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

Feb 04

The Last Germans

Who were the last German immigrants in the congregations of Zion Chatt and Zion Schumm?

I am talking about immigrants from Germany, not the local families with the surname of German.

Feb 01

Tombstone Tuesday–Half-carved Grave Marker

A half-carved tombstone represents the transition from life to death.

Jan 28

Box Cars on Rail Road Track

Box Cars on Rail Road Track. That is the notation written on the side of the census sheet. The railroad box cars were on the tracks at Willshire and were the abode of 33 men in May of 1910. Willshire had a train depot years ago and these men were enumerated in the village, enumerated as residing in box cars on the railroad track.

Jan 25

Tombstone Tuesday-Mabel Hofmann

This is the tombstone of Mabel Hofmann, located in row 5 of Zion Lutheran Cemetery, Schumm, Van Wert County, Ohio. The marker is inscribed:

MABEL
Dau. of Theo. C. & Mollie
HOFMANN
16 Aug 1920-21 Jan 1935
Lam. Jer. 3. 31-33

Jan 21

Row, Row, Row Your Boat

They say a picture is worth a thousand words. Sometimes a picture is worth a few questions. Like, who are these two people in the little rowboat? Where was this? And why?