FETTIG CONNECTIONS
Editor: Len K. Fettig
Table of Contents
- Issue 1, May, 1999
- Issue 2, Oct, 1999
- Issue 3, May, 2000
- Issue 4, Oct, 2000
- Issue 5, May, 2001
- Issue 6, Nov, 2001
- Issue 7, May, 2002
Greetings:
This issue of Fettig Connections continues the process of examining the various European locations where Fettig's have lived. I hope you enjoy reading about the various branches of the Fettig family tree.
Some readers might be wondering how it is possible to deliver the level of detailed information that appears in each issue of this newsletter.
There are really three key points that will help to clarify this process. First, I began my research efforts in 1989 and I have accumulated a large collection of information that was carefully extracted from German church records. So there was an inventory of publishable material on hand, at the time this publication began.
Secondly, I have built a network of reliable researchers and we are able to exchange data with confidence in the quality of the documentation. Without adequate documentation of the information, then a researcher's conclusions can become suspect. Over the years, I have seen many people who have managed to link totally unrelated individuals together. The legitimate researchers will cautiously approach new contacts to ensure that they can rely upon the careful documentation of the other's data. My network of researchers have been very generous in their sharing of data. I try to recognize their contributions in this newsletter.
Third, the explosive growth of the Internet has created a huge data depository that can be easily searched. I regularly seek out newly published
information sources on the Internet. This months FOCUS ON… column was the result of just such a search. However, just because information is published on the Internet does not make it accurate information. The vast majority of the people who utilize the genealogy message boards, for example, are asking if someone else has already done their ancestral research. But the Internet is still an enormously valuable tool for genealogy and the trends show that the interest in genealogy is growing dramatically in part because one can do so much work right from their home.
In coming issues of this newsletter, I will have to rely more heavily upon my network of researchers and other interested parties (such as yourself) for topical subjects for this publication. Fortunately, new contacts always seem to be surfacing.
Len Fettig, Editor
The Geography Shaping our Past
The Saarland area of Germany is in the western-most portion of the country
and it is at about the mid-point on a north to south line. The boundary between Germany and France follows the Rhine River north from Switzerland until it reaches the Lauter River. Then the border follows the Lauter River west toward Luxembourg. See the accompanying maps for more detailed information on this area.
Since travel was most easily done by waterway, then it is easy to see how people could travel the 80 to 120 km from the Fettig cluster in Baden near Steinmauern, Germany to the Saarland cluster of Fettigs near Berus. In both of these clusters, Fettigs lived on both sides of the France/Germany border.
We do not know if the Fettig's from Saarland are related to the Fettig's from Baden. But we are continuing to research all branches of the Fettig family tree, under the reasonable assumption that there is a common ancestry.
Maps
One popular Internet map site is www.mapquest.com. I have used several maps from that site to document the subject areas of this newsletter. However, those maps are rather difficult to use, in part because they don't distinguish between large population centers and much smaller towns. For this newsletter I have also included a reproduction of a map that I use for my own research. The Mair Company produces these maps. If you would like a better way to follow the places named in this newsletter, then purchasing a set of maps could help. I prefer maps with a scale of 1:200,000 - which means that one-centimeter on the map equals 2 kilometers. This level of detail will include all of the very small towns and villages where our Fettig ancestors lived.
For the email version of this newsletter, there are four maps that support the narrative portion of this newsletter. The size of some of the files is over 100KB and your email provider may not handle files of that size. If you have difficulty obtaining copies of the maps, let me know and I will try other avenues to get the material to you.
FOCUS ON…
Fetique - Fetick - Fettig
This issue of Fettig Connections examines a group of Fettigs from the Saarland area of Germany. This branch of the Fettig tree has been traced back to about 1635.
I discovered the research done on this branch by Norbert Emanuel while searching the Internet. Mr. Emanuel belongs to the local history society in his native region of Saarland. Members of the society were encouraged to organize and to combine their individual research so that others might have access to the information. Several years ago, I purchased a copy of Mr. Emanuel's work (Saarländische Familienkunde, Fetique - Fetick - Fettig von Norbert Emanuel, c. 1986) from the Saarland society.
A few members of the Saarland Fettigs are listed in the International Genealogical Index (IGI) with locations of Bisten and Uberherrn, Germany. Mr. Emanual's work links the fragments that are contained in the IGI with much more detailed research. The towns that figure prominently in this family grouping include communities on both sides of the France/Germany border. An attached map provides more details of the proximity of each of these communities.
In other geographic areas, the Fettig surname has only two or three spelling variations. However, the Saarland branch has had nearly 30 different ways to spell our surname. The surname variations found in the Saarland Fettig's include:
Fättick, Fédick, Feddick, Fedisch, Fetiege, Fetdick, Fetic, Feticq, Fetig, Fettic, Fettig, Fettique, Fetik, Fetick, Fétique, Fetiq, Fetiqs, Fettich, Fettisch, Fettick, Fétick, Fitig, Fitigs, Fitiqs, Foetick, Foetik, Fötik, Petit, and Vettique.
While almost all of the spelling variations listed above have died out, fellow researcher Don Gentner has documented a group of Fedick/Feddicks who immigrated to the Buffalo, New York area in 1836. These Fedick/Feddicks are descended from the Saarland Fettigs. See also http://homepages.rootsweb.com/~gentner/
An examination of surnames from the German phone book (www.teleauskunft.de) shows the following surnames are still in use in Germany, the number of occurrences of each surname and whether the people are likely to be descendents of the Saarland Fettigs. Fédick (27) (Saarland) Fedisch (13) (unknown) Fetic (25) (not Saarland) Fetik (15) (Saarland) Fetick (15) (Saarland) Fétique (1) (unknown) Fétick (14) Fettich (51) (not Saarland) Fettig () (various)
It is interesting that the Feddick spelling is no longer present in Germany, but the name is present in the US. In addition to the Feddicks in New York, there are also Feddicks in Wisconsin. Researchers have thus far been unable to trace the Wisconsin Feddicks back to their German roots.
In 1785 a family of Fettigs from Saarland group immigrated to an area in Hungary (now Romania). Some descendents of that family continue to live in Romania, others have returned to Germany. Descendents of this group have lived in Nitzkydorf, Moritzfeld, Detta, Bukarest and Birda. The Fettig surname for this group is spelled both Fetich and Fettich. But there are all descendents of the Saarland Fettigs. Thanks to Hedwig Fettich-Mohr for her contributions to this research effort.
In addition, I have information on a group of Fedick/Fedik's who emigrated from Hungary to the South Bend, Indiana area around 1901. Unfortunately, I have not been able to contact the researcher who has been working on this group - his email address has changed. This group later moved to Star Junction, Pennsylvania and then to Bedford, Ohio. While I suspect that this group is related to the Fettigs who went to Hungary, more research needs to occur before that assumption can be proven.
Because of space limitations, only the first three generations of this family group will be listed here.
The Saarland Fettigs
1.Nikolaus FETTIG b: Abt. 1635 d: February 03, 1694 in France, Moselle, Creutzwald
.+Marie ANTHOINE b: Abt. 1635 m: Abt. 1660 d: 1687
..... 2 Johann FETTIG b: Abt. 1665 in France,Moselle d: 1722
.........+Barbara CLANCHE b: Abt. 1669 m: Abt. 1685 d: June 18, 1726 in France, Lachambre
............ 3 Anna Christine FETTIG b: March 23, 1688
................+Dominik NERENBURIG b: Abt. 1685 m: October 06, 1716 in France, Moselle, Lachambre
............ 3 Anna Barbara FETTIG b: August 04, 1690 in France, Moselle, Lachambre
............ 3 Marie FETTIG b: February 27, 1693 in France,Moselle, Lachambre
................+Peter LARDINOIS b: Abt. 1690 m: November 17, 1716 in France, Moselle, Lachambre
............ 3 Christine FETTIG b: Abt. 1694
................+Dominique REVENBOURIG b: Abt. 1690 in France m: October 06, 1716 in France,Moselle,Lachambre
............ 3 Dominik FETTIG b: February 25, 1699 in France, Moselle, Lachambre d: August 22, 1778 in France,Moselle,Val-de-Gueblange
................+Marie-Jeanne b: Abt. 1700 m: August 22, 1778 in France, Moselle, Val-de-Gueblange d: 1781
............ 3 Catharina FETTIG b: Abt. 1700 in France,Moselle,Lachambre
................+Johann TAILLEUR b: Abt. 1700 m: May 05, 1722 in France, Moselle, Lachambre
............ 3 Johanna FETTIG b: August 28, 1701 in France, Moselle, Lachambre
............ 3 Anna FETTIG b: October 07, 1704 in France,Moselle,Lachambre
............ 3 Jean FETTIG b: April 05, 1707 in France,Moselle,Lachambre d: December 22, 1789 in France,Moselle,Steinbach
................+Catherine SIMONEAUX b: 1711 in France m: July 04, 1730 in France, Moselle, Kappelkinger d: 1769 in France
............ 3 Susanna FETTIG b: January 12, 1710 in France, Moselle, Lachambre
............ 3 Mathias FETTIG b: August 28, 1711 in France, Moselle, Lachambre
..... 2 Claudia FETTIG b: 1660 in France, Moselle d: January 05, 1730 in France, Moselle, Wilhelmsbrunn
.........+Abraham ZANDRE b: Abt. 1655 m: August 19, 1685 in France, Moselle, Wilhelmsbrunn d: September 10, 1716
..... 2 Nikolaus FETTIG b: Abt. 1661 d: January 17, 1729 in France, Moselle, Wilhelmsbrunn
......... +Anna Magdelena SAINT GENENT b: 1663 m: February 05, 1692 in France, Moselle,Creutzwald d: January 17, 1729 in France, Moselle, Wilhelmsbrunn
............ 3 Gregor FETTIG b: May 04, 1693 in France,Moselle,Wilhelmsbrunn
............ 3 Andreas FETTIG b: April 15, 1695 in France, Moselle, Wilhelmsbrunn
........... 3 Johann FETTIG b: Abt. 1697 in France,Moselle,Wilhelmsbrunn d: September 18, 1723 in France,Moselle,Wilhelmsbrunn
............ 3 Barbara FETTIG b: Abt. 1700 in France,Moselle,Wilhelmsbrunn d: September 12, 1761 in France,Moselle,Wilhelmsbrunn
................+Michael MEYER b: Abt. 1700 in France,Moselle,Wilhelmsbrunn m: February 03, 1723 in France,Moselle,Creutzwald
..... 2 Anna Catharina FETTIG b: Abt. 1663 d: January 1726 in France, Moselle, Lorraine, Coume
.........+Peter BOMMERSBACH b: Abt. 1660 m: September 14, 1687 in France, Moselle d: January 09, 1722 in France,Moselle,Lorraine
............ 3 Anne BOMMERSBACH b: Abt. 1690
............ 3 Barbe BOMMERSBACH b: Abt. 1690 d: 1704 in France, Moselle, Lorraine
............ 3 Christmann BOMMERSBACH b: April 05, 1693 in France, Moselle, Lorraine d: December 20, 1718 in France, Moselle, Lorraine
............ 3 Jean BOMMERSBACH b: 1694 in France,Moselle,Lorraine d: 1744 in France,Moselle,Lorraine
............ 3 Marie BOMMERSBACH b: 1694 in France,Moselle,Lorraine d: February 17, 1723 in France,Moselle,Lorraine
............ 3 Marie Catherine BOMMERSBACH b: Abt. 1695 d: September 19, 1695 in France,Moselle,Lorraine
............ 3 Nicolaus BOMMERSBACH b: Abt. 1696 in France, Moselle, Lorraine
............ 3 Nicolaus BOMMERSBACH b: March 23, 1697
............ 3 Pierre BOMMERSBACH b: September 24, 1687 in France, Moselle, Lorraine d: October 10, 1701 in France,Moselle,Lorraine
..... 2 Jean Pierre FETTIG b: 1671 in France,Moselle,Coume
.........+Anna BONHOMME b: Abt. 1670 in France,Moselle,Coume m: February 18, 1691 in France,Moselle,Creutzwald d: March 22, 1748 in Germany, Saarland, Uberherrn
............ 3 Johann FETTIG b: May 26, 1695 in France,Moselle,Coume d: March 15, 1700 in France,Moselle,Coume
............ 3 Ludwig FETTIG b: December 04, 1697 in France, Moselle, Coume d: March 27, 1743 in Germany, Saarland, Uberherrn
................+Anna Maria FISCHER b: February 20, 1701 in Germany, Saarland, Uberherrn m: Abt. 1720
............ 3 August FETTIG b: October 05, 1700 in France,Moselle,Coume
............ 3 Johann Nikolaus FETTIG b: July 18, 1702 in France, Moselle, Coume d: Bef. 1748 in Germany,Saarland,Bisten
................+Angela FISCHER b: February 24, 1705 in Germany, Saarland, Uberherrn m: Abt. 1726 in Germany,Saarland,Bisten d: March 19, 1748 in Germany,Saarland,Uberherrn
............ 3 Peter FETTIG b: April 10, 1708 in France,Moselle,Coume d: April 25, 1708 in France,Moselle,Coume
............ 3 Johann Jodocus FETTIG b: June 22, 1709 in France, Moselle, Coume d: September 28, 1709 in France,Moselle,Coume
............ 3 Johann Adam FETTIG b: October 25, 1710 in France, Moselle, Coume d: Bef. November 22, 1763
................+Margaretha BRULLARD b: July 22, 1712 in Germany, Saarland, , Wadgassen m: Abt. 1735 d: April 15, 1773 in Germany, Saarland, Bisten
............ 3 Margaretha FETTIG b: Abt. 1712 in France,Moselle,Coume
............ 3 Peter FETTIG b: December 11, 1714 in Germany, Saarland, Uberherrn d: December 26, 1782 in Germany,Saarland,Uberherrn
................+Catharina HART b: Abt. 1715 in Germany,Saarland,Uberherrn m: November 14, 1736 in Germany,Saarland,Bisten d: October 14, 1771 in
Germany,Saarland,Uberherrn
............ *2nd Wife of Peter FETTIG:
................+Magdelena LOTTER b: Abt. 1715 m: Aft. 1771 d: 1781
............ 3 Johann FETTIG b: September 06, 1716 in Germany, Saarland, Uberherrn
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Which way to Fettig Street?
