We had an earthquake very near by on Thursday afternoon. Looks like it was at LAX (green arrow)....
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It was a 2.1; I felt it! Mango's head and ears popped up too.
Earthquake - Just a Short Jolt! Friday, July 31, 2009
Wisconsin Historical Society Sunday, July 26, 2009
More on the WHS -- what records are located in this database?
- Pre-1907 vital records, including birth, death, and marriage records
- Wisconsin Name Index entries, including biographical sketches, obituaries, and newspaper articles published before 2000
Records I have requested to date include:
- Kluge, Carl Julius and Christiane Dobler marriage certificate
- Kluge, Christoph death certificate
- Gamache, Antoine marriage certificate
- Commemorative Biographical Record of the Fox River Valley plus addendum
Get the scoop - read on!
Easy Access to Ancestor Records in Wisconsin - Area Research Centers
A great resource, when I don't find records listed in the WHS - Wisconsin Genealogy Index, is the network of Area Research Centers housing the local and genealogical histories of Wisconsin. The particular ARC that I have used most to date is located at the University of Wisconsin - Green Bay and is part of the Cofrin Library. Records in this database include: Land Records ca. 1823-1907 1829-1984 1823-1939 1821-1906 1820-1902 1859-1980 Manitowoc ca. 1823-1907 1848-1955 1849-1943 1864-1959 Abstract of Title Sparse Holdings Oconto ca. 1823-1907 1857-1952 1857-1923 1857-1923 No Holdings 1853-1970 Outagamie ca. 1823-1907 1852-1963 1852-1981 1853-1923 No Holdings 1855-1980 Monday ... By Advance Appointment Only
(Deeds & Mortgages) Brown
1835-1889
The ARC has citizenship records for the following counties:
Brown County 1829-1984 with an on-line index available.
Here is a list of records I have requested to date:
Here is a list of records to be requested in the future:
Here are the forms to request records.Special Collections (7th Floor) - (920.465.2539)
Tuesday May 18 - June 12... 12:00pm - 4:30pm
Tuesday June 13-September 4--12:00 pm - 8:00 pm
Wednesday-Thursday ... 9:00am - 1:00pm
Friday, Saturday, &Sunday ... CLOSED
Microfilm, Microfiche and Publications from LDS Friday, July 24, 2009
As you may know you can go to any Family History Center in your area, or the Southern California Genealogy Society library in Burbank, and request a publication, microfiche, or microfilm from the Jesus Christ Church of Latter Day Saints library (LDS for short) in Salt Lake City, Utah. Your requested item is sent to you in a week or so for a nominal fee (~$6/2009) and is on loan to you for one month.
The library catalog is found here.
Here is a list of films I have or hope to order from LDS:
Ordered and Viewed:
To Be Ordered:
Blog Upgrades and Fixes Sunday, July 19, 2009
Couple of things modified today.
Christoph Kluge Knol Added Saturday, July 18, 2009
A new knol (unit of knowledge) was added .... to the Ancestors across Borders collection today for Christoph Kluge.
Get the scoop - read on!Who is Grandma Appleton?
This question came from looking at a picture handed down by my maternal grandmother. Its a photo capturing three generations of her family, her grandmother "Grandma Appleton", her father Charles Victor Fish , her mother Sarah Ann Appleton, and herself Verne, in about 1904.
What we didn't know was Grandma Appleton's first and maiden names, and other details of her life.
Through wonderful connections on the web, I was able to meet several other Appleton descendants, Jay Wilpolt, Scott, and Ambert. All expert genealogists. Jay has a wonderful website, Jay's Genealogy of the Fox Valley Cities area of Wisconsin, and RootsWeb database for Fox River Valley. Great job Jay! I've kept in touch with Scott and Ambert .. and have invited them to be a writers on this blog.
Through these contacts, I found out some amazing information!
