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The Mystery of Aunt Kathryn Part 7

Luxembourg to America – 1855

Mary had been christened Marie Josephine Heuertz when she was born on April 3, 1842, to Johann M. and Stephania Marie Josephine (nee DeViche) Heuertz in Holzem, Luxembourg, a small farming community, seven miles due west from Luxembourg City.

By 1855, Luxemburg experienced a series of poor harvests while progress meant people were living longer. More people meant the precious resources they had were stretched too thin across the country that had once been part of the German Confederation. Since all of Europe was going through hard times, moving to another German-speaking country wasn’t feasible.

So, the Heuertz family joined the thousands of other Luxembourgers, including Stephania’s brother Constantine DeViche, who had already emigrated to America looking for a better life.

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The Mystery of Aunt Kathryn Part 6

Who is Henry Gaus?

During my initial search on his name, nothing came up except for the 1880 US Census record so I knew there was probably another spelling of his last name. I went back to the actual image of the record and saw that the writing could be interpreted as Gaus or Gans. Since nothing came up for Gaus before, I searched for Henry Gans and bingo!

There is a 1900 Census record for Henry Gans, still living in Bloomington, WI. And who is still living with him? Angeline Heuertz, 34 years, and Kate Lorenz, 23 years. His wife, Stephania, had died in 1897 so it’s just the three of them now.

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The Mystery of Aunt Kathryn Part 5

The Heuertz and DeViche Connections

The last name Heuertz provided a possible clue. Opening the census record, I see that Angeline Heuertz is Stephania’s daughter by her first husband.

When I was searching for who Kathryn might have been living with in Remsen, I found that John DeViche’s parents were Catharine Heuertz and Constantine DeViche so this must be where the connection is. I just need to do some more digging to find it. It may not be a blood connection, but I felt like I was closer to solving the mystery of who Aunt Kathryn was!

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The Mystery of Aunt Kathryn Part 4

Finding the Link

I searched for Kathryn Lorenz on Ancestry.com where I have all of my family trees. The only information I found was that she was living in Remsen, Iowa in the 1915 and 1920 US Censuses. In both, she was living with John DeViche. So I now had John’s actual last name.

The answer to whether they were married or not, came in the 1920 Census where Kathryn was listed as his cousin. I was excited to have another last name to track that might bring me closer to who Kathryn was.

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The Mystery of Aunt Kathryn Part 3

A Thread to Follow

In the next letter, Kathryn mentions only one name on her side, “John also is enjoying the best of health. He is taking his after dinner nap.”

They are obviously living together, and there seems to be an air of intimacy reserved for family, so I assumed that John was her husband and made a note to search “John Lorenz”.

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The Mystery of Aunt Kathryn Part 2

January 2018

The 2017 holiday season renewed my interest in the vintage letters I had inherited. Visiting my side of the family for Thanksgiving, and my husband’s side for Christmas really hit home that I needed to share what I had with anyone who was related to the letter writers, no matter how distant. 

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The Mystery of Aunt Kathryn Part 1

The story of Aunt Kathryn will be told a little differently than my other family history blog posts because I think the story of how I “rediscovered” a relative, and in turn a completely new side of my family, is as interesting as the woman whose story I’m telling.

The Letters – June 2004

I stared at the envelope, trying to make sense of the unfamiliar name in the upper left hand corner, K.M. Lorenz. Who is that? 

Among the names I’d become so familiar with during the decades of researching my family’s history, Lorenz hadn’t popped up once. The postmark from Remsen, Iowa didn’t ring any bells, either.  

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How Elizabeth Blessing’s Inheritance Was Stolen (Part 2)

Mary Blessing

When Mary’s father, Lewis Blessing, died in 1825, he left her 150 acres of land next to the 150 acres that he had bequeathed to her brother, John, “running the whole length of my survey out from the river bending on my son John’s line, the whole length thereof, and such distance from his line so as to include the 150 acres.”

He also left her “my bald horse, her saddle, and bridle, and one set of horse gears, and one bed and bedding.”

Twenty-eight years old and unmarried, she lived with her mother, Elizabeth, her brother, John, and her sister Elizabeth in the brick house their father had built overlooking the Little Miami river.

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How Elizabeth Blessing’s Inheritance Was Stolen (Part 1)

While writing the stories about my direct Blessing ancestors, Abraham and his children, I came across a tragic tale that befell Abraham’s siblings who joined their parents in Ohio in the early 1820s.

While each sibling had their share of misfortunes, the one I found the most reprehensible was how Elizabeth was robbed of her inheritance from her father Lewis Blessing. To get the full story, however, I need to start with Lewis’s death and Elizabeth’s brother and sister, John and Mary.

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Bringing Alice Schell Berger out of the shadows: 1868 thru 1885

Some women in my family tree lived extraordinary lives for their times. They traveled, worked, and had experiences that weren’t the norm for women of their day. Alice Deisher Schell is not one of those women. She had a nice middle class upbringing, and sustained that through her marriage.

She is the kind of person who normally wouldn’t be remembered when talking about your family history. Unlike some other women in my family tree, there are no “can you believe Alice did…” stories; no mysteries; and no secrets that were revealed when I was researching her life. Which is precisely why I wanted to write about her. She may not have done extraordinary things, but she is still someone I descend from. I wanted to learn what I could about her and bring her out of the shadows so she is not forgotten. Continue reading →