52 Ancestors - week 7 Immigration

 This week, a short post. I've been wanting to create a list of my immigrant ancestors so I took this weeks theme as the chance to do that.

Maternal

Eleanora Radekopf, My 2 times great grandmother born 1870 in Germany. Arrived between 1882-1885. She married in the US in 1900...

Robert Schiefelbein born 1873 in Germany. Arrived between 1887-1888.

Anna Blaesing. My 2 times great grandmother born 1880 in Tommem Germany. She arrived before 1887 as her brother was born in the US that year. She married in 1898...

Paul Kampfert born 1873 in Germany. Arrived between 1888-1893.

Greta Naland. My 2 times great grandmother born 1862 in Germany. While still in Germany she married...

Thomas Poppinga born 1864. They arrived between 1889-1891. Their daughter Carrie was born in the US in 1891.

Anna Zoss. My 2 times great grandmother born 1853 in Switzerland. While still in Switzerland she married...

Godfrey Bill born 1846. They arrived between 1878-1883. Their daughter died in the Switzerland in 1878 and their first child in the US was born in 1883.

Paternal

Catherine Ganey. My 2 times great grandmother born 1841 in Newmarket, Cork, Ireland. While still in Ireland she married....

Charles Curtin born 1840 in County Kerry. They arrived after a daughter was born in Ireland in 1874 and their next daughter born in 1878 in the US.

Thomas Donovan my great grandfather born 1880 in Drimoleague, County Cork, Ireland. His brother was born in Ireland in 1884 and his father died in the US in 1885 so they arrived between 1884-1885.

Wilfred DeGrace. My 2 times great grandfather born 1861 in Canada arrived between 1866-1868. His sister was born in Canada in 1866 and his next sister was born in the US in 1868.

The line of Lena Godfrey, my 2 times great grandmother is not complete to the immigrant ancestors except 1 line. My 6 times great grandfather Bartholomew Brogan was born about 1727 in Ireland. His son was born in the US in 1768. 

Laurence Liden. My great grandfather born 1885 in what is now Castro Total and a Sweden. He traveled with his parents in April 1887 to Hull, England aboard the Romeo and then to the US.

Any tips or further information? Feel free to share!

52 Ancestors - Week 5 Influencer Week 6 Earning a Living

 I had to skip posting last week but conveniently this week's featured person fits both themes. Arthur Kampfert was born May 22, 1899, the oldest child of Paul and Anna (Blaesing). We learn in the 1950 census that he only completed 7th grade.

Arthur spent his entire working life working in jobs related to the Chicago Stockyards. He started as a butcher in 1914 before moving on to positions in the union. In 1937 he became Chicago director of the CIO Packinghouse Workers Organizing Committee, national director in 1939 and international director in 1943. The June 9, 1948 Chicago Daily Tribune summarizes this on the heals of him announcing he would be a candidate for the union's presidency. It was thought the current president would not seek reelection as he had refused to sign a non-communist affidavit. Something changed and Ralph Helstein ran and won reelection according to the June 30, 1948 Chicago Daily Tribune. 

The 1918 WWI draft record showed him working as a butcher at Wilson & Co. at 42nd & Ashland. In 1920 and 1930 he was listed as working as a butcher. However Rick Halpern in his book RACE, ETHNICITY, AND UNION IN THE CHICAGO STOCKYARDS, 1917–1922 says that Arthur gave an account of leading a work stoppage in the spring of 1916 at the Sulzberger & Sons pork trimming department. So early on he had shown his labor fight leanings.

A small article in the September 20, 1938 Chicago Daily Tribune mentions that the hall at 4758 South Marshfield used by the CIO unions was bombed. A night watchman fired 3 shots at a man who escaped. Investigating the motive, the police sergeant stated he would question Arthur Kampfert. Fortunately the family that lived in the back of the building were not hurt.

