Schneider – Genealogy Is An Adventure

Happy Mother’s Day

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.

If you like this article, please leave a comment and/or subscribe. Thank You!

May 5, 2025

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.

Name	Rosa Mickee
Age
Birth Date	Mar 1843
Birthplace	Austria
Home in 1900	Civil District 7, Anderson, Tennessee
House Number	78
Sheet Number	8
Number of Dwelling in Order of Visitation	133
Family Number	146
Race	White
Gender	Female
Immigration Year	1883
Relation to Head of House	Wife
Marital Status	Married
Spouse’s Name	John E Mickee
Marriage Year	1864
Years Married	36
Father’s Birthplace	Austria
Mother’s Birthplace	Austria
Mother: number of living children	6
Mother: How many children	10
Years in US	17
Can Read	Y
Can Write	Y
Can Speak English	Y
Neighbors	View others on page

Name	Age
John E Mickee	62
Rosa Mickee	47
John Mickee	22
Lillie Mickee	16

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.

Name	Rosa Mickie[Muecke]
Age in 1910	67
Birth Date	1843[1843]
Birthplace	Germany
Home in 1910	Civil District 7, Anderson, Tennessee, USA
Sheet Number	9b
Street	Frist Bottom Road
Race	White
Gender	Female
Relation to Head of House	Wife
Marital Status	Married
Father’s Birthplace	Germany
Mother’s Birthplace	Germany
Native Tongue	English
Able to read	Y
Able to Write	Y
Enumeration District Number	0008
Years Married	33
Number of Children Born	8
Number of Children Living	6
Enumerated Year	1910
Neighbors	View 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:

If you enjoy reading my blog, please leave a comment or subscribe.

March 3, 2025

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.

September 25, 2024

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

Sophia Hermina Louisa Ontrup 1860-1934

Sophia Hermina Louisa Ontrup was born 17 June 1860 in Bielefeld and died 11 June 1934 in Galkhausen, Germany. Her calling name was Louisa. She was my maternal Great Grandmother. Louisa’s parents were the damask weaver, Christian Friedrich Wilhelm Ontrup, and Henriette Sophie Friedericke Hagemann. The couple had at least eleven children including Louisa.

Louisa got married to my Great Grandfather, the locksmith, Emil August Ferdinand Schneider, 12 May 1883, in Gadderbaum which is now part of Bielefeld. His calling name was Ferdinand.

Below is their marriage certificate

The certificate first states the name of the groom, Ferdinand, and his parents, the diseased master armorer, Martin August Eduard Schneider, and the widowed Caroline Francisca Amalie Büttner who lived in Berlin at the time of the marriage. It also the states the name of the bride, Louisa, and her parents which I mentioned already at the beginning of the blog. On the second page the witnesses and the bride and groom signed the certificate. Louisa and Ferdinand had at least nine children together, one of them was my Grandfather, Theodor Alexander Schneider. The oldest child was born in Bielefeld, the rest of them were born in Wuppertal.

Above is Louisa with two of her daughters, my Great Aunts, Anna on the left and Frieda on the right.

Louisa died 11 June 1934 in a hospital in Galkausen, near Düsseldorf.

Above his death certificate which dates her name, the death date, her birth date and the city she was born in. Please note, that German death certificates do not have a doctor’s signature. The registry office will issue the certificate.

Above is a map of where Louisa lived. She was born in Bielefeld, got married in Gadderbaum, lived most of her life in Wuppertal and died in Galkhausen.

June 16, 2024

Barbara Wippel 1881-1933

Barbara Wippel was my husband’s paternal Great Grandmother. She was born 28 May 1881 and died 3 February 1933 in Ludwigshafen am Rhein in Germany. Her parents were Heinrich Wippel and Elisabetha Hochdörfer.

Above is Barbara’s birth certificate from Ludwigshafen. It shows her Father and Mother and their ages. He was 45 years old and quite a bit older than her Mother who was only 32 years old at the time of her birth.

