52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks #25 ~ William Eickelberg, You're Fired!

First just the facts:

Name: William Eicklberg

Born: 24 Mar 1863, Cölpin, Mecklenburg-Strelitz, Germany

Married: 01 Jan 1884 to Nellie Auflick, Charleston, West Virginia

Died:11 Dec 1934, Denver, Colorado [Find A Grave memorial]

Imaging discovering that your great-great grandfather had been fired from his job. Not only that, but it was splashed across the pages of several newspapers. It was a little shocking to read, in bold type at the top of page 3 in The Denver Rocky Mountain News, “EICKELBEG FIRED.” So, how did he end up being publicly dismissed from his job? Let’s start with a little background.

The Eickelberg family arrived in the United States on September 20, 1865 just as the Civil War was ending. The family landed at Castle Garden, New York and shortly made their way to southern Ohio. At 2 ½ William was probably wide-eyed at all the new sights.

At the time of the 1870 federal census, the family is living in the small town of Minersville, in Meigs County, Ohio. As the name implies, mining (of both coal and salt) plays a central role in the economy of this area of Meigs County. In that 1870 census William’s father is listed as a “salt maker” while in 1880 both William, now 17, and his father are listed as “common laborer.” There is no evidence here that either of the Eickelbergs worked in the mines, but certainly mining was all around. It’s possible that one or both did spend some time underground.

When William married on January 1, 1884 his bride, Nellie (Mary Ellen) Auflick, was from a mining family living in nearby Sutton. The Auflicks were already in Meigs County in 1860 when we find Nellie’s father Thomas listed as a “coal digger.”

William and Nellie’s first child was born in 1885 in Carbon, Indiana; a city which was founded by the Carbon Block Coal Company. Once again, coal-mining and the Eickelbergs seem to go together. Later that same year, the family had moved to Breckinridge, Colorado, where William worked in the mining business. From there, the family moved to Lafayette, Colorado, another mining town, where they operated a rooming house, probably for coal miners.

Clearly William has been around coal mining virtually his entire life. I don’t yet know when he became deputy state mine inspector, but I did find a number of snippets in the local papers mentioning his activities in the 1890s.

From page 2 of The Boulder Daily Camera on May 8, 1894:

William Eickelberg, deputy state coal mine inspector, is in the city today, accompanied by D.E. Davis of Lafayette. Mr. Eickelberg’s present trip is made in his official capacity in the pursuit of which he has become recognized as a most conscientious and exacting official. It is said that the coal mines of Colorado were never so thoroughly equipped with everything in the line of preventives of injury and accidents to the operatives as at the present time. Boulder county has just reason to felicitate itself upon the fact that much of this is due to its own representative, Mr. Eickelberg, in the office of state inspector. 

This certainly does not sound like a man on the verge of being fired, does it? Yet just a few short months later, on Thursday, August 23, 1894 his firing is announced in The Denver Rocky Mountain News. We read that the William was “endeavoring to undermine his superior…” It further discusses how he was not working “in harmony” with the Chief Inspector, D. J. Reed because William felt that he should have been appointed Chief.

 It appears that the real issue, however, is a battle of wills between Chief Inspector Reed and the governor of Colorado, Davis Hanson Waite. According to Mr. Reed, Governor Waite had appointed Eickelberg as his assistant and he, Reed, “…was not consulted in the matter at all.” There are reported threats by the Governor to fire Reed and counter claims by Reed that the Governor does not have that power.

So, was William just a disgruntled employee upset that he was not given the top job or is he somehow a pawn in a larger political battle? If I had to guess, I’d say probably a little of both.

Fortunately The Denver Rocky Mountain News was not the only newspaper to comment on the event. The Boulder Daily Camera reported on the firing in this way:

Coal Mine Inspector Reed has fired his deputy William Eickelberg of Lafayette. There has been no love between the men from the first, the deputy having the governor's favor which was denied to the inspector, himself. Some reforms are said to have been accomplished by these gentlemen and miners in this section feel especially kind toward Mr. Eickelberg, by whose order the coal mines have been placed in such condition that the men can work with some degree of comfort and risk of loss of life and limb has been rendered nominal. Reed knows very little about this business but his deputy was a well equipped official from the start and should have been inspector.

William Eickelberg - left

It would appear that William Eickelberg had the favor of the “common man” in this episode of his life. A few months after this affair, he would pen an impassioned letter to the newspaper urging his, “fellow miners and laborers the necessity of united action on Nov. 6th.” He is asking them to be sure and vote for the Populist Party. Governor Waite had been elected from this party in 1893 and the governor appears to have been a supporter of unions as well as women’s suffrage.

