Conflict: Strand v. Strandt

 This week's prompt was "Conflict." I can think of no bigger conflict in my family tree than the court case of Carl Strand suing his parents William and Mary Strandt over ownership of the Strandt farm. Sources for this post come from a summary of the final case before the Michigan Supreme Court, personal remembrances from family members, newspaper articles, and city directories. This is by no means a complete story of the case. Hopefully that will come later with more information.

William Strandt and Mary Pulsipher were married June 8, 1898. The 1900 census finds them living in Watson Township with William's parents, Karl and Wilhelmina Strandt. Oldest child Eva is one year old. Carl and Ruth are born in Michigan. Youngest son Howard is born in 1909 in Illinois. Soon after though the family moves back to Michigan. The 1910 census finds the family living in Trowbridge Township. William's father Karl lives with them but William is listed as the Head of household. In 1920 the family is listed as living in Watson Township again. There are no addresses listed on any of these census records so I'm not exactly sure WHEN William and Mary came into possession of their farm. I DO know that the farm was given to William and Mary by Mary's uncle Charles Brownell. Charles was involved in the lumber trade and made a lot of money. He moved to Louisiana and was QUITE successful there. He'll get his own blog post one day. Here's a picture of the farm from the early 1900's. 

Here's a picture of William and Mary standing by the well.

Fast forward to 1926. William and Mary are living in Kalamazoo, Michigan with Carl and his wife Mildred. According to the Kalamazoo City Directory, William and Mary and son Howard are living at the same address as Carl and Mildred and their three children, Howard, Viola and Marylaine. Ruth has married, but she did graduate from Kalamazoo Central High School, so I'm guessing she may have lived with Carl and Mildred too? This surprised me as I didn't know the two families had previously lived together.

William and Mary go back to the farm. The Depression hits and everyone is facing financial hardships. William falls into debt and is in danger of losing his farm to the bank for failure to pay taxes and bills. A deal is struck with Carl and Mildred. Carl and Mildred will move in and take over the farm. William and Mary will move out. If William and Mary become unable to care for themselves they can move back to the farm.  An agreement was entered into on November 3, 1933. Carl took possession of the farm on February 1, 1934. Carl secured a loan of $2000 from a bank. He spent $1800 paying off the mortgage, liens, and back taxes. He spend the other $200 to make improvements to the farm. Putting up fences, fixed the roof, bought 2 cows and a manure spreader and made the farm workable again.  All parties agreed that Carl's hard work saved the farm from going under. However, William and Mary, who had agreed to move out, didn't, and therein lies the rub. 

On October 24, 1935 Carl filed suit to have William and Mary leave the house, as they had agreed. William and Mary, and Carl, Mildred and their now 5 children were all living in one small house. Each occupying different parts of the house. William and Mary's claim was that they needed help and support and couldn't live on their own. They filed a counter suit against Carl and Mildred. Carl had agreed that if his parents needed help they could return home, but they had never left in the first place, and the house was simply too small for all of them to live there peacefully. Carl and William argued over farming techniques and property. Supposedly Mary didn't help Mildred much with the housework. 

This is taken from the testimony.

We quote from the cross-examination of Carl Strandt:

" Q. Your parents have always treated you pretty nice, haven't they?

" A. I never had much complaint up until we moved down there.

" Q. The trouble is now that two families can't get along in that house?

" A. That is the foundation of it."

The court found in favor of William and Mary in the first trial. Carl and Mildred appealed and the case went to the Michigan Supreme Court.  The Supreme Court threw the case out, saying that neither party had proved their part. Even though neither side officially won, William and Mary DID move out of the farm after this case. During the trial, Carl's brother Howard and older sister Eva apparently sided with their parents and thought Carl should just let them live at the farm. Because of this, Carl grew mad at them and decided to stop talking to them. He never spoke to either one again, and forbid other family members to speak to William and Mary. From what I've heard though, other family members, including Mildred, DID speak to William and Mary after the case. Even visiting them. they just made sure not to tell Carl. ;)

When Carl passed away, Raymond Henrickson, husband to Carl and Mildred's daughter Viola bought the Strand farm. I believe one of Ray's sons owns the farm today. So, 100+ years later, the farm is still in the same family. 

This is a complicated story to tell. Every time I research the Strandts or find new family members I seem to get a few more pieces added to the puzzle. If you have anything to add, stories, comments, corrections, please comment below.

Thanks for reading!