About a year ago, I discovered Pfarrer Fettig Straß (the English-language equivalent to Father Fettig Street) located in the town of Schöllbronn, Baden, Germany. That raised the question, "Who was this person and what
prompted the town to name a street in his honor?"
Pfarrer Fettig was born Joseph Alois Fettig in Steinmauern, Germany in 1886 to August Fettig and Rosa Grünbacher. He was the ninth of eleven children. He became a Catholic Priest in 1911 and served as a chaplain for several years in nearby Heidelburg.
In 1929 he became the priest at Schöllbronn (see map) where he served until his retirement in 1954. He was highly regarded by his parishioners for his efforts to grow his congregation, for smoothing out relations with the neighboring community of Schlutterbach, and for his community work during the era of the Third Reich. In recognition of his long years of dedicated service to his parish community, the town named a street in his honor.
The celebration of his 50th year of priesthood took place in 1961. He suffered a major heart attack in 1962 and died within minutes.
There are other streets that have been named for Fettigs. If you know the background, submit the information for publication. There have also been several priests and nuns who were Fettigs. Profiles of these and other prominent ancestors would be appreciated.
Direct Mail Scams
While the Attorney Generals of several states have tried for years to shutter the mail order businesses that purport to sell information on ancestry and family crests, it seems that every few years another mailing appears.
To set the record straight, there are no commercial business that have your
genealogy or your ancestry for sale. All of them that I have seen merely market a general-purpose research guide, which is supplemented with commonly available lists from phone books, immigration records or the Social Security Death Index.
The two most common businesses that market in this field are based in either Bath, Ohio or Denver, Colorado. So if you have gotten interested in your ancestry and you feel that a seemingly personalized mailer you received may have valuable information for you, don't waste your money.
Further, there is no Fettig family crest or Coat of Arms. But there are companies that will make one up for a modest fee and if you like simulated wood (plastic) then you will certainly enjoy your fake family crest. Or you could just throw that mailer in the trash as well.
Q & A
Q. I'm a Fettig but I haven't seen anything in the newsletter about my branch of the tree. Do you have information on my line?
A. It is true that the FOCUS ON … column has covered the larger geographic clusters of Fettigs, but that does not mean that information on other family groups is unavailable. Future issues will include information on Fettigs in New York, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Washington and the German communities of Edenkoben, Bensheim, Rastatt and your group as well.
Prior issues of Fettig Connections can be found at:
http://home.att.net/~ez2cim4u/LenFettig.html
I hope you have enjoyed this newsletter. Please send address changes to:
Fettig_1@hotmail.com
Each year I drop 25-30 people from my mailing list because they change their email address and they do not notify me of their new email address. In this issue, I'm going to list the names of the people who no longer receive the newsletter. If you have an updated address for any of these people and they wish to continue to receive the newsletter, let me know.
The soon-to-be permanently deleted names are: Geri Silva, David Fettig, Lois Kary, George Hill, John Santana, Judy Fettig, Pam Burkett, Laurie Fettig, Anne Fettig, Ken & Susan Foster, Pete & Ann Fettig, Brad & Erica Fettig, April Seiler, Kate Fettig, Keith Fettig, Brian Fettig, Jara Fettig Murray,
Rick & Cindy Nola, Carol Noone, Pam Fettig, Thomas Sackett, Paula Fettig,
Pat & Lynn Fettig, Jackie Hall, Jeff & Marcia Fettig, Marie Warren, Andre Fettig, Michael X. Newmyer, Helen B. Newmyer, Karlice N. Makuchan or Lori Doerr. Some of these names are quite common names, so we may have to confirm that we have properly identified the person.
Greetings:
This first issue of the Fettig Family Newsletter has been an
interesting and an exciting project. The idea of publishing a
newsletter has been a goal of mine for several years. I hope that you
find the material informative and that it sparks an interest in
knowing more about your ancestry.
Len K. Fettig, Editor
Objective:
For the last nine years, I have been researching the ancestry of the
Fettig surname. While I have amassed a large collection of
information, linking thousands of people together, the number of
people who are aware of my activities has been relatively small. It
is time to expand the awareness among Fettig's and their descendents
of their ancestry and their heritage.
My primary focus has been to assemble information on Fettig's and
their descendents so that the various branches of the family can be
linked together. My research has been predominately with German
church records covering 1700 to 1900. I rely upon the living
relatives to supply and to maintain the current information on those
individuals born after 1900.
Purpose:
This family newsletter is produced so that Fettig's and their
descendents can learn more about their ancestry. Please feel free to
duplicate and to distribute copies of this newsletter to other
interested parties.
Orientation:
The History, Geography and Events Shaping Our Ancestry.
The Fettig family name surfaces in Steinmauern, German around 1530.
An alternate early spelling of the name was Fettich. Fettig's have
lived in Steinmauern and the surrounding communities for over 450
years. The oldest Fettig's that I have on my file were born about
1540. However, available records limit our ability to do research on
family relationships prior to about 1700. Churches began keeping
records of births, marriages and deaths, in this area of Germany,
around 1700. So making family connections prior to 1700 is
exceedingly difficult.
Steinmauern, Germany is located in the province of Baden, along the
Rhine River, at the point where the Murg River flows into the Rhine.
(See map) The town dates from around 1239. The surrounding towns of
Elchelsheim, Otigheim, Illigen, Plittersdorf and Bietigheim also have
Fettigs living there.
Across the Rhine River is an area of France known as Alsace Lorraine.
At times, that area was German territory, but it has predominately
been part of France. The French town that plays the most prominent
role in Fettig ancestry is Mothern. Mothern, France and Steinmauern,
Germany are only a few miles apart.
Focus On ....
The Dakota Fettigs
Around 1805, Alexander the Great of Russia issued an invitation for
western Europeans to settle the prairie land near the Black Sea. This
area is the Ukraine and the most prominent city there is the Black Sea
port of Odessa. Many Germans accepted the offer, including three
Fettig families. These three Fettig families left the area of
Mothern-Elchelsheim- Steinmauern for Russia between 1807 and 1808.
They were 1) Joseph Fettig b 1774, wife b 1770 and four children
(Katharina b 1803, Joseph b 1806, Susanna b 1807 and Sophia) 2) Joseph
Fettig b 1776, wife Gertruda and daughter Elizabeth b 1805, and 3)
Franz Anton Fettig b 1786, wife Maria Eva Schlonev b 1787 and four
children (Michael b 1810, Johann b 1812, Thomas b 1814 and Peter Anton
b 1815).
After some time in Russia, many of the German families came to
America.
The descendents of the three Fettig families are predominately the
Fettig's now living in North Dakota, South Dakota, Saskatchewan,
Canada and westward to Washington and California.
Of the Fettig's living in the United States, the largest group are
descendents from the 'German's from Russia'. I estimate that 40% of
the Fettig households belong to this group.
The Indiana Fettigs
Around 1870, a group of Fettigs left Mothern, France and settled in
the Logansport, Indiana area. While we are still actively
researching this, it looks like there were three families with the
Fettig surname that made the move. Charles Fettig b 1837, his wife
Maria Catherine (nee) Fettig b 1841 and their four children (Edward b
1861, Charles C. b 1863, Benedict J. b 1866 and Joseph b 1867) are one
family group. Three more children were born after their arrival in
Indiana (George M. b 1872, John b 1874 and Mary 1877-1890). The other
Fettig lines from the Indiana group are not as well researched. Of the
Fettig's living in the United States, I estimate that 15% are from the
Indiana group of Fettig's.
The Michigan Fettigs
Around 1860, the Hyacinth Fettig family from Steinmauern moved to
Michigan and eventually settled in the Petosky area; near Traverse
City. Hyacinth b 1797 and seven of his children immigrated in 1854
(the children were August b 1827, Viktoria b 1832, Donat b 1835,
Margareth b 1838, Blasius Wendel b 1840, Katharine b 1841 and Martin b
1842).
Of the Fettig's living in the United States, this line accounts for
about 20% of the Fettig households.
Many of the Michigan Fettigs are descendents from this line. The
database contains information on approximately 1,650 members of this
family cluster. From Hyacinth Fettig forward, we have about 1,200
descendents. We have three generations of ancestors of Hyacinth on
file, going back to around 1680.
