Genealogy Is An Adventure

Author: Yvonne Scholz

  • Adelheid Katharina Sevenich 1899-1982

    Adeleheid Katharina Sevenich was my maternal Grandmother. She was born 24 September 1899 and died 17 October 1982 in Düsseldorf Heerdt, Germany. Her parents were Franz Sevenich and Anna Katharina Steinhaus. My Grandmother or Oma came from a large family. She had six sisters and two brothers. Oma was baptized in the catholic Sankt Benediktus church in Heerdt. An old postcard of the church from about 1910.

    A picture of my Oma, her parents and her siblings circa 1920. She stands in the middle behind her parents.

    Another image of her circa 1920

    A picture of my Oma with her Mother and some of her siblings circa 1907. She is the girl with the white apron standing to the left above her Mother.

    My Oma got married to my Grandfather, Alexander Theodor Schneider, 7 October 1922 in Heerdt. They were married for 60 years.

    Oma was a seamstress and she would make all the clothes for my dolls. She made the best paprika chicken and “Schnibbelskartoffeln”. Fried potatoes from left over boiled potatoes. I haven’t been able to duplicate these recipes. I can still smell them when entering her apartment. Oma also made a special desert for us grandchildren called Tutti Frutti. It was a layer of fresh or canned fruit, sour cream and vanilla pudding. It was made with love and tasted so yummy.

    Oma died 17 Oct 1982 peacefully in her sleep. Even so that she has been gone for over 40 years, I will never forget her. I still miss and love her.

  • Andreas Daniel Joseph Krings 1808-1871

    Andreas Daniel Joseph Krings was my paternal second Great Grandfather. Andreas was born 23 September 1808 in Bilk and died 23 Oct 1871 in Derendorf. Both of these locations are nowadays a part of Düsseldorf, Germany. Andreas was baptized 26 October 1871 in the catholic church, Sankt Martin. His parents were Joannes Winandus Josephus Krings and Maria Anna Josepha Weingartz. Below is his baptism.

    Andreas married my second Great Grandmother, Maria Agnes Götzen, 12 August 1835 in the same church.

    Andreas and Agnes had five children together. One of them was my Great Grandfather, Wilhelm Hubert Krings.

    Andreas and his small family appeared in a census taken from 1854-1860 in Düsseldorf. It states that Andreas was a shoemaker by trade. The first child, Johann was crossed out, he probably had died.

    Andreas also appeared in an address book from 1855. Once again it states that he was a shoemaker. Schumacher is the German word for shoemaker.

    Andreas died 23 October 1871 in Derendorf.

    His obituary states, that Andreas was born in Bilk and that he had been a widower for eight years. He was survived by two sons and two grandsons. Andreas was only 63 years old.

    A map shows that Andreas pretty much lived in the same area all his life.

    Sources

    Church Books online for Düsseldorf

    Düsseldorf Census (Bürgerbücher) 1854-1860

    Obituary you can find here

    Address Book Düsseldorf 1855

  • Emil August Ferdinand Schneider 1855-1935

    Emil August Ferdinand Schneider was my maternal Great Grandfather. His calling name was Ferdinand. He was born 13 September 1855 in Berlin and died 12 July 1935 in Wuppertal, Germany. Ferdinand’s parents were the master armorer, Martin August Eduard Schneider and Caroline Francisca Amelie Büttner. He was baptized 7 October 1855 in the Sophien church in Berlin.

    Above is Ferdinand’s baptismal entry from the church book.

    Ferdinand got married 12 May 1883 in Gadderbaum, Bielefeld to my Great Grandmother, Sophia Hermina Louisa Ontrup. The couple had nine children together, including my Grandfather, Theodor Alexander Schneider 1898-1990.

    Ferdinand died 12 July 1935 in Wuppertal.

