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

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.

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!

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.)

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!

Funeral Card Friday - Elizabeth Melzer

Ah, Melzer!  A German family name on my mother-in-law's side.  Katherine Melzer is the Melzer I am familiar with.  She married William Boegel Sr on 13OCT1874, but this isn't Katherine so who is she? Katherine is the only Melzer in my tree.  She is the root Melzer, or as many would say, the brick wall.  I have no one farther back in her line.  Her funeral card was in a large box filled with family funeral cards, so she's someone.  Let's get to work.

Elizabeth Melzer, born 17APR1903...died 06FEB1962.  Not old at all by today's standards.  Beyond that, the funeral card tells me little apart from that and the fact that she was Catholic (note the "indulgences" at the bottom of the card.  Does any other faith do that?).

I did a search on Ancestry.com for "Elizabeth Melzer" born in 1903 +/- 2 years and got a hit in the 1930 census.  If this is my Elizabeth (and I believe it is) she was married to Joseph Melzer.  At the time of the census they had only been married for 2 years and had no children, but had Frank's parents, Frank and Mary, living with them.  This still doesn't tell me everything I need to know about Elizabeth, but it's a start.  We know that she was married and that Melzer was not her birth name.  Another hint in this census that leads me to believe that this is the right Elizabeth?....they live right next door to John and Dora Kuehl...my mother-in-law's grandfather.

1930 US Federal Census

That's certainly not proof, but we do know that our ancestors tended to live near one another.  They frequently stayed in family and ethnic groups.  Of course, my parents generation through to the current one pretty much threw that out the window.  Good for them...harder for future genealogists!

Looking through the rest of the search results there was one other Elizabeth Melzer that could have fit into this puzzle, but she was in Cook county, IL.  It's possible, but not as likely so I ruled that one out.  As I continued scanning through the results I came across another funeral card...the same funeral card I have.  The Elizabeth in this family tree was also listed as married to Joseph Melzer.  So while online family trees can be filled with holes big enough to drive a bus through, they can at least help to point us in the right direction and according to this, Elizabeth's maiden name was Batzler.  Another surname familiar to me, but not directly in our line.  There could be something to this!

I will be pulling Elizabeth's obituary when I go home to Wisconsin, but until then I continued...the 1940 census had Elizabeth and Joseph with a son, Robert, and Joseph's mom still living with them as a widow (rest in peace Frank Melzer).  The Kuehls are still living nearby too.  Good news.  Then I look one page ahead for "Batzler"...nothing.  Then one page behind...bingo!  Page 18 of the census for Wayne, Washington, Wisconsin was Joseph and Marcella Batzler.  Her parents?  Nope.  This Joseph is only 35.  Her brother?  Don't know.  According to the family tree I found, it's possible that this could be her brother.  Her father's name was allegedly Joseph so this could be his namesake...or not.  Again, I'll be looking for that obit when I get home.

So who is Elizabeth Melzer?  Not a Melzer by birth, so if I want to see if there is a connection to the Melzers in my husband's tree I need to know exactly who is Joseph Melzer?

Searching for "Joseph Melzer" born around 1903 +/- 2 years (taken from his age in the census) with a father named "Frank" gave me three hits.  The 1930 census that I had already found, a 1920 census for a Joseph Melger/Melzer born in 1910 (nope...probably not), and a hit for the Wisconsin state census for 1905.  Bingo!

Frank and Mary Melzer and their son, Joseph, were in Wayne, Washington, Wisconsin for the 1905 census, and living with Frank is none other than his parents, Joseph and Mary Melzer!  Again, looking good for the home team, but still lots to do, because I don't have a Joseph and Mary Melzer in my tree! Just keep swimming, just keep swimming....

So I didn't get hits for Frank Melzer in the 1910 and 1920 census so I took out his first name and just searched based on his last name and estimated date of birth...and I got the 1910 census.  Yay!  Frank (here listed as Franz) and Mary now have Joseph and Sophia as children.  Frank's parents are still living with him as Joseph and KATHERINE!?!?!  Don't you love it when that happens!  She went from Mary in the Wisconsin 1905 census to Katherine in the 1910 US census.  Not to fear, because it really depends on who is giving the information and it is more than possible that her name was Mary Katherine (a fine Catholic name).  It's not proof, but I've seen names change soooooo many times that I'm not concerned....yet.

