Sibling Saturday: Tarkington Siblings in Chancery Court

In October 1907 in Davidson County, Tennessee, Maggie Tarkington took her younger siblings Gertrude (my great-grandmother) and Robert Tarkington to chancery court in order to sell land that they had inherited from their father James William Tarkington, and to determine the division of the proceeds.

Nashville American, 17 October 1907, p.10

Davidson County, Tennessee Chancery Court Minutes, October Term 1907, 30 October 1907, p. 505. Metropolitan Government Archives, Nashville Public Library, Nashville, Tennessee.

A portion of the land had already been sold.

Davidson County, Tennessee Chancery Court Minutes, October Term 1907, November 1907, p. 14. Metropolitan Government Archives, Nashville Public Library, Nashville, Tennessee.

One year later, Gertrude and Robert received $364.00  .

Davidson County, Tennessee Chancery Court Minutes, October Term 1908, 13 October 1908, p. 359. Metropolitan Government Archives, Nashville Public Library, Nashville, Tennessee.

Sibling Saturday: Finding a Previously Unknown Half-Brother

When I obtained the Civil War pension application of Samuel August Samuelson, the brother of my 3rd-great-grandmother Johanna Carolina Samuelson, I discovered a previously unknown family member.

Statement of C. J. Johnson. Samuel A. Samuelson (Pvt., Co. E, 73rd Ind. Inf., Civil War, pension application no. 283,424, certificate no. 217,996),Case Files of Approved Pension Applications..., 1861-1934; Civil War and Later Pension Files; Department of Veterans Affairs, Record Group 15; National Archives, Washington, D.C.

C. G. Johnson gave a statement, and was asked if he was in any was related to Samuel A. Samuelson. He answered, "I am what is called a half brother."

I knew that Johanna and Samuel had two older brothers, Johan Peter and Anders Fredrik, but I did not know that they had a half-brother. Their mother, Anna Lisa Torstensdotter, was thirteen years older than their father, Samuel Eriksson, so I wondered if C. G. Johnson was her son from a previous marriage.

I found Carl Gustaf Johnson's death certificate in Ancestry.com's database Indiana, Death Certificates, 1899-2011. He had died in Westchester, Porter County, Indiana on 30 July 1909. The death certificate gave his date of birth: 27 October 1823. His birthplace was listed as Vastra Harg, Sweden.

Indiana State Board of Health. Death certificate no. 109, Carl Gustaf Johnson, 1909. Ancestry.com. Indiana, Death Certificates, 1899-2011 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015.

I had already known that the family had come from Västra Harg, Östergötland, Sweden. I looked at the Swedish records on ArkivDigital, and found Carl Gustaf's birth and baptismal record. He was not a child from a previous marriage; he was an illegitimate child. The record did not name his father.

Västra Harg C:1 (1797-1840) Image 179 / page 341 (AID: v42201.b179.s341, NAD: SE/VALA/00446)

I found the family in the household examination records, after Anna Lisa Torstensdotter had married Samuel Eriksson. Carl Gustaf was listed with the patronymic Jaensson.

Västra Harg AI:11 (1835-1840) Image 88 / page 159 (AID: v27140.b88.s159, NAD: SE/VALA/00446)

Carl Gustaf Johnson married Matilda Sofia Johnson. According to the 1900 United States Census, Matilda had six children.

1900 United States census, Westchester, Porter County, Indiana, population schedule, enumeration district 94, page 3B. Ancestry.com. 1900 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2004.

However, I have only discovered four of the children: Albertena Johnson (born 15 August 1868), Albert L. Johnson (born about 1874), Ida Johnson (born 24 March 1875 or 1876), and Gustaf Johnson (born 29 March 1883).

Sibling Saturday: New Machinery Firm - Boe Brothers

 

Williston Graphic, 10 February 1910, page 6

My great-grandfather John Boe and his brothers Hans Adolph Boe and Theodore Jorgen Boe started the farm machinery company Boe Brothers in 1910. The company was based in Williston, North Dakota.

Sibling Saturday: Schneider Sisters

My maternal grandmother Margaret Schneider (right, dressed in a suit) is pictured here with her sister Paula.

Sibling Saturday: Mayo Brothers in the Revolutionary War

My 5th-great-grandfather Stephen Mayo was a private in the Revolutionary War. He was a minuteman in Captain Thompson's company under Major Campbell, a private in Captain Moses Hawkins'/Capt. John Overton's company, Colonel Charles Lewis' 14th Virginia regiment, a private in Captain Hatcher's Virginia company, and a private in Captain Anthony Hayden's Virginia company.

Stephen Mayo compiled service record. Compiled Service Records of Soldiers who Served in the American Army during the Revolutionary War, 1775-1783. NARA microfilm publication M881, roll 1081. Virginia, Fourteenth Regiment. The National Archives at Washington, D.C.Available from Fold3.

