Biography of John Gibbs – from History of Kalamazoo County, Michigan Book

Biography of John Gibbs – Kalamazoo County Biographies

From the landing of the Pilgrim fathers at Plymouth Rock down to the present time, the pioneers of America have, been men of iron nerve, men who never found danger so great or privations so severe as to deter them from keeping their faces westward. No matter how rough the country; how dense the forests, or unfriendly the Indians, their paths were ever towards the setting sun. Where but a few years ago naught was to be beard but the howl of the woli the scream of the panther, and the war-whoop of the Indians, great cities have sprang up, and are now surrounded by thickly settled and prosperous communities. Railroads reach from city to city, and the rivers and lakes have become the pathways of commerce. To the hardy pioneers all this is due. Such a pioneer was John Gibbs, the subject of this sketch. He was born in Middlefield, Otsego Co., N. Y., July 23, 1798. His was a family of pioneers; his grandfather being an early settler in Cherry Valley, was living there at the time of the Indian massacre, and saw his wife killed and scalped by the Indians. As set forth in the biography of Isaac Gibbs, his father was a farmer, and with him John remained until he reached manhood. He learned the carpenter and joiner trade, and was also a millwright; he followed his trade most of the time until old age prevented.

In the spring of 1832 he with his brothers—Isaac and Chester came to Michigan, and settled in Kalamazoo township. A full account of his early settlement will be found in the biography before referred to. Few men have done more for Kalamazoo County than he. He helped raise the third frame house built in Kalamazoo village. He also built the first three barns built on Grand, Genesee, and Dry Prairies. When the railroad reached Kalamazoo, Mr. Gibbs assisted in building the first bridge across the Kalamazoo River. He assisted in building many of the first mills in the county. When a mill-dam could not be made to stand, Mr. Gibbs was sent for as the last resort, and be never failed. With him to attempt was to succeed, though he often worked in water and mud up to his waist, and in all seasons of the year.

In 1850, Mr. Gibbs, in company with his brother Isaac, and his son William, fitted out an ox team and wagon, and with a .large supply of provisions, started for California. They were months going, and endured many hardships. They engaged in mining, and were gone three years. Returning by water.

In 1859, accompanied by his second son, John, he went to Colorado, and visited it again in 1860, the second time accompanied by his son Willard. He continued there until 1861, when he returned to his home where he has since remained. And now, in the eighty-fourth year of his age, surrounded by his family, all of whom are in affluent circumstances, and in the enjoyment of every comfort, he is passing the evening of his days honored and respeóted by all.

When Mr. Gibbs first came to the town with his family they stopped with John Hascall. Mr. Gibbs selected a building site,. and then hung his hat on a bush to show his wife where her future home was to be. He built many of the first saw-mills, carrying the iron used in them on his back. In polities he has always been a Democrat, but never a politician.

He married Miranda Kinne, January 29, 1824. She was born March 25, 1805, in Braintrem, Pa. Their union was blessed with thirteen children, as follows: Jennette D., born Feb. 6, 1825; Marcia V., Aug. 3, 1826; William A., Oct. 4, 1828; Rosa Annis, Dec. 15, 1830; Josephine K., April 21, 1833;. John Jr., Feb. 22, 1835; James O., April 18, 1837; Emeline P., Nov. 13, 1839; L W. Willard, Feb. 3, 1841; James Martin, Jan. 30, 1843; Alice M., Dec. 7, 1845; H. Elizabeth, June 29, 1848; L. Isinella, July 12, 1850. Of these, the first four were born in New York, the rest in Kalamazoo, Michigan.

FROM:

History of Kalamazoo County, Michigan

With Illistrations and Biographical Sketches

of its Men and Pioneers.

Everts & Abbott., Philadelphia 1880

Press of J. B. Lippincott & Co., Philadelphia.

History of Kalamazoo County Michigan Book from 1880

History of Kalamazoo County Michigan from 1880. An excellent historical text about the history and development of the Kalamazoo area, with biographical sketches of it prominent inhabitants. A great resource for researchers of families from that city and county. My Gibbs family helped found Kalamazoo and the book has been an invaluable resource of information for me. I have learned so much about a family that would otherwise had been a list of names and dates on census forms. Now I have some idea of who these people were and how they lived their lives. What a treasure.

Download as a PDF

History of Kalamazoo (Gibbs Family) TN-252505

Cassie McKenzie (Cathrine Bell) Obituary

Obituary for Cassie McKenzie (Bell) found in the Thomas and Mary Bell (McIntyre) Family Bible.

Obituary for Mrs. D.A. McKenzie known as Cassie. She was born Cathrine Bell, the second child of Thomas and Mary Bell of Spangle, Wa. She was born September 6, 1859. She died tragically, June 22nd, 1886 in San Francisco, California. She was also my Great, Great Grandfather Hugh David Bell’s sister.

Thomas and Mary Bell Family Bible Genealogy Content

The Thomas and Mary Bell (McIntyre) Family Bible genealogy content. The Bible is held in the Potter family collection. These images were taken by myself during a family visit in 2015.

The family Bible contained a number of pages that were filled out with family genealogy. Some additional items including obituaries were tucked into the pages.

This page is very special since it is the ONLY place I have yet found with any record of when Thomas and the then Mary McIntyre were married by Rev. McVicar. They were joined in Holy Matrimony on October 9th, 1856 in Martintown, Glengarry, Ontario, Canada. Martintown is about 25 km from Athol (St. Elmo) where Thomas was from. https://goo.gl/maps/tGLaMzncYeL2

The births page from the Thomas and Mary Bell Family Bible. All of the dates correspond to other records I have obtained.