 How interesting to find out that great-great-grandpa was a rabble-rouser!

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks #24 ~ Barbara Zaugg

Written for Amy Johnson Crow's Challenge 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks. (click on the icon in the sidebar for details at Amy's blog) 

And now we come to the last child of Jacob Zaugg and Anna Stetler as listed in the Zaugg book.

First just the facts:

Name: (Anna) Barbara Zaugg

Born: 07 May 1843, Eggiwil, Bern, Switzerland

Married: 03 Jan 1867 to David Shifferly, Wayne County, Ohio

Died:22 Feb 1914, Wayne County, Ohio [Find A Grave memorial]











Barbara and David will have 10 children as listed in the Zaugg book.  I have been able to find 10 children thoughout the various census records and Wayne County birth records although I have to admit that they tend to have wildly varying names.  In the 1900 census Barbara is listed as having given birth to 10 children and having 10 now living.  The family is really fairly straight forward and I can easily find Barbara and her husband in every census that I should always living and farming in Wayne County, Ohio.  It's just that with 10 children this would be another black hole of research on a collateral line and I'm not going to go there. (and I really need to write that on the blackboard 100 times.)

At this point I'll just close with Barbara's death certificate.  And finally, here is a child who get the names of his mother's parents correct in spite of the fact that his grandfather died before he was born and his grandmother died when he was about four.  Much better than several of his older cousins were able to do for their Zaugg parents.

 

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks #23 ~ Peter Zaugg

Written for Amy Johnson Crow's Challenge 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks. (click on the icon in the sidebar for details at Amy's blog)


First just the facts:

Name: Peter Zaugg
Born: 22 Aug 1839, Eggiwil, Bern, Switzerland
Married: 15 Apr 1862 to Mary Catherine Sorgen, Wayne County, Ohio and then to Louise Wable (?) sometime after 1864 possibly in Adams County, Indiana
Died: 25 Apr 1926 Wayne County, Ohio



Here are the few things I know about Peter:

• He arrived with the rest of his family on 30 May 1853 at Castle Garden. 
• By 1860 he is living with his parents in Salt Creek Twp, Wayne County, Ohio. 
• A few years later he marries Mary Catherine Sorgen, also in Wayne County, Ohio.

Here is the theory I currently have about what happens after that:

Shortly after his marriage he moved to Indiana, most probably Adams County, where his oldest sister, Lizzie, and an older brother, Daniel, were already living. Their first child, Mary, is born there and his wife dies shortly thereafter. He then marries a widow (?) named Louise Kohler nee Wable who has three children. At some point prior to 1869, when Aldine/Aline is born, they have return to Ohio. As listed in the 1880 census their children are:  Aline 11, Peter 7, Ida 5, Alfred 3, Albert 1.  The Zaugg book lists another daughter, Louisa.  It's possible she was born between Aline and Peter.

 I believe that Mary, Peter’s first child would have come with them back to Ohio because by 1880 I find a couple that matches the information in the Zaugg book – a Mary and Robert Shanklin. Peter divorces Louise sometime prior to the 1900 census when Peter is living with his brother Frederick. Of interest are several other families listed on the same census pages living close by. They are mostly Zaugg relatives and include the Mary & Robert Shanklin that I believe to be Peter’s daughter and son-in-law. 

Louisa moves back to Indiana with her 3 children from her first marriage as well as the children from her marriage to Peter. In the 1900 census I find her in Adams County with the following Zaugg children: Peter, 22, Ida 20, Alfred 19 and "Alla" (son) 15.  (The ages seem out of whack, but the other children from her first marriage are there as well and line up better.)  I find Peter in the 1910 census living with his sister Barbara and her husband David Shifferly. And finally, I believe he died in 25 Apr 1926 as this death record fits with everything else I know about Peter.
 

Here are just a few of the problems and/or inconsistencies with this theory.

• In 1880 Mary’s birthplace is listed as Ohio. However in 1900, 1910 & 1920 it is listed as Indiana. It is possible that her husband provided the information in 1880 and just didn’t know. That would be especially true if Mary lived in Ohio for most of her life. 
• The census listings for this Mary & Robert Shanklin don’t match any of the children in the Zaugg book. This is not a deal breaker as there are other notable mistakes in the book. However I’ve yet to find a family that is totally wrong. 
• Mary’s parents are always listed as being from Germany rather than Switzerland. This seems an odd “mistake” to make living in a community that was so filled with Swiss immigrants. My only thought here is that, again, Robert gave the information and I don’t see that he was Swiss or German. Maybe all he knew was that his in-laws spoke German.