Mapping Your Surname using the Current German Telephone Book Thursday, July 16, 2009
A fun thing to do is to use the mapping tool at verwandt.de. It finds your surname in the current German on-line telephone book and then shades each department according to how many occurrences there are. You can look at the absolute number of occurrences, or just the number of households (relative). Der Name 'Ziegler' kommt in diesen Landkreisen am häufigsten vor:
A search for Ziegler, yields:
I bolded the ones that are in Wuerttemberg
Basic Family Tree Notation
There are many different types of numbering systems for showing a family tree. I like to stick with the basics ...
Generation number, i.e., 1, 2, 3, ...
Birth, Death and Marriage dates, i.e., b., d., m.
Married to "+"
Children numbers, i.e., a, b, c, ... or i, ii, iii, ....
Using these definitions, look at the following example.
Start of the DNA Journey Wednesday, July 15, 2009
One area of genealogy that is gaining popularity is that of incorporating DNA information with your family tree. There is a lot of mis-information out there; tons of testing companies, etc.
Where to start? We went with National Geographic's Genographic Project. Not only do you get a gentle introduction to DNA testing and what you can learn from your results, you are adding your results to an international research project.
With the receipt of the first results, we did learn something surprising!
1891 Map of Wisconsin and Michigan Tuesday, July 14, 2009
(Click to see larger image)
The majority of my ancestors settled in these two states in the mid to late 1800s. Map from USGenWeb Map Archives for states Wisconsin and Michigan.
What German Village are Fred C. and Mary Ziegler From? Monday, July 13, 2009
We know they are from the Wuerttemberg state of Germany, but which small town or village?
View Larger Map
We know they arrived on 20 Oct 1857 in New York, at Castle Garden; we know they departed from LeHavre, France.
I have looked at the following pieces of evidence, perhaps found a potential town name ...but then not been able to locate it on a German map:
(List under construction)
Suggestions from the Progenealogist still to check: 1815-1870 Published lists of emigration permits at the Ludwigsburg and Sigmaringen State Archives; the emigration records in the Stuttgart State Archives; emigration announcements in local and statewide newspapers; military conscription records; and the Germanic Emigrants Register.
Does anyone have additional information that might shed light on their place of origin?
What's an Ancestor Knol? Sunday, July 12, 2009
A knol is a unit of knowledge, according to Google's new Knol project. I think of the project as a toolbox to allow anyone to create a "Wikipedia-like" page of knowledge.
I thought I might create a knol for each of our ancestors ....as a way to share the results of our research. Multiple people may edit a knol as well. So its perfect for collaboration.
See a sample knol for Fred C. Ziegler on the sidebar under the "Ancestor Links".
5 Oldest Ziegler Children - their Story in 1864 Saturday, July 11, 2009
In early 2008, I found a "Henry Ziegler", son of Fred and Mary Ziegler, in the 1860 US census, about 2 years old, born in Ohio, but he was not listed in the 1870 US census. What had happened to him? We had heard that 5 of Fred and Mary's children had died, possibly from diphtheria, but we were not sure when that was.
From the book, History of Outagamie County, part 8, we learn that there was a terrible diphtheria outbreak in May 1864 as well as several other outbreaks such as smallpox that same year. While there had been doctors in Outagamie County since about 1850, apparently, some were better trained than others (as discussed below)."In July, 1863, diphtheria raged fatally in the town of Ellington. Many children and even adults died in spite of physicians and good care.Excerpt from History of Outagamie County, part 8
It was noted in May, 1864, that there never was so much sickness in the river valley as at this time. The mortality among children was enormous. Diphtheria and various lung complaints were the diseases. The cause was not known unless it was due to the unexampled severity of the previous winter or the drought of the summer.
In May, 1864, several cases of smallpox appeared in the eastern part of Appleton, and the authorities immediately took steps to 
prevent its spread. The cases upon examination proved to be of a mild type, and the physicians became involved in a newspaper controversy over whether it was smallpox or chickenpox.
It having been disputed whether the sickness in Appleton was smallpox or not, Dr. M. F. Page was asked to make an examination and a report. He described fully the symptoms of measles, chickenpox, smallpox, scarletina, etc., in an official bulletin which was printed and circulated. This doctor criticized severely the physician who had pronounced several cases smallpox, and declared that one physician diagnosed a case at a distance and pronounced it smallpox when it was nothing but prairie itch.
