Aug 02

Maggie (Kallenberger) Hoehamer Photo

This past Tuesday I featured the tombstone of Margaret E. “Maggie” (Kallenberger) Hoehamer. Wednesday. while looking through some old photos, I found this cabinet card which had her name written on the back.

Maggie (Kallenberger) Hoehamer (1874-1950)

Maggie (Kallenberger) Hoehamer (1874-1950)

This photograph was taken by Smith Photography in St. Marys, Ohio. From the style of her dress and the embellishments on it I would estimate the photo was taken around 1900.

I was able to see some details of the photograph by using a magnifying glass. Maggie was wearing a wedding band so it appears the photo was taken after she and William were married in May 1900. Perhaps this photo was taken on Maggie’s wedding day, in her wedding dress. It was a fancy dress. Notice the lace and bead-work on the bodice as well as the ruffles and bow. She was also wearing jewelry, a necklace and earrings.

Maggie was the daughter of Andrew and Elizabeth (Burkhart) Kallenberger. Their photo below was taken at Morrison Photography in Chattanooga. This is the third photo I have seen from Morrison Photography in Chatt, but I know very little about the studio.

Andrew & Elizabeth (Burkhart) Kallenberger, parents of Maggie.

Andrew & Elizabeth (Burkhart) Kallenberger, parents of Maggie.

In 1940 Maggie and William lived northeast of Chattanooga and west of Rockford. Maggie was a housewife and her highest level of education was the 8th grade. Their grandson Ansel Shindeldecker, age 16, was living with them and doing farm labor for them. The Hoehamers were living close to several folks I knew and remember: Kermit, Fern & Bonnie Stetler; Claude, Virginia, Vivian & Shirley Buchanan; Vernon, Donna & Carolyn Caffee; Jesse & Dorthea Pickering; John H., Caroline, Dale & Donald Caffee; Eugene, Dolores & Bobbie Caffee; Charles, Nora, Floyd, Harold & Donald Sipe. These were some of their neighbors as they were enumerated in the census. [1] So interesting!

The Hoehamers lived in the area between Wilson, Manley, Wabash, and Hill Roads, in Section 22 of Blackcreek Township, Mercer County, Ohio. Their farm is #67 on the map below, just to the right of the first “E” in Creek. [2]

Blackcreek Township, Mercer County, Ohio, 1916 Farm Journal Directory.

Blackcreek Township, Mercer County, Ohio, 1916 Farm Journal Directory.

 

[1] 1940 U.S. Census, Blackcreek, Mercer, Ohio, ED 54-1, p.6A, household 118, line 11, W.H. Hoehammer; digital image by subscription, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : accessed 1 August 2013); from National Archives microfilm T627, roll 3114.

[2] The Farm Journal Illustrated Directory of Mercer County, Ohio, 1916 (Philadelphia : Wilmer Atkinson Company, 1919), 99.

Jul 30

Tombstone Tuesday–Margaret E. Hoehamer

 

Margaret E. Hoehamer, Zion Lutheran Cemetery, Mercer County, Ohio. (2011 photo by Karen)

Margaret E. Hoehamer, Zion Lutheran Cemetery, Mercer County, Ohio. (2011 photo by Karen)

This is the tombstone of Margaret E. Hoehamer, located in row 10 of Zion Lutheran Cemetery, Chattanooga, Mercer County, Ohio. The marker is inscribed:

MARGARET E.
HOEHAMER
1874-1950

Margaret E. Hoehamer was born Elisabeth Margaretha Kallenberger, according to the records of Zion Lutheran Church, Chattanooga. She was born 10 January 1874 in Blackcreek Township, Mercer County, and was baptized 19 February of that year. She was the daughter of Michael Andreas “Andrew” and Elisabeth (Burkhart) Kallenberger. Her father was born in Württemberg and her mother in Tuscarawas County, Ohio. In most records Margaret went by the name of “Maggie.”

Maggie Kallenberger married William A. Hoehamer on 24 May 1900. They were married by Rev. R. V. Schmitt, the minister of Zion Chatt. [1]

According to Zion’s records and census enumerations William and Maggie had the following children:

Ida/Edie Elisabeth (1901-?)
Friedericke Louisa (1903-?)
Wilhelm Andreas Hoehamer, Jr. (1909-1978) married Alice Luella Deitsch
Stillborn son (born 14 February 1913) buried at Zion Chatt

In 1920 William and  Maggie were living in Blackcreek Township with their three children and Maggie’s mother: William, 44, farmer; Elisabeth, 46; Edith, 18, “Freeda,” 16; William, 10. “Kallen Barger,” mother-in-law, 79, widow. [2] “Kallen Barger” must have been Maggie’s mother, Elizabeth (Burkhart) Kallenberger. It is often interesting to see how a census enumerator recorded a name.