The deaths page from the Thomas and Mary Bell Family Bible. All of the dates correspond to other records I have obtained with one exception. The crossed out date for Hugh David Bell, my Great Great Grandfather is indeed incorrect. His correct date of death is April 9, 1945.

The marriage page from the Thomas and Mary Bell Family Bible. All of the dates correspond to other records I have obtained.

The Story of Joseph and Juliana Schmidt

The story of

Joseph and Juliana Schmidt

From the Austrian Empire to Nebraska

8.26.19 edition, 9th Draft, not published

by Adam Wunn

I had published earlier drafts of this manuscript on this website, but over the many drafts, the information has changed and the story has morphed so many times, I had had to rewrite the narrative over and over again. At this point, the version that was posted here was so out-of-date it was more trouble than help in telling the story accurately. The good news is that I have acquired so much credible and verified research since I began this project 5 years ago that the re-write will give a much fuller picture of their lives, with plenty of details.

When the story is more complete, I will put it back on the website.

The Case of the Crazy Census Records for the Hendryx Family 4.2.2017

During my time of research, I have seen some crazy census records omissions or errors here and there, but never have I seen errors every single time a family was surveyed for the national count. The Hendryx family was visited by the specter of mangled forenames and surnames over and over again, so much so, that no one on Ancestry, to date, has ever found the family’s 1870 census records until now. I found them, but it took considerable effort sifting through familysearch.org to do so (it is easier to find missing families at family search, the search tools are more forgiving at the  site when dealing with mangled names).

Another factor adding to the confusion is that it seems that a number of the family members have nicknames, and depending on the particular census, the names given are transitory. The mess, that is this family’s census records, even made it hard to determine how many children were born to the parents. Usually one round of census records are good enough to help clean up a mess with other years – that is one solidly capable census taker getting the majority of facts straight can help to answer questions about anomalies on other years, but when ALL of the records are messed up, it creates a frustrating quagmire.

One of the challenges facing this family is that most of the children are born between two census cycles, and then they were coming into their prime just about the time of the 1890 census. Since most of the 1890 Census went up in flames, we are missing valuable information that might have helped to solve some of the mysteries.

While I can’t say for sure that I am right on all accounts, I feel pretty confident that I have a good idea of the general flow of events, by reestablishing the basic facts of this family from the available records. What follows is the reconstruction of the bare family timeline that I created, because I could not find anyone else on the Internet who had assembled this information.

I used the following sources:

• Ancestry member profiles (only as clues – I verify EVERYTHING I find using this method)

• Census records

• Clues left behind in family photos, cards, and other ephemera found in the Johnson family photos albums that I have from Bettie Schmidt.

• The Crume family portrait as titled by an Ancestry member on their profile – Taucross1969. It is really a partial Hendryx family portrait of that time, with the addition of one Crume grandson. I cross referenced this photo with the few that I have of the Hendryx family from my own collection.

• One other photo of one of the other Hendryx daughters family’s.

• Findagrave.com records – fortunately almost the entire family, including spouses, is buried in a family plot in Bellevue, Sarpy County, Nebraska very near to where they lived.

• Old newspaper records from newspapers.com

Marriage

Thomas Hendryx and Rosa Gibbs both show up in the 1850 and 1860 census records. They are married on March 28, 1861 in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Their first child is born in 1863. All of the children are born between 1863 and 1873, so the 1870 and 1880 census records are very critical.

The 1870 and 1880 Censuses

This record was seemingly missing from the collective family research community – no one has it listed on Ancestry.com. I found it listed nowhere, until I went sifting for it at Family Search, the LDS website. I searched under every common misspelling while keeping the location the same. I knew from newspapers.com that the newly married couple moved to Bellevue, Sarpy County, Nebraska just at the outset of the Civil War and that Thomas lived in the same area the rest of his life (this was learned from Thomas’ obituary). So after spending some time searching, I found the family. I used the other census records and the pile of other research to authenticate this census record. It listed:

1870 1880

Thos C. Hendricks 39 Thomas Hendryx 49

Louisa Hendricks 39 Rosa A. Hendryx 49

Miranda B Hendricks 6 Miranda Hendryx 16

Clara J Hendricks 4 Clara D. Hendryx 14

Delia J Hendricks 2 Amelia I. Hendryx 12

Willis E Hendricks 2 William E. Hendryx 12

Willis I. W. Hendryx7

“Thos” is a common abbreviation of Thomas and the age listed at 39 is absolutely right on if he was born in 1831, which we know from other records is likely correct. The last name is misspelled, but anyone named Hendryx is used people messing up the name. Hendricks is a VERY common alternative spelling of the name, so that is easy to accept. The next issue is the “Rosa” vs. the listed “Louisa.”  I will assume it was Thomas who reported the information to the census taker, and it is clearly possible with midwestern accents of the Great Lakes, and a census taker from who knows where mistaking a mumbled or fast spoken “Rosa” as “Louisa.” This is easy to accept if the census taker didn’t confirm the name. The next name on the list is the eldest child Miranda, and that is very easy to confirm. The same name appears on the 1880 census of the family and the ages on both census records match. Whew! The issue though is that “Miranda” seems to disappear after that point. However, that mystery is pretty easy to clear up. In the family grave plot, there is a “Minnie” Hendryx who was born in 1863 and died on September 18, 1959. Minnie is a known nickname for the Miranda’s of the world. So they are most likely one and the same person. Additionally, they must have named “Minnie” after Rosa’s mother, because her name was Miranda as well. Next we have “Clara J” listed. The 1880 Census also lists a Clara, but is a Clara “D.” The “J” variation on the 1870 Census is correct. Her burial and death records confirm the initial. After examining the actual 1880 Census records, I am confident the transcriber mistook a slopping “J” for a “D.” Additionally, the ages of the two Clara’s from the 1870 and 1880 records fit the listed age progression consistently.