PS. This is from the Strand family Bible. It contains hand written history of the Strand family, coming to America, and of the court case. It's very cool because this is first person testimony. I've tried to make the picture as big as I can so it can be read. The part about the court case is near the bottom. 

The Anderson and Henrickson connection to Immanuel Lutheran Church

 This week's writing prompt was "Groups." I thought I would write about the connection of the Anderson and Henrickson families to the Immanuel Lutheran Church of Allegan, Michigan. 

According to a pamphlet written to celebrate the 75th anniversary of Immanuel Evangelical Lutheran Church of Allegan, Michigan, in 1953, the Swedish settlers of what was then known as Abronia, Michigan met on August 4, 1878 to organize a "Swedish Lutheran Church."  Charles and Hulda Anderson were among the Swedish settlers present. In 1879 Charles and Hulda donated land to the church to be used as a cemetery. The deed was given on April 15, 1879.  On July 2, 1879  Charles and Hulda's daughter Malvina Olivia was the first person buried in the cemetery. In October of  1879 Hulda would give birth to another daughter who was also christened Malvina Christina. She would go on to marry George Henrickson.

Charles Anderson was one of the first trustees of the church. He served four terms as a church trustee. He served two terms as a Deacon, and 2 years as Sunday School Superintendent. In 1895 the church bought a Moline Organ for $75. I remember hearing a family story about how the organ was bought in Detroit and Charles and Hulda drove to Detroit in a horse and buggy wagon and brought the organ back to the church. Malvina was the first organist for the church. She played from 1895 to 1900. 1900 is the year she married George Henrickson. 

Charles passed away in 1915. That is the year that George and Malvina returned to Allegan, taking over the farm purchased by Charles and Hulda many years before. George and Malvina quickly became involved in the church. One of the first duties George took on was as church organist. He served as organist for many years. He was paid $52 a year. He also served as a Sunday School Superintendent.  He was often selected to attend church conferences in Detroit, Chicago and other places. George also served on a committee to raise funds for missionary work and aid overseas. He was a vital member of the leadership of the church. In later years when George got older and couldn't keep up as much, eldest daughter Selma took over and became quite active in the church. Following in the footsteps of both her parents she served as church organist for 15 years, from 1945-1959. She also worked with the Ladies Aid and the Missionary Society. 

The church played quite a large part in the lives of Charles and Hulda Anderson and George and Malvina Henrickson. And daughter Selma too. 

This is from the church secretary's book. If you look at lines 8, 13, 14, you'll see George Henrickson's name mentioned. Serving as Deacon, School Superintendent, organist and attendee to a conference. 

Another copy from the church secretary book from the end of 1929. Featuring a report by George Henrickson, Deacon. Also, reports by G. Henrickson as acting Treasurer. At the bottom is a report by Selma Anderson as Treasurer of the Ladies Home Foreign Ministries Society. 

The church played a major role in the lives of my great, great grandparents and my great grandparents. 

Leave any questions, comments, or your own personal stories relating to the Andersons or Henricksons below in the comments. Thanks for reading!

John Knach Conors

 For Father's Day weekend I decided to write about my 2x great grandfather on my Dad's side of the family. His side has been a bit harder to research. I haven't found as many records, and, the history is a bit more convoluted, as you'll see here.

John Knach was born March 28, 1863 is what is present day Poland. His sister Catherine was born the next year in Posen, Germany. Today, it's Poznan, Poland. Either way, the area that John and his family lived in is land which was fought over and went back and forth between Poland and Prussia/Germany. IT's no wonder that the father, Martin, decided to bring his family to America. 

Sometime in 1872 John, his father, 2 sisters, and brother came to Nobel County, Indiana. I haven't found them on a passenger list, but they all list Germany/Poland as their birth place. In 1873 John's sister Frances is born in Indiana. I haven't been able to figure out who John's mother was. On some of his records he lists an Emma Grice as his mother. But on other documents a Mary Ann is listed as his mother. I do know that his father was married twice. I found a note that said his father had a Polish wife and an American wife. That when the American wife died the Polish wife came over. I just haven't figured out which was which. 

On the 1880 census John lives in Green, Nobel County, Indiana with his father Martin, mother(step?) mother Mary Ann and siblings on a farm. John's father is listed as being born in Poland, as is John. 

