Mrs. Drusaillia Oberle, 1875-1940

According to her death record, Drusaillia Oberle was born in Newbury, Ontario, Canada in 1875 to William and Margaret Crimm. Records on file at FamilySearch indicate that Ralph Oberle and Drusaillia Crimm were married in Monroe, Michigan on January 1, 1918. Eventually the couple moved to Sandusky, Ohio. The Sandusky Star Journal of December 27, 1940 reported that Mrs. Drusaillia Oberle died on December 26, 1940, following a brief illness. Mrs. Oberle was survived by several brothers and sisters, residing in Canada and Michigan. Funeral services for Mrs. Oberle were held at the Charles Andres & Sons Funeral Home, with Rev. T.J.C. Stellhorn officiating. Burial was at Oakland Cemetery. Drusaillia's first name is most likely a variation of the name Drusilla, of Latin origin.

Anna Gertrude Gundlach

Mrs. Anna Gertrude Gundlach is buried at Oakland Cemetery in Sandusky. Information accessed at FamilySearch provide these details about Mrs. Gundlach:

Anna G. Giesse was born in Melsungen, Germany in the province of Hesse-Kassel on August 1, 1829. Her parents were Johann Giesse and Anna Wenk. She married Leonard Gundlach on February 12, 1846. Mrs. Anna Gerturde Giesse Gundlach passed away on April 14, 1884.

In the 1880 U.S. Census for Erie County, the listing for the family gave the surname spelled as Grunlach:

Leonhard Grunlach was 64, birthplace Hesse
Gertrude Grunlach was 60, birthplace Hesse
Christopher, was 23, born in Ohio
Justus, was 20, born in Ohio

Ephraim and Fannie Wonnell

According to his death certificate, Ephraim Wonnell was born in 1850 in Ottawa County, Ohio to Isaac and Margaret Wonnell. In 1878 Ephraim Wonnell took Fannie Shook as his wife. Ephraim Wonnell was the manager of the Port Clinton Basket Company for many years. On July 27, 1910, Ephraim Wonnell passed away in Ottawa County. He was 60 years of age. An obituary for Mr. Wonnell appeared in the July 29, 1910 issue of the Sandusky Register. The article stated that Ephraim Wonnell was one Ottawa County's most properous fruit growers. He was buried in the Shook Cemetery. Mrs. Fannie Wonnell survived until 1937. After her death, she was buried with her husband in the Shook Cemetery.

Clasped hands adorn the top of the tombstone for Ephraim and Fannie Wonnell. Clasped hands can represent a welcome to the heavenly realm.

Mrs. Amelia Scherrer

Amelia Harder was born on June 22, 1866. On June 19, 1884, Amelia Harder married Jacob Scherrer in Erie County, Ohio. The young Amelia Harder Scherrer died on August 20, 1899 at the age of 33. Funeral services for Mrs. Scherrer were  held at the Scherrer residence, and at St. Stephen's Church,  a with Rev. William Leonhardt officiating. Burial was at Oakland Cemetery. Amelia Scherrer was buried at Sandusky's Oakland Cemetery. The inscription on her tombstone reads:

She had a kind and true heart.

Obituaries for Mrs. Amelia Scherrer appeared in the August 22 and August 23, 1899 issues of the Sandusky Register.

Platt Eli Follett, 1878-

Platt Eli Follett was born on April 13, 1878 to Foster V. and Portia A. (Bartholomew) Follett. Both his father and grandfather were veterans of the Civil War. Sadly, Platt E. Follett died from diphtheritic croup on December 3, 1883. He was buried in the family lot at Sandusky's Oakland Cemetery.  Platt Eli Follett's first name was the same name as the surname of his Aunt Susan Follett's husband William Augustus Platt.

John E. Goss, Member of the Woodmen of the World

John Edward Goss was born in Port Clinton, Ohio in 1862 to Frederick and Anna Goss.  In 1880 the Goss family resided in Ottawa County, Ohio. By 1917, John E. Goss was residing in Columbus, Franklin County, Ohio, where he worked as a carpenter. John E. Goss died in Columbus, Ohio on November 25, 1917. His remains were returned to Sandusky, for burial in the family lot at Oakland Cemetery.  (Note, though the tombstone of John E. Goss lists 1918 as his year of death, his death certificate listed his death year as 1917.) A Woodmen of the World insignia is found on the tombstone of John E. Goss. Woodmen of the World was a fraternal organization that provided insurance benefits to its members. 

