Category: Obituaries

K Is for…Killed

Posted on by spuddled

It’s not every day that you discover your relative had a connection to a TV portrayal by a soon-to-be Mouseketeer. My third cousin four times removed, Edward Sweeney Bentley, was born 16 January 1860 in Knights Ferry, California. As you might guess, he was one of our Sweeney relatives. His father had been born in Kentucky but moved to California in 1850, where he mined for several years.1

In 1860 the Bentley family, consisting of J[efferson] D., age 33; wife Elizabeth, age 27; and son Edward, age 5/12; were enumerated in Buena Vista, California.2 Ten years later in Empire, Stanislaus County, Mary M., 7; Sarah A., 4; and Jefferson, 1/12, had been added to the family.3 By 1880 the family (still in Empire) now included Maria E., 7; James, 4; Jefferson’s mother, Jane, 77; and Elizabeth’s brother, John Bishop, 36.4 Cousin Edward wouldn’t live to the next census enumeration. His glowing obituary in The Modesto [California] Bee indicated he had worked as a blacksmith in Turlock and then in Placer, then moved to Kern County around 1887, where he worked in real estate as well as acting as a Deputy Constable.5

On 22 February 1889 Edward had been to Visalia to purchase land and was returning by train when the train stopped unexpectedly. When Edward and the train brakeman went to investigate, Edward was shot without warning. Another passenger, Charles Gobart, had walked down the other side of the train to investigate as well; he was also shot and died instantly. Unbeknownst to Edward and Charles, two masked men had boarded the train at Pixley, California intent on robbery. The robbers stole $420 from the train’s safe and fled. Edward, still alive, was taken to the town of Delano, and his parents were summoned by telegram, but after about a week he succumbed to his injuries. He was buried 1 March 1889 in Modesto’s Acacia Memorial Park.6

Find a Grave, (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/22511762/edward_s-bentley: accessed August 30, 2025), memorial page for Edward S Bentley (16 Jan 1860–28 Feb 1889), Find a Grave Memorial ID 22511762, citing Acacia Memorial Park, Modesto, Stanislaus County, California, USA; Maintained by Barbara O (contributor 47314130).

An article in the San Francisco Chronicle dated 24 February 1889 gave further details of the crime, though there were conflicting accounts from the various eyewitnesses. Were there five masked men? Four? Three? Two? Detectives and others were sent in pursuit of the robbers, however many there were, and the Governor of California later offered a reward of $250 for their capture.7 8

It would be some time before the criminals were identified. Following the Pixley robbery, numerous others were committed with more men killed. The robbers fled yet again. It wasn’t until 5 August 1892 (coincidentally, the day after the Lizzie Borden murders) that a drunk man wandered through the fifteen saloons in Visalia, California, telling everyone he met how he had been on the train during one of the recent robberies. A bartender alerted detective Will Smith, who notified Deputy George Witty, who picked up the the intoxicated man, George Sontag, and interrogated him. The interview convinced the undersheriff and detectives doing the questioning that George had not been on the train in question (which turned out to be true) but that he knew too much to be completely disconnected from the crime (which also turned out to be true).

Smith and Witty went back to the house where George and his brother John had met up at the home of the family of Chris Evans. They saw John Sontag enter the home and asked Eva Evans (Chris’s daughter and John’s fiancée) where John had gone. When Chris came out to see what was happening, he told the officers John had gone downtown, which the officers knew to be untrue. Smith entered the house, and John came out carrying a shotgun. Shooting ensued. Sontag and Evans fled yet again, but now they had been identified.

Chris Evans had met John Sontag around 1887; Chris relayed to John the story of the accident in which an iron rail pierced his lung while he was working for the Southern Pacific Railroad, and how the railroad did not try to make amends to him for the disability he had suffered. Chris Evans invited John Sontag to return to his home with him. They worked together after that – sometimes hauling lumber, sometimes running a livery stable, and sometimes robbing trains.

