Genealogy Is An Adventure

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  • Johann Georgi Selzer 1740-?

    Johann Georgi Seltzer was my husband’s 5th paternal Great Grandfather. He was born 12 June 1740 in Raden, Kreis Leobschütz, Silesia, Germany. Since the end of WW2, Raden has belonged to Poland and is now called Radynia. After the war had ended, all the German people of that region were expelled by the new Polish government. It was a terrible time for them. They could barely take anything with them and many people lost their lives. Raden (Radynia) is a tiny village close to the Czech border.

    Johann’s parents were Anton Selzer and Johanna Englisch. He married my husband’s 5th Great Grandmother, Elisabetha Grimm, 17 October 1769 in Schönwiese, now called Krasne Pole. This village is about 7 miles away from Radynia.

    An old postcard of Schönwiese (Krasne Pole) from the 1920’s.

    Johann and Elisabetha Selzer had 10 children, all born in Raden (Radynia).

    • 1. Anton Valentin born 1771
    • 2. Joseph Urban born 1772 and died 1789 in Raden
    • 3. Carl Johann born 1774
    • 4. Johann Georg born 1775 and died 1846 in Raden. He was married to Elisabeth Krischker. They had 12 children.
    • 5. Maria Elisabetha Theresia was born 1779. She married Franz Schindler. They had 4 children.
    • 6. Johann Martin born 1780
    • 7. Johanna Selzer, my husband’s 4th Great Grandmother, was born 1782 and died 1822 in Raden. She was married to my husband’s 4th Great Grandfather, Anton Wiedemann. They had 9 children, one of them was husband’s 3rd Great Grandmother, Karolina Wiedemann who married Fridolin Scholz, my husband’s 3rd Great Grandfather.
    • 8. Carolus Joannes, no dates available, he supposedly had at least 3 children
    • 9. Clara Victoria died 1785 in Raden
    • 10. Bernard Paulus no dates available

    Johann and his wife had 10 children, 29 grandchildren, 22 great grandchildren, 58 2x great grandchildren and 57 3x great grandchildren. These are the ones I have found, there are probably a lot more. Many of Johann’s descendants live in Germany, Austria and the United States.

    Johann’s relationship to my husband, his 5x Great Grandchild:

    Do you know how many sets of 5th great grandparents you have? 128! Every generation doubles in numbers. Let’s see if this correct.

    • Generation 1: Child
    • Generation 2: 2 parents
    • Generation 3: 4 Grandparents
    • Generation 4: 8 Great Grandparents
    • Generation 5: 16 2x Great Grandparents
    • Generation 6: 32 3x Great Grandparents
    • Generation 7: 64 4x Great Grandparents
    • Generation 8: 128 5x Great Grandparents
    • Generation 9: 256 6x Great Grandparents
    • Generation 10: 512 7x Great Grandparents
    • Generation 11: 1024 8x Great Grandparents
    • Generation 12: 2048 9x Great Grandparents
    • Generation 13: 4096 10x Great Grandparent
    • Generation 14: 8192 11x Great Grandparents
    • Generation 15: 1638 12x Great Grandparents
    • Generation 16: 32768 13x Great Grandparents

    So you have 128 sets of 5x Great Grandparent, that means you have 64 5x Great Grandfathers. How many have you found in your research?

    In order for me to find the Polish name for Raden, I used Kartenmeister.

    This is the best website to find the current names of former German cities. There were a couple of other towns with the name Raden, however I knew which Kreis (sort of like a county) it belonged to. Raden, Kreis Leobschütz which now is called Radynia.

    I did find an image for Raden on a Polish website. You can see the image here. On the top half it shows a guest house and the owner has the same last name, Selzer. He might very well be related to my husband’s 5th Great Grandfather.

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  • Anna Elisabeth Herbst 1722-1782

    My paternal 4th Great Grandmother, Anna Elisabeth, was baptized 21 June 1722 in the Sankt Lambertus Catholic Church in Düsseldorf, Germany. Her parents were Joannes Dionysius Herbst and Anna Elisabeth Borrigs.

    The church is located in old town Düsseldorf near the river Rhein.

    Anna Elisabeth had ten brothers and sisters, all born and baptized in Düsseldorf.

