May 29

Tombstone Tuesday–John C. Schumm

John C. Schumm (1849-1926)

This is the tombstone of John C. Schumm, located in row 11 of Zion Lutheran Cemetery, Schumm, Van Wert County, Ohio. The marker is inscribed: SCHUMM, John C. 1849-1926.

Obituary:
Funeral services for John C. Schumm were held from the Lutheran church at Schumm last Friday afternoon, and were attended by a very large concourse of relatives, friends and acquaintances.  The services were conducted by the pastor, Rev. R.O. Bienert, with interment in the church burial ground. 

The following authorized obituary was read in connection with the services:

John Christian Schumm, son of Ludwig Schumm and his wife, Anna Barbara, nee, Pflueger, was born at Schumm, Ohio, December 29, 1849.  On November 18, 1880, he was united in marriage with Wilhelmina Breuninger, who preceded him in death 27 years ago.  Their union was blessed with six children–Victor A., Arnold, Mrs. Paul Schumm, Mrs. Oscar Schumm, Miss Salome Schumm, living in Willshire Township, and Mrs. W.C. Linser of Van Wert.

John C. Schumm died suddenly January 12, 1926.  Besides his children he leaved to mourn their loss, 15 grandchildren; one brother, Ludwig Schumm, Willshire township; one sister, Mrs. C.F. Germann, Harrison Township; one half-brother, W.A. Buechner; one half-sister, Mrs. Margaret Kreiselmeyer, and one step-brother, Fred Buechner, of Fort Wayne, In.  He had attained to the age of 76 years and 14 days. (Source: The Willshire Herald, Willshire, Ohio, 21 January 1926.)

John C. Schumm (1849-1926)

There are several other sources of information about John C. Schumm. According the Zion Lutheran Church records Johann Christian Schumm was born 29 December 1849 to Ludwing and Barbara (Pflueger) Schumm. He was baptized on 30 December 1849. His baptismal sponsors were Christian Pflueger and Jacob Schumm. He married Wilhelmine Breuninger on 18 November 1990 at the home of the bride’s parents. Both were from Zion’s parish.

“John C. Schumm was born in Van Wert County, 1849, and married Wilhelmina Brenninger [sic] in 1880.  Louis Schumm, the father of the above, was born in Wuerttemberg, Germany, 1818, but came to America, 1833, and married Barbara Pflueger.  He died August 22, 1856.” (Source: History of Van Wert and Mercer Counties, Ohio (1882; reprint, Mt. Vernon, Indiana: Windmill Publications, Inc., 1991), 258.)

According to his death certificate John was born in Ohio and died at his home in Willshire Township, Van Wert County, Ohio, of organic heart disease. He was buried at Schumm Cemetery on 15 January. The undertaker was S.S. Buchanan & Son of Willshire. John was a widower and a farmer. Victor Schumm was the informant. (Source:  John C. Schumm Certificate of Death, Bureau of Vital Statistics, Registration District 1297, File No. 78, Primary Registration District No 5993, Registered No. 78, #6382. Digital image, FamilySearch.org, Ohio Deaths, 1908-1953, image 456 of 3527, accessed 28 May 2012.)

I also descend from Louis and Barbara (Pflueger) Schumm. I descend from their son Ludwig “Louis” Schumm, who married John C. Schumm’s sister-in-law, Sarah Breuninger.

May 25

Memorial Day 2012

Memorial Day Service at Willshire Cemetery, 2000.

Memorial Day will be celebrated this coming Monday, May 28th. This federal holiday, originally designated Decoration Day, dates back to time of the Civil War. It began as a way to remember and honor both Union and Confederate soldiers who were killed during the Civil War.

After WWI Memorial Day was extended to honor Americans who died in all wars. Today most Americans use this holiday as a time to decorate grave sites, whether the deceased served in the military or not.