Mrs. Hannah L. Williams, 1834-1856

According to the book ERIE COUNTY, OHIO CEMETERY CENSUS BEFORE 1909, Hannah L. Williams died on November 21, 1856, at the age of 22 years, 1 month, and 8 days. Hannah was the wife of Albertus Williams. Erie County Probate Court marriage records show that Hannah L. Dewitt married Albertus Williams on September 11, 1854.

It is so sad that Hannah Dewitt Williams died when she was only 22 years old. She was buried at Sandusky's Oakland Cemetery, in Block 16. Rest in peace, Hannah.

Mrs. Sarah Parish

Mrs. Sarah Parish, the wife of F. D. Parish, died on November 16, 1829 at the age of 29 years. According to Huron County marriage records, Sarah Strong had just married Francis D. Parish on January 18, 1829. How sad for Mr. Parish to lose his wife in their first year of marriage! An inscription at the base of the tombstone of Sarah Parish at Oakland Cemetery reads:

Blessed are the dead that die in the Lord.

William Augustus Strong, Civil War Officer

William Augustus Strong was born in Groton Township, of what was then Huron County, Ohio, to Mr. and Mrs. Lyman Elderkin Strong. During the Civil War, William A. Strong enlisted in Company E of the 72nd Ohio Volunteer Infantry. Though his tombstone and obituary state that he was a Captain, his military record on file at Ancestry Library Edition states that he achieved the rank of 1st Lieutenant during his military service in the Civil War.  During the Vicksburg campaign, William Strong suffered a heat stroke, from which he never fully recovered. On April 4, 1898, William A. Strong died in Cook County, Illinois. His remains were returned to Ohio, where he was buried in the Strong's Ridge Cemetery in Huron County, Ohio. This obituary for William A. Strong appeared in the April 11, 1898 issue of the Norwalk Reflector.

Rest in peace William A. Strong.

Jacob Dick, 1842-1923

According to his death certificate, Jacob Dick was born in Germany in 1842 to Jacob Dick and his wife, the former Philippina Schramm. He married Katherine Grill in Bavaria, Germany in 1866. Jacob and his wife emigrated to the United States, and settled in Sandusky, Ohio, where he worked as a foreman at the Gilcher and Schuck lumber company. On November 18, 1923, Jacob Dick passed away after a brief illness. He was survived by his widow and five daughters, Mrs. Adam Denhard of Sandusky, Mrs. Albert Niehaus of Chicago, Mrs. Charles Mealley and Mrs. Fred Snyder of Cleveland, and Mrs. Thomas Linfitt of Grand Forks, North Dakota; and two sons, Jacob Dick of Chicago, and William Dick of Los Angeles; a brother, and twelve grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren. An obituary for Jacob Dick appeared in the November 20, 1923 issue of the Sandusky Register. Funeral services were held at the family residence, and burial was at Oakland Cemetery.

John and Elizabeth Murphy

In the 1880 U.S. Census, John Murphy was residing in Sandusky, Erie County, Ohio. He was age 46, and he was a native of Ireland. His wife, Lizzie, was 44 years of age, and they had three children:  Ellen, Peter and Sallie. John was employed at a handle factory. Mrs. Elizabeth/Lizzie Murphy died in 1890. At the time of his death, in November of 1907, John Murphy had moved to Chicago, Illinois. After his death, his remains were returned to Sandusky, Ohio for burial at the St. Joseph Cemetery.  This lovely monument, created by Conrad Keim, was erected by Mrs. Nellie Seger in honor of her parents.  

"Sandusky" by Judge Elisha W. Howland

In 1849, Judge Elisha W. Howland wrote this poem that was read before the Sandusky County Court by Rutherford B. Hayes, then a young attorney, to protest the changing of the name of the town of "Lower Sandusky" to Fremont, in honor of John C. Fremont. Ultimately the name of the Lower Sandusky was changed to Fremont.