March 5, 1941 the Chicago Daily Tribune reported that Strike pay loss was $400,000 a week at Harvester Co. Police were present to escort workers who wanted to cross pickets. Arthur was named as one of the four unionists present to "persuade" workers to join the union or pay up their dues.

In September of 1945 Kingan & Co. of Indianapolis fired 3 men for not being at work the prior Saturday. The union demanded reinstatement with 1 week layoff for the absenteeism. By 9:30 that Tuesday work stopped in various departments and that afternoon the plant superintendent ordered the plant clear of employees.  Arthur Kampfert as special representative for the union was brought in to assist in negotiations. As reported in the Indianapolis Recorder on September 15, 1945.

Arthur also wrote his own account of the union activity. The unpublished manuscript is held at the University of Wisconsin.

He passed away November 3, 1951. I hope to someday revisit and expand on this post. Perhaps including a review of his manuscript.

I have PDFs of the newspaper articles mentioned above. Feel free to reach out to me if you have any comments or questions! melanie0971 at gmail dot com.

52 Ancestors - Week 4 Witness to History

 This week's theme gave me a bit of a dilemma I hadn't realized. Rather than not having anyone to write about this week, I actually had trouble choosing from multiple choices. So I peeked ahead to some other themes and chose to focus this week on my maternal great grandfather Louis Bill Sr.

 

Louis Bill far left

Louis was the tenth child born to Godfrey and Anna Elizabeth (Zoss) and their sixth born in the US. He was born in Roanoke, Illinois on March 28 1892. He was of an age that he registered for the draft for both WWI and WWII.

Louis registered for the draft as part of the first draft on June 5 1917.

He married Carrie Poppinga on Febraury 28, 1918 and entered the army on April 28 at Camp Grant in Winnebago, IL.  The 360th Infantry 90th Division sailed from New York on June 14, 1918 on the Olympic.

 

 

 Louis served in Europe for nearly a year. I remember being told that he was awarded a purple heart while overseas having been exposed to mustard gas. It had done permanent damage to his lungs. 

He departed from St. Nazaire, France aboard the USS Mongolia to Camp Devons and officially released from Military service on June 14, 1919.

By the outbreak of WWII Louis had moved with his wife and children from Benson, IL up to Chicago.

In 1942 the government initiated the fourth draft registration, sometimes called the Old Man's Registration because it asked for men from 45 to 64 to register. At age 50 Louis registered for the draft.

Louis lived to be 81 years old and passed away on September 7, 1973.

52 Ancestors - Week 3 Favorite photo

This week's theme was favorite photo. But who can just pick one!

Anna Gfeller b. 1831 

 My 3rd great grandmother. And the oldest evidence of the "Bill family nose"!

The Mary and Lawrence Liden Family.

My great grandparents. The young man on the far right is my grandfather. Those are all of his siblings. I love family group photos!

The Elizabeth and Godfrey Bill Family

My twice great grandparents. The youngest baby on his mother's lap is my great grandfather. Another fun group photo.

L2K - Summer 2000

A family reunion for the ages! 😊The Lidens know how to picnic.

Kampfert Girls c. 1927

The woman is my great grandmother and the baby is my Grandma Shirley. The other 2 girls are her sisters, Mildred and Evelyn. 

Me and my friend Tasha showing off our baby sisters 1976

We moved away a few years after this was taken and I think they did too. I always wonder what happened to them.

I could go on for days showing pictures! Do you have any favorites that I don't have? Feel free to share or ask me to share! melanie0971 at gmail dot com

52 Ancestors Week 2 - Origins

I've previously discussed my immigrant so I thought it was time to look into the surname I was born to. The name comes from my Swedish line but doesn't go back very far. My twice great grandfather Johan Viktor Liden Petersson was born March 10, 1854 in Norrkoping, Ostergotland, Sweden. Liden was actually one of his given names. Sweden used patronymic naming at this time and the name Petersson comes from his father. However he began using Liden as a surname in his 20s, while still in Sweden. I have found Johan in various towns around Sweden (Acklinga, Ringarum, and Ljunghem so far) but none are near the town of Liden. Sometimes Petersson was listed as one of his given names and sometimes it was missing completely. When Johan and Kristina came to the US, she had also taken the surname Liden.

