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| Eli and Florence Cayemberg nee Villers |
I found this obituary in that wonderful scrapbook of newspaper clippings that was handed down to me. I always had known when Florence died. I didn't think that her obituary would bring me any news or leads. Sometimes I can be incredibly dim...
"Mother of 10 Dies at 86
Florence Cayemberg Passes at Pulaski; Rites on Wednesday
{Handwritten - Dec 22, 1956}
Special to Press-Gazette
PULASKI, Wis. - Mrs. Florence Cayemberg, 86, Pulaski, Rt. 2 died at the home of her son, Walter, there Saturday following a lingering illness. Mrs. Cayemberg, the former Florence Villers, was a survivor of the fire which destroyed Rosiere, the area near Rosiere, Door County, At the same time of the Peshtigo fire. Saved from the burning home of her parents by a 12-year-old boy, she was less than two years old at the time.
Born at Rosiere Jan. 6, 1870 she moved with her parents to Algoma when she was nine years old. She married Eli Cayemberg April 24, 1886. The couple operated a store, cheese factory and black smith shop there until 1910, when they move to Pulaski. Her husband died in 1939.
..Survivors Are Listed
Survivors include three daughters, Mrs. Lucy Anderson and Mrs. Anastasia Moreaux, Green Bay; Mrs. Ella Cravillion [sic], Luxemburg; seven sons, Frank, Martin J. and Patrick, all of Green Bay; Henry and Wilfred of Manitowoc; Felix, Ensign, Mich., and Walter, Pulaski. A daughter, Mrs. Emily Guilette, died in 1923.
Other survivors include two sisters, Mrs. Mary LaJoi, Jamestown N. D., and Mrs. Agnes Tardiff, Edmond, Wash.; and one brother, Lewis Villers, Green Bay; 44 grandchildren, and 56 great grandchildren.
She was a member of St. Theresa Society and the Rosary Society of SS Edward and Isidore Church, Flintville, and the DAV Auxiliary, Green Bay. The body is at the Marnocha Funeral Home, Pulaski, where the Rosary will be recited tonight and Tuesday at 8 o'clock. Funeral rites will be held at 10 a.m. Wednesday in SS. Edward and Isidore Church with the Rev. Casmimir Krauklis officiating. Burial will be in the church cemetery."
Florence Cayemberg Passes at Pulaski; Rites on Wednesday
{Handwritten - Dec 22, 1956}
Special to Press-Gazette
PULASKI, Wis. - Mrs. Florence Cayemberg, 86, Pulaski, Rt. 2 died at the home of her son, Walter, there Saturday following a lingering illness. Mrs. Cayemberg, the former Florence Villers, was a survivor of the fire which destroyed Rosiere, the area near Rosiere, Door County, At the same time of the Peshtigo fire. Saved from the burning home of her parents by a 12-year-old boy, she was less than two years old at the time.
Born at Rosiere Jan. 6, 1870 she moved with her parents to Algoma when she was nine years old. She married Eli Cayemberg April 24, 1886. The couple operated a store, cheese factory and black smith shop there until 1910, when they move to Pulaski. Her husband died in 1939.
..Survivors Are Listed
Survivors include three daughters, Mrs. Lucy Anderson and Mrs. Anastasia Moreaux, Green Bay; Mrs. Ella Cravillion [sic], Luxemburg; seven sons, Frank, Martin J. and Patrick, all of Green Bay; Henry and Wilfred of Manitowoc; Felix, Ensign, Mich., and Walter, Pulaski. A daughter, Mrs. Emily Guilette, died in 1923.
Other survivors include two sisters, Mrs. Mary LaJoi, Jamestown N. D., and Mrs. Agnes Tardiff, Edmond, Wash.; and one brother, Lewis Villers, Green Bay; 44 grandchildren, and 56 great grandchildren.
She was a member of St. Theresa Society and the Rosary Society of SS Edward and Isidore Church, Flintville, and the DAV Auxiliary, Green Bay. The body is at the Marnocha Funeral Home, Pulaski, where the Rosary will be recited tonight and Tuesday at 8 o'clock. Funeral rites will be held at 10 a.m. Wednesday in SS. Edward and Isidore Church with the Rev. Casmimir Krauklis officiating. Burial will be in the church cemetery."
So what was new. Well, first off it gave the locations and names of her siblings. Sure I've located most of them already in census records but this was a supporting piece of evidence. I didn't know that her sister, Agnes' married name was Tardiff. Nor did I know that she had moved out to Washington state. This was fairly significant, because the majority of the family stayed in Wisconsin or the closely neighboring states.
I knew that Eli and Florence had owned and operated a store. I've posted pictures of it. I didn't know that it included a cheese factory and black smith shop. Super cool.
Lastly, and perhaps most significant if it is correct, is the reference to the fire she survived. Family lore always said that she survived the Peshtigo Fire, and technically this is true. The fire that burned the entire region became known as the Great Peshtigo Fire because Peshtigo and a large portion of it's population were wiped off the map. As it turns out she wasn't actually in Peshtigo, but Rosiere which was also apparently severely damaged by the great fire. I knew about the 12 year old that saved her, but again it was location that was wrong. I think some people made assumptions instead of asking proper questions. I had this past year been informed that the family was "visiting Peshtigo" when the fire broke out. Wrong. Still Florence was in danger and was saved, but I'd prefer to get the story right. Wouldn't you?