Sandusky is the name of a river, a bay, a county, a city, and is included in the name of the community of Upper Sandusky. Because of the many uses of Sandusky as place names, I am quite thankful that Fremont is now known as Fremont, and not Lower Sandusky! This poem appeared on pages 117 and 118 of the book Poems on Ohio, collected and annotated by C.L. Martzloff (Ohio State Archaeological and Historical Society, 1911.) Today the former home of Rutherford B. Hayes is open for tours. The Hayes Presidential Library and Museums is to a wonderful library filled with books about genealogy and local history, as well as a museum and historic home.

Grandpa Joe's Father Went Through Ellis Island Several Times!

Image Courtesy Wikipedia

According to the "hit list" I retrieved when I did a search in Searching Ellis Island in One Step, my great great grandfather, Joseph Orshoski/Josef Orsoczky may have passed through Ellis Island several times between 1893 and 1907. Below are some of the listings at Ellis Island.

In 1893, Josef Orsoczky traveled to Ellis Island, at the age of 33, on the ship Noordland from Antwerp. According to records 22 through 25, as well as numbers 30 and 32, he made the trip across the ocean several more times. My Uncle Wayne once told me that Granda Joe, my great grandfather, had a close relative who came to America, but he missed his homeland of Hungary too much, and he returned there to live. When Great Great Grandpa Josef Orsoczky visited in 1907, did he see my paternal grandfather Steve Orshoski? So many questions I wish I had asked my great grandfather! I am so glad that he stayed in the U.S., and did not return to his homeland like his father! Miss you Grandpa and Grandma!

M. Catherine Myers

The picture of this  over a century old tombstone was taken at St. Mary's Cemetery in Sandusky, Ohio. M. Myers was born with the surname Walter, but she married a man with the surname Myers, sometimes spelled Meyers. She was born on November 21, 1863, while the Civil War was still ongoing, and she died as a young woman on October 9, 1888. By browsing through the digitized images of St. Mary's Church records, available at FamilySearch in the collection of church records from the Toledo Diocese, I came across a baptism record of M. Catherine Myers. She was baptized in December of 1863, the daughter of Richard Walter and Marie Anton Walter. I believe the initial M stands for Mary, which was often used as a first name for females baptized in the Catholic faith.

Rest in peace.

Mrs. Anne Elizabeth Schmidt, 1806-1878

This beautiful monument in Block 44 of Sandusky’s Oakland Cemetery honors the memory of Mrs. Anne Elizabeth Schmidt. According to her interment card, Mrs. Schmidt died of heart disease in October of 1878 at the age of 75. Though the words on the tombstone are very weathered, Anne’s birth year of 1806 is still legible. A death record for Anne/Anna Schmidt indicates that her parents were Conrad and Anna Shildwachter, and she had been born in Germany. A lovely tree adorns the top of Anne’s grave marker.

Jane E. Coan, 1833-1920

According to the book A Genealogical History of the Kelley Family, Jane Elizabeth Coan was the daughter of Daniel Camp and Lydia Frothingham, born in Connecticut on March 26, 1833. Jane's father died when she was only three years of age. Jane's sister Lydia became the husband of Sandusky resident George J. Anderson. In the 1880 U.S. Census, Jane E. Coan was residing with her uncle, Edward Jewett, in Margaretta Township, Erie County, Ohio. In 1900, she was still in Margaretta Township, living with her widowed aunt, Mrs. Elizabeth Jewett. By 1910, Jane E. Coan was listed in the census as a farmer in Margaretta Township, and she was the Head of the Household at that time. In 1920, census records show that Jane E. Coan had moved to Sandusky, Ohio, where she lived with the family of her nephew, George F. Anderson. On May 30, 1920, Jane E. Coan passed away at the age of 87. She lived her life as a maiden lady, often residing in the household of extended family members. Reading between the lines, I think she served as a helper to her family, sharing in their daily lives. Jane Elizabeth Coan was buried in Sandusky's Oakland Cemetery.

Ann Atwood, 1800-1874

Ann Atwood's tombstone in Sandusky's Oakland Cemetery states that she was born in Welney, England on June 24, 1800. She died in Sandusky, Ohio on May 12, 1874. An inscription on Mrs. Atwood's stone reads:

For his mercy endureth forever

Rest in peace, Ann Atwood.

