Tombstone Tuesday-John A. & Louisa C. (Lillich) Buechner

John A & Louisa C (Lillich) Buechner, Zion Lutheran Cemetery, Van Wert County, Ohio. (2012 photo by Karen)

This is the tombstone of John A. Buechner and Louisa C. (Lillich) Buechner, located in row 11 of Zion Lutheran Cemetery, Schumm, Van Wert County, Ohio. The marker is inscribed:

BUECHNER
Louisa C.
1872-1963

John A.
1865-1933

Johannes “John“ Peter Buechner was born in Willshire Township on 20 August 1865, the son of John and Margaret (Scior/Zior) Buechner. John Buechner was baptized 27 August 1865 with Peter Germann and Adam Dietrich serving as his sponsors. John was christened as Johannes Peter but he may have had a second middle name, Adam. His tombstone and some other records indicate that his middle initial was A.

The John Buechner family in 1870: Catharine Lillich, 80; John Buechner, 42; Margaret Buechner, 40; William Buechner, 11; Mary Buechner, 9; John Buechner, 5; and Henry Buechner, 2. John Buechner’s father John was a farmer. [1]

The John Buechner family in 1880: John Buechner, 51; Margaret Buechner, 51; William A Buechner, 21; Mary C Buechner, 19; John P Buechner, 14; and Henry C Buechner, 12. [2]

John Buechner’s father John died 7 January 1896.

John Buechner married Louisa Lillich on 19 April 1900 at the Zion Lutheran parsonage, Schumm.

“Louisa” Charlotte Lillich was born 6 February 1872 in Van Wert County, the daughter of Fredrick Samuel (1829-1890) and Sarah (Shell) (1836-1911) Lillich.

Louisa was enumerated with her family in 1880: Frederick Lillich, 51, head; Sarah, 43, wife; Rebecca, 21, daughter; Rose Elizabeth, 17, daughter; Frederick S, 15, son; Sarah U, 13, daughter; William H, 10, son; Charlotte L, 8, daughter; John A, 6, son; George F, 3, son; Emma Isadore, 11 mo, daughter; John R Ellinger, 19, nephew. [3]

John Buechner and Louisa Lillich were married in April 1900 the newlyweds were enumerated in the 1900 census in June: John Buechner, 34, farmer, and Louisa, 28, wife. [4]

John’s mother Margaret (Scior) Buechner died 20 April 1907.

By 1910 John and Louisa Buechner had two children, Lillian, 7, and Leo, 2. [5]

Their household in 1920: John A P Buechner, 54; Charlotte L Buechner, 47, wife; Lillian M, 17, daughter; Leo B Buechner, 11, son; John F Buechner, 5, son; William H Lillich, 50, brother-in-law. [6]

The John Buechner family in 1930: John 64; Louisa, 57; Leo, 22; and John, 16. [7]

John Buechner died of a cerebral hemorrhage in Van Wert County on 27 April 1963, at the age of 67 years, 6 months, and 7 days. He was buried on 1 March. [8]

By 1935 widow Louisa Buechner had moved into the village of Willshire. In 1940 widow Louisa Buechner lived with her son Leo Buechner and his family in Willshire: Leo, 32, head; Louise, 31, wife; Louisa, 68, mother; John Buechner, 26, brother. [9]

Widow Louisa Buechner, age 78, lived by herself in Willshire in 1950. [10]

Louisa (Lillich) Buechner died from complications of a stroke in the Van Wert County Hospital on 17 April 1963, at the age of 91. She was buried on 19 April. Her usual residence was Willshire. [11]

Louisa C. Buechner
Willshire-Mrs. Louisa Charlotte Buechner, 91, died at 6:35 a.m. Wednesday in Van Wert County Hospital where she had been a patient six days.

Born Feb. 6, 1872, in Willshire Township, she was a daughter of Frederic and Sarah (Shell) Lillich. Her husband, John, died in 1937 [sic].

Surviving are a daughter and two sons, Leo Buchner [sic] of 3270 Ottawa Rd, Lima; and John of Sacramento, Calif; a daughter, Mrs. Lillian Schinnerer of Fort Wayne; three grandchildren; and seven great-grandchildren.

Mrs. Buchner [sic] was a member of Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church, a charter member of the Ladies Aid and the Women’s Missionary League.

Services will be Friday at 2 p.m. in the church. Rev. Elmer Braun will officiate and burial will be in the church cemetery.

Friends may call at Cowan and Sons Funeral Home, Van Wert, until noon Friday when the body will e taken to the church. [12]

John and Louisa (Lillich) Buechner had the following children:
Lillian Margaretha Buchner (1902-1994), married Gerhardt Johann Schinnerer
Leo Bernhard Buechner (1908-1971), married Louise M. Schumm 
Johann “John” Friedrich Buechner (1914-1973), married Marcile Margery Schumm

Interesting to note is that Louisa (Lillich) Buechner’s sister Rosa Lillich married John Buechner’s brother Henry Buechner.

[1] 1870 U.S. Census, Willshire, Van Wert, Ohio, p.445B, dwelling 218, family 2019, John Buechner; digital image by subscription, Acestry.com, viewed 11 May 2020.

[2] 1880 U.S. Census, Willshire, Van Wert, Ohio, ED 154, p.444C, family 24, John Buechner; digital image by subscription, Ancestry.com, viewed 11 May 2020.

[3] 1880 U.S. Census, Willshire, Van Wert, Ohio, ED 154, p.450D, family 138, Frederick Lillick [sic]; Ancestry.com, viewed 16 Aug 2022.

[4] 1900 U.S. Census, Willshire, Van Wert, Ohio, ED 97, p.9, dwelling 176, family 189, John A Buechner [sic]; Ancestry.com, viewed 12 Sep 2022.

[5] 1910 U.S. Census, Willshire, Van Wert, Ohio, ED 114, p.1A, dwelling & family 12, John Buechner; Ancestry.com, viewed 12 Sep 2022.

[6] 1920 U.S. Census, Willshire, Van Wert, Ohio, ED 146, p.3B, dwelling 64, family 65, John A P Buechner; Ancestry.com, viewed 12 Sep 2022.

[7] 1930 U.S. Census, Willshire, Van Wert, Ohio, ED 24, p.2A, dwelling 33, family 34, John Buechner; Ancestry.com, viewed 13 Sep 2022.

[8] “Ohio Deaths, 1908-1953,” Willshire, Van Wert, Ohio, John Adam Buechner, 27 Feb 1933; database with images, FamilySearch.org, viewed 13 Sep 2022. 

[9] 1940 U.S. Census, Willshire, Van Wert, Ohio, ED 81-26, p.5B, house visited 119, Leo Buschner [sic]; Ancestry.com, viewed 13 Sep 2022.

[10] 1950 U.S. Census, Willshire [village], Van Wert, Ohio, Ed 81-38, serial no. 92, Louisa C Buechner; Ancestry.com, viewed 12 Sep 2022.

[11] “Ohio Deaths, 1908-1953,” Willshire, Van Wert, Ohio, Louisa Charlotte Buechner, 17 Apr 1963; database with images, FamilySearch.org, viewed 13 Sep 2022. 

[12] The Lima News, Lima, Ohio, 18 Apr 1963, p.2; digital image, Ancestry.com, viewed 13 Sep 2022.

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