Then we get to the 1920 census and Joseph Melzer has turned into Herman J. Melzer.  My Joseph? Probably.  Age is spot on and everyone else in the household checks out from his parents, to his sister to Joseph and Katherine.  Not deterred, but BOY does it explain why people are hard to find in the census records!  Sheesh!

So it looks like Joseph's (aka Herman J., aka the future husband of Elizabeth where this all started) father Franz/Frank was born sometime around 1871.  Since Joey wasn't born in 1900 and that's our next census, we'll have to search for someone else...Franz!  Of course knowing the variations of his name I did a search for Melzer born in 1871 +/- 2 years and found my man (still in Wayne, Washington, Wisconsin)!  Joseph and Katherine (yes she's still Katherine here) have 3 children living with them.  Their children are Franz, Katie, and Julia.  Still no gold as my Katie/Katherine married William Boegel in 1874 and this Katherine was born around 1877.  Still, I'm encouraged that my mother-in-law's great grandparents, George and Margaret Rosbeck, are on this page.  Keep those relatives close!

Now Joseph Melzer (husband to Katie) was born around 1841 in Austria, Bohemia according to the census and came to America in 1867.  Can this bit of information help me?  Perhaps, but nothing firm jumped out at me.  A lot of possibilities but nothing that screams, "This is him!"

Back to the 1880 census..they're in there, and with additional children (Margaretha, Barbara, Franz and Katharina), but nothing helpful.  There was a hit for Joseph Melzer, b. 1841 on FindAGrave and he was married to a Katherine (nee Wondra) but that doesn't help too terribly much to go back.  He died on 15APR1926.  I suppose I'll be pulling that obit too.  Maybe a nugget of gold mentioning his parents or siblings.  Maybe.

So it's time to put this Melzer journey to rest.  Sadly, without a connection made, but some backward progress. I need to review my unfiled research on the Melzer family, because something tells me I have something that I'm missing here.  Some have made connections that Joseph (the one born in 1841) and my Katherine (born 1846) had the same parents...one Wenzel and Ursula Melzer nee Christoph...but I haven't found those connections yet and with Wenzel Melzer passing in 1884 there is little chance to find a good obituary (genealogically-speaking, that is).

So it's time to take a breather and then return later with a clear head.

Sunday's Obituary - Katherine Boegel

Catherine (Melzer) and William Boegel

I posted previously on how information can be wrong in obituaries and Catherine and her husband, William, were the examples I used.  I figured that it was about time to transcribe Catherine's two obituaries.  One is short, sweet and to the point (and lacking in genealogical excitement) and the other is certainly longer and filled with more detailed information.  Sadly, you can see what the obituary looks like for this longer one.  The newspaper must have been bound and when they microfilmed it the left side of the obit was a casualty.  Catherine's obituary was on the front page of the paper and on the far left side.  She was apparently important enough to have her passing make front page news, but the image doesn't do it justice.

As luck would have it the majority of the information that isn't visible in the crease is relative easy to make out, especially when comparing some things between both obituaries.  I'm a bit bummed about the name of the city/region in Austria that she was born in was lost in the microfilming process.  I haven't done any searching to recover the lost information, but at least I've got a good bit of it.  It should help (unless, of course, the information is wrong!).

Catherine and William are my husband's 2nd great grandparents.

Fond du Lac Commonwealth Reporter,  24MAY1927

"Expires at St. Kilian

Mrs. William Boegel Dies Today at Home of Son, Raymond

Although confined to her bed by illness for 10 days Mrs. William Boegel died unexpectantly at 7:50 a.m. today at the home of her son, Raymond Boegel, at St. Kilian, passing away in her sleep.  Surviving the deceased are seven children.  William of Kewaskum, John and Ray of St Kilian, Peter of St. Bridget, Mrs Catherine Bonleder of St. Kilian, Theresa at home and Mrs. Gebhart Strobel of Milwaukee.  The funeral will be held at 9 a.m. Friday from the Catholic church at St. Kilian.  Burial will be in the church cemetery."

The Campbellsport News,
26MAY1927

"Mrs. Catherine Boegel

Mrs. Catherine Boegel, age 80, passed away at the home of her son Raymond in St. Killian at 7:50 o'clock Tuesday morning following a (unk) years' illness.

Mrs. Boegel was born in Bischof (unk), Austria, December 12, 1846, and immigrated to this country at the age of 22 years settling at St. Kilian where she has since resided.  She was united in marriage to William Boegel on October 13, 1874, at St. Kilian.  Her husband preceded her in death four years ago.