In 1930 William and Maggie were living in on Smalley Pike, Blackcreek Township, Mercer County, Ohio. William was 55 years old and was a farmer. Maggie E. was 56 years old. Living with them was their son William A., age 20, and Maggie’s mother, Elizabeth Kallenberger, mother-in-law, widow and 88 years of age. [3]

My aunts and uncle remember that their sister Helen Miller used to do housework for Maggie and William. Maggie and William lived between Wilson and Rockford West Roads, near where a tree was in the middle of the road. I do not remember this place, but my aunts and uncle do.

Obituary:

Mrs. William A. Hoehamer, Sr.

ROCKFORD, May 8—Services for Mrs. Margaret E. Hoehamer, 76, wife of William A. Hoehamer, Sr., will be at 2:30 p.m. Tuesday in Zion Lutheran church, Chattanooga. The Rev. Waldo Byers will officiate and burial will be in the church cemetery. Mrs. Hoehamer was a lifelong resident of Blackcreek-tp, Mercer-co. She died at her home Sunday following a lengthy illness.

Surviving in addition to her husband are a daughter, Mrs. J.R. Materlock, and a son, William, Jr., both of Blackcreek-tp; a brother, Michael Kellenberger [sic]; five grandchildren and two great grandchildren.

The body will remain at the Dick and Stallter funeral home. [4]

Although Maggie is buried in Zion Chatt’s cemetery, near her brother Michael Kallenberger, her husband is buried in Mount Hope Cemetery, Adams County, Indiana. [See last week’s blog post about her husband, William A. Hoehamer.]

 

[1] “Ohio, County Marriages, 1789-1994,” index and images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/XZT6-GGQ : accessed 21 July 2013), W.A. Hoehamer and Maggie E. Kallenberger, 1900, citing Mercer County Marriages, Vol. 8: 141.

[2] 1920 US Census, Blackcreek, Mercer, Ohio, ED 124, p.10A, dwelling 190, family 190, line 20, William Hoehamer; digital image by subscription, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : accessed 21 July 2013); from National Archives microfilm T625, roll 1418.

[3] 1930 U.S. census, Blackcreek, Mercer, Ohio, ED 1, p.1B, dwelling 11, family 11, line 51, William A. Hoehamer; digital image by subscription, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : accessed 21 July 2013); from FHL microfilm 2341584, from National Archives microfilm T626, roll 1850.

[4] Deaths and Funerals, The Lima News, 8 May 1950, p. 2; Mrs. William A. Hoehamer, Sr. obituary.

Jul 25

Packing for the FGS Conference

FGS 2013 Ambassador BadgeThe 2013 FGS Conference is less than a month away and it is time for serious conference planning and last minute details. I have made a list of the sessions I plan to attend and the exhibitors I want to visit. But what do I want to take and carry with me to the conference each day?

I plan to drive back and forth to the conference every day so I won’t have to pack for an overnight stay. However, I have stayed over at a number of conferences and there are a few items I always pack–comfortable shoes and clothing items I can layer. Although it may be hot in Fort Wayne in August, the conference rooms at the Grand Wayne Center may be cool. Having a light sweater is always a good idea.

Plus I always pack an electrical strip with multiple outlets so I can charge all my electronic devices in my room overnight.

Here is what I will be taking with me to the conference every day:

  • Android phone and/or tablet. Useful for:

Guidebook app [I’m sure the conference planners will have conference information available on this app. With this handy app I can see the conference schedule, plan my schedule, see the list of exhibitors and venue map, create a to-do list, and more. This is a great free app!]

Evernote app [To access my shopping list, to-do list and other notes, and to create notes.]

Dropbox app–[To access the whole conference syllabus and my other saved documents I might want to look at.]

Gedstar Pro app [To access all of my family genealogy.]

Access to the Internet

  • Handouts for that day’s sessions [I still like to print and take hard copies of the handouts for sessions I will attend that day. Then I make my notes right on those pages.. I will copy the handouts once the conference syllabus is available to download.]
  • Cross body bag/purse [A small, hands-free bag with lots of pockets is very handy. Vera Bradly, Baggallini and Thirty-One have some great little purses.]
  • Business cards with my contact information and my website address.
  • Expandable/collapsible back pack for books and other items I might buy. [Light weight and not much to carry around, but available if I need it.]
  • Water [Although there will probably be water available, I carry a bottle and refill it at a drinking fountain.]
  • Power bar [If I get tired or hungry or don’t attend a luncheon I can usually get by with a power bar and some caffeinated tea.]