Memorial Day is especially meaningful to me this year since my dad recently passed away. He was a combat veteran of WWII and fought in the Battle of the Bulge. Several months ago he made plans to take the Freedom Honor Flight to Washington DC. That flight was this past Tuesday, May 22nd. I know he would have enjoyed seeing the memorials in Washington and visiting with other veterans on the flight.

My dad was a member of the American Legion in Willshire and he used to lead the Willshire Memorial Day parade in the 1953 Army Jeep he restored. The procession would go through town and then on to Willshire Cemetery, where the Legion would conduct the Memorial Day service. The photo below was taken before the parade in 2000. That photo looks very similar to another taken during WWII.

Herbert Miller before Memorial Day Parade in Willshire, 2000.

Herbert Miller, 84th Division, 333rd Company, "The Railsplitters", WWII.

The following is a list of my collateral ancestors who died while serving our country:

Civil War:

Hallet Bryan (c1836-13 Sep 1863) was the son of Peter and Mary (Huey) Bryan of Jay County, Indiana, and was my 3rd great-granduncle. Private Bryan served in Company E, 89th Regiment, Indiana Infantry and was killed in Memphis, Tennessee. He is buried in the Memphis National Cemetery.

Daniel Schumm (2 Mar 1840-8 Feb 1863) was the son of Johann “Jacob” and Hannah (Billman) Schumm and was my 1st cousin 3 times removed. Corporal Daniel Schumm served in the 52nd OVI and never returned home from the Civil War.

John Schumm (30 Mar 1843-28 Oct 1864) was the son of George Martin and Maria (Pflueger) Schumm and was my 1st cousin 3 times removed. Corporal John Schumm served in Company A, 60th OVI. He was wounded and captured in Virginia during the Battle of Petersburg and was imprisoned at Salisbury, North Carolina, where he died.

WWI:

Carl Schumm was the son of Rev. Ferdinand and Wilhelmina (Brockmeyer) Schumm and was my 2nd cousin twice removed. He was killed in France during WWI.

WWII:

Ralph J. Derrickson (5 Apr 1925-15 Jan 1945) was the son of Ralph and Alpha (Brewster) Derrickson and was my 1st cousin once removed. Private Derrickson served in the 99th Infantry Division during WWII and was killed in action during the Battle of the Bulge in Luxembourg.

Edgar Schumm (18 Nov 1914-13 Nov 1944) was the son of William & Amanda (Reidenbach) Schumm and was my 3rd cousin once removed. He was killed while serving in WWII.

Victor Schueler (23 Jan 1924-3 Aug 1945) was the son of Adolph and Marie (Limbach) Schueler and was my 4th cousin. Private First Class Schueler was a member of the 85th Mountain Regiment, 10th Mountaineer Division and was killed in Italy during WWII.

Korean War:

Emanuel George Roehm (3 Aug 1931-23 Apr 1951) was the son of Emanuel George and Esther (Ohnesorge) Roehm and was my 4th cousin. Private First Class Roehm was a member of Company C, 1st Battalion, 7th Marines, 1st Marine Division. He was killed in action while fighting in Korea. Roehm was awarded the Purple Heart, the Combat Action Ribbon, the Korean Service Medal, the United Nations Service Medal, the National Defense Service Medal and the Republic of Korea War Service Medal. (source: Ancestry.com. WWI, WWII, and Korean War Casualty Listings [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2005.)

Viet Nam:

Corey Wayne Ellenberger (19 Oct 1946-12 Jan 1967) was the son of Kenneth & Nola (Charleston) Ellenberger and was my 2nd cousin. Private First Class Ellenberger served as a rifleman in Company L, 3rd Battalion, 7th Marines, 1st Marine Division and was killed in South Vietnam. (source: National Archives and Records Administration. Vietnam War: U.S. Military Casualties, 1956-1998 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2005.)

I read the following on Facebook this past week. I do not know who wrote these lines but they are very appropriate:

Thanksgiving is a day when we pause to give thanks for the things we have.
Memorial Day is a day when we pause to give thanks to the people who fought for the things we have.

