Amanuensis Monday - Four Generations

Clipping from unknown paper dated 22AUG1944

Since I was preparing posts about the Nellis clippings/information I have I thought I'd start with this one (more in-depth stuff to come on Wednesday). As I was looking for and scanning clippings of everything Nellis I came across this one. I wasn't sure which day and blogging prompt would best suit this clipping so I opted for Amanuensis Monday. If it weren't for  Amanuensis Monday I never would have learned how to spell "amanuensis"...and would have just shared the clip some place else.

"The little girl in the foreground is Judith Nellis, representing the fourth generation of a Dyckesville family. At the left is her father, Donald Nellis. In the center is her grandmother, Mrs. Willie Nellis, and at the right is her great grandmother, Mrs. Gregory Bodart of Champion."

I don't know if Donald Nellis ever moved far from home during his lifetime. I still have pulling his obituary on my research calendar. I suppose I may find out then. What I do know is that he is buried in St. Joseph's Cemetery in Champion, Wisconsin. Maybe he stayed close to home. I know that I have clippings for the surname Bodart in my collection too. Perhaps I need to start sharing and exploring them. After all could my husband's grandmother really have only kept Bodart clippings because a cousin married a Nellis and his grandmother was a Bodart? Who knows, but there could be more to it. I'll be sure to investigate that surname soon!

Sunday's Obituary - Mary Villers nee LaCrosse

Unknown newspaper clipping*

"Mrs. Frank Villers

ROSIERE - Mrs. Frank Villers, 70, Rosiere, died Sunday afternoon at her home. The former Mary LaCrosse was born April 1, 1882, and married Frank Villers on May 20, 1913. Her husband died on Sept. 1, 1954, and four brothers and one sister also preceded her in death. She was a member of the Alter Society.

Survivors include one son, Louis, at home; one grandson, Marvin Villers; two great-grandchildren; one brother, Felix LaCrosse, Algoma; two sisters, Mrs. Emily Bero and Mrs. John Monfils, both of Rosiere.

Friends may call at Wiesner-Massart Funeral Home, Casco, after 6 tonight. The Rosary will be recited at 8 tonight and Tuesday evening. Funeral services will be at 10 a.m. Wednesday at St. Hubert Church, Rosiere, with the Rev. A. C. Kenny in charge. Burial will be in the parish cemetery.

(Handwritten - Mar 24, 1963)"

I blogged Frank Villers' obituary back in 2011. At the time I didn't know where Frank fit into my family tree. That mystery has been solved and he and his parents are placed neatly and securely in my tree. I just needed time to work on it. In the research I happened to find some other interesting morsels which I will share in a future post. Both Frank as well as Mary have memorials and tombstone photos in FindAGrave.

*This clipping was taken from a family scrapbook that was passed on to me. It isn't known which newspaper the clipping was taken from. The handwritten date appears to be the date of death and not the date that the obituary was published.

Funeral Card Friday - Terry Delveaux

Funeral Card - Terry Delveaux

Funeral Card - Terry Delveaux (reverse)

In my memorial card collection I have a funeral card for Terry Delveaux. In fact he's the only Delveaux in my collection, but not the only Delveaux in my family tree. There I have two...Richard Delveaux and Alice Dart nee Delveaux. Terry died relatively young. He was 44 years old. So it was likely that at least one of his parents survived him.

I did a search on Ancestry.com for Terry with his birth and death information included in the search and didn't come up with much. There were hits, but they were from the Wisconsin Death Index and the SSDI which confirmed the information on the memorial card. There was also a hit on the Wisconsin Marriage Index that shows Terry got married on September 15, 1973 to a woman with the surname of DeGrand. No first name is given (even when I performed a search on her). Of course it pays to not just read the transcription but to actually look at the record because when I look at the record Terry isn't married to a woman with the surname of "DeGrand." He's married to Rebecca Jean LaLuzerne. Even how old she was is off. Still none of it tells me who his parents were.

So I went to FindAGrave, but there was no memorial created for him. I then jumped on Google and did a search for "obituary Terry Delveaux" and hit gold. The first hit was an obituary for Joyce Colle-Delveaux. While she isn't one of the Delveauxs listed above she is in my family tree. Her maiden name was Cravillion and her mother was a Cayemberg. So it looks like Terry could go in my tree. The second hit was for Richard Delveaux who is one of the people in my tree...married to Joyce. As you can see by reading the obituaries (as long as the links remain active) that Terry is a child of Richard and his first wife, Lilian Massey, who died in 1989. So Terry was the step-son of Joyce. I'll still put him in my tree. I just need to link Richard to his first wife. I know plenty of people wouldn't because he's not blood related, but family isn't just about blood. Joyce is related and it was important enough that she include her step-son who predeceased her in her obituary. Her husband also predeceased her so he wasn't the one to put him in there. He was important to their family so he is important to me.