Greetings from Sandusky

This beautiful mural, painted on the outer wall of Sandusky's State Theatre was recently completed. Our fair city will soon celebrate it Bicentennial. Many of my ancestors were born, or resided in, or frequented the city of Sandusky. To learn more about the history of Sandusky, visit the website of the Sandusky2018. In 2018, there will be many social and historical events to commemorate the city of Sandusky and its rich history!

Henry K. Henkelman, Sandusky Druggost

Mr. Henry K. Henkelman died on October 31, 1931, after having been seriously injured in an accident while he was riding a bicycle on October 22. Henry had been born in Sandusky in 1860, to Henry and Mary Elizabeth (Muller) Henkelman, both natives of Germany. For thirty five years, Henry K. Henkelman worked as a druggist in Sandusky. From about 1904 to 1910, he worked for the Henkelman and Bechberger drugstore which was in business in the Sloane Hotel on the corner of Columbus Avenue and Washington Row. Mr. Henkelman was very active in the Knights of Pythias Lodge, and was a former member of the Sandusky City Council. Henry K. Henkelman was survived by a son, daughter, sister, and two grandchildren. His wife died just a few months before his death. Henry K. Henkelman was buried at Sandusky’s Oakland Cemetery. An obituary for Henry K. Henkelman appeared in the November 1, 1931 issue of the Sandusky Register. Below is a picture of the drugstroe of Henkelman and Bechberger in the eatly 1900s.

Image courtesy Sandusky Library/Follett House Museum

Amalie Died Young

This flat tombstone in Block 16 of Sandusky's Oakland Cemetery honors the memory of a child named Amalie. Though very weathered, it looks like a lamb adorns the top portion of her grave marker. Amalie died in September of 1860.  So far I have not been able to determine who her parents were, but most likely they were of German descent, since there are words written in the German language on her tombstone. Rest in peace Amalie!

Mother and Daughter: Mrs. Minnie Duennisch Schaber and Mrs. Lulu M. Shaffer

Both mother and daughter are remembered on this tombstone at Oakland Cemetery in Sandusky, Ohio. Minnie A. Duennisch Schaber was born Minnie Brehm, on October 10, 1854. Her parents were William and Elizabeth Brehm. Her sister was Marie Brehm, once a candidate for Vice President of the U.S. on the Prohibition Party ticket. Minnie first married Louis H. Duennisch, in Erie County, Ohio on October 24, 1878. Mr. Duennisch died in 1889, while he was still in his early thirties. Minnie then married Charles F. Schaber, on September 20, 1892. Mrs. Minnie Duennisch Schaber passed away on September 17, 1909, following a lengthy illness.

Lulu Duennisch  (sometimes spelled Denisch) was the youngest child of Minnie and Louis Duennisch, born on January 29, 1889. Lulu was a young infant when her father passed away. Miss Lulu Duennisch married Homer Schaffer. Mrs. Lulu Shaffer died at the age of 47 in Knox County, Ohio, and she was buried in the family lot at Oakland Cemetery.

Christopher A. Fox, 1845-1914

Christopher A. Fox was born in Perkins Township of Erie County, Ohio in 1845 to Alvin Fox and his wife, the former Fanny Johnson. Christopher never married, and he lived all his life on the Fox family farm in Perkins Township. Sadly, he died in a fire  at his home on September 11, 1914. Christopher A. Fox was buried in the Perkins Cemetery. You can read more about the Fox family in biographical sketch about William N. Fox found in Hewson Peeke's A STANDARD HISTORY OF ERIE COUNTY, OHIO.

Belle Dixon Hodgman

According to her death record, Belle Dixon Hodgman was born in Hudson, Michigan, on January 20, 1863, to John and Sarah (Hamley) Dixon. She was the first principal of Campbell School in Sandusky, Ohio. In the summer of 1886, Belle Dixon married G.B. Hodgman, who operated a cooperage in Sandusky for several years. Mrs. Belle Dixon Hodgman died on January 26, 1941, in St. Louis, Missouri. Her remains were brought back to Sandusky, Ohio for burial at Oakland Cemetery. An obituary for Belle Dixon Hodgman appeared in the September 20, 1941 issue of the Sandusky Register Star News. Mrs. Hodgman's death record is on file at the Missouri Digital Heritage website.