I find, as the conference progresses, that I take and carry less and less each day. I don’t like to carry around heavy bags and, since I can do so much with my android phone, I probably won’t have to take my android tablet.

For those who plan to research at the Allen County Public Library I suggest taking a research list, thumb drive and a wand scanner. A camera or camera phone can also be used to photograph pages and even microfilm images. This way you digitize your research finds as you go!

The 2013 FGS Conference is 21-24 August. It is not to late to register for the whole conference or just one day. Visit https://www.fgsconference.org for details.

I hope to see you in Fort Wayne next month!

 

 

 

 

Jul 23

Tombstone Tuesday–William A. Hoehamer

William A. Hoehamer, Mount Hope Cemetery, Adams County, Indiana. (2013 photo by Karen)

William A. Hoehamer, Mount Hope Cemetery, Adams County, Indiana. (2013 photo by Karen)

This is the tombstone of William A. Hoehamer, located in Mount Hope Cemetery, Adams County, Indiana. The marker is inscribed:

WILLIAM A.
HOEHAMER
1875-1956

William A. Hoehamer was born March 1875 in Auglaize County, Ohio, to Nicholas and Anna (Manzelman) Hoehamer.

William married Maggie E. [Margaret Elisabeth] Kallenberger on 24 May 1900, by Rev. R. V. Schmitt, Zion Chatt’s pastor. Maggie was the daughter of Michael Andreas and Elisabeth (Burkhart) Kallenberger, and was born in Blackcreek Township, Mercer County, Ohio. William’s occupation was oil driller. [1]

In 1900 William and Maggie were living with Maggie’s parents. William was age 25 and Maggie was 26. William’s occupation was day laborer. They had been married less than a year. In fact, they had been married less than a month. They were married 24 May of that year and the census was taken 16 June. [2] 

William and Maggie were living on West Pearl Street in Rockford, Ohio, in 1910, and William worked as a blacksmith. He and Maggie had been married ten years. Maggie had given birth to three children and all three children were living: Edith, 8; Freda, 7; and William, 1. [3]

In 1916 William and Maggie and their three children lived on their 80 acre farm at Route 2, Rockford, between Rockford West and Wilson Road. They had four horses, six cows and an Indiana telephone at their Blackcreek residence. [4]

According to Zion Chatt’s records and census enumerations William and Maggie had the following children:

Ida/Edie Elisabeth (1901-?)
Friedericke Louisa (1903-?)
Wilhelm Andreas, Jr. (1909-1978) married Alice Luella Deitsch
Stillborn son (14 February 1913) buried at Zion Chatt

William’s wife Maggie died in 1950 and is buried in Zion Lutheran Cemetery, Chattanooga.

Obituary:

William A. Hoehammer [sic]
ROCKFORD—Services for William A. Hoehammer, 81, retired farmer of this community, will be at 2 p.m. Monday in the Ketcham Funeral Home. The Rev. Dr. John D. Gregory will officiate and burial will be in Mount Hope Cemetery, Berne, Ind.

Mr. Hoehammer died at 11:30 p.m. Friday in Gibbons Hospital, Celina, after a 19-day illness. He was born in Moulton and had lived in Rockford many years. He was a member of the Rockford Presbyterian Church.

For the past several years he had made his home with his son and daughter-in-law, Mr. and Mrs. William Hoehammer Jr., Route 1, Rockford. Besides his son, he is survived by a daughter, Mrs. Freda Martelock, Florida; two half-brothers, Charles Hoehammer, Elmwood Park, Ill., and Orville, Hartford City, Ind., five grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren.

The body will remain in the Ketcham Funeral Home where friends may call after 11:30 a.m. Sunday. [5]

 

[1] “Ohio, County Marriages, 1789-1994,” index and images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/XZT6-GGQ : accessed 21 Jul 2013), W.A. Hoehamer and Maggie E. Kallenberger, 1900, citing Mercer County Marriages, Vol. 8: 141.

[2] 1900 U.S. Census, Blackcreek, Mercer, Ohio, ED 74, p. 8A, dwelling 164, family 134, Andrew Cullenbarger; digital image by subscription, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 21 July 2013); from FHL film 1241303, from National Archives Microfilm T623, roll 1303.

[3] 1910 U.S. Census, Dublin, Mercer, Ohio, ED 111, p.7B, dwelling 182, family 187, William M. Hokehamer; digital image by subscription, Ancestry.com (http://ancestry.com  : accessed 21 July 2013); from FHL microfilm 1375227, from National Archives microfilm T624, roll 1214.

[4] The Farm Journal Illustrated Directory of Mercer County, Ohio, 1916 (Philadelphia : Wilmer Atkinson Company, 1916), 99.