Of course we don't just put the important people in our trees (or obituaries). Sometimes important people are left out because of divorce, crimes, arguments, etc. I'll have an example of that one in the near future though.

Tombstone Tuesday - Anna Steichen nee Melzer

Close-up of Anna Steichen nee Melzer's tombstone*

Information can be wrong. It just can and if you obsess over it then it can really give you a headache. You can see in the tombstone for Anna Steichen nee Melzer that she was born on September 1, 1840 and died on April 8, 1900. The tombstone is in German, but even if you don't understand German you  should be able to figure it out. They just put the day of the month before the month and usually there is a period after the day is how they make it an ordinal number (1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, etc). The tombstone doesn't show the period. Some do some don't.

So what's wrong with the tombstone? Possibly nothing, but the information on the tombstone is slightly different from her death certificate. I had pulled her death certificate during one of my trips to the Wisconsin Historical Society. I discovered it in my Melzer file when I started dedicating time to this line in an effort to see if my Katherine Boegel nee Melzer is a child of Wenzel Melzer and Ursula Christof. I haven't made that possible connection yet, but I had pulled this certificate because when I did a search for Melzers in their search engine I got a hit on Anna Steichen...or rather Anna Steigen.

Anna Steichen nee Melzer tombstone*

That's one of the differences between the tombstone and the certificate. The "g" changing to a "ch" isn't a linguistic reach. Seeing the change when comparing the certificate and tombstone can help to soothe a genealogist that may be having a difficult time making the jump and acknowledging that this is the same person. The next difference between these two sources can be a little harder to swallow for some researchers though.

The death certificate lists her date of birth as October 15, 1840 in Germany. The tombstone has September 1st. That's a month and a half of a difference. So some researchers might freak out and think that this is a different person. It's not though. You can see that her death on the certificate is April 8, 1900 and that matches the tombstone. So why is the date of birth off? You need to remember that both the death certificate and the tombstone are not primary sources of information. They are created based on the information submitted to the county in the case of the certificate and the information submitted to the person/company that made the tombstone. The information could have been written down incorrectly or the person submitting it could have just been not thinking clearly. They are grieving after all. This death certificate also doesn't tell you who is submitting the information. It most likely was a family member, but you don't know who. I don't have a birth certificate or baptismal record for Anna, but I'd lean toward the information on the tombstone being more accurate. I know if a family member's dates or name came back wrong on the tombstone I'd be more likely to tell them to go fix it. Still, either could be correct or both could be wrong. It still doesn't change the fact that this is the correct record.

All of those details while important weren't the focus of my retrieving this record. This record shows that Anna is a child of Wenzel Melzer and Ursula Christof (photo bottom left). Anna is also buried in St. Kilian's Cemetery (photo bottom right) with Joseph who is believed to be a child of Wenzel and Ursula and Katherine Boegel nee Melzer who may be a child of Wenzel and Ursula. Joseph's obituary doesn't name Anna or Katherine or his parents. That made it incredibly unhelpful in attempting to link my Melzer line with his. I don't know if Anna's obituary will show her siblings. She died in 1900 so she may not even have a very detailed obituary in the newspaper, but now that I know who her parents were and know when she died I can add that to my to-do list, AKA my research calendar, and see if it takes me anywhere.

(*Thank you to John Uhlman who gave permission for me to use the photos from his FindAGrave memorial for Anna Steichen nee Melzer!)

Here you can see that she died in Wayne, Washington
County, Wisconsin and is buried in St. Kilian's

You can see Anna's name, her parents' names,
her DOB and death, and husband's
name

Honoring a Friend

What a wonderful picture! SFC Sandoval went to Arlington National Cemetery to pay respects to a mutual friend, colleague, and mentor of our, CSM Christopher Alan Raines. Chris was my First Sergeant and Command Sergeant Major when I was a Drill Sergeant at the Defense Language Institute and he knew my hubby (a retired First Sergeant) back when they were both young military pups. Thank you for doing this, Rico.

Military Monday - Memorial Day is Not for Me

That title might be a bit confusing. I don't mean that I don't celebrate Memorial Day. I mean that I don't expect or want you to thank me for serving on Memorial Day. There's a holiday to thank me and other veterans and it's called Veterans Day. Memorial Day is the day that we remember those who gave their lives in the service of their country.

Memorial Day is for people like this man:

And this man:

And this one:

And this one:

Last, but certainly not least, two Soldiers that went through the Defense Language Institute when I was a Drill Sergeant. First is Andrew James Creighton...a sweetheart of a Soldier. I don't think there was a single one of us who wasn't proud of him and heart-broken when we got the news that AJ Creighton died in Afghanistan. You can see a very touching tribute to AJ here and read more about this man's life here.

