Linnemann – LCD Genealogy Services

Elizabeth Barbara Nilkowski

Published on March 12, 2021February 23, 2021 by lauracubbagedraper

I have posted several pictures and stories of my female ancestors. Another of these strong women was my second great-grandmother Elisabeth Barbara Nilkowski, who was known as Barbara.

I don’t know too much (yet) about Barbara’s childhood. From her marriage record I have learned that she was born on 15 April 1865 in Alt Muensterberg which was at the time in West Prussia in Germany (that area is now in Poland). Her parents were recorded as Johan Nilkowski and Maria Schild.

On 4 November 1886, Barbara married Christian Fasel in Gelsenkirchen, Germany. Her first son, also named Christian, was born on 24 August 1887 in the same town. His birth record reported that his father, a miner, had died on 8 June 1887. Barbara was widowed at age 22, just a few months before her first child is born.

Sometime before January 1889, Barbara married Gerhard Linnemann. Over the next ten years they had six children: Gerhard Bernard (1889), Wilhelm Julius (1890), Rudolph (1893-1896), Georg Adolf (1895), Elisabeth Maria (1897), and Rudolph (1899-1901). Two of their sons (both named Rudolph) died as young children.

In August of 1904, Barbara traveled from Bremen to the America to meet her husband who had arrived in 1903. Barbara and her five children sailed for thirteen days on the SS Cassel to Baltimore. The family photo above apperas to have been taken shortly before their departure.

There are few records about the Linnemann family during their early years in the US. They spent time in West Virginia before settling in Monessen, a steel town south of Pittsburgh. By 1915, Barbara’s son William had moved to Chicago, and children George and Elisabeth had married.

Barbara with her daughter Elisabeth and grandchildren Agnes and Frank in Monessen, circa 1920.

In 1918, her husband Gerhard committed suicide while the family was out for a walk. This tragic event happened as two of her sons were serving in World War I, and just a few weeks after their second grandchild was born. Barbara had to endure yet another heartbreaking loss and was widowed again at age 53. The newspaper article stated that Gerhard had been injured in a coal mining accident several years earlier, and had “seemed irrational as a result” and would “take to spells of anger and brooding.”

Barbara stayed in Monessen and lived with her sons Christian and Gerhard, both of whom never married. A few years after her husband’s death, Barbara worked as a “steward” (probably a waitress) at the Turner Hall, a German social club in Monessen. Her son Christian worked as a steward there as well. On 30 July 1935, Barbara died in her sleep of a heart attack at her home on Second Street in Monessen. She was buried next to her husband in Grandview Cemetery.

Barbara was known as “Mem” to her daughter’s children. Below are a few snapshots of her from our family memorabilia. I have yet to find a picture of Barbara smiling, but thinking of her life and losses, she may have become a pretty tough woman.

Sources:

Gelsenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, Zivilstandsregister [Civil Register], Rudolph Linnemann (1893-1896) and Rudolph Linnemann (1899-1901); Institut für Stadtgeschichte, Gelsenkirchen, Germany, email from Norbert Silberbach.

Gelsenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, Geburtsregister [Births], no. 784, Christian Fasel (1887), no. 11, Gerhard Linnemann (1889), no. 1133, Wilhelm Linnemann (1890), no. 494, Georg Linnemann (1895), and no. 644, Elisabeth Linnemann (1897).

“Baltimore Passenger Lists, 1820-1964,” digital images, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com : accessed 19 December 2019), entry for Gerhard Linnemann, age 41, arrived 18 December 1903 aboard the Oldenburg from Bremen; citing National Archives microfilm publication T844, RG 85. This database has erroneously indexed Gerhard as Geheat.

“Baltimore Passenger Lists, 1820-1964,” digital images, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com : accessed 19 December 2019), entry for Elizabeth Linnemann, age 39, arrived 31 August 1904 aboard the Cassel from Bremen.

Pennsylvania Department of Health, certificate of death no. 69108 (1918), Gerherd Lenemann, Bureau of Vital Statistics, New Castle.

Pennsylvania Department of Health, certificate of death no. 67541 (1935), Barbara Elizabeth Linneman.

1920 U.S. census, Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, population schedule, Monessen Borough, Enumeration District (ED) 152, sheet 2-B, p. 147 (stamped), dwelling 22, family 38, Elizabeth Linneman household; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 22 May 2019), citing National Archives microfilm publication T625, roll 1666.

Gerhard Bernard (1889), Wilhelm Julius (1890), Rudolph (1893-1896), Georg Adolf (1895), Elisabeth Maria (1897), and Rudolph (1899-1901).

Wedding Wednesday – Frank Speck & Elizabeth Linneman

Published on January 15, 2020July 24, 2020 by lauracubbagedraper

1915 Speck-Linneman Marriage_0002

Frank Speck and Elizabeth Linneman, my great grandparents, were married on 18 January 1915 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. I found this marriage certificate for Frank and “Lizzie Lineman” in a file of old family pictures and memorabilia.

