Death Notice of Mrs. Henry Koewler

I found this death announcement on the Chronicling America website.   I believe it refers to Margaret Schwartz who was born September 1, 1839 in Schonau, Germany.  She married Henry Koewler in Brown County, Ohio on March 5, 1859.

Thursday, March 26, 1903       

The Daily Public Ledger

Maysville, Kentucky    page 1

"Mrs. Henry Keowler (sic) died the past week at Ripley, aged 63."

The Children of Anton and Henrietta Koewler

During my teaching days, I didn't always have time to do the actual recording of information, but having a love of research, I seemed to be able to accumulate piece after piece of paper on which was printed what I found in those moments of free time I managed to steal from household chores.  As a result, I now have a monumental, but fun, task ahead of me sorting out all the people and families that I have stuffed in file folders.  The past several weeks have found me going through, organizing, and analyzing all the information that I have collected on my Koewler family over the years.  

As you know from my previous posts on this family, Anton and Henrietta (Fischer) Koewler were my great great grandparents.  It is through their daughter, Henrietta Koewler Haitz, that I am descended.  According to the 1900 census of Union Township, Ohio, the elder Henrietta gave birth to twelve children, of whom, only eight were living at that time.  

Currently, I have found only the names of those eight, and realistically, I will probably never find the other four.  They lived and died before statewide record keeping was required and county records might have been lost during the Brown County courthouse fire in the seventies.   I guess I shouldn't say I will never find them, but the chances are slim.

Anyway, I would like to share the names and dates that I have for the known children of Anton and Henrietta.

1. Catherine was born in Germany on May 6, 1865.  I don't know who or if she married.  I have no death date for her.

2. Henry was born about 1867 in Ohio.  He married twice and settled in Vanderburgh County, Indiana along with the family of Anton's brother, Thaddeus.

3. Joseph Jacob was born in Brown County, Ohio on January 16, 1872.  He married Laura Gast and they settled in Henderson, Kentucky.  He died December 20, 1935.

4. Mary, born about 1873 in Brown County, married a DeFosse.  I have no death date for her yet.

5 and 6. Louise M. was born about 1877, and Caroline was born June 16, 1878, both in Ohio.  I have no other information for these girls.  There is a Caroline Koewler who married a Henry Lutz in Evansville, Indiana that is possibly this Caroline, but I have not found evidence enough to prove it.

7. Henrietta, my great grandmother, was born in Brown County on December 2, 1880.  She married Joseph Haitz, and they lived in Ripley all their lives.  She died on March 23, 1965.

8. The youngest child, Lena F. was born in Brown County on September 8, 1883.  She married Louis Trapp and died September 21, 1946.  I have also found her listed as Elana.

Death of Anton Koewler

I am going to let the newspaper articles tell the rest of the story.  For all of this to have happened over money and watermelons is just shameful.  

News Democrat - Georgetown, Ohio

March 29, 1900

"Anthony Koewler died at his home near town at 10 a. m., Monday, as the result of a shot fired by Wm. Sidwell on September 3, 1899.  His body was paralyzed from the waist down and it is almost a miracle that he lingered so long.  He was born in Germany 60 years ago, but has lived here many years.  He leaves a wife, two boys and three girls, besides many friends, to mourn his demise.  The funeral will take place from St. Michael's Church on Thursday morning at ten o'clock; interment in Maplewood.  His family have the sympathy of all.  Sidwell was re-arrested and taken to Georgetown and lodged in jail where he awaits the action of the grand jury."

Marietta Daily Leader - Marietta, Ohio

April 1, 1900

page 4

"Quarreled Over Melons

Ripley, O.,  March 31. - Anthony Koewler, a prominent farmer who was shot on the 3d of last September by Wm. Sidwell in a dispute over a crop of melons, was buried here on Thursday.  Koewler's death was due to the effects of the wound.  Sidwell was tried on the charge of shooting with intent to kill, but the jury disagreed.  He has been rearrested and jailed, the charge now being murder in the second degree."

Daily Public Ledger - Maysville, Kentucky

15 February 1901

page 1

"At Ripley a verdict of manslaughter was returned against William Sidwell, charged with the killing of Anthony Koewler last September.  Application for a new trial was made."