Second, Jacques Earl "Gus" Brunson. He went to DLI for awhile before reclassing Infantry. He kept in touch with the drills after leaving and we knew he was in Iraq collecting items to give to the Iraqi children. He was in the National Guard and volunteered for this tour in Iraq because it would be better money for his two children. He was the first casualty for our cadre of Drill Sergeants to hear of.

These Soldiers may not have been members of my family tree, but they are members of my Army family.

That's not to say that there aren't women that need remembering, but I don't have any in my family tree to be memorialized on this day.

As far as family traditions Memorial Day seemed to have little to do with the military in my family. Memorial Day was the time when flowers were placed on the graves of all of my ancestors. My mother still treks to the old family cemeteries each year to visit their graves. I make the trek as a part of going home, but not as a part of Memorial Day. I probably would if I lived anywhere near "home," but I don't.

I actually like the thought of remembering ancestors on Memorial Day even if it isn't the intent of the holiday (you can read more about Memorial Day here), but I still don't want to be thanked for my service today. What I want is for you to remember those that died so you could live in the country and world you do...even with all its flaws. When you're grilling and sitting in the backyard having a beer have a drink in honor of those men and women that made the ultimate sacrifice.

Sunday's Obituary - Elizabeth Melzer nee Batzler

Fond du Lac Commonwealth Reporter
07FEb1962, pg 26

"Mrs. Joseph Melzer

Funeral services for Mrs. Joseph Melzer, Town of Wayne, will be Friday at 10 a.m. at St. Killian church at St. Killian.

Mrs. Melzer died Tuesday at St. Joseph's hospital, West Bend. She was born Elizabeth Batzler April 17, 1903, in the Town of Wayne, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Jacob Batzler. On Nov. 15, 1927, she married Joseph Melzer at St. Killian.

Surviving are her widower; two sons, Robert, Town of Wayne, and Joseph, Jr., at home; one sister, Miss Anne Batzler, Town of Wayne; and three brothers, Oscar, Town of Ashford, and Joseph, Town of Wayne.

Friends may call at Miller's Funeral home, Kewaskum, after 2 p.m. Thursday. Burial will be in the parish cemetery."

I previously shared Elizabeth's husband's obituary here. She is buried in St. Kilian Catholic Cemetery and has a memorial on FindAGrave. Her funeral cards (below) were also passed on to me by my mother-in-law. I had posted them before, but thought I'd include them here as well.

Also something to keep in mind is that the city and parish of Saint Kilian is sometimes seen with one "L" and sometimes with two. People weren't always sticklers for spelling.

While her obituary doesn't give me any information that helps me link her husband's Melzer line to mine it does provide information on family that I may need to add to my tree if I ever make that connection. It's there. I can feel it, but it's still eluding me...

Funeral card -Elizabeth Melzer

Funeral card -Elizabeth Melzer (reverse)

Funeral Card Friday - Mary Melzer

Funeral card - Mary Melzer

Funeral card - Mary Melzer (reverse)

Mary Melzer nee Schweitzer (according to the memorial on FindAGrave and confirmed by an earlier obituary post I made on her son, Joseph) passed away on April 24th 1967. She was the wife of Frank Melzer who died in 1935. According to the Wisconsin Death Index she died in Dodge County, Wisconsin, but the SSDI has her as passing in Allenton, Washington County, Wisconsin. Whichever is correct she is buried in Saint Kilian's Catholic Cemetery in Fond du Lac County, Wisconsin. These differences don't deter me from knowing this is the right Mary since Saint Kilian is on the border of Fond du Lac and Washington counties and about 2 miles east of Dodge county. They're all right there next to each other.

I can find her in the 1940 US Census widowed and living with her son, Joseph, in Wayne, Washington County on that same farm that belonged to Mary and Frank as well as his parents before him (at least it would appear that way by using the Ancestry map feature linked in the census index).

I don't have much else on Mary. I'm researching if this Melzer line merges with mine somewhere in the 1800s and while I don't expect her obituary to help me make this connection I'll be pulling it anyway when I get the chance.

Tombstone Tuesday - Mary LaJoie nee Villers

LaJoie surname tombstone in Calvary Cemetery, Jamestown, North Dakota*

Mary D, 1872 - 1958*

I'm breaking away for a day from tracing my husband's Melzers, but there's more on them in the works!

Mary LaJoie nee Villers is my husband's 2nd great aunt and sister to Florence. I'm always delighted when I find new information on Florence's siblings. Much of the family research on my husband's family doesn't go laterally, but I always enjoyed discovering where those lines went. Where new cousins can be found. Sometimes that's the best way to break brick walls. Perhaps that cousin knows something that I don't. Lateral lines are too often ignored, but can be oh so important.