Finally in June 1893, after nearly a year of hiding, Evans and Sontag, planning to return to Visalia, saw the posse that was searching for them near a cabin at Stone Corral Canyon. They planned to abscond with the posse’s horses, but they were seen. In the shootout that ensued, Chris was shot in the eye and arm but eventually fled (again), while John Sontag, even more seriously wounded, was taken captive. Chris Evans was soon captured as well, at the home of some friends who alerted the authorities. John Sontag would die of his wounds on 3 July 1893. In December 1893 Chris Evans was convicted and sentenced to life in prison. In spite of a prison break somewhere in between there, Chris’s “life sentence” amounted to less than 18 years; he was released 1 May 1911 and died in 1917.

Some 60 years after the Stone Corral Canyon shootout, it was immortalized in a 1955 episode of the TV series Stories of the Century. In this episode, a “Deputy Ed” is portrayed by Jimmie Dodd, who would begin starring later that year in The Mickey Mouse Club.9 This “Deputy Ed,” in spite of his name and occupation, is apparently not our cousin Edward Sweeney Bentley, who was already dead before the events of the episode took place. But you, too, can watch this episode on the Tubi streaming platform. You know you want to.

  1. J. Harvey Sweeney, Jr., Moses Sweeney Descendants (n.p: 2006, n.d). ↩︎
  2. The National Archives in Washington D.C.; Record Group: Records of the Bureau of the Census; Record Group Number: 29; Series Number: M653; Residence Date: 1860; Home in 1860: Buena Vista, Stanislaus, California; Roll: M653_70; Page: 722; Family History Library Film: 803070 ↩︎
  3. Year: 1870; Census Place: Empire, Stanislaus, California; Roll: M593_92; Page: 39B ↩︎
  4. Year: 1880; Census Place: Empire, Stanislaus, California; Roll: 84; Page: 359d; Enumeration District: 095 ↩︎
  5. The Modesto [California] Bee, Modesto, California, 5 March 1889, pg. 3 ↩︎
  6. Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/22511762/edward_s-bentley: accessed August 30, 2025), memorial page for Edward S Bentley (16 Jan 1860–28 Feb 1889), Find a Grave Memorial ID 22511762, citing Acacia Memorial Park, Modesto, Stanislaus County, California, USA; Maintained by Barbara O (contributor 47314130). ↩︎
  7. San Francisco Chronicle, 24 February 1889, pg. 15 ↩︎
  8. The San Francisco Call Bulletin, 9 March 1889, pg. 8 ↩︎
  9. Internet Movie Database, Jimmie Dodd article, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0230082/?ref_=mv_close ↩︎
Another Victim Added: The Death of Myrtle Barrow

Another Victim Added: The Death of Myrtle Barrow

Posted on by spuddled

Today we return to our regularly scheduled program of morbid deaths. Specifically, in this case, the death of Myrtle Barrow, my fifth cousin twice removed. She was born 29 August 1899 in Athensville, Greene County, Illinois, to Robert Newton and Fannie (Canatsey) Barrow, part of the Sweeney line on my paternal side.

In 1900, 9-month-old Myrtle appears in the census in Athensville along with her parents and 3-year-old brother “Loyd.” In 1910 the family was enumerated in Barr, Macoupin County, Illinois. Myrtle’s older brother (Lloyd Irvin) is now listed as Irving, and three more boys have joined the family: Robert, 9; Carlos, 5; and Ebert, 2. By 1920 the family is back in Athensville, but Lloyd is living on his own with his wife and family, and Myrtle now has a sister, 8-year-old Fannie.

Myrtle would not survive long enough to be enumerated in 1930. Ninety-seven years ago this past Friday at a little after 12 p.m., a series of tornadoes struck central Illinois, in particular Calhoun and Greene Counties. The Jacksonville Daily Journal of 20 April listed eight known dead at that time, including a schoolteacher, Annie Keller, who died when she was struck by a falling rafter as the Centerville schoolhouse collapsed. She had ordered the schoolchildren to get under their desks and had only just gotten them all in place when the rafter fell; all the children survived.