Daily Public Ledger - Maysville, Kentucky

28 February 1901

page 1

"William Sidwell, for the killing of Tony Koewler near Ripley over a year ago, has been denied a new trial, and was sentenced by Judge Markley to four and one-half years in the Ohio Penitentiary."

Anton Koewler's Story - Part 2

Daily Public Ledger 

Maysville, Kentucky

September 5, 1899 

The canteloupe and watermelon crop in West Kentucky this season has been exceedingly large, the product of many patches being allowed to rot in the fields, as prices will not pay for hauling them to market.

This was the state of things that late summer of 1899.  Anton Koewler had recently purchased the old James Stephenson farm just east of the town of Ripley.  Early in the season, Anton rented a small patch of land on the bank of the Ohio River to Daniel Sidwell and his sons to raise watermelons.  As the crop grew, Anton had concerns about the amount of money that would be realized from it, however, fearing the melons would be stolen during the night, Anton had lent the Sidwell boys his gun to protect themselves.  

On Sunday, September 3, Anton decided he wanted his gun back and went to retrieve it from the Sidwells who were tending the watermelon patch. Angry words were spoken and William Sidwell resented Anton's demeanor.  Anton turned and pointed his gun at Sidwell, "pulling it off".  Sidwell ran to his house,  returned with a revolver, and shot Anton three times.  Two of the bullets did little harm, however, one entered his left breast and came to rest upon his spine.

Anton was taken home, and the Doctors Prine and Francis were called.  Anton was soon partially paralyzed and, fearing the worst, the priest was summoned to administer the Holy Sacrament of the Church.  Meanwhile, William Sidwell had started to town to turn himself in when he met Sheriff Miller to whom he surrendered.  On Tuesday, September 4, he was released on $2000 bail.   One week later, Anton's condition remained the same.

This story is taken from newspaper articles in the September 7 and 14, 1899 issues of Georgetown, Ohio's News Democrat.   I want to sincerely thank Alison at the Union Township Public Library in Ripley, Ohio for taking the time to hunt for the articles in the unindexed newspaper microfilm.  I am sure she had better and much more important things to do.  If you are wondering why the story is not taken from the Ripley Bee, it is because that newspaper microfilm is not available for the year 1899.  I am just so thankful that the library does have access to the News Democrat!  You may have also noticed that the Hamilton, Ohio newspaper in which I first found my clue for this story named the shooter as William Tidwell, instead of Sidwell, so I am doubly glad that I was able to read it from a newspaper closer to the actual location.

I cannot imagine how the Koewler family felt that September day.  I found it very interesting and sad that the article's author described Anton as having a reputation of being quarrelsome, yet standing well in the community.  I can't help but wonder what sort of man he was that he would be thought of in this way.

In case you are wondering, Anton's injuries did turn out to be deadly and in my next posting you will be able to read his obituary and all about the fate of William Sidwell.

 

Uncovering the Death of Anton Koewler

The death of my great - great grandfather, Anton Koewler, has driven me mad for years!  His daughter was Henrietta, wife of Joseph Haitz.   She and Joseph were the parents of sixteen children, the ninth being my grandfather, George Henry Haitz.

From census data, I knew Anton had immigrated from Germany to Ripley, Ohio sometime around 1866 with his wife, Henrietta Fischer, and their daughter, Catherine.  Henry their second child was born in Ohio around 1867.  Anton and Henrietta would go on to have 12 children, eight of whom I have at least some information.  

Also from the census, I had an approximate birth year, 1840, for Anton, however, his death remained a mystery.   When Anton was not found with his family in the 1900 census and Henrietta is listed as a widow, the first thing that obviously popped into my head was that Anton was dead.  I entered his death into Reunion as "before June 1900" keeping in mind that the death date is nothing until proven. 

Then, along came, my Newspaper Archive subscription!  I entered KOEWLER into the search engine and several prospects appeared.  I looked at each, making notes, sometimes printing, when a small front page article in the September 5th issue of the Hamilton Daily Republican News caught my eye.  Now Hamilton, Ohio is quite a distance from Ripley, but not wanting to miss anything, I clicked on the link.  A small five sentence paragraph with the dateline "Ripley, O., Sept. 5" became a clue that would send me on the journey of discovering Anton's story.

The article was titled, "Farmer Shot While In His Melon Patch".  It read, 

"Tony Koewler, aged 62, a farmer, was shot while in a watermelon patch by William Tidwell.  The two met and had hot words.  The result of the wound can not yet be determined.  He is apparently paralyzed.  Tidwell gave himself up."