She leaves to mourn four sons and three daughters namely:  William of Kewaskum; Kate (Mrs. Joseph Bonlender), John and Raymond of St. Kilian; Peter of Kewaskum; Mary (Mrs. Gebhard Strobel) of Milwaukee; and Theresa at home.  Two sisters and three brothers also preceded her in death.  She is also survived by 20 grandchildren and seven great grandchildren.

The funeral will be held Friday morning at St. Kilian's Catholic Church with burial in the adjoining cemetery.  The pallbearers are: Or(unk) Strobel of Milwaukee, Adelbert and Roman Boegel, Reynold and Oth(unk) Bonlender or St. Kilian and Ar(unk) Boegel of Theresa.  Rosemarie (Boegel) and Elvira Bonlender are the (unk) girls."

Tuesday's Tip - The Obituaries Aren't Always Right!

Fond du Lac Commonwealth Reporter, 24MAY1927

The Campbellsport News
26OCT1922

So I visited the Wisconsin Historical Society in June.  It was a long day and I was so absorbed in my research that I forgot to eat or drink the entire time I was there (fellow genealogists can understand this completely) and by 4:00pm my head and stomach were starting to hurt so it was time to start the 2-1/2 hour drive back to Green Bay (construction...yuck!).  By the time I got back, my head was a little better, but I couldn't bring myself to look at any of my finds until the next morning.

Now maybe I'm wrong to not be looking at my finds as I get them, but honestly I don't.  I get to the WHS once, maybe twice, a year if I'm lucky and by then I've got tons to look up.  In fact, I didn't get through everything I wanted to yesterday, but I did get through 3/4 of it.  Saturday morning as I sat down with my coffee and my printouts I showed my mother-in-law the obituaries for her great grandparents, William and Katherine Boegel nee Melzer.  I was bummed about the fact that Katherine's was scanned from a newspaper that was apparently bound and her obit was on the inside edge so part of it is unreadable, but we enjoyed looking at them, and then I noticed it....

The Campbellsport News
26MAY1927

In both Katherine and William's obituaries it states that they were preceded in death by their spouse.  Did I have the wrong Katherine or William?  I was confused and concerned.  I pulled both obituaries with dates that I had from their tombstone and they were on the same tombstone!  I found it hard to believe that there were two Katherine or William Boegels that died on the same day in the same town.  I then compared the rest of the obituary.  Same kids.  Same wedding date.  The newspaper had made a mistake.  I'm sure Katherine must have been delighted when reading her husband's obituary that she died years before.  She may have felt like it at the time, but I assure you she was quite alive.

I know those of us that have been researching our families (or other families) for more than a hot second, already know that obituaries, death certificates, etc can have mistakes in them, but the death of a spouse in the obituary is certainly something that many of us might have used to at least narrow down a date of death for the other if it was still unknown.

Taking a line from The X-Files, "The truth is out there," we just need to figure it out amidst the details that may be leading us astray.

Sunday's Obituary - William Boegel

The Campbellsport News 26OCT1922

"Old Settler Called By Death

William Boegel, aged 73 years, died at the home of his son Raymond, in town of Ashford, last Saturday evening, after an illness of four weeks with diabetes.

Deceased was born near St. Lawrence, Wis., on December 21, 1848, and resided there until three years of age when he moved to the farm in town Ashford where he has since resided.  On October 13, 1874, he was married to Miss Kathryn Melzer, who preceded him in death.  He is survived by seven children, (all of whom, except William were at his deathbed) they are: William and Peter of Kewaskum, Mrs. Gerhard Strobel of Milwaukee, John, Mrs. Joe Bonlender, Raymond and Theresa living in town of Ashford.  He is also survived by two sisters, Mrs. Anna Majerus of Campbellsport and Mrs. Lizzie LaBelle of Stanley.

The funeral was held Wednesday morning at 10 o'clock from St. Killian's church, Rev. Father Reechel officiating and interment taking place in the adjoining cemetery.  The pallbearers were his six grandsons, Edgar, Erwin, Raymond and Reynold Bonlender and Roman and Oscar Boegel.

The deceased was one of our oldest settler and one of our highly respected citizens."

William Boegel is my husband's great great grandfather.  The obituary didn't tell me anything shocking there.  I knew that.  Just like I knew the names of his children and that he had at least 3 siblings.  The obituary lets me know that his sister Johanna obviously went by "Anna" and Elizabeth was obviously "Lizzie".

