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Tuesday's Tip: Check Adjacent Counties

10/13/2014

A couple of weeks ago, FamilySearch posted on their site the images within their Ohio, County Death Records, 1840-2001 record set. Previously, I had to check to see if an ancestor's death record had been indexed, and, if so, I had to order a copy of the image from their photoduplication service. This release of images was a big deal for me, because just about all of my and my husband's ancestors lived in and died in Ohio. I was somewhat disappointed, though, to see that death records for Darke County in western Ohio were NOT included in the record set. My husband's French Catholic ancestors settled in the northeastern part of that county, and I was looking forward to finding some of their death records.

Not one to dwell upon disappointment when there were so many OTHER county records to comb through, I decided to search through Mercer County's images for ancestors from my mother-in-law's side who settled there in the 19th century. I was searching through the entire set page-by-page, and I found a lot of ancestors whose records had not previously been indexed and whose names were indexed or transcribed so poorly that there proper names didn't show up in the search engine results.

Suddenly, I came across the name 'Crist Magato,' who was my husband's FRENCH 4th great-grandfather through his paternal grandmother's line. Christopher never lived in Mercer County, and, according to this death record, he didn't die there either. (Click below for larger view.) The death record states that he passed away in Osgood, which is a small town located in Patterson Twp, Darke County, about a mile south of the Mercer-Darke county line. In the 1880 U.S. Census, Christopher is living in Wayne Twp, Darke County, which is directly south of Patterson Twp. He is also buried in Frenchtown, Wayne Twp, so I assume he remained there until his 1892 death.

Mercer County Death Record for Christopher Magoto, 1892

I am glad that I stumbled upon a death record for him, but now, I have more questions. Why did his death occur in Osgood, and not closer to where I assumed he was living. Maybe he was staying with a family member in his old age? I have not yet located his obituary, but that might provide some additional clues.

And why was his death recorded in Mercer County? As I mentioned above, I searched the entire Mercer County set for our family tree surnames, and this is the only Darke County relative I have found in Mercer County records. This experiences has taught me, though, to check record sets for adjacent counties, just in case an assessor or recorder decided to jot down a death that may have happened near, but not technically within, county lines.

©2014, copyright Emily Kowalski Schroeder

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Sunday's Obituary: Mary Frances Wimmers Tumbush

10/11/2014

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Mary Frances Wimmers Tumbush, who went by Frances her entire life, was my husband's great-grandmother through his maternal line. She was born 9 Mar 1872 in Granville Township, Mercer County, Ohio, the only daughter of German Catholic immigrants John Wimmers and Mary A. Hummler. In January 1893*, she married Henry Tumbusch (surname spelling later changed to Tumbush). Between 1895 and 1919, they had eleven children, nine of whom survived into adulthood. Her youngest son, Frank (1914-1997), was my husband's maternal grandfather. She was widowed in 1942. She passed away 14 November 1955 in Rockford, Ohio and is buried 17 November 1955 in St. Henry Cemetery in Mercer County.

*Date of marriage based on obituary of husband, Henry Tumbush, published 4 September 1942 in The Minster Post

I have located two separate obituaries for Frances. This first one was published in The Lima News on 16 November 1955:

The second obituary was published 18 November 1955 in The Coldwater Chronicle:

"Funeral services for Mrs. Frances Tumbush, 83, were held yesterday (Thursday) at St. Henry Catholic Church. Rev. Valentine Fleckenstein officiated and burial followed in the church cemetery. Death occurred Monday at the Colonial Rest Home in Rockford, following an illness of one year. She had been confined to her bed for the last eight weeks. Born in St. Henry March 9, 1872, a daughter of the late Mr. and Mrs. Henry* Wimmers, she was married to Henry Tumbush, who preceded her in death 12 years ago. Two sons are also deceased. She was a member of the St. Henry Catholic Church and the Christian Mothers sodality. Surviving are the following sons and daughters: valentine of Valley City; Edward of St. Marys; Leo of Celina; Albert , Anthony and Frank, all of St. Henry; Julius of Coldwater; Mrs. Isadore Steinke of Montezuma and Sister M. Iedephonse of Dayton. There are also 26 grandchildren and 15 great grandchildren, and a brother, Bernard Wimmers, of St. Henry."