    Sources

    Ancestry

    Sophienkirche

    Google Maps

  • Franz Joseph Edgidius Becker 1827-1907

    Franz was my paternal second Great Grandfather. He was born 30 August 1827 in Messinghausen and died 21 May 1907 in Hamminkeln, Germany. He was baptized in the catholic St. Dionysius Church in Thülen 1 September 1827. His parents were Johann Becker and Christine Münster. Below is a postcard from my collection of Messinghausen from the 1950’s.

    Franz was married to my second Great Grandmother Maria Sickel. To this date I have been unable to find their marriage. Franz was a signalman and worked for the railroad. Him and Maria had only two children that we know of. My Great Grandfather, Johann Heinrich Becker 1861-1945 and his brother, Theodor Becker born in 1863. Franz and Maria lived and died in Hamminkeln.

    Franz died in 1907. His death certificate above, states that his son, Theodor, gave this information to the registrar. It states that he died in Hamminkeln and that his son had no further information about Franz’s parents.

    I found this old image from the Hamminkeln train station circa 1914. In the 19th century, it was pretty common for people to move to areas where they could work for the railroad. I have another ancestor who also moved and worked for the railroad at the time time.

    From the map you can see that Messinghausen was far away. 191 km or 118 miles. It would have taken Franz probably several days if not weeks to get to Hamminkeln.

    Sources:

    Picture of Hamminkeln train station

    Google Maps

    Death Certificate

    Familysearch

  • Maria Agnes Götzen 1813-1863

    Maria Agnes Götzen was my paternal second Great Grandmother. She was born 23 August 1813 in Heerdt and died 15 March 1863 in Düsseldorf, Germany. Her parents were Joannes Petrus Wilhelm Götzen and Helene Catharina Mühlensieb. Her baptismal record from the Sankt Benediktus church in Heerdt is below. It gives her baptized name, parents’ names and the godparents. Church book entries for this time frame were written in Latin.

    Maria married my second great grandfather, the shoemaker, Andreas Daniel Joseph Krings, 12 August 1835 in the Sankt Martinus church in Düsseldorf.

    The church book entry states the groom and the bride and their parents and the witnesses.

    The marriage was also mentioned in the newspaper.

    Maria and Andreas had five children together. One of them is my Great Grandfather, Wilhelm Hubert Krings 1840-1909.

    Maria had her own grocery store. I found her right underneath her husband in a 1855 Düsseldorf address book.

    It states: Krings, Andreas, shoemaker Duisburger Street 71 and Krings, Andreas, wife, store owner, Duisburger Street 71 I think that’s pretty amazing to see that my female ancestor had her own business in 1855.

    Maria was only 49 years old when she died. Her name was mentioned in the newspaper.

    The name is under “Gestorbene” which means “The Deceased”. Agnes Götzen, wife, 57 years old.

    The map shows where Maria grew up and where she lived and died. Heerdt and Bilk are now part of Düsseldorf.

    Sources:

    Ancestry

    Family Search

    Zeitpunkt NRW (old newspaper from North Rhine-Westphalia)

    Church Books Düsseldorf and Heerdt

    Düsseldorf address book 1835

    Google Maps

    Contact: yscholz64@gmail.com

  • Maria Sybilla Wilms 1804-1869

    Maria Sybilla Wilms was my maternal third Great Grandmother. She was born 8 March 1804 and died 12 August 1869 in Brachelen, Germany. Maria was the daughter of the basket maker, Joannes Petrus Wilms and Maria Catharina Heinen.

    The birth certificate above was obtained from the State Archive in Brühl, Germany. The archive has since moved to Duisburg. The state of North Rhine-Westphalia and its archives have put death certificates from 1875-1938 and marriage certificates from 1875-1899 online. I believe that birth certificates will be next. It is a very exciting time for genealogists like myself to be able to view these certificates online. It’s hard to keep with all the genealogical news.

    The birth certificate of my third Great Grandmother is from 1804. May be one day, those earlier certificates will come online as well.

