The KRAUSE Conundrum, Part 2

Conundrum

I call this family group The KRAUSE Conundrum because they have been so difficult to track down. The parents of the family are my 2nd great grandparents Ferdinand and Amelia. Their children are Gustave, Max, Charles (my great grandfather), and Catherine. Peripheral family members are documented as a way to gather additional information about Gus's movements and an attempt to find out about where Ferdinand and Amelia came from.

I focus a lot of my research on Gus because he seems to be the most interesting of the group. He didn't plunk down and settle in one place and he lived life by his own rules. There is also a lot of information on him, or at least the group of men known as Gus C. KRAUSE. When I couldn't figure out why each piece of information seemed to be at odds with the rest, I went to the world stage at the time to figure out why he would purposely disseminate false information. It has been an eye opener.

The Krause Timeline

The following is in Chronological order of Documented Events, but it is by no means the order in which I found the documents. Sometimes you have to jump all over time in order to track people down.

The text is a jumbled mess. I'm still trying to work through how best to lay this page out.

1880

Census
Arriving in October, the KRAUSE family missed being counted in the 1880 census, which was started on June 1, 1880.

Arrival - Ferdinand KRAUSE

When I found Ferdinand's naturalization record at IARA, I also gained information on the date of his entry as well as port of departure in Europe. By searching Google for the ships that docked in New York on that date, I was able to narrow down my search parameters and found my family's names in the data extraction of the correct manifest.

The SS General Werder arrived in New York City on 11 Oct 1880, docking at Castle Garden, NY.
Manifest Identification Number is 00035821. NARA AAD Link
Ferdinand (age 27), Laborer
Emilie (age 26), Farmer
Gustav (age 1), Child/Youngster
For all-
Literacy: Unknown
City of Origin: Unknown
Destination: New York
Transit: Staying in the US
Travel: Steerage

There are two other female KRAUSE passengers in this manifest, named Auguste (age 20) and Johanna (age 22). Both are listed as farmers. Relation to my KRAUSE family is unknown.

1884

Citizenship - Ferdinand KRAUSE

Ferdinand was granted citizenship in 1884 according to the Indiana Archives and Records Administration's Digital Archives. The data extraction of the document can be found here. Amelia and Gustav were automatically granted citizenship as a result. Information on why can be found here.

1886

Death - Ferdinand KRAUSE
I found a Ferdinand KRAUSE tombstone in Concordia Lutheran Cemetery at the corner of Washington Boulevard and Maumee Avenue. I believe it is my Ferdinand, but would like to locate burial records or an obituary to verify. 

1890

Census

I know for a fact that the 1890 census for our local area was destroyed in the Great Records Fire of 1921. As far as I know, Ferdinand's family was in this area of Indiana at this time. 

1896

Marriage - Amelia KRAUSE

After finding the 1900 census for Amelia and her children, I found the marriage license for Amelia KRAUSE nee WOLF to William STAHLHUT on the 16th of January (also written Jany twice on the page). Her name is listed four times on the document. 3 times written by the clerk of the Allen Circuit Court Henry M. Metzger as Amelia Krause, and once by the pastor, H. G. Sauer, as Emily Krause. I also learned that, at least in Indiana 1896, marriage applicants were not required to sign their names. They were deposed as to the veracity of the information by a court clerk who signed on their behalf.

If the Ferdinand buried in Concordia Lutheran Cemetery is Amelia's first husband and the father of her children, I wonder what she did to survive, taking care of her very young children for the 10 years between his death and her marriage to William.

1900

Census - the children of Ferdinand and Amelia KRAUSE

At the time I found the KRAUSE 1900 census, I did not know the names of my 2nd great grandparents. So I searched for Gustav and found them in the household of stepfather, William STAHLHUT. KRAUSE members are bold, STAHLHUT are underlined.