Where we get into a big mess in reconciling the two census records is with the last 3 children. Let’s fix the easiest of the three first. “Delia,” and “Amelia,” are pretty easy to figure out, because the census taker misunderstood the name of the child in the 1870 Census, and the names are remarkably similar if you in that they are both “elia” names and rhyme. The ages listed make sense too. From other records, the “Amelia” child is actually Lelia I. Hendryx Johnson, my Great Great Grandmother. I am unsure whether she was originally named Amelia, and like most of the rest of the children had a nickname that stuck, or her name really was Lelia all along and the census takers just had it in for her. Regardless, she went by Lelia her entire adult life and up unto death. The last child in the 1870 Census, and the next to last child in the 1880 Census is a very eerie and strange mistake that made me gasp. First of all “Willis” of the 1870 Census seems to be a twin of “Delia,” who we now know is actually Lelia. You can see the twin status matches the same results on the 1880 Census. The difference is that the same child is “William” in the 1880 census. So from that you might conclude that the twins were a fraternal sister/brother combination, but you would be wrong. From other records including death certificates and photos that I have in my possession, the twins are girls. So the census taker really screwed up the twins name each time, making “her” into a “him” in both cases. In reality, the twin’s name is Lillian. Of course, by now, you might expect she would have a nickname, and you would be right. Her nickname was “Lillie.”  So the census taker might have heard “Willie” instead of Lillie and of course “Willie” would really be a “William.” Now for the eerie part. In the 1870 Census, Lillie is listed as “Willis,” and yet 13 years later Lelia and Lillie and the other children would have a little brother name who was indeed in actual fact Willis. Talk about an amazing coincidence and a source or extreme confusion.

The 1900 Census

Thomas C He* 69

Rosa A He* 69

Miranda E He* 35

Willis J He* 27

The 1900 Census for this family is hard to find, but not nearly as bad as the 1870 version. The transcribers were unable to read the handwriting of the census taker and listed the family as “He*”. But the family is in the right place, the names are right, and the eldest child Miranda (Minnie) and Willis are still living at home with Thomas and Rosa. The ages also match. Finally, the middle initials all match up with other sources including burial and death records. The interesting thing that you can see illustrated in this census record, is that both Miranda and Willis never seemed to marry. Miranda died with her maiden name and Willis is buried in the family plot without a spouse, whereas the other daughters, who did marry, are buried in the same family plot with their husbands. Also, the photos I have of Willis are always with another family member, and not with any spouse or children. From other records, I can definitely prove that Clara, Lelia, and Lillie all married and had children. There are records of many descendants of each of the daughters who married, including myself.

Clara married Roland A Miner; Lelia married George Johnson Sr., and Lillie married Charles Crume. Thomas died in 1902 and Rosa lived in the house, after his death, until sometime after 1916 and before 1920.  From the 1920 Census record, it is clear that Rosa went to live with Lillie and Charles Crume, which I learned from death records and his obituary. It seems that Willis lived with Rosa at her home until she moved in with Lillie.

So I believe this untangles the Hendryx family history to give us a basic flow of birth, life, and death of each of the family’s members. It is a miracle that each of the pieces of information I used for this analysis were just enough to give a pretty good idea of what happened. The photos my grandmother preserved were amazingly helpful. Also the family plot in Sarpy County. is the balm to the many mishaps of the census records. In my own personal research, I have never seen a family plot so fully occupied by all of the family’s immediate members. It make for a handy records source and great simplification for the living visiting graves – a whole family in one shot.

Making a Case that the George and Lelia F. Johnson Family 1900 Census in Omaha, NE is the George W. and Leila I. Johnson Family Later of Hyannis, NE. 3.5.2017

It would seem from the available information, that the Census taker might have not been paying particularly close attention, and additionally the transcriber of the Ancestry copy of the records, may have misunderstood a few items (this is a quite common). To be fair, some of the same errors seem to have been made at familysearch.org.

The first issue is that George Johnson is always listed with a “W” in ALL of the other census records, but that isn’t really a big deal. It just makes the document look a little bit less of a match.

Next, Lelia is listed as having the middle initial “F” instead of “I;” however, the type of cursive character made by the census taker is somewhere between the F and I and could easily be either. I think the transcriber just decided it was an F because of the horizontal line that is at the midpoint of the vertical staff. That said, the other usual F flourishes are missing. I think this character is just the quirky way this individual writes an “I”.

The George in the 1900 census is listed as a year different in age than the 1910 George.  Than can be explained. This is most likely an artifact of the time of year the census was taken. In 1900 ,the Census was conducted on June 1st and in 1910 it was done on April 15th. Depending on when George’s birthday is, this could account for the seemingly year worth of difference. I do not have the death certificate for George yet, so I can’t confirm his birthdate. In what looks to be a typo or a misunderstanding in the 1900 Census, George’s birthday is listed as July 1866, but most everything else I have seen shows the year to 1867 (including his gravestone). So this could again be a sign of an sloppy census taker.

The next problem is the eldest child for the 1900 Census is “Josephine.” and the eldest in 1910 is “Lelia J.,” so there is seeming discrepancy there; however, that is explained by the fact that it looks like George and Lelia’s eldest daughter was Lelia Josephine Johnson, and from what her memorial at Findagrave suggests, she went by “Josephine” during her life. Her gravestone seems to confirm that. The age for “Josephine,” and “Lelia” on the 1900 and 1910 census records agree. So this could be a case of her parents reported her name depending on what they or she was using at the time of the census.

The next child in both census records is Merwyn, and while the ages are slightly off (1 year difference), that can again be easily explained depending on what time of year his birthday was relative to when the census was taken. It is really a matter of a fraction of a year and not a whole year of difference in any case.

