Author Archives: Melanie Frick

About Melanie Frick

Melanie Frick, MLS, holds a Certificate in Genealogical Research and has been researching her family history for two decades. An Iowa native with Midwestern roots, she lives in the Pacific Northwest.

Finding Your Danish Immigrant Ancestors

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Kathrine Christensen at the Christensen family home photograph, 1905, Vestervig, Thisted, Denmark; digital image 2013, privately held by [personal information withheld].

When searching for Danish immigrant ancestors, you might feel as though they have been lost in a sea of Scandinavians. Nielsens, Larsens, and Hansens abound. Given names might be different than those used in American records. Family members might not have traveled together. All of these factors, on top of the typical transcription errors that make life exciting for genealogists, can make Danish immigrants difficult to track down.

I met a challenge of this nature when attempting to locate the siblings of my mother’s grandmother, who carried the woefully common Christensen surname. As it turned out, between approximately 1889 and 1906, at least six of the nine surviving children of Laust and Ane (Nielsen) Christensen of Vestervig, Thisted, Denmark¹ left the thatched roof of the only home they had ever known for America, traveling one or two at a time over a period of seventeen years. All came, at least temporarily, to Newell, Buena Vista, Iowa.

Else Marie Christensen was the first to arrive in northwestern Iowa. It was there that she married Anton Mikkelsen in the summer of 1889, when she was seventeen.² Fully ten years later, in 1899, Niels H. Christensen and Ane Petrine “Anine” Christensen journeyed together to join their older sister in Newell.³ Niels settled there, where he married Kathrine “Katie” Larson;⁴ Anine moved west to the urban center of Sioux City, Woodbury, Iowa, where she married John P. Hansen.⁵

In 1900, their brother Laurits Anton “Louis” Christensen arrived.⁶ He too settled in Newell, and married Anna Marie Godfredson.⁷Kristine “Christina” Christensen came to America in 1905, along with her husband, Jens C. Pedersen, and her young niece,⁸ the daughter of her widowed brother Christen Christensen, who had remained in Denmark.⁹ They settled first in Newell, before moving to Sioux City.¹⁰

The following year, in the summer of 1906, Kathrine Christensen, my great-grandmother, was the last to leave home,¹¹ leaving only her aforementioned brother and sisters Johanne Christensen and Ane Marie Christensen in Denmark.¹² Kathrine, twenty, also joined her siblings in Newell before moving on to Sioux City. It is there that she married Jens “James” Jacob Walsted in 1909.¹³

Where can you find Danish immigration records? If you’ve been over- (or under-) whelmed with your search results on databases such as Ancestry.com or Ellis Island’s Passenger Search, I recommend visiting the Dansk Demografisk Database. By selecting “Emigrants,” you will be able to access an index of Danes who traveled via Copenhagen or Hamburg. The search options are flexible; try searching for everyone of a particular surname who originated in the same parish, or search for anyone bound for the same destination. It goes without saying to be creative with spellings, although, in my experience, this index remains truer to the original Danish spellings than others. With the information you find here, you might just have luck turning up a passenger list with your ancestor’s name!

SOURCES
¹“Denmark, Marriages, 1635-1916,” index, FamilySearch (http://www.familysearch.org : accessed 30 October 2013), entry for Laust Christensen and Ane Nielsen, 1868.
²“Iowa, County Marriages, 1838-1934,” index, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org : accessed 30 Oct 2013), Anton Mikkelson and Elsa Marie Kristensen, 1889.
³ “New York, Passenger Lists, 1820-1957” digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 30 October 2013), manifest, S.S. Paris, Liverpool, England to New York, arriving 13 February 1899, Niels Christensen and Anine P. Christensen; citing National Archives microfilm T715, roll 47.
⁴“Iowa, County Marriages, 1838-1934,” index, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org : accessed 30 Oct 2013), Niels Christensen and Kathrine Larson, 1901.
⁵ 1920 U.S. census, Woodbury County, Iowa, population schedule, Sioux City, Enumeration District (ED) 232, p. 4857 (penned), sheet 6-B, dwelling 129, family 129, Anine Hanson; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 30 October 2013), citing National Archives microfilm T625, roll 521.
⁶ “Border Crossings: From Canada to U.S., 1895-1956” digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 30 October 2013), manifest, S.S. Parisian, Liverpool, England to Quebec, arriving 9 June 1900, Laurids Christensen; citing National Archives microfilm M1464, roll 6.
⁷“Iowa, County Births, 1880-1935,” index, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org : accessed 30 Oct 2013), Lewis A. Christensen and Anna Marie Godfredsen in entry for Ludvig Arnold Christensen, 1907.
⁸ “New York, Passenger Lists, 1820-1957” digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 30 October 2013), manifest, S.S. Helig Olav, Liverpool, England to New York, arriving 24 July 1905, Karoline M. Pederson; citing National Archives microfilm T715, roll 602.
⁹ [personal information withheld], to Melanie Frick, Ancestry.com message, 7 August 2013, “Cecelia,” Christensen Family File; privately held by Melanie Frick.
¹⁰ 1920 U.S. census, Woodbury County, Iowa, population schedule, Sioux City, Enumeration District (ED) 234, p. 5951 (penned), sheet 5-A, dwelling 90, family 97, Christina Peterson; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 30 October 2013), citing National Archives microfilm T625, roll 521.
¹¹ “New York, Passenger Lists, 1820-1957” digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 30 October 2013), manifest, S.S. Cedric, Liverpool, England to New York, arriving 22 July 1906, Kathrine Kristensen; citing National Archives microfilm T715, roll 744.
¹² “Public Member Trees,” database, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 30 October 2013), “Christensen Twete,” entries for Christen Christensen (b. 1869), Johanne Christensen (b. 1876), and Ane Marie Christensen (b. 1879); submitted by [personal information withheld], citing Vestervig Church Book.
¹³Sioux City, Iowa, Marriage Register, Book E: 1906-1910, James Walsted and Kathin Christinsen, 1909.