Cora Textor West, 1870-1954

Cora Textor was born in Sandusky, Ohio in 1870. Her father Albert Textor owned a jewelry store in Sandusky. Cora did not marry until she was forty years of age. In the summer of 1909, Cora Textor married William G. West at his ranch in Petersburg, Virginia. An article  in the Sandusky Star Journal of January 23, 1935 stated that Cora had spent the summer of 1909 on a trip to Europe, and she married Mr. West shortly after her return. William G. West was the son of William T. West and Lydia Mahala (Todd) West, who were prominent Sandusky residents.  Cora and William were the parents of one son, William Textor West, who was born in 1910. William G. West died in April, 1913, at his home in Virginia. In 1915, Cora Textor West was issued a patent for a baby dresser. Below is a drawing from patent number 1,127,139.

By the 1930s, Cora had moved to Hollywood, California, where she resided with her sister, Amanda Textor Moore. Cora Textor West died in California in August of 1954. Her remains were returned to Sandusky, Ohio, and she was buried in the West family lot at Oakland Cemetery.

Declaration of Intention of Joseph Orsocski/Orshoski

My great grandfather Joseph Orsocski/Orshoski filled out this Declaration of Intention at the Clerk of Common Pleas Court in Erie County, Ohio on August 21, 1919. This was not long after his first wife Julia had died, leaving him a widower with six sons. (Later he would marry another young lady of Hungarian descent, also named Julia.)

On this document, Great Grandpa Joe stated that he was a cement worker, residing in Bay Bridge, Ohio. He said that he was born in Vadasz, Hungary in 1885. Later I would learn that he had been baptized in Felsovadasz, Hungary. For some time, I was looking for Vadasz, but Grandpa Joe must have just written down a shortened form of the town of his birth. He stated that he was 5 feet 7 1/2 inches tall, with dark hair, a fair complexion, hazel eyes, and he weighed 155 pounds. He emigrated from Hamburg, Germany on the vessel "Bulgaria" or or about the first day of April, 1901. He stated that he was not an anarchist or a polygamist, and he renounced his allegiance and fidelity to any foreign sovereignty. Great Grandpa Joseph Orshoski was a hard worker, and had a somewhat serious outlook on life, at least in my opinion. I so wish that I asked him more questions about his early life back in Hungary and in the days when his children were young.

Mrs. Jane J. Wiggins, 1882-1916

According to her death record, Jane J. Wiggins was born on October 28, 1882 to Alva and Fannie (Davlin) St. John. In the 1910, U.S. Census, Jane was in her twenties, and resided with her parents, and her two younger brothers in Perkins Township, Erie County, Ohio. On October 15, 1915, Jennie J. St. John married Roy Wiggins. Rev. H.A. McClellan of Calvary Church officiated at the wedding.

Sadly, Jane "Jennie" St. John Wiggins passed away at the age of 33, of pulmonary tuberculosis on August 11, 1916.  She was survived by her husband, two young daughters, her parents, a sister, and two brothers. Funeral services were held for Mrs. Jane Wiggins at the home of her parents, with Rev. E.G. Mapes officiating. Burial was at Oakland Cemetery. An obituary for Mrs. Wiggins appeared in the August 11, 1916 issue of the Sandusky Star Journal.

F.W. Wetherell Died in Cholera Epidemic

Franklin W. Wetherell died August 12, 1849 at the age of 31, during the Cholera Epidemic. His wife Celina had succumbed to cholera just two weeks prior to Mr. Wetherell's death. Both Mr and Mrs F W Wetherell were buried in the family lot at Oakland Cemetery.

Mrs. Rosamond Ward McGee

Mrs. Rosamond Ward McGee was the wife the Thomas C. McGee. She died on August 8, 1877, and she was buried at Sandusky's Oakland Cemetery. In volume 4 of the Firelands Pioneer, her husband wrote a touching obituary, with tells us many details about the life of Rosamond McGee. A transcription is below.