George Jr. is listed as 2 years old on the 1900 Census and 11 on the 1910, but there seems to be a good explanation for the discrepancy. While the 1900 Census lists George Jr. as being born in 1898 and that would potentially make him 2 in 1900. It could be that our imprecise census taker put the wrong year down and then calculated the result. Again 1898 and 1899 are close, and the time shift represented here, is the same ratio as the time shifts of every other person listed. additionally, note the “X” before the “2” in this record. That usually denotes the person is a fraction of 1, so in this case 2 months, which wouldn’t be the case if he was 1 or 2.

Even the marriage of George and Lelia for the 1900 Census is listed as 1892, which is again 1 year different. I think that the census taker was in a hurry and just put the information down as quickly as possible and considered it “close enough.”

The Merwyn in both cases is listed as having been born in California and that is a good indicator that this is the same family. Both sets of George’s and Lelia’s show their own birthplaces and that of their parents to be the same. For George it lists his mother as having come from Kentucky for both records. For his father, the 1900 is “don’t know” and the 1910 is “Kentucky.” Either he learned something in the intervening years or the census taker was taking liberties again (of course the 1910 taker could have done the same).

George Johnson Jr’s obituary confirms that he was born in Omaha and that the family moved to Western Nebraska when he was 9, so that helps authenticate the difference in location between the 1900 and 1910 Census records for the family.

To be fair, even George Jr.’s obituary lists his incorrect date of birth as 1889, but it also correctly states that he was 31. Since he died in 1930, the math makes more sense that he was 31 and not 41. Some records seem to confuse the George W of 1899 with another George from 1889. Even the funeral card says he was 41. Sigh! I have his WWI Draft Card signed by his own hand and it lists his birthdate at 3/2/1899. So do a number of other family records.

Finally, the George in 1900 and 1910 are both listed as carpenters.

Lelia was born and raised in Bellingham, so it would make sense that she would be living in Omaha since it is next door.

So I am very confident these two families are the one and the same. None of the errors are egregious enough to be a deal breaker, and some of the discrepancies are easily explained. I will say that I believe the information listed on the 1910 Census more because it lines up with the 1920, 1930, and 1940 counterparts and with other documents like the Johnson 50th Anniversary card which lists the marriage as being 1891-1941 as the 50 year mark.  So, while there are MANY George Johnson’s out there, the preponderance of evidence shows that these two families are indeed one and the same.

Jos. Schmidt Dies from Injuries (Joseph Schmidt)

Passed Away at Home of his Son, Frank, Last Monday at Forty Minutes After Noon.

Note: this is the obituary for Joseph Schmidt, Father of Frank Schmidt and Grandfather of Joseph Schmidt of Mt. Angel, Oregon. The article ran in the Humphrey Democrat newspaper on Friday, November 2nd 1923. The presumed date of death working backward from the funeral would be Monday, October 29th, 1923. The date of death was confirmed from Juliana Schmidt’s 1934 obituary. The original injury occurred on Monday, October 22nd, 1923 (see note on “injury” article). The photocopy came from Maryann Schmidt Raymond. She did not remember who gave her the document.

Jos. Schmidt who last week was seriously injured when some grain doors fell on him at the T.B. Hord lumber years, died last Monday at the home of his son Frank, where he had been removed following the accident. As related in last week’s issue of the paper Mr. Schmidt had been assisting manager Maier in getting a grain car ready to load with grain. He had been shoving off the grain doors from a pile on the south side of the elevator and had completed the work evidently having descended from the pile and in so doing unbalance a number of the doors which were not interlocked with the main pile and they fell and caught him before he could get out of the way, crushing him to the ground, where he was found a few minutes later in an unconscious condition by Mr. Maier. He was removed to the home of his son Frank and local physicians and a specialist were called to his aid and they found his body so crushed that no hopes were entertained for his recovery although at times he seemed to be gaining in strength.

Funeral services were held this morning at 9:30 at the St. Francis church and interment was made in the parish cemetery,

Jos. Schmidt was born in Austria on the twenty-seventh day of May, 1858. Here he was reared and educated and resided until he attained the age of twenty-one years. Hearing of the wondrous opportunities offered in this country he joined a number of immigrants and came to America in 1879. He did not tarry on eastern shores but came directly to Columbus, Nebraska and by team traveled to Humphrey, there being no railroad through here at that time. During the summer and follow winter he worked on various farms in this section, and the following year, 1880 work on the construction of the Norfolk Columbus branch of the Union Pacific was started and he became a member of the construction gang.

When the work of building the branch had been completed he was given the position of section boss with headquarters at this place, in which capacity he worked for the company for eighteen years although at various times he was located elsewhere than in Humphrey. He finally tired of this work and returned to Humphrey and entered the employment of Henry Hunker & Bros., dealer in Lumber and Building material. He remained with this firm until they sold to the Weller Bros. and later when the Hord interest purchased the lumber yard he was employed by them. He spent at least twenty-five years in the lumber yards of this city. In the fall of 1879, at Columbus, he was united in marriage to Miss Julia Franchel, who had come to this country from Austria at the same time he did. To this union were born ten children, four sons having preceded their father in death. Those left to mourn his demise besides the widow, are Jos. of Mt. Angel, Oregon, Louis of Carroll, Iowa,; Frank and Carl of this City; Mrs. Frank Fugger of Platte Center, and Mrs. Frank Froemel, of Mt. Angel, Oregon.