[5] Deaths and Funerals, The Lima News, 17 March 1956, p.2; William A. “Hoehammer” obituary.

 

Jul 19

Brewster Reunion Reports

Brewster Reunion, date unknown.

Brewster Reunion, date unknown.

Summertime! Long, hot, sunny days. Vacations, ballgames and family reunions. Yes, it is family reunion time once again.

The only reunion in our family this year is the annual Miller reunion, which will be held next weekend. Our other two regular family reunions, the Schumm reunion and Brewster reunion, are held every other year, and this is their off-year.

The Millers have a casual get-together while the Brewsters and Schumms have a more structured gathering. They even elect officers and record minutes. I have discovered that those old reunion records can be interesting and laced with family information.

My second cousin Brian has in his possession some old Brewster reunion records and he kindly allowed me to copy them. In addition to the secretary and treasurer reports the notes also include attendance records.

The reunion reports begin in 1948, the 7th annual Brewster reunion, held the 4th Sunday in August at Lehman Park, in Berne, Indiana. These reports end in 1981.The first Brewster reunion was held in 1913 and they evidently had only five reunions between 1913 and 1948.

Approximately 46 Brewster relatives attended that 1948 reunion. It was an organized gathering and later reunions followed a similar schedule: a basket dinner at noon, a short business meeting, pictures, visiting and the ever-popular summer treat, ice cream.

Brewster relatives attending in 1948:

Mr. & Mrs. Freed Burk
Don Brewster
Mr. & Mrs. Robert Dudgeon & son
Mr. & Mrs. Dore Brewster & family
Mr. & Mrs. Glen Brewster
Mr. & Mrs. A.H. Brewster
Mr. & Mrs. Donald Glassburn & family
Mr. & Mrs. Ralph Derrickson & Paul
Mrs. Nellie (Fred) Brewster
Mrs. Harriet Buckmaster
J.E. Brewster
Edna Barger
Mr. & Mrs. James Nussbaum
Mrs. Edna Abnet
Mr. & Mrs. Paul Brewster & family
Mr. & Mrs. Francis Luginbill & family

The youngest person present was Janet Sue Brewster, age 22 months. The oldest persons present were Mrs. Freed Burk and Mrs. Harriet Buckmaster.

The elected officers for the next year were: J.E. Brewster, President; Anthon Brewster, Vice President;

Mrs. Eva Brewster, Sec/Treas.

Brewster Reunion, date unknown.

Brewster Reunion, date unknown.

The 1949 reunion was called off due to the Polio epidemic in the community.

I was at the 11th annual Brewster reunion in 1953, although I do not recall the event. I was very, very young back then.

Those attending the Brewster reunion in 1953:

Lewis W. Brewster
Golda Brewster [?]
Mr. & Mrs. J.E. Brewster
Mr. & Mrs. Charles Liby
Mr. & Mrs. Robert Dudgeon
Mr. & Mrs. Carl F. Miller
Mr. & Mrs. Herbert Miller (3)
Mr. & Mrs. Glen Brewster
Mr. & Mrs. Eugene Robinson
Mrs. Ralph Derrickson & son Paul
Mr. & Mrs. Lee Derrickson & son Dale
Mr. Francis Luginbill & family (6)
Mr. &  Mrs. James Nussbaum , James & Jed (4)
Mrs. Eva Brewster, Monroe, Ind.
Mrs. Irmyl Denney, Dunkirk, Ind.
Mr. Mrs. Arlie Ellenberger & Coleen
Mrs. Pearl Brewster
Marjorie Oswalt
Mr. & Mrs. Cecil Bollenbacher (4)
Bert Brewster & children (6)
Mr. & Mrs. Jesse Brewster, Connie & Gary (4)
Mr. & Mrs. Dore Brewster (5)
Mr. & Mrs. Tony Brewster, Box 330 Portland (3)
Wayne Weaver

My great-grandmother Pearl Brewster was the oldest person in attendance in 1953 and the youngest was the10 month old son of Mr. & Mrs. Lee Derrickson. Lewis Brewster traveled the farthest to the reunion.

Brewster Reunion, date unknown.

Brewster Reunion, date unknown.

In 1967 they began recording births, marriages and deaths. What a nice record for genealogists! That year my aunt Helen (Miller) Linn died and Carey Ellenberger was killed in action in Viet Nam.

My grandmother, Gertrude “Gertie” (Brewster) Miller regularly attended the Brewster reunion. She was the oldest person there in 1970. The next year’s reunion was the last one my grandma Miller attended. That was the 29th reunion, held in 1971, with 76 in attendance. She died in February, 1973.

It sure would be wonderful to be able to talk with all those relatives today!