Photo Gallery
Submit a picture of you ancestor and I'll publish it here.
Questions & Answers:
Q. I noticed that this is the first issue of the Fettig Connections.
Do you plan to continue to send out Fettig family newsletters?
A. While I was assembling the narrative for this issue, I realized
that there was enough copy to fill four issues. I have also asked
some of my primary correspondents to author columns about their
branches of the Fettig Tree. So it looks like you can expect to
receive four newsletters over the next 12 to 18 months, based upon the
material that is readily available.
Looking For Lost Ancestors
We are looking for information on Fettig's who lived in the Boston
area. Relatives of E.J. Fettig, born about 1903, lived in the
Roxbury, Boston area around 1940. As well as relatives of Joseph
Fettig 1893-1982 Herman Fettig b abt 1920 and Franziska Fettig b 1906.
Descendents of George Henry Fettig who lived in the Hamilton County,
Ohio area around 1835 are sought.
How to Contact Me
My mailing address is Len K. Fettig, 76 S. Westmore Ave., Lombard, IL.
60148
If possible, I would prefer that you contact me by Email at:
fettig_1@hotmail.com
If you would like to know what information I have on your family,
please provide detailed information, including the dates of birth of
your Fettig ancestors going back at least to 1900, along with the
names of spouses. I need this level of detail because I have so many
people with the same names, that it can be difficult to determine
which ancestor is in your family tree.
The Internet
We do not have a homepage on the Internet. We do have a message
center where we can post inquiries and receive answers at:
http://www.heier.net/surname
Then go to the Fettig page.
If you are looking for information on Fettig ancestry on the Internet,
there isn't too much available, but try these sites.
http://www.familytreemaker.com/
http://genforum.genealogy.com/
There is an abundance of genealogical information on the Internet.
One very popular site is:
http://www.cyndislist.com/
What can you do to help?
If you want to contribute to this effort, then you should first verify
that the information I have about your immediate family is accurate.
Next you should write an article about your family history and send it
to me for publication in this newsletter. If you have old photographs
(prior to 1920), send a non-returnable copy (or a GIF file) to me.
Interesting pictures will be published in The Photo Gallery Section of
this newsletter.
Don't send me money. Information is our cash substitute.
If you have Internet expertise, you can volunteer to create a Web
presence for our expanding family.
If you received this newsletter by regular mail and you have an Email
address. Please let me know your Email address so that you can get
your copy electronically.
Calendar of Events (announce your family gatherings here)
May 1999 First issue of the Fettig Connections
newsletter published
December 1999 Worldwide Millennium confusion occurs. People do not
know whom they are related to. Mass hysteria ensures.
Coming Attractions
In the next issue we will expand upon the history of the Dakota-area
Fettigs' in our Focus On ... Section. The story of how they first
moved to Russia and the reasons why they moved to America is
fascinating.
This second issue of the Fettig Connections newsletter is devoted to the
small group of Fettig's who left Germany for a better in life in southern
Russia and their subsequent move to America. Within the U.S. approximately
40% of the Fettig households have descended from the three Fettig families
who went to Russia.
It can be difficult to obtain information from the former Soviet Union.
People researching the 'Germans from Russia' have shared information
extensively and this has helped many individuals to piece together their
ancestry.
Because the Internet speeds the sharing of information, it is no surprise
that the Germans from Russia have embraced this new technology (see The
Internet).
While I have lots of information on Fettig's from Russia, most of the lines
contain a gap between 1810 and 1850. The records, which would bridge this
gap, are hard to obtain. So we know who went to Russia and who came to the
U.S. But it can be a struggle to connect the two lines.
After initially settling in North Dakota, many of the descendants of the
Fettig's from Russia are now living in Canada, Washington, California,
Minnesota and Wisconsin.
Thank you to the correspondents who have contributed to this newsletter. I
relied heavily on Andrew J. Fettig's 1993 book "Our Family of Fettigs" and
letters from Jeanette T. Smith (deceased).
The History, Geography and Events Shaping Our Ancestry - By Jeanette T.
(Fettig) Smith.
"Our ancestors may have come from Alsace which was ruled by Germany from
approximately 1718 to 1918. When they went to Russia, they named their
towns after the German cities from which they came. They had their own
schools where German was the predominant language. Selz, Baden, Kandel,
Mannheim, Elsass, and Strassburg were Kutchurgan settlements. The first
three were located along the east bank of the Kutchurganki Liman." see the
attached map of settlements
Focus On....
The Fettig's from Russia, by Andrew J. Fettig, Regina, SK
"In 1763, Catherine the Great of Russia invited German settlers to fill the
vast uninhabited areas of Russia. Her manifesto offered free
transportation, free land, interest-free loans for ten years, tax relief,
self -government, freedom to practice their own religion, exemption from
civil and military service and the freedom to leave Russia if they found it
unsuitable. Catherine's offer was successful in attracting skilled
tradesman and farmers to Russia. Those Germans settled along the Volga
River.
Forty years later, Catherine's grandson, Alexander the Great, was the ruler
of Russia and in 1804 he proclaimed the same rights and privileges extended
in Catherine's invitation. This invitation was to settle the Black Sea area
of south Russia - near the port city of Odessa. To implement this policy,
Alexander sent resident ambassadors to the main German centers - such as
Frankfort, Stuttgart, Lubeck and Regensburg to publicize his manifesto by
advertising and distributing leaflets. His invitation received a much
stronger response than did Catherine's. The influx was so great the
immigrants suffered all kinds of hardships because of poor planning,
mismanagement and general inefficiency. Alexander's policy established 181
settlements in South Russia whereas Catherine established only 104
settlements."
Three Fettig families left for Russia between 1807 and 1808. They were 1)
Joseph Fettig b 1774, wife and four children (Katharina, Joseph, Susanna and
Sophia) 2) Joseph Fettig b 1776, wife Gertruda and daughter Elizabeth, and
3) Franz Anton Fettig b 1788, wife Maria Eva Schlonev and four children
(Michael, Johann, Thomas and Peter Anton).
Let's follow the trip of Franz Anton Fettig, as he travels to Russia, with
his family, as written by Andrew J. Fettig.
"The visa stamps they obtained documented the route that Franz Anton Fettig
and his family followed. The family left Frankfort am Main, Germany on May
8 1809 and arrived in Erfurt, Germany on May 13th. By June 6, they had
reached Babice, Poland and were in Myslenice, Poland on the 8th. Passing
through Rzeszow, Poland on the 13th, they arrived in Lemberg, Poland on June
17th. After reaching Brady, Poland on June 20th, they passed into Russia at
Radzivilov on June 24, 1809. Their travels covered 800 miles in about seven
weeks.
Upon arrival in Radzivilov, Russia, immigrants were quarantined for four
weeks. The route from Radzivilov to Odessa was an additional 400 miles and
we can calculate that they reached Odessa about the middle of August 1809.
Travel was by large, sturdy wagons made by craftsmen in Germany, drawn by
horses and carrying the family and their possessions."
see attached travel map
Photo Gallery
see attached photograph
The photograph is of the Johannes Fettig family.
On the back row from left to right is Casper Fettig (b 1894), Margaret
Fettig (b 1882), Magdelena Fettig (b 1885), Johanna Fettig (b 1889) and John
Fettig (b 1895). In the foreground are Anton Fettig (b 1884), George Fettig
(b 1899), Johannes Fettig (b 1858), Christina Fettig (b 1901) and Paul
Fettig (b 1890). All of the people in the photograph were born in Russia.
The photograph was taken in North Dakota. Magdelena Moser, wife of Johannes
Fettig died in 1906 and the photograph may have been taken shortly after her
death.
The Internet
For further information on the Fettig's from Russia, please try the
following sites:
http://www.heier.net (lots of links including North Dakota cemeteries)
http://mars.ark.com/~rbell/html/ellfam.htm
http://www.kutschurgan.com
http://geocities.com/~odessaodyssey
http://www.mildenberger.net/ed/index.htm
http://www.beresan.com
Questions and Answers
Q. How do I get started on my family history - I really don't know much
about my relatives?
A. Research begins by writing down what you do know - your date of birth,
the location (city, county and state) as well as your parent's, sibling's
and spouse's information. The next step is to ask other family members to
add to your records. Later you can move on to collecting Vital Records
(e.g., birth, marriage and death certificates) and secondary records (e.g.,
census records, newspaper obituaries, land records, probate records,
cemetery records, etc.)
Looking for Lost Ancestors
Searching for Fettigs who trace their ancestry to the Saarland area around
Uberherrn or Bisten.
Purpose
This family newsletter is produced so that Fettig's and their descendents
can learn more about their ancestry. Please feel free to duplicate and to
distribute copies of this newsletter to other interested parties.
How to Contact Me
My mailing address is Len K. Fettig, 76 S. Westmore Ave., Lombard, IL. 60148
If possible, I would prefer that you contact me by Email at:
fettig_1@hotmail.com
If you would like to know what information I have on your family, please
provide detailed information, including the dates of birth of your Fettig
ancestors going back at least to 1900, along with the names of spouses. I
need this level of detail because I have many people with the same names and
it can be difficult to determine which ancestor is in your family tree.
What can you do to help?
If you want to contribute to this effort, then you should first verify that
the information I have about your immediate family is accurate.
Next you should write an article about your family history and send it to me
for publication in this newsletter. If you have old photographs (prior to
1920), send a non-returnable copy (or a GIF file) to me. Interesting
pictures will be published in The Photo Gallery Section of this newsletter.
If you received this newsletter by regular mail and you have an Email
address. Please let me know your Email address so that you can get your
copy electronically.
Calendar of Events
April 15, 2000 Cut-off for submitting material for the next newsletter.
May 2000 Issue three of the Newsletter
Publicize your event, reunion or milestone here.
Coming Attractions
The next issue of Fettig Connections will Focus On the Michigan Fettigs.
Greetings:
This month is the one-year anniversary of this newsletter. It has evolved
to be a semi-annual publishing event. I optimistically thought that I could
do this quarterly. Sorry, but that is not a realistic outcome.
We have a sizeable mailing list, people are eager to supply narratives and
pictures for publication and my correspondence obligations have actually
been declining over the last few months. This has become very manageable.
I hope you enjoy this newsletter.
Len K. Fettig, Editor
Orientation
The History, Geography and Events Shaping Our Ancestry
The period from 1780 through 1915 was a time of large-scale emigrations out
of Central Europe. Emigration to Eastern Europe was somewhat more popular
as a destination than to America until around 1845. With the exception of
the period surrounding the US Civil War (1860-1865), European immigration to
the US was heaviest between 1850 and 1880. When we view branches of the
Fettig family tree, by the primary settlement areas in the US (e.g. Michigan
Fettigs, Indiana Fettigs, etc.) we create an artificial segment of a much
larger, common universe. However, that is the way we typically view our
family groupings. So, for purposes of this newsletter, that is also a way
to deal with a slice of the larger picture.