Mr. Schmidt was a man of unassailable character held in high esteem by everyone in the community. Having resided here for very near a half century his life’s story is that of all the pioneers – the loneliness, the discouragements, the privations, the years of hard toil–all these were forgotten as the years passed and he added to this competency that would give him and his helpmate the pleasures and comforts they richly deserved for the hardships they had endured. Til death closed the life of a good man and stilled a kind and generous heart. He saw many come to the county during the forty-four years of his residence here and walked awhile with them along life’s pathway until they left again, but there are still a few left with whom he walked all the way, and they share in the sorrow with the bereaved. They know the true value of the character of the departed and realized his share in the work of progress that has brought this particular section of Nebraska to the forefront which entitled his name to be ever enrolled in the book of Nebraska’s aristocracy. The present generation and those to follow owe much to the sturdy pioneers of yesterday and may they although in the realms of the Great Beyond live long in the memory of a grateful people. May he rest in peace.

Compiled and annotated by Adam Wunn (Great, Great Grandson of Joseph and Juliana Schmidt, 2015).

Obituary for George Wesley Johnson

Note: The obituary was most likely from The Gordon Journal newspaper, but ran on an unknown date. The same can be said for the funeral announcement and the short bit that ran in the Merriman Monitor newspaper. The text is taken from a clipping made by Johnson’s widow, Sally Berryman Johnson (later Sally Moritz after she remarried) at the time of his death. She placed this clipping and two others in an envelope and left a note on the front “Betty Jean In Memory of Daddy“ meant for her daughter, Betty Jean Schmidt. Of the two other clippings: one was a mention of the funeral itself in the Gordon Journal and the other came from the Merriman Monitor newspaper. Merman was the next town on the highway to the North East of Gordon. It is assumed that the two towns had a fair amount of common business and people were well acquainted similarly to Mt. Angel and Silverton, OR.

George Wesley Johnson

George Wesley Johnson, son of Mr. and Mrs George Johnson of Hyannis, Nebr., was born on March 2, 1889, at Omaha, and died in the Rushville hospital on October 2, 1930, at the age of 31 years, 7 months.

At the age of 9 he came with his parents to western Nebraska where he has since made his home. On March 31, 1926, he was united in marriage to Miss Sally Berryman, daughter of W.H. Berryman. To this union one daughter , Betty Jean, was born on October 2, 1927.

In sickness and in health he was always of a cheerful disposition and thoughtful first of others. He was a you man of fine character and sterling qualities and his passing  is mourned, not only by his relatives, but by all who knew him.

He is survived by his wife and little daughter; his father and mother, three brothers and one sister, all of Hyannis; one sister in Salt Lake City, Utah, and one sister in Yankton, S.D., together with may other relatives and friends.

The funeral was held art the Presbyterian church in this city on Sunday afternoon, the Rev. Fenton C. Jones officiating and interment was made in the Gordon cemetery.

Notice of Funeral

Practically everyone from this community attended the George Johnson funeral in Gordon Sunday. The heartfelt sympathy of all his friends here are extended to the bereaved ones.

Mention in the Merriman Monitor newspaper

Words cannot express the sorrow that was felt in this community when word was received on Thursday of the death of George Johnson, and the sympathy of the entire community goes out to Mrs. Johnson and Betty Jean. Everyone from this neighborhood attended the funeral services in Gordon Sunday.

Commentary

The obituary states the date of birth as March 2nd 1889 and the date of death as October 2, 1930. The article also states that he was at the time of death “31 years 7 months,” but that would be an incorrect age listed if the dates of birth and death are correct. He should have be listed as 41 years and 7 months. That said, “31 years 7 months” is correct since he was born in 1899. The newspaper wasn’t the only party that was wrong about his date of birth. It seems to be a common confusion when he died. The memorial card was also incorrect.

The Rushville Hospital was located in Rushville, NE which is a neighboring town west of Gordon.

Joe Schmidt said that George Johnson died of a bowel obstruction which was in turn caused by colon cancer. He must have learned that from his wife Bettie whom in turn learned that from her mother Sally.

Betty Jean Johnson was George and Sally’s daughter’s given and legal name. However, Betty decided to change the spelling of her name at some later date to “Bettie”. It is unknown if she did this legally or not. Karen Ryan, Bettie’s daughter, said she always knew her mother to use the “ie” spelling. Bettie’s civil service application made out after college supports the “ie” spelling, but all of her high school yearbooks and other references show the “y” spelling. It is clear from looking at all of her documents that it was the Fall of 1944 when she decided to change the spelling. What we don’t know is the reason why.

Omaha is in the east of Nebraska. Hyannis and Gordon are in the North West of the state.

If one is to believe that the articles were not embellished, then many people from Gordon and Merriman attended the funeral. If so, then George Johnson was well known and respected. In that era it was customary to attend a funeral of someone you knew even if you didn’t care for their company, but for people to come from another town to attend dampens the obligation factor to a degree.

The “always cheerful” paragraph was in one form or another often written in some fashion for those young men and women whom died in the “prime” of their life. It is hard to say if he really was such a person since this sentiment was a generic and oft used one. That said, Sally was a cheerful and affable person and it would make sense that she was drawn to just such a man. If his reputation was indeed very good, then he came by it honestly since he might have actually been from Hyannis and only moved to the Gordon area (Sally’s family ranch was to the East of town) later while his parents stayed behind in Hyannis (about an hour to the South East).

Edith Potter (Bell)

Edith Potter, born Bell was the daughter of Danny and Mary Bell (Sanders). She is my first cousin 3x removed. Her father Danny and my Great, Great Grandfather Hugh David Bell were brothers.

Edit Potter, née Bell was the daughter of Danny and Mary Bell of Spangle, Washington.

Obituary for Edith Potter, born Bell. She was a long-time resident of Spangle, WA. She was the daughter of Danny and Mary Bell and the Grandaughter of Thomas and Mary Bell (McIntyre).