In my discovery for Mary's FindAGrave memorial and subsequent photo I also discovered her obituary transcribed in it. Now a good genealogist isn't going to just cut that and paste it into their own work. I'll be looking for the Jamestown Sun for July 3, 1958 and grab a copy for my records. I'll verify that nothing was transcribed wrong, but I'll have the record. I'll also keep in mind that while obituaries aren't primary sources of information they are valuable. The people submitting them are mourning and errors are possible even if the newspaper printed everything exactly as they were told. The information in there will help me with dates to get a death certificate as well as know who survives Mary and who predeceased her.

Mary was a tricky bit in my research. Her name seemed to vary in records and I had her down as a very long "Mary Ann Mina Octavia Villers" in my family tree. I had known that she married Felix LaJoie, but this memorial and obituary on FindAGrave helped to firm that up a bit. I look forward to seeing what new information I might find from what was posted on this memorial!

*Images posted with kind permission from FindAGrave contributor BJ Brewer. Thank you!

Amanuensis Monday - A Brief Note on Eugene Villers

I previously shared a post on the tombstone for Eugene Villers. While I was unable to find an obituary for him I did find a death notice in The Ahnapee Record. A very brief notice. Perhaps there was a longer one in another paper or perhaps I just missed it entirely. I'll freely admit that I hate, hate, hate, hate, HATE searching pre-1900 newspapers. The type is so small and I don't often find what I'm looking for. I have yet to discover the method to their publishing madness. I'm fairly certain I was nearly blind by the time I found this notice and was deliriously happy to have found anything.

The Ahnapee Record, 14JUN1883, pg3

"Eugene Villers, of Lincoln, father of M. Joseph Villers, of this city, died last Sunday. The funeral took place Tuesday from Rosiere church, Rev. F. Valliant officiating."

I put down on my research calendar that I need to look in the Lincoln and Rosiere newspapers. Now that I know where he died and was laid to rest I may be able to find something more there.

Sunday's Obituary - Joseph Melzer

The Fond du Lac Daily Reporter, 15APR1926, pg11

"Death Summons Aged Resident of St. Kilian

Joseph Melzie (sic), 84, Washington County Pioneer, Dies This Morning.

Was Native of Austria

Joseph Melzie (sic), 84, died at his home a mile east of St. Kilian at 6 a.m. today of the infirmities of old age. He had been confined to his bed for a week.

The deceased was born July, 30, 1841, in Austria. In 1867 he came to America with his parents and settled on a farm in the Town of Wayne, Washington county, where he has since resided. On Nov. 22, 1867 he married to Miss Katherine Wondra who survives him.

Besides his widow, Mr. Melzei (sic) leaves four daughters, Mrs. Margaret Wahlen and Mrs. Barbara Kohler of St. Kilian, and Mrs. Katherine BeBoe (sic) and Mrs. Julia Schmidt of Milwaukee, on son, Frank Melzel (sic) at home, and 11 grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.

The funeral will be held Saturday at 10 a.m. from the St. Kilian Catholic church with burial in the adjoining cemetery. The Rev. J.B. Reichel wil (sic)conduct the services."

The Fond du Lac Daily Reporter, 17APR1926, pg12

"MELZIE (sic) - Funeral services for Joseph Melzie (sic), aged resident of St. Kilian, were conducted at 10 a.m. today from the St. Kilian Catholic church. The Rev. J.B. Reichel officiated and burial took place in the adjoining cemetery."

So Joseph's surname is spelled wrong...throughout the entire obituary. At least they were consistent! They even continued to get it wrong in the burial notice. If I hadn't known his location and date of death and had been trolling the newspaper I wouldn't have realized that this was someone to look more closely at.

Something I noticed when I compared Joseph's obituary to his wife, Katherine's,...in her obituary it states that Joseph and Katherine were married in Austria before coming to the U.S., but in his it implies that the marriage took place in America. It's only an inference, but as you can see in the obituary above that it mentions marrying her in 1867 and then talks about coming to the U.S. in late November of that year. It could be that they arrived after a marriage in late November, but it gives me enough reason to see if the church has a record of them marrying here. Finding a passenger list would be helpful too, but so far no luck.

Another nice thing about Joseph's obituary that was not so nice about Katherine's....her maiden name is actually listed her, but was omitted from hers. Now I know her maiden name was Wondra and that's a name that I've heard mentioned once or twice by my mother-in-law. I don't know if it will be a lead that will help me figure out where/if these Melzers link into my tree, but it's something else to go on!

Remembering Dad

 

Patrick Wallace Cayemberg Jr.

Born July 23, 1933, Red River, Wisconsin

Died May 15, 2010, Green Bay, Wisconsin

(This is a repost of sorts to memorialize my father-in-law. It's hard to believe that it's been five years since we lost him. His loss is still felt everyday by those who loved him. He touched so many lives and is missed more than I could possibly say.)

