in 1880. We know that’s not true. May be the census taker heard it wrong or whoever gave the information had no clue. Census records can be very tricky, a lot of information is incorrect.

    The last census Mary appeared was the 1910 Federal Census. At that time she lived with her husband still in Turnbow, Washington. She was born in New York and her parents were from Ireland.

    Mary died 7 April 1912 at the age of 78 in Whitman County, Washington. Her death certificate says that she was born in Ireland and that’s what I am keeping in my records.

    I only found this obituary for Mary.

    Source: The Spokesman-Review

    Spokane, Washington • Tue, Apr 9, 1912Page 12

    On the page Find A Grave someone posted this from another newspaper:

    We now have an approximate immigration date for Mary and that she got married in the state of New York. I had looked for the marriage in the Illinois State Archive website without success. Their first child was born in 1857 in Illinois, so the marriage probably took place before that date.

    Simple Timeline for Mary Elisabeth Collins

    Born 1832 in Ireland and immigrated circa 1843 to New York:

    Married Henry Davis circa 1857 in New York, moved to Prairie Greens, Illinois and their children were born at that location from 1857-1864. In 1880 the family lived in Whitman County, Washington. Mary died there in 1912.

    Mary had a long, eventful life, all the way from Ireland via New York and Illinois to her final destination and resting place in Washington State. May be in the future I will be able to locate a marriage, immigration and or birth record.

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  • Godefridus Crins 1708-1743

    My paternal 5th Great Grandfather, Godefridus Crins, was baptized 22 March 1708 in Birgelen, Germany. Birgelen is a part of Wassenberg. His parents were Nicolaus Creins and Sophia Greven. The last name Crins was also spelled Creins and later became Krings in my family line. The English name for Godefridus is Godfrey.

    Godefridus had 3 siblings, Anna Maria, Arnoldus and Joannes Wernerus. I have not been able to find marriages for them. The church books are not online yet.

    Godefridus was married to my 5th Great Grandmother, Agnetis Lennards or Leonards. They had 5 children together all born and baptized in Birgelen.

    • 1. Joannes Nicolaus Crins baptized 28 June 1731
    • 2. Nicoulaus Krings, my 4th Great Grandfather, baptized 15 January 1733, died 9 August 1781 in Düsseldorf. He was married to Maria Clara Schadens. They had 1 child, my third Great Grandfather, Joannes Winandus Josepfus Krings. Nicolaus was also married to Anna Catharina Fasbender. They had 3 children together.
    • 3. Winand Krings, baptized 14 August 1735.
    • 4. Anna Sophia Crins baptized 6 September 1737
    • 5. Winand Wilhelmus Creins baptized 14 December 1739, married to Maria Meuser or Müser. They had 5 children together

    Godefridus died 18 August 1743 in Birgelen, he was only 35 years old. My 5th Great Grandmother died two years later. She was also 35. The life expectancy in Germany in the 1750’s was 38 years.

    Godefridus son and my 4th Great Grandfather, Nicolaus, left Birgelen and settled in my home town, Düsseldorf. The distance is about 63 km or 40 miles.

    I don’t have a lot of sources for this article. Most the info I received from fellow researchers.

  • Anna Margarethe Mertzenich 1671-?

    Anna Margarethe Mertzenich was my paternal 6th Great Grandmother. She was baptized 11 March 1671 in the Sankt Blasius catholic church in Düsseldorf-Hamm. Her parents were Hermann Mertzenich and Elisabeth von Collen. The baptismal entry you can find here and below.

    The baptism book was only recently made available online, for me that was very exciting to see the original entry from 1671. You can read about the church on Wikepedia.

    Anna Margarethe married my 6th Great Grandfather, Cornelius Kauertz, 12 November 1702 in the Sankt Dreifaltigkeit Catholic Church in Düsseldorf-Derendorf.

    The wedding church book also was also recently published online. An old postcard of the church is below.

    Ann Margarethe and Cornelius had the following children, all baptized in the same church as above.