Memorial bulletin from her service on June 8, 1977.

Memorial bulletin from her service on June 8, 1977.

Pioneer Woman Called in Death Friday, Aug. 10 (Juliana Franzel Schmidt)

Mrs. Juliana Schmidt Died at St. Mary’s Hospital in Columbus That Day

Had Been in Poor Heath [sic] Since January. Went to Hospital on June 9th

Note:  the year “1934” was handwritten on the photocopy this text came from originally.  The photocopy came from Maryann Schmidt Raymond. She did not remember who gave her the document.

Death came quietly to Mrs. Juliana Schmidt, pioneer woman of this community, at the St. Mary’s hospital in Columbus on Friday, August 10. She had been ill since last January and her condition became such that on the 9th day of June she was removed to the hospital for treatment for complications due to old age. For the last two weeks of her life she had been under the care of a special nurse.

As Juliana Franzel the deceased was born in Austria on the 13th day of August, 1854. Here she spent her girlhood and grew into young womanhood. In the spring of 1879 she came to this country settling in Columbus, where in the fall of that year she was united in marriage to Joseph Schmidt, who had come to this country from Austria with her. They made their home in Columbus for a year, and then for two years resided in Norfolk, coming to Humphrey in 1882 where she has since made her home. Mr. Schmidt passed on on [sic] October 29th, 1923, following accidental injuries received in a fall at the lumber yards here, where he had worked most of his time as a resident of the city.

Mrs. Schmidt was the mother of ten children , four of whom have preceded her in death. Those living are Carl and Frank, of this city, Mrs. Frank Froemel and Joseph Schmidt, of Mt. Angel, Oregon. Louis Schmidt, of Carroll, Iowa and Mrs. Frank Fugger, of Platte Center. She is also survived by thirty-one grandchildren and five great grandchildren.

Her body was laid to rest in the St. Francis cemetery last Monday morning, with [sic] incidentally would have been her eightieth birthday anniversary. Funeral services were conducted at the St. Francis church at 9 o’clock, with Rev. Fr. Ben officiating, and these were largely attended by her many friends and neighbors.

Active pallbearers were Wm. Groeger, Louis Maier, C.J. Frey, John Froemel, Felix Christ and Barney Lohaus. Honorary pallbearers were Mrs. Conrad Fuchs, Mrs. John Froemel, Mrs. Henry Foltz, Mrs. Jos. Lachnit, Mrs. Henry Scharwarth and Mrs. M. Supanchick. Members of the Christian Mothers Society and the Third Order society, of which the deceased was a member, attended in a body.

LIke all the early pioneers of this section the deceased experienced the sorrows, the success and the joy that came to those who had builded [sic] for the future. She had an unwavering faith in the possibilities of the country she had decided to make her home and to such as her goes much of the credit for the progress of the community in which she spent the most of her life, and where she now rests peacefully under its virgin sod. In her early residence in the community she took an active part in the social and civic affairs of the community, but in the sunset of her beautiful Christian life she was content to let these things fall to the shoulders of the younger generation and spent her time quietly in her home, although she still maintained an interest she had developed in her early youth and continued through life.

May the happiness of Heaven be her reward, and may He who has taken her from this earth bring surcease to the sorrowing ones she has left behind.

Those here from out of town to attend the funeral were Mr. and Mrs. Jos. Liebig and family, Mr. and Mrs. A. Miksch, Mrs Purchal and son, Matt, Mrs. Fred Zingg, Mrs. A. Klapust, Mrs. A. Kuta, Mrs. Pat Langan, H. Juchter, Mrs. A. Smith, Matt Nienaber and Rev. Leo Mainzer, all of Platte Center.

Compiled and annotated by Adam Wunn (Great, Great Grandson of Joseph and Juliana Schmidt, 2015).

Schmidt family photo c. 1894 in Lexington, Nebraska

The Joseph and Juliana Schmidt Family around 1894. This photo was most likely taken in Lexington, Nebraska while Joseph was stationed in that town while working for Union Pacific Railroad. The photo was unlabeled, but it is pretty clear who most of the people are, but there is also a mystery. The Schmidt’s had six living children at this point, but one of them is missing in this particular photo. The missing child is most likely Joseph Jr. Anna is in the back, the child to the left is most likely Frank, then Joseph Schmidt, Juliana, and Carl. Joseph is holding Louis and Juliana is holding Marie. It is unknown why Joe Jr. was missing from the photo. He would have been 9 years old at the time. The photo is a part of the Froemel family collection held by a Froemel family member. Anna Schmidt married Frank Froemel. They were also distant 3rd or 4th cousins.This photo has also been restored; it needed fairly extensive repairs.

This is such a precious photo of the Schmidt family from around 1894 while the family was living in Lexington, Nebraska. This photo is so precious because it is the only known photo of the whole family during this period of time.

The Schmidt family had six living children by this point, but one of the boys is missing from the photo. A number of family members worked on solving the riddle of who was missing, and the general consensus at this point is that Joseph Jr. is the missing child. This is most likely the case because of the relative ages of each child along with a number of other clues. What follows is the breakdown of the decision making process we went through.

Since Anna and Marie are the only girls and the oldest and the youngest, it is very easy to identify each of them. Joseph and Juliana are also obvious choices. It is the boys that present the only challenge to deciphering this photo. Joseph Jr. (aka Joe, or Black Joe) was born in 1885, Carl was born in 1887, Frank was born in 1889, and Louis (Louie) was born in 1891 (for reference Anna was born in 1879 and Marie was born in 1893). The boy on Joe’s lap is older than baby Marie on Juliana’s lap, but not by a huge amount. He looks to be about 3 years of age and that is consistent with Louie’s age in 1894. You might also notice that Joe has a pretty tight grip on Louie and that would be consistent with the age as well. All of us parents are familiar with wiggly toddlers, and in those days people had to stare at the camera long enough to allow proper exposure of the film and that time standing still seemed unbearable to a toddler.