Focus On .... Hyacinth Fettig By Matt Ruhlig
"My interest in genealogy began at an early age. As a second-grader, I had
to make a family tree as part of a school project. I remember talking to my
great-grandma about her family in Lithuania and writing down much of what
she said. Later, in the eighth grade, we had to make another family tree
for another school project. For that, I spoke with a lot of my
grandparents' brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, cousins, and other
relatives. It was too hard to remember all the people I learned I was
related to, so I started writing everything down on family group sheets. A
few years later, I began working on the genealogy merit badge in the Boy
Scouts. This meant more visits with older relatives, and trips to the
courthouse and library to look up old records. A few relatives gave me some
pictures of my ancestors. I found the pictures fascinating and wanted to
learn more about the people in the pictures. This kept me in touch with a
lot of older relatives for many years. When I graduated from high school,
some of those relatives gave me old family portraits as graduation gifts.
My grandma's sister, Gertrude Simmet Dobleske, gave me a portrait of her
grandma, Katharine Fettig Simmet, with 3 of her siblings, Margaret Fettig
Dauer, Donat Fettig, and Wendelin Fettig. She also gave me a small tintype
photo, in a gold frame, of an old man who she said was her grandma Simmet's
father. All she knew about him was that his last name was Fettig, that he
came to America after all his children had come, that he died a few years
later and that he was buried in Brady Hill Cemetery in Saginaw. How
exciting to learn that I had a great-great-great grandfather who had lived
in Saginaw, where I was born! But how could I possibly ever learn anything
more about this mysterious man without a first name?
After a few trips to the Hoyt library in Saginaw, I learned that there was a
Hyacinth Fettig who was buried in Brady Hill cemetery in September of 1865.
He was 67 years old. I found his name! I was so excited. I went home and
called my great aunt Gertrude to tell her the news. Much to my surprise,
she wasn't excited at my news. I couldn't understand her lack of
enthusiasm, so I asked why. She had just been babysitting her grandchildren
at her house. They had taken the old photo album that she had gotten from
her grandmother (Katharine Fettig Simmet), and colored most of the pictures
with magic markers. There were only a few photos left and she offered to
give them me. The next day my cousin and I drove from Saginaw to the
suburbs of Detroit to see Aunt Gertrude and get the remaining pictures.
Aunt Gertrude had said that there had been a lot of pictures that her
grandma had brought from Germany, including pictures of Hyacinth's wives.
There were also a lot of photos of other relatives, aunts, uncles, and
cousins, who had come to America. When the photos were still in the album,
Aunt Gert knew who was who, but once her grandchildren took them all out,
she couldn't identify all of the pictures any more. The photos were
irreplaceable, but I had learned something new and exciting: There were more
Fettig relatives somewhere in America! I became determined to find them.
Aunt Gert knew that her grandma was from a town near Baden Baden,
Stein-something-or-another. The Fettigs had been there for several
generations, Aunt Gert said, but her grandma's mother's family had only been
there for a generation or two, having moved to Stein-something-or-another
from a part of Germany that had once been part of France.
Aunt Gert was resigned to the fact that I wouldn't be able to learn anything
more than what she had already told me. I promised her that I would find
more information. Aunt Gert died in 1991, and it wasn't until a few years
after that that I received a letter in the mail from Jim Buckel, whose wife
is a descendant of Hyacinth Fettig. The Buckels had been in touch with Len
Fettig, editor of this newsletter. It was Len who informed us that the
Fettigs were from Steinmauern, Germany. I met the Buckels in Brady Hill
cemetery in Saginaw one day. Aunt Gert had told me that Hyacinth had a
stone in the cemetery, but all the times I had been there, I was never able
to find it. The Buckels and I took shovels and started digging around the
Fettig family plot. We found Hyacinth's stone beneath 7 inches of sod and
it confirmed the information we had already obtained.
After learning the hometown of my immigrant ancestors, I was shocked to
learn that Fettig was such a common name in Steinmauern! It didn't take
long to find the names of several hundred Fettigs to whom I was related and
even hundreds of other relatives. I spent so much time studying the old
German church records from Steinmauern that the director of the Mormon
Church's Family History Center talked me into becoming a volunteer there to
help other people with their German genealogy.
So what do we know about this branch of the Fettig family tree? Of
Hyacinth's personal life in Germany, we know very little, other than he was
engaged in animal husbandry and that he owned property. We do, however,
have a wealth of information about his family.
Hyacinth was born August 16, 1797, in Steinmauern. He was the first child
of Nicolaus Fettig and Margaretha Grünbacher. Hyacinth's mother died in
1800. Nicolaus remarried and with his new wife, Viktoria Hertweck, had 9
more children.
Hyacinth first married Helena Bohn on November 22, 1824. Hyacinth had no
children by Helena, who died February 3, 1826.
On June 5, 1826, just 4 months after Helena's death, Hyacinth married
Theresia Bollweber. Three children were born before Theresia's death on
August 18, 1833, they were August Fettig b 1827, Kreszens Fettig b 1830 and
Victoria Fettig b 1832.
On November 25, 1833, Hyacinth married his third and last wife, Franziska
Baumer. Eight children were born to Hyacinth and Franziska before
Franziska's death on November 18, 1853; they were Bernhard Fettig b 1834,
Donat Fettig b 1835, Margaretha Fettig b 1838 Blasius Wendelin Fettig b
1840, Katharina Fettig b 1841, Martin Fettig b 1843, Georg Fettig b 1845 and
Leo Fettig b 1849.
Of Hyacinth's 11 children, only 7 survived childhood: August, Victoria,
Donat, Margaretha, Wendelin, Katharina, and Martin. All 7 came to America.
Victoria was the first to come to America. She was in Detroit as early as
1853. In 1858, Katharina, Margaretha, and Wendelin, came to America. About
a year later, Hyacinth came to America together. with his sons Donat and
Martin. August Fettig was the last to come, in 1871.
Victoria Fettig settled in Detroit, MI, where she married Anton Bohlinger, a
tailor, in 1853. Anton died in 1890, and Victoria on Easter 1904.
Victoria and Anton had at least 8 children, and one adopted daughter.
According to Victoria's granddaughter, Olive Elert Baumgartner, Victoria was
affectionately known to everyone as "grandma". She was the type of person
who was always looking to help those in need. Olive remembered that
whenever Victoria went out, she always had a line of children walking behind
her. Olive died tragically on Easter Sunday 1904 after being run over by a
trolley.
Donat Fettig spent some of his early years in America in Saginaw, MI, and in
Detroit, MI. He married Katharina Löbs on June 28, 1864. Donat served in
the Civil War. Eventually he purchased land and settled in Petosky, MI.
Donat and Katharina had 10 children:
Margaretha settled in Saginaw. She married Wonnebald Dauer in 1858.
Margaretha and Wonnebald homesteaded on a farm on the outskirts of Saginaw,
in an area known as Indiantown. Margaretha died in 1908. Wonnebald, who
was also known as William, died in1908. They had 7 children.
Blasius Wendelin Fettig settled in Detroit. He married Barbara März in
1867. I have not been able to locate any living descendants of Wendel. So
far, I have found baptismal records for 9 of his children.
Katharina Fettig, my great-great-grandmother, settled in Saginaw. She
married Johann Michael Simmet in 1859. Katharina and Michael lived in East
Saginaw, Mi. for several years, where Michael worked as a weaver. Later,
they purchased a farm in Indiantown, where they homesteaded. Michael died
May 31, 1894. Katharina died December 28, 1924. They had 7 children.
Martin Fettig seems to have spent time in both Detroit and Saginaw. He and
his brother Donat both served in the Civil War. Martin was killed in action
on June 18, 1864. Martin never married.
August Fettig came to America in 1871 with his children, shortly after the
death of his wife, and settled in the Saginaw area. He had married
Franziska Schmitt on September 17, 1857, in Steinmauern. August operated a
bar in Saginaw. Some say he may have also been a gambler. One day in the
early 1890's August told several people that he was leaving immediately to
visit his brother Donat in Petosky. August was never seen again. Lots of
rumors developed regarding his disappearance. August and Franziska had 6
children."
Matt Ruhlig lives in Michigan, he is employed by RGIS Inventory Specialists
as a programmer analyst and he is a volunteer at the Mormon Family History
Center.
Questions & Answers
Q: Where is your project going? Are you planning to publish a book?
A: My objective has been to document the relationships between groups of
Fettig descendents. Since a common ancestry still seems likely, I will
continue research efforts that are focused on linking the family groups
together. I did 'publish' the information I had in 1995 (I prefer to view
it as a gigantic xeroxing effort). It was hundreds of pages of
relationships. At that time, I had 7,000 individuals on my file and the
reports ran 500 pages of boringly detailed data. Currently, I have 18,000
individuals on file and publishing is no longer a realistic effort.
Creating this newsletter was a way to spread the word about my consolidation
efforts, to foster a greater sense of family, of heritage and of a common
community to the Fettigs', and to recruit more people to update family
information. Quite honestly, I can handle the research from 1700 to 1900.
But it takes a legion of interested parties to keep the recent data current.
I openly tell people that I will give them their ancestral data, but I
expect to be paid by receiving current information on their families. That
is how I recruit my 'legionnaires'.
Looking For Lost Ancestors
We have some very large family structures, with 5,000 to 7,000 individuals
in a branch. We also have several smaller groupings that are just as active
and just as interesting. For the people who trace their Fettig ancestry to
Ohio, Bensheim, Affaltrach, Romania, Hungry, or Saarland, researchers are
indeed working on those branches. Those areas will soon be featured in this
newsletter.
Purpose:
This family newsletter is produced so that Fettig's and their descendents
can learn more about their ancestry. Please feel free to duplicate and to
distribute copies of this newsletter to other interested parties.
Data Privacy
Since people provide me with important information, such as their date of
birth, place of birth, mother's maiden name and other key information, it is
appropriate that we explore the associated risks. Since I provide
ancestral and descendent reports to relatives, the information that you give
to me is likely to be shared with your relatives. I exercise care to ensure
that my contacts are related. I have only experienced one instance when the
person requesting information had inappropriate motives. That was easy to
spot up front and no information was given out.
An enormous amount of family history data has become available on the
Internet. I regularly search for additional information in that arena. I
do not have any current plans to load the collected data out to an Internet
site. If I do elect to do that in the future, I will only use information
that is over 100 years old; no information on currently living individuals.
These are the guidelines that I use. I hope that everyone finds them
suitable.
Coming Attractions
October 2000 - the Focus On … column will be about the "Indiana Fettig's" -
The branch of the Fettig family tree that came to America from Mothern,
France.
Circulation: This issue will be sent to approximately 170 households - 20
copies by regular mail and 150 copies by Electronic Mail; with distribution
in the United States, Canada, Germany, Holland, France and Italy.
How to Contact Me
My mailing address is Len K. Fettig, 76 S. Westmore Ave., Lombard, IL.
60148
If possible, I would prefer that you contact me by Email at:
fettig_1@hotmail.com
If you would like to know what information I have on your family, please
provide detailed information, including the dates of birth of your Fettig
ancestors going back at least to 1900.
The Internet
There must be nearly a dozen Fettig genealogy sites on the Internet. Each
one is focused on a particular group of Fettigs'. For the past year, Tom
Fettig (in Arizona) and I have been discussing how to go about implementing
a more comprehensive site. The good news is that we are making progress and
the current version looks promising. Check it out at:
http://home.att.net/~ez2cim4u/TomFettig.html
Calendar of Events
September 15, 2000 Cut off date for submissions for the October issue of
Fettig Connections.