1915 Speck-Linneman Marriage

Marriage records for this time are available at the Allegheny County Courthouse and I was able to get a copy of their application for a marriage license at the Orphans’ Court.[1] This record provides some details about Frank and Elizabeth:

- Frank reported that he was born in Germany to Peter, deceased, and Agnes, who resided in Germany.
- He lived in Monessen and worked as a hotel clerk.
- He was 28 years old (born about 1887).
- “Lizzie” reported that she was born in Germany to Albert, a miner, and Elizabeth, who resided in West Virginia.
- She lived in Sprigg, West Virginia.
- She was 22 years old (born about 1893).

The above information confirms much of what I know about Frank and Elizabeth, yet there are still come conflicting details. Elizabeth reported that her father’s name was Albert, yet all other records name him as Gerhard Linneman. It is unclear at this time if it was a nickname for him or an error (maybe Frank provided the information to the Clerk).

Elizabeth also reported that she as 22 years old, conflicting with the June 1897 birth date found in her German birth record.[2] This means that Elizabeth was actually 17 years old when she married Frank.

Frank & Elizabeth Speck — Frank and Elizabeth Speck in 1915.

This marriage application also leaves a big question – how Frank and Elizabeth met each other if he lived in Monessen and she lived in Sprigg, which are about 300 miles apart! My current theory is that Frank knew her brother Christian. Around the time of their marriage, Frank worked as a bartender and a hotel clerk, and Christian also worked as a bartender, both in the Monessen/Greensburg area.[3]

1915 Speck-Linneman Marriage_0001

The Orphans’ Court record also included the marriage return, which stated that Frank and Elizabeth were married at St. Peter’s Church in Pittsburgh, signed by the Rector, Edward H. Ward.

untitled

I looked up St. Peter’s, which was an Episcopal Church in the Oakland neighborhood of Pittsburgh. Sadly, this beautiful church was torn down in 1986.[4] Since neither Frank and Elizabeth lived in Pittsburgh, it’s not likely that they were church members, but it still may be worth it to see if the Episcopal diocese has a marriage record as well.

cubbage heritage 4x6 - page 031_0001

This newspaper clipping was also found in the family memorabilia and I was able to locate it in The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette edition from 19 January 1915.[5]

Frank and Elizabeth settled in Monessen after they married and my grandmother Agnes was born just over nine months later on 26 September 1915.

Happy Anniversary Frank and Elizabeth!

SOURCES:

[1] Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Application for Marriage License and return no. 6374, 18 January 1915, Speck-Lineman; Office of Orphans’ Court Clerk, Pittsburgh.

[2] Gelsenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, Geburtsregister [Births], no. 644, Elisabeth Maria Linnemann (1897); Institut für Stadtgeschichte, Gelsenkirchen, Germany.

[3] Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, Court of Common Pleas, no. 3682, Christ Linneman, declaration of intention; Prothonotary’s Office, Greensburg.

[4] “St. Peter’s Episcopal Church (Pittsburgh),” Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Peter%27s_Episcopal_Church_(Pittsburgh) : accessed 6 January 2020).

[5] “Marriage Licenses,” The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (Pittsburgh, PA), 19 January 1915, p. 18, col. 7; digital image, Newspapers.com (http://www.newspapers.com : accessed 6 January 2020).

Sentimental Sunday – Corky’s Birthday!

Published on July 14, 2019July 8, 2019 by lauracubbagedraper

maybe Cork's birthday - summer 1945 or 1946

Someone had a birthday this weekend! Happy Birthday to my Dad. This is a picture from Corky’s 4th birthday party! Corky is boy on the left sitting in the front, sort of looking around another boy. His brother Jeff is being held by an unknown woman.

Corky’s father was still in Norfolk in the Navy at this time, so he and his brother Jeff, and his mother (Agnes Speck Cubbage) were living on Thelma Street on Pittsburgh’s North Side with Agnes’ mother (Elizabeth Linneman Speck Merz).

The photos were not labeled, so I wasn’t sure of Corky’s age or the year. I was able to zoom in on this picture and count the candles … four!! The birthday party was in the backyard of Elizabeth’s house and probably included other children from the neighborhood.

I love this picture of Agnes looking up while she cuts the birthday cake, surrounded by all of the kids.

Happy Birthday Day!

Tuesday’s Tip – Using a Draft Card to Identify a Man in a Photo

Published on June 11, 2019June 7, 2019 by lauracubbagedraper

Military records are an incredible resource that can help us learn about our ancestors. Enlistment, discharge, pension, and service records, plus muster-rolls, draft cards and others, can provide valuable biographic and personal information about our family.