• William: born May of 1857, age 43. Married to Amelia for 4 years. Born in Germany, Father born in Germany, Mother born in Germany. He immigrated in 1887 and had been in the US for 13 years. Upon researching the 1900 Census instructions, I learned that the "Al" in the third Citizenship column meant that he had taken no steps towards citizenship, therefore classified as an alien. He was a Teamster who could Read, Write, Speak English and Owned his own home with no mortgage.
• Amelia ("Great-Great-Grams"): born Aug of 1853, age 46. Married to William for 4 years, mother to 6 children, 5 of whom are living. Born in Germany, Father born in Germany, Mother born in Germany. Citizenship in 1883, in US 17 years. No occupation. Can Read, Write. Cannot Speak English.
• Gustave ("Uncle Gus"): born Sep of 1880, age 19. Born in Germany, Father born in Germany, Mother born in Germany. Citizenship in 1883, in US 17 years. Day Laborer, Months unemployed 0. Can Read, Write, Speak English.
• Max: born Mar of 1883, age 17. Born in Indiana, Father born in Germany, Mother born in Germany. Day Laborer, Months unemployed 6. Can Read, Can Write, Can Speak English.
• Charles (Great Grandfather): born Oct 1884, age 15. Born in Indiana, Father born in Germany, Mother born in Germany. Day Laborer, Months unemployed 7. Can Read, Write, Speak English.
• Bertha ("the Bible-Maimer"): born Oct 1885, age 14. Born in Indiana, Father born in Germany, Mother born in Germany. At School. Can Read, Can Write, Can Speak English.
• Sophia and Lizzie: born Dec 1888, age 11. Twins Born in Indiana to German born parents. Can Read, Write, Speak English.
• William (Jr?):  born Apr 1891, age 9, in Indiana to German born parents. Remaining columns erased.
• Ernest: born Apr 1893, age 7, in Indiana to German born parents. Remaining columns erased.

I gained a lot of information from this one document by coupling what I already knew.

1. Gasp! Great-Great-Grandpa Ferdinand died sometime between January 1885 and December 1895.
1. Ferdinand's presence was required for Bertha's conception about January 1885. Birth does not require the father's presence. If Bertha was not full term, Ferdinand may have been alive longer than January. No way to determine term length.
2. I cannot imagine divorce due to the historical culture that would have built Amelia. Also, there is no census available for this Ferdinand. There is a couple named Ferdinand and Amelia KRAUSE in Wisconsin, but that is a different couple altogether.
3. Amelia married William in January 1896. As a widow, Amelia could have married William at any moment after Ferdinand's death. 
2. There are missing children of Amelia's.
1. In the census, the four KRAUSE children I knew of are present, but in the columns denoting motherhood, Amelia says she is the mother of 6, 5 which are living.
2. There are four STAHLHUT children. If she was claiming them along with her own, it would list 8 children, 7 living. The STAHLHUT children were all born prior to her marriage to their father. Improbable to think she is mother to any of them, but not impossible. Need more research in this matter.
3. This was probably a Marriage of Convenience.
1. Gus was about 15 when Amelia married William. He could not have afforded to provide for his mother and his younger 3 siblings.
2. Young Ernest STAHLHUT was about 3 when the couple married. It is probable that William saw Amelia as a capable mother to care for his children while he worked.
4. That was a crazy, crazy house to live in at 135 Cochrane St, Wayne Township, Allen County, Fort Wayne, Indiana.
5. Understanding the census records and truly gleaning as much as possible from them about your ancestors is crucial to reading them. Specific codes were used in the tiny columns, and instructions changed from year to year. Find Census Instructions By Year Here.

1903

Divorce - Amelia
Someone on FamilySearch noted a find in the Fort Wayne Daily News from Fort Wayne, Indiana. Published on 12 Mar 1903:

"court issued an order restraining William Stahlhut from drawing money from the White National Bank or his wages from Frederick Bull, pending the hearing of divorce proceedings instituted by his wife, Emelie Stahlhut."

I would like to add this to the list of documents to find when I go to the library next time.

1906

Marriage - Gustav KRAUSE

After finding a 1910 Census listing a Gus KRAUSE married in Indianapolis to Christena, I adjusted FamilySearch searches and came across someone else's "Gus" named August Charles KRAUSS, married to "Tena Piercefield" named Christena PIERCEFIELD on 10 Jul 1906, in Marion, Indiana. There are four sources attached to this marriage. The images of these four records must be accessed through an LDS Library or Affiliated Library Location. To access an LDS Library, one must be a member of the LDS Church, and there is not one in Fort Wayne anyway.The closest Affiliated Library Locations are the Fort Wayne Indiana Family History Center on St. Joe Rd. or the Main Branch of the Allen County Public Library. Need to access.