Publicize your event, reunion or milestone here.
Greetings:
With this issue's information about the 'Indiana Fettigs', we are completing
coverage of the three principal ancestral groups of Fettigs in the U.S. -
accounting for approximately 70% of the Fettig population in the U.S.
The May 2001 issue of Fettig Connections will cover the progress we have
made during the last two years, as we have documented relationships and
researched other branches of the Fettig family tree. There has been a lot of
progress in selected research areas and I believe that you would enjoy
hearing about our global efforts to link the many Fettig branches together.
My plan is to shift the focus of the newsletter more toward our European
roots, beginning with the October 2001 issue.
Len K. Fettig, Editor
Orientation
The History, Geography and Events Shaping Our Ancestry.
The map of the area around Steinmauern, Germany (below) was printed in the
first issue of this newsletter. I have included it once more because it is
important to visualize the very close proximity of the towns of Steinmauern
and Elchesheim, Germany to the town of Mothern, France. The Rhine River
defines the border between the two countries.
More than one Fettig family settled in Indiana. All seem to trace their
roots to the small area along the Rhine River, where the Murg and the Modern
rivers flow into the Rhine. The Focus article in this issue is about a
group of Fettigs from Mothern, France. At one time, the village boundaries
of Steinmauern included both sides of the Rhine. This was important because
there was a 'timber panel' at Steinmauern that inspected the wood that was
harvested in the Black Forest and destined for northern parts of Germany.
(The logs were lashed together and floated downstream - to the north. I
interpret 'inspect' to mean taxed.) Since rivers have long been highways of
commerce, it was not unusual for a community to levy taxes (tolls) on
traffic passing through their town.
The role of Steinmauern's timber panel was much more formalized and accepted as a legitimate inspection process. While Fettigs lived on both sides of the Rhine River, there were times when the east side was German and times when it was French. Regardless of whether France or Germany claimed their communities, the Fettigs viewed themselves as German.
Since I monitor several Internet genealogical posting sites, I am very aware
of our penchant, as human beings, to find an explanation for things. It is
therefore common for researchers to paint romantic images of their ancestors
as being brave, heroic, facing difficult obstacles, kind and selfless. In a
prior newsletter, we had the Germans fleeing to the east, because of the
threat of the French army. In this newsletter, we have the French fleeing
to the west because of the German army. Well, you just can't have a good
war unless you can vilify the adversary.
I have encountered researchers who believed that their ancestors were
'thrown out of town' and other researchers who believed that the local
townspeople paid their ancestor's passage to America, just to get them off
of the local welfare rolls. I don't know if the stories are true, but my
experience is that most family lore is not true. It nevertheless gets
repeated, generation after generation, until any factual basis has been
lost.
For example, I do have some ancestors who apparently could not decide which
side of the Rhine River to live on and set up housekeeping on a sand bar in
the middle of the river. I think that today we would label those folks as
'homeless'. (Do you see how easy it is to create family history?)
I hope you enjoy the articles in this newsletter. If you have some
interesting family stories, why not send them to me for publication. - Len
Fettig
Has your Email address changed?
Twenty-five people were dropped from my mailing list this year because they
did not notify me when they changed their Email address. Their copy of
Fettig Connections was electronically returned. If you know of someone who
might have been affected, ask him or her if they want to re-subscribe.
Focus On ....
Why Logansport, Indiana? By, Thomas Fettig
"Have you ever wondered why our ancestors left Europe? Furthermore, why
they settled where they did? I have asked, questioned and searched records
and this is what I have found about my ancestors, Charles and Marie Fettig.
By all accounts, the beautiful Rhine River Valley in the area of Alsace,
France, which borders Germany, is an area that a family would not willingly
chose to leave. Most emigrants would never see loved family members again.
They departed for Brazil, Russia, Canada and other countries, but most
emigrants looked to the United States of America for a new start.
In this Rhine area, residents suffered dreadfully during the French/Prussian
war of 1870. The advancing German army had commandeered crops and
livestock. Enemy troops, now camped on Charles' farm, left two milk cows
and a few bushels of potatoes for his family to brave the winter with.
By right of conquest in 1871, Germany acquired the area of France known as
Alsace-Lorraine. The defeated French of Alsace were faced with the horrid
circumstance of their sons now being subject to German military induction.
Charles, uneasy about his sons' future, felt a strong incentive to relocate.
German law did not allow families with sons over a certain age to emigrate.
French records show Charles, wife Marie and one year old son George
emigrating from Germany in 1873. Somehow, Charles arranged for his four
older sons to eluded authorities both in Germany and in New York. In
October of 1873, Charles arrived in Monterey, Indiana, with his family
intact. They had been both preceded and followed by other families from
Alsace to Indiana.
Many emigrants, by contract with an agency in their country of origin,
traded their land, wagon and team for passage, money and a parcel of land in
the newly open territory of Indiana. The parcel Charles received was
covered with swamps. It would take an extreme effort just to plant a
garden. A family decision was made to sell and move once more.
Charles had his eye on the now bustling nearby city of Logansport. In
February of 1874, he bought a home at 1404 Smead Street for $850. To my
knowledge, they were the first Fettig family in this city. The name
Logansport, originally Logan's port, was named after General Benjamin Logan
and the fact that the Wabash River was navigable. Incorporated in 1838, the
railroad soon followed in 1855. Logansport attracted a large rail
maintenance industry. Jobs in this new industry were available in every
known capacity.
Charles became a blacksmith with the Pennsylvania Rail Road. Edward
followed his father and became a teamster. Charles Jr. became a boilermaker
while George and John both became machinists. It would seem like half of
the city's residents worked in some capacity for the railroads while many
others derived a livelihood by meeting the needs of the railroad workers.
Logansport was expected to become a major, Midwest railroad hub; primarily
because the Wabash River was navigable all the way to New Orleans. But
Logansport eventually lost out to Chicago, as the Midwest railroad hub.
The 1920's saw Logansport's population soar to over 21,000. Long haul
trucking over the nation's sprawling new roads brought radical changes to
the railroad. Strikes came to the rail industry at a time they could least
afford them, and the rail shops in Logansport closed. By 1930, Cass County
had lost more than 4,000 people; most of them living in Logansport. My
father followed the railroad industry to Chicago, IL.
Of some interest is Charles' son Benjamin Fettig who moved to Elwood,
Indiana. Ben married Lenor Kramer and they had 16 children. Unfortunately,
Lenor died during childbirth leaving Ben alone to provide for the
14-surviving children. Shortly after Lenor's untimely death, Ben opened the
Fettig Cannery, which produced mostly tomato ketchup. It provided jobs for
his children and remained in the family until recently. Today, the Fettig
Cannery is still a major employer in Elwood.
My grandfather Edward Fettig's home still stands as well as his brother's
and father's. The park my father played in as a child with its beautiful
old carousel is still there. The Wabash River he fished still flows. Those
things are the important memories that my family has of life in central
Indiana.
Questions & Answers
Q: . Am I related to any famous people?
A. Well, aren't we all a little bit famous? But if you are looking for a
connection to Royalty, noted pioneers, such as the Mayflower descendents or
to well-known personalities, then I have bad news for you. The reality is
that our planet has been inhabited by 10 billion, mostly dull people, during
the last million years. But if famous and infamous relationships are what
you crave, then get busy and do something spectacular, so we can all claim a
relationship to you. `
Looking For Lost Ancestors
Ohio - We have many Fettig ancestors who arrived in the U.S. by ship, at one
of the principal East Coast ports, and made their way west. We also have
Fettig ancestors who arrived at the port city of New Orleans, Louisiana and
made their way north, up the Mississippi River.
Most immigrants made their way along heavily traveled routes to 'Gateway
Cities'. Cincinnati, Ohio was one gateway city that boosted a large German
population.
The earliest Fettig that I have discovered in the United States lived for a
time near Cincinnati. Original land records show a George Henry Fettig
purchased land in Jackson County in 1838. For a while, I thought that the
land was located in Ohio. Recently, I have discovered that the Jackson
County mentioned in the documents refers to Jackson County Indiana (both
states have a Jackson County). This would make the group of Fettigs that
live around Seymour, Indiana the oldest branch of the Fettig tree in the
U.S. - pending future discoveries. `
Purpose:
This family newsletter is produced so that Fettig's and their descendents
can learn more about their ancestry. Please feel free to duplicate and to
distribute copies of this newsletter to other interested parties.`
Coming Attractions:
In the May 2001 issue of Fettig Connections, we will focus on the progress
we have made in linking together the many branches of the Fettig Family
Tree.
How to Contact Me:
My mailing address is Len K. Fettig, 76 S. Westmore Ave., Lombard, IL.
60148. If possible, I would prefer that you contact me by Email at:
fettig_1@hotmail.com
If you would like to know what information I have on your family, please
provide detailed information, including the dates of birth of your Fettig
ancestors going back at least to 1900.
Fettig Connections
Greetings:
For genealogical researchers, finding one more generation of ancestors is a very big deal. As we move back in time, the availability of records is a
limiting factor. For most new researchers, the bigger issue is just to find
what kinds of records were kept. The advent of the Internet not only helps
people share their research, but as the various records depositories come
online, getting access to the information has become much easier. This
issue of Fettig Connections highlights some of those sources of information.
Len K. Fettig, Editor
Orientation: The attached map shows an area around Heilbronn, Germany.
There are several other areas in Germany where we will focus our attention
over the next several issues. While I will provide detailed maps of each area as we Focus On a particular group of Fettig ancestors, it might also be helpful if you obtained a larger map of Germany so that the proximity of each area might be better appreciated. You might want to refer to the section on Internet Maps for an alternative to commercially published maps
and atlases.
Focus On .... Affaltrach, Germany & Delphos, Ohio
One of the things I did when I began to research Fettig Ancestry was to
gather all of the information that existed in various collections. That
included the data that had been compiled by the Church of Jesus Christ and
Latter Day Saints; also know as The Mormons (see section on The Mormon
Church). I picked up some fragmentary information about a family of Fettigs
who lived in the very small town of Affaltrach, Germany, during the middle
of the 1700's. I didn't know anything about this family. I was curious
about how they wound up in that location since there didn't seem to be any
other Fettig's in that area.
So, last year I decided to explore this branch of the tree. Finding
Affaltrach on a map (prior to the days of the Internet) was a challenge. It
is located about 7 miles east of Heilbronn (see the attached map and also
the section on Internet Maps). Since the microfilms of the Catholic Church
records from Affaltrach covered the years from 1671 to 1941, I ordered
copies for my research.
I knew that a Caspar Fettig and his wife Susanna Friedericae Stöblin were
married there in 1781. As I examined the microfilmed Parish records I noticed that they had a son named Franz Ignaz Kaspar Fettig who was born in 1787. That information was surprisingly close to some other information I
had received from researchers who were tracing their Fettig roots from the
Delphos, Ohio area.
From the Ohio branch, we had a Wilhlem Fettig born in 1824 to Ignaz Fettig
and Walburga Gauthier. We estimated that Ignaz Fettig would have been born before 1800, but could it have been as early as 1787? Could Franz Ignaz Kaspar Fettig be Ignaz Fettig?
