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

Sep 23

George M. & Barbara (Schinnerer) Schumm Photos

Last week I wrote about and posted photos of the 1901 Long Beach wedding of George M. Schumm and Barbara Schinnerer. The couple was originally from the Willshire-Schumm area but moved to California around the turn of the century, just before their marriage. George M. (1867-1958) was the son of Jacob “Frederick” and Maria (Germann) …

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Sep 20

Tombstone Tuesday–Leslie G. Becher

This is the tombstone of Lesile G. Becher, located in row 9 of Zion Lutheran Cemetery, Chattanooga, Mercer County, Ohio. The marker is inscribed: BECHER Leslie G. 1904-1982 Leslie George Becher was born 22 December 1904 in Liberty Township, Mercer County, Ohio. He was the fourth of eight children born to William P. and Katie …

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Sep 16

Schumm-Schinnerer California Wedding, 1901

A Schumm/Schinnerer wedding would not have been that unusual around the Schumm, Ohio, area in 1901, but you would not expect to hear of one in Long Beach California. But there was one such wedding and the couple was originally from Schumm. These are photos from the Germann Collection—a collection of old family photos that …

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Sep 13

Tombstone Tuesday–Infant Daughter of William & Katie (Schaadt) Becher

This is the tombstone of the infant daughter of William and Katie Becher, located in row 7 of Zion Lutheran Cemetery, Chattanooga, Mercer County, Ohio. The marker is inscribed: INFANT Dau. of Wm. P. & C.S. Becher 1914 This baby girl was the seventh child born to at William P. and Katie (Schaadt) Becher. [1] …

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Sep 09

The Page Pipe Organ at Zion Chatt

Last week I wrote about the 100th anniversary of the building of Zion Lutheran Church in Chattanooga, Ohio, the current brick building that was built in 1916 and dedicated in 1917. There is one item inside the church that I am very familiar with—the Page pipe organ. I have played on it nearly every week …

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