According to the various extractions of data on the four sources, the groom's father is named Ferdinand KRAUSE, Ferd KRAUSE, or Ferd KRAUSS. Groom's mother is unlisted in extracted data on one source; the others list her as Christina WOFF, or just plain WOLFE. From other sources including marriage certificates of the KRAUSE children, my Gus' mother's name is Emilie, Emily, Amelia, or Melia, surname WOLF. Could this "Gus" also be my Gus? I haven't seen any reason why my Gus's mother would have been known as Christina. She's always been known as a variant of Amelia or Emily. Same family or no?

1910

Census

Amelia is once again using the surname KRAUSE. The census claims she is 65, but 10 years prior she was 46. She lives in a house that she owns with a mortgage on Herbert Street, but the house number is tough to make out. Herbert Street is in the same general area as Cochrane Street. I know that this is my Amelia because she lives with her younger two sons, Max and Charles.

• Amelia, 65 (should be 55-56, probably had a thick accent that was misunderstood). Widowed. Mother of 4, 4 living (different from previous census). Immigrated: 1883, Naturalized. Cannot read or write, Can speak English (reversal of skills from previous census).
• Max, 28. Single. Born in Indiana to German born father and mother. Can Read, Write, Speak English. Occupation is Repair in the Automobile industry and spent 17 weeks of 1909 unemployed.
• Charles, 24. Single. Born in Indiana to German born father and mother. Can Read, Write, Speak English. Occupation is Laborer as Contractor and spent 44 weeks of 1909 unemployed.

Between noting neighbors and the addresses, I found that Amelia and her sons lived at 1227 Herbert Street until her death and Max bought the land next door (1108) and possibly was still the owner of the house, renting it out to other families. For many years, the family of August WOLF lived at 1145 Canal Street, around the corner to 1227 Herbert Street. I don't know if August is related to Amelia, but I'm looking into it.

Gustav, Christena, Ruth: May or may not be my Uncle Gus, but a lot of the information lines up, particularly when you follow Ruth's life and the information she gives in her documents about Gustav. The following is the household:

• Gustav: Age 27, married 4 years. Born in Germany to German born parents. Immigrated in 1883 and is a naturalized citizen. Speaks English. Repair man for Auto Company. Can Read, Can Write. Rents home at 208 Tacoma Ave, in Center Township, Marion County, Indianapolis City, Indiana.
• Christina: Age 28, married 4 years. Born in Indiana to Indiana born parents. Speaks English with no occupation. 
• Ruth: Age 8. Born in Indiana to German-born Father and Indiana born mother. She attends school. Although it appears that Gustav is not her father, her later marriage certificate names him as such, despite marrying her mother 4 years after her birth. May be a case of legal adoption. Or some naughtiness. Need more research.

1916

Marriage - Catherine Bertha KRAUSE

Catherine married Carl Henry Braun in Michigan. She disappears from currently known records between 1900 census and marriage license. She marries at at 31-32 and they never have children. She the Bible-Maimer, remember? Not too interested in what happened to her. But I seriously feel sorry for Carl.

1920

Census

Melia, Max C., Chas. A.: Still at the house on Herbert Street, the neighbors at 1145 Canal Street, enumerated this time before the KRAUSE family, is still the August WOLF family. Now the house number is a little more legible, but appears to be 1227 or 1229 Herbert Street. Again, this house is the only one enumerated before moving down the next street, this time Cochrane. The parental information for the two sons is identical, both born in Indiana. It says their father spoke German and was born in Germany and their mother speaks German and was born in Prussia... Wait, that's struck through and the abbreviation Ger. sits above it. (See 1920 Instructions for more information.)

• Melia, age 64, widowed. Immigrated 1886, naturalized, but year unknown. Literally has a "?" in that column. Born in West Prussia with German as mother tongue. Her Father was born in Germany and spoke German. Her Mother was born in Germany and spoke German. She cannot speak English. She has no occupation.
• Max C., age 37, divorced. Occupation: Trade - Mechanic, Industry - Shop
• Chas A., age 36, single. Occupation: Trade - Repair man, Industry - Shop

Wait! Max was listed as single in 1910, now in 1920 he's divorced?? Need more information.