    Maria married my third Great Grandfather, the widower, Franz Sevenich, 13 April 1833 in Brachelen. They had four children together, one of them was my second Great Grandfather, Peter Johann Sevenich.

    The marriage certificate above stating the names of the bride and groom, when and where they were born including their parents. The second page has all the witnesses and signatures of the wedding party.

    I do not have her death certificate. It’s not always possible to obtain all certificates or copies of church book records. I use Family Tree Maker to create genealogical reports.

    Sources

    Ancestry

    Landesarchiv Duisburg

    Family Search

    Family Tree Maker

  • Peter Wilhelm Steinhaus 1811-1881

    Peter Wilhelm Steinhaus was my maternal third Great-Grandfather. From his death certificate I know that his calling name was Wilhelm. He was born 1 June 1811 in Eckkamp and died 15 August 1881 in Heerdt, Germany. His parents were Wilhelm Herman Steinhaus and Gertrud Strotmans.

    Wilhelm married my third Great Grandmother, Marie Christine Bolten, 14 June 1830 in Eckkamp. The family lived in Heerdt and had eight children together. One of them was my second Great Grandfather, Balthasar Hubert Steinhaus 1838-1893.

    Wilhelm died 15 August 1881 in Heerdt. His death certificate below, states his name, when and where he died. It also states that his parents died in Rath. The information was given by Wilhelm’s son, the farmer, Mathias Steinhaus. The mother on the death certificate, Elisabeth Brückman, is actually his stepmother. Mathias probably never met his real Grandmother.

    You have always to research official documents. They are not always correct.

    Wilhelm’s oldest sister, Anna Maria Steinhaus 1806-1883, married Peter Ohren 5 August 1833 in Eckamp. Anna Maria and Peter had three children together in Germany. They immigrated and arrived in New York 28 September 1852. The family settled in Old Ripley, Bond County, Illinois. I have DNA matches with some of their descendents. I will write a seperate blog about Anna Maria in the future.

    Here is a map of where Wilhelm was born and where he lived after he got married.

    Sources:

    Family Search

    Heerdt Death Certificate

    Ancestry

  • Maria Johanna Becker 1885-1975

    Maria Johanna Becker was born 12 July 1885 in Hamminkeln and died 4 March 1975 in Schiefbahn, Germany. She was my paternal Grandmother. This is her birth certificate from Hamminkeln

    It states that her parents were the day laborer, Johann Heinrich Becker and Gertruda Johanna Görtzen. To the left is a side note that says that she died in Willich 4 March 1975 and the number of the death certificate Nr 75/1975.

    Maria was baptized in the St. Mariä Himmelfart Catholic Church in Wesel

    Above is her baptism entry in the church book. Her Godparents were Mathias Görzen and Mara Becker nee Sickel who was her Grandmother.

    Maria got married 13 May 1907 in Wesel to my Grandfather, Wilhelm Eduard Josef Hubert Krings.

    Above is the front and back page of the marriage certificate. Most of the time, marriage certificates will mention the bride and groom and their parents. On page one, the side note states that my Grandfather died in 1952. Three different side notes on the back page mention three of the children.

    My Grandmother and Grandfather had eight children between 1907 and 1929. They were all born in Düsseldorf. This picture shows them together with their first born, my uncle Willi circa 1908.

    Two of her sons died while fighting during WW2.

    Hans Krings 1911-1948

    Josef Krings 1914-1943 Shown With His Son

    My Dad missed his brothers very much and talked about them often.

    Shortly after WW2 in 1952 my Grandfather died suddenly at home. Now my Grandmother had lost three family members within a ten year period.

    My Grandmother had her faith. When I grew up, every Sunday we would pick her after church services at St. Peter’s Catholic Church in Düsseldorf. She would have lunch with us at home.

    Her large family kept her very busy. She attended all the baptisms, first communions and weddings of her all her children and grandchildren. She got to fly in a very small plane for the time ever when she was 85. She would never say a bad word about anyone. Family was everything to her.