    • 1. Henricus Wilhelmus Kauertz baptized 19 March 1704, godparents were Henricus Mertzenich, probably a brother of Margarethe, Wilhelmus Eickel and Elisabeth Nullmanns.
    • 2. Joannes Jacobus Kauertz, my 5th Great Grandfather, baptized 23 September 1705, married to my 5th Great Grandmother, Maria Magdalena Elsen, died 29 August 1781 in Derendorf. They had eight children together. Below is his baptism. Godparents are Joannes Wilhelmus Mertzenich, Jacobus? and Elisabetha?
    • 3. Anna Catharina Kauertz baptized 30 November 1706. The writing is hard to read.
    • 4. Elisabeth Gertrud Kauertz baptized 20 February 1708. Married to Antonius Cremer. The couple had 3 children. Her baptism is below.
    • 5. Maria Gertrudis Kauertz baptized 19 December 1709.
    • 6. Winandus Leornardus Kauertz baptized 25 October 1711, married to Anna Helen Maria Magdalena Gast. They had 4 children. He was also married to Anna Margareth Butzong. They had 1 child. Winandus died 17 May 1745. His baptism is below.
    • 7. Maria Catharina Kauertz, the last child, baptized 3 December 1713.

    I was able to find copies of all of the children’s baptisms. I do not know when Anna Margarethe died. She was born in Hamm and died probably in Derendorf. A map shows the distance between the two locations. It’s only about 6.4 km or 3.9 miles.

    Sources I used for this article:

  • Richard Hickman 1818-1884

    Richard Hickman was my husband’s paternal 3rd Great Grandfather. He was born 8 March 1818 in Kent County, Delaware and died 6 January 1884 in Colfax, Washington. His parents were Roger Hickman and Mary Jenkins. Richard had a full life. He was married four times and he had lots of children, all of whom you will meet in this blog.

    Richard married his first wife, Mary Cox, 5 September 1839 in Warren County, Indiana. They had five children together.

    • 1. Martha Ann Hickman, born 1840 in Indiana, married to John Merideth, died 1909 in Illinois. The couple had 6 children. Her second marriage was to Willam B. Ammerman. They had 7 children.
    • 2. Sylvester Hickman, born 1842 in Williamsport, Warren County, Indiana, married to Mary Millhollin and died 1919 in Watseka, Iroquois, Illinois. They had one child. Sylvester was also married to Belinda Catherine Hutchinson. They had 8 children together. He served in the 12th Illinois Infantry in the civil war. Sylvester was an author and wrote the book “Genealogy of The Hickman Family”, which I have used extensively for my genealogical research.
    • 3. John Wesley Hickman born 1844 in Indiana, died 1862 in Iroquois County Illinois. He also served in the 12th Illinois Infantry in the civil war.
    • 4. William Franklin Hickman born 1846 in Williamsport, Warren County, Indiana, was married to Martha Wilson and died 1914 in Colfax, Whitman County, Washington. The couple had 15 children.
    • 5. Mary Caroline Hickman born 1848 in Indiana, was married to William H. Biggs and died 1906 in Muncie, Delaware, Indiana. The couple had one child. She was also married to Francis Marion Justice. The couple had four children.

    Richard’s wife, Mary Cox, died 18 August 1848. He married his second wife, Sara Jane Tuttle, 2 March 1850 in Warren County, Indiana. Sara Jane died in childbirth in 1851 and so did their son Alexander Hickman. Richard then married his third wife and my husband’s 3rd Great Grandmother, Elisabeth Jane Canutt, 28 August 1851 also in Warren County, Indiana. They had nine children together.

    • 1. Joseph Henry Hickman, my husband’s 2nd Great Grandfather, born 1852 in Warren County, Indiana, married to Marry E. Davis, died1933 in Colfax, Whitman County, Washington. They had 7 children together. Henry was a very successful farmer and business man.
    • 2. Alexander Hickman born 1854 in Iroquois County, Illinois, married to Elizabeth Crawford, died 1928 in Colfax, Washington. They had 4 children together.
    • 3. Thomas Hickman born 1856 in Indiana, died 1859 in Illinois.
    • 4. Enoch B Hickman born 1858 and died 1859 in Illinois.
    • 5. Sara Florence Hickman born 1862 in Illinois, was married to George Avery Davis, died 1942 in Colfax, Washington. The couple had 8 children.
    • 6. Eliza Jane Hickmann born 1864 in Illinois, married to Ulysses Simpson Grand Story, died 1932 in Pullman, Washington. The couple had 9 children.
    • 7. Elmer Clinton Hickmann born 1867 in Illinois, married to Lovina Unzicker, died 1955 in Colfax, Washington. They had 2 children.

