Great Great Grandpa's Name Was Listed in the J's and Not the Y's

When I first began to learn more about my Dad's Yeager line, I found this obituary of my great great grandfather Lawrence Yeager, who died on August 16, 1911. The obituary appeared in the August 17, 1911 issue of the Sandusky Register.

Lawrence Yeager

The death of Lawrence Yeager occurred at the family residence, 208 Pierce Street, Wednesday afternoon at 1:45 o'clock. He was sixty four years and six days of age. Mr. Yeager who has resided here for the past thirty years, was struck by an automobile at the corner of Market and Jackson Streets about four weeks ago, but it is not known whether or not this contributed to his death.

As I looked for his name in the Sandusky City Directories, I did not find him listed in the surnames that began with Y. It occurred to me that maybe I should check the surnames that started with J. His name and address were on page 131 of the Williams' Sandusky Directory for 1900-1901. He lived at 208 Pierce Street at this time, with his second wife Catharine.

Hundreds of German immigrants settled in Erie County, Ohio, and I was familiar the name Schmidt being later known as Smith, and Mueller being Americanized to Miller, but in this case the spelling difference occurred at the first letter of the surname. Our ancestors can keep us on our toes!

Emigration Record of the Lorenz Jaeger Family

After sending a small fee to the State Archives of Freiburg in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, I received this Emigration Record for the family of Lorenz Jaeger, who was known as Lawrence Yeager after he and his family settled in Erie County, Ohio.

Listed on the document were:

Lorenz Jaeger, age 34 years, occupation: day laborer
Maria (born Schweikart), age 33 years
Andreas, age 6 years
Emma, age 4 years
and
Louise, age 2 months

The family originated from Homberg, near Stockach. Today Homberg is a part of Muenchhoef, Germany. Volume 13 of GERMANS TO AMERICA indicates that the Jaeger family came to the U.S.A. in 1881 on the ship "Pereire" from Havre to New York. The ship arrived in New York on May 18, 1881.

Mr. and Mrs. Lawrence Yeager resided in Sandusky, Ohio. Maria/Mary Schweighart Yeager passed away on November 2, 1891, and she is buried in St. Mary's Cemetery in Sandusky, Ohio. Lorenz Jaeger/Lawrence Yeager remarried after his first wife's death, to Catharine Geigel. Lawrence Yeager died on August 16, 1911, and he was also buried at St. Mary's Cemetery. (No tombstone remains for Mr. and Mrs. Lawrence Yeager.) Andreas Jaeger, later known as Andrew Yeager, was a farmer in Huron Township of Erie County. He married Lena Piehl.



















Emma Jaeger marred John Keller, and they resided at Kelleys Island. Louise Jaeger/Yeager married Fred Tight. Sadly, after Louise became despondent over ill health, she took her own life. Her obituary is found in the 1928 OBITUARY NOTEBOOK at the Sandusky Library. Frank Yeager, the youngest child of Lawrence and Mary Yeager, was born in Ohio. He operated a successful hauling business in the Sandusky and Perkins Township areas.

Hundreds of Germans emigrated to Ohio in the nineteenth century. To learn more about the lives of the German Americans who resided in Sandusky, Ohio, see SANDUSKY THEN AND NOW, by Rev. Ernst Von Schulenburg, at the Sandusky Library.

Lorenz Jaeger/Lawrence Yeager

Lorenz Jaeger was born on August 10, 1847 in Germany to Mr. and Mrs. John Xavier Yeager. On February 18, 1873, Lorenz Jaeger married Maria Schweighardt in Münchhöf, Germany.

According to Volume 38 of GERMANS TO AMERICA, the Jaeger family sailed to the U.S.A. aboard the ship Pereire from Havre to New York. The family members were listed as:


Jager, Laurent age 34
Marie age 32
Andre age 6
Emma age 4
Louise infant

Baby brother Frank Yeager was born after the family settled in Erie County, Ohio.

On file at the Erie County Probate Court is a document which stated that Lorenz Jaeger arrived in the United States in May of 1881. He renounced his allegiance to William, the Emperor of Germany, before Erie County Probate Judge A.E. Merrill.

By 1888 the Jaeger family was living in Erie County, Ohio and Mr. Jaeger stated that his occupation was that of a carpenter. Lorenz Jaeger's name became Americanized to Lawrence Yeager. Mrs. Maria/Mary Yeager died on November 2, 1891. After Mary's death, Lawrence marred Catherine Geigel, who was the widow of John Christian Dannenmann.

Lawrence Yeager passed away on August 16, 1911. He was buried near his first wife at St. Mary's Catholic Cemetery in Sandusky, Ohio, though at this time no tombstones for Lawrence and Mary Yeager have been located.


Today a host of Jaeger/Yeager descendants live throughout the United States, including nurses, teachers, pipe fitters,medical transcriptionists, business owners, and an amateur genealogist!

Andrew and Lena Yeager

Andrew Yeager and Helena "Lena" Piehl Yeager are pictured to the left in the early 1950's. Andrew Yeager was born in Germany on November 12, 1876 to Lawrence Yeager (Lorenz Jaeger in his native language) and Maria Schweighardt. In 1881, the Yeager family came to United States. Andrew’s younger brother Frank was born after the family settled in Ohio.

Volume 38 of GERMANS TO AMERICA lists the following family members on the voyage aboard the ship “Pereire,” which traveled from Havre to New York:

Jager, Laurent age 34
Marie age 32
Andre age 6
Emma age 4
Louise infant

On September 30, 1903, Andrew Yeager married Helena “Lena” Piehl, daughter of Ferdinand Gotthold Piehl and his wife Augusta Jaensch Piehl, who were immigrants from Posen, Germany. Andrew, known as Andy, worked as a tenant farmer. He raised sunflowers at his home in Huron, Ohio. Lena was a wonderful cook and baker. Sugar cookies were one of her special treats. Lena was quiet and gentle natured. Her height was less than five feet.

Andrew Yeager died in April of 1958, while Lena Yeager lived to be 97, passing away on October 15, 1978. Mr. and Mrs. Andrew Yeager are buried in the Union Corners Cemetery, just off Route 250, between Sandusky and Milan. The cemetery is associated with St. John Evangelical Lutheran Church.













Pictured below is the Piehl family about 1906. Lena Piehl Yeager is the first person on the left, in the back row. Click on the image for a larger view.