Mrs. Rosamond Ward McGee

Sketch of her Life by Capt. T. C. McGee, of Sandusky, Ohio

Died, in Sandusky, August 8th, 1877, Mrs. Rosamond Ward McGee, wife of T. C. McGee, in the 61th year of her life. She was born  in Saratoga County, New York, on the 21st day of March, 1813, the second child of her parents, John and Rosamond Whitford Ward. Her mother died when the child was eight days old. She was taken to the home of her grandparents, John Ward, Sr. (This home was but five miles from the now famous battle fields of Saratoga. This same grandfather having been' a soldier and took a part on this well fought field.) Here in this humble but kindly home she remained until she was eleven. Her father having again married and removed to the village of Fort Ann, Washington County, Rosamond went to live with him. Here she grew up to young womanhood, having the usual school advantages of a New York state rural village, and when past her nineteenth birthday, a rambling Ohio lad who was visiting the adjoining town in which she was living, espied her red cheeks and raven hair, sat down and persuaded her to come to Ohio. (And this persuasion - succeeded in spite of the dreadful stories then rife about that always dangerous Lake Erie.) On the 25th of September, 1832, she was married and after a few weeks visit among friends at Saratoga, came to Schenectady, taking a fine new line boat, arrived at Buffalo on the seventh day. On coming in sight of the lake, all her former fears were so strongly revived that she had liked to have fainted, but as others did not seem to think there was any danger she gathered courage. We took the steam boat "Niagara," Capt. C. C. Stanard, and in two days were landed in Sandusky after a very fine, calm passage. In years afterward she went many voyages with her husband on sail vessels and often met some sharp gales, but she had learned that the Lord is to be trusted just as much on the waters as on the land. She resided at Sandusky continuously (with many pleasant visits to her old home) until her death, always fulfilling all the duties of wife, friend and neighbor. Some dark clouds passed over her domestic life, but the dark tints were none of her making. After weeks of illness she died as she had lived, a Christian; leaving a mourning husband and friends.

Mystery Tombstone: Fielding Bonham, 1801-1871

Fielding Bonham's tombstone is located at Oakland Cemetery in Sandusky, Ohio. He was born 1801, and he died in 1871. So far, I have not located this name, after searching in a number of genealogical databases and city directories. If anyone has a connection with Fielding Bonham, please let me know! The tombstone is majestic. I am not sure how he ended up being buried in Sandusky, Ohio.

Miss Katherine Larkins

Katherine Larkins was born about 1877 to Patrick Larkins and his wife, the former Bridget Ryan, both natives of Ireland. In 1880, she was listed in the U.S. Census as the youngest of the seven children in the Larkins family. They resided on Fulton Street in Sandusky, Ohio. In 1880, Katherine’s name was listed as “Kattie.” At the time of her father’s death in 1893, Katherine’s name was listed as Kittie on papers on file at Probate Court. Sadly, on July 26, 1906, Katherine Larkins died while still in her twenties from tuberculosis.

She was buried at the St Joseph Cemetery in Sandusky, Ohio.An obituary for Katherine appeared in the Sandusky Register of July 27, 1906. She was survived two sisters and two brothers.

Edwin and Jane Penny Monument at Maple Grove Cemetery

This beautiful white zinc monument at Maple Grove Cemetery in Vermilion, Ohio honors the memory of Edwin A. Penny and his wife, the former Jane M. Baker. According to Hewson Peeke's A STANDARD HISTORY OF ERIE COUNTY, OHIO (Lewis Publishing Co., 1916), Edwin was born near Maumee, Ohio on January 28, 1834, the son of Asher and Caroline Penny. Edwin settled in Berlin Township, Erie County Ohio, where he farmed on ninety-six acres of land. Sadly, Edwin A. Penny died on August 3, 1843, in his 48th year.

A poem honors the memory of Edwin A. Penny.

The poem reads:

Thy dust, dear husband
Slumbers here;
Tis to thy wife a sacred spot;
I'll drop upon thy grave a year,
Nor shall thy tomb be e're forgot.
Thy love shall in my memory dwell,
Thy kindness in my heart abide,
Thy virtue bright my tongue shall tell
Till I shall slumber by thy side.

Mrs. Jane Baker Penny died in 1917.

An unbroken chain adorns one panel of the Penny monument, symbolizing loss.