Barbara got married to my husband’s Great Grandfather, Johann Christoph Päbst, 29 September 1906 in Ludwigshafen am Rhein. Most marriage certificates will have two pages. Here is the first page:

Under number 1 the groom is named and that his parents live in Ludwigshafen am Rhein. A side not the right, states the groom died 12 January 1916. Under number 2, the bride is named and that her Father lives in Ludwigshafen am Rhein and that her Mother died in the same city. A side note to the right states that the bride died 3 February 1933. The second page has different information as seen below.

Under number 3 and 4 the witnesses signed the certificate. To the left of the witnesses are more side notes. These notes state the birth of the twins Herbert and Lothar in 1913 and their respective marriage dates. Underneath is the birth of another son, Ottmar, who was born in 1907 and got married twice. The second marriage was in 1957, the first one is unknown. Barbara and Johann had six children together. The second oldest, Werner Päbst, was my husband’s Grandfather.

Barbara became a widow in 1916 when Johann died. She had a young family to provide for and got quickly married to her second husband, Phillip Friedrich Schneider, 6 March 1917 in Ludwigshafen am Rhein.

The marriage certificate has the same layout as the first one. Under number 1 the groom’s name is stated and that he was born in Pirmasens and that his parents had died there. Under number 2 it states the bride’s name and that she is a widow and that her Father lives in Ludwigshafen. Her Mother died in Ludwigshafen am Rhein.

Above is once again the second page of the marriage certificate. Under number 3 and 4 are the witness. To the left of the witnesses, once again more side notes. This time you can see 4 children and their respective marriages. Philip Anton born 1918, Renate Ann Else born 1921, Manfred Jakob born 1922 and Edgar Adolf born 1920. All four children were born in Ludwigshafen am Rhein.

Unfortunately Barbara lost her second husband in 1925. The older children had to pitch in and help raise the family. Barbara died in 1933 leaving behind a large family. The second oldest, my husband’s Grandfather, Werner Päbst took on the responsibility of taking care of the family.

Barbara was only 51 years old when she died. She was widowed twice and left behind 10 children.

Above is her death certificate. I have a picture of eight of her children.

All ten of her children had families of their own and were successful in their careers. My husband’s Grandfather is the handsome man on the right side of the picture.

June 10, 2024

Theodor Alexander Schneider 1898-1990

My maternal Grandfather, Theodor Alexander Schneider, war born on March 1st, 1898 in Elberfeld and died February 12th, 1990 in Düsseldorf, Germany. His parents were the locksmith, Emil August Ferdinand Schneider from Berlin and Sophia Hermina Louisa Ontrup from Bielefeld.

His birth certificate from the registry office states that my Great Grandfather appeared and gave the following information. The street he lived on, that he was not affiliated with any religion and that his wife had given birth to a son in their apartment. The child was given the names Theodor Alexander. He then signed his name and the registrar as well and the document was dated. On the bottom right you can see a side note which stated that my Grandfather died 1990 in Düsseldorf and the number of the certificate is number 1176. I have written about these side note in a previous blog. They can be of utmost importance in your research in German genealogy. I was surprised to see that my Great Grandfather had left the Lutheran church. I am still not sure if my Grandfather was ever baptized. Some of those records were destroyed during WWII.

My Grandfather fought in France in WW1.

I have no idea when and where this picture was taken. WW1 military records from Elberfeld which now belongs to Wuppertal, were also destroyed during WWII.

I called my Grandfather “Opa”. Most of the people he knew called him Alex the short form for Alexander. I didn’t know about his name Theodor until I had received a copy of his birth certificate. Opa loved to tell stories, I just wished I had written them all down. When he lived in Elberfeld, he told me that his Mother would bring him lunch at the factory. He probably finished school in 8th grade and had to go to work.