This brings me to my issue. Here is yet another black hole of research that is not in my direct line, Peter being my my 3rd great grand uncle. I KNOW I should just back away slowly and then turn and run. However when I look at the theory and the issues there are just so many things I could look for – and most probably find – that would clear up some of the weak parts of the theory.  But I really need to move on - at least for right now.

At this point I’m going to finish with the children in the original family – one more to go – and then go back to my direct ancestor, Jacob. My plan will be to circle back around and work on validating/sourcing/citing/generally cleaning up everything related my direct line from me back to Jacob. I think I will also put together at least a semblance of a research plan for the other children based on what holes I turned up in my blog posts. That way as I’m working on my direct line if I’m trawling through say Wayne County marriage records I can quickly see if there are others I need and grab them while I’m at it.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it!  (until I spot that first shiny object on Ancestry...)

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks #22 ~ Magdalena Zaugg

Written for Amy Johnson Crow's Challenge 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks. (click on the icon in the sidebar for details at Amy's blog) 

I've gotten a little out of order with my Zauggs.  Daniel, last week's post, is really younger than Magdalena however I had just had to post about my find at the Indianapolis library while it was more recent.  So, now going back I'll look at Madgelana this week.

First just the facts:

Name: Magdalena Zaugg
Born: Oct/Nov 1834, Eggiwil, Bern, Switzerland
Married: 30 Nov 1854 to Nicholas Wahley, Wayne County, Ohio
Died:04 Mar 1914, Wayne County, Ohio [Find A Grave memorial]



In the 1870 census, the family is shown with the following children: Mary 14, Louisa 13, Elizabeth 10, John 7, Emma 4, and  Henry 1.  In 1880, 5 of the 6 children are still at home: Louisa 23, Elizabeth 22, John 17, Emma 14, and Henry 11.  The oldest daughter, Mary, is now married to William Shifferly and they have a young son, Frederic.  

Some trees list another child for Magdalena and Nicholas - Christ born in 1860 and died in 1863.  On the 1910 census, it shows that Magdalena has 7 children, 5 now living (one of the 6 children above, Emma, having died in 1880) so there is certainly room for another child.  Also, the Zaugg book (above) lists Christ as one of the children. 

I haven't been able to locate the family on the 1860 census although I don't believe I'd find this child if the birth date given of Dec-1860 is correct. 

 I find it interesting that Henry Wahley remembers his grandfather's name but not his grandmother's.  Jacob Zaugg died a little over 8 years PRIOR to his wife.  Henry would have only been about 4 when his grandfather died and 12 when his grandmother died.


I wonder if they just talked about Jacob more?


 

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks #21 ~ Daniel Zaugg

Written for Amy Johnson Crow's Challenge 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks. (click on the icon in the sidebar for details at Amy's blog) 

Recently on Facebook there was a conversation about someone ending up researching “ …the 2nd wife of the husband of my 1st cousin 4x removed.”   I replied that I had recently had an inquiry about someone in my tree and when I asked Ancestry to calculate the relationship it got - "grand nephew of wife of 2nd cousin 3x removed."  Someone else commented “Want to know who the brother in law of the grandfather of my uncle’s wife's first husband is?”  

In my search for Daniel Zaugg, I ended up going down a similar path and found something in a surprising place.

First just the facts:

Name: Daniel Zaugg
Born: 01 Dec 1836, Eggiwil, Bern, Switzerland
Married: Elizabeth Shifferly, 04 Apr 1864,Wayne County, Ohio
Died: Most probably in Adams County, Indiana sometime before his father's will was signed on 19 Oct 1870




Daniel has been rather elusive in terms of pinning him down in any particular place.  I do know that he married in Wayne Co, Ohio in 1864 as we see in this marriage record (Daniel & Elizabeth are shown on the bottom left):

In spite of that, I don't readily find him in the 1860 census in that area.  He is not living with his parent and his 2 younger siblings.  

While I still haven't pinned down his specific whereabouts, I did find something on my recent trip to Indianapolis that is in agreement with the page from the Zaugg book.  I only found it because I tend to look at those "barely connected" people. 

I was looking in the index of Standard History of Adams and Wells Counties Indiana vol II. I didn’t expect to find Daniel, but I did know that his wife had re-married and her second husband was a Civil War veteran.  I thought someone like that might be mentioned so looked for “Stepler.”  I didn’t find an entry for John but did find one for William so I took a quick look.  And there, in an entry for my 1^st cousin 4 times removed’s wife’s second husband’s son I found a mention of Daniel Zaugg.  In the part of the article about William’s father John we read, “He married Mrs. Elizabeth (Shifferley) Zaugg, who was born in Wayne County, Ohio.  She was the widow of Daniel Zaugg, who died in early life, leaving her with three children, Phillip, Lucy and Emma.”