A Wedding Party

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Not everyone had a wedding portrait made. In my experience, it was even less common for a wedding portrait to include the wedding attendants or witnesses. However, when Henry Joseph Adam and Melanie Veronica Lutz married on 24 October 1905, they posed for a formal photograph with four attendants.

Henry and Melanie (Lutz) Adam wedding photograph, 1905, Sioux City, Iowa; digital image 2010, privately held by Melanie Frick, 2013.

Melanie, the bride, appears to wear her brown hair loose behind her shoulders, unless this is an illusion created by a shadow. The dark material of her dress, featuring a pleated bodice and v-neck, contrasts with a high white collar. A decorative watch is pinned at her bodice, and a small brooch is at her throat. To the right, her attendant, Permelia Adam, wears a white pleated bodice with full sleeves and a large bow off-center at the collar. Blanche Adam also wears a white bodice, although it features decorative buttons and lace detail. An elegant string of pearls rests at her throat, above the high collar. Like Permelia, Blanche wears a large bow in her hair.

Henry, the groom, wears a dark suit with a crisp white collar and white bow tie. His suit fastens higher than those of his attendants; Theodore Adam wears a polka dot tie, and Herman Adam sports a vest and bow tie. The men have all combed their dark hair with side parts and fashionable waves.

Carnations were apparently in vogue in 1905, or perhaps they were a favorite of the bride. Melanie wears two long-stemmed white carnations, facing downward, pinned to her bodice. Henry wears one as well, although the stem is hidden by his lapel. Although Permelia seems to wear a carnation, the stem is so long that the blossom itself cannot be seen, and the male attendants wear darker flowers that are indistinct against their suits. Only Blanche goes without a flower.

The Adam-Lutz wedding was held at St. Jean the Baptiste Catholic Church in Sioux City, Woodbury, Iowa on a Tuesday morning. Forty guests attended, the majority of whom were relatives.¹ As Melanie had no family in the area, it is understandable that only her husband’s relations would have made up their wedding party; Permelia and Theodore were Henry’s brother and sister, while Blanche and Herman were his cousins. After the ceremony, an informal wedding breakfast was served at the home of Henry’s parents, which was decorated, unsurprisingly, with flowers.²

SOURCES
¹“Adam-Lutze,” Sioux City (Iowa) Tribune, 28 October 1905.
²“Adam-Lutze,” Sioux City (Iowa) Tribune, 28 October 1905.

An Iowa Farmer: Clues from the Agricultural Schedule

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When Hiram H. Hammond of Postville, Allamakee, Iowa died in 1896 at the age of eighty-three, the local newspaper stated, “By constant application to his farm and frugal habits, Mr. Hammond acquired a comfortable competency.”¹ Although it is believed that he was born in Belmont County, Ohio, little is known about Hiram Hammond before his debut as a farmer in northeastern Iowa.² It is there that the paper trail begins, and agricultural schedules, an underutilized resource, offer fantastic detail about his experience.

1850 U.S. census, Jackson County, Iowa, agriculture schedule, Jackson, p. 299 (penned), line 29, Hyram Hammons; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 23 October 2013), citing “Selected U.S. Federal Census Non-Population Schedules, 1850-1880.”