Stephen's brother Benjamin was also in the 14th Virginia regiment. They were at Valley Forge together.

Benjamin Mayo compiled service record. Compiled Service Records of Soldiers who Served in the American Army during the Revolutionary War, 1775-1783. NARA microfilm publication M881, roll 1081. Virginia, Fourteenth Regiment. The National Archives at Washington, D.C.Available from Fold3.

Their brother Joseph was a 2nd lieutenant in the Fluvanna County, Virginia Militia.

McAllister, J. T. Virginia Militia in the Revolutionary War: McAllister's Data. Hot Springs, Virginia: McAllister Publishing, 1913. Page 23. Available from Internet Archive. 

Their brother James was in the Albemarle County, Virginia Militia. Their half-brother Valentine Mayo was a private in the Continental Troops. Other Mayo brothers may have served as well. 

Sibling Saturday: Paula and Margaret Schneider

My maternal grandmother Margaret Ann Schneider (right) is pictured with her sister Paula Christina Schneider (left).

Sibling Saturday: Carl Joseph and John William Schneider

For a long time, I did not know that my Schneider ancestors had family in St. Louis when they arrived. My great-great-grandparents Carl Joseph and Christina (Nagel) Schneider and their children (including my great-grandfather John Schneider) left Remagen, Ahrweiler, Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany in 1892 and settled in St. Louis. Christina's brother Mathias Nagel had been living in Jefferson City, Missouri, but had moved to Santa Fe, New Mexico in 1891.

While searching the Missouri History Museum's Genealogy and Local History Index, I found an entry for Carl J. Schneider from the weekly periodical Squib. He was mentioned in a biographical sketch. I requested a photocopy from the Missouri History Museum. Although Schneider is a common surname, I thought there was a chance that the entry referred to my great-great grandfather, or to his grandson with the same name (my maternal grandmother's brother). It did not refer to either of them. It was a biographical sketch of a man named John William Schneider. One of his sons was named Carl J. Schneider. The Missouri History Museum thoughtfully included extra information about John William Schneider; they also sent his death certificate and a copy of his death notice.

I looked over the information, and a theory began to form. The biographical sketch said that John William Schneider was born in Erpil, Germany on 25 December 1856. My great-great-grandfather Carl Joseph Schneider was born in Erpel, Neuwied, Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany on 22 January 1855. "Erpil" looked like a misspelling of "Erpel." The two men were close in age. John William Schneider's death notice mentioned that he was an uncle, and his oldest son shared a first name and middle initial with my great-great-grandfather. His death certificate stated that his father was William Schneider, born in Germany (likely Wilhelm), and his mother was unknown. Carl Joseph Schneider's father was Johann Wilhelm Schneider, and he was called Wilhelm. His mother was Sibylle Lindlohr, who had died in Erpel on 2 April 1862, when she was only 38 years old. John William Schneider had died of chronic hypertrophic cirrhosis of the liver, but gastric carcinoma was listed as a contributory cause of death. Carl Joseph Schneider had died of stomach cancer. When Carl Joseph Schneider wrote a letter to his wife and children while visiting Germany in 1900, he mentioned receiving "brother's letter." This statement implied that his brother was not living in Germany. I suspected that his brother was John William Schneider. However, I could not prove it right away. Catholic church records from Erpel are not available through the Family History Library. I had information about Carl Joseph Schneider's parents and maternal grandparents from the book Familienbuch der katholischen Pfarrei Sankt Peter und Paul Remagen, 1649 bis 1899, by Gerhard Hentschel (Köln: Westdeutsche Gesellschaft für Familienkunde, 2007). However, the book only listed one child for them: a daughter, Maria Anna, who died in 1863 when she was not quite a year old and was buried in Remagen. Carl Joseph Schneider was not even listed as their son, but I knew that he was their son; his marriage certificate names his parents. He was born in Erpel (just across the Rhine River), so he was not recorded in the Remagen book.

In 2010, the book Familienbuch der katholischen Pfarrei Sankt Severin Erpel 1615-1875 (Köln: Westdeutsche Gesellschaft für Familienkunde), by Gerhard Hentschel's wife Renate, was published. I obtained a copy, and finally found the proof that I had been searching for. In the list of children of my my 3rd-great-grandparents Johann Wilhelm Schneider and Anna Sibylle Lindlohr, underneath the entry for my great-great-grandfather, was one for Johann Wilhelm Schneider, born 24 December 1856 in Erpel. The two men were brothers.

Carl Joseph Schneider's father-in-law Johann Nagel, his children's only living grandparent, died in Remagen on 15 February 1891. The following year, Carl and his wife and children moved to St. Louis, Missouri to join his brother, his only living full sibling.

I believe that John William Schneider wanted to be found. If I had not received the information from the Missouri History Library, I probably would not have found him. Even though I still would have learned about him from the Erpel Familienbuch, I would not have known that he went to St. Louis. Although researching others with the same surname can lead to finding relatives, this approach does not work so well with common surnames like Schneider, especially in an area like St. Louis, with a large German population. And after learning that his son Ferdinand had died in World War I, I believe that John wanted me to find him too.