    • 1. Maria Gertrudis born 1717
    • 2. Anna Christina born 1718, married to Bernhard Henricus Robertz, they had 16 children.
    • 3. Anna Sophia born 1721
    • 4. Joannes Petrus born 1724, married to Sybilla Schumachers. They had one child.
    • 5. Theodorus Godefridus born 1726
    • 6. Theodorus Wilhelm born 1727, married to Margaretha Dahmen
    • 7. Joannes Theodorus born 1729
    • 8. Anna Margaretha born 1730
    • 9. Joannes Ferdinandus born 1732
    • 10. Anna Sybilla born 1734

    Anna also had five half siblings from her Father’s second marriage to Anna Margaretha von Rath

    • 1. Catharina Sophia born 1737, died 1802 in Benrath, was married to Joannes Wilhelmus Heubes. They had 8 children.
    • 2. Anna Gertrudis born 1738
    • 3. Anna Maria born 1740
    • 4. Sybilla Catharina born 1744
    • 5. Maria Anna born 1746

    Anna married my 4th Great Grandfather, Petrus Josephus Weingartz, 4 August 1746 in Sankt Martinus Church in Düsseldorf-Bilk.

    The Weingartz couple had 11 children, all born and baptized in Düsseldorf.

    • 1. Anna Gertrudis Bernadina born 1747, died 1787 in Düsseldorf, married to Petrus Josephus Sebus. They had 8 children.
    • 2. Joannes Petrus born 1749
    • 3. Christina Catharina born 1750
    • 4. Henricus Paulus born 1752
    • 5. Maria Sophia born 1754
    • 6. Maria Anna, my 3rd Great Grandmother born 1756, died 1814 in Düsseldorf, married to my 3rd Great Grandfather, Joannes Winandus Josephus Krings. They had 9 children including my 2nd Great Grandfather, Andreas Daniel Joseph Krings born 1808.
    • 7. Joannes Angelus Josephus born 1758, married to Anna Wilhelmina Margareta Hellersberg.
    • 8. Joannis Henricus born 1759, married to Anna Catharina Hoenen.
    • 9. Magdalena Josepha born 1761
    • 10. Anna Elisabetha Josepha born 1763
    • 11. Henricus Antonius Bernardus born 1767

    Anna died in April of 1781. I found her in the catholic burial’s announcements in the local newspaper.

    Transcription: Den 21ten, Anna Elisabetha Herbst, Ehefrau Weingartz, alt 59 Jahr 10 Monat. Translation: The 21st, Anna Elisabetha Herbst, wife of Weingartz, age 59 years and 10 months.

    Elisabeth had lots of descendants. 11 children, 17 grandchildren, 42 great grandchildren and 82 two times great grandchildren. Those are the ones I have found, there might be a lot more.

    I would love to be able to time travel and meet all my ancestors to see how they lived, what they ate, how they cooked, what they feared. Were they able to read and write? Did they go to school?

    Which ancestor would you like to meet and why?

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  • 2ndLt Howard A Scholz 1921-1944

    Howard A Scholz was my husband’s first cousin, once removed. He was born 8 August 1921 in Seattle, Washington and died during WW2 in Peteliu, Palau, Philippines. His parents were Albert Julius Scholz (1890-1981) and Elizabeth Mackleit (1896-1972). His paternal grandparents were Adolph Scholz (1865-1939) and Rosina Muecke (1864-1960). Adolph immigrated from Prussia and Rosina from Austria. His maternal grandparents were Georg Mackleit (1868-1959) and Catharina Weitz (1872-1950) They both immigrated from Russia.

    In the 1930 Census Howard and his family lived in Colfax, Washington. They were wheat farmers.

    The same in the 1940 Census

    In 1943 he attended Washington State College (Washington State University) in Pullman as seen on his WW2 draft card.

    Howard enlisted just four days later, on April 23rd, 1943.

    NameHoward A Scholz
    RaceWhite
    Marital StatusSingle, without dependents (Single)
    RankPrivate
    Birth Year1921
    Nativity State or CountryWashington
    CitizenshipCitizen
    ResidenceWhitman, Washington
    Education4 years of college
    Enlistment Date23 Apr 1943
    Enlistment PlaceSpokane, Washington
    Service Number39464950
    BranchNo branch assignment
    ComponentSelectees (Enlisted Men)
    SourceCivil Life
    Height83
    Weight000

    Howard graduated from college in June 1943 and married his sweetheart, Miss Nancy E Rogers, a couple of months later in Seattle.

    In December 1943 Howard received his commission in the marines at Quantico, Virginia.

    According to the HonorStates.org, I quote: “Howard Scholz was wounded 9-15-1944 during the invasion of Peleliu. He died on board a hospital ship the next day and was buried at sea.”

    Howard received two medals.

    The Silver Star

    Quoted from Home of Heroes: “The Silver Star remained exclusively an Army decoration until August 7, 1942 and was expanded by Act of Congress for award by the Navy Department.”

    The Purple Heart

    Quoted from Wikipedia: “The Purple Heart (PH) is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the president to those wounded or killed while serving.”

    Howard gave his life for his country. He will never be forgotten. Howard is memorialized at the Tablets of the Missing at Manila American Cemetery, Manila, Philippines or on Find A Grave.