It was five years ago today, my husband, sons and I began a drive from Killeen to Green Bay, Wisconsin to celebrate my mother and father-in-law's 50th wedding anniversary.  We hadn't made it past Dallas when we got the call that dad had died.  It was completely unexpected and devastating to the whole family.  What was supposed to be a joyous celebration turned into what would be a series of indescribably sad days.

I have a wonderful mother, step-father, and sisters and I added to that wonderful family an extraordinary set of in-laws that I love terribly.  Losing my father-in-law was like losing a father and his absence is felt every single day.  I know he watches over all of us and is able to see his family's accomplishments and his grandchildren's milestones.  I can find some small solace in the fact that dad died the day after their 50th anniversary (the party we were traveling up for was to be the following weekend) and that dad passed while doing something he loved...volunteering.

So today, this post is in your memory, dad.  You went on ahead of us to prepare the way.  Until that day when you welcome each of us home...we love you.

"Patrick W. Cayemberg, 76, Green Bay resident, passed away unexpectedly, Saturday, May 15, 2010 while volunteering at the Cellcom Green Bay Marathon. He was born July 23, 1933 in Red River, Wisconsin to the late Patrick and Laura (Laurent) Cayemberg. Patrick was a graduate of Green Bay East High School, class of 1951. He served his country as a member of the U.S. Army from 1954 to 1956, earning a Commendation as Specialist 3.

On May 14, 1960 he married Dolores (Lorie) Kuehl, with whom they had just celebrated 50 years of marriage. Pat “Big Daddy” worked for Schneider Transport as a truck driver for over 30 years. He enjoyed baking cookies, camping, country music festivals, making chicken booyah, gardening and wintering in Arizona. He loved Monday night dinners with the family, spending time with his grandchildren, volunteer work and going to the Friday night fish fry. Pat was an active member of the Knights of Columbus, SS. Peter and Paul Parish, the Teamsters Local 75 and the American Legion.

Survivors include his wife Dolores; four daughters: Cindy (Michael) Kolb, and Kent; Bonnie Cayemberg and Max Herrscher; Lori Ann (Joseph) Frisbie, Sam and Jackson; Karen (Bruce) Butterfield, Erik (Kristina), Vincent, and Delaney, all of Green Bay; one son, Richard (Cheryl) Cayemberg, Benjamin and Daniel, Killeen, TX. He is also survived by three brothers: Roland, Green Bay; Darold, Vulcan, MI; Glen (Sarah), Union Grove, WI; four sisters-in-law, Lorraine Ryan, Eden, WI; Alice Wood, Eden, WI; Helen Beisbier, Kewaskum, WI; Marge (Joe) Konkel, Wind Lake, WI; and many other nieces, nephews, relatives and friends.

In addition to his parents, Patrick and Laura Cayemberg, he was preceded in death by his father and mother-in-law, Romand and Leona Kuehl; brother, Wayne Cayemberg; sisters-in-law, Shirley Cayemberg, and Patsy Cayemberg; brothers-in-law, Vincent Ryan, Richard List, Donald Wood, and Alois Beisbier, great niece, Brittany Cayemberg and great nephew Jake Stanke.

Friends may call at the Proko-Wall Funeral Home, 1630 E. Mason St., on Tuesday (TODAY) from 4 to 7 p. m. Knights of Columbus Rosary Service 6:30 p.m. Parish wake service 7 p.m. Visitation will continue on Wednesday at SS. Peter and Paul Catholic Church, corner of University Ave and Baird St., after 9:30 a.m. until the time of service. Mass of Christian Burial 10:30 a.m. at the church with Msgr. Roy Klister officiating. Entombment will take place at Nicolet Memorial Gardens. Online condolences may be sent to Patrick’s family at www.prokowall.com. In lieu of other expressions of sympathy, a memorial fund is being established. The family would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to the volunteers, medical personnel, first responders and the ER staff at St. Vincent Hospital for their care and consideration.

Roll on Big Daddy, Roll on…"

Funeral Card Friday - Frank Melzer

Frank Melzer funeral card

Frank Melzer is the son of Joseph and Katherine Melzer nee Wondra. He is listed as living at home with his parents in his father's obituary. That makes it sound like a kid that lives in his parents' basement, but it's more likely that Frank was the head of the household. This can be confirmed by looking in the 1920 US Federal Census with Frank listed as the head and his parents living with him in Wayne, Washington County, Wisconsin along with his wife (Mary), and two children (Herman and Sophia).

In the 1910 Census we can see all of the above players again, but Herman was "Joseph H." This isn't uncommon when parents gave their children a family (and usually very common) name. My mother's name is Mary, but she goes by her middle name, Alice, because her mother was also Mary. Joseph H may have been referred to as Herman when he was older for convenience so people knew which Joseph people were talking about around the household. Earlier references to him as Joseph instead of by his middle name could simply have been the family enumerating him by his legal name.*

Frank Melzer funeral card
(reverse side)

In fact Frank was the head of the household all the way back to the 1905 Wisconsin Census with his wife, Mary, and his parents living with him. Sophia wasn't born yet, but Joseph is there. Looking ahead to the 1930 census we see that Joseph would become the head of the household with his wife (Elizabeth) and parents (Frank and Mary) residing with him.