 

 

 

 

May 22

Tombstone Tuesday–Minnie Schumm

Minnie (Breuninger) Schumm, Zion Lutheran Cemetery, Schumm, Ohio.

This is the tombstone of Wilhelmina “Minnie” (Breuninger) Schumm, located in row 7 of Zion Lutheran Cemetery, Schumm, Van Wert County, Ohio. The marker is inscribed Minnie Schumm, Aug. 26, 1860-Jan. 28, 1899.

Minnie was the fourth child of Louis and Maria (Seckel) Breuninger, my great-great-grandparents.

According to the records of Zion Lutheran Church, Schumm, Minnie was confirmed there in 1875. She married Johann Schumm on 18 November 1880 at her parents’ home.  Both were from the Schumm parish.

Her death and burial was also recorded in the church records: Wilhelmina Schumm, born Breuninger, wife of Mr. John Schumm, was born 22 August 1860 in Green Bay, Wisconsin.  She died 28 January 1899 of consumption, age 38 years, 5 months and 6 days.  She was buried on 31 January 1899 in the parish cemetery.  The funeral text was Hosea 6:1.

Obituary:
Wilhelmina Schumm, daughter of Lewis and Mary Brenninger [sic], was born August 22, 1860, at Green Bay, Wis., and died January 28, 1899, aged 38 years and 5 months.  In ’67 the family moved to Atlanta, Ga., and after a short time came to Willshire Township where they have since resided.

November 15, 1880, she was united in marriage to John Schumm.  To this union was born six children, Victor, a manly lad of 17 years, twin daughters, Hilda and Lydia, 15 years, then Lizzie and Arnold, and last a little daughter, Salome, who is now 6 years of age.

This is indeed a sad case.  For over three years Minnie bravely fought disease, trying to regain health and strength, to be with her family.  A part of these years was spent at the Toledo Hospital.  Some nine weeks ago, word was received that consumption, fell destroyer of all hope, had set in and medical skill was of no avail.  Then willing hands and loving hearts responded quickly, the doors of Mrs. Lewis Schumm, and affectionate sister, were thrown open, that the children at home might not be overburdened with care and that they might not remember the sufferings of the dear mother who so loved and cared for them, who so longed to live for the sake of husband and children.

You mothers who sit at fireside and table with your children happy and contented, will never know the look of inexpressible joy and contentment that flashed over the face of Minnie when she learned that she was going home, “home to friends, to mother, to children, the dear children and to John, my John.” She was of a loving disposition and in the last nine weeks of her life there were many days of sunshine and pleasure.  The end was free from suffering and she passed peacefully and quietly out into the great unknown.

Funeral services were held at the German Lutheran church, Tuesday afternoon, January 31st, by Rev. Seemeyer.  Text, Hosea, 6:1.  Minnie is indeed “At rest,” the tired hands are crossed, the frail body is at ease, and the sensitive spirit has returned to the God who gave it.  Repetition of the Lord’s Prayer soothed her like a benediction, and “forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors” seemed to be a favorite line.

She leaves a husband ever kind and true, six dutiful children, a mother, (her father died in 1890) and “No love like a mother’s love ever hath shone,” a dearly beloved brother, three sisters, Mrs. Mary Stamm, Mrs. Lottie, wife of Geo. Schumm, and Mrs. Lewis Schumm who made the last days of her life pleasant and cheerful besides a large circle of friends and acquaintances.  Truly they can say:

“We miss thee from our home, dear mother.
We miss thee from thy place;
A shadow o’er all our life is cast,
We miss the sunshine of thy face;
We miss thy kind and willing hands
Thy fond and earnest cares;
Our home is dark without thee.
We miss thee everywhere”              
(source: Van Wert Republican, Van Wert, Ohio, 16 Feb  1899.)