An 1848 land transaction placed Hiram Hammond in Jackson County, Iowa, which is located along the Mississippi River.³ In 1850, Hiram, 37, was recorded as a laborer in another household.⁴ He did not own any land, but he had five horses and one milch cow, together valued at $260. His farm machinery and implements were valued at $20. Hiram had harvested 100 bushels of wheat, 60 bushels of Indian corn, 75 bushels of oats, 10 bushels of peas and beans, and 6 tons of hay. He had also produced 100 pounds of butter, and the value of his animals slaughtered came to $20.⁵

By 1854, Hiram had moved on to nearby Clayton County, Iowa, where he married a German immigrant, Eva Margaret Stöhr, and started a family. In the years to come, Hiram saw success as a farmer,⁶ and, although seemingly absent in 1860, he appeared in the 1870 and 1880 U.S census and agricultural schedules.

In 1870, Hiram, 57, lived with his wife and five children under the age of twelve.⁷ His farm was valued at $2500 and his livestock at $1400; he possessed 180 acres of land, the majority of which was woodland. Hiram also owned fourteen sheep, eight horses, seven swine, seven cattle, and six milch cows. He produced 300 pounds of butter, and 75 pounds of honey.⁸ In 1880, his farm was valued at $3240; although his acreage was smaller than in 1870, more land was in use. The value of his farm productions of the past year came to $1461.⁹ All told, this was a far cry from Hiram’s first appearance in the agricultural schedule.

Hiram continued to farm throughout his seventies. Eventually, he and his family moved to nearby Fayette County, before, as Hiram neared eighty, he and his wife retired to town.¹⁰ In 1893, he advertised the sale of his farm, “comprising 200 acres, situated two and a quarter miles from Postville on the Clermont road.”¹¹

How can you learn more about your ancestor’s farm? Agricultural Schedules were recorded from 1850-1880, and provide a wealth of information about the land, livestock, crops, and other farm productions, from butter and cheese to maple syrup and honey, of your ancestor. Search for your ancestor through “Selected U.S. Federal Census Non-Population Schedules, 1850-1880” on Ancestry.com. Be aware that the agricultural schedules may span two pages, and consider comparing your ancestor’s farming operation to those of their neighbors. How did they measure up?

SOURCES
¹ “Gone to Their Rest,” The Graphic (Postville, Iowa), 27 August 1896, p. 1, col. 3; digital images, Newspaper Archive (http://www.newspaperarchive.com : accessed 23 October 2013).
² “Gone to Their Rest,” The Graphic (Postville, Iowa), 27 August 1896, p. 1, col. 3.
³ U.S. Bureau of Land Management, “Patent Search,” database, General Land Office Records (http://www.glorecords.blm.gov : accessed 23 October 2013), entry for Hiram Hammond, Dubuque land office, doc. no. 4358.
⁴ 1850 U.S. census, Jackson County, Iowa, population schedule, Jackson, sheet 294-B, dwelling 187, family 187, Hiram Hammons; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 23 October 2013), citing National Archives microfilm M432, roll 124.
⁵ 1850 U.S. census, Jackson County, Iowa, agriculture schedule, Jackson, p. 299 (penned), line 29, Hyram Hammons; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 23 October 2013), citing “Selected U.S. Federal Census Non-Population Schedules, 1850-1880.”
⁶ “Gone to Their Rest,” The Graphic (Postville, Iowa), 27 August 1896, p. 1, col. 3.
⁷ 1870 U.S. census, Clayton County, Iowa, population schedule, Volga, p. 6 (penned), dwelling 39, family 40, Hiram Hammond; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 23 October 2013), citing National Archives microfilm M593, roll 383.
⁸ 1870 U.S. census, Clayton County, Iowa, agriculture schedule, Volga, line 28, Hiram Hammond; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 23 October 2013), citing “Selected U.S. Federal Census Non-Population Schedules, 1850-1880.”
⁹ 1880 U.S. census, Clayton County, Iowa, agriculture schedule, Garnavillo, p. 7 (penned), line 7, Hiram Hammond; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 23 October 2013), citing “Selected U.S. Federal Census Non-Population Schedules, 1850-1880.”
¹⁰ “Gone to Their Rest,” The Graphic (Postville, Iowa), 27 August 1896, p. 1, col. 3.
¹¹ “Farm for Sale,” The Graphic (Postville, Iowa), 29 June 1893; digital images, Newspaper Archive (http://www.newspaperarchive.com : accessed 23 October 2013).

A Hand-Colored Photograph

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My great-grandmother kept this hand-colored photograph of her mother in a small, red velvet frame on her writing desk. Anna Leota Fenton of Ashton, Osceola County, Iowa married in the spring of 1902 when she was twenty-two years old.¹ She may have had her photograph taken at the time of her marriage.

Anna Leota (Fenton) Thoma photograph, ca. 1902, Ashton, Iowa; digital image 2001, privately held by Melanie Frick, 2013.

Anna Leota Fenton, who typically went by her middle name or the nickname “Ota,” poses demurely in this photograph. The hand-colored copy comes with no suggestions as to the photographer or the original medium, but it seems to have been a typical portrait of the day. Did Leota request that the photograph be colored, or was this arranged later by her daughter?