Some military records may even provide a physical description of the person – height, weight, eye color, hair color – which can help to paint a picture of the ancestor in the absence of photos. Draft Registration Cards for Word War I and II both collected information about the physical description of the registrant.

copy 005266807_05955

My second great-uncle, William Arthur Speedy, registered for the draft in 1918 and was recorded as medium height and build with gray eyes and brown hair. During the registration for World War I, the registrant was also asked Has person lost arm, leg, hand, eye or is he obviously physically disqualified? (Specify). William’s card reads:

“Left index finger entirely gone, also 1^st + second joint of second finger left hand.”

Well now I have a better picture of what William looked like! I do have one photocopy of a picture of William, but his left hand is hidden.

These physical descriptions can be helpful in identifying unknown persons in our family photos. This picture is from my grandparents’ collection. Using other pictures, we easily identified the man sitting as Christian Linneman, my great grandmother’s Elisabeth’s brother. It was possible that the man standing was one of the other brothers, probably Gerhard or George since they lived in the same town (William had moved to Chicago).

Christian & maybe a brother

George Linneman, registered for the draft in 1942 with the following card and information:

5-A G. Linneman Draft Card 5-A G. Linneman Draft Card 2

Besides learning that he was 5’ 7” and 145 pounds with gray eyes and brown hair, it was noted that he had a

“Fractured Knee-cap” and “Crossed left eye.”

George’s crossed eye is noticeable in this picture (and others) and was the key in identifying him!

Christian & maybe a brother

Be sure to check out the physical features of your ancestors on the back side of the cards. Draft Registration Cards are accessible for free on the FamilySearch website, and at subscription sites Ancestry and Fold3.

Have you used records to identify an unknown person in a photo?

SOURCES:

“United States, World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918,” index and images, Ancestry.com (https://ancestry.com : accessed 4 June 2018), card for William Arthur Speedy, serial no. 2298, Local Draft Board No. 14, Swissvale, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania; citing World War I Selective Service System Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918, NARA microfilm publication M1509; imaged from Family History Library roll 1927074.

“United States, World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942,” index and images, Ancestry.com (https://ancestry.com : accessed 4 June 2018), card for George Linneman, serial no. 1783, Local Draft Board No. 10, Monessen, Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania; citing World War II Draft Cards (Fourth Registration) for the State of Pennsylvania, NARA microfilm publication M1951; National Archives at St. Louis; St. Louis, Missouri.

Treasure Chest Thursday – German Gesangbuch

Published on May 23, 2019May 20, 2019 by lauracubbagedraper

For those of you who know me, you know that Thursdays are my favorite day of the week – choir and handbell choir rehearsals! I love being a part of the thriving music program at our church. A few years ago, my parents gave me the most wonderful little book as a gift. It is a German Gesangbuch, or hymnal, that belonged to my great-grand uncle, Christian “Christ” Linnemann.

The first page is printed with “Ach bleib mit Deiner Gnade.” According to Google Translate, this means Oh stay with your grace.

Christ’s name is written on the back of the first page. The first two pages appear to have been repaired with some white tape that covers the end of his name and part of the next page. The following page is printed with “Widmung” which means dedication, but nothing is written on that page.

The Evangelisches Gesangbuch is a Protestant hymnal. This edition was published in 1897 in Dortmund, and reads for Rheinland and Wesfalen. Christ was born in the state of North Rhein-Westfalia, so it appears to be an edition from that area of Germany.

There is a table of contents which lists times of the Christian year (New Year, Sunday, Advent, Easter, Ascension, etc.) and page numbers with hymns. There are also sections for morning, midday and evening.

The hymnal’s binding is very tight, so I am careful not to open too far and damage it (see my earlier post on caring for a Family Bible).

Each hymn has the first verse with the music, and then the following verses without the music. At the end of the book is an index of composers (translated as song poet, which I LOVE!). I plucked out some of the hymns on the piano, but do not recognize any of them. They appear to be more chant-like (many of the composers were born in 1600s) and not the familiar Presbyterian hymns that I am used to singing.

Christian & Elizabeth Linneman — Christan Fasel Linnemann with his sister Elizabeth Linneman Speck, circa 1920.

Christian Linnemann was my great-grandmother’s oldest brother. He was born in 1887 in Gelsenkirchen, Germany as Christian Fasel. His father died shortly before he was born and his mother later married Gerhard Linnemann. Uncle Christ never married, and my father remembers him sitting quietly and reading his Bible, or maybe this Gesangbuch. His mother’s religion was Catholic on Christ’s birth record, but when his sister Elisabeth was born, she and her husband were both Protestant (Evangelishes). The Linnemann family came to America in 1904 when Christ was 16 years old.

I am so thankful to have this Gesangbuch. Do you have a special family heirloom that you treasure?