Dr. J. Sutherland of Appleton in June, 1864, wrote an article entitled "Quackery" in the newspapers, in which he explained the difference between a duly licensed physician and a quack. He
insinuated that several of the latter were endeavoring to gain a foothold in this county. He said: "Let a man say that he came from some large city, let him rent a house in a respectable street, put on the door in large gold letters 'Physician and Surgeon,' furnish himself with a case of medicine bottles, buy a horse and buckboard, dress himself invariably in black, drive like Jehu up and down the streets telling everybody who will listen that he has an immense number of patients; let him tell of extraordinary cures he has made, making of the slightest colds and sore throats cases of typhoid and diphtheria; let him do all this and you may set it down that he knows nothing or less than nothing about the properties of medicine or the character of disease."
In July, 1864, Dr. M. Page again came out with a circular concerning facts and figures to enable people to distinguish 
between chickenpox, smallpox and other diseases. As a matter of fact there was a decided difference of opinion between the physicians themselves at Appleton concerning the nature of smallpox. Several declared that a person broken out with the disease could pass through the streets and come in contact with people without any danger of spreading the affection. Others denounced this statement in strong terms."
I have since learned the names, birth and death dates because there is a memorial to the children in Freedom/Center (not sure of official address), Outagamie, Wisconsin. The memorial and the three headstones are shown in the photos included in this post. Not only did all 5 children become ill, apparently Mary did as well, but was able to recover.
Here are the names and vital statistics for the 5 children.
1-Christian Frederich Ziegler
+Anna Marie Koehler
|--2-Christian Henry b. 1858, Cleveland, Cuyahoga, OH, USA,
--------------------------d. 20 Aug 1864, Center, Outagamie, WI, USA
|--2-Frederich August b. 1859, Center, Outagamie, WI, USA,
----------------------------d. 27 Aug 1864, Center, WI, USA
|--2-John Douglas b. 1862, Center, WI, USA,
-----------------------d. 23 Aug 1864, Center, WI, USA
|--2-Mary M. b. 1860, Center, WI, USA,
-----------------d. 19 Aug 1864, Center, WI, USA
|--2-Rosena Elizabeth b. Feb-Mar 1864, Center, WI, USA,
---------------------------d. 9 Oct 1864, Center, WI USA
Photos provided by Susan and Shirley
Ways to Give to the spcaLA
Ways to Give to the spcaLA
just a short post here
Wild West Texas - Our Favorite Restaurants
Cattleman's Steakhouse ... in Fabens, Texas, view of interesting Indian Cliffs in the background, zoo with rattlesnake cage in the foreground, delicious steak! Highly recommended - not to be missed. The drive out East was worth it alone. As soon as you get away from the mountains around El Paso, the land takes on an interesting, flat but high plateau feel -- excellent.
Couldn't miss our Texas BBQ fix, so we went to the State Line 
... the BBQ pepper turkey is so good. If I had to eat alot of meat, that would be my first choice.
Other favorites of note: the ol' "pink place" stand-by Taco Cabana (in 1978, opened its first restaurant at the corner of San Pedro and Hildebrand Avenues in San Antonio, Texas).
A chain new to us -- El Taco Tote, an "along the border restaurant" started in Juarez, Mexico. Felt like we were in Mexico when we were inside the restaurant (I mean that in a good way - as we love Mexico!)
You have to go to a drive-in when you're in the desert ... and my favorite in El Paso is Sonic, America's Drive-In. I love the cherry limeade and french toast sticks; we hit the 1/2 price happy hour every day!
Congratulations to the owners at Rio Bravo Alpacas!
For winning at the New Mexico State Fair 2008 ... hope to see a repeat in 2009.just a short post here
Wild West Texas
El Paso .. "where is that exactly?" is the usual question we get .. "On the western most tip of Texas", "on the Rio Grande river", "across from Cuidad Juarez".
That's Big Bend Country, as in the big bend of the Rio Grande river.