The photograph has been colored in a way that looks quite natural.² Leota’s eyes are blue-green, and her hair a light brown. Her dress has been colored a deep mauve or soft burgundy, perhaps the original color of the dress, perhaps not, and she wears a matching ribbon in her hair. There is a small gold-colored brooch at the side of her throat.

Leota’s hairstyle is one that was popular at the turn of the twentieth century. It is full and soft around her face, with a tendril or two escaping, and it is fastened in a high bun in the back. Although few details of her dress can be seen in this head-and-shoulders pose, her dress does have a high collar to the chin and full sleeves. The bodice appears to be “pouched” with soft vertical pleats.³

How do you feel about colorized photographs? This week, I read here about the Subreddit page History in Color, which features historical photographs colorized by both amateurs and professionals. Some of them are really beautiful, making scenes from the Civil War or the Great Depression look like they took place yesterday. These photographs could be great for engagement in the classroom – some students might relate more to history if all of the pictures weren’t in black and white!

SOURCES
¹ “News of Osceola County,” Sibley (Iowa) Gazette, 27 March 1902, p. 8, col. 1.
² Maureen A. Taylor, Family Photo Detective (Cincinnati: Family Tree Books, 2013), 62.
³ Taylor, Family Photo Detective, 112.

Wedding Wednesday: “A Very Pretty Wedding”

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On 17 January 1934, Roy Lewis Christian Walsted and Frances Marie Noehl were married in Sioux City, Woodbury County, Iowa.¹ Roy was Lutheran, the son of Danish immigrants; Frances was Catholic, the daughter of German immigrants. While Roy was raised in the city, Frances had grown up on a farm. Both had settled in Sioux City apart from their families, seeking employment. Roy worked as a clerk at the Sioux City Gas and Electric Company,² and Frances was employed in the household of Richard Mullins.³ She provided companionship to his teenage daughter, who was confined to a wheelchair.⁴ One can’t be sure how Roy and Frances met, but their modest wedding ceremony was described in detail in a local newspaper:

Miss Frances Noehl is Married at Sioux City, Iowa, Recently

Is a Daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Matt Noehl of South of New Hampton.

Bride of Mr. Roy Walsted of Sioux City.

Frances Marie (Noehl) Walsted photograph, ca. 1934, Sioux City, Iowa; digital image ca. 2001, privately held by Melanie Frick, 2013.

A very pretty wedding was solemnized at the Church of the Blessed Sacrament at Sioux City, Iowa, Wednesday morning, January 17, 1934, when Miss Frances Noehl, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Matt Noehl of New Hampton, became the bride of Roy Walsted, Sioux City, son of Mr. and Mrs. James Walsted of Chicago. They were married at 7 a.m. by Reverend Leo Berger. The couple was attended by Mr. and Mrs. Harold McDonald, friends of the couple.

They entered the church and advanced to the alter to the strains of Lohengrin’s wedding march played by Mrs. R. J. Mullins. Mr. R. J. Mullins sang a solo accompanied by Mrs. Mullins at the piano and Dr. Meis playing the violin.

The bride wore an ankle-length gown of light green crepe, with accessories to match. She carried a beautiful bouquet of American Beauty roses. The bridesmaid wore a dress of black chiffon velvet with accessories to match.

Both the bridegroom and best man wore dark gray suits.

After the ceremony they motored to the home of Mr. and Mrs. John P. Hansen at Morningside, an uncle and aunt of the bridegroom, where a lovely three course breakfast was served to the bridal party and immediate relatives of the couple. After breakfast the newlyweds left on a brief wedding trip to Omaha after which they will make their home at Morningside. Mr. Walsted is employed at the Sioux City Gas and Electric Company.

Mr. and Mrs. Leo Buscher and children, Lillian and Richard, of LeMars, Iowa, were present at the wedding ceremony. Mrs. Buscher is a sister of the bride.

The bride is well and favorably known here, and her many friends in this community join us in congratulating her and extending wishes to her and her husband for a happy future filled with success and contentment.⁵

What did your grandparents wear when they married? Did they take a honeymoon? And, most importantly, did they marry at 7:00 in the morning?

SOURCES
¹ “Miss Frances Noehl is Married at Sioux City, Iowa, Recently,” undated clipping, ca. January 1934, from unidentified newspaper; Adam Family, privately held [personal information withheld].
² “U.S, City Directories, 1821-1989,” database, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 9 October 2013), entry for Roy Walsted; citing “Polk’s Sioux City Directory, 1933 (R.L. Polk & Co., 1932),” 332.
³ “U.S, City Directories, 1821-1989,” database, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 9 October 2013), entry for Frances Noehl; citing “Polk’s Sioux City Directory, 1933 (R.L. Polk & Co., 1932),” 248.
⁴ Kay (Walsted) Adam, conversations with the author, 2003; notes in author’s files.
⁵ “Miss Frances Noehl is Married at Sioux City, Iowa, Recently,” undated clipping, ca. January 1934, from unidentified newspaper.