We knew that the Ignaz Fettig family came from Kirchhausen, Germany.
Walburga Gauthier was from Neckargerach and Wilhelm and Walburga married in Neckargerach.
Where are Kirchhausen and Neckargerach? Well, Neckargerach is located about 20 miles north-northwest Heilbronn and Kirchhausen is located about 5 miles west of Heilbronn. People did not move around much during these time periods. But we had three towns all in close proximity to Heilbronn and
that looked promising.
Was this a real connection or just some coincident similarities? To find the
answer, I ordered the microfilms for Neckargerach from the LDS library.
Records for Neckargerach are available from 1686 to 1901.
What a pleasant surprise to find that all of the information I had on these
families matched up perfectly. I had been troubled by the fact that the
family moved around, during a period in time when people stayed in one place for very long periods of time. The vast majority of workers in 18th century Germany were in agriculture. They might have an occupation of day laborer (taglöhnern) or farmer (landwirt or bauer). For this reason, the people were tied to their land.
The occupation of the men in this family was listed as Miller - Müller in
German. Grinding grain into flour and corn meal was an important step
between agriculture and food production. But a person trained in the milling
process could move from town to town, as jobs became available. That may
explain why this family moved about in an era when few people relocated. All of the following individuals were Millers: Caspar Fettig (1751-1800), Franz Ignaz Fettig (1787 - 1860), Wilhelm Fettig (1824 - 1876) and Jacobina Neibergall's father.
We have pushed this Fettig line back three generations to 1720; while
connecting two fragments - an Ohio branch with a Heilbronn area branch.
Here are the first five generations of the new tree. The four most recent
generations are not shown here.
Descendants of Johann Adam Fettig:
1 Johann Adam FETTIG 1720 -
.. +Anna Margaretha LUTZ 1720 -
..... 2 Caspar FETTIG 1751 - 1800
......... +Susanna Fridericae STRÖBLIN 1754 - 1820 m: August 02, 1781 in Germany, Württemberg, Neckarkreis, Affaltrach
............. 3 Maria Anna Anastasia FETTIG 1782 - 1855
................. +Jacobus GRÖLL 1772 - 1842 m: July 15, 1800 in Germany, Württemberg, Neckarkreis, Affaltrach
.................... 4 Maria Anna Elisabetha GRÖLL 1802 - 1804
............. 3 Katharina Barbara FETTIG 1783 -
............. 3 Franciscus Antonius FETTIG 1785 - 1812
............. 3 Franciscus Ignatus Caspar FETTIG 1787 - 1860
................. +Walburga GAUTUER 1794 - m: May 19, 1817 in Germany, Württemberg, Heilbronn, Hausen
.................... 4 Katharina FETTIG 1819 -
.................... 4 Johann FETTIG 1821 -
.................... 4 Wilhelm James FETTIG 1824 - 1876
........................ + Jacobina NIEBERGALL 1829 - 1909 m: July 27, 1847 in Germany, Württemberg,Eberbach,Neckargerach
............................ 5 Unnamed FETTIG 1848 -
............................ 5 Paulina FETTIG 1852 - 1933
................................ +Ferdinand H. REINEMEYER 1844 - 1933 m: May 02, 1871 in U.S., Ohio, Allen, Delphos,St. Johns Catholic Church
............................ 5 Louisa FETTIG 1856 -
................................ +John BURKHART 1855 - 1910 m: July 20, 1880 in U.S., Ohio, Allen, Delphos,St. Johns Catholic Church
............................ 5 August Michael FETTIG 1859 - 1936
................................ +Mary Pauline LAUER 1861 - 1928 m: November 07, 1882 in U.S., Ohio, Allen,Delphos,St. Johns Catholic Church
............................ 5 Lusetta Elizabeth FETTIG 1862 - 1941
................................ +James FLANNAGAN, Jr. 1850 - 1908 m: September 12, 1878 in U.S.,Ohio,Allen,Delphos,St. Johns Catholic Church
.................... 4 Kuablain? FETTIG 1827 -
.................... 4 Franz Karl FETTIG 1828 -
.................... 4 Carolina FETTIG 1831 -
............. 3 Georgius Casparus FETTIG 1789 - 1791
............. 3 Sussanna Clara FETTIG 1792 - 1794
............. 3 Franciscus Josephus FETTIG 1795 -
............. 3 Joannes Jacobus FETTIG 1797 - 1859
................. +Eva WIMMER 1800 - 1861 m: April 22, 1823 in Germany,Württemberg,Neckarkreis
.................... 4 Maria Rosina Apolina FETTIG 1824 - 1880
........................ +Johann Heinrich METZ 1817 - 1903 m: February 08, 1848 in Germany, Württemberg,Neckarkreis, Affaltrach
............................ 5 Johann Joseph METZ 1848 - 1930
................................ +Veronika SCHARF 1854 - 1926 m: August 17, 1875 in Germany,Württemberg,Neckarkreis,Affaltrach
............................ 5 Maria Karolina METZ 1849 - 1853
............................ 5 Anna Rosalia METZ 1851 - 1851
............................ 5 Rosina Brigitta METZ 1852 - 1852
............................ 5 Apollonia Veronika METZ 1853 - 1853
............................ 5 Augustina Franziska METZ 1854 - 1873
............................ 5 Heinrich Theodor METZ 1855 - 1855
............................ 5 Heinrich Theodor METZ 1857 - 1857
............................ 5 Josephine Karolina Mathilda METZ 1858 - 1860
............................ 5 Joseph METZ 1859 - 1859
............................ 5 Anton Joseph METZ 1860 - 1861
............................ 5 Anton METZ 1869 -
.................... 4 Johann Robert FETTIG 1826 - 1826
.................... 4 Angelus Quirinus FETTIG 1828 - 1829
.................... 4 Donatus Remigius FETTIG 1830 -
.................... 4 Beatus Justinus FETTIG 1834 - 1834
.................... 4 Eduard August FETTIG 1835 - 1847
.................... 4 Emma Angelina FETTIG 1837 - 1875
........................ +August SCHWARZ 1830 - 1915 m: November 23, 1858 in Germany,Württemberg,Neckarkreis,Affaltrach
............................ 5 Maria Wilhelmina SCHWARZ 1859 -
................................ + unknown 1855 - m: January 31, 1889
............................ 5 Anton Wilhelm SCHWARZ 1861 - 1861
............................ 5 Franziska Ottilia SCHWARZ 1863 - 1905
............................ 5 Franziska Wilhelmina SCHWARZ 1865 - 1866
............................ 5 Anna Regina SCHWARZ 1867 - 1867
............................ 5 Anna Theresia SCHWARZ 1872 - 1938
................................ +Eduard Franz Peter BAETH 1867 - m: May 31,
1900 in Germany,Württemberg,Neckarkreis,Affaltrach
............................ 5 Anonyma SCHWARZ 1875 - 1875
.................... 4 Franz Moriz FETTIG 1838 - 1839
.................... 4 Karl Wilhelm FETTIG 1842 - 1882
........................ +Theresia KEICHAR 1841 - 1924 m: November 24, 1868 in Germany,Württemberg,Neckarkreis,Affaltrach
............................ 5 Johann August Wilhelm FETTIG 1870 - 1901
............................ 5 Johann Wilhelm Theodor FETTIG 1872 - 1872
............................ 5 Franz August FETTIG 1873 -
............................ 5 Maria Josepha FETTIG 1874 - 1874
............................ 5 Emma Theresia FETTIG 1875 - 1875
............................ 5 Paul Aloisius FETTIG 1876 - 1880
............................ 5 Maria Theresia FETTIG 1877 -
Ellis Island
Between 1892 and 1924, the port city of New York was one of the principal
disembarkation points for immigrants to the United States. During those 32
years, approximately 22 million individuals came through the Ellis Island,
New York processing center.
After seven years of effort, by over 12,000 volunteers, the information from
the Ellis Island records has been transcribed and made available on the
Internet.
In the weeks since this information has been accessible, the site has been
overwhelmed with traffic. Articles in major newspapers and mentions on
television networks contributed greatly to the access problems. Things have quieted down a little, but one can still encounter volume overload with this site.
What is the big deal? For many Americans, they do not know the exact
location where their ancestors lived, prior to immigrating to the US.
Without the name of the town, it is pretty difficult to trace one's roots to
Europe. The Ellis Island site is searchable by name and one can expect to
find additional information on their ancestors.
However, this site has limitations. Ellis Island was only in operation, as
an immigration point from 1892 to 1924. It was only one of several
locations where passenger ships docked. The port cities of Baltimore, New
Orleans and Charleston also played a big role in immigration to the US.
Many people chose to immigrate first to Canada and then to legally make
their way across the border into the US. Therefore, only about 70 percent
of the immigrants, during those years, came through Ellis Island.
There are 70 Fettig's listed at the Ellis Island site
(www.ellisislandrecords.org). Here they are - listed as person #, name,
home, arrival year and age.
1. Allan J. Fettig Toronto, Canada 1924 30
2. Albert Fettig New York City 1914 30
3. Albert Fettig 1911 26
4. Mrs. Albert Fettig New York City 1914 28
5. Josef Fettig Necharouluo 1904 14
6. Gustav Fettig Mannheim, Germany 1908 31
7. Louis J. Fettig 1906 33
8. Mrs. Louis J. Fettig 1906 26
9. Louise Fettig U.S. 1892 35
10. Jakob Fettig Rastatte, Germany 25
11. Elis. Fettig Karlsruhe 1903 18
12. Carl Fettig Veckarmlen 1903 16
13. Mrs. S. Fettig 1906 71
14. Paul Fettig Strassburg 1903 11
15. Michael Fettig Strassburg 1903 31
16. Mathilde Fettig 1893 21
17. Mathias Fettig Strassburg 1905 23
18. Margaretha Fettig 1903 15
19. Magdalena Fettig Strassburg 1903 44
20. Magdalena Fettig Strassburg 1903 17
21. Katharina Fettig Strassburg 1903 2
22. Kaspar Fettig Strassburg 1903 7
23. Karl Fettig Bremen,Germany 1923 31
24. Karl Fettig Germany 1907 16
25. Juliana Strassburg 1903 31
26. Josef Fettig Steinmauern, Germany 1912 19
27. Josef Fettig Ludwigshafen,Ger. 1910 34
28. Josef Fettig Steinmauern, Germany 1908 28
29. Johanne Fettig Bremen,Germany 1924 30
30. Johanna Fettig Strassburg 1903 13
31. Johann Fettig Strassburg 1903 45
32. Johann Fettig Strassburg 1903 4
33. Hildegard Fettig Bremen, Germany 1924 0
34. Gustav Fettig Iserlohn, Germany 1893 26
35. Georg Fettig Strassburg 1903 2
36. Elisabeth Fettig Bischweiler, Germany 1912 16
37. Elisabeth Fettig Strassburg 1905 21
38. Christina Fettig Strassburg 1903 0
39. Anton Fettig Strassburg 1903 18
40. Anna Fettig Rastatt, Germany 1907 17
41. Josephine Fettig Staufen 1903 29
42. Edward Fettig Chicago, Ill. 1924 27
43. Valentin Fettig Strossburg 1898 30
44. Sophie Fettig 1896 29
45. Philip Fettig Strossburg 1898 3
46. Ludwika Fettig Strossburg 1898 26
47. Louise Fettig 1895 56
48. Jrma Fettig Scheuern, Germ. 1922 23
49. Josef Fettig Strossburg 1898 26
50. Josef Fettig Mannheim 1898 19
51. Kaspar Fettig Strassburg 1903 7
52. Katharina Fettig Strassburg 1903 2
53. Louise Fettig U.S. 1892 35
54. Louise Fettig 1895 56
55. Louise Fettig Nachein, Germany 1923 36
56. Louis J. Fettig 1906 33
57. Louis J. Fettig 1914 42
58. Ludwika Fettig Strossburg 1898 26
59. Magdalena Fettig Strassburg 1903 17
60. Magdalena Fettig Strassburg 1903 44
61. Margaretha Fettig Strassburg 1903 15
62. Mathias Fettig Strassburg 1905 23
63. Mathilde Fettig 1893 21
64. Michael Fettig Strassburg 1903 31
65. Paul Fettig Strassburg 1903 11
66. Petr Fettig Strassburg, Russia 1909 4
67. Philip Fettig Strossburg 1898 3
68. Sophie Fettig 1896 29
69. Thomas Fettig Strassburg, Russia 1909 3
70. Valentin Fettig Strossburg 1898 30
In addition to the information above, the site also gives the name of the ship, marital status of the passenger and the port of embarkation. After
identifying the name of the ship and your ancestor's arrival date, then you
should obtain the microfilm of the ship's passenger list and see what
additional data is listed. One helpful benefit is that when you find your
ancestor, you can examine the other passenger's names to see if he/she was traveling with anyone else from the same town. This clue can be helpful.
