Email from Liechtenstein

Cousin Rainer came through again!


"Ferdinand Marxer (died:  5th January 1726 and his wives Anna Maria Thöni (died 9th October 1678) and Barbara Schächle (died: 1st September 1721). With Barbara Schächle he had 8 children. One oft them is Georg Marxer (born: 4th January 1686). Georg married Katharina Jehli (died: 18th March 1729). They had seven children. One oft them is Ferdinand Marxer (born 8th October 1719). His wife Barbara Batliner (there is no date in the book). They had seven children. One of them is Johann Georg Marxer (born: 8th January 1751   died: 6th April 1829). His wife is Maria Anna Hasler (born:  15th February 1754). The rest you know: Johann Georg Marxer (born: 8th January 1751 …. And so on."


He added another three generations to the Marxer line and we broke the 1600's barrier! When I set out on this journey, I never dreamed we'd go back so far. Huge thanks to Rainer, again. He makes this all seem so easy. Now it's back to the FHC and more microfilmed church records. Must find the documents to accompany all this new information.

Is there such a thing as TMI?

I had to step back and take a big breath. I've had the happy problem of finding too much too soon. I began to feel a little overwhelmed and was feeling a bit buried in details and dates. I knew a break was in order when I couldn't keep one generation straight from another. So, I've had a few days to quiet the mind. I've read my latest issue of Family Tree magazine, watched the two newest episodes of WDYTYA (USA version) and found past episodes of WDYTYA (UK) on You Tube. It's been a lovely little vacation. Then yesterday morning I popped out of bed ready to write a letter to the county courthouse for wills and probates for three great grandpas. I counted it as something done but with breathing room before results come in. I feel refocused and re energized and ready to take just a small bite out of my to do list, for now.

Tech Tuesday... Hand Held Scanner

My new toy is the VuPoint Magic Wand hand held scanner. Think of all the times you've  been at the library looking at an old fragile book or without dimes for the copy machine or all the times the line at the machine as too long and your research time too short. This little gadget is the answer to many a researcher's prayer.
 I bought it over the weekend, played with it for a few minutes and had the technique down pat. The quality is good and it's small, portable, easy to use and comes with it's own handy carrying case and cleaning cloth. Come on! Who can turn down a handy carrying case and cleaning cloth?  My one tip is, scan each page a couple of times to make sure you get a good image. You can't view your scans as you go, you have to load them onto the computer to see how you did. So I scan twice, which takes seconds, and use the best result. In my opinion, this is a must in every researcher's tote bag.

RAGK...Random Acts of Genealogical Kindness

This post led to several emails from Cheryl at Heritage Happens and offers to help translate the document.
Today I received a translation of the document from Cheryl. It reads as follows:

Transcription of text in document

Certificate for Moving Out
1. Nir. 30 page 31
2. Farm hand Johan August Johansson Berggren
3. From Ossjo Westergard, Ljunga parish
4. Born 1863, (sixty three), Ljunga parish, Kronobergs county
5. October 8, named and confirmed by the Lutheran doctrine
6. He is a minor but is free to marry
7. -
8. -
9. Has had cowpox
10. Can read....Approved
11. ...Passable...Christianity Knowledge
12. ......Been on the interrogations
13. Entitled to the Holy Communion
14. -
15. Enjoying Civic trust
16. -
17. -
18. Completed this year's military service. (He is too young)
19. Moves to ..America...
20. Registered for census...Here for next year.....
21. Testified...Ljunga....parish, Kronobergs county
22. Sweden, June 9, 1883

? Svenson
Pastor

transcriber added "Parish is Sodra Ljunga in Kronoberg county
page 31 = the page in the Church Book of Household
pastor's first name is unreadable.

This new information led me right to the Swedish Church Records at Ancestry.com and this entry that has eluded me for months and months. #53, second from the bottom. Now to decipher the names of his parents.

But in moments, I've jumped miles ahead in my research of this stubborn brickwall Great Grandpa. 

Big thanks to Cheryl and her translators for all their help with this document. I can not say thank you enough.