We had the pleasure of visiting this Spring for 2 days. We forgot our cameras ... so we have to rely on the web and people we met for photos. We packed in a ton of great site seeing and eating, as you'll see below.
Magoffin Home State Historical Park, located in one of the neighborhoods that eventually formed downtown El Paso ...
El Paso Downtown Walking Tour, turn of the 20th Century famous architectures' work on every corner. Here's a 1 minute video summary from Alli Cat Productions.
Franklin Mountains (image) --
Wyler Aerial Tramway - built to transport communication tower repairmen to the top of the mountain. We gilded to the top of Ranger Peak in the Franklin Mountains State Park in an airborne Swiss gondola. From a mile-high seat in the sky, we could see Mexico, New Mexico and the City of El Paso as the Texas State Park Guild Wyler Tramway web site suggests.
Hueco Tanks, see our detailed posting
Restaurants, see our detailed posting
To Do List ... Las Cruces and everything else in the State of New Mexico; Ciudad Juarez; many more museums in downtown El Paso; Guadalupe Mountains; Big Bend Nat'l Park; Monahans Sandhills SP -- Camel Treks; TPWD Calendar here
A Different Kind of Historical Evidence
It was a high of 100 degrees, so we attempted the few hour guided tour that started early in the morning. The guide said we were lucky to come in May; apparently in summer, its possible to be covered with mosquitoes due to the Monsoon season (uck!). Thank you to our hiking companion Judi for the great photos!
Imagine all you had to go on to find the story of your ancestors was some rock paintings out in a remote area ....
We had the luck in May to visit a tightly controlled state park in West Texas, Hueco Tanks, just 32 miles Northeast of El Paso, Texas. This spot in the desert was known to be a stop along the Butterfield Stage Coach Route and is full of pictographs (rock paintings). (Photo at left from Wikipedia: Hueco Tanks)
From the Texas State Park Guide for Hueco Tanks State Historic Park and Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) for Hueco Tanks: This site is named for the natural rock basins in its granite outcroppings that capture rainwater, a precious resource in the Chihuahuan Desert environment. For millennia, people seeking life-giving water and the diverse plants and animals that could be found here left curious and beautiful paintings on the rocks. Today this ancient site preserves more than 2,000 pictographs that are a wonder to behold. Because of the sensitive nature of the site, visitation is limited and reservations were required to hike there.
Fred and Mary Ziegler - Wisconsin Pioneers
Commemorative Biographical Record of the
Fox River Valley
Fox River Valley
Counties of Brown, Outagamie and Winnebago
Containing biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens,
and of many of the early settled families
J.H. Beers, Chicago, 1895
From the write-up on Fred and Mary, starting on page 728, we learn incredible facts as stated by Fred Ziegler himself (1st person!!).Containing biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens,
and of many of the early settled families
J.H. Beers, Chicago, 1895
We are indebted to the authors and publisher!!!
a. their parents' names (Georg Ziegler & Rosa Stechmeyer Ziegler; Otto & Lena Koehler)
b. facts about their families/lives back in Germany
c. marriage date and location (26 Sep 1856, Wuerttemberg)
d. birth dates (Fred: b. 31 Dec 1832; Mary: b. 14 May 1829)
e. journey from Germany to the U.S. (depart LeHarve, France; arrive 29 Oct 1857 NY, NY)
f. difficult 1 month ship passage
g. stayed in NY only 1 night; lived in Cleveland, Ohio for 1 year, working various jobs
h. they had 7 children; only 2 living
i. Fred C. Ziegler is a Civil War veteran
(Pg. 728 - click to see larger version)
(Pg. 729 - click to see larger version)
Thanks to the Wisconsin Biographical Histories for listing this book. Get the scoop - read on!
Who is Christian F. Ziegler?
I don't remember how I learned about the Wisconsin Historical Society.
... I've only explored a small percentage of their holdings. One of my favorite to date is the Wisconsin Genealogy Index with pre-1907 vital records (e.g., births, deaths, and marriages).
Get the scoop - read on!