Myrtle Barrow did not die in the initial storm. Instead, 97 years ago today, she succumbed to the injuries she had sustained in Greene County two days earlier. Again the Jacksonville Daily Journal provides a detailed account. According to an article that appeared on 22 April, Myrtle’s brother Robert testified in the inquest held after her death (aside: wouldn’t her cause of death be fairly obvious?), stating that he had been in Athensville when the tornado struck his home. He returned home afterward to find his father at a neighbor’s, but received word that his sister had been injured. Myrtle was found 100 yards from the family home lying in a couple of inches of water. Flooding made it impossible for anyone to take her to the hospital until the afternoon of the following day. Though Myrtle was unable to provide a lot of detail, she was lucid enough to tell doctors at the hospital that she had seen the tornado approaching and taken shelter in a shed.

Though doctors had originally thought Myrtle was improving, this improvement did not last, and she died at the Passavant Hospital in Jacksonville about 2:30 p.m. on 21 April 1927. The inquest, unsurprisingly, blamed the tornado for her death, but provided detailed specifics: “shock and hemorrhage, the result of disarticulation of right knee joint, fracture of left tibia and fibula and the left humerus. Injury acquired in tornado in Greene County.” According to the National Weather Service, the storm was an F4 and claimed a total of 11 lives, including Myrtle’s. One small consolation is that by surviving the initial storm, Myrtle did not die alone; the Daily Journal article tells us that her brother Robert was with her in the hospital when she died. A very small consolation, but a consolation nonetheless.

Sentimental Sunday -Grandma Hoffmann

Posted on by agnette

Grandma Velma Marie (Swing) Hoffmann died nine years ago today at the age of ninety. Even after nearly a decade, she continues to play a role in the lives of those of us who knew her, sometimes quite literally, as on one Thanksgiving when, reaching to pull rolls out of the oven in preparation for sitting down at the dining room table spread with her dishes, I could inexplicably detect her scent.

One of Grandma’s books I inherited was her copy of the 1928 pioneer novel A Lantern in Her Hand. I can’t count the number of times I read this book while growing up (and afterward) but I remember most clearly seeing Grandma’s old copy sitting on the end table in the living room. This book and the story of Abbie Deal became entwined through the years with my thoughts about Grandma, but it was actually Abbie’s husband Will Deal who, before his untimely death, had told his wife that if he were to be taken from her, he would “go on with her, remembering…”

Beloved mother and grandmother, Velma M. Hoffmann was born Feb. 19, 1917, at Francesville, Ind. She died July 3, 2007, at Boise.

Velma was the daughter of Albert Carl and Lena (Hunkler) Swing, the second of three children. At the age of 2, she and her family moved to Elmwood, Ill., to live on her grandparents’ farm, then later moved to a farm south of the town of Wing, Ill., and then to a house in Wing. In the mid-1930s, Velma and her family moved to Forrest, Ill., where Velma attended high school. She graduated from Forrest Township High School as valedictorian of her senior class in 1933, at the age of 16. It was about this time that Velma met her future husband, Joseph Hoffmann of Fairbury, Ill., at a family gathering.

In February, 1934, Velma began working at the Corn Hog Assn. in Peoria, Ill., and in 1935, took her first trip to Idaho, along with her brother, future husband and several friends, all in a Model A Ford.

She married Joseph Hoffmann on March 12, 1938, at Peoria. She continued working for the Corn Hog Assn., then later worked at the Rock Island Arsenal where she was employed until 1940 when she and Joe moved to Idaho. They first lived in an 18-foot trailer parked below Canyon Hill, then moved to Boise where she worked for the Selective Service. In May 1942, they moved to Portland, Ore., where Joe worked in the shipyards as a welder. Their first daughter, Linda, was born in Portland. They returned to Idaho in 1943, first to a farm in Kuna and then to a farm outside Caldwell. At this time, their son Jay was born. In 1947, they moved into a house on Canyon Hill in Caldwell and while living here, Velma’s third and fourth children, daughters, Paula and Carla were born.