Messages from England

Original photos sent by email and copy of message from 2002

Photo after applying a bit of photoshop magic

Great Great Grandpa William Johnstone

I've been in contact with a UK cousin. Philip is a third cousin once removed to be exact. He has been generous to share a family three, photos and some old family details that I didn't have previously. I've been able to share some immigrant information and details about the American cousins. It's been fun and enlightening and thoroughly wonderful. Some of the UK relatives had no idea they even had American cousins. We had no idea what had become of the UK clan. The best part of this whole thing continues to be the sharing and reconnecting with long lost family. I have lots of information to sift through and put into context. There are lots of name and dates to add to the tree. And now I have some faces to put with those names. Who would have thought? 

Wedding Wednesday....Matt and Mary Bell

Marriage certificate of Matt and Mary Bell, 1893

May I just say that the changes to Family Search are awesome?
I was never really a fan of that site and everyone said it was the go to site for genealogy. It was just never user friendly enough for me. But now things are different and I'm in serious like with Family Search. I especially like the scanned documents that are being shared on the site. 


This marriage certificate is one that I found just minutes ago. I'd been to the public library today and happened to find a book in the research room called At the foot of the Beartooth Mountains: A history of the Finnish community of Red Lodge, Montana -  (1998) by Leona Lampi. I remembered that my great great grandpa, Matt Bell, had lived there and my great grandma, Elina Bell was born there. I scanned the index and found Matt's name and a couple of photos of his boys. I know little about this branch of the family tree, so I placed a hold on the book through the interlibrary loan program and jotted a down a few notes from the copy in the research room. I came home and logged onto Family search to see what I could find and lo and behold the marriage certificate popped right up. It's a boon too, with names of both the bride's and groom's parents' and the towns they came from in Finland. All new info to me. Also, the marriage month and date were information I didn't have before. Now I can't wait for the copy of the book to come so I can scour the pages for more information. Another productive day of sleuthing.

Mystery Monday.....I've found you Andrew!

1900 Federal Census

Today just confirms further why it's so important to search the collateral lines. I've been searching for my great great grandfather Andrew Marxer. I knew he came to the US in the 1880's and that he stayed in MN while his son Joseph, my great grandfather came to MT. I knew there were at least two of Andrew's children with him in MN. What I didn't know is who he lived with in his later years. Through family information and a compiled county history I tracked down his son-in-law, Frank Nascher. Frank married Andrew's daughter Maria "Mary" and I found Andrew living with them until at least 1900. But I had to search for Frank Nascher to get any result. Andrew just wasn't showing up on the indexes. Evidence points to a 1909 death date for Andrew, so now I'll be searching St. Paul city directories for even more information. I've also located a MN death entry for an Andreas Marxer in the FHL catalog. I'll be ordering that film to make sure that it's really great great grandpa Andrew and to glean any more information I can find there.

Happy New Year!

The Johnstone Clan w/spouses

Now I don't know if this photo was taken on NYE or not. It probably wasn't as Aunt Katie and Auntie Pete are sleeveless. But its the most festive photo in my collection and I think it works. This is the Johnstone clan, the children of William H. and Mary A. Johnstone, and their spouses. This photo was taken at Grandpa and Grandma Borgreen's house on Smelter Hill in Great Falls MT, sometime in the 40's. There are only two people in this group who I did not have the pleasure of knowing, Grandpa Carl Borgreen and Aunt RoseMary. They both passed away too early.

The others I knew and loved and miss terribly. Auntie Pete and Aunt Francis are still living and I would love a chance to visit with them about their memories.

Back row from L to R.

Carl Borgreen, Audrey "Pete" Johnstone, Jack Johnstone, Steve Johnstone, Bertha "Bert" Johnstone, Jim Johnstone

Front row L to R

Bill Johnstone, Francis Johnstone, Nell (Johnstone) Borgreen, George Tracy, Kathleen (Johnstone) Tracy, Rose Mary Johnstone. Not pictured are Don Johnstone and Gert Johnstone.