I haven't been able to determine why or when he was given the name Liden. But obviously it stuck. 

Liden means a long slope (usually to a river) Lid means a hill. The town of Liden is much further north than where Johan was born or any of the cities we have found him in thus far. Liden is located in Sudsvall Municpality in Vastermorrland and is near the river Indalsalven. As of 2010 there is a population of 254. The name is first recorded as DeLidn in 1344 and the Swedish noble family Lidstromer originates from there. The old church was established in 1480. Pictures can be found on the Familysearch site at Family Search wiki - Liden 

Liden is a small town but one interesting note is that by some reports, is the home of a guillotine museum. The guillotine was only used once in Sweden, in 1910. If your curious about the model visit Guillotine

If you have any comments or anything to add, feel free to email at melanie0971 at gmail dot com

52 Ancestors Week 1 - Family Lore

Many families have stories about some relative that everyone retells without questioning. Dad always said... or Grandma told me... are words many of us have uttered in some variation. In my family Magdalina Josephine (Lena) Godfrey DeGrasse was that person. For years I and many of my family members gave heard that Josephine (Lena) Godfrey DeGrasse was part Native American, or born on a reservation, or raised on one. Cherokee or Choctaw maybe? But no one knows for sure. While I can't prove any of that, Lena was an interesting person shrouded in a bit of mystery. Lena's first clue to us is her death record. She is listed in the IL death index having passed on January 3, 1937 in Chicago, IL and is buried at St. Mary's Cemetery in Evergreen Park, IL. She was 67. A little math (and the IL death record) tell us she was born September 13, 1869. We know her husband Wilfred DeGrasse was alive at the time so it's likely he gave this information. He told them she was born in West Virginia but the town is unknown. We have learned that Wilfred isn't always the most acccurate or consistent deliverer of facts. And unfortunately he continues this trend with his information about his wife. 

Lena circa 1935

Lena's last appearance in the census is 1930. There's a good chance that she reported the information there. Census takers went to the home and as a house wife she was likely the one home. Lena (who reports her age as 58 - which would have her born in 1872 not 1869) and Wilfred were living in Chicago with their daughter Fanchion and her husband Paul Dilallo and their children. Along with our first small mystery! Lorraine Maypole (age 13) and Frances Terboult (age 17) are listed in this household as daughters. We know from family stories that Lorraine and Frances were not Lena and Wilfred's daughters but were treated as such. I haven't found much information on either of these girls. But from accounts of various family members Lena took them in and was like their mother. They appear in some family pictures I have seen over the years. 

Going back to 1920 Wilfred and Lena are in Chicago and Lena's age is consistent with 1930 - she is 49 in 1920. She is listed as working as a demonstrator of baking powder. Along with their youngest daughter Eleanor they are living with Loraine Maypole and Eleanor Schuler (age 20) is Eleanor Loraine's mother? Loraine is 3 in 1920 so it's possible. Where did Eleanor Schuler go after 1920? Is she Loraine's mother? I don't have the answer.

In 1910 Lena and Wilfred are living with their children in Chicago on Winchester. Lena's birth year still figures to be about 1872 based on her age of 38. There are no other people living with them. Lena's birthplace changed to Virginia from West Virginia, but I could see where that mistake could happen. So nothing mysterious there. In 1900 Lena's birthdate is reported as September 1871. They report they have been married 13 years at this time. That would make Josephine 15 when Wilfred married her. Her birthplace is Virginia. 1900 is the earliest census I have found Lena. The 1890 census has been mostly lost. In 1880 she should be listed prior to her marriage to Wilfred, but where? I haven't been able to locate her in any earlier census records.