A Trip to Koblenz

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It may have been a special occasion when Ida (Heitz) Möll of Traben-Trarbach, Mosel, Germany, traveled fifty miles northeast to the town of Koblenz, also on the Mosel River, to have her photograph made. In 1907, Ida turned twenty-two.¹ She would not marry until 1914, so her photograph was not taken in honor of her wedding.² Perhaps she had traveled to Koblenz with her family, whether it was a semi-regular trip made for the purposes of shopping or visiting, or a rare chance to experience a larger city. Whatever the reason, in 1907, Ida made her way to Koblenz, likely by train, and came away with two photographs of herself in different poses.

Ida (Heitz) Möll photograph, 1907, Koblenz, Germany; digital image 2011, privately held by Melanie Frick, 2013.

What can we learn from these photographs? Ida was photographed at C. Wilhelm’s Hofphotograph studio in what was called, at that time, Coblenz. The photographs are narrower than others that I have seen before. The date “1907” is stamped in the lower corner of one of the photographs, a date that appears to be accurate based on the clothing Ida wears. Her dress, made of a heavy fabric that seems suited to cool weather, features a high collar, a skirt with soft gathers, a bodice that is puffed gracefully over her waistband, and sleeves that are very full at the top but fitted at the forearm. Her hair is styled in a Gibson Girl manner, puffed full around her face and coiled and fastened in the back.³ Note the side part struggling to make an appearance – perhaps she hadn’t been styling her hair in this manner for very long!

No rings adorn Ida’s fingers; in fact, the only jewelry she wears appears to be a brooch at her throat. Her dress, however, is quite fine, with circular embellishments on the bodice, a dark, possibly velvet collar and a shirtwaist featuring what looks like lace or cutwork. Even her skirt has matching fabric attached in a pattern of three bands.

In both photographs, Ida poses with an ornate, carved chair with a floral cushion. In one of the photographs, her gaze is direct; in the other, she looks slightly away from the camera. Her posture is excellent, her expression serious, and she looks older than her age. It’s clear that she made an effort to look her best for the occasion, whatever it may have been.

SOURCES
¹Heitz-Möll Family Tree; Frick Family; privately held [personal information withheld].
²Heitz-Möll Family Tree; Frick Family; privately held [personal information withheld].
³Maureen A. Taylor, Family Photo Detective (Cincinnati: Family Tree Books, 2013), 112.

Tombstone Tuesday: Ernst and Friederike (Wagner) Stübe

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Word traveled fast in the genealogical community yesterday when it was announced that Ancestry.com had acquired Find A Grave. (Yes, it will still be free.) Find A Grave has grown to be an invaluable database of gravestone images worldwide based on collaborative efforts by volunteers. Frequently, photographs, biographies, and obituaries are included alongside the gravestone images, and visitors can leave virtual tributes.

Find A Grave, Inc., Find A Grave, digital image (http://www.findagrave.com : accessed 1 October 2013), photograph, Friedrieka Stube (1843-1891) and Ernst Stube (1839-1879), Memorial Nos. 67992191 and 67992204, Huntley Cemetery, Huntley, Illinois; photograph by Zavada Family, 2012.

Did you know that if there is not a photograph of your ancestor’s grave already online, you are able to put a request out to volunteers via Find A Grave? Thanks to a volunteer for the Huntley Cemetery of Huntley, McHenry County, Illinois, I was able to see the graves of my ancestors Ernst and Friederike (Wagner) Stübe from miles away.

My grandmother had visited their graves years ago and had made rubbings of the fading German inscriptions on the headstones. Unfortunately, the sandstone-like headstones were slowly but surely wearing away through the weather extremes of northern Illinois. I had no clear photographs of the graves, and hoped that someone might be able to confirm to me that they were still standing and at least somewhat legible. Thanks to the aforementioned volunteer, who very kindly gave permission for her photographs to be used for personal genealogical purposes online and made not one, but two trips to the Huntley Cemetery to photograph the graves of Ernst and Friederike (Wagner) Stübe, they are now documented on Find A Grave.¹

Ernst and Friederike (Wagner) Stübe, originally of Friedrichshof, Ritteramt Gnoien, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany,² arrived in New York in October of 1869.³ Their eldest daughter, Emma, my direct ancestor, was barely two years old at the time of their crossing; three more daughters, Lena, Minna, and Bertha, were later born in Illinois.⁴ The family lived in Chicago for a time, likely witnessing the Great Chicago Fire of 1871,⁵ before relocating to a farm near Huntley, McHenry County, Illinois. Later, it was recalled that, “Surrounding the cabin was a large garden space and a beautiful garden. All that remains is a pile of stones. It was located on what is now the Dieke farm directly across from the Harold Kunde farm on the Clanyard farm.”⁶