Gustav, Christena, Ruth: This family can't get their story straight. This appears to be the same family as found in the 1910 census, but information is completely different. Unless there is another family with the exact same names with similar ages in the same general locale? Something's hinky, man. The following is the household:

• Gustav: Age 42. Born in Germany to German born parents. Immigrated in 1878 and is a naturalized citizen, which happened in 1919. Speaks English. Now a Machinist at an Auto [something] Depot. Can Read, Can Write. Rents house on Front Street, in Jeffersonville Township, Clark County, Jeffersonville, Indiana. **Please note age for this man in 1910 was 27, immigration was 1883. 
• Christina: Age 36. Born in Indiana to Indiana born parents. Speaks English with no occupation. 
• Ruth: Age 18. Born in Indiana to Indiana born Father and Indiana born mother. She attends school. **Please note the difference in Father's place of birth from the previous 1910 census.

This is an interesting change in events. But it's 1930. I think I understand why Census records for German immigrants in the German Triangle are so confusing. I will share a blog post another time on ethnic bigotry and how it relates to genealogy research.

1921

Marriage - Ruth KRAUSE

After finding out my Gus may or may not have married Christena and may or may not have fathered/adopted a child, I went in search of this other KRAUSE branch. I stated previously that of the 4 KRAUSE children, it was rumored that Gus and Max never married and never had children. According to stories and sources, Catherine (and husband Carl) never had children. 

On 1 June 1921, Ruth married William JAMESON of Bonneville, Kentucky in Clark County, Indiana. On her side of the application, she provided the following: 

• Name: Ruth Krause
• Born: Columbus, Indiana on 18 Nov 1901
• Lives: Jeff Ind (presumed to be Jeffersonville, Indiana)
• Occupation: None
• Father: Gus Krause
• Born: Fort Wayne, Indiana
• Occupation: Auto Mechanic
• Lives: Jeff Ind (presumed to be Jeffersonville, Indiana)
• Mother: Christine Turncifield (?? handwriting is nearly unlegible)
• Occupation: Hwife (presumed to be Housewife)
• Born: Columbus Ind
• Lives: Jeff Ind (presumed to be Jeffersonville, Indiana)
• First Marriage: yes

Death - Christina PIERCEFIELD KRAUSE
Christina lived long enough to see her daughter marry, but dies later as a result of failed cancer removal surgery. Newspaper clipping from the Jeffersonville Star on 8 July 1921 notes that she is the wife of August Krause, although extracted and viewed data from other documents gives him the name of Gustave. It is possible that the newspaper was given the shortened name of Gus or Gust and assumed it was short for August.

1927

Death - Amelia KRAUSE

Using my county library's genealogy center website, I searched for the KRAUSE surname... and there's a lot of records! Pop had always told me that we have family in Lindenwood Cemetery, and I noticed records in that category. Amelia, known in this record as Emilie, is buried here, along with sons Max and Gustave C, in section K, lot 142. She died on 30 Aug 1927 at age 73 and 10 days. She was buried on the 2nd of September that year. The age calculation puts her birthday on 13 Aug 1854.

1930

Census Records

Max: Max now lives at 1108 Herbert Street with a woman listed as his aunt, named Bertha WOLF. She is listed as being aged 70. She could be Amelia's spinster sister or sister-in-law, but without a maiden name or any known WOLF siblings, it is unclear as to Bertha's exact relation to the family. At this point, I am led to believe that she is a spinster sister to Amelia. She is about the right age for that generation.

Gus: I specifically searched FSWT for Gus in the 1930 Census. Most had spouses and children that did not line up with my previous Gus information at all. I looked at the records for the Gus's that may have lined up, but upon deeper research, they were not my Gus either. The Census started on April 1st that year. By September, Gus seems to have been married to Anna PARENT (see below) here in Fort Wayne. It is possible Gus was missed as he was moving between the Indy area back to Fort Wayne.