Wilhelmina "Minnie" (Breuninger) Schumm (1860-1899)

Mrs. Lewis Schumm, the sister with whom Minnie spent her last days, was Sarah (Breuninger) Schumm, my great-grandmother.

 

May 18

Civil War Certificate of Non-Liability–The Breuninger Collection

We have quite a number of old documents, papers, letters and various other items that once belonged to my great-great-grandfather, Louis Breuninger (1819-1890). Most of the items had been stored away for years in the crude wooden trunk that held his possessions when he came to this country in about 1839.

There are enough of his papers and items that I like to refer to the whole group as the “Breuninger Collection”. Fortunately, most of the items are still in pretty good condition.

I have already blogged about a couple of documents from the Breuninger Collection: a letter from his brother (“A Letter to Louis Breuninger, 1840”, 24 February 2012 blog) and a copy of Louis’ baptism record dated 1837 (“For Whom the Bell Tolls”, 10 February 2012 blog). The 1837 paper is one of the oldest papers Louis brought with him from Germany. I have many letters written in the mid-1800 from his father in Germany. Unfortunately, most have not been translated.

Below is another Breuninger document, Louis’ Certificate of Non-Liability from the Board of Enrollment. The document was issued in 1865, during the Civil War. My transcription of the document follows the image below and I have typed the handwritten items and the signatures in UPPER CASE.

Louis Breuninger's Civil War Certificate of Non-Liability, dated 7 January 1865.

Form 30
Certificate of Non-Liability, To Be Given by the Board of Enrollment.

We, the subscribers, composing the Board of Enrollment of the FIFTH District of the State of WISCONSIN provided for in section 8, Act of Congress “for enrolling and calling out the national forces,” approved March 3, 1863, hereby certify that LOUIS BREUNINGER of PREBLE, of BROWN county, State of WISCONSIN, having given satisfactory evidence that he is not properly subject to do military duty, as required by said act, and the act approved Feb’y 24, 1864, by reason of OVER AGE, is exempt from all liability to military duty for the term of THE PRESENT.

Description:
Name: LOUIS BREUNINGER
Age: 45
Height: 5’ 4 ½“
Complexion: RUDDY
Eyes: BLUE
Hair: BROWN
Drafted:
When: DEC 28/64
Where, Town & State: GREEN BAY, WIS
By Whom: CR MERRILL, CAPT, PROV. MAR 5TH DIS. WIS.
Period: 1 YEAR

Signed, C. R. MERRILL, Provost Marshall and President of Board of Enrollment.
Signed, W. A. BUGH, Member of Board of Enrollemnt.
Signed, H. O. CRANE, Surgeon of Board of Enrollment.
Dated at GREEN BAY WIS., this 7TH day of JANUARY, 1865.

Note.—This certificate is to be given in all cases where it is applicable, according to the acts of Congress referred to above. [end of document]

What did this document mean? A little history will help to explain it.

The Civil War was the first time the United States used conscription to raise armies. Conscription is also referred to as compulsory military service, or the draft. The Union and the Confederacy both used this process.

Under the Union Draft Act men faced the possibility of conscription in July 1863 and in March, July, and December 1864. Louis was drafted 28 December 1964.

An amendment to the original enrollment was passed in February 1864 and stated that persons between the ages of 20-45 were subject to military duty. Louis was 45 years old.

A certificate of non-liability was issued to men who were not available for conscription for a specified number of years. The document could have been issued for a variety of reasons.

In some cases the person provided a replacement, also called a substitute, to take their place. A person could avoid service by paying commutation money. In this case Louis was just too old to be drafted.

According to Wikipedia, there were about 2,100,000 Union soldiers and of that number about 2% were draftees and another 6% were substitutes.

Conscription was not popular with the general public or with many of the volunteer soldiers. Problems included substitutions, desertions, enforcement and loopholes in the laws.