Another inconsistency we have is Lena and Wilfred's children's birth certificates. Lena is listed as Leweise (sic) and her mother's maiden name is Wright. There are a number of ways this could have been incorrectly listed. The first of which is we know Wilfred has reported incorrect information in the past. The sex of the child is written as "femail" so we can surmise the information was not closely reviewed. And given the odd spelling "wright" could easily have been that Wilfred answered "right" to something and they wrote that down. But we can't discount that the name "Wright" could be significant.

We have a clue to her family connections in the obituary of E.E. Godfrey. Ernest Edward Godfrey passed in 1924 and his obituary mentions his only living sister as Mrs. Lena DeGrasse of Chicago. We have a connection! Ernest was living in Kansas at the time of his death. We find Ernest (sometimes known as Edward) in Kansas as far back as the Kansas state census of 1875. But no Lena.

Wilfred reports that he and Lena were married in Las Animas, Colorado. We find Wilfred in Bent, Colorado in 1867 serving in a military regiment at Ft. Lyon. But how did Lena get from West Virginia to Colorado? If we follow Ernest Edward we learn that Lena's parents were John Amos Godfrey and Mary Grogan. Mary died in 1871. So this means if Mary is Lena's mother she had to have been born before March 1871. So this leads us back to the 1869 birth year. John married Icy Mary McCord in 1887 they had at least 1 daughter, Mary Margaret. However I recently found a death certificate for a Dora Godfrey Morgan who lists her parents as John and Mary Icy McCord. 

It was not uncommon for children to be fostered out at the death of a mother. Especially given Lena's young age at her mother's passing. This could be where the Wright name comes in. And for all I know, this could be where that Native American story comes in. Perhaps wherever Lena ended up after she left West Virginia (Kansas? Colorado?) ties into that. Wilfred is in Colorado at the time they would have been married so it's likely they were married there. But I have found no record. 

Do you have any insight into these mysteries? Please feel free to reach out by email or comment below! melanie0971 at gmail dot com

Margaret Schiefelbein Kampfert

 Margaret Carolyn Schiefelbien was born to Robert Schiefelbein and Elenore Radekopf Schiefelbein February 20, 1901 in Chicago, Illinois. Margaret was their first child born just under a year after Robert and Elenore married, and just 13 years after Robert immigrated from Germany. Elenore had immigrated with her mother when she was a teen. Margaret would have 1 brother in 1902 (Erwin) and 2 sisters (Elenora and Lilly born in 1904 and 1905.

Margaret (left) with her sisters

Margaret is first listed in the 1910 census at age 9 with her parents and 3 siblings. The family lived at 3635 S. Wood Street in Chicago. The 1920 census was conducted in January so Margaret, now age 19, is still found with her parents and siblings. She is listed as working as a Machine Operator for a dress maker. The family had moved to 4318 S. Fairfield. She lived 2 doors down from the man she would marry later that year, a young packinghouse butcher (the same job her father held) named Arthur Kampfert. They married May 29, 1920.

 

Almost exactly a year later Margaret gave birth to her first daughter, Mildred (May 30, 1921). Four more daughters would be born to Margaret and Arthur, Evelyn (October 1923), Shirley (January 1927), Violet (birth info private), and Ethel (1931).

In the 1930 census, Margaret is with Arthur and her daughters in the same house on Fairfield with her parents and younger sisters living on the bottom floor and Margaret and her young family (except Ethel, of course) living on the 2nd floor. 

Margaret with her 3 oldest daughters likely in 1927 as Shirley is the baby

Margaret and her family are all still living in the same house in 1940.

The Kampfert family in 1939

 

Margaret was widowed in 1951. When the 1950 census is released this year I anticipate finding the family at the same house on Fairfield as that house was talked about for many years.She lived the last years of her life living with her daughter Shirley's family. She passed away June 3, 1969 at the age of 68.

As always if you have any questions, corrections, or additions contact me at melanie0971 at gmail.com