Velma assisted her husband in his business, Hoffman Sheet Metal, until Joe’s death in 1983. She was active in PTA in the Caldwell School District while her children were attending school there. Velma’s primary occupation was mother and homemaker, which were to her the most important and valuable jobs any person could have. The most important thing in her life was her family and her happiest times were when all her family joined together for holidays and special occasions. She was always a lover of children and of animals and in particular cherished the companionship of her last loving pet, a Siamese cat named Sam.

She was a member of the Grace Lutheran Church in Caldwell and greatly valued her membership in the church choir there.

She is survived by three daughters and their husbands, Linda and Ted Montgomery of Caldwell, Paula and Jim Johnson of Boise and Carla and Bill Oestreich of Eagle; a daughter-in-law, Nancy Hoffmann of Caldwell; four grandchildren, Matt Montgomery and wife Cheryl of Palmyra, VA, Mike Hoffmann and wife Erika of Redondo Beach, CA, Megan Montgomery of Waynesboro, VA and Cindy (Hoffmann) Crabtree and husband Aaron of Eagle and three great-grandchildren, Will, Leo and Owen Crabtree of Eagle.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Joe, her son, Jay, a brother and a sister.
The family would like to express their appreciation to the staff at Alterra and Ashley Manor for their kindness and their care. They would like to thank the members of St. Luke’s Hospice for all their support. In addition, they appreciate beyond measure, the continuing visits and ministries of Pastor Philip Bohlken of Grace Lutheran Church. Funeral services will be held at 11 a.m. Monday, July 9, at Grace Lutheran Church, 2700 S. Kimball, Caldwell. Friends may call Sunday from 1-4 p.m. at Flahiff Funeral Chapel, Caldwell.

Perhaps the most fitting words to describe Velma and her life are those of the Roman philosopher, Marcus Aurelius: “To live happily is an inward power of the soul.”

Sympathy Saturday – Mrs. Samuel Slagel

Posted on by agnette

My great-great-grandmother, Mary (Demler) Slagel, has appeared in a number of posts here, but I had not yet posted her obituary:

MRS. SAMUEL SLAGEL.

Mrs. Samuel Slagel passed away at her home in this city [Fairbury, Illinois] last Friday morning [3 February, 1928] at 11:30 o’clock at the age of 73 years and 16 days.

Mary Demler was born in Baden, Germany, January 17, 1855. When nine years of age she came to this country, locating at Washington [Illinois]. In 1868 the family moved from Washington to Fairbury, and here on November 24, 1875, she was united in marriage to Samuel Slagel, who together with two children, Daniel and Mrs. Paul Hoffman, of near Fairbury, survive. There also survives one brother, August Demler, who lives in the state of Kansas.

The deceased was an excellent wife and mother and will be missed not only in the home but by many friends.

The funeral services were held at the Christian Apostolic church in this city Monday and interment was in Graceland Cemetery.

Mary Slagel Death Certificate

Other information about Mary’s death can be found on her death certificate. Signed by Dr. Henry C. Sauer, the certificate notes her cause of death as carcinoma of the stomach, from which she had suffered for two months. Myocarditis was a contributing factor as well.

Mary’s “home in this city,” according to her death certificate, was at 107 East Walnut Street. This 2075-square-foot home was built in 1895 and still stands.

Sunday’s Obituary – Grandpa Swing

Posted on by agnette

Albert Swing’s obituary from the 3 February 1969 Harlingen, Texas, Valley Morning Star

Great-grandpa Albert Swing was born 11 April 1889 in Cissna Park, Illinois, the fourth of thirteen children born to Albert Carl and Catherine Marie (Hoffmann) Swing. He was musical, buying a violin with the first money he earned working in the fields; in later years he called square dances.  On 18 June 1913, in Peoria, Illinois, he married Lena Agnes Hunkler. As noted in his obituary, Albert and Lena had three children. The family spent a number of years in Francesville, Indiana, moving between there and various locations in Illinois. In 1951 the couple moved to Harlingen, Texas, for Lena’s health. She died there in 1964. All his life Albert longed for the flat farmland of his youth; he would say that he wished he could have been buried in the cemetery in Francesville among the Indiana wheat fields. However, Albert’s final resting place is with Lena at Restlawn Cemetery in La Feria, Texas.