The boy to the photographer’s left of Joe is older that Louie, but again not dramatically older. I have a 5 year old running around my house and this boy fits the size requirement and frankly my child and this child are almost a carbon copy proportion-wise. It seems very likely this is Frank, my great grandfather. He would have been 5 years old at the time, so this seems a likely hypothesis. My child also stands with her hands as Frank does and even puts her chin in the down position. I have a number of photos of her that are strikingly similar. If you look at a number of Frank’s photos from later years you can see the similarities with the way he tilts his head, the pursing of the lips, the hand position and those very prominent ears (I inherited those myself). It was suggested by some that Frank is actually in Joseph’s lap and that the boy to the left is Carl, but the ages just wouldn’t match. There isn’t enough distance in age between the two boys to be Carl and Frank and there are two other telling physical characteristics of the boy in the lap who is most likely Louie. One is that he always had those bushy eyebrows and two, he is cross eyed in this photo. You can see that same condition in later photos where we know for sure that Louie is the person pictured. I noticed the cross-eyed condition immediately when I discovered this photo in a family member’s collection. It was something I am quite familiar with since I too had crossed eyes as a child. I suffer from Amblyopia and I am pretty sure Louie did as well. At least I now know from which family the condition originated.

The boy to the right of Juliana is either Carl or Joseph. The question really comes down to whether you believe that this child is 7 or 9 years old. Given the relative size and age difference between the child to the left of Joseph and the child in question on the right, they easily look two years apart, but it would be a stretch to say they look 4 years apart. If the child at left is Frank, then the child at right has to be Carl. There just doesn’t look to be 4 years between the two boys. Joe Jr. would be 9 years old by this point and I would expect him to be taller than the boys pictured, especially since his 14 year old sister towers so much so above her much younger siblings.

The boys on the left are from the 1894 family portrait which was not labeled. The other two sections (middle and right) are photos of Louie and Frank as children and as adults. The question is whether the two children at left look substantially like the identified children and adults at center and right to be properly identified. The similarities between the photos are pretty striking. It is an amazing blessing to have enough photos to compare the relative ages.

Biographical Sketch of Joseph Schmidt from the book: Past and Present of Platte County, Nebraska

An Excerpt from the book…

Past and Present of Platte County, Nebraska; A Record of Settlement, Organization, Progress and Achievement Volume 2

S.J. Clarke Publishing Co., Chicago

by G.W. Phillips

Joseph Schmidt is a representative of the lumber trade, having for seventeen years been connected with the yard in which he is now occupying a position of responsibility. He was born in Austria on the 27th of May, 1858, a son of Florian and Mary (Hurneich) Schmidt, who were also natives of that country. The father was a farmer, following that occupation in the old country, where he continued to cultivate land until his death. His wife passed away in 1868.

Joseph Schmidt was reared and educated in Austria, no event of special importance occurring to vary the routine of life for him until he reached the age of twenty years, when he left the parental roof and came to America, attracted by the favorable opportunities which he heard were offered in this country. He made his way across the country to Columbus and by team traveled to Humphrey, for there was then no railroad in the town. His financial condition rendered it imperative that he at once secure employment and for some time he worked out as a farm hand. In 1880 the work of building the Union Pacific Railroad was started and Mr. Schmidt became active in that connection, remaining as a representative of the company for eighteen years, acting as section foreman at different places. He finally tired of that and returned to Humphrey, where he entered the employ of H. Hunker & Brother, dealers in lumber. Since then the ownership of the yard has changed, the original firm having sold out to Weller Brothers. Mr. Schmidt has now been connected with this yard for seventeen years, a fact which indicates most clearly his fidelity, capability, and trustworthiness.

In November, 1881*, occurred the marriage of Mr. Schmidt and Miss Julia Franchel**, a daughter of John Franchel, a native of Austria in which country he spent his entire life. The mother died when Mrs. Schmidt was fourteen years of age and the father when she reached the age of twenty-eight. Mr. and Mrs. Schmidt have become the parents of ten children, Joseph, Carl, Frankie, Louis, Mary and Annie, all yet living; while Herman, John, Michael and Fred have passed away.

The parents are communicants of the Catholic church and for twenty years Mr. Schmidt has been a member of the Catholic Order of Foresters. He votes with the democratic party, believing its principles contain the best elements of good government. He has erected and now occupies a nice residence in Humphrey, where he is comfortably situated in life and where he maintains an unassailable reputation both as a business man and as a citizen.

Notes:

* This is incorrect. They were married on November 7, 1879. This has been confirmed it the Nebraska State Index of Marriage Records. The wrong date here is a mystery. Either the interviewer confused him with someone else, took down the date incorrectly, or Joseph gave the wrong information. The book was published in 1915, so decades had passed and sometimes people even forget their anniversary. It has been known to happen to the best of us.

** Juliana’s maiden name is sometimes listed as “Franchel,” but her baptismal/birth document clearly states that her name is spelled “Franzel.” Other sources also concur on the “Franzel” spelling.

Excerpted from a Google scanned book:

https://books.google.com/books?id=UAA1AQAAMAAJ&pg=PA68&lpg=PA68&dq=joseph+schmidt+austria+nebraska&source=bl&ots=zA-x_1gGed&sig=X5f9AG0MiSIGSMLurqnnLKKMBzk&hl=en&sa=X&ei=t21hVaqZPI3KogSnwYLIAw&ved=0CDYQ6AEwBA#v=onepage&q=joseph%20schmidt%20austria%20nebraska&f=false

Compiled and annotated by Adam Wunn (Great, Great Grandson of Joseph and Juliana Schmidt, 2015).