Opa love to eat eel, he would buy some from the local fish market. Fresh eel didn’t look very appetizing to me and I never had to eat them. Opa also loved to read and do crossword puzzles. At one time he had a canary he enjoyed. He called him Hansi and the little bird would sing many different songs. Every morning Opa would get up, make the bed, make breakfast for him and my Oma (Grandmother) and go for his morning walk. He would buy the local newspaper and play lotto once a week, I don’t remember him ever winning it big, I probably would have heard about that. He loved his pipe and I will always remember that smell.

Here is my Opa with his beloved pipe. The picture was taken in 1971 in Düsseldorf-Heerdt where he lived with my Oma.

Opa was born in a very famous town, Elberfeld which now belongs to Wuppertal. Wuppertal is world famous for the “Schwebebahn” suspension railway.

Opa loved his five grandchildren and we loved him. When we gathered around the table to eat a meal, Opa was the boss. He always sat at the head of table. We children had to behave, there was no complaining allowed. We could not get up from the table until every one was finished eating. We then got up and help clear the table and head to the kitchen and do the dishes. It was expected of us and we liked doing it. We loved and respected our Opa.

Opa had eight sibling, at least six of them lived to adulthood. He was the second youngest. He never talked about them, I only found them through my research. I have a picture of the five sisters together.

The picture is a colorized version from the original. It might have been taken near Wuppertal where the family grew up. These are all my Great Aunts.

Opa died in March of 1990 at the age of 92. I still miss him. I wished I could talk to him one more time about his life and his family.

March 2, 2024

Johann Ernst Muecke 1837-1920

I am participating in Amy Johnson Crow’s 52 ancestors in 52 weeks challenge.

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Themes for 2024

Johann Ernst Muecke is my husband’s 2x Great Grandfather and he was born on 8 Feb 1837 in Markersdorf, Moravia, Austria. At present the town is called Markvartovice and it is located in the Czech Republic. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Markvartovice

Johann’s parents were Ernst Johann Mücke and Johanna Tögel. Johann married Rosina Schneider 24 April 1863 in Zauchtel, Moravia, Austria. Zauchtel is nowadays called Suchdol nad Odrou and is also in the Czech Republic. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suchdol_nad_Odrou

A postcard from the 1920’s of Suchdol nad Odrou, that I own.

Johann Muecke and Rosina Schneider lived in Hof, Moravia, Austria where all of their children were born except for Lilly Muecke who was born in Tennessee.

A postcard of Hof in Mähren from my postcard collection.

Johann and Rosina settled together with their children in Oliver Springs between 1883 and 1884. A son, Adolph Mücke was born in 1881 and died in Hof in 1883. The daughter, Lilly Muecke, was born in 1884 in Oliver Springs. I have not been able to find any immigration records for this family.

Johann and Rosina had at least nine children together:

Rosina 1864-1960 (My husband’s Great Grandmother), Augusta 1867-1899, Julia 1870-1956, Earnest John 1871-1951, Charles 1875-1945, John Ernest 1877-1956, William 1880-1880, Adolph 1881-1883, Lilly Elizabeth 1884-1980, Joseph 1889-1889.

Johann died on 6 March 1920 in the Eastern State Hospital in Bearden, Tennessee. He is buried in the Oliver Springs, Tennessee, cemetery. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/39213166/john-ernst-muecke

February 15, 2024

Witness To History

I am participating in Amy Johnson’s Crow

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Themes for 2024

I know that both sets of my Grandparents lived through WW1 and WW2 in Germany. My Grandfather, Alexander Schneider, on my maternal side fought in WW1 in France. My Grandfather was kind and only told me nice stories. He learnt how to speak a little French and even taught me how to count in that language. He must have had contact with the British as well, as he would teach me my first English words. He was so proud to teach me. He also told me that he would make extra money by singing and entertaining the other soldiers. He then would send the money home to his Mother in Germany. I don’t know where in France he served. Most of the records from WW1 were destroyed in WW2. So, I will never find out. I do have a picture of my Grandfather in his WW1 uniform.