Armed with the name of the ship, there are sites where you can probably find a photograph of the ship and detailed information about accommodations.
There has not been time, in the few weeks since this site became available,
to study the 70 Fettig's listed on the Ellis Island site. Karl Fettig, listed as person number 24, is my Grandfather. If you want to claim any of the listed individuals, or supply additional information on these immigrants, please send it to me.
Maps on the Internet
Locating towns has become much easier with the help of several Internet
sites. Many people are familiar with Mapquest (www.mapquest.com) to do
travel planning, but is very good for locating small towns all over the world.
An additional site that many genealogical researchers use is www.jewishgen.org/shtetlseeker. While Shtetlseeker uses Mapquest, it
provides some additional features that make it an attractive alternative.
The attached map of the area around Heilbronn, Germany includes Affaltrach - a little east of Heilbronn. Kirchhausen is in the center of the map as indicated by the star. Neckargerach would be near the top center of the map, where the highway number 37 appears in a box; next to Reichenbuch. Since all three of these towns are quite small, it is difficult to get all of them to appear on one map.
What is The Role of the Mormon Church in Ancestral Research?
Many people are aware that the Mormon Library in Salt Lake City, Utah has
the finest genealogical research collection in existence. The following
section, copied from their web site, helps to explain why their church has
amassed that extensive collection.
"WHY FAMILY HISTORY?
Why do members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints do family history research? They do it because they are motivated by love for their deceased family members and desire to serve them.
Life does not end at death. When we die, our eternal spirits go to a spirit
world, where we continue to learn while we await the Resurrection and Final
Judgment. Members of the Church believe that the family can also continue beyond the grave, not just until death.
This is possible when parents and their children make special promises,
called covenants, in sacred temples. These covenants, when made with the
authority of God and faithfully kept, can unite families for eternity.
Members of the Church believe that their deceased ancestors can also receive the blessings of being eternally united with their families. For this
purpose, Church members make covenants in temples in behalf of their
ancestors, who may accept these covenants, if they so choose, in the spirit
world.
In order to make covenants in behalf of their ancestors, members must first
identify them. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has gathered
genealogical records from all over the world. These records are available at
the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah, and at Family History
Centers throughout the world." © 1999-2001 by Intellectual Reserve, Inc.
All rights reserved.
The LDS church has a vast library of records that has become the cornerstone for genealogical research. Most of the record depository is on microfilm and anyone, regardless of their religious beliefs can access those records. While the main LDS library is located in Salt Lake City, Utah, USA, there are hundreds of Family History Centers (FHC) located at LDS church sites around the world. They have an excellent web site where you can look up individuals and find what records from a community are available from your LDS Family History Center (www.familysearch.org).
The microfilms are rented for a very modest fee and the Family History
Centers are staffed with knowledgeable volunteers who are eager to assist
any researcher. For the beginning researcher, the first two steps are to write down what you already know about the names, dates and locations of
your family and then to go to the nearest FHC and see what records they have that will help you to take the next step. (You can also ask me if I have
any information on your family. Currently I have more than 2,800 Fettig's
on file, along with another 16,000 related family members.)
The Internet Past issues of this newsletter are available at:
http://home.att.net/~ez2cim4u/LenFettig.html
The best Fettig bulletin board sites are at:
http://www.familyhistory.com/messages/Messages.asp?id=14120
http://genforum.genealogy.com/fettig/
The best all around genealogical site is at:
http://CyndisList.com/
The best surname search engine is at:
http://searches.rootsweb.com/
We should have several Fettig genealogical sites cross-linked by the end of
this year. Until then, you can try the following site and see if you find
something of interest:
http://familytreemaker.genealogy.com/users/f/e/t/AGENT_USER/
Purpose:
This family newsletter is produced so that Fettig's and their descendents
can learn more about their ancestry. Please feel free to duplicate and to
distribute copies of this newsletter to other interested parties.`
How to Contact Me
My mailing address is Len K. Fettig, 76 S. Westmore Ave., Lombard, IL.
60148.
If possible, I would prefer that you contact me by Email at:
fettig_1@hotmail.com
If you would like to know what information I have on your family, please
provide detailed information, including the dates of birth of your Fettig
ancestors going back at least to 1900.
Fettig Connections
Greetings: Immigration is the primary topic of this issue of Fettig
Connections. I hope you enjoy this material. Perhaps someone listed here
fits into your family tree.
Happy Holidays, Len K. Fettig, editor
The Internet - A Powerful Research Tool
The Internet has become a powerful tool to the Family History Researcher.
Information and data collections that were located throughout the world have been made readily available to researchers.
Access to these collections is via personal computer. It is not necessary
to travel to a distant location in order to examine closely held information. Instead, we have vast collections of information right at our fingertips.
Along with the benefits that these technological advances have delivered,
comes a growing problem. Differentiation of the sources and the reliability
of the data become crucial. Researchers understand that the primary records we use fall under the label of 'Vital Records'. These tend to be governing body records of births, marriages, deaths and the transfer of property (real estate and probate records). The Secondary Records are non-official in origin and includes census records, among others.
Individual researchers have traditionally obtained copies of vital records
to document their ancestral research. But the Internet has opened the door
for individuals to freely exchange information with unseen, unidentified and
perhaps unrelated people.
It is easy to make a mistake and link the wrong people together. I have
done it several times myself. While I take great care in determining the
accuracy of my own data collection, I do gather information from many
sources. Some of my sources are other genealogical researchers. I try to
be careful so that I don't integrate any questionable data into my master
database.
But the bigger problem is the growing number of beginning genealogists who pull undocumented information from an Internet site and incorporate it into their family history. I see a huge amount of poorly done research that is
being absorbed by other researchers. Family lore, recollections of dates
and events by elderly relatives and Internet chitchat are being combined and passed off as accurate research projects. The folks who frequent the
various message boards largely ignore vital records, the backbone of
legitimate genealogical research. Sadly, I have witnessed people compiling
entire ancestral charts with undocumented relationships.
On the positive side of the explosive growth of the Internet are the
availability and the accessibility of important vital and secondary records.
The entire US Census from 1790 through 1920 is searchable - these are the actual image records of the pages the door-to-door census takers wrote. The transcribed records of immigrants passing through the Ellis Island, New York processing center are available and searchable. Exit permission from Germany is contained in the Emigration files. These too are online and searchable.
Focus On …. Immigration
This issue of Fettig Connections will focus on the immigration and emigration of people. While the primary events of birth, marriage and death
create footprints that our research can uncover, when a person immigrates to another country there are even more opportunities to trace the person's
history.
People who chose to leave Germany generally obtained permission to leave and that was recorded in the local jurisdiction. These records are available on the Internet (e.g., The Baden Emigration Index).
Upon their arrival at their port of departure, they would register with the
local police department. When boarding the ship, they would provide
detailed information about where they were from and where they were going. The ships kept logs of passengers and the tally could change en route as children were born and some people died during the passages.
Upon arrival at their destination, immigration agents in-processed the
passengers and created more records. After the people became settled, they would join a local church and typically the parish priest would write to
their former church and request documentation of the marriage of couples.
And finally, when the immigrants decided to become citizens, Naturalization
Papers document that the person was disavowing allegiance to the former
government and swearing allegiance to their new country.
So tracing the immigration path of ancestors can provide the researcher with very helpful information. One of the biggest obstacles that researchers
face is in identifying the town of origin for their immigrant ancestors.
This is sometimes called 'Jumping the Pond" - as researchers try to locate a
piece of information that allows them to cross the Atlantic Ocean and
continue their research using German records.
Passenger Lists are not easy to use in research. While the information has
been microfilmed and it is readily available, a researcher needs to know the
name of the ship and the date of arrival at a U.S. port, in order to locate
their ancestor. With hundreds of ships making regular passages, it is
almost impossible to locate an ancestor without already knowing the details
of his/her passage. Even when we locate the information, researchers
discover that the actual Passenger Lists contain very little information.
The hometown of the passenger is almost never listed. The occupation of
most passengers is listed as Farmer - even if the passenger is a small
child.
Included in this newsletter is a list of Fettig's who are included in the
published passenger lists.
Immigrants from Germany left from several port cities. Harve, France was a popular embarkation point, as were the German ports of Hamburg and Bremen. A few passengers first made their way to Liverpool, England for their subsequent trip to America. The passenger lists for almost all of the ships leaving from Bremen were lost during the Second World War. Great progress has been made in re-creating those lost records by using the arrival lists.
Not all 19th-Century immigrants came to the United States. Ships were also
carrying immigrants to Canada, South America and Australia. Further, the
ships used many U.S. ports. While New York was a major port, so were
Baltimore, Charleston and New Orleans.
The information listed here was collected from published indexes of ships'
arrival records. A very small portion of the millions of immigrants has
appeared in these indexes. The principal source was the Philby's
collection. The information is not to be considered a primary (reliable)
source. This information was transcribed and the spelling of names has been maintained true to the source. Any surname that looked close to Fettig has been captured.