    His name is also displayed at the Washington State University Veterans Memorial. The structure was dedicated in 1993 and completed in 2000.

    To conclude this article I found a picture of Howard and his family in happier times at the Whitman County Online Heritage Collection.

    Howard with his parents, Albert Julius and Elisabeth Scholz and his siblings, Audrey Jean, Winifred, Virginia and Bert in December 1936.

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  • Josef Richard Heinrich Krings 1914-1943

    My paternal uncle, Josef Krings, was born 18 May 1914 in Düsseldorf, Germany and was killed 5 July 1943 during WW2 at the battle of Korowina, Bjelgrod, Russia. His parents were Wilhelm Krings and Maria Becker. I recently was able to obtain a copy of his birth certificate, which is now in the public domain, from Düsseldorf City Archives.

      His birth certificate has two Randvermerke or side notes. One is for his marriage and the other one for the death certificate. I have copies of both.

    Josef grew up in a large family with seven brothers and sisters. At one point he moved to Berlin. I don’t know exactly when and why. There, he married Antonia Sotola, 24 July 1940. She was born in Stockerau near Vienna, Austria. They had a son in 1941, named Georg, my first cousin. I have never met him.

    Uncle Josef, probably with his wife Antonia and may be his mother in law. Location unknown, probably taken in Berlin, circa 1940.

    Uncle Josef and cousin Georg circa 1942, location may be in Berlin.

    Josef and Georg 1941 in Berlin

    Cousin Georg 14 months old probably in Berlin, 1942

    Josef was killed in Korowino, Russia in July 1943. The death certificate was issued a year later, in July 1944, in Berlin.

    Josef’s wife, Antonia, together with their son Georg, moved back to Austria.

    I gathered the information about Josef from several source.

    • 1. Birth and death dates I learnt from my Dad who passed away in 2006
    • 2. The pictures were given to me by his younger sister, Ursula, who also passed away in 2006.
    • 3. Berlin death certificates are online from 1874-1985 at Ancestry. I didn’t know that my uncle had lived in Berlin, until I saw the certificate. From the side notes I learnt where to order the marriage and birth certificate.
    • 4. His marriage certificate from 1940, which I did not post here, I ordered from the City Archives in Berlin .
    • 5. I tried to look for his grave, but there is none. His body was never recovered. You can search for graves here at the German War Graves Commission.

    A few tips when you search at the German War Graves Commission site. The spelling of the names have to be exact. I would start with just a last name. Birth dates also have to be exact as well. German dates are written differently. For example today’s date is 5-19-25. In Germany the date would be 19-05-25.

    Every time you search the site, they want you to enter your name, address, email and so on. If you do find your relative, you then have the option of getting updates by email and/or also make donations to the website. I have never received any junk mail, only an occasional email every few years if there is something new on the battle/grave site.

    You can order military records at the Bundesarchiv (Federal Archive) in Germany. The web site is in German and English. I ordered my Dad’s service record over 10 years ago. It took two years to get them. It might even take longer nowadays. If you are looking for WW1 service records, you will have no luck. They were destroyed during WW2. The only exception are the Bavarian WW1 Personnel Records 1914-1918 which are at ancestry.

    Here is a map of where Josef was born (Düsseldorf), lived (Berlin) and died (Russia)

    In a future post I will write about Josef’s brother who was also a soldier and died shortly after the war ended. I am still gathering facts and documents.

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  • Happy Mother’s Day

    Clipart

    This Sunday, May 10th, we celebrate once again Mother’s Day here in the United States and in Germany as well. Today I will introduce you to my direct maternal line, meaning my Mother, her mother and so on.

    • 1. My Mother, Katharina Josefine Schneider, was born 4 November 1927 in Düsseldorf-Heerdt and died 12 November 1982 in Düsseldorf, Germany. She married my Dad in 1946. She loved flowers, lucky for her, my Dad owned a wholesale flower business, so there was an endless supply. I inherited all her vases. I love this particular picture of her, it was taken in 1943.
    • 2. Her Mother and My Grandmother, Adelheid Katharina Sevenich, born 24 September 1899 and died 17 October 1982 in Düsseldorf-Heerdt. She married my Grandfather in 1922. Oma was a seamstress and made cloths for all my dolls. She made the best paprika chicken and pudding desserts.
    • 3. Her Mother and my Great Grandmother, Anna Catharina Steinhaus, born 18 November 1870 and died 10 March 1958 in Düsseldorf Heerdt. She married my Great Grandfather in 1893. Anna died before I was born, so I didn’t get to meet her. She had a large family of nine children. Her picture was taken on her 25th wedding anniversary in 1918.
    • 4. Her Mother and my 2x Great Grandmother, Anna Christina Gather, was born 16 October 1842 in Büderich and died 13 May 1906 in Düsseldorf-Heerdt. She married my 2x Great Grandfather, in 1869. Her baptims is below.