In February of 1888 he marries Mary Viola Bellegraph. Mary is also from eastern Prussia. On October 8, 1889 Mary and John become parents to Anna Beulah Conor. Anna is my great grandmother who goes on to marry Frank Thompson. John and Mary are living in Grand Island, Nebraska. At some point they decided to leave Indiana and head to Nebraska. Also, John has changed his last name from Knach to Conor. I haven't been able to figure out why he did this, or when. Also, Conor is spelled different ways over the years. From Conor to Coners to O'Connor. One of the reasons I've run across is that when the family moved to Nebraska there was a large Irish Catholic population there and to fit in, John changed his last name. The Knach and Bellegraph families were both Catholic so this could be a possibility but no one really knows for sure. 

In 1892 a son is born to John and Mary in Michigan. In 1895 a daughter is born to them in Grand Island, Nebraska. The family has moved back again. 1902 finds the family back in Michigan again. My dad says he always heard that the reason the family came back to Michigan was because the barn burned down in a fire. I'm not sure if this is the first or second time they came back to Michigan. On the 1900 census John's profession is listed as Laborer, and his father's birth place is listed as Ireland! John was really trying to fit in, I guess.

The 1910 census finds John and Mary living in Hopkins, Michigan on a farm that is mortgaged. 8 of their 10 children are living with them. The 2 oldest daughters have moved out. On this census John lists Indiana as his father's birth place. 

On December 24, 1917, Mary files for divorce from John. She says there are 12 children in the family. Extreme Cruelty is the reason given. On June 12, 1918 the divorce was granted. John contested it. 

*interesting to note that my 2x great grandparents on my maternal side were also divorced in 1918/1919. Both times the wife filed and cited "cruelty" as the reason. Both cases were contested, but granted ultimately. 

On the 1920 census John is living on a farm he owns, but is mortgaged with 3 of his 4 youngest sons in Hopkins. He lists his, and both his parents' birth places as USA. 

I haven't been able to find John yet, in the 1930 census. He passes away September 7, 1938 in Michigan at the age of 75. Cause of death is listed as Uremia. Hyper trophy of the prostate with a urinary tract infection. 

I haven't been able to find any pictures of either John or Mary. So far. He definitely led an interesting life, completely reinventing himself and his family history on every census it seems. The ever changing information made it quite hard to tract him down. I spent hours looking for an Irish connection, and trying to find his birth certificate in Indiana at first. It wasn't until I found him connected to people with the last name of Knach/Knack/Knauch that I finally figured out his story. And I've still yet to figure out who is mother truly is, Emma or Mary Ann? His descendants seemed to have kept that alive as many of his sons spell the last name of Conor different ways. From Conor to Coner to Coners to even O'Connor. 

Life is never dull in the Conor household. 

Memorial Day

 Memorial Day was originally known as Decoration Day and honored the men and women who died while in service to their country. People would decorate the graves of the fallen soldiers with flags and flowers to remember and honor them. I remember my Grandma Henrickson telling me one year that she and the other ladies went to the cemetery to decorate the graves of the soldiers. I haven't found any direct ancestor who died while fighting for his country. I have found several ancestors who served their country. I'll highlight a few of them here.

David Bellingar, Mildred Strand's grandfather, served in the Civil War and fought for the Union. He served in the Michigan 19th Infantry, Company B. He enlisted August 11, 1862 and served until the end of the war. He mustered out in June 1865. He was wounded at Thompson's Station in Tennessee. He was shot in the left hip, knee, and hand. He was taken prisoner by the Confederacy, held for 5 days, and then exchanged in a prisoner exchange program. After 6 months recuperation he returned to fight and took part in the Siege of Atlanta and General Sherman's March to the Sea. When the War ended he received $30 per month as a Veteran's pension. He took part in every Memorial Day/Decoration program in Allegan, Michigan.

On my paternal side, my great granduncle Maximillan John Dobbratz served in World War I. He was the younger brother to my great grandmother Emilia Ashley. He served in the U.S. Army 7th Engineer Battalion. He enlisted November 11, 1917 and was discharged August 4, 1919. One of the activities of the 7th Engineers was to build a bridge across the Meuse River in France under German artillery fire.  Building this bridge was one of the keys to winning Europe. 

During World War II, my paternal grandmother Lois Thompson's younger brother, Orville Ashley served as a radio operator for the Army. On my maternal side, my grandfather Ray Henrickson's older brother, Sidney Henrickson, also enlisted in the US Army and served. 

Then there is also my maternal granduncle, Howard Strand. Howard is the older brother of my grandmother Viola Henrickson. Howard was a Colonel in the US Air Force and flew fighter jets in World War II and Korea. He had a very long and illustrious career. He'll get his own blog post one day. :)

I'm very proud of all my ancestors who have served in any capacity. 