Wedding Wednesday....Edward and Marie Marxer

Edward and Marie were my paternal grandparents. They were married on 24 Feb. 1936 at St. Ann's Cathedral in Great Falls MT. It was a small family wedding. The bride's maid was Louise Marxer, Edward's sister, and the best man was Mike Reddish. The wedding day was cold and the snow deep. The bride's bouquet of roses was frostbitten in the cold. The wedding party headed out to the ranch in the early afternoon. The car made it as far as Eden than needed to be towed by a team of horses the rest of the way. When they arrived at the house the whole community was there to greet the new bride. They played games, told round stories and tall tales and sang songs. Later they rolled the carpet up and pushed the furniture out of the way for an impromptu dance in the living room. They partied until the wee hours of the morning.

This story was told by Edward and Marie in the county history "A Century In The Foothills 1876-1976"

page 319

.

A Christmas Blessing from Liechtenstein

Imagine my delight and surprise when I opened my email today and found this:

Hello Jennie

I see you need a bit of help from your relatives from the Principality (Fürstentum) of Liechtenstein. I have seen your blog and you have difficulties to find the dates of birth und death of your ancesters. My mother's name of birth is Wanger. So I know the family trees of your paternal line (Marxer and Wanger). I'm related to your paternal great great grandpa (Franz Josef Marxer) and to your paternal great grandma ( Maria Katharina Marxer - Wanger)=>Written in German.

Maria Katharina Marxer (Wanger) was a sister of my great grandpa (Dominikus Wanger). She had 12 brothers and sisters but some of them died early.

Now the details: 

Andreas Marxer *12.10.1825 +01.01.1909  was married to Anna Schächle *25.07.1829 +09.01.1881. When Anrdeas (Andrew's) wife died, the whole family decided to emmigrate to the USA. 
In 1882 his son Franz Josef Marxer *15.09.1860 +03.09.1932 emmigrated first (St.Pauls Minesotta). Two years later (1884) his father and the other brothers an sisters followed.

Here the whole family:

Andreas Marxer *12.10.1825 +01.01.1909 and his wife Anna Schächle *25.07.1829 +09.01.1881 
Their children:=>They all went to St. Pauls
Franz Josef Marxer *15.09.1860 +03.09.1932 and his wife Maria Katharina Wanger *30.12.1862 +5.01.1935 
Martina Marxer *29.03.1862 (Her date of death is unknown)
Maria Ursula Marxer *03.05.1863 +24.10.1950 and her husband Franz Näscher *18.02.1859 (date of death unknown) =>he is from Liechtenstein too.
Wilhelm Marxer *03.07.1869 +02.08.1962 and his wife Frieda Brinekof (USA)


On the picture in the attachement you can see Katherine's brother Dominikus. 
On the coloured picture you can see Edward's cousin Julius Wanger (The old man on the left).
When you are interested, I can send you the family tree of both families (Marxer and Wanger). 
I also attach you the coat of arms of the Marxer family.


One thing that interests me. Does the house, that was built by Frank Joseph Marxer still exist? I would like to know, if he has built the house in the typical style that was common in those times in Liechtenstein. 

A short information to Liechtenstein:
Liechtenstein is a tiny independant state between Switzerland and Austria and is member of the United Nations. The offspring of those who went to America think that they came from Germany because their language is German, but they are not. Liechtenstein was attached to Germany until 1866. Then we were fully independant. Nowadays we work very close together with Switzerland. Our currency is Swiss Francs. 

The village they came from:
Andrew or Frank and Katherine lived in the village of "Eschen" . It is a very nice place in the Rhine valley. It rains a lot, but when the weather is nice, all is green, even in summer. When Andrew, Frank and Katherine left the house in Eschen they could see the mountains just in front of the house (picture attached). 

Greetings from Liechtenstein and with the best wishes for a happy new year

Rainer

Attached to this were some family photos the family coat of arms and a lovely shot of the village my ancestors came from. 