 Certainly not earth-shattering, but it was a fun discovery at the end of my trip. 

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks #20 ~ Frederich Zaugg

Written for Amy Johnson Crow's Challenge 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks. (click on the icon in the sidebar for details at Amy's blog)

Getting back to my plan of going in order through Jacob Sr's children we are moving on to the 7th child.

First just the facts:
Name: Frederich Zaugg
Born: 25 Mar 1832, Eggiwil, Bern, Switzerland
Married: Mary Ann Graber in 1857,Wayne County, Ohio
Died: 11 Feb 1915, Wayne County, Ohio [Find-A-Grave memorial]

This will probably be a short entry as Frederich is pretty straight-forward in terms of where he lived and what he did.

He came with the family to the United States in 1853, when he was 21.  The family came to Wayne County, Ohio and that's where Frederich married, farmed and raised a family.

I've been able to easily identify him in each census after his arrival through 1910.  In 1860 he is listed as a shoemaker but after that he begins farming and stays in Sugar Creek Township for each census thereafter.  His son John lives near him and later his younger son Levi is also living near him.

The only anomaly I found was on his death certificate where his son lists his father's father as "Christ Zaugg" and not Jacob.  Jacob would have died when John was about 14 so this is not what I would have expected.  It's also interesting that he lists his father's mother as "Unknown".   Anna Stetler Zaugg lived until 1885 (John would have been in his mid-twenties at the time) so clearly this is someone that John should have know.  Anna was last living with her son Jacob's family in 1880.

Jacob's family was also living in Wayne County - in Salt Creek Township which is very near where Frederich, and also John lived.

I have searched Wayne County census records and don't find multiple Frederich Zauggs of a similar age.  I feel relatively confident that this is "my man" but I can't explain why John wouldn't have been able to correctly identify his grandparents.

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks #19 ~ John Wanner

Written for Amy Johnson Crow's Challenge 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks. (click on the icon in the sidebar for details at Amy's blog)

Once again deviating from my plan of going in order through Jacob Zaugg Sr's children I am going backwards to post about Lizzie Zaugg's husband, John Wanner. [Lizzie is the oldest of the Zaugg children and I wrote about her previously.] However, I found a wonderful obituary/article about John when I was in Indianapolis this past weekend and it deserves to be showcased here.


 First just the facts:
Name: John Wanner
Born: 12-Aug-1820, Eggiwil, Bern, Switzerland
Married: Elizabeth "Lizzie" Zaugg, 25-Apr-1845, Eggiwil, Bern, Switzerland
Died: 28-Oct-1916, Adams Co, Indiana [Find-A-Grave memorial]




This article had so many wonderful leads to pursue as well as giving me an understanding of where others might have gotten some of their information.

First, I've seen several places that Lizzie and John had "seven children who died in infancy" but I had never known where that supposed "fact" had originated.

However it still doesn't clear up the mystery of those children.  I was able to find two children, born in Indiana, who disappeared after being recorded in the 1860 census  - Frederick, age 7 and Mary Ann, age 4.  In the 1870 census the only children listed are Emmanuel, age 6 (as show in the Zaugg book) and also Isaac, age 8.

The Zaugg book mysteriously shows three infants who did not live. What I don't know is if those three children had been born in Switzerland.  Lizzie and John had been married for 8 years at the time they came to the US and only two young children came with them.  It's certainly possibly that Lizzie had actually given birth to 5 children in those 8 years. 

Finally there are the two girls born in Switzerland who did accompany their parents here - Anna and Elizabeth.  Anna is accounted for in this obituary and it would appear that Elizabeth is as well.  However John and his second wife also had a child named Elizabeth.  The 1900 census shows the family as this:
         John Warner 79
         Mary Warner 47
         Elizabeth Warner 6
         Emma Roth 19
         Ida Roth 10

This household makes sense as clearly Mary brought children from her first marriage.  Both the Roth girls are listed as stepdaughters while Elizabeth is a daughter.

I'd noticed this second Elizabeth before and now this obituary, while I guess not actually clearing this up for me, has given me something else to pursue regarding his daughter "Elizabeth Ehrhart."

Also, the face that the son Isaac is listed as being in California makes me understand why he possibly wasn't listed in the Zaugg book.  It also makes me give more credence to an un-sourced death date listed as taking place in California.  I was skeptical before, but now I think I'll try to obtain that death cert. 

