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. The Milligan Painting — 22 comments
  5. Metal Cemetery Monuments — 21 comments

Author's posts

Tombstone Tuesday-Christina (Kable) Baumgartner

This is the burial chamber of Christina (Kable) Baumgartner in the Chattanooga Mausoleum, located on the edge of Zion Lutheran Cemetery, Liberty Township, Mercer County, Ohio. The chamber is inscribed: Christina Baumgartner 1867-1939…

The Tenth Schumm Reunion, 1949

Zion Lutheran Church at Schumm celebrated their 175th anniversary as a congregation in 2021. That is quite a milestone. Later this year the Schumm family will celebrate yet another milestone–the 100-year anniversary of the John George Schumm Family Reunion. It will be the 45th Schumm reunion…

Tombstone Tuesday-Jacob Kable

This is the tombstone of Jacob Kable, located in row 3 of Kessler/Liberty Cemetery, Mercer County, Ohio. The marker is inscribed: JACOB KABLE, 1865-1946…

1950 Census Test Form P11, Pleasant Township, Van Wert County

While getting information for the Herbert and Paulena Merkle Tombstone Tuesday post earlier this week, I noticed that they were enumerated using one of the 1950 census test forms that was used in selected areas of the country, one of those areas being Pleasant Township, Van Wert County, Ohio, where the Merkles lived.

Tombstone Tuesday-Herbert D. & Paulena K. (Allmandinger) Merkle

This is the tombstone of Herbert D. & Paulena K. (Allmandinger) Merkle, located in Evangelical Protestant Cemetery, Convoy, Van Wert County, Ohio. The marker is inscribed MERKLE, Paulena K (1898-1988) & Herbert D (1900-1985). It is interesting to note that Herbert and Paulena both had a Mercer County, Ohio, connection…