Marxer family coat of arms

To my newfound cousin in Liechtenstein, Danke. From the bottom of my heart.

Research the Collateral Lines

Collateral Ancestor

Definition: An ancestor not in the direct line of ascent, but of the same ancestral family.

I've been having a bit of trouble with my maternal great grandmother, Johanna "Jennie" (Felt) Borgreen.

I can't seem to find her parents' names. I ordered her death certificate and came up empty. As I was searching the 1900 census, I found Great Grandma and Great Grandpa Borgreen living in Belt MT with their small children. I scanned up and down the page and was very surprised to find a listing for Andrew Felt and family living right next door to them. I noticed that some of Andrew's children had been born in WY. I knew that Great Grandma and Great Grandpa Borgreen had lived in Rock Springs WY and the census showed that a few of their children had been born there. I also noticed that Andrew immigrated to the US, from Sweden, one year before Great Grandma. It became almost obvious to me that they may be related and their close age made me think that perhaps they were siblings. I thought that maybe Andrew would have some of the answers I was not able to get from Great Grandma. So I began to track Andrew and family through time. Below is a timeline for Andrew and his family and my sad version of source citations. I have all sources clearly sited in my records but I'll spare you the details here. 

I have yet to find evidence of Andrew's death. I do know that he was living in 1920, so can narrow my search a bit with that information. My goal is to find the place of death and order his death certificate. Hopefully there will be something of use there. I'll also do some city directory searches and newspaper research. I found a land patent for Andrew and maybe that will help me track him a bit farther. Heritage quest, which I use for census research, doesn't have the 1930 census up yet. I know that Ancestry.com does but am not ready to subscribe again, just yet. Maybe after the holiday bills are paid, I'll renew my subscription for a couple of months. I'd like to see if any of the Felts are listed on the 1930 census. But I can wait a little bit for that.

Timeline for Andrew Felt

1874 Andrew Felt born in Sweden¹

Married: ¹

1887 Son Axel born in Sweden¹

1889 Married in Sweden to Celia ¹   Selma (Paulson) ⁶ⁱ  Thelma (Paulson) ⁶ⁱⁱ

1890 Immigrated to US¹

1889¹ (1890) ⁶ⁱ  Son Victor born in Rock Springs⁶ⁱⁱ WY¹      

1893 Son Elmer born in WY¹

1895 Daughter Agnes born in WY¹

1899 Son Andrew born in MT¹

1900 Family is living next door to Gust and Jennie Borgreen in Belt MT¹

1902 Daughter Mary was born in Cascade County MT²

1907 Andrew received a land patent in Cascade County⁴

1910 Family is living in Cascade County MT²

1910 Andrew and Victor are working in a coal mine²

1910 Census lists Axel as a cripple²

1911: 26 Jan 1911 Victor married Maggie Defoe (sic) in Belt MT⁶ⁱ

1913 Victor and Maggie are living in Wisconsin³

1913: Son, Charles, born to Victor and Maggie.³

1915 Victor and Maggie are living in Wisconsin³

1915: Daughter, Selma, born to Victor and Maggie.³

1918: 23 Nov 1918 Axle died ^& buried at Pleasant View Cemetery Belt MT⁵

^{Between 1920 and 1925 Victor divorced Maggie3, 6ii}

1920 Andrew Felt family living in Cascade County MT³

1920 Living at home Andrew, Selma, Elmer, Mary³

1920 Andrew is a farmer³

1920 Elmer is a farm laborer³

1920 Victor is living in Anoka County, Minnesota with wife

         Maggie and her parents³

1925: 17 Dec 1925 Victor married Elizabeth Bann in Great Falls MT⁶ⁱⁱ

1957: 4 Feb 1957 Victor died and is buried at Manchester Cemetery⁵

¹1900 Census

²1910 Census

³1920 Census

⁴Land Patent

⁵ cemetery listing

⁶ⁱMontana marriage index ref# 4716

⁶ⁱⁱMontana marriage index ref# cn12609

Alternate surname spellings:

Felt¹

Felts²

Feldt³

"Amanuensis Monday" Distracted Research isn't always bad

While searching for a land patent for my great grandfather I was led hither and yon around the internet to no avail. When what to my wondering eyes should appear, but an index listing for the marriage of said Great grandpa and his bride in 1891! I had looked for this record several times in the past and always came up empty. But here it was, out of the blue.