    Richard’s third wife, Elizabeth Jane Canutt, died shortly after their last child, Elmer Clinton was born. He then married Maria Sanders 27 August 1868 in Iroquois County, Illinois. They had 3 children together.

    • 1. Ida May Hickman born and died in 1870
    • 2. Infant Hickman born and died in 1872
    • 3. Wilbert Sanders Hickman born 1875 in Milford, Illinois, married to Nettie Ines Martin, died 1859 in Spokane, Washington. The couple had 4 children.

    Richard Hickman had a grand total of 18 children and at least 61 grandchildren.

    I only have found two detailed census records for Richard. The first one is the 1870 federal census. He lived together with his fourth wife, Maria, his youngest son Elmer and children from the previous marriage in Stockland, Iroquois County, Illinois.

    After 1870 the family moved to Whitman County, Washington where the family lived in 1880.

    Richard grew up in Delaware, lived in Warren County, Indiana, Iroquois County, Illinois and Colfax Washington. He died 6 January, 1884 and is buried in the Onecho cemetery in Whitman County, Washington. Photo taken by Arthur Allen Moore III on Find A Grave.

    A map showing the places Richard had lived. In the 19th century many families moved west as new land became available for settlement.

    Sources I used for this article

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  • Rosina Schneider Mücke 1842-1916

    Rosina was my husband’s paternal 2nd Great Grandmother. She was born in Zauchtel, Bohemia, Austria nowadays called Suchdol nad Lužnicí in the Czech Republic. Her parents were Georg Schneider and Anna Schindler. Below is an old image of Zauchtel from the 1920’s.

    Rosina married my husband’s 2nd Grandfather, Johann Ernst Mücke, 24 April 1863 in the same town. The couple moved to Hof nowadays called Dvorce u Bruntálu also in the Czech Republic.

    A map which shows the distance from Zauchtel to Hof. It’s about 47.4 km or 29.2 miles. Many years later the family would move to Tennessee.

    Rosina and Johann had 10 children. Eight of them were born in Hof and the last two in Tennessee.

    • 1. Rosina, my husband’s Great-Grandmother born 1864, married to Adolf Scholz and died 1960 in Pullman, Washington. The couple had 10 children.
    • 2. Augusta born 1867, married to judge Joseph Barton Jones, died 1899 in Knoxville, Tennessee. The couple had 2 children.
    • 3. Julia born 1870, married to Julius Georg Schwenke, died 1956 in St Louis, Missouri. The couple had one child.
    • 4. Ernest John born 1871, married to Louise Ann Heuer. died 1951 in St Louis, Missouri
    • 5. Charles born 1875, married to Stella Smith, died 1945 in Weiser, Washington. The couple had 2 children.
    • 6. John Ernest born 1877, died 1956 in Spokane, Washington
    • 7. William born and died 1880 in Hof, Austria
    • 8. Adolf born 1881 and died 1883 in Hof, Austria
    • 9. Lillie Elizabeth born 1884 in Oliver Springs, Tennesse, was married to Edward Everett Mc Cutchen, died 1980 Bellflower, Los Angeles, California. The couple had 2 children.
    • 10. Joseph born and died 1889 in Olivers Springs, Tennessee.

    Rosina and her family immigrated to the United States in 1883 according to the 1900 Census. They settled in Oliver Springs, Tennessee.

    NameRosa Mickee
    Age
    Birth DateMar 1843
    BirthplaceAustria
    Home in 1900Civil District 7, Anderson, Tennessee
    House Number78
    Sheet Number8
    Number of Dwelling in Order of Visitation133
    Family Number146
    RaceWhite
    GenderFemale
    Immigration Year1883
    Relation to Head of HouseWife
    Marital StatusMarried
    Spouse’s NameJohn E Mickee
    Marriage Year1864
    Years Married36
    Father’s BirthplaceAustria
    Mother’s BirthplaceAustria
    Mother: number of living children6
    Mother: How many children10
    Years in US17
    Can ReadY
    Can WriteY
    Can Speak EnglishY
    NeighborsView others on page
    NameAge
    John E Mickee62
    Rosa Mickee47
    John Mickee22
    Lillie Mickee16

    The last name should have been spelled Mücke or Muecke. The census taker actually wrote it that way. It was not a transcription error. The 1910 Census had the same problem with the spelling.

