Irwin F Monroe and family

One of my ancestor's descendants is Jay Case. According to his marriage certificate, he married Wilda Monroe, daughter of Irwin Monroe and Harriet Pugh. In searching for her family, here's a quick compilation of what I found:
1870 Census lists Francis I Monroe, son of Levi and Clara, and brother to James, William C H, and Hattie B. It says he was born in Iowa.

1889 Marriage Record lists Irvin F Monroe, born in Germany to Levi Monroe and Clara Polson. He married Harriet M. Pugh, born 1873 Iowa to Jackson Pugh and Martha Sieffell. They married 27 February 1889 in Prescott, Iowa.

1895 Census lists Irvin F, Hattie, Wilda, and Letha. 

1896 Birth Record for a female Monroe born to Irwin F. Monroe and Harriet M. Pugh on 26 Feb 1896 in Polk, Iowa.

1899 Birth Record lists Odresa F Monroe, born 9 Feb 1899 in Des Moines, Iowa to I. F. Monroe and Hattie Pugh.

1900 Census lists Irwin, Hattie, Clara W (I think that Clara W. and Wilda C. are the same person), Letha May, Hazel F, and Actressa F. It also says Hattie--the mother of the family--had 8 kids, 3 of whom are still living. That's confusing because there are 4 kids listed in the household.

1903 Birth Record lists Geo Irvin Monroe born 04 Jul 1903 in Des Moines, Iowa to Irvin F Monroe and Harriett Pugh.

1905 Census I don't have a visual on and the people are listed as individuals instead of families. But Irvin F, Letha, Actressa, and Clara W are a few of the 23 Monroes in Polk, Iowa. Probably others on that list are related to them. 

1906 Birth Record lists Jas E Monroe born 6 Jun 1906 in Des Moines, Iowa to Irvin F Monroe and Harriet Pugh.

1908 Birth Record lists Evalyn Martha Monroe, born 07 Oct 1908 to Ervin Frances Monroe and Hady Pugh in Des Moines.

1910 Marriage Record lists Wilda C Monroe, Irvin F Monroe, and Harriet Pugh. She married Jay Case, son of Jos. W. Case and Ida Bailey in Des Moines, Iowa  on January 10, 1910. 

1910 Census lists Irvin, Harriet, Letha, Hazel, A?tressa, George, James, Evelynn, and Welda & Jay Case.

1912 Birth Record lists Alice B. Monroe born 22 Sep 1912 in Des Moines, Iowa to Irvin F Monroe and Harriett Pugh.

1917 Birth Record lists Marilyn Maxine Monroe born 22 Mar 1917 in Des Moines, Iowa to Irvin Frank Monroe and Harriett Malinda Pugh.

1920 Census lists Irving, Hattie, George, James, Evelyn, Bernice, Maryline (all are their children)

1924 Marriage Record for Geo. I. Monroe. Lists Geo's parents as Irwin F. and Hailey Pugh. Geo's wife is Edith L. Hanns, daughter of Frank Hanns and Mary Feist.

1925 Marriage Record for Frank Edwards son of Wm Edwards and Adaline Hoffman, who married Pherne Monroe Miller (born 1898), daughter of Irvin F. Monroe and Harriet Pugh. They married 11 May 1925 in Adel, Iowa. 

1930 Census lists Irvin F Monroe, Harriet, Evalyn, Bernice, and Marilyn.

Because this family is not directly the descendants of any of my ancestors, I think I'll stop here for now.

If I do revisit the line, I'll want to collect the vital information and family members of Irvin's parents, siblings, and children.

Riley Case research

Today’s post is a summary of my research for Riley Case and his family. Riley is related to me through the Dodge line: he is Truman Dodge’s grandfather (Jane Case’s father).

Riley Case. I found town records for Barkhamsted, Connecticut, which were really helpful for information on Riley and his siblings and parents. I want to revisit them to look for more information about Riley’s own family later on. But they list his birth date as January 19, 1816. I also found his headstone on findagrave.com, which lists his birth as 1816 and his death as 1886. The text on findagrave suggests Riley’s death date is July 2, 1886, but I haven’t found a source to confirm that.

Mariah (Riley’s wife). I haven’t found her maiden name. But I did find her headstone on findagrave.com—it’s right next to Riley’s in the Baldwin Cemetery, and it says “Mariah 1818-1915.”

Mary A Case (Riley’s daughter). According to census records from 1850 and 1856, she was born in 1841 in Connecticut.

Jane Case (Riley’s daughter). Jane’s my direct ancestor, so I already had a good amount of information on her.

Joseph W Case (Riley’s son). I haven’t done much research on Joseph.

Truman Case (Riley’s son). It looks like Truman married a woman named Catharine, and I’m trying to solidify her maiden name and their children.

In the 1880 census, a Truman Case of the right age lives next door to Riley and Maria, and he is married to a Catharine (2 years older than him) who was born in West Virginia. Catharine’s last name isn’t listed.

There’s a birth record for A. C. Ben Case, born to Truman Case and Catherine H. Baker in 1882. Also on Truman Case: the Truman Case who lives near Riley and Mariah had no kids in 1880. In the Iowa 1885 census, Truman and Catherine have 2 kids (Mary G (4) and Ben (2)). So I think the birth record and census records match, suggesting Catherine’s maiden name is Baker.