What I didn't know was that Anna was married to a man with the surname "Majerus".  I had her married to a John Altenhofen, and guess what?  I had no sources to support that!  I really need to get back to verifying my tree like I had started oh so long ago!  Now that doesn't mean that she wasn't married to a John Altenhofen, but it does mean that I'm got some researching to do to either verify a first marriage or rule him out.

Something else not in this obituary that I would have liked to see?  His parents' names.  I need to confirm them and it would have been helpful.  Time to order a death certificate (among other things). Back to work!

Sunday's Obituary - John Boegel

John and Bertha Boegel nee Rosbeck (sitting)

John Boegel is my husband's great grandfather.  He was the fourth son of eight born to William and Katherine Boegel nee Melzer.  William and Katherine's children were:

Unknown newspaper

William Boegel Jr (b. 25JUL1875 / d. 09AUG1939)
Maria Boegel (b. abt 1876)
Katherine Bonlender nee Boegel (b. 21FEB1877 / d. 29NOV1956)
John Boegel (b. 12NOV1878 / d. 02MAR1935)
Peter Aloysius Boegel (b. 07FEB1881 / d. 19SEP1945)
Raymond Boegel (b. 29SEP1883 / d. 10JAN1946)
Mary Strabel nee Boegel (b. 29JAN1886 / d. 20JAN1947)
Theresa Boegel (b. 08OCT1888 / d. 04JUL1949)

John married Bertha Rosbeck on April 24th, 1900 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Their children are all accounted for in the obituary below.  Their daughter, Leona, was my husband's grandmother.

The obituary is pretty standard.  Of course some of the women were merely listed as Mrs "so-and-so", but his daughter's name was actually listed with her husband.  Very interesting.  I was also impressed by the last paragraph.  It's evident that John was well respected in the community.  I wish I knew more about him!

"John Boegel

John Boegel, age 56 years, 3 months, and 10 days, a resident of the vicinity of St. Kilian, passed away at his home there at 5 a. m.  on Saturday, Mar. 2, after an illness of about a year due to a complication of diseases.

Mr. Boegel was born in the town of Ashford, Fond du Lac county, on Nov. 12, 1878.  Growing to manhood, he married Miss Bertha Rosbeck, who survives, on April 24, 1900, the couple coming to their present home 30 years ago.  Four children were born to the couple, three of whom survive their father as follows:  Roman at home, Leona (Mrs. Romand Kuehl) of St. Michaels, and Clarence of St. Kilian.  A son, Rudolph, predeceased his father 10 years ago.  Deceased also leaves one granddaughter, three sisters, and three brothers.  The brothers and sisters are William of Jackson, Peter of St. Bridget, Mrs. Gebbardt Strobel of Milwaukee, and Raymond, Mrs. Joseph Bolander, and Theresa of St. Kilian.

Funeral services for Mr. Boegel were held at 10 a. m. on Tuesday, Mar. 5, from the Miller funeral home at Kewaskum to St. Kilian's Catholic church, the Rev. John Reichl officiating.  Interment was in the parish cemetery.

Mr. Boegel was a man who filled his station in life with credit to himself, always giving the best that was in him to his family, his community, and his country.  His righteousness and sincerity gained for him the esteem of his fellow citizens and his family requited his devotion with love.  The memory of him will be kept alive by those who knew him best, the memory of a noble soul and a life that was worth living. The News extends its sympathy to the bereaved survivors."

[The clipping was hand-dated with John Boegel's date of death.  The newspaper's name and date of publication is unknown]

Tombstone Tuesday - Theresa Boegel

St. Kilian Cemetery, Fond du Lac County, WI

Theresa Boegel was the daughter of William and Katherine Boegel nee Melzer.  She was born on October 8, 1888 and died July 4, 1949.  She was the youngest of eight known children and never married.  Her siblings included:

William Jr (married to Mary Zwaska)
Maria (unknown if ever married)
Katherine (Mrs. Joseph Bonlender)
John (married to Bertha Rosbeck and is my husband's great grandfather)
Peter Aloysius (married to Elise Marten)
Raymond (married to Catherine Schrauth)
Mary (Mrs. Gebhardt Strabel)

Since Theresa never married and has no children to pass on her legacy, I will remember you today and always in our family history. Second great aunt to my husband.  Third great aunt to my children.  Your memory lives on.