We can easily find Frank all the way back in the 1880 census as "Franz" living with Joseph and Katharina as well as his siblings: Margaretha, Barbara, and Katharina. In the 1900 Census he's still "Franz" living with his parents, but Margaretha and Barbara are gone. "Katie" is there as is a new sister, Julia. These five children of Joseph and Katherine match up with those listed in Joseph's obituary. Frank's mother lists in the 1900 Census that she had five children and five were still living so we can assume that there were no other siblings to Frank that may have died young. Frank taking over as head of the household five years after this census and his mother being in her late 50s in the 1900 Census lends further credibility to this assumption.

Frank is buried in the Saint Kilian Catholic Cemetery in Saint Kilian, Fond du Lac, Wisconsin. He has a memorial on FindAGrave created by John Uhlman. His wife, Mary, is buried with him.

*After setting this post to publish I came across a birth record that I had copied from the Wisconsin Historical Society regarding Frank and Mary's son Joseph...or Herman. While I can't post the entire birth certificate on here (WHS doesn't want that last I checked) I can share part of it.

Registration of Births, Washington County,
Wisconsin (WHS)

As you can see his name is listed on his birth certificate as Herman J. Melzer (although that last "e" does look like an "a" but if you look at the other "e" they all look that way). Just to show that this is the correct Melzer I made sure to crop it so you can see that this is the child of Franz Melzer and Mary (Maria here, but they are interchangeable most times) Schwiezer (missing the "t") born on August 23, 1902. Instead of editing the information above I chose to show the addition here, because the way people sometimes switch using their first and middle names is still good information for researchers to remember. In his obituary he it was switched to Joseph H. I'm fairly certain that no one bothered to go through the legal documents to actually change the name though. Don't get too hung up on names though. When you know it's the right person these variants don't matter too much. After all I'm legally "Cheryl" but I grew up thinking I was "Cherie" because my parents after naming me said I looked more like a Cherie than a Cheryl. They just never changed my birth certificate. It happens. Don't let it confuse you. Hopefully my descendants won't be too confused either!

(This funeral card was passed on to me by my mother-in-law with a large number of funeral cards that her family collected throughout their lives.)

Wedding Wednesday - Dugan-Quirk Wedding

I've blogged about Bessie Quirk and Dennis Dugan before, but it wasn't until I started talking to one of Dennis' descendants and going through my Dugan files that I realized I had never shared the newspaper clipping for their wedding. There's some good information there including where Dennis was originally from, Bessie's relocation to Bethlehem with her husband, and where Dennis was working.

The newspaper was the local Hazleton paper. The date is the beginning of October 1917 and in October 1917 The Daily Standard was replaced by the Standard-Sentinel. There was also The Plain Speaker at that time. Which one it was will most likely remain a mystery since the papers from this time period are not included in the Hazleton Public Library's holdings. I only have a copy because it was glued to the inside of an old family album.

I may not have any cousins through their line, but they will always hold a place in my heart.

"Oct 2 1917 (handwritten)

Dugan-Quirk.

Miss Bessie Quirk, of Jeanesville, and Dennis Dugan, of Bethlehem were united in marriage in St. Gabriel's church, this city, at 9:15 o'clock yesterday morning by Rev. Father Fagan.  The young couple were attended by Miss Mary Quirk, a sister of the bride, ad (sic) John Dugan, a brother of the groom. Miss Mary Lynch, of this city, played the wedding march, and Prof. Peter McKernan, of St. Gabriel's church choir, rendered several solos during the ceremony.

A dinner was tendered the wedding party and a number of guests at the home of the bride, after which the newly married couple departed on a honeymoon trip of the East. Upon their return they will reside in Bethlehem.

The bride is one of this region's accomplished young women, and is a graduate of the Hazle township high school. For the past several years she has been postmistress at Jeanesville. The groom is a former resident of Beaver Brook. Since locating in Bethlehem he has won several promotions in the plant of the Bethlehem Steel Co., where he now fills a responsible position."

Tombstone Tuesday - Adelbert Boegel

Full view of the Kleinmann/Boegel marker in Holy Cross

I previously shared the funeral card I had for Adelbert Boegel and now thanks to a FindAGrave contributor I can share his tombstone!