It also It's interesting to me that the article uses the term "died in infancy" when, if I've identified some of these children correctly, Frederick would have been at least 7.  If indeed the first Elizabeth also did not live to adulthood, she would have been at least 10.

 As with each post - I seem to have more questions than answers, but that's what makes this so interesting. 

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks #18 ~ Samuel Zaugg

Written for Amy Johnson Crow's Challenge 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks. (click on the icon in the sidebar for details at Amy's blog)

Keeping with my plan of going in order through Jacob Sr's children we are moving on to the sixth child.  [skipping John who had died prior to the family coming to the United States]

Samuel Zaugg

First just the facts:
Name: Samuel Zaugg
Born: 25-Jul-1830, Eggiwil, Bern, Switzerland
Married: 1st Elizabeth or Marianne Baldinger on 01-Nov-1855, and 2nd Cecile Calame  on 04-Jul-1862 both in Wayne County, Ohio
 Died: 22-Jun-1910, Wayne County, Ohio [Find-A-Grave memorial]

 

Cecile Calame Zaugg

Samuel and Cecile are the parents of Frederick Zaugg who led me to that wonderful find on eBay earlier.



As you can see from the page out of the "Zaugg Book", Samuel had quite a large family with his second wife. Fortunately for me I made a connection through Ancestry with someone  who has pictures from this part of the family as Samuel is her husband's ancestor.  She has graciously allowed me to use any of the pictures she has shared.

Their first two sons both died prior to their first birthdays but Samuel and Cecile would go on to have 4 other sons pictured here as adults:


In birth order they are:
Wesley b. 26 Jun 1867
Frederick b. 09 Jun 1871
John b. 1874
Elmer b. Oct 1882 
[I believe in this picture they are, L to R, Fred, John, Elmer, Wesley] 

Like my ancestor, Jacob Jr, Samuel came to Wayne County Ohio and stayed there the remainder of his life farming and raising his family. 

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks #17 ~ Anna Zaugg Meier/Meyer

Written for Amy Johnson Crow's Challenge 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks. (click on the icon in the sidebar for details at Amy's blog) 

I said I was going to write about Jacob Zaugg Sr's children and I'm trying to get back on course with this post.

To date we've had:
Lizzie
Christ
Jacob [my direct ancestor]

So next up is Anna ~
 
First just the facts:

Name: Anna Zaugg
Born: 01-Mar-1827, Eggiwil, Bern, Switzerland
Married: Jacob Frederick Meyer on 28-Jul-1853, Wayne County, Ohio
Died: 30-Mar-1903, Wayne County, Ohio [Find-A-Grave memorial]



Anna is the 4th child and I have most of the basics about her.  As I've reviewed her details I was interested to notice that she married on July 28, 1853.  She and her family did not arrive in this country until May 30, 1853 and just a short 2 months later the family is in Wayne County, Ohio and Anna is marrying there.  I wondered at first if her future husband was someone she met on the boat coming over, but according to the 1900 census, Frederick states his year of immigration at 1836.  I have found possibilities for him in the 1840 & 1850 censuses of Wayne County, so that seems valid to me.











One thing I need to straighten out is the name and identity of her husband.  The marriage record here gives his name as "Jacob Frederick."  Both his grave stone and the "Zaugg Book" give his name as Fred.  That doesn't bother me as I have many ancestors who liked to use their middle names - and often didn't seem to care in which order they listed those names!  However in trying to pin down the census records, I find both a Jacob and a Frederick living in the households.  Even in 1860, after their marriage I find them living with a man I believe is Frederick's father (Jacob) there is also a younger man named Jacob in the household.

Here is the record - and based strictly on the order that the people are listed I'm identifying Frederick and Anny as the married couple and the younger Jacob as an unmarried son and brother of Frederick.  The thing that puzzles me is that if Jacob Frederick Meyer had a brother named Jacob, why was he also given a first name of Jacob?

I'm not sure how much time I'll spend puzzling over this - given that they are collateral relatives.  But each time I write a post for this challenge I find these anomalies that I've never fully chased down.

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks #16 ~ Frederick Samuel Zaugg or What Can Be Found on eBay

Written for Amy Johnson Crow's Challenge 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks. (click on the icon in the sidebar for details at Amy's blog)



First just the facts:

Name: Frederick Samuel Zaugg
Born: 09-Jun-1871, Salt Creek Twp, Wayne County, Ohio
Married: Julia Maria Evemeyer, 03-Sep-1902, Christian County, Illinois
Died: 17-Oct-1941, Wooster, Wayne County, Ohio [Find-A-Grave memorial]

 
Relationship: Frederick is my 1st cousin 4 times removed.

