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

Organizing My Book List with Book Catalogue App

Books. I like books and I have quite a few. I enjoy reading non-fiction as well as fiction and I have a number of reference and how-to genealogy books. I recently saw a Barnes and Noble quiz on Facebook, “What’s Your Book Nerd Score?” Here are just a few items from that list that apply …

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Tombstone Tuesday–Gertrude (Heffner) Roehm

This is the tombstone of Gertrude (Heffner) Roehm, located in row 6 of Zion Lutheran Cemetery, Schumm, Van Wert County, Ohio. The marker is inscribed: GERTRUDE WIFE OF GEO ROEHM 1865-1933 Gertrude Heffner was born 9 June 1865 in Blackcreek Township, near Chattanooga, to George and Sophia (Martin) Heffner. She was baptized at Zion Chatt …

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J.D. Gackenheimer–Zion Chatt’s First Minister

This week’s Tombstone Tuesday mentioned that George Heffner and Sophia Martin were married by Rev. J.D. Gackenheimer in 1851. Rev. Gackenheimer was a pioneer minister in this area and he was the first minister at Zion Lutheran Church, Chattanooga. Rev. Gackenheimer performed the Heffner/Martin marriage four years before Zion Chatt was formed in 1855 and …

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Tombstone Tuesday–George & Sophia (Martin) Heffner

This is the tombstone of George and Sophia (Martin) Heffner, located in row 3 of Zion Lutheran Cemetery, Chattanooga, Mercer County, Ohio. The marker is inscribed: George Heffner Died Sept. 27, 1898 Aged 69 Y’rs. 10 M’s. 2 D’s. Sophia Wife of Geo. Heffner Died Feb. 14, 1892 Aged 65 Y’rs. 5 M’s. 17 D’s. …

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Jacob Rueck Was Not a Revolutionist

Late Jacob Rueck Not Revolutionist. That 1918 Portland, Oregon, newspaper headline caught my attention as I was searching on GenealogyBank.com. Could the article be referring to my great-great-grandfather Jacob Rueck? He lived near Portland, Oregon. What in the world was this article from the Oregonian about? Jacob Rueck had died 23 January 1918, about two …

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