So since I don't have much on Adelbert aside from his funeral card and what was in an old handwritten family tree I was given, I decided to do some research for this post...Adelbert can be found with his parents, Raymond and Katherine in the 1920, 1930 and 1940 census. He was single in all of those records and with spelling variations on his name (1920 - Edeberd, 1930 - Adelbert, 1940 - Adalbert). According to both the SSDI and the Wisconsin Death Index he died in Richfield, Washington County, Wisconsin although Holy Cross is in Milwaukee. I can find him in multiple U.S. City Directory listing, but only the one in 1953 list his spouse. She is another Catherine! Most have him listed as living in Fond du Lac and then later in Richfield.

Close-up of the names on the Kleinmann/Boegel marker

Catherine isn't on his tombstone though, but a Kenneth G. who died in 1980 is as is a Janet who died in 1948. Janet only has "1948" on the tombstone. That this is the year she died is my assumption because if it was for someone that was born in 1948 and hadn't passed yet there would be space for an update in the future and there isn't. So who are Janet and Kenneth G? My guess is that they are his and Catherine's children. Why do they share a tombstone with the Kleinmanns? Perhaps Catherine's maiden name was Kleinmann. The other side of the tombstone (which is not shown)  has Roland (1899-1960), Barbara (1902-1994), and Kenneth (1924-1935). Perhaps Adelbert and Catherine named their son after a brother of hers that died young? I don't know for sure, but I have Adelbert's obituary on my research calendar and I hope to be able to pull his obituary the next time I get back to Wisconsin.

Close-up names on the Kleinmann marker (reverse of Kleinmann/Boegel)

Kenneth is the son of Roland and Barbara as I can see by looking in the 1930 US Census and there was another son, Gerald/Gerold. Catherine wasn't born yet. In the 1940 Census I can see that Kenneth is no longer listed, which I would expect, but Catherine isn't there. Gerald is though so it's the same couple. Where is Catherine? Is my assumption that Roland and Barbara being her parents wrong? Is one of them her brother or sister and Kenneth was a nephew that they named a child after? I can't confirm or disprove that yet. I can easily find Roland in the 1900 through 1920 census with his parents, but there's no Catherine in there. Perhaps Barbara was her sister.

Now let's get crazier. I can't find anything for the death of Adelbert's wife, Catherine Boegel nee WhoKnowsWhat. In a public family tree I see that Adelbert is married to a Barbara that died in 1994...but that would be the Barbara on the tombstone...who I found in the census married to Roland! My head hurts. According to this public tree Barbara and Roland were married and then Barbara married Adelbert after he died. So this would be second marriages for the both of them.

I'd like to take this time to point out that you should not just take information from someone else's tree and treat it as true. I've said this before, but I'm going to say it again because it's that important...Public Family Trees are a great way to guide you down the right path, but you need to then follow up with your own research because they're also a great way to be guided down the wrong path! I put Barbara on my research calendar to pull an obituary for as well. I still need to figure out what happened to Catherine, Janet, and Kenneth G! Barbara is mentioned in the obituary for Adelbert's brother, Raymond, as his wife. It may be quite difficult to find any information on Catherine if she isn't in Adelbert's obituary.

As I continue on (and just to be more confusing) Kenneth G. wasn't the son of Adelbert and Catherine. I couldn't find a Kenneth G Boegel in the SSDI with the year range of 1961-1980, but I did find a Kenneth G. Kleinmann born on 06JUL1961 and died on 31OCT1980. Time to pull another obituary because I need to see more about this Kenneth. He may not even be the child of Barbara and Roland. He was born after Roland's death and too long after his death for it to be Roland's...not to mention Barbara was a little too old to be having children at 60-something. Perhaps it was a grandchild. Who knows. I certainly don't.

So one little post about sharing a Boegel tombstone opened up a lot more questions than I ever expected to get. It seems that Adelbert is the only Boegel really on that tombstone. Stay tuned until I can get those obituaries pulled!

(A very big thank you to FindAGrave contributor Phillip #46971271 for permission to share the photos he took of the Kleinmann/Boegel tombstone in Holy Cross Cemetery and Mausoleum. They may be "just a rock with letters on them," but they mean so much. Thank you!)

Sunday's Obituary - Mrs. Catherine Melzer

Fond du Lac Daily Reporter,
06MAY1926, pg3

"Widow Expires Within Three Weeks of Mate

Mrs. Catherine Melzer, Age 83, Dies From Pneumonia at St. Kilian Home.

Wayne County Pioneer

Three weeks after the death of her husband, Mrs. Catherine Melzer of St. Kilian, age 83, expired at 1 a.m. today at the home of her son, Frank, in St. Kilian following five days illness from pneumonia.

The deceased was born Jan. 6, 1843, in Austria and was married there in 1867 to the late Joseph Melzer. Coming to America shortly after their marriage they settled in the Town of Wayne.

Besides her son, Mrs. Melzer leaves four daughters, Mrs. Margaret Wahlen and Mrs. Barbara Kohler of St. Kilian and Mrs. Kate De Voe and Mrs. Julia Schmidt of Milwaukee. 11 grandchildren and four great grandchildren.

