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 and genealogy research for over 35 years and am Credentialed as a Board-certified genealogist by the Board for Certification of Genealogists®, 2003-2024, retired 2024. My main genealogical interests are family research, cemetery research, and historical and genealogical research of the Chatt area. I also 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 U.S. Daughters of 1812, First Families of Ohio, and First Families of Mercer and Van Wert Counties. I am a retired dental hygienist and our church organist for over 60 years. 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

Too Big for My Britches!

I’ve gotten too big for my britches!
This old saying seems appropriate after another week of website woes.

More Post Offices in Willshire Township

Last week I featured a list of postmasters in the village of Willshire from 1822-1971.

During the time period from 1858 through 1971 there were five other post offices in Willshire Township–Abanaka, Glenmore, Greenwood/Wren, Leslie, and Schumm.

Tombstone Tuesday-Lamb Symbol

Fingers crossed that the notification e-mails for this blog post went out to Karen’s Chatt subscribers today and that they will continue once again.

Notifications stopped being sent out before Christmas and we have been working to correct the problem ever since.

Postmasters in the Hamlet of Willshire

In recent blog posts I listed the appointed postmasters in northern Mercer County from the 1840s through 1971, in the townships of Black Creek, Liberty, and Dublin.

Today I continue that list with the postmasters in another local town, Willshire, in Van Wert County.  

Tombstone Tuesday-Maria A. (Pflueger) Schumm

This is the tombstone of Maria (Pflueger) Schumm, located in row 5 of Zion Lutheran Cemetery, Schumm, Van Wert County, Ohio. The marker is inscribed:
Maria A.
Ehefrau von
G.M. Schumm
Geboren
Den 20, Juni
1820
Gest. Den 25
Marz 1903
SCHUMM