Joseph and Juliana Schmidt Portrait c. 1894

Circa 1890’s • Lexington, Nebraska

Probably taken when Joseph was stationed in Lexington for a time when he worked for Union Pacific Railroad. He was in the work gang that built the Columbus Spur that came through Humphrey in 1880. After that, he was promoted to gang foreman and worked in various places. He eventually settled again in Humphrey where he was maintenance supervisor for the spur. This photo is likely taken after the 1894 family portrait but would have been taken before the family moved back to Humphrey in 1897-1898. The couple looks a bit older in this photo. This is especially obvious with Juliana when viewing the two photos side-by-side. Juliana was four years older than Joseph.

Louis Maier and Joseph Schmidt at Weller Brothers Lumber Yard c. 1915

Louis Maier (left) was the lumber yard supervisor and Joseph Schmidt (right) had been an employee of the firm since 1898. This photo was take sometime around 1915-1920. Joseph died in 1923 at the Yard by a work related accident and Mr. Maier was the one who found Joseph mortally wounded. He was originally hired by H. Hunker & Brother but they sold to Hord sometime later.

Restoring a Family Treasure to Past Glory

I have seen the photo on the left a number of times in the recent past when I was researching Joseph and Juliana Schmidt in a number of collections. In fact, most branches of the family have copy of the photo in some sort or fashion. All of them seem to be a derivitive of this one particular “original”. I say that because all of the versions I have seen have the exact same damage pattern regardless of whether they are large or small and are a duotone or black and white. This summer I actually was finally able to examine the “original” that is pictured here. My cousin has this copy in her collection and I was surprised to find that the damage was not actually a part of the structure of that “original”. It seems that this image is a copy of the the true original. That said, it is a copy-desk duplicate that was most likely made a long time ago. It is printed on the same type of photographic paper of the era, it is backed with paper board and is virtually indistinguishable from other photos of the era. It is such a good copy that your eyes tell you that the scratches should be there as dents in the paper, but running your finger across the paper reveals the truth. It is as smooth can be with nary an abrasion. I can only speculate about  what happened to the original to cause the damage, but with six children around and pets, I can think of several probabilities. I also wonder what happened to the true, damaged original.

I scanned the copy-desk original on my scanner (yes I travel with it) and then spent a considerable amount of time over the past few months painstakingly repairing the damage. It was the most challenging photo I have ever restored, but it was an awesome thing this see the photo put back to what it once was. I am sure when it was originally damaged and then copied there was probably some heart ache over the damage. I am glad that more than a century later, I was able to put right what once went wrong. Now the Schmidt family has a nice copy of a very precious photo of the family’s patron and matron.

Florian Schmidt and 2nd Wife Karolina Endler

Florian Schmidt and 2nd wife Karolina Endler sometime in the late 1860’s or early 1870’s in Freudenthal, Silesia, Austrian Empire. This is probably their wedding portrait. Joseph Schmidt, Florian’s eldest child reported that his mother, Anna Mary Hurnecke Schmidt, died when he was ten, so that would have been in 1868. It is assumed that Florian remarried soon thereafter the death of his first wife (he did, I will add the date here later). This is assumed since Joseph came to America in 1879 and his half sister (name is unknown) looks to be 6-8 years old in the surviving family portrait. Additionally, Joseph was 20 when he came to America, so he looks to be about 16ish in the family portrait. So that means that Florian and his second wife would have married quickly and had a child soon thereafter. This photo was preserved by Dick Meissner, the grandson of Anna (Schmidt) Froemel. He acquired it from his mother, Helen’s collection. Helen Meissner was a Froemel. The photo had been lost for many years, but was known since a photocopy of it was distributed at the Schmidt Family Reunion in 1989 (held at the Mt. Angel, OR Festhalle).

Schmidt Alterboys

Frank and Louis (Louie) Schmidt when they served as Alter Boys at St. Francis Catholic Church in Humphrey, Nebraska, circa 1899. Frank is on the left and Louis is on the right. The two along with their other two brother and two sisters were children of Joseph and Juliana Schmidt.

Florian and Mary Schmidt (Hurnecke) Family Freudenthal Austrian Empire

The Florian Schmidt family. This photo was taken at Freudenthal in the Silesia region of the Austrian Empire in about 1875-1876. The man seated is Florian Schmidt. The woman to the left is probably his second wife, since his first wife and mother to most of the children, died in 1868 when the eldest child, Joseph, would have been 10 years old. The second wife’s name is unknown. Two of the children’s names are known. The boy is Joseph Schmidt and the girl to the right (photographer right that is) is Theresa (Thiersa) Schmidt, his sister. The girl on the left with the dark hair may be Josephine and the young girl on the right is most likely the half sister to the other children and her name is unknown.

c. 1875-1876 • Freudenthal, Silesia, Austrian Empire

Mary Boesch at The Commercial Hotel in Humphrey, NE

Mary Boesch at Humphrey Commercial Hotel circa 1911. Mary arrived in town with her mother and brother in about 1910 after her mother married Jacob Supanchick. Mary became employed at the hotel and met her future husband Frank Schmidt at the hotel. He worked at the blacksmith shop across the street and often had lunch in the Hotel’s restaurant. Mary would have been about 22 in this photo.Mary Boesch is the woman on the left. The other two women are unknown at this time. If you know who they are, please let me know.

“The Commercial Hotel, still in operation and well conducted, was built by W. H. Tieskoetter, a saloon building and residence by Jacob Ripp, and Sherwood’s livery barn; all built in 1880.” From Past & Present of Platte County, Nebraska – Volume I ©1915 S.J. Clarke Publishing.