    NameRosa Mickie[Muecke]
    Age in 191067
    Birth Date1843[1843]
    BirthplaceGermany
    Home in 1910Civil District 7, Anderson, Tennessee, USA
    Sheet Number9b
    StreetFrist Bottom Road
    RaceWhite
    GenderFemale
    Relation to Head of HouseWife
    Marital StatusMarried
    Father’s BirthplaceGermany
    Mother’s BirthplaceGermany
    Native TongueEnglish
    Able to readY
    Able to WriteY
    Enumeration District Number0008
    Years Married33
    Number of Children Born8
    Number of Children Living6
    Enumerated Year1910
    NeighborsView others on page

    Rosina died 18 September 1916 in Oliver Springs, Tennessee. The name on the death certificate was spelled correctly.

    Her obituary mentioned only one daughter who lived close by.

    Rosina’s husband John died four years later in 1920. They are buried in Oliver Springs Cemetery.

    I really would like to find immigration records for Rosina and her family. They didn’t come through Ellis Island or Baltimore. No naturalizations are online for Tennessee. May be I need to contact the Tennessee State Archives. Their online search engine is not very user friendly. The page keeps timing out. Hopefully more records from that state will come online sooner or later.

    Sources for this article:

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  • Heinrich Mühlensieb 1743-1810

    Heinrich Mühlensieb was my paternal 4th Great Grandfather. He was baptized 7 February 1743 in the Sankt Martinus catholic church in Düsseldorf Bilk, Germany. His parents were Joannes Josephus Mühlensieb and Anna Catharina Schäfers. The following image shows a copy of the baptismal entry in the church book.

    Heinrich married my 4th Great Grandmother, Anna Catharina Kauertz, 30 November 1769 in the Sankt Dreifaltigkeit catholic church in Düsseldorf Derendorf.

    The last name is spelled Meulensiep instead of Mühlensiep. In Düsseldorf we speak lower German. The groom probably pronounced it that way and the pastor wrote what he heard. I found on old image of the Sankt Dreifaltigkeits church from the 1920’s.

    The church is still there. The street and the houses were destroyed during WW2 air raids by the British.

    Heinrich and Katharina had eight children, all of them born in Düsseldorf Derendorf.

    • 1. Anna Catharina born 20 April 1771
    • 2. Maria Elisabeth born 3 August 1772
    • 3. Henricus Josephus born 4 July 1773
    • 4. Anna Catharina Frederica born 20 June 1774
    • 5. Petrus Conradus 6 October 1775
    • 6. Peter Joseph Cornelius 10 February 1777, died 17 May 1841 in Düsseldorf Bilk. He was married to Anna Helen Coenenberg. They had seven children together. After Anna’s death, he got married to Anna Catharina Steffen. The couple had three children together. After Anna’s death, he got married to Catharina Gertrud Fischer. They had no children.
    • 7. Joannes Leopoldus 9 December 1779
    • 8. Helene Catharina, my 3rd Great Grandmother, born 8 April 1783, died 30 August 1827 in Düsseldorf Lörrick. She was married to Joannes Petrus Wilhelmus Goetzen. They had three children together. After Joanne’s death, she got married to Joannes Mathias Glasmacher. They also had three children together.

    Heinrich Mühlensieb died 16 August 1810 in Düsseldorf-Derendorf. The church book for that death year has not been published yet.

    So, where does the last name Mühlensieb come from? If you translate the name into English it would become mill sieve. In Germany family names emerged about 800 years ago, first among citizens and much later for farmers. The name Mühlensieb originated in Westphalia which is next to the Rhineland. May be my ancestors were were mill owners or worked at one. I don’t know what Heinrich’s profession was.

    I have a book called “Deutsches Namenlexikon” or translated “German name dictionary”.