Tombstone Tuesday - William and Katherina Boegel

The autumn is always a crazy time of year.  School is back in session and Cub Scouts starts anew.  It usually means that I've got to put genealogy aside to complete the obligations I have in Scouting and PTA.  And although this year seems to be running much more smoothly than last year, I still have found myself hard-pressed for time.  I really wanted to get the 1890 census form up tonight, but reality and wishful thinking are two very different things.  Instead of not posting anything at all, however, I decided to get up a reasonably quick post with a beautiful family tombstone.  I simply have too much family data to not post something.  I'm always hoping to run across those distant cousins researching the same lines!

This tombstone always caught my attention when visiting St. Kilian's in Wisconsin.  It's just so huge.  This is my husband's side of the tree.  My side, well, I have yet to come across something so grand!  It's beautiful.

William and Katherina Boegel nee Melzer are my husband's 2nd great grandparents.  They were the parents of at least 8 children (that I've found so far), William Jr., Maria, Katherine (Mrs. Joseph Bonlender), John, Peter, Raymond, Mary (Mrs. Gebhardt Strabel), and Theresa.  John was my husband's great grandfather.

William Boegel Sr was born on December 21st 1848 in Wisconsin.  The son of Henry Boegel and Herietta (maiden name unknown), he married Katherine Melzer around 1875 (still working on that marriage certificate) and died on October 21st, 1922.  Katherine was born on December 12th 1846 in Germany (I know...that doesn't narrow it down by much) she died on May 24th 1927.  I don't know who her parents were yet.

What I do know is that St. Kilian's cemetery in Wisconsin has been completely recorded online, and while I may have over-looked the other Melzers in there when I passed through in genealogical bliss several years back, I can easily reference the interments by going to the Campbellsport, Wisconsin website.  And hey...writing this quick post did make me realize that finding relatives of Katherina (nee Melzer) may not be too difficult after all.  At least I have some names as leads now.

Well, time to jump in bed and prepare for a PTA-filled day tomorrow.  I need all the rest I can get for it!  Have fun tending those roots!

NOTE:  And after posting this and jumping to the wonderful Wisconsin Historical Society website I found the image numbers for a marriage of William Boegel and Katherine Meker.  I love their website!  It's now in my research calendar and when I get up to Wisconsin for Christmas I'll be copying that record!

Funeral Card Friday - Joseph and Katherine Melzer

They died about 3 weeks apart.  Illness?  Coincidence? Broken-hearted?  

They aren't in my direct line, but I do look forward to learning more about them.  The cards were passed on to me by my mother-in-law, and while there are Melzers in our line I haven't connected this one.  I did find this Joseph connected in an Ancestry.com tree, but there were no supporting documents.  At least nothing I would call "rock solid".  I'll have to contact the maker of the tree and see if there are sources that haven't yet been posted.  Shouldn't be too difficult to get to the bottom of with a little elbow-grease!

Amanuensis Monday - Obituary Joseph Melzer

"Joseph Melzer

Joseph H. Melzer, 86, of rural Allenton (Town of Wayne), died Monday, Aug. 21, 1989, at St. Agnes Hospital.

He was born Aug. 23, 1902, in the Town of Wayne, a son of Frank and Mary Schweitzer Melzer.  On Nov. 15, 1927, he married Elizabeth Batzler at St. Kilian Catholic Church, St. Kilian.

Mr. Melzer was a member of St. Kilian Catholic Church and the church's Holy Name Society.

Survivors include two sons, Robert and his wife Janet, and Joseph and his wife Theresa, both of the Town of Wayne; eight  grandchildren; three great-grandchildren; and one sister, Sophie Weninger of Lomira. His wife preceded him in death on Feb. 6, 1962.

Funeral services will be held Thursday at 10 a.m. at Miller Funeral Home, Kewaskum, and at 10:30 a.m. at St. Kilian.  The Rev. Victor Kemmer will officiate. Burial will follow in the parish cemetery.

Friends may call today from 4 to 9 p.m. at the funeral home where a parish vigil will be held at 8 p.m."

This was a newspaper clipping that was handed down to me by my mother-in-law, Dolores "Lori" Cayemberg nee Kuehl.  There is no date on the clipping, although I would imagine it was near the date of Joseph's death in 1989.  There is no mention of which paper this clipping came from but the family is from Wisconsin and has been for generations.  Melzer is a family name on Lori's side, but I still need to figure out where Joseph belongs!