Sunday’s Obituary – A Grandma by Any Other Name

Posted on by agnette

Lena and Albert Swing

Last night Mom and I were discussing family names, and how when she was a child she was grateful that she hadn’t been named after either of her grandmothers because she found their names very old-fashioned.

Lena Agnes Hunkler was born 22 December 1892 in Washington, Illinois (hit by the recent devastating tornado). At 20 years of age she married Albert Carl Swing, and they had three children. After living mainly in Illinois and Indiana, they eventually moved to Texas for Lena’s health. Lena died in Harlingen, Texas, on 13 June 1964 and was buried in Restlawn Cemetery in LaFeria. Apparently this newspaper needed to hire a new editor.

Mrs. Lena Swing

Forrest (PNS)–Mrs. Lena Swing, 71, died at 5 a.m. Saturday in Harlingen, Tex.

The Cox Funeral Home is in charge of services, which will be at 2 p.m. Monday in Harlingen. She was the former Lena Hunkler, and was born Dec. 22, 1892, in Washington, Ill. She married Albert Swing June 18, 1913, in Washington. Surviving are her husband; one son, Roy, Harlingen; two daughters, Mrs. Marilyn DuRuary [sic], Harlingen, and Mrs. Thelma Hoffman [sic], Boise, Idaho [sic]; two sisters, Hilda of Missouri [sic], and Bertha of Texas, and a brother, John Hunkler, who lives near Peoria. She and her husband operated the Swing Transfer Co. in Forrest. They left here 18 years ago to move to Texas.

Emma Alice Slagel was born 5 March 1880 in Fairbury, Illinois. She married Paul Hoffmann on 7 December 1902 in Fairbury, and she gave birth to 10 children. Paul died in a tragic railroad accident four days after their youngest child, Clyde’s, seventh birthday. Emma remained in Fairbury, dying on Christmas Day 1961. She is buried in Fairbury’s Graceland Cemetery.

Services for Emma Hoffman Thursday

Mrs. Emma Hoffman, 81, died at her home, 505 S Fourth, at 11:45 a.m. Monday. She had been ill three years.

Her funeral will be at the Cook Funeral Home at 2 p.m. Thursday, Rev. Peter Schaffer officiating. Burial will be in Graceland Cemetery.

Visitation begins at 7 p.m. Tuesday at the funeral home.

She was born in Fairbury, March 5, 1880, the daughter of Sam and Mary Demler Slagel. She was married to Paul Hoffman in 1902. He passed away in 1933. She lived on a farm south of Fairbury until moving to town in 1943.

Surviving are three daughters, Mrs. Marie Kilgus, Fairbury; Mrs. Alice Himelick, Kokomo, Ind.; Miss Leona Hoffman, at home; five sons, Joe, Caldwell, Idaho; Sam, Paul, Clyde and Ralph, all of Fairbury; one brother, Dan Slagel, Fairbury; 36 grandchildren and 14 great grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her husband, a son and a daughter.

She was a member of the Apostolic Church Fairbury.

The family suggests that any tangible expressions of sympathy be in the form of donations to the Cancer Society.

I actually like both “Lena” and “Emma,” but then I tend to like the old-fashioned names best.  Well, usually.  My own grandmothers take the cake in the old-fashioned name department, even if Blanche and Velma were the sweetest grandmas ever.

Blanche Wilson Confirmation Photo, 1926

Velma Swing Graduation Photo, 1933

Sunday’s Obituary – Marie Hoffmann Bauer

Posted on by agnette

Marie Hoffmann was the ninth child of Jacob Hoffmann and his first wife, Annette Meyer. She was born in Renaucourt, France on February 11, 1870. At age 13 she made the trip from France to America, and on her 22nd birthday she married George Bauer in Pontiac, Illinois. She and George had a family of nine children: Alline E., Ernest E., Elmer Ernest (who lived only 7 months), Charles George, Edna, Esther Matilda, Leona, Harry William, and Arthur E. The first three children were born in Gridley in McLean County; the remaining children were born in Cissna Park. In 1922 George and Marie moved to 324 W Garfield in Cissna Park; George died on August 25, 1924 at age 61. Marie and her two youngest sons continued to live in the house on Garfield, and it was there that she died (also at age 61) on May 24, 1933. She was buried four days later in the Cissna Park Apostolic Christian Cemetery.