In 1879, ten years after his arrival in America, Ernst died at the age of forty.⁷ No death certificate could be located to provide details on what befell him.⁸ Shortly thereafter, Friederike relocated again to Chicago, where she supported her young daughters, ranging in age from two to twelve, as a seamstress.⁹ Life was surely difficult for this single mother of four; Friederike succumbed to typhoid fever in 1891, when she was forty-eight.¹⁰ She was buried beside her husband at the Huntley Cemetery.¹¹

Do you have a Find A Grave success story?

SOURCES
¹ Find A Grave, Inc., Find A Grave, digital image (http://www.findagrave.com : accessed 1 October 2013), photograph, Ernst Stube (1839-1879) and Friedrieka Stube (1843-1891), Memorial Nos. 67992204 and 67992191, Huntley Cemetery, Huntley, Illinois; photograph by Zavada Family.
² Mecklenburg-Schwerin, Germany, Census, 1867,” Friedrichshof, Ritteramt Gnoien, Mecklenburg-Schwerin, Germany, Ernst Stübe; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 1 October 2013), citing Mecklenburg-Schwerin (Großherzogtum), Volkszählungsamt, “Volkszählung am 3. Dezember 1867,” Landeshauptarchiv Schwerin, 5.12-3/20 Statistisches Landesamt (1851-1945).
³ “New York, Passenger Lists, 1820-1957,” digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 1 October 2013), manifest, S.S. Silesia, Hamburg, Germany to New York, arriving 12 October 1869, Ernst Stübe; citing National Archives microfilm M237, roll 319.
⁴ 1880 U.S. census, Cook County, Illinois, population schedule, Chicago, Enumeration District (ED) 144, p. 257-C (handwritten), dwelling 25, family 74, Ricka Stüve; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 1 October 2013), citing National Archives microfilm T9, roll 196.
⁵“U.S, City Directories, 1821-1989,” database, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 1 October 2013), entry for Ernst Stube; citing “Chicago, Illinois City Directory, 1872 (Chicago: Richard Edwards, Publisher, 1872),” page number not cited.
⁶ Louise (née Nelson) Wiese to Phyllis (née Wiese) Adam, letter, 2 April 1964, providing information about the family tree; Adam Family; privately held [personal information withheld].
⁷ Find A Grave, Inc., Find A Grave, digital image (http://www.findagrave.com : accessed 1 October 2013), photograph, Ernst Stube (1839-1879), Memorial No. 67992204, Huntley Cemetery, Huntley, Illinois; photograph by Zavada Family.
⁸ McHenry County, Illinois, certification that record was not found, issued 19 July 2012, no death record located for Ernst Stube or Stuve who died 24 August 1879 in Huntley, search conducted from 1877-1905; County Clerk’s Office, Woodstock.
⁹ 1880 U.S. census, Cook Co., Ill., pop. sch., Chicago, ED 144, p. 257-C, dwell. 25, fam. 74, Ricka Stüve.
¹⁰ Cook County, Illinois, death certificate no. 16007, “Friedricka Stube,” 3 May 1891; digital image, FamilySearch (http://www.familysearch.org : accessed 3 January 2012). Note: Images no longer available through FamilySearch.
¹¹ Find A Grave, Inc., Find A Grave, digital image (http://www.findagrave.com : accessed 1 October 2013), photograph, Friedrieka Stube (1843-1891), Memorial No. 67992191, Huntley Cemetery, Huntley, Illinois; photograph by Zavada Family.

Ada Zingara, Sideshow Performer

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Tucked into the slots of an antique album filled with photographs of an unidentified family of Kaukauna, Outagamie County, Wisconsin, are several photographs of sideshow performers.¹

Ada Zingara photograph, ca. 1890s, Chicago, Illinois; digital image 2013, privately held by Melanie Frick, 2013.

The name Ada Zingara is handwritten on the back of this photograph, which features a woman posing in a rather scandalous fashion. Her dress is short, and she stands with one leg elevated on a bench as she pretends to fasten her pointy-toed shoe. Her stockings feature bold zigzags, and her dress is patterned as well. The bodice is trimmed with lace and loose cap sleeves, and the border of her lace-trimmed petticoat is also visible. She wears earrings, and a large, bejeweled crucifix lies at her throat. What is most striking is her hairstyle: Ada’s hair is teased into an Afro.

A search for Ada Zingara informed me that, in the early 1900s, she was a snake charmer. A 1906 sideshow advertisement specified that she had a den of “Five Big Anacondas.”² However, I wondered why she was not posing with snakes in this picture, which was surely printed for publicity. And why did she have such a dramatic hairstyle?