    Her marriage:

    Her death certificate:

    • 5. Her Mother and my 3rd Great Grandmother, Anna Catharina Underdenbäumen (the last name literally translated means “under the trees”), was born 23 February 1808 in Neuss and died 3 February 1850 in Büderich. She married my 3rd Great Grandfather in 1832. She had a large family of 9 children.

    Her marriage:

    Her death:

    • 6. Her Mother and my 4th Great Grandmother, Maria Sibilla Gather, born 9 January 1767 in Büderich and died 4 December 1827 in Neuss. She married my 4th Great Grandfather in 1790. She had 4 children. Here is the marriage from the church book.
    • 7. Her Mother and my 5th Great Grandmother, Sibille Gertrud Korschgens (also spelled Körschgens), born 15 January 1736 and died 8 April 1817 in Büderich. She married my 5th Great Grandfather in 1758. She had 11 children.
    • 8. Her Mother and my 6th Great Grandmother, Helena Maria Kreitzen, born about 1710 and died 13 September 1757 in Büderich. She married my 6th Great Grandfather in 1732. She had 9 children.
    • 9. Her Mother and my 7th Great Grandmother was Maria Leven. I do not have any dates for her yet. Hopefully in the future I will be able to find some.

    I was able to go back nine generation for my direct maternal line. That’s pretty awesome, don’t you think?

    The first Mother’s Day in the United States was celebrated in 1908, in Germany not until 1922.

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  • Petrus Josephus Weingartz 1721-?

    Petrus Josephus Weingartz was my paternal 4th Great Grandfather. His parents were Joannes Petrus Weingartz and Anna Gertrudis Bommels. Petrus was baptized 4 April 1721 in the Sankt Martin church in Düsseldorf-Bilk.

    St. Martins Church in Bilk

    Petrus had several siblings all baptized in the church above.

    • 1. Sibylla Gertrudis born 1716
    • 2. Wihelmus Henricus born 1718
    • 3. Anna Sophia born 1719
    • 4. Catharina Elisabetha born 1723, was married to Paulus Kucks.
    • 5. Joannes Henricus born 1724, was married to Anna Catharina Heinens. They had 10 children. One of them emigrated to South Africa.
    • 6. Anton Xtiantius born 1727
    • 7. Joannes Petrus born 1729. He was married to Anna Margaretha Schwan. They had 7 children
    • 8. Maria Margaretha born 1731. She was married to Joannes Angelus Wallinger
    • 9. Maria Magdalena born 1734. She was married to Franciscus Breidt.
    • 10. Joannes Petrus born 1736.

    I have found several spelling variations of the name Weingartz. Weingarts, Weingart and Wingart. The name originates from Weingarten (vinyard). May be my ancestors grew whine.

    Petrus married my 4th Great Grandmother, Anna Elisabeth Herbst (1722-1782), 4 August 1746 in Bilk.

    A week later they married a second time in the Sankt Lambertus Church in Düsseldorf. This was the church where Anna was baptized.

    St. Lambertus Church Circa 1920’s

    Petrus and Anna had 11 children, all of them were baptized in the church above.

    • 1. Anna Gertrudis Bernadina born 1747, died 1787, was married to Petrus Josephus Rebus. They had 8 children.
    • 2. Joannes Petrus born 1749.
    • 3. Christina Catharina born 1750.
    • 4. Henricus Paulus born 1752.
    • 5. Maria Sophia born 1754.
    • 6. Maria Anna Josepha, my 3rd Great Grandmother, born 17 February 1756, died 17 September 1814. She was married to my 3rd Great Grandfather, Joannes Winandus Josephus Krings. They had 9 children.
    • 7. Joannes Angelus Josephus, born 1758. He was married to Anna Wilhemina, Margareta Hellersberg.
    • 8. Joannes Henricus born 1759. He was married to Anna Catharina Hoenen.
    • 9. Magdalena Josepha born 1761.
    • 10. Anna Elisabetha Josepha born 1763.
    • 11. Henricus Antonius Bernardus born 1767.

    Petrus’s wife, Anna, died 21 April 1782 in Düsseldorf. Her death was mentioned in the newspaper.

    I do not have a death date for Petrus yet. The church books were only recently published online.

    Sankt Lambertus church is located only about 4.4 km or 2.73 miles north of the Sankt Martinus church. Both churches still exist and survived WW2.

    The sources I used were mainly on Ancestry and the church books from Düsseldorf which are listed here.

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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.

  • 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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  • 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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