MRS. MARY BAUER

DIED SUDDENLY

AT HOME HERE LATE WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON

HAD BEEN IN GOOD HEALTH ALL DAY

“DEATH NATURAL CAUSES UNKNOWN” STATES CORONER

Mrs. Mary Bauer, 63, fell to the floor in the basement of her home Wednesday afternoon probably stricken with a heart attack, died within a few minutes. She was discovered by her daughter-in-law, Mrs. Mattie (Harry) Bauer, who immediately summoned her own mother, Anna Beer, and sister, Miss Lucille (next door neighbors) and Dr. W. R. Roberts. Although Mrs. Bauer drew a few breaths after being found, life had flickered away before the doctor arrived.

At Coroner W. C. Hotaling’s inquiry that evening testimony was heard that the deceased had been in usual good health that day. She had spent the day canning pineapples. At about 5:05 P.M. she went to the basement to refuel the boiler that was furnishing the hot water for the canning, her daughter-in-law, Mrs. Mattie Bauer, following her to the basement. Mrs. Bauer was in the third room (furthest from the stairs) the daughter-in-law in the second, when she heard the older woman breathing heavily in the other room. Going there she saw her lying on the floor. Mattie immediately called her mother, Mrs. Anna Beer, who lives next door, saw that the doctor was called, and returned to the stricken woman, saw her breathe her last. Dr. Roberts, who arrived within a few minutes, testified to the coroner that night as follows:

“On May 24, 1933, at about 5:15 P.M. I was called to the resident of Mrs. Geo. Bauer, on arrival found her dead, features livid, no heart beat or respiration. I have known the deceased and her family intimately for thirty years. Mrs. Bauer was in good health so far as known. In my opinion, from appearances, death was due to natural causes, either cardiac infarct or cerebal hemmorhage [sic]….”

Mary Bauer, daughter of Jacob and Lizzie Witterich [sic] Hoffman, was born in Alsace Lorraine, February 11, 1870 and died in Cissna Park, Illinois, May 24, 1933, at the age of 63 years, 3 months and 13 days.

The family of Jacob Hoffman lived in the old country until 1883 prior to which time the mother died, and when Mary was 14 years old, emigrated to America where they settled in Fairbury, Illinois. Here, Mary continued her schooling, grew to womanhood, met and married, at Pontiac, on her birthday in 1892, George Bauer. They set up housekeeping in the Fairbury neighboorhood on a farm, and lived there until 1896. In that year Mr. Bauer purchased the farm west of here, known now as the Bauer homestead, and moved onto it. Here the couple raised their family of nine children, lived for over a quarter of a century. In 1922 they moved to town, retired.

In 1924, on the 25th of August, Mr. Bauer died.

The deceased was a long time member of the Apostolic Christian church.
Surviving are eight children, four boys, four girls, who are: Mrs. John Otto (Alline) of southeast of here; Mrs. Sam Yergler (Edna); Mrs. Fred Knapp, Jr. (Leona); Mrs. Wm. Yergler, Jr., (Esther), and Ernest, Charles, Harry and Arthur, all of this locality. Surviving also are twenty-nine grand children and the following brothers and sisters: John Hoffman of France; Joe of Roanoke; Mrs. Phillip Yost (Lena) of Fairbury; Mrs. Sam Stoller, (Carrie) of Peoria; and by the following half-brothers and sisters: Paul Hoffman of Fairbury; Andy and Sam of this vicinity; Mrs. Joe Swing (Lydia) of San Pierre, Indiana; Mrs. Jeff Springer (Maggie) of Danvers, Illinois; Mrs. Orville Farney (Lucia) of south of here. Four other brothers and sisters and one son, Elmer, preceded her in death.