It's important to note that both the groom's surname and the bride's entire name are misspelled, but I've learned to expect that. Previously I had only the year of marriage and now I have the exact date and place. I've ordered a copy of the marriage certificate for my files.

The land patent search continues but I count this as a very good research day, indeed.

Transcript from index
Details for Marriage #1523783
Groom Last Name: Borgrun
Groom First Name: Gust (27)
Groom Residence: Rock Springs
Bride Last Name: Felts
Bride First Name: Johana (23)
Bride Residence: Rock Springs
Place: Rock Springs
Date: 5 Dec. 1891
County of Record: Sweetwater
State: Wyoming
Volume B2
Page: 61


WYGenWeb Project

UPDATE 22 Dec 2010

Found this little darling in my email today!
Thanks to volunteer Wanda Wade,
at the WY State Archives, for her speedy
attention to my little query.
I could not have received a better Christmas present
from Jolly Old St. Nick, himself.

Swedish, Anyone?

If there is anyone out there in Blogland who can read this document and translate it for me, I will be forever in your debt. Thank you, in advance.

A Poem for Judy

Judy Ellen Borgreen

This poem was written by my grandfather, Carl Borgreen, for his daughter, Judy. Judy is my mom. Grandpa was a deep soul and left many of these little treasures behind. He died suddenly, when Mom was only 17 and left a vast hole in her heart, and in the hearts of everyone who knew him.

Mom has a bulging packet of photos and poems, cards and newspaper clippings and I'm slowly making my way through it all. I'm scanning everything so that it can be assembled in a meaningful way and shared with the family. I never knew Grandpa personally, but through these snippets and the stories of him, I feel a very powerful connection to him.

City Directories

Oh the wonderful things you can find in the city directory.

You can find out your ancestor's address in a given year, other adults who lived in the home with them, their occupation and the address of their workplace. You can also find out if they've recently moved out of the area and the directory will sometimes list the date of death for the husband, if the wife is still living. The directories came out annually; much better for tracking ancestors than the once a decade census. They are also fun for looking up the neighbors of your ancestors. This is another good way to find long lost relatives, as many times our ancestors lived near family. 

Check Cyndi's List to find directories of the area your ancestors lived in.

images from google

Tombstone Tuesday...Find a Grave.com

Ruth Borgreen

 Borgreen family marker

 Johan August "Gust" Borgreen

 Johanna "Jennie" (Felt) Borgreen

Old Highland Cemetery in Great Falls MT

I was so happy the day I found Find a Grave. What a fantastic resource this site is when you are trying to

locate ancestors' final resting places from far away. At the time I found these grave site photos, I didn't even know what cemetery these ancestors were buried in. This was a very productive internet search. I can't tell you how much I appreciate the work that is done by the people who volunteer for this project. You can browse by location, date, and/or name. So helpful. You can search famous graves or just stroll through looking for  interesting epitaphs. And in true "pay it forward" style, you can join the Find a Grave contributors and help out with the project. So Fantastic!

Wedding Wednesday

Albert and Elina Johnson
June 27, 1913

Joseph and Katherine Marxer
May 27, 1884

These are my paternal great grandparents. 

Joseph and Katerine Marxer were married in St. Paul MN in 1884. They lived there for a couple of years before coming west to homestead near Great Falls MT. Joseph was a stone mason and helped to build many structures in and around Great Falls. He built the home that he and Katherine would raise their family in with his own two hands. They eventually went into farming, but when Joseph had to go to town for work or supplies, he'd walk the 10+ miles in order to save on livery fees for the horses. When he returned home, he'd carry all the food and supplies for his family on his back. Joseph and Katherine had 15 children over the years. My grandfather, Edward Marxer was the youngest of this bunch. When Edward married my grandmother, Marie, they took over the ranch and lived there with their own children until they retired. I spent many happy times at the ranch and rambling around the old house and all the many acres of property. I would often run down the gravel road to the old stone school house that Joseph helped to build and that his children attended. Even as a small child I knew that the history of that place was rich. I haven't been there for many years, but the memories are vivid in my mind.

