Karen Bennett

Greetings from the Chattanooga, Ohio, area. Yes, Ohio has its very own Chattanooga, aka Chatt, a small village in west-central Ohio, near the Indiana border. I have been doing family history research for over 20 years and am a Board-Certified genealogist, certified by the Board for Certification of Genealogists®. My main genealogical interests are family research, cemetery research, and historical and genealogical research of the Chatt area, with a focus on two area Lutheran Churches, both named Zion Lutheran, one in Chatt and the other in Schumm, Ohio. Family names I am researching include Miller, Schumm, Brewster, Rueck, Reid, Headington, Huey, Bryan, Whiteman, Schinnerer, Scaer, Breuninger, Bennett, and a few others. I belong to several lineage societies, including the Daughters of the American Revolution, U.S. Daughters of 1812, First Families of Ohio, and First Families of Mercer and Van Wert Counties. I am also a retired dental hygienist and our church organist. I hope you enjoy Karen's Chatt.

Most commented posts

  1. Golden Wedding Anniversary — 37 comments
  2. Haunted Mercer County? — 34 comments
  3. The Old Willshire Hotel — 30 comments
  4. Metal Cemetery Monuments — 25 comments
  5. The Milligan Painting — 24 comments

Author's posts

May 17

New Book about 1872 Secaur Murder

Just in time for summer reading, a newly published book about the events surrounding the murder of 13-year-old Liberty Township resident, Mary Secaur. Many from this area of Mercer County, Ohio, have heard and read about these events that occurred just east of Chattanooga, Ohio, in June 1872.

May 14

Tombstone Tuesday–William G. Hoffer, Ora, Gretchen

This is the tombstone of William G. Hoffer, his wife Ora M. (Morehead), and daughter Gretchen Hoffer, located in section 3, row 11, Willshire Cemetery, Willshire, Van Wert County, Ohio. The marker is inscribed:

May 10

William G. Hoffer Obituary, 1949

Below is a detailed obituary of William G. Hoffer, the former editor and publisher of the Willshire Herald and Willshire’s postmaster for nearly 22 years during the first half of the 20th century. This obituary was published on the front page of the Willshire Herald on 20 January 1949, not quite a week after his death. It is a wonderful tribute to a man who was a prominent member of the Willshire community.  

May 07

Tombstone Tuesday–Magdalena (Schueler) Bienz

This is the tombstone of Magdalena (Schueler) Bienz, located in St. Paul Evangelical Lutheran Church Cemetery, Preble, Adams County, Indiana. The marker is inscribed:

May 03

William G. Hoffer, Editor

After spending the past several months extracting and posting information from a single 1904 edition of the Willshire Herald, I wanted to learn more about the newspaper’s editor and publisher, William G. Hoffer.