Two children, who shared my maiden name, found in the Cincinnati Children’s Home in the 1900 U.S. census. I passed them by – Lilly Bierman, age eight, and John Bierman, age two – they aren’t my family, I thought. I knew of no orphaned Biermann children in my family. I was looking for my grandfather,…
Tag: Cincinnati
Ormonde J. Merz and Ohio Caverns – How a Colorful Landmark Led to Bad Blood – 52 Ancestors 2015 #41
The theme suggested for week 41 of 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks was “Colorful.” I have already written about a number of colorful ancestors, so I needed to get even more creative than ever with the theme. I remembered a family story about Ohio Caverns in West Liberty, Ohio, and there is a fit. The…
Anna Schulte Beermann- Celebrating an October Birthday – 52 Ancestors 2015 #40
Week 40 of 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks is broadly themed “October.” I went back through my ancestors looking for the first October date for someone I have not yet written about. Anna Schulte Beermann came up first. You would think that I would know a lot about my great-grandmother. She was born in Cincinnati,…
Henry Schatz – Easy to Know You – 52 Ancestors 2015 #31
This week the theme for 52 Ancestors is “Easy.” Finally, here is a chance to tell a story that isn’t about the challenges of research. I picked someone that I find likeable and that is because my dad always made him seem likeable. Henry Schatz was my father’s maternal grandfather, so I already knew a…
Johann Georg Gottlob Maier – Road Trips – 52 Ancestors 2015 #28
I am posting a bit late this week. I have done pretty well so far this year. I think this is the first post that I’ve fallen behind on. It seems the most difficult stories to write are the ones for which there is either not enough information, or too much information. In this case…
Emil Heinrich Max Lindner (the elder) – The Stamp Collection – 52 Ancestors 2015 #24
I don’t really know how the postage stamps of my 2 times great-grandfather, Emil Heinrich Max Lindner, came into my possession as a child. I think they were just around, and I swept them into my stamp collection, because, after all, they were stamps and I was a stamp collector. I don’t remember anyone ever…
The Vonder Halbens – Education Was the Family Business – 52 Ancestors 2015 #22
When my great-grandfather Gottlob Maier immigrated to Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1881, he already had family there. Three uncles, Johann Friedrich (Frederick), Christian and Karl Wilhelm (Charles) Maier, previously had made the move from Plieningen near Stuttgart in Baden-Württemberg. This week for the theme of “Commencement” I will focus on the grandchildren of Christian Maier and…
Louise Miller Wessa Bell – She Married Two Military Men – 52 Ancestors 2015 #21
My great-grandaunt Louise was the youngest of the Miller children, born to Andrew Miller and Kate Wippel Miller on 7 May 1885 in Cincinnati, Ohio. The Miller family was comprised of seven sisters: Anna, Katherine, Augusta, Helen, Mary, Eva and Louise; and, one brother: Philipp. Augusta (Gustie) was my grandmother’s mother, so the rest of…
Friedricke Dorothea Schwenn – How DO You Spell That? – 52 Ancestors 2015 #15
Schwarz, Schwerin, Schwern, Schwem, Schwimmer and Wendt were among the various ways I found the surname reported for my 2x great-grandmother. Those variations mostly came from poor transcriptions for a handful of documents. Frederica Wendt was given as the mother’s name on the death record of Mary Schatz Kruse, one of Friedricke’s daughters. Last year,…
Robert F. Wildey – Finding Shoots Instead of Roots – 52 Ancestors 2015 #9
Robert F Wildey Burial Record for Spring Grove Cemetery This is my tribute to this week’s theme, “Close to Home.” I grew up in Pennsylvania, even though my family was originally from Cincinnati. I have moved around the country for my husband’s job, but home is now West Virginia. Over 15 years ago my husband…