Charles and Fam: Charles has married Ida DUHN, and lives at a home on Dodge Avenue. They have 3 sons, my Great Uncle Dutch (Charles), Great Uncle Dick (Richardson), and baby Kenneth, my grandfather. I've been in this house. (The youngest brother Ralph, not born until after this census, owned it when I met my biological paternal family. My father was supposed to inherit it as Ralph wished, but as Ralph had no will, his oldest brother sold the house and all the belongings, including tools belonging to my father.)

Bertha (Catherine B) and Carl: I found their census record as well. Poor Carl.

Marriage - Gustav KRAUSE

When I connected to 'my' Gus on FSWT, there was this wife listed that Pop responded to with "Uh No! Gus never married!" I replied, "That you know of."

On 23 Jun 1930, Gus married Anna PARENT, a machine operator of 3015 S. Clinton Street, Fort Wayne, Indiana. On his side of the application, he provided the following:

• Name: Gustave C. Krause
• Born: Fort Wayne, Indiana on 8 Sep 1882
• Lives: 503 Coombs Street, Fort Wayne, Indiana
• Occupation: Automobile Mechanic
• Father: Ferdinand Krause
• Born: Germany
• Status: Deceased
• Mother: Emilie Wolf
• Born: Germany
• Status: Deceased
• First Marriage: No
• Previous Ended: in Death, 1921

This appears to point to the veracity of this Gus being the same Gus married to Christena PIERCEFIELD. Gus now says he was born in Indiana rather than in Germany. This goes back to ethnic bigotry throughout the history of the United States. Gawd, we're awful people.

1931

Death - Anna PARENT

Nearly a year after Gus and Anna married, on 01 Jun 1931, Anna died.

1940

Census

Max: Max is still in his freely owned home at 1108 Herbert Street, approximately 10 years older, but now he lives with a housekeeper, aged 71, named Bertha WOOLF. This Bertha could be the same as 10 years prior, one of the ages being incorrectly transcribed, surname incorrectly spelled. This Bertha claims to have been born in Indiana. (More information changed due to bigotry and anti-German sentiments?) Both lived in the same house in 1935. Additional information needed. 

Gustav: Not found yet.

Bertha: Found.

Charles and Fam: Still living at the house on Dodge Avenue, added children Ralph, Rosalyn, and Barbara to the family. Also lived at this house in 1935.

1948

Death - Max KRAUSE

Max Conrad KRAUSE died in Fort Wayne, 23 Feb 1948, buried next to his mother in Lindenwood Cemetery, aged 66y 11m 13d. Using the same date calculator I used for Gustav, this record puts Max's birth on 10 Mar 1881. According to the coroner's report from data extract found at the Genealogy Center, Max died from acute myocardial failure after chronic myocarditis.

1953

Death - Charles KRAUSE

Charles wasn't known as Grandpa to his grandchildren. They called him "Pop Krause". He died in 1953 according to my Pop's recollections and information provided by my uncles.

Marriage - Gustave KRAUSE

Another Gustav C. KRAUSE appears to have married a woman named Mina Elsesta Freeland nee Martin. The man's death date is identical to my Gus, but no other information available. The user who added the information as well as a photo of Gustav posted that Mina is his grandmother, so I have sent a message to him asking if he has more information.

UPDATE: Marriage to Mina. Talked with Mina's grandson and in his research he found that they may not have married after all; possibly just really good friends. Need more research to get a better picture of who Gustave was.

1955

Death - Mina Elsesta MARTIN FREELAND KRAUSE

Information provided to FSWT by same grandson, but no sources attached.

1956

Death - Gustave KRAUSE

12 Dec 1956

Using the burial information found at the ACPL Genealogy Center along with a date calculator, Gustave's age of 78 y 3m 4d, puts his date of birth on September 8, 1878. Now from all the previous evidence linking Gustav to other people throughout his life, I've seen his date of birth listed in so many different ways. The distrust of German Americans during his lifetime of government, reminds me of other times in history where a specific ethnic group has plenty of reason to fear governments and police. I don't know that we will ever truly know when he was born. Perhaps even he didn't know exactly.

1970

Death - Ida DUHN KRAUSE

1972

Death - Catherine Bertha KRAUSE BRAUN