Albert and Elina Johnson were married in 1913. Albert came from Sweden in 1890. Elina was born in Red Lodge MT in 1894. They met and married in Red Lodge and raised their two daughters in Roberts Montana.

Albert was a farmer by trade. Interestingly, I know little about him as a person but have a pedigree chart from a cousin that traces his family back 7 generations. There is also a long and quite detailed compiled family history on the Johnsons that mainly covers the story of his parents and their arrival and life in MT. Albert and Elina died in the 1960's and my hope is that my dad and his brothers can shed some light on what they were like as people. 

Family Stories

Today is the anniversary of the bombing of Pearl Harbor. This day always reminds me of a story I was told about my Grandpa and Grandma Borgreen (Carl and Nell). Before I tell it, though let me just say a silent prayer for all those lost in that attack.

Now the story goes like this, Nell, who was expecting my mom, Judy, was vacuuming in the living room. Carl was somewhere else in the house listening to the radio. He heard the bulletin that Pearl Harbor had been attacked. He ran into the living room and yanked the vacuum cord from the wall, yelling "they attacked Pearl Harbor, they attacked Pearl Harbor!" Grandma Nell, in her usual way yelled back "Why did you unplug my vacuum and who the hell is Pearl Harbor, anyway?"

Oral History....or our family's version of the truth

The most important thing I've learned through this research project is don't get too attached to the details. Some things just roll off the tongue. Great Grandma Johnstone, who was born Mary Alice Coleman and came from County Cork Ireland. That must be so, right? Except her death certificate lists place of birth as Bristol England. But that might not be so either. It is her death certificate. A secondary source with information provided long after the time of her birth and by someone who was likely not present at her birth.
Perhaps the family story was really referring to her mother, Mary Coleman. Mary's death certificate says that she was born in Ireland. But the town, Carrick-on-Suir, is in County Waterford. I looked at a current map and believe that Waterford and Cork are neighbors. I need to check an historical map from that time to see if county lines have changed. Perhaps Carrick-on-Suir WAS in County Cork. Maybe there is a grain of truth to the family lore, afterall.

So who do you believe? Well, I believe no one. If/when I find her actual birth certificate or a church record of her baptismal, than I'll believe (a little bit) the information provided. In the mean time I take the clues that I find and search for the primary source. Some people might find this frustrating, but to me it's almos the most fun part of the journey. I feel like I'm channeling my inner Sam Spade here. There's one thing that is for certain. I'll never run out of things to look for.

Newspaper Research

I've fallen in love with the digital microfilm readers at the Missoula Public Library. I'm practicing my newpaper research by looking up the birth and death notices of an early Missoula family. For the past three years I've been researching the life and times of Sarah Elizabeth Countryman Woody. She was the wife of Missoula's first Mayor, Mr. Frank H. Woody and she was a force in her own right. I present her story at various events in Missoula and continue to pick away at my research of her life. Looking through old Missoulians Newspapers has been so fun and informative. I recently discovered that one roll of film from the library collection is missing. I ordered a copy of that roll from the State Library in Helena and was able to continue my research. With this newfound knowledge at hand, I'll be ordering, on interlibrary loan, films of the Great Falls tribune. Hopefully, I'll be able to track down some family related stories and information.
The society pages, in the old days, were full of the comings and goings and daily happenings of the community members. It's amazing what you can learn about people by scanning the old papers.
I found an amazing account of the bridal shower, wedding ceremony and reception of one of the Woody girls, right down to the decorations and music selections. Also one death notice gave a detailed account of the funeral service. These are the types of things that give life to our research. I wonder if Santa would bring me my own digital microfilm reader for Christmas.