Further research informed me that the circus great P.T. Barnum began exhibiting women with this hairstyle in the 1865, calling them Circassian Beauties. According to reports of the time, the women of the mountainous region near the Black Sea were particularly beautiful, and were prized by Turkish sultans who kidnapped them for their harems. Barnum capitalized on this sensational story, seeking first to purchase one of these slave girls abroad, and eventually settling for a local girl with teased hair (which was not an accurate Circassian style) who was merely marketed as a Circassian.³ Eventually, as the popularity of the Circassian Beauties waned, the women adopted other acts, including routines as equally alluring snake charmers.⁴

A close look at her face reveals that Ada Zingara is not very young. There are lines around her eyes, which gaze warmly at the camera. Her lips part in a faint smile, showing her teeth – and a possible missing tooth. Why did Ada turn to sideshows, and what became of her? What was her real name?

What I find especially interesting is the fact that this photograph occupies the very first page of the album – the page usually reserved for an important family member or the primary subject of the album.⁴ Of course, it’s possible that the photographs were rearranged in the years that this album made its way from its original home to the antique store. Whatever the case, it should be noted that this is not the only photograph of a circus or sideshow performer located in the album. The family of Kaukauna, Wisconsin must have enjoyed these attractions!

Did your ancestors collect photographs of circus or sideshow performers?

SOURCES
¹ Unidentified Album of a Kaukauna, Wisconsin Family, ca. 1870-1900; privately held by Melanie Frick, 2013.
² “Ada Zingara,” The Billboard, 14 April 1906, digital image, Old Fulton Post Cards (http://www.fultonhistory.com : accessed 27 September 2013).
³ Wikipedia (http://www.wikipedia.org), “Circassian Beauties,” rev. 18:32, 3 July 2013.
⁴ Katherine H. Adams and Michael L. Keene, Women of the American Circus, 1880-1940 (Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland and Company, 2012), 142; digital images, Google Books (http://books.google.com : accessed 27 September 2013).
⁵ “’Reading’ A Family Photo Album,” Photo Detective with Maureen A. Taylor, 22 September 2013 (http://blog.familytreemagazine.com/photodetectiveblog/ : accessed 27 September 2013).

The Little Postmaster on the Prairie

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After reading today that the cost of stamps could rise yet again, I was reminded that my third great grandfather, Niels Olsen of Lakeport, Yankton County, South Dakota, once served as a postmaster.

Niels Olsen photograph, 1893, Yankton, South Dakota; digital image 2010, privately held by Melanie Frick, 2013.

Niels Olsen (1827-1908) photograph, 1893, Yankton, South Dakota; digital image 2010, privately held by Melanie Frick, 2013.

Niels Olsen emigrated from his native Denmark in 1874,¹ settling on a farm in what is now southeastern South Dakota. His wife and six children accompanied him on the ocean crossing; his two eldest sons had already left Denmark, paving the way, and another daughter was born the following year.²

In the fall of 1890, Niels would have been sixty-three. With two grown sons and a daughter still at home to assist him and his wife, Juliane, with the farm, Niels may have found himself with some extra time on his hands. Lakeport, an unincorporated village, was the nearest place to buy supplies and receive mail; it even boasted a hotel for weary stagecoach travelers. While the post office did not seem to have a permanent location, as it reportedly bounced between the hotel, the general store, and a grocery store, regular mail deliveries were undoubtedly a major attraction for the Czech and German settlers of the area.³ On 24 October 1890, Niels Olsen signed on as postmaster of Lakeport, a position he held for four years.⁴

“U.S., Appointments of U.S. Postmasters, 1832-1971,” digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 25 September 2013), entry for Neils Olsen, Lakeport, Yankton, South Dakota; citing National Archives microfilm publication M841, Record of Appointment of Postmasters, 1832-1971.”

Although Lakeport has all but vanished, due to competition from other trade centers and the rerouting of a major highway,⁵ in the final decade of the nineteenth century, Niels Olsen would have played an integral role in this village as its postmaster. He may have been attracted to the position as an opportunity to earn extra money, or he may have fallen into it if no one else in the community was interested or eligible. At the very least, it tells us that Niels was literate, an American citizen, and that he may have had a sociable personality. I like to think that Niels would have known all of the latest gossip – after all, who else would have had the opportunity to interact with so many members of the community on a regular basis?