What other information can I get from the document? It gives me a nice description of Louis that I would not otherwise have. It also tells me where Louis was living in 1865.

This would have been the document Louis brought home with him proving that he was exempt from military service. I wonder how many similar documents have survived.

 

Sources of information and further reading about Civil War conscription:
Home of the American Civil War, Conscription (Military Draft) In The Civil War.
Civil War.com, Series III, Volume V, Pages 618-19, Union Letters, Orders, Reports.
Conscription in the United States, Wikipedia.

 

May 15

Tombstone Tuesday–Peter L. Breuninger

Peter L. Breuninger, Zion Lutheran Cemetery, Van Wert County, Ohio.

This is the tombstone of Peter L. Breuninger, located in row 3 of Zion Lutheran Cemetery, Schumm, Van Wert County, Ohio. The marker is inscribed BREUNINGER, Peter L., 1870-1939.

Peter Breuninger was the sixth and youngest child of Louis and Maria (Seckel) Breuninger. Louis and Maria were my great-great-grandparents and Peter was my great-granduncle.

According to the records at Zion Lutheran, Schumm, Peter Ludwig Breuninger was born 27 January 1870 and was baptized 6 April 1874. His sponsors were Ludwig Breuninger and Johann Büchner.

The church records also record his death and burial: Peter Ludwig Breuninger, born 27 January near Willshire, Ohio, died 2 August 1939 near Willshire, age 69 years, 6 months and 5 days. He was buried August 4 in Zion’s Cemetery. His funeral verse was Romans 3:23, 24, Rev. A. Moeller.

Funeral Rites Held for Peter Breuninger—
Funeral rites were performed at the Zion Lutheran Church in Schumm Friday afternoon for Peter Louis Breuninger, who died last Wednesday at the Richard Allmandinger home, two miles southeast of Schumm. S.S. Buchanan & Son of this town were the morticians.

He was born Jan. 27, 1870, on the old Breuninger homestead, the son of Louis Breuninger and his wife, Anna Maria, nee Seckel. He was baptized by the Rev. G. Schumm and confirmed in 1884 by the Rev. G.F. Seemeyer.

After a stay of many years in Toledo, he returned here with the intention of spending his declining years at the home of R. E. Allmandinger, Mrs. Allmandinger being one of his nieces. After having resided here less than a month, it pleased the Lord to call him out of this life on Wednesday, Aug. 2nd, at the age of 69 years, 6 months and 5 days. He was the last of his family, one brother and four sisters preceding him in death a number of years ago.

Burial was made in the congregation’s cemetery at Schumm by the Rev. A. Moeller.

Of the descendants of the late Mr. Breuninger’s brother and sisters, eight nephews and nine nieces mourn his departure, namely: Prof. A.G. Schumm, Cleveland; Geo. Schumm, Pittsburg [sic]; Rev. Paul T. Schumm, Sabin, Minn.; Richard L. Stamm and Victor Schumm, Ft. Wayne; Arnold Schumm, Cornelius L. Schumm and Martin V. Stamm, Willshire; Miss Bertha Schumm, Lafayette, Ind.; Mrs. Alvina E. Muntzinger, Convoy; Mrs. Ida C. Hollenberg, Fort Wayne; Mrs. Bertha A. Smith and Mrs. Lizzie Linser, Van Wert; Mrs. Hilda Schumm, Mrs. Lydia Schumm, Mrs. Saloma Schumm and Mrs. Frieda Allmandinger, Willshire. (The Willshire Herald, Willshire, Ohio, Thursday, August 10, 1939, p.1.)

Peter’s mother passed away in 1910 and according to her obituary Peter was a patient at the Toledo Hospital at that time. (Van Wert Daily Times, Van Wert, Ohio, 21 June 1910.) According to Peter’s obituary he passed away at the home of Richard and Frieda Allmandinger. Frieda was his niece and was also the sister of my grandfather Cornelius L. Schumm. Peter never married.