Thompson beginnings

Riley Thompson is my 3x great grandfather. He was born July 3, 1828 in Onondaga County, New York.  I have no further information on him in New York. The first record I have of him in Michigan is the 1850 census. He is listed as living with James and Anna Allen. Also living with him is his brother Leonard Thompson, who is around 32 years of age. No relationship is given to James and Anna Allen. I don't know if Anna is their mother and James is a stepfather? Or, if James and Anna are simply a couple who employ Riley and Leonard. James and Anna are both listed as 59 years of age so definitely old enough to be parents. They could also be other relatives too. An aunt and uncle? Cousins? Who knows? Riley is listed as a laborer with $300 worth of real estate. On a side note, he lives 2 houses down from my 4x great grandfather, Oliver Bellingar and his son, David, my 3x great grandfather on my maternal side. :)

Sometime between 1850 and 1855 Riley marries Hannah Kent, also of Allegan. Their first son, Henry, is born in August of 1855. Their second son, Andrew, is born January 25, 1859. Andrew is my 2x great grandfather. 

On the 1860 census Riley is now listed as a farmer with real estate worth $2000, and personal worth of $100. He's involved in civic affairs as I find him listed variously as chief constable, or deputy constable in Allegan village during the 1860's. He registered for the Civil War draft, but I don't find any record of him serving. 

In 1866 his brother Leonard dies. I've found very little on Leonard. I know he married, but I can't find any record of him having children. Leonard seems to be a mystery.

The 1870 census finds Riley even more prosperous. He's now listed as a real estate agent with a real estate worth of $3000 and a personal worth of $3000. In 1873 his wife Hannah passes away.

in 1876 I found a newspaper article that mentions him and another man being jailed for a couple of hours because they decided to cheer for Samuel Tilden, who was running for President, at a parade that was meant to garner support for Rutherford B. Hayes. 

The 1880 census finds Riley as a laborer, living with this 2 sons. His father and mother are both listed as being born in Vermont, and he says he was born in NY. Being born in NY is always consistent with him.

The 1900 census is interesting. Riley is now married to a woman named Mary. They were married in 1884. Occupation is Day Laborer. He lists his mother and father as being born in NY now.  He can read and write, lives in a House, and owns it. He lives in Allegan.

His second wife Mary dies in 1906. Riley dies in 1908. I found an obituary for him. It states that he was once a wealthy and prosperous man, but the evils of drink got to him and ruined him. He lived with his son Andrew and his family at the time of his death. Cause of death was listed as Uremia, which happens when the kidneys can't filter anymore. He was 80 years old. On his death certificate, which was filled out by Andrew, it lists him as the father of 4 children, of whom 2 were still alive. His father's name is listed as Allen Thompson and mother's name was first listed as unknown, but then written as Mary. 

Crime and Punishment of George Remus

 This week's theme is "Crime and Punishment." In researching, I've only found a few instances of ancestors being jailed. George Henrickson's father reportedly had minor run-ins with the local authorities in Sweden. My 3x great grandfather, Riley Thompson, was once jailed for a few hours because he cheered for Samuel Tilden at a rally for Rutherford B. Hayes. There is one ancestor, though, who most definitely committed a crime, and then got away with very little punishment.

George Remus was born in Germany around 1878. At the age of about 5 he traveled to America with his mother and sisters. His father had already come to America to find work. The family eventually settled in Chicago. George's mother was Marie Remus, maiden name of Karg. My great, great grandmother was Ottelia Karg, younger sister of Marie. George Remus was my great grandmother Emilia Ashley's first cousin. 

George was a smart kid, and with help from his uncle George Karg became a pharmacist at the age of  19. He later bought the pharmacy, and then another one. He was very successful at it, but he grew tired of it. He attended law school at night and then became a lawyer. He worked as a defense attorney, and was also very successful at that. He was one of the first defense attorneys to use the "temporary insanity" defense. After successfully defending a client with that defense he became very well known. When prohibition started, he noticed his clients were becoming rich while bootlegging alcohol. George found a loophole in the Volstead Act. Alcohol was permitted for medicinal purposes. Using his pharmacy knowledge, he obtained government licenses to make whiskey, for medicinal purposes. Then, he would hijack his own trucks and sell the whisky illegally. He based his whiskey operations in Cincinnati, Ohio. It was said that any whiskey sold East of the Mississippi during Prohibition came from George Remus. Time Magazine called him "King of the Bootleggers." 