How can you find out if one of your ancestors was a postmaster? Ancestry.com makes this easy with the collection, “U.S., Appointments of U.S. Postmasters, 1832-1971.” If you want to locate this collection, you will find it categorized under “Schools, Directories, and Church Histories.” Then, you can search for an ancestor by their name and/or location. Niels Olsen held his position as postmaster until 18 October 1894; it was just a few years later, in 1901, that the Lakeport post office closed its doors for good.⁶

SOURCES
¹“New York, Passenger Lists, 1820-1957,” digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 25 September 2013), manifest, S.S. Humboldt, Stettin, Germany, to New York, arriving 4 August 1874, Niels Olsen; citing National Archives microfilm publication M237, roll 392, line 149.
²Harold W. Jorgensen, “Olsen, Niels,” in Ben Van Osdel and Don Binder, editors, History of Yankton County, South Dakota (Yankton, South Dakota: Curtis Media Corporation and the Yankton County Historical Society, 1987), 53.
³Sister Verena Kaiser, “Lakeport, South Dakota,” in Ben Van Osdel and Don Binder, editors, History of Yankton County, South Dakota (Yankton, South Dakota: Curtis Media Corporation and the Yankton County Historical Society, 1987), 605.
⁴“U.S., Appointments of U.S. Postmasters, 1832-1971,” digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 25 September 2013), entry for Neils Olsen, Lakeport, Yankton, South Dakota; citing National Archives microfilm publication M841, “Record of Appointment of Postmasters, 1832-1971.”
⁵Kaiser, “Lakeport, South Dakota,” 54.
⁶“U.S., Appointments of U.S. Postmasters, 1832-1971,” digital images, Ancestry.com, entry for Neils Olsen, Lakeport, Yankton, South Dakota.

Edwardian Children’s Fashions

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Gerald Joseph Adam photograph, ca. 1910-1911, Sioux City, Iowa; digital image 2010, privately held by Melanie Frick, 2013.

Gerald “Jerry” Adam of Sioux City, Woodbury, Iowa, is pictured here at left with his cousin, Alvin Joseph Bauer, and Alvin’s cousin, Helen Ann Thomas. The three toddlers stand on a sidewalk and hold hands, supporting the youngest in the middle. Jerry speaks to someone who has caught his attention outside of the frame, while Alvin gazes directly at the camera, wide eyed and solemn. Little Helen has a sweet smile for the photographer.

All of the children wear dark shoes and thick stockings. Jerry’s dress is the most elaborate, made of a light-colored plaid or gingham fabric with matching knickerbockers. It features two rows of white buttons, a bow at the throat, and a drop waist with a dark belt. His hair is curled in chin-length ringlets. The other, younger children are dressed more simply. Alvin wears a shapeless, light-colored gown without adornment. His hair is short, slickly parted on the side. Helen wears a similarly loose gown, though it appears to have a light calico pattern. Her dress has a collar, over which hangs a slim necklace and pendant. Her hair is also short, though wavy in texture.

In the Edwardian era, it continued to be common for young children, regardless of gender, to wear comfortable gowns. While it undoubtedly made changing soiled clothing a quicker task, dresses also allowed for easier movement. Pants – and haircuts – for little boys were often reserved for the time at which they would start school. In 1907, The Ladies’ Home Journal made a comparison of practical and impractical children’s clothing, writing:

“The first boy is in for a good time, and yet he looks the thorough little man with his bloomer trousers underneath his one-piece suit. Then look at his ‘nice’ but unhappy little companion who is made a ridiculous caricature of a man in his wee trousers so out of place on little legs.”¹

When was this picture taken? Jerry was born in June 1908,² Helen was born in August 1908,³ and Alvin was in August 1909,⁴. It should be noted that Alvin, the youngest, was already walking when this picture was taken, dating the picture no earlier than the late summer of 1910. Several additional clues date the photograph slightly later. The children do not wear coats, but appear to be dressed in layers. Furthermore, the trees in the background are completely bare. It seems most likely that this photograph was taken in the late fall of 1910 or the early spring of 1911.

Could the photograph have been taken on a holiday, perhaps Thanksgiving or Easter, when the families might have gotten together? Or was this simply a play date of a century ago? Regardless, I’m sure that my great grandfather would have had something to say about this photograph of him wearing long curls and a dress!

Have you found that your grandfathers wore dresses as children?

SOURCES
¹ “Edwardian Clothing: Good Taste and Bad Taste in Dressing Children,” Victorian Magazine, (http://www.victoriana.com/edwardianfashions/edwardianchildren.php : accessed 20 September 2013).
² “Iowa, Births and Christenings Index, 1857-1947,” database, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 20 September 2013), entry for Herald [Gerald] Joseph Adam, 19 June 1908, Sioux City.
³ “Iowa, Births and Christenings Index, 1857-1947,” database, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 20 September 2013), entry for Helen Ann Thomas, 22 August 1908, Sioux City.
⁴ “Iowa, Births and Christenings Index, 1857-1947,” database, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 20 September 2013), entry for Alvin Joseph Bauer, 7 August 1909, Sioux City.