Biographical sketch of John William Schneider. Squib, circa 1911. From the collection of the Missouri Historical Society.

 

John William Schneider. Squib, circa 1911. From the collection of the Missouri Historical Society.

Carl Joseph Schneider. Photo taken at Pietz, 1630 Franklin Ave., St. Louis, Missouri.

Family of Johann Wilhelm Schneider and Anna Sibylle Lindlohr. Hentschel, Renate. Familienbuch der katholischen Pfarrei Sankt Severin Erpel 1615-1875. Köln: Westdeutsche Gesellschaft für Familienkunde, 2010.

Certificate of death, Carl Joseph Schneider, 5 November 1901. Ancestry.com. Missouri, Death Records, 1834-1910 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2008. Original data: Missouri Death Records. Jefferson City, MO, USA: Missouri State Archives. Microfilm.

John W. Schneider death certificate, 27 August 1934. Missouri State Board of Health. Bureau of Vital Statistics.

Sibling Saturday: Schneider Siblings

The children of my great-great-grandparents Carl Joseph Schneider and Christina Nagel are pictured in this photo:

My great-grandfather John (Johann) Schneider (born 6 December 1878, Remagen, Ahrweiler, Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany; died 11 June 1955, St. Louis, Missouri)
William J. (Johann Wilhelm) Schneider (born 8 December 1883; died 27 June 1951, St. Louis, Missouri) 
Carl J. Schneider (born 17 March 1885, Remagen, Ahrweiler, Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany)
Rudolph Schneider (born 21 September 1886, Remagen, Ahrweiler, Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany; died 16 February 1955, St. Louis, Missouri)
Anna Maria Schneider (born 25 November 1888, Remagen, Ahrweiler, Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany; died September 1983)
Marie (Maria) Schneider (born 11 April 1890, Remagen, Ahrweiler, Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany; died 28 November 1918, St. Louis, Missouri)

Sibling Saturday: Carl, Martin, and Ellen Dahlquist

My great-grandmother Ellen Victoria Dahlquist (8 September 1886 - 26 April 1986) is pictured here with her brothers Carl Frederick (10 January 1888 - 14 October 1966) and Martin Luther (22 February 1891 - 30 July 1919).

Sibling Saturday: Carl, Margaret, and Paula Schneider

My maternal grandmother Margaret Schneider (16 March 1911 - 4 August 1986) is pictured here with her brother Carl (2 June 1905 - 1 August 1974) and her sister Paula (27 January 1913 - 7 February 2004). The only Schneider sibling not pictured is Christina (20 April 1903 - 27 April 1909).

Sibling Saturday: The Five Anderson Siblings Who Came to America

Five of the children of Troed Andersson and Christina Jacobsdotter left Sweden and came to the United States.

Andreas Troedsson, my great-great-grandfather (born 24 February 1851 in Grevie, Skåne, Sweden), was the first come to the United States. He immigrated in 1872 and changed his name to Andrew T. Anderson; the middle initial T was from his original patronymic, Troedsson. He settled in Chicago, Illinois, where he married Marthe Elisabeth Erickson on 31 March 1877. They had seven children. He died in Chicago on 24 Jaunary 1916 and was buried in Oak Hill Cemetery.

Johanna (born 16 February 1849 in Grevie, Skåne, Sweden) came to the United States in the mid-1870s and settled in Chicago. She married Frans Ludvig Oscar Sandquist, a widower, on 19 December 1885. They had four children. Johanna died in Chicago on 4 February 1934 and was buried in Oak Woods Cemetery.

Sven (born 30 December 1856 in Grevie, Skåne, Sweden) came to the United States in the mid-1870s. He changed his name from Sven Troedsson to Sven T. Anderson. In 1880 he lived in Suez Township, Mercer County, Illinois. By 1885 he had moved to Morris County, Kansas. He married Hannah Louise Abramson on 18 October 1887. They had thirteen children. Sven died on 6 October 1914 and was buried in Hebron Lutheran Church Cemetery in Morris County, Kansas.

Nils (born 14 November 1852 in Grevie, Skåne, Sweden) came to the United States in the early 1880s. He changed his name from Nils Troedsson to Nils T. Anderson. He settled in Chicago, where he married Ida C. Anderson on 27 November 1886. They had three children. Nils died in Chicago on 6 July 1928 and was buried in Rosehill Cemetery.

Elna (born  in 23 August 1845 in Grevie, Skåne, Sweden) married Nils Jonsson in Grevie on 15 April 1864. Their children came to the United States. In 1903, Elna and her son Sven Peter Nilsson came to the United States. Elna changed her name to Elna Nelson, because her children used the surname Nelson. Elna died in Chicago on 27 September 1925 and was buried in Graceland Cemetery.