Funeral services will be held on Sunday afternoon leaving the house at 1:00 and later at the Country Apostolic Christian church, where the services proper will be held. Interment will be in the church cemetery.

Tombstone Tuesday – the Hoffmann Pioneers

Posted on by agnette

Usually I find myself referring to Jacob Hoffmann, my 2G and 3G-grandfather, as our emigrant ancestor. While he was the patriarch of the family, he wasn’t the first of our Hoffmann branch to arrive in America. This distinction actually goes to two of Jacob’s daughters, Anna and Catherine. 

Of Jacob’s 17 children by his two wives, the last four were born in America; 11 emigrated to America; and only two, Lisa and John, remained in France. Lisa was the eldest and already married when her family decided to leave France; John was the third child and eldest son. Anna was the second of Jacob’s children and was born September 24, 1859 in Renaucourt, France. On June 10, 1878 she was married to Ferdinand Schott (a big thanks to Cousin Daniel in France for providing copies of these records).

Four years later Anna and Ferdinand, along with Anna’s sister (my great-great-grandmother) Catherine arrived at Castle Garden in New York on April 13, 1882 on the ship St. Germain. In spite of the confusion of surnames, the family is identifiable:

Mrs. Angela Hoffmann 22 F[emale] France New York
Angelo d[itt]o 1/2 M[ale] do do
Mrs. Catherine do 23 F do do
Emile do 1/2 M do do
Ferdinand Schott 33 Carpenter do do
Louis do 2 yr. do do

More information about Catherine’s history in America can be found in earlier posts here. Anna and Ferdinand (“Fred”) lived in Gridley, Illinois, for some time, then later moved to Kansas before returning to Illinois in 1888. Anna and Ferdinand had nine children in all, including Lewis and the twins Angela and Emil, who all sailed with them on the St. Germain. Children born in America were: Bertha, Anna, Caroline, Catherine, Leah, and Martha. Anna, Sr., died September 9, 1919 and was buried three days later in Cissna Park, Illinois. Fifteen years later Ferdinand died and was buried in Cissna Park as well.

Mrs. Anna Schott passed peacefully to her rest Tuesday, Sept. 9 at 9:30 a.m. at her home in the northwest part of town. She had been in poor health for several years but was confined to her bed for a period of three months.

Anna Hoffmann was born in Remicourt, France, Sept. 24, 1859 and was married to Ferdinand Schott in 1877. They lived at Vitrey, France until 1881 when they sailed for America, coming direct to Illinois.

Later they moved to Kansas. In 1888 they again moved to Illinois, making the trip in a covered wagon. It took them seven weeks to arrive at their destination at Hopedale, Ill. From there they again moved to Armington, Minier, and then to Cissna Park, where they have since made their home.

To this union nine children were born: the twins, Emil and Angela, preceeding her in death. The surviving children are Lewis F. of Shelbyville, Ind., Mrs. Chas. Kercher of Wolcott, Ind., Mrs. Benj. E. Krantz of Peoria, Caroline Kathryn, Leah and Martha who are at home. She is also survived by her husband the following brothers and sisters John Hoffmann of France, Mrs. Phillip Yost, Mrs. S. R. Stoller, Paul Hoffmann and Mrs. Orville Farney of Fairbury, Mrs. Jeff Springer of Danvers, Mrs. Albert Schwing of Francisville [sic], Ind., Mrs. Joe Schwing of LaCrosse, Ind., Joseph Hoffmann of Roanoke, Mrs. George Bauer and Sam Hoffmann of Cissna Park and Andy Hoffmann of Hoopeston.

The funeral services were held at the Christian Apostolic church southeast of town, Friday, Sept. 12, and was largely attended by her many relatives and friends.

Tombstone Tuesday – Eugenie Hoffmann Swing

Posted on by agnette

Eugenie Hoffmann Swing’s history is an excellent example of how my maternal genealogy in particular is a very tangled web. Eugenie B. Hoffmann was born May 1, 1865 in France, the daughter of Jacob and Annette (Meyer) Hoffmann.  This makes her my great-great-grand-aunt, as her sister Catherine Marie was my Grandma Hoffmann’s paternal grandmother.