    I have used this book many times to look up the meaning of German last names. It only contains about 15,000 of them. There also websites covering this topic, however they are sometimes hard to find, so it’s nice to have an actual book to look up names.

    I only have two more generation for my Mühlensieb ancestors. My 5th Great Grandfather, Johannes Josephus, born in Düsseldorf-Gerresheim in 1714 and my 6th Great Grandfather , Everhardus, who died before 1729. Most church books in Germany started anywhere between the 16th and 18th century.

    As always in my blog I like to include a map and sources.

    Derendorf is north of Bilk. You can walk or take the subway and or the trams. It’s only about 5 miles. In Germany most people walk everywhere. It’s hard to find a parking spot in the cities and the traffic is bad. Everything is much smaller over there. It’s very comparable to driving in San Francisco.

    Sources I used for writing this article:

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  • Migration: Adamus Paulus Weingartz 1760-1839

    This week I am participating once again in Amy Johnson Crow‘s 52 ancestors in 52 week challenge. This week’s prompt is migration.

    Adamus Paulus Weingartz was my paternal first cousin five times removed. He was baptized 12 November 1760 in the Sankt Martinus catholic church in Düsseldorf, Prussia. His parents were Joannes Henricus Weingartz and Anna Catharina Heinens. A copy of his baptism is below.

    When Adamus was 26 years old he travelled to Holland. Düsseldorf was not that far from the Dutch border as you can see on this map below.

    In the Dutch archives I found a document that Adamus was going to travel on the ship Arend.

    From this document I could see that he was going to serve as a Dutch soldier from 1786 to 1793. He was sailing to the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa. He travelled with the famous Dutch East India Company.

    NameAdamus Paulus Weingartz
    OriginDusseldorff
    Entry into Service Date17 jul. 1786 (17 Jul 1786)
    Entry into Service PositionSoldaat
    Position ExplanationMilitair
    Departure ShipArend
    Out of Service Date31 aug. 1793 (31 Aug 1793)
    Out of Service PlaceKaap De Goede Hoop
    Reasons for Leaving ServiceOverleden
    Monthly LetterNee
    Debt LetterJa

    Adamus left Holland 17 July 1786 and arrived at the Cape of Good Hope 12 May 1787.

    He married Anna Catharina Hansoniús 14 June 1807 in Cape Town. They had five children together, all born in Cape Town and baptized in the Dutch Reformed Church.

    • 1. Anna Christina Fredrica Weingartz born 1808, died 1864 in Cape Town. She was married to John Albert Sinclair. The couple had four children.
    • 2. Maria Magdalena Catharina Weingartz born 1811, died 1893 in Sea Point, Cape Town. She was married to Thomas Kenneth Sinclair. The couple had 11 children.
    • 3. Aletta Margaretha Weingartz born 1813, died 1845 in Cape Town. She was married to Thomas Hall. The couple had four children.
    • 4. Paulus Petrus Heinrich Weingartz born 1816, died 1858 in Paarl, Western Cape. He was married to Regina Johanna Dietlefs. The couple had one child.
    • 5. Frederik Martinus Johannes Weingartz born 1819, died 1891 at Sea Point, Western Cape. He was not married. I did find a grave stone for him on Find A Grave, courtesy of Scooter T. I enlarged the image to see the inscription better.

    He is buried together with his sister, Maria Magdalena, and his brother in law, Thomas Kenneth Sinclair.

    Adamus was a shop keeper. South Africa, City and Area Directories, 1813-1962

    NamePaulus Wyngartz
    Directory Year1820
    Directory PlaceCape Town, Cape Colony, South Africa
    ProfessionRetail Shop
    Street Address19 Bree Street
    Source1820 African Court Calender Book

    He died in 1838.

    Cape Province, South Africa, Estates Death Notice Index, 1834-1956

    NameAdamus Paulus Martinus Weingartz
    Death Date1839
    Volume6/9/14
    Reference3168
    SourceMaster’s Office / Orphan Chamber, Cape Town (MOOC)
    Source locationNational Archives, Cape Town (KAB)

    After his death his wife remarried.