I realize that in my post about the Zaugg Book I said I was going to write about Jacob Sr's children and I'm totally veering off course with this post,  but I think it's justified.

Recently there was a link on Facebook to a treasure trove of items for sale on eBay for some lucky family in Meigs County Ohio - pictures and other family history memorabilia.  I have ancestors from Meigs County, but not one name was familiar.  After I was done drooling over the Meigs County items, I did a quick search for anything Zaugg related.  I decided to pass on the $1,800 "Rare antique Swiss neck cittern (Halszither), bearing the original label by the maker: Johan Zaugg, im ??? ???, Signau ???, 1829." However as I continued to scroll through the offerings I was amazed when this popped up:

It's a small aluminum "pin tray" that looked to be in remarkable good condition.  Before I decided to actually purchase this item, I needed to make sure that the Reverend Zaugg and I actually had a connection.  I seemed to remember seeing something recently in one of my sorting frenzies that mentioned a Rev Zaugg, and sure enough I found the following obituary in my collection:

Lizzie is a sister to my Emma Zaugg and you'll notice at the end it mentions, "Rev F. S. Zaugg, a cousin of the deceased is conducting the funeral service." Anyway,  a little more research revealed that Rev Zaugg and I are indeed related so I am now the proud owner of this piece of Zaugg memorabilia.

Incidentally, this obituary is another one of those items that someone in my family, probably my Grandma Ritchie, carefully cut out leaving no indication as to the newspaper it was published in.  It's a reminder that I need to make a list of all of these, with death dates, for my next trip to Wayne County.  My working theory is that they all come from the Wooster Daily Record but I'd like to verify that.

So, I hope I can be forgiven for this detour in my Zaugg postings after finding this wonderful keepsake.

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks #15 ~ Christian Zaugg

Written for Amy Johnson Crow's Challenge 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks. (click on the icon in the sidebar for details at Amy's blog)

First just the facts:
Name: Christian Zaugg
Born: 07 Dec 1822, Eggiwil, Bern, Switzerland
Married: Elizabeth Bealman, 15 Apr 1858, Wayne County, Ohio
Died: sometime between the 1880 census and the 1900 census


Relationship: Christian is my 3rd great-granduncle. I am descended through his younger brother, Jacob:


 - his daughter, Emma (Zaugg) Graber (1860 – 1919)
 - her daughter, Ella Rosa (Graber) Saurer (1883 - 1963)
 - her daughter, Lela Mabel (Saurer) Ritchie (1913 - 1991)
 - her son, my father, Donald John Ritchie (living)


The few things I know about Christian:
He came over with the rest of his family in 1853.  As noted above, he married in 1858 to a girl who had also come here from Switzerland (Berne, Switzerland according to the 1860 census.)

In the 1870 census the family is still in Ohio and have listed all the children shown on the page from the Zaugg book. The image I've seen of the census is exceptionally hard to read, but there is no doubt that there are 5 children listed.

Which brings me to an interesting discrepancy and one I never noticed until I started writing this blog post. It appears possible that there were two children named William.  I find a child, William, age 2 months, born in Ohio listed here on the 1870 census when the family is still in Wayne County.   However by 1880, when the family is living in Tennessee, there is a child, William, age 8 listed as being born in Tennessee.  Every other record I have for William indicates he was born in Tennessee so I need to look for a death record for the first William in Ohio or Tennessee. 

The 1880 census is the last time I have a record for Christian.  I haven't really looked in Tennessee to see what else might be available as this is a collateral relative that I don't currently have time to research.  The good news for me is that one of the cousin connections I've made is a great-great-granddaughter of Christian through his son William so there is another genealogist on his trail.

All I know is that by 1900 Elizabeth is back in Ohio living with her daughter Lena's [now Eichenberger] family.  Elizabeth is listed as a widow.  So, I still have a big question mark about Christian - where and when did he die and where is he buried?

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks #14 ~ Jacob Zaugg, Sr

Written for Amy Johnson Crow's Challenge 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks. (click on the icon in the sidebar for details at Amy's blog) 


First just the facts:
Name: Jacob Zaugg
Born: 21-Feb-1795* Bern, Switzerland
Married: Anna Stetler, 23-Jun-1820, Eggiwil, Bern, Switzerland
Died: 09-Dec-1873, Mount Eaton, Wayne County, Ohio
 *This is a calculated date based on the description in Wayne Co records of Jacob being 78yr 9mo 18days when he died on 09-Dec-1873



Relationship: Jacob is my 4th great-grandfather.
I am descended through:
 - his son, Jacob Zaugg, Jr (1824 - 1900)
 - his daughter, Emma (Zaugg) Graber (1860 – 1919)
 - her daughter, Ella Rosa (Graber) Saurer (1883 - 1963)
 - her daughter, Lela Mabel (Saurer) Ritchie (1913 - 1991)
 - her son, my father, Donald John Ritchie (living)

I have a copy of Jacob's will which he signed. Since I don't have a picture of Jacob, his signature is my "picture" of Jacob - or Jakob as he would have written it.