Back to the 1880 census, the closest Baker family to the Cases are listed 3 pages earlier: John and Juliana Baker, age 45. Catharine may be their child or another relative.

Albert R. Case (Riley’s son). In 1880, Albert R Case and his wife Margaret (3 years younger, born in West Virginia) live next door to Riley and Maria. I found a marriage record of Albert R. Case to Margaret Nine, from February 7, 1875 in Jasper, Iowa. In the 1880 census, they have 2 children together: Henry (3) and Charles (1), both born in Iowa. Albert’s headstone in the Baldwin Cemetery lists his birth as May 30, 1855 and his death as Aug 6, 1895. I also found death records and headstone for Henry and Charles (both died young, within a few days of each other). Also in the cemetery is WmCase--I found a birth record for Wm Vernon Case born Jan 8, 1882 to Albert R and Margaret V. (I’m not sure what the V stands for, but the V initial is also on Henry and Charles’ headstones, so I believe it is the same woman.)

Eliza A Case (Riley’s daughter). Eliza shows up in the 1860 census, but then she passed away in 1863, when she was around 5 years old. (The middle initial “A” comes from her headstone.)

Questions I still have:

When did Riley and Mariah get married?

What is Mariah’s maiden name?

Is Riley’s death date July 2, 1886, as someone suggested on findagrave?

I’ve seen circumstantial evidence that Riley’s daughter Mary A Case may have married Daniel Gifford. Is that true? Is there a source to confirm it?

Is Truman really married to Carherine Baker?

All but 2 of the Case’s in the Baldwin cemetery are in this family, so I’m guessing these are also their relatives. How are they related? Hiram J Case. Maudie B Case.

Is there any more information about this family in the Connecticut Barkhamsted records ?

Thoughts on Carl Braatz

According to the help article on familysearch wiki about German emigration, it is crucial to know the exact locality from which your ancestor came, since all records are stored locally with no national index.

As stated in a previous post, we believe Carl and an uncle emigrated from Germany in 1867. Their point of origin is "Pomer" which may or may not be an actual town--hence this post.

Pomerania (Pommern in German or Pomorze in Polish) refers to a region of the northern coast of Europe on the Baltic sea, spanning essentially the northern border of present-day Germany and Poland, from the Danish peninsula to the Bay of Gdansk (see map). The majority of the region was part of the Kingdom of Prussia at the time (see this article) which may or may not have been considered "Germany" by US immigration officers and census takers. Thoughts, anyone?
[Edit: looks like yes, that was considered Germany at the time. According to the help article mentioned above, "German immigrants from Pommern often went to Wisconsin. Large numbers also settled in Illinois, Minnesota, and other Midwest states." Carl was in SD by 1900, but I'm not sure where he went before then.]

Searching for Braatz in any of the three German surname distribution maps (linked from https://www.familysearch.org/learn/wiki/en/Surname_Distribution_Maps) gives a preponderance of Braatz in that same area, on the NE coast of modern Germany. It seems most likely to me that my Braatz ancestors came from a city or town in this region. If this is the case, they would be more likely to have come through the port of Hamburg than Bremen, judging by distance (though either is certainly possible). Most German immigrant ships came through NY.

Alternatively, "Pommern" also refers to a city in SW Germany, or Pomer could have been an actual town of the time that does not survive with the same name.

For next time:
Links on Pommern help page
Guide to Hamburg Passenger Lists

George Earl Braatz

Does not appear on NFS at all. According to a handwritten FGR, he is Isaac and Mina Braatz’s fifth child.

b. 30 July 1923 in Oacoma SD.

m. February 1942 to Frances, and March 1974 to Agnes.

Viola Braatz

A handwritten note lists her death date has 2-7-1936 (which according to NFS is July 2, 1936), in Rushville, South Dakota. Her burial is listed as 1936, Gorden Nebraska.

Noma Ellen Braatz

A handwritten FGR lists her first marriage as 24 October 1939, Portland OR, to Melvin Robert Schrammeck

Her obituary describes her as the first-born child of Isaac and Mina Braatz, but I’m guessing that means the first-born child who lived through her childhood.

We have a Christmas picture signed Melvin and Noma.

Noma’s funeral program, dated January 6 2005, notes her interment at Meridian Cemetery.

Her obituary lists her children as Floyd (b 1942) and Joy (b 1945)

Her obituary notes she took care of 38 foster children from 1955-1962, if we notice discrepancies of children in census records later on.

From the obituary: “Noma was survived by a son, Floyd Schrammeck and wife Chris; a daughter, Joy Moore and Husband Bob; a brother, George Braatz; a sister, Louise Smith; grandchildren Tawnya Swanson, Reginald States and wife Gia, Brody States, and Angelia Schrammeck; 11 great-grandchildren and step-great-grandchildren; and three step-grandchildren and their spouses. She was preceded in death by her husband Melvin Schrammeck in 1997; a sister, Viola Braatz; two siblings who died as infants; and nephew Noal Smith.”

Mina Bell Dodge

A handwritten FGR gives this information for Mina Bell Dodge:

b. 29 August 1895, Pulaski Arkansas. We also have a copy of her birth certificate confirming this. (NFS agrees)

chr. 19 April 1934, baptized SDA

d. 6 March 1976, Boise Idaho (NFS has same date)

bur. 9 March 1976, Meridian Idaho