The funeral will be held at 9 a.m. Saturday from St. Kilian Catholic church. The Rev. John Reichel will officiate. Burial will be in the adjoining cemetery."


"MELZER - The funeral of Mrs. Catherine Melzer of St. Kilian, who died Thursday was held at 9 a.m. today from St. Kilian Catholic church. The Rev. John Reichel officiated. Burial was in the adjoining cemetery."

I've blogged about my Katherine Boegel nee Melzer before and pointed out that this isn't her. Her name was Boegel when she passed. I've questioned who this Katherine Melzer was and posted her funeral card before too. I've wanted to find out more and even came up with some research plans to do it, but it never seemed to happen. The best intentions in the world derailed by too much on my plate. I finally sat down with a cup of tea and my computer and decided that I'm going to dedicate some time to this Katherine and my Melzer line. I'm awaiting responses to emails and have slapped some stuff down in my research calendar for this summer. I've gotta keep plugging away until something gives!

Fond du Lac Daily Reporter, 08MAY1926, pg12

According to the St. Kilian Catholic Church listing I found on the Campbellsport.gov website I see that my Katherine Boegel nee Melzer is buried in the same cemetery as this Joseph and Katherine Melzer (nee WhoKnowsWho since they didn't mention it in her obit...nice!). With seven Melzers buried in the same cemetery as my Katherine there has to be a connection. I'm going to do a little digging through my files and spend some serious blog time sharing what I've got on this line. If I can't get through it on my own I'm hoping a Melzer sees the blog and can offer me a sledgehammer to break through this brick wall!

Tombstone Tuesday - Frank and Alice Cayemberg

The tombstone of Frank and Alice Cayemberg in Fort Howard Memorial Park, Green Bay, Wisconsin

Frank Cayemberg is my husband's great uncle. He was born on May 14th 1889 in Lincoln, Kewaunee County, Wisconsin to Eli and Florence Cayemberg nee Villers. He was one of 14 children. On February 7th 1910 he married Caroline Nowak. Together they had two children, John and Angeline. John lived only three days. His sister Angeline lived to the age of 94 years. Caroline Nowak passed away on May 21st 1930.

On June 4th 1940 he married Alice Hendricks and together they had five children. Frank passed away on April 13th 1974. Alice passed away on July 15th 2012. They are buried in Fort Howard Memorial Park in Green Bay, Wisconsin.


(Original photo was taken by FindAGrave member Danielle Green #48004852) who has graciously given me permission to post it on this blog.  Thank you, Danielle!)

Sunday's Obituary - Mabel Dart nee Rogers

Fred and Mabel Dart -
Shrine of the Good Shepherd Mausoleum

Green Bay Press Gazette,
04FEB1991, Pg B2

"Mrs. Fred (Mabel) Dart

Mrs. Fred (Mabel) Dart, 88, Tonet, died Sunday morning, February 3, 1991 at a Green Bay nursing home after a long illness. She was born July 27, 1902 in Catawba, Wis., to the late Desire and Josephine (Bertrand) Rogers. Her family moved to the Tonet area where she later made her home with foster parents, George and Mary Adams.

Mabel Married Fred Dart on Sept. 5, 1922 at St. Martins Church, Tonet. They farmed the Dart Homestead until retirement. She was a member of the St. Ann Society of St. Martin Church.

Survivors include her husband, Fred; one daughter, Rita Delveaux, Green Bay; one son and daughter-in-law, Irvin and Betty Dart, Luxembourg; six grandchildren, Dale and Pat Dart; Kenneth and Kathy Dart; Carol and Roger Wielgus; Elaine Marin; Mary Ann and Paul Huguet; Ronald and Jeane Delveaux; 14 great-grandchildren, Keith, Kim, Kyle, Christopher, Michael, Joanne and Julie Dart; Jodi and Joe Marin; Jeff and Craig Huguet; Tamara, Jared and Cody Delveaux; and one step-brother, Clarence Rogers.

She was preceded in death by one brother, Louie Rogers; five sisters, Lucy Williams, Margaret Wilson, Libbie Malcore, Irene Jonet and Effie Rogers; one step-sister, Stella Rogers; and two step-brothers, Roy and Elmer Rogers.

Friends may call at McMahon Funeral Home, Luxemburg, from 2 to 9 p.m. Tuesday and prior to the funeral on Wednesday. St. Ann Society Rosary 7 p.m. Tuesday. Wake service 8 p.m. Tuesday. Funeral 10:30 a.m. Wednesday at St. Martin Church, Tonet, with the Rev. Richard Kleiber officiating. Entombment in Shrine of the Good Shepherd Mausoleum."

Mabel Dart nee Rogers was the wife of my husband's 2nd cousin once removed, Fred Dart. Fred was the son of Charles Dart and grandson of Eugene and Josephine Dart nee Hermans.