The will tells me several interesting things:

His son Daniel was already deceased by Oct, 1870.  I have not yet found an exact date of death for Daniel, but this certainly narrows it down.

The accounting by Samuel, the son who was the executor of the will, tells me that indeed Lizzie's oldest daughter's Anna married a man named Anton Kauffmann.  I had seen that in several Ancestry trees with census information from Kansas attached but I didn't really see anything to make the leap that Anna Wanner from Indiana had become Anna Kauffmann of Kansas. Now I have more confidence in that piece of information.

Along with the will are a number of letters that I have not had translated.  They appear to be letters from the children not in Wayne County acknowledging receipt of their share of the inheritance. One of the letters is from Anton Kauffmann.  (I would love to have these translated some day.) All of the children who lived locally signed a  note on April 1, 1875 indicating receipt of their respective share.

Looking at all the papers - it's not just the will, it's the probate packet - it just reminds me that I have found so many things that I have yet to take the time to really evaluate and pull out all the information they contain.  I'm embarrassed to say that I  have had these digital copies for years and just in the past few month transcribed the will and started to look at everything that I had downloaded the last time I visited the Wayne Co, Ohio library. 

I keep saying that I need to go back to Wayne County to do some more research, but what I really need to do is look at what I have first!!

I love this challenge - even as it points out more and more of my short comings with each week.

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks #13 ~ Elizabeth "Lizzie" Zaugg

Written for Amy Johnson Crow's Challenge 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks. (click on the icon in the sidebar for details at Amy's blog) 


First just the facts:
Name: Elizabeth "Lizzie" Zaugg
Born: 1821/1822, Eggiwil, Bern, Switzerland
Married: John Wanner, 25-Apr-1845, Eggiwil, Bern, Switzerland
Died: 06-May-1888, Adams Co, Indiana [Find-A-Grave memorial]


Relationship: Lizzie is my 3rd great-grandaunt.  I am descended through her younger brother, Jacob:


 - his daughter, Emma (Zaugg) Graber (1860 – 1919)
 - her daughter, Ella Rosa (Graber) Saurer (1883 - 1963)
 - her daughter, Lela Mabel (Saurer) Ritchie (1913 - 1991)
 - her son, my father, Donald John Ritchie (living)

For many years, the above page from my grandmother's copy of the Record of the Jacob Zaugg Family was all I really knew about Lizzie.  Since then, I've learned just a little more.

Lizzie and John Wanner and their two young daughters, 7 year old Anne and 3 year old Elizabeth arrived  at Castle Garden, New York aboard the Cotton Planter on 10 Jun 1853. They were just days behind the rest of Lizzie’s family, her parents and all her siblings having arrived 30 May 1853 aboard the Roger Stewart.


















Immigrants at Castle Garden, New York City, 1866. Wood engraving in "Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper", 20 January 1866, vol. 21, p. 280-281.
By Unattributed [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

While the rest of the Zaugg family went to Wayne County, Ohio, the Wanners journeyed on to Adams County, Indiana settling near Berne.  As shown in the 1860 census, besides 15 year old Ann and 10 year old Elizabeth, they now have 2 more children, 7 year old Frederick and 4 year old Mary Ann.  Both of these last two children were born in Indiana so it appears that the Wanners were in Indiana by 1853  - or pretty much right after they got off the boat.

I wonder why there is no mention of these children in the Jacob Zaugg book?  By the time of the 1870 census, none of these children are at home, but now Emmanuel is there (6 yrs) but also Isaac (8 yrs)  Yet in Oct, 1870 the oldest girl, Ann, is specifically mentioned in her Grandfather, Jacob Zaugg's will. "Item 2nd I devise and bequethe to my grand daughter Ann Wanner daughter of John and Elizabeth Wanner four hundred dollars"  That seem like an unusually large amount since her mother was only left $100.00.

Of course this book was published in 1923 in Ohio and it's very possible that the Ohio part of the family had lost touch with the Indiana branch.  The most complete part of the family page revolves around Emanuel but even that has many errors and omissions.  I have a revised version that was completed by one of Emanuel's grandsons.