    About fifteen years ago I was contacted by a descendant of Adamus, who lives in South Africa. He had asked me all kinds of questions about my hometown Düsseldorf. He asked about the church where his ancestor was baptized. I told him about the Sankt Martinus catholic church which still exists. In more recent years I have had DNA matches with other descendants of Adamus, one in particular who moved from South Africa to Australia. DNA is just one more tool for me to validate my research.

    It took Adamus almost ten months to arrive at the Cape of Good Hope. I checked with google maps. Nowadays you can make the trip by car in about 174 to 184 hours. It’s over 8000 miles away and a very long trip through the desert.

    For today’s article I used the following resources:

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  • Anna Maria (Mary) Steinhaus Ohren 1806-1883

    Anna Maria Steinhaus was my maternal third Great Aunt and the older sister of my third Great Grandfather, Peter Wilhelm. Maria or later known as Mary, was born 30 January 1806 in Ratingen, which now belongs to Düsseldorf, Germany. Her parents were Wilhelm Herman Steinhaus and Gertrud Strotman.

    Mary got married to Peter Ohren 5 August 1833 in Eckamp, near Ratingen. The couple had eight children together. In the year 1852 the family travelled to Bremen and then sailed to North America on the Canopus. On the map below it shows the first part of their journey, which was about 177 miles.

    I found the Ohren family on an emigration list published by the North Rhine-Westphalia archives.

    It was transcribed in the following order: last name, maiden name, first name, birth year, birth location, last residence, profession, destination town and country.

    The family arrived in Castle Gardens, later known as Ellis Island, 28 September 1852. Below are pictures I took in 2019. I would highly recommend a visit.

    Below is the ship’s manifest for the Ohren family.

    It was recorded in the following order: first name, last name, age, male or female and from which country they were.

    The family then started the last leg of their trip to Old Ripley, Bond County, Illinois.

    I found Mary Ohren only in the 1880 Federal Census. At that time she was a widow and lived in a boarding house probably with two of her granddaughters.

    NameMary Ohren
    Age75
    Birth DateAbt 1805
    BirthplacePrussia
    Home in 1880Ripley, Bond, Illinois, USA
    Dwelling Number158
    RaceWhite
    GenderFemale
    Marital StatusWidowed
    Father’s BirthplacePrussia
    Mother’s BirthplacePrussia
    OccupationHousekeeper
    NeighborsView others on page

    Mary’s husband, Peter Ohren, had died already in 1870. Mary died 13 November 1883 in Old Ripley. She is buried in the Brown Cemetery in Old Ripley. I found an obituary in a local German newspaper.

    Transcription: Ms. Ohren died on Tuesday last week in the home of her daughter, Ms. Ganza. Ms. Ohren was about 70 years old and is the Mother of Mathias, John and Peter Ohren.

    Mary had a large family with lots of Grandchildren. Here is a list of her children and where they settled. All of her children were born in Prussia.

    • 1. William P Ohren born 1832, died 1880 in Old Ripley, was married to Gertrud Maibom. The couple had 4 children.
    • 2. Elisabeth (Lizzie) Ohren born 1836, died 1883 in Madison County, Illinois, was married to Henry Daudermann. The couple had 5 children.
    • 3. Franziska Ohren born 1838, died 25 June 1920 in Sleepy Eye, Minnesota, was married to Henry Berg. The couple had 14 children.
    • 4. Peter Ohren born 1841, died 1924 in Leef Township, Madison County, Illinois, was married to Catharine Vonburg. The couple had 4 children.
    • 5. Catharina Ohren born 1843, died 1 December 1897 in Old Ripley, was married to Gottlieb Ferdinand Ganzer. The couple had 3 children.
    • 6. Mathias Hubert Ohren born 1846, died 9 October 1880 in Old Ripley, was married to Elisabeth Helena Frances Hessen. The couple had 5 children
    • 7. Johann Ohren born 1850, died 1877, was married to Catherine Rochin. The couple had 3 children.
    • 8. Wilhelm Ohren born 1851, death unknown.

    Mary had a grand total of 38 grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her husband Peter and four or may be even five of her children. That must have been very hard on her. She didn’t have an ordinary life. Mary travelled thousands of miles to a foreign world. She has hundreds of descendants here in the USA. I have quite a few DNA matches with them.

    In order to write this article I used many different sources:

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