I placed an asterisk after her father's first name, because it is incorrect - it should be John. John Wimmers passed away due to an accident in 1882, when Frances was only ten years old, so it is understandable that younger family members who wrote this obituary may not have known his first name.

Just this past week, I was able to obtain the Frances's death certificate from the Ohio History Connection (formerly the Ohio Historical Society). They recently acquired 1954-1963 death certificates from the Ohio Department of Health, and charge the public a small fraction of what the Office of Vital Statistics was previously charging for them.

Ohio Death Certificate for Frances Wimmers Tumbush

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Census Sunday: The Rolfes Family, 1850 and 1860

10/4/2014

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Johann Heinrich (Henry) Rolfes was my husband's 4th great-grandfather through my mother-in-law's Brunswick line. He immigrated to America from Germany in the early 1830s. After arriving at the Port of Baltimore, he made the journey to western Ohio, and settled in the newly-formed German-immigrant town of Minster. Henry married Maria Catharina Huessmann in 1836 and, in 1852-53, he purchased a fair amount of land in Auglaize County's Jackson Township, a couple of miles southwest of the Minster town limits.

Until this past week, I had had trouble locating Henry and his family in the 1850 and 1860 U.S. Censuses. I decided to take a fresh look at the information I did have and try to search again. I made the assumption that he stayed in the general vicinity of Minster between 1836 and 1852. (And yes, I made the conscious decision to come back and search the 1840 U.S. Census; that census only lists the male heads of household, and, at the time, I didn't feel like looking through tick marks and trying to decide if I had the correct family).

First, I manually read through the entire 1850 U.S. Census enumeration for the town of Minster itself. I did not find a family resembling the Rolfes family. There was no enumeration district known as Jackson, so I decided to check German Township's enumeration; German Township was known as such because so many German immigrants settled there. Plus, it is directly adjacent to Jackson Township, where I know they did end up.

I am fairly sure I did find Henry and Catherine Rolfes, with their only two children living at the time, Joseph and Catherine, in German Township. The surname isn't spelled correctly, but their ages match other evidence I have found. Two teenage girls with the same surname also live in the household, but I haven't been able to identify the correct relationships yet. (Click for larger view.)

The Rolfes Family, 1850 U.S. Census, German Twp, Auglaize Co, Ohio

Finding the family in the 1860 Census was a little more challenging. By now, I knew that the family was established in Jackson Township, and I knew that I had combed through that enumeration section before. But, I went back and looked more carefully. There were not any families with an 'R' surname whose first names and ages even resembled the Rolfes family. But, I did find a family by the name of 'Wolfast' whose names, ages, and birthplaces fit.

Rolfes Family, 1860 U.S. Census, Jackson Twp, Auglaize Co, Ohio

I went to Google Translate, selected German, and typed 'Rolfes' into the box. Then, I clicked on the little sound button in the lower right corner to listen to how Rolfes would be pronounced in German. And, let me tell you, with a thicker German accent, a census enumerator not familiar with German could very well interpret it as Wolfast. Take a listen here. I should mention that I'm not exactly sure who the ten-year-old 'Catherine M.' is in the family - it could possibly be a daughter or a niece I haven't yet researched.

Then, I went and manually searched the 1860 Agriculture Census forms for Jackson Township. I should have looked here first, because there is no 'Henry Wolfast' listed, but instead his name is spelled 'Henry Rolfast.' It turns out that he was one of the top landowners in Jackson Township, with a total of 290 acres and a farm value of $5,000. (Click for larger view.)

'Henry Rolfast' 1860 U.S. Agriculture Census, Jackson Township, Auglaize County, OH

Henry Rolfes did not appear in any future census. He passed away in 1866. His wife, Catherine, went to live with her married daughter, Catherine Rolfes Prenger, whose husband was also a farmer in Jackson Township. The widow Catherine Rolfes passed away 11 Oct 1877.

©2014, copyright Emily Kowalski Schroeder.

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Tuesday's Tip: Check Adjacent Counties

Sunday's Obituary: Mary Frances Wimmers Tumbush

Census Sunday: The Rolfes Family, 1850 and 1860

Emily Kowalski Schroeder

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