Could Tony be my Anton?  The age/birth year calculation was pretty close and I had found him sometimes listed as Anthony.  I immediately e-mailed the most helpful librarian at Union Township Public Library in Ripley to see if the town newspaper, the Ripley Bee, was available on microfilm for 1899.  She quickly responded that unfortunately, it was not, but that she would check the News-Democrat, the paper for the nearby town of Georgetown.  I couldn't wait to hear from her!  You'll have to stay tuned for the rest of the story!  It's an interesting one!

Haitz Family Farm

My grandfather's parents, Joseph and Henrietta (Koewler) Haitz, lived on a farm just outside of Ripley, Ohio on Highway 52 as you head east towards Aberdeen.  

My great grandfather's barn and main farm land was right there on the left side of Highway 52.   One of the barns had his name, Joe Haitz, proudly painted in black on the front side facing the road.  That barn sits there still, although when the farm left the family after my grandfather's death in 1977, the new owner painted over the name. 

My grandfather ran the farm when he got older, in addition to working at Becker's.  When I was young,  he would take me to do the "farm chores" after dinner during the summers when we visited.  There were cows, pigs, and chickens to feed and water which this military kid found fascinating.  There aren't too many farm animals on an Army base!  

The farm land also extended across the highway all the way down to the Ohio River.  In was on that land that tobacco and hay were grown.   My grandfather also planted watermelon on the bottom land.  He said that it was the best place for melons to grow.  Today, the high school is on that part of the land.

This photograph of my grandfather with the chickens was taken about 1915 or 16.

Emma M. Koewler Zimmer

I never met Emma Koewler Zimmer. She was only a name in the database of my genealogy program, RootsMagic. I don't remember entering her there although looking back, I can see that my knowledge of her came from a found 1930 census record in which a family with the last name of Koewler was recorded as living in Union Township in Brown County, Ohio.

Any record of a Koewler in Brown County, or anywhere for that matter, arouses my interest because there are so few of them and the name seems quite scarce. I happened to find Emma again in the obituary section of August 13th edition of The Ripley Bee. She and I are second cousins twice removed, which in the grand scheme of the things, is really nothing. But all in all, she is a member of my family. We have two ancestors in common - Henricus Koewler and his wife Marie Anna Fichter. Henricus and Marie were my three greats grandparents while they were Emma's great-grandparents.

Neither of us ever met Henricus or Marie. They had been born in Schonau, Germany which is somewhere in Bavaria. He in 1806 and she is 1808. That's it; that's all I know about them. I have no idea if they even came to America although at least six of their nine known children did, one of which was my great great grandfather, Anton or Anthony, who came around 1866 and settled in Ripley.

Anyway, this morning, as I read a small town newspaper, Emma Koewler Zimmer reminded me that a family is a huge entity. Through her obituary, I learned a tiny bit about her, and she led me to think about people and how, sometimes, connections are there even though we have no idea they exist. Because we share a few of the same genes, Emma M. Koewler Zimmer is a member of my family; distant to be sure, but a member none the less. I'm glad I found her.

From The Ripley Bee, August 13, 2009, page A6, Column 1 -

Emma M. Zimmer, 95, of Dayton, formerly of Ripley, died August 9,
2009.
She was a member of the Altar Rosary Society, the Free Spirits Club,
and the Charles Latrum Senior Center.
Mrs. Zimmer was the daughter of the
late Anna and John Koewler. She was preceded in death by her husband, Robert F.
Zimmer; two sons, Donald and Michael Zimmer; three sisters-in-law, Marcella Bent
and Doris Zimmer, both of Dayton, and Garnet Zimmer of Bellbrook; one
brother-in-law and spouse, Elmer and Edris Zimmer.
She is survived by
numerous nieces, nephews, great nieces and nephews, and many
friends.
Visitation will be held 9 - 11 am Friday, Aug. 14 at Immaculate
Conception Church, 2300 Smithville Rd. in Dayton. Mass of the Christian burial
will be 11 am Friday, Aug. 14, at the church. Interment will be in Calvary
Cemetery. The Tobias Funeral Home - Belmont Chapel serving the family.
If
desired, memorials may be made to Immaculate Conception Church.
Online
condolences may be made at www.tobiasfuneralhome.com

Henrietta Koewler Haitz

In a previous post, I introduced you to the very large Haitz family of Ripley, Ohio. Today, I want to concentrate on my great-grandmother, Henrietta, the mother of those sixteen children.