I plan to visit Berne, Indiana later this year.  They have a Swiss Days festival that should be fun. I will also be visiting the local library to see what else I can find out about this part of the family.  Unfortunately there wasn't room at the bed & breakfast where I first wanted to stay - because the house was BUILT BY EMANUEL WANNER!!  It was a sign - I had to go.  And besides, who wouldn't want to visit the rural mid-west in July??

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks #12 ~ Mary Ann Zaugg **UPDATED**

Written for Amy Johnson Crow's Challenge 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks. (click on the icon in the sidebar for details at Amy's blog)

First just the facts:
Name: Mary Ann Zaugg
Born: Sept-1858, Wayne County, Ohio
Married: Philip Arnold, possibly 04-Aug-1898
Died: 12-Sept-1920 [Find-A-Grave memorial]
Relationship: 2nd great-grand-aunt, sister to my 2nd great-grandmother, Emma Zaugg

I am descended from Emma through:
 - her daughter, Ella Rosa (Graber) Saurer (1883 - 1963)
 - her daughter, Lela Mabel (Saurer) Ritchie (1913 - 1991)
 - her son, my father, Donald John Ritchie (living)

As I've been working on collecting information on my Zauggs, I recently asked for a photo of Mary Ann's grave through Find-A-Grave.  The person taking the picture mentioned that there was another wife of Philip Arnold listed on the other side of the stone.  Because Mary Ann is not a direct ancestor, I hadn't done much research on her, but this led me to some late-night searching and I found some oh-so-interesting things!

First, it was relatively easy to find Philip's marriage to his first wife as well as the birth of their numerous children on Family Search.  I could see that his first wife, Laura, died in 1892 so I decided to see if I could find a marriage after that for Mary Ann and Philip.  I quickly find a marriage for Philip Arnold and Mary Anne Zeuagg.  Normally I'm willing to accept all sorts of spellings for ZAUGG.  Obviously this one is very close so I was good with it.

THEN I moved on to looking at census records.  The 1900 census for this family is very interesting:

The two children listed at the bottom are clearly born well before the marriage I found, Sarah is born well before wife #1's death, and both children are listed as Zaugg, not Arnold.  Scrambling back to Ohio births I immediately find Sarah Zaugg being born to Mary Ann Zaugg and Albert Parker!  As this birth is the only one listed with the child being given the mother's maiden name I feel that Sarah is now accounted for as an illegitimate birth.

Just out of curiosity, I also look for Albert Parker in Wayne County, Ohio and find the only Albert Parker is in Salt Creek Twp, (also where Mary Ann is living) He is a  married man in the 1880 census with 5 children - the youngest ALSO Sarah born about a year and a half before this Sarah.  He is 12 years older than Mary Ann.

Huldah, however remains a puzzle as does the exact marriage date of Mary Ann and Philip.  Based on this census information I would be willing to entertain the idea that Mary Ann had two illegitimate children before marrying a widower with 8 children of his own.

My problem is that I can't seem to find a birth record for Hulda(h).  In the 1910 & 1920 census she is enumerated as Hulda(h) Arnold and on her son's marriage record her maiden name is given as Hulda Arnold.  Of course being so young when her mother married - if, indeed, the 1898 record IS her mother - I can see that she might have taken her step-father's name even if there was no legal adoption.

For the youngest child on this census, William G (who later went by Glen William), I find a birth record clearly stating his father as Philip with a birth after the 1898 marriage record.

One of the last thing I found in this search was Mary Ann's obituary [above].  It is clear about which children are her's and which are step-children but I knew that.  Her husband Philip died after her and I was hoping that maybe his obituary would be more forthcoming.  I couldn't find it on-line, but the nice people at the Wayne County library sent it to me.  Extremely brief and no further clarity on his children.

So, I am left with the mystery of Hulda(h) Zaugg/Arnold, later Zerrer.  I'd really love to dive into it, but I have so many other things to work on that are more directly related to my line.  I'll have to let this one be for awhile.

***UPDATE***

I found Huldah!  I started looking at her husband and children and found Anton and HILDA Zerrer buried in Wayne County.  So I did a search for Hilda Zaugg with a 2-year range for her birth and believe I've found her here:

That name surely looks like Huldah to me, but in further looking at census records, I believe she morphed it into Hilda later in life. 

The memorial I found for her son, William, states in part, "He was born March 16, 1931, in Smithville to Anton Sr. and Hilda (Arnold) Zerrer and had been a Smithville resident all of his life."

So that's a little more evidence on the side of my speculation that Mary Ann had two children out of wedlock prior to marrying Philip Arnold in 1898.