However, she is also my half-great-grand-aunt, as her half-brother, Paul (son of Jacob Hoffmann and his second wife, Christine Schmidt) and his wife Emma were my Grandpa Hoffmann’s parents (Grandpa and Grandma were half first cousins once removed).

On February 23, 1890, Eugenie married Joseph Gilbert Schwing/Swing (1861-1949) in Livingston County, Illinois.  She was J. G.’s second wife; his first wife, Annie Schippee, had died in 1888 after giving birth to a son (Walter) and a daughter (Anna).  Joseph’s older brother Albert Carl Swing was already married to Eugenie’s aforementioned sister Catherine, making her husband also her brother-in-law (sort of).

Eugenie, also known as Jennie, gave birth to four children: Joseph John (b. September 12, 1892); Mary S. (b. January 17, 1894); William J. (b. August 2, 1897); and Jacob G. (b. April 5, 1899). The census taker enumerated Eugenie and her family on June 5; one week later, Eugenie was dead at the age of 35:

Friday, June 15, 1900

Deaths Doings

Mrs. Joseph G. Swing

The death of Mrs. Joseph G. Swing occurred at her home in this city Tuesday afternoon at 12:30. She was sick but a few days and everything that medical skill could do to aleviate [sic] her suffering was done. It is sad to note the death even of those who have lived their three score years and ten, but doubly so to note the passing away of one in the full bloom of womanhood, surrounded by a family of affectionate children and a loving husband.
Jennie Hoffman was born in France May 19, 1865. She came to America with her parents in 1883, coming direct to Fairbury, where she has since resided. On February 14, 1890, she was united in marriage to Joseph G. Swing. To this union four children were born: Joseph, Mary, William and Jacob.

The deceased was a loving and affectionate wife and mother, a kind neighbor and a true friend. The blow falls heavily upon the bereaved husband and motherless children and they have the sympathy of the entire community. Besides her husband and children, her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Hoffman, of Cissna Park, and five brothers and nine sisters, most of whom with numerous friends, were present at the funeral services. She was a member of the German Apostolic church and the services were held there this afternoon at 2:30. The remains were laid to rest in the Fairbury cemetery.

A little over a year later, Eugenie’s widower was married a third time – to her half-sister, Lydia, born February 25, 1877.  Joseph and Lydia had 11 children; they named their eldest Eugenie C. Swing.

Sunday’s Obituary – Samuel Frank Montgomery

Posted on by agnette

Samuel Frank Montgomery was my great-grand-uncle.  His older brother, Charles William Montgomery, was my great-grandfather and has been mentioned here a number of times.  Samuel appears as “Franklin,” age 7, in the 1870 census in Denver Township, Illinois, with parents John and Belinda, and siblings Hattie, Charles, Thomas, Harry, and Edward.  In 1880, Samuel F., age 18, is listed with “works on farm” as his occupation.

By 1900 Samuel is married to Ida Goodell and appears in Blue Ridge Township, Piatt County, Illinois, as “Frank,” with a birthdate of September 1863.  Other members of the household are:  wife Ida M., born December 1869; daughter Florence, born August 1889; daughter Ruth, born August 1891; daughter Nellie, born April 1895; and daughter “Dortha,” born July 1898. Ida’s census record indicates she had given birth to a total of 5 children, of whom 4 were still living by 1900.

This photo shows Samuel, Ida, and one of their children:

Still in Blue Ridge by 1910, Samuel F. is listed as age 48 and a rural mail carrier.  Ida M., age 40; Nellie B., age 17; “Dorotha” L., age 11; and John S. complete the family. By 1920 in Blue Ridge Township, Nellie has left home, leaving a household of four. Samuel is now listed as working at a livery. Ida passed away in 1929, and I have yet to locate Samuel in the 1930 or 1940 censuses.  He did not die himself until 1959, age 96.  Samuel and Ida are buried in the Blue Ridge Township Mansfield Cemetery in Mansfield, Illinois.