Henrietta Koewler was born in Ripley, Ohio on December 2, 1880 to immigrant parents, Anton (Anthony) and Henrietta (Fischer) Koewler. She was the seventh of eight children in the family. At the age of twenty-one, she married Joseph Haitz and lived on the farm where she would raise her family. On the twenty-third of March 1965, Henrietta, a widow, died in her home from a heart attack. She is buried in Maplewood Cemetery in Ripley.

Sadly, that is about the extent of what I know about Henrietta. Although I was born in Brown County, I did not live there after the age of three as my father was in the military which took us to various posts out of the Ohio area. Even though I am sure I saw her before age three, the only memories of my great-grandmother come from the few times I went with my grandfather, George Henry Haitz, to her house while on summer vacations during the two years preceding her death.

I remember those warm summer evenings, sitting on her porch steps while she, sitting in a porch swing, talked to my grandfather. Unfortunately, as a result of where I sat in relation to the swing, her face is not in my memories. When I think of my great-grandmother, only her legs come to mind which is why, if I live to see great-grandchildren, I will make sure they sit on my lap and not at my feet!

While I may not have many memories of her, I am sure that with having sixteen children and living on a farm without our modern conveniences, Henrietta's life was not an easy one. I often wonder how she managed those necessary everyday tasks such as laundry, cooking, and keeping a house clean while raising her children and, probably, helping with farm chores. Her life and dreams must have been put on a "back burner" as there was no time to pursue any personal goals. Her goals, most likely, would have been to live each day the best she could and make sure her family was fed, clothed, and well. I wish I was able to sit with her on that porch swing today, listening as she shared stories about her life. I have no doubt that she could teach all of us more than just a few lessons about priorities, life, and family!

The Haitz Family

In today's world, Joe and Henrietta Haitz would have been the stars of a reality show on cable television. In their day, they were not stars. They were the very busy parents of sixteen, facing the ups and downs of farm life and managing to do so without all of our modern conveniences, in ways that few of us today can even imagine.

Joseph Haitz and Henrietta Koewler were married on October 27, 1902 in Ripley, Ohio where they had both been born and raised. The wedding took place at St. Michael's Catholic Church which stood, and still stands, on the corner of Fourth and Market Streets.

About eight months later, Henrietta and Joe were expecting their first child. Margaret J. made her appearance on February 18, 1904. Her siblings would follow in rapid succession. They were as follows : Robert (1905), Mary Louise (1906), Elizabeth H. (1907), Joseph William (1909), Henrietta (1910), Frank A. (1911), Emma J. (1912), George Henry (1914), Jack Irenas (1915), James Rudolph (1916), Albert Louis (1918), Catherine (1920), Rita (1921), Virginia Ann (1923), and Ruth (1924).

The family was believed to be the largest family in Brown County and their photograph was published several times in the local newspaper, The Ripley Bee. At the time of Joe's death in 1960, he and Henrietta had been married for 57 years. They had 43 grandchildren and many great-grandchildren.

George Henry Haitz

George Henry Haitz was born March 10, 1914 in Ripley, Brown County, Ohio. He was the ninth child and fourth son of Joseph and Henrietta (Koewler) Haitz. His childhood was spent on the family farm.

A Family With Deep Roots in Ohio

As I start this blog, I guess it's best to start with the basics - the who and the where. As time goes by, the details will emerge. This blog will focus on my maternal line - a diverse group of families. Represented in this line are Germans, Scotch - Irish, English, and French. Some first settled in the colonies of Maryland and Pennsylvania and went on to fight for freedon from the English crown. Others made the difficult decision to cross an ocean in the mid-1800's in hope of making a new life in this country. Today, their descendents can be found all across the United States, but the roots are deep in the soil of southwestern Ohio.

This blog will include stories, photographs, and vital statistics of the following families and those connected to them.

• Bauer
  
• Becker
  
• Beyersdoerfer

• Gates
  
• Germann
  
• Guy
  
• Haitz
  
• Koewler
  
• Linn
  
• Montgomery
  
• Thill

I am looking forward to sharing this family with you. They are an interesting group of people!
Until later!