During this time George left his first wife, Lillian, and daughter, and ran off with Imogene Holmes and her daughter, Ruth. During Prohibition George and Imogene bought a fancy house, threw lavish parties, and gave diamonds and cars away during parties to guests. There are rumors that George Remus was the main inspiration for F. Scott Fitzgerald's literary character, Jay Gatsby. 

All of this fame and fortune naturally drew the attention of the government. The FBI investigated and the government finally had enough evidence on George to bring him to trial. He was sentenced to 2 years in the Federal Penitentiary in Atlanta, Georgia for violating the Volstead Act. While there, George confided in an inmate that his wife Imogene had complete control of his money. The inmate was an undercover FBI agent who was there to gather more information on George. Instead, the agent, Franklin Dodge, quit his job and began his own affair with Imogene, while George was still in prison. Franklin and Imogene liquidated all of George's assets. They sold paintings and furnishings, cars and jewelry. Cleaned out bank accounts. They left George penniless. They also tried to get him deported, by saying he had never become an American citizen. They also hired a Hit Man to kill George, but the Hit Man didn't follow through as he feared retribution. Needless to say, when George was released from prison and saw what Franklin and Imogene had done, he was not happy. 

George filed for divorce from Imogene. On the morning the divorce was to be finalized, George saw Imogene get into a taxi at her hotel to go to the courthouse. George instructed his driver to follow her. He had his driver run the taxi driver off the road. When the taxi stopped, Imogene got out of the car and ran through a park. George followed her. He caught up to her, pulled a handgun out, and shot her in the stomach. This was in public, with many witnesses. Imogene, along with her daughter, got to a hospital but she later died from her injuries. George turned himself into the police and admitted he had shot Imogene, but claimed he was temporarily insane at the time. He had not been himself, and therefore, innocent. 

The case came to trial and was covered in papers all around the country. Everyone knew who George Remus was. He had shot his wife in public and was now claiming temporary insanity. George had even decided to defend himself and serve as his own attorney.  Prosecuting the case was the son of ex-President William Howard Taft, who was now on the Supreme Court. George's first wife and daughter, who he had abandoned, came to his defense. Imogene's daughter, Ruth, was one of the few to testify against him. After a month long trial the jury returned a verdict in 19 minutes......Not Guilty by reason of temporary insanity. The jury even wanted the judge to let Remus spend Christmas at his house. 

George was sentenced to an insane asylum in Ohio, but he was let go after only 7 months. He tried to find his money that Imogene had taken but was never able to recover any of it. He ended up living the rest of his life quietly in Cincinnati. He passed away after suffering a stroke at the age of 73, in 1952. 

George Remus was mentioned in the Prohibition documentary by Ken Burns. He was a character on the HBO series Boardwalk Empire. There was also a wonderful book written by Karen Abbott about the murder case called The Ghosts of Eden Park.

George Remus is my first cousin, 3x removed.  On my father's side of the family. Through my Grandma Lois Ashley Thompson.

Teacher Appreciation

 In honor of Teacher Appreciation Day on May 4, 2021, I thought I'd write about a few ancestors who were teachers. I've found many relatives on both sides of the family tree who were teachers. The teaching profession seems to be well represented on the Strand branch of the tree.

Going back, Mildred Bellinger Strand worked as a teacher before marrying Carl Strand in July 1920. I haven't been able to find her in the 1920 census, but according to the marriage record, she lived in Otsego and worked as a school teacher. She didn't live with her parents as I found them separately. 

Everyone I've talked to about Mildred has always said she highly valued an education and learning. She loved to read and always kept learning about new things all her life.

Going back another generation we find Carl Strand's mother, Mary Pulispher. Mary also worked as a teacher before marrying William Strandt. Mary was also a lifelong learner. I found this article about her going back to college in her later years.

The article is dated July 21, 1941. I think it's very cool that Mary decided to take college classes at the age of 61.

Also mentioned in that article is Mary's daughter, Eva. Eva was the oldest child of William and Mary Strandt. She was also Carl Strand's older sister. She also worked as a teacher. She taught for many years. Her teaching career was mentioned in her obituary. 

These are just a few examples I've found of teachers in the family. Teaching, and a good education, seem to be a family trait. 

Mildred Bellinger Strand

Mary Pulsipher Strand

Eva Strandt Kiser, holding the horse.