    Near the end of her life she became very frail. All three of her daughters took care of her around the clock. In the end she had to be put into a nursing home in Schiefbahn. My aunt had tried to find one in Düsseldorf but it didn’t work out. My Grandmother hated it there and told us flat out that she wouldn’t make it a year. She was right. Grandma died peacefully 4 March 1975. All the children, grandchildren and great grandchildren attended her funeral in Heerdt. Her grave doesn’t exist anymore. Graves in Germany get recycled.

    I always try to include a map

    Sources

    Stadtarchiv Hamminkeln

    Stadtarchiv Wesel

    Baptismal Church Records Wesel

    Google Maps Hamminkeln

    Stadtarchiv Düsseldorf

  • Joannes Petrus Wilhelmus Goetzen 1783-1816

    Joannes Petrus Wilhelmus Goetzen was my paternal third Great Grandfather. Joannes was baptized 9 July 1783 in Düsseldorf Heerdt and died 1 September in Oberlörick near Düsseldorf Heerdt. His parents were Heinrich Goetzen and Anna Catharina Boeckers.

    In his baptismal enty it says that he is the legitimate child of Heinrich Goetzen and Anna Catharina Boeckers. An older picture of St. Benediktus Church in Heerdt.

    You can read about the church in German in Wikipedia.

    Joannes got married 13 April 1809 in Düsseldorf to my third Great Grandmother, Helene Catharina Muehlensieb. The church book for that year is not online.

    Joannes and Helene had only three children together. One of them is my second Great Grandmother, Maria Agnes Götzen 1813-1863.

    Here is a group sheet for Johannes and Helene

    Joannes died 10 days before his third and last child was born.

    The church book entrance above, states that he died 1 September 1816.

    I always like to include a map

    From now on, I will also try to include my sources whenever I can.

    1. Family Search
    2. Ancestry
    3. St. Benedictus Baptisms In Heerdt 1779-1862
    4. St. Benedictus Death 1779-1884
    5. Google Maps

  • Adamus Josephus Dittmar 1833-1912

    Adamus Joseph Dittmar was my brother in law’s third Grandfather. Adamus is the Latin form of Adam. Adam was born 25 October 1833 in Buttlar, Germany and died 25 November 1912 in Jersey City, New Jersey. His parents were the farmer, Johanni Adamus Dittmar and Sophia Ezel.

    Adam was the youngest of ten children. Coming from a very tiny village, he probably had no chance of getting a good job besides being a farmer. The oldest son would have inherited the farm. Adam travelled to Bremen, where he boarded the Ammerland to sail to New York. The ship arrived 9 November 1850.

    Adam is on the Ammerland’s manifest as seen above and the arrival is also mentioned in his passport application from 1893.

    Adam stayed in New York City for a little while. He married his wife, Elisabeth Kircher, 5 July 1855. As seen below, Elisabeth was born 9 April 1932 in Buttlar, Germany. Most likely Adam and Elisabeth had met already in their home village.

    OkIn this country Adam was known as A J Dittmar. I found him on a New Jersey tax list in 1864. Is occupation is builder.

    Adam and Elisabeth had together 14 children born from 1856-1877. All of them were born in New Jersey. One of them, Adam J Dittmar Junior was my brother in law’s second Grandfather. 80th

    A J Dittmar was a prominent citizen in Jersey City, New Jersey as you can see from his obituary.

    The Jersey Journal

    Jersey City, New Jersey • Mon, Nov 25, 1912,Page 1

    A J Dittmar had a very busy and successful life.

    My brother in law recently flew to Germany and visited a brewery with the Dittmar name.

    The brewery is only 27, 6 km or 17.14 miles away from Buttlar. It’s very possible that the original owner were somehow related to A J Dittmar.

    Owning a brewery must be in the Dittmar genes. If you are ever in the Seattle area, you can visit Airways Brewing owned by my brother and sister in law Alex and Dione Dittmar.