I looked at all the records for surname = Ziegler; county = Outagamie. I kept wondering who's this fellow "Christian F. Ziegler" that died in 1903?
Through a series of others hints, I finally realized "its my great-great-grandfather!" His full name is Christian Frederich Ziegler.
Unsolved mysteries:
1. Julius Ziegler, married May 20, 1890 in Outagamie, WI (who is this?)
2. Theodore Ziegler, born Jan 4, 1894 in Outagamie, WI (who is this?)
If you have any info on these people, please let me know. Eventually, I will request the records to see if these mysteries are solvable.
Through a series of others hints, I finally realized "its my great-great-grandfather!" His full name is Christian Frederich Ziegler.
Unsolved mysteries:
1. Julius Ziegler, married May 20, 1890 in Outagamie, WI (who is this?)
2. Theodore Ziegler, born Jan 4, 1894 in Outagamie, WI (who is this?)
If you have any info on these people, please let me know. Eventually, I will request the records to see if these mysteries are solvable.Awesome co-blogger, Mango
Here's Mango taking a break from writing and research to check out a new toy! (the box+paper)
She keeps me focused and "in the chair", by curling up on my lap while I'm at the computer. When I'm low on energy, she purrs back and I get recharged.
just a short post here
More Questions on Fred Ziegler
Wow! "Fred and Mary Ziegler" .... my great-great-grandparents. I was so excited to have figured this out. And a bonus ... "Fred Ziegler" my great-grand-uncle, too! All living with my great-grandfather Gottlieb in Center, Outagamie, Wisconsin in 1880.
I wasn't prepared for what happened next in my mind ..... "When did they come to the U.S.?" "What ports did they depart from/arrive at?" "What was their ship name?" "Why did they come?" "Did they arrive together or separately?" "How did they get to Center?" "What did they farm?" "Are there other descendants?"
I was officially re-bitten by the genealogy bug.
(my dad and I did a lot of work in 1991 but then stopped)
Fred Found .....
Turns out it was challenging to say the least. While I love the U.S. Census as a fabulous source of information ...
Here were just a few of the roadblocks:
a. transcription errors
b. family moving from place to place in Wisconsin
c. census taker errors (just like today when people spell Ziegler as Zeigler)
d. Gottlieb listed as "George" in one censusAfter applying some "perspiration" as the genealogist saying goes ...I found something in the 1880 census!Center, Outagamie, Wisconsin
(line 37)
1. Zeigler, Frederick, White, Male, 48, self, married, farmer, bruised by a run-a-way team, Wirtenberg, Wirtenberg, Wirtenberg
2. Zeigler, Mary, White, Female, 51, wife, married, keeping house, Wirtenberg, Wirtenberg, Wirtenberg
3. Zeigler, Frederick, White, Male, 14, single, at school, Wisconsin, Wirtenberg, Wirtenberg
4. Zeigler, Gottlieb, White, Male, 12, single, at school, Wisconsin, Wirtenberg, Wirtenberg
Ancestry.com, 1880 United States Federal Census (Online publication - Provo, UT, USA: The Generations Network, Inc., 2005. 1880 U.S. Census Index provided by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints © Copyright 1999 Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved. All use is subject to the limite), Year: 1880; Census Place: Center, Outagamie, Wisconsin; Roll: T9_1440; Family History Film: 1255440; Page: 125.4000; Enumeration District: 119; Image: .
What are the names of my great-great-grandparents (Ziegler)?
In January 2008, this question came up. We knew they were from Germany; we knew they lived in or near Freedom or Center, Wisconsin. My dad had a photo of them (we supposed since my dad could identify his own grandfather as one of the sons).
That's all I had to go on!
A genuine mystery.
A genuine mystery.
My local library, the County of Los Angeles Public Library, had an on-line subscription to Heritage Quest that I could access from home and late at night ... which is when I had free time to search.
"I'll start by looking for U.S. census entries for my great-grandfather, Gottlieb Ziegler, starting in 1930 and back. How hard can it be?" Get the scoop - read on!
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