Wednesday, February 18, 2009

The Parents of William F. Eichhorn, Post 2

In my research for more information on William F. Eichhorn's parents today I found the marriage certificate of Charles H. Eichhorme (Eichhorne?) and Catherine Wise in Chippewa, Welland, Ontario, Canada on 3 Sep 1871.  This appears to answer the Charles/Herman name question, as H possibly stands for Herman.  Witnesses were Leonard Wise (yay, possible relative!) and Miss Meyeir (sp?).  No parents are given for either and Germany is the only listing under birth place.


Welland County, Ontario, Ontario, Canada Marriages, 1857-1924 166, Eichhome/Eichhorne-Wise, 1871; digital images, The Generations Network, Inc., Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 18 Feb 2009).  

I then came across a register for Catherine Wise and Charles Herman Thorn on the same day and in the same place.  The ages are different and so are the witnesses, including a Jacob Wise (possibly another relative!).  The ages on this match those on the 1880 census, while those on the first do not.  Parent names and birth locations are fully given, which would make me very happy if this is the same (or correct) people.  With a thick German accent I could understand how Eichhorn could be heard as Thorn, although I have to admit this is not one of the spellings I had ever came up with.  



Welland County, Ontario, Ontario, Canada Marriages, 1857-1924; digital images, The Generations Network, Inc., Ancestry.com and Genealogical Research Library  (http://www.ancestry.com). 

I have found them in the 1900 census, but not in 1910.   He was born Dec 1848 and she in Apr 1849.  They had been married 28 years and she was the mother of 8, with 5 still living.  It says they arrived in America in 1852 and Charles was naturalized.  This date is obviously incorrect.

Additionally I found the listing for the marriage of George Eickhorn, son of Charles H. Eickhorn and Katharine Weise in 1900 at St. James Episcopal Church.

June Partridge Zintz, Marriages from Buffalo church records 1825-1900, volume 1 : transcribed from microfilm of English-speaking Protestant church records and compared with marriage license records in Erie County Hall, 1 (Apollo, Pennsylvania: Closson Press, 2004), 1: 70.  


This is where I need help:

I came across the WWI draft card for Frederick William Eichhorn.  Does anyone have information on whether families often named one child one name and the next the reverse, such as William Fred and Frederick William?

How can I figure out which marriage record is correct?  Could they both be for my relatives?  It seems like quite a coincidence.

Additionally, I have not previously done research in Canada, so any suggestions you have on further research are much appreciated.

Research I plan to do to find more info on them, prior to immigration to Canada:
  1. Check with the Episcopal Church of Buffalo for records on the Eichhorns.  I have done this previously with the Whitehead family and found much information.
  2. Check Buffalo city directories between 1900 - 1910 to try to narrow down death records.
  3. Try to find Charles naturalization record for US.
  4. Check for probate records for both in Buffalo.
  5. Search for border crossing record in Niagara Falls.
  6. Check Canadian census' 1851 - 1871 for them with their parents.
  7. If the Thorn/Wise certificate is correct, try to figure out which Lutheran church they belonged to.
  8. Continue to read the two books I borrowed on Canadian genealogy research, as it is new to me.

6 comments:

  1. Hi Amanda,

    I can help with one item - that date of immigration you found on the US Census record (1852). Since you know that year is wrong, consider this - often that date was the date the person arrived in CANADA, not USA

    People didn't always understand what the census taker was asking them. So if your guy arrived in Upper Canada (Ontario)ca 1852 he may have easily said "oh yes I left Germany in 1852" and it would be marked as if he arrived in USA that year

    Re name reversal - it is quite common for a man named Henry John Smith to be recorded as John Henry Smith. Don't worry about reversals. Just keep them in mind as possibly not being the right person as you go on in your searches

    For research in Canada (Ontario specifically) you might want to try olivetreegenealogy.com/can/ont/ I think it might be of help to you

    Lorine

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  2. Hi again - I forgot to say something in my last comment. The Germans used 2 given names - the first was usually a christening name that was NOT what the individual went by. For everyday use he/she usually went by their 2nd (middle) name. So ... I noticed that in those 2 marriage registrations, the one gives Catherine's father as "John George" and she names a child "George" (after her father?)

    Secondly did you see that both those marriages not only were on the same day BUT they were each performed in the Lutheran Church by Rev Kalor and banns were used, not a license. I suspect that the two are identical and were somehow separate as two. It is very possible that the minister forgot he had already sent off the one entry and rewrote the second from memory.

    Have you checked land records? Go here http://olivetreegenealogy.blogspot.com/search/label/Land%20Records There are 9 posts on using land records in Ontario

    Good luck!
    Lorine

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  3. I found the THORN family in 1861 census for Chippawa, Welland Co.

    http://ontariocensus.rootsweb.ancestry.com/transcripts/1861/3373-index2.html

    They are Thorn Dorothea 50
    Thorn Herman 13
    Thorn Nicholas 67

    Interesting that they are recorded as THORN (the same as in the marriage register for Herman and Cath. Wise) Perhaps there really ARE 2 families although I do not find an Eichorn family of any variant spelling in that census

    To look for your Catherine Wise, start at http://ontariocensus.rootsweb.ancestry.com/transcripts/1861/3373-1.html

    Lorine

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  4. Hi Lorine,
    Thank you so much for all your suggestions and help!!! I now have much to look for Saturday:-) The idea of the minister sending in two and of the immigration to Canada from Germany are especially good insights for me to have.
    Thanks again!
    Amanda

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  5. Amanda, keep us informed on what you find with the help Lorine gave you!

    I nominated you for the Kreativ Blogger Award! Check out my post "I Am So Honored" at Heritage Happens, http://heritagehappens.blogspot.com/.

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  6. Hi, Amanda! I also nominated you for the Kreativ Blogger Award...didn't realize you already had it! You can pick up your award at http://jennifergenealogy.blogspot.com.

    ReplyDelete