Memory Tree Genealogy Journal

"New York: Welcome to the Land of Freedom" (1887).  Library of Congress. IMAGE SOURCE This week, I have been spending the majority of my research time working through one particular family unit from my mother's side of the family - John (Johann) ETZEL (1826-1904) and wife Maria (Schumacher) ETZEL (1837-1894).  Here are quick links to previous installments - part I (from 2013) , part II , part III , and part IV . Research Goal: To locate information about John ETZEL (1826-1904) and wife Maria SCHUMACHER (1837-1894) prior to their listing in the 1860 US Federal Census in Reading, Berks County, Pennsylvania. Context: John Etzel  is my 3rd great-grandfather on my mother's maternal side of the family. John and Maria (I believe she went by the name Mary) had two daughters: Rose Etzel (about 1856-?).  Married Louis Oberly (or Oberle) in Reading, Berks County, Pennsylvania. Elizabeth Etzel (1858-1923).  Married Edward Musser Luden in 1885.  Elizab...

EUREKA. Cincinnati, Hamilton County, Ohio Probate Court Archived Records Search Marriage License Index (1817-1983) John Etzel and Maria (Schumacher) Etzel are both listed in 1854, volume 6, page 635.  Married in 1854?  Fits with what I know about John Etzel's emigration from Germany to the United States in 1854.  Daughter Rose was born in 1855 in Ohio (guessing Cincinnati), which also fits. Adding to the collection of Etzel sourcing!

  Topographic View of the City of Reading, Pennsylvania, 1881.  Library of Congress Research Goal: To locate information about John ETZEL (1826-1904) and wife Maria SCHUMACHER (1837-1894) prior to their listing in the 1860 US Federal Census in Reading, Berks County, Pennsylvania. Context: John Etzel  is my 3rd great-grandfather on my mother's maternal side of the family.   In 1860, John and Maria ETZEL are listed in the US Federal Census in Reading, Berks, Pennsylvania - John, age 35, male, laborer, birthplace - Baden Mary, age 23, female, birthplace - Baden Rose, age 6, female, birthplace - Ohio Lizzie, age 2, female, birthplace - Pennsylvania. This indicates to me that John and Mary lived in Ohio at some time between 1855-1858, based on birth date and location for daughter Rose ETZEL.  Census records are notoriously "off" when it comes to specific birth dates, and late US Census records give an approximate birth year of 1855 for Rose Etzel...

Image Source HERE ...still a mystery!   (*Context - John Etzel (1826-1904) is my 3rd great-grandfather on my mother's maternal side of the family) Every family researcher - novice and professional alike - eventually finds themselves face to face with what is commonly called a genealogical "brick wall".  In less than a minute, I can rattle off my list of most-wanted individuals.  I will neither confirm nor deny that these brick walls have robbed me of precious sleep on occasion.  What if?  Where?  Who?  Why?   Last year, I wrote a bit about John ETZEL (1826-1904) , his will and probate record in Reading, Berks County, Pennsylvania.  Mr. Etzel emigrated from Germany to the United States about 1854, according to the 1900 US Federal Census in Reading, PA.  Prior to this, though, I hit a brick wall with both John and his wife, Maria Schumacher (1837-1894).  The local prothonotary office could not locate a copy of...

My research lately is leading me down a Massachusetts rabbit trail of sorts.  Having spent the majority of my life in the Deep South, little did I know that I had such roots in New England!  One of my favorite parts of family history research is taking time to learn about locales that are completely new to me...familiarizing myself with geography, culture, and historical aspects of that particular town/state/country. For context, today's ancestor is my 6th great-grandfather through my mother's father's paternal grandmother's side of the family :).  Papa's grandmother was a MEAD, and Col. John Powell (1752) is connected through that branch of the tree. Col. Powell is one of four patriots connected to the MEAD side of our family.  While digging through newspaper archives in GenealogyBank.com this week, I located the following mortuary notice from The Sun in Pittsfield, MA: John POWELL married Lois CURTIS (1753-1838) on 20 November 1755 in Berkshire County, Ma...

Feeling a little patriotic this holiday weekend!  Today I stumbled upon digital images of a text on Ancestry.com that includes names and specifics for "Massachusetts Soldiers and Sailors in the Revolutionary War".  Three of the patriots in my tree (yes, family...THREE - the number keeps growing!) hailed from Massachusetts, so I was eager to search with their names and see what I could uncover.  Here are the entries, which really read like journal entries or summaries of their records of service: Source: Ancestry.com. Massachusetts Soldiers and Sailors in the Revolutionary War (Images Online) [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2004.Original data: Massachusetts. Secretary of the Commonwealth. Massachusetts Soldiers and Sailors of the Revolutionary War . Vol. 1-17. Boston, MA, USA: Wright & Potter Printing, 1896-1908. Azor Curtiss has an incredible story - including time spent at Valley Forge.  I will have to buckle-down ...

Following my mother's maternal side of the family, connected by marriage to the OSTHOLTHOFF branch, Lawrence Zeller and Rosine Schumacher (also spelled Schuhmacher and Shoemaker) lived in Reading, Hamilton County, Ohio in the mid-to-late 1800s. I am still working to locate the Zellers' immigration information and passenger lists.  However, I do know from census records that they arrived at some point before 1860 from Bavaria.  According to the 1860 census, youngest daughter Anna is 3 months old and listed to have been born in Bavaria.  SO - if that is correct, maybe they arrived just prior to the census in June 1860?  It's also possible that Anna was born in Ohio and the census taker didn't record correct information.  Here is a snippet from the 1860 US Federal Census in Hamilton County, OH: Lorenz Zeller - age 33, male, butcher (boocher!  the spelling!), value of real estate $1100, value of personal estate, $500, birthplace - Bavaria. Rosina,...