Date-of-Arrival, Boat-Name, Departure-Port, US-Destination,
Immigrant-name, age, Home or occupation, Other-family-members
1847-Sep-2, from Liverpool
E. W. Fettige (f) 32 and M. Fettige (f) 18
1852-May-31 Charles Crooker NY from Harve, Fr
Victorie Fettig 17 Prussia
1852-Jun-7 Noemie NY from Harve
Agnes Fettig 23 Wurtenburg
1852-May-31 Hopley Harve to NY
Francios Fettin 24
1853-Sep28 Ravenswood from Harve
Wilhelm Fettig 37 Wurtenburg
Jacobine 22, Pauline 11 mo
1854-Dec-22 Sarah Park from Harve
Catherine Fettig 31 Baden
Louise 9, Josephine 7, Magdelena 5
1854-Dec-14 J.E. Grosse Hamburg to NY
Wilhelm Fetting 41 a cheesemaker
with daughter Auguste age 15
1855-May-11 Duetschland Hamburg to NY
Chrt. Fetting 36
1855-May-8 Trumball unknown to NY
Sophie Fettinger 48 Hesse
1856-Aug-19 Nord America Hamburg to NY
Ernst Fetting 16 a merchant
1856-Apr-28 Nord America Hamburg to NY
Wilhelm Fetting 43 a cloth manufacturer
1856-Dec-26 John G. Coster from Harve
Aloise Fettig 21 Baden
1856-Sep-15 R.D. Shepherd NY from Harve
Felix Fettig 23 Baden
1857-Mar-5 Bavaria from Harve
Gregoire Fettig 19 Baden
1857-Mar-30 Battler from Harve
Jean Fettig 22 France
1857-Aug-1 Marion Hamburg to Wisc
Adolph Feting 35
1858-Jan-26 Mary Bangs from Harve
Wendelin Fettig 17 Baden
Margarethe 19, Catharine 16
1858-Dec-96 Mataro from Harve
Jacques Fettig 28 Baden
1858-Jan-27 Morning Star from Harve
Maria Fettig 20 Hesse
1859-May-9 Kearsage to New Orleans from Harve
Waldburga Fettig 50 Baden
1859-May-13 Mercury from Harve
Balthasar Fettig 33 Baden
Lugatha 28, Francois 8, Hermann 6, Gebhard 3
1864-Dec-11 Electric Hamburg to NY
Johanne Fetting (F) 53 with August 30, Johann 25 and
A. 24 (m) a brickmaker
1867-Feb-13 Jacob A Stamler to NY
Paul Fettig 40
Rosalie 40 with children Sophie 20,Caroline 18, Joseph 16,
Helen 11,Louise 10, Gabriel 5, Justin 4, Antoine 9 mos.
1867-Aug-8 Marco Polo Bremen to Wisc
Sophie Fetting 37
Dorothea 13 and Christian 11
1867-Nov-20 Herschel Hamburg to NY
Elise Fetting 20
1868-Aug-3 Holsatia Hamburg to NY
Emilie Fetting 19
1869-Oct-23 Berlin Bremen to Baltimore
Wilhelm Fetting 38
Johanne 31 and Ida 2
1870-Jan-15 John Bertram Hamburg to NY
Franz Fetting 20
1870-May-23 Main Bremen to NY
Elise Fettig 26
1870-Oct-22 Rhein Bremen to NY
Xaver Fettig 18
1871-Oct-23 Donau Bremen to NY
Babette Fettig 23
1872-Apr-11 Silesia Hamburg/Harve to NY
Froke Fetting 20
1872-Aug-29 Canada Liverpool/Queenstown to NY
Madme. Fettig 24 Servant
1872-Oct-5 Donau Bremen to NY
Franzisca Fettig 22
1873-Apr-19 Vaderland Antwerp to Philadelphia
Louis Fettig 17 Baden
1873-Oct-4 Duetschland Bremen to NY
Friedrich Fettan 48 with Dorothea 58, Wilhelm 15, Dorethea 17
also Carl Fettig age 16, a composer, traveling unattached
1874-Sep-23 Pommerania Hamburg/Harve
Franz Fettig 21 a brewer
1875-Aug-5 Oder Bremen to NY
Lina Fettig 17
1877-Oct-16 Gellert Hamburg/Harve
Gustav Fettin 25 a coachman
1878-Apr-18 America Bremen
August Fetting 29 with Bertha 26, Ida 3, Anne 9mos
1879-Oct-27 City of Chester Liverpool/Queenstown to NY
Albert Fetti 39 with
A. Maria 38, Adele 4
1880-Sep-27 Vaderland Antwerp to NY
Alex Fettig 27
Veronika 22
1881-Apr-16 Friedrich/Wilmelm Bremen to Balt. and Milwaukee
Mart. Fetta (m) 30
Francisca 23
1881-Apr-16 W.A. Scholten Rotterdam to Milwaukee
Theodor Fettig 43 with Maria 43, Rosalie 16, Cath. 12, Emma 1, Anna 9,
Leo 5, Elis. 3, Helene 3mos, Bernard Fettig age 19
1881-Mar-23 Lessing Hamburg/Harve
Joseph Fetta 35
Cath. 42, August 7
1881-Apr-10 Koeln Bremen to Baltimore
A. Fettig 19
Carl Fetting 30 with Caroline 30, Carl 7, Aug. 4, Auguste(f) 2,
Hermann 9 mos.
1881-Nov-7 General Werder Bremen to NY
Justine Fettig 20
1882-Feb-18 Elbe Bremen to NY
Adam Fettig 33 a cooper
1882-Aug-12 Donau Bremen to NY
Charlotte Fettig 22
1882-May-22 Donau Bremen to NY
Friedrich Fette 22
Georg 15
1882-Dec-13 P. Caland Rotterdam to NY
Lina Fettiz 29 with Maria 5, Adolf 3
1883-May-25 Oder Bremen
Johann Fette 34 a locksmith
Surname Variations or "How do you spell Fettig?"
Before I get into a discussion about the various ways the Fettig surname has been spelled, I think it is appropriate to point out that our current
standards for grammar, punctuation and spelling are fairly recent rules.
When we try to find meaning in past events, we also need to be sensitive to
our current reference point and to recognize that things have not always
been as they are today.
For example, prior to about 1916, there was no formal adoption process.
Therefore, you could use most any name you wanted to. You could change the spelling at will. It is only since we established rules on the adoption of
children that we have had a formal procedure for name changes. However,
most people kept the same name and spelled it the same way throughout their lifetimes.
The most used Secondary sources for German research are the records
maintained by the parish priests, pastors and rabbis. Around 1550, the
Catholic Pope decreed that churches were to keep records of events -
Baptisms, marriages and deaths. Some records in Germany do date back to the mid-1500's, but the mid to late 1600's was a more popular time for the parishes to begin to track the primary church events.
Early records were written in Latin, with German becoming the more commonly
used language in parish records in the early 1800's.
The parish priest was therefore the person who recorded names. The spelling was dependent upon the priest entering the name as spoken. So, it can be challenging to trace an ancestor whose name might be written several different ways. A child born as Joannes Georg Fettig might be noted as Joe's Georg, Johann Georg, or quite often just as Georg Fettig.
Language changes have affected the spelling of the Fettig surname. So,
while Fettich and Fettig are the same surname, we are not related to Fetting or Fettick. On the French side of the boarder, we find such interesting spellings as Fetique and Feticq. We also have the random mistakes (e.g., Fetig). Two variations that may be related are Fattig and Feddich. It will take more research to determine if those two surnames have Fettich/Fettig roots.
One comment that is often heard is "My ancestors changed their name when they came to America." For names that were difficult to say or to spell,
some researchers conclude that when their immigrant ancestor came to
America, the immigration authorities 'just wrote down what they thought the
name sounded like.' This last comment is quite unlikely to be true.
Immigrants were traveling with papers. Their names were on the ship's list.
The immigration port authoraties were staffed with people who spoke the
language of the incoming passengers. The processing of the passengers from a ship took two to three days. So the possibility that an immigrant had
their name involuntarily changed by a clerk at Ellis Island or any other
port of immigration is quite unlikely. On the other hand, new immigrants
may have wanted to blend in quickly and adopting a more convenient surname could be one way to fit in.
When we go to secondary records, such as Census records, then the likelihood that the names are mistakenly recorded becomes fairly high.
Ellis Island
The list of Fettig's, who came through the Ellis Island, NY processing
center, which appeared in the May 2001, newsletter was hurriedly done and the quality was unacceptable. I apologize for the mistakes. Below is a
better list. However, I have kept the list accurate to the source. That
means the misspellings are not my mistake.
In addition to the items of information shown here, the source records may
also include the embarkation port and the name of the ship the passenger
traveled on. Not all of these people are newly arriving immigrants. Some
were U.S. citizens who had been to Germany for a visit and one couple was
returning from a vacation in the Bahamas.
Seq# Name Residence Arrival-Date Age Ethnicity M-S
1. Mrs. Albert Fettig New York City 1914-Oct-23 28 USA M
2. Mrs. Louis J. Fettig 1906-Jun-16 26 USA M
3.Mrs. S. Fettig 1906-Oct-16 71 USA S
4.Albert Fettig 1911-May-1 26 USA S
5.Albert Fettig New York City 1914-Oct-23 30 USA M
6.Allan J. Fettig Toronto, Canada 1924-Dec-10 30y 8m Ukrainian S
7.Anna Fettig Rastatt, Germany 1907-Apr 20 17 German S
8.Anton Fettig 1897-May-8 16 German
9.Anton Fettig Strassburg 1903-Apr-22 18 Russian/German S
10.Anton Fettig Strassburg, Russia 1909-Jun 1 28 Russian/German M
11.Arnold Fettig Tacoma, Wash. 1917-Jan -21 34 USA S
12.Carl Fettig Veckarmlen 1903-Oct-6 16y 6m German S
13.Christina Fettig Strassburg 1903-Apr-22 11m Russian/German S
14.Donat Fettig Manheim 1906-Sep-23 71 USA W
15.Edward Fettig Chicago, Ill 1924-Sep-10 27 Unknown S
16.Elis. Fettig Karlsruhe 1903-Mar-11 18 German S
17.Elisabeth Fettig Strossburg 1898-Nov-11 25 Russian M
18.Elisabeth Fettig Strassburg 1905-Jun-2 21 Russian/German M
19.Elisabeth Fettig Bischweiler, Germany 1912-May-7 16 German S
20.Elisameta Fettig Strassburg, Russia 1909-Jun-1 25 Russian/German M
21.Emilie Fettig Baden-Baden, Germany 1921-Oct-18 19 German S
22.Engelberdt Fettig 1896-Sep-19 2 German S
23.Eva Fettig Strossburg 1898-Nov-11 2 Russian S
24.Francis Fettig 1896-May-9 26 USA S
25.Georg Fettig Strassburg 1903-Apr-22 2 Russian/German S
26.Gustav Fettig Iserlohn, Germany 1893-Oct-7 26 unknown S
27.Gustav Fettig Mannheim, Germany1908-Aug-13 31 German M
28.H Fettig (female) Eljach 1906-Dec-29 17 German S
29.Hedwig Fettig Baden-Baden, Germany 1921-Oct-18 20 German S
30.Hildegard Fettig Bremen, Germany 1924-Dec-6 11m German S
31.Jacob Fettig Rastatt 1906-Oct-19 25 German S
32.Jakob Fettig Rastatte, Germany 1907-Dec-13 25y 10m German S
33.Johann Fettig Strassburg 1903-Apr-22 4y 6m Russian/German M
34.Johann Fettig Strassburg 1903-Apr-22 45 Russian/German S
35.Johanna Fettig Strassburg 1903-Apr-22 13 Russian/German S
36.Johanne Fettig Bremen, Germany 1924-Dec-6 30 German
37.Josef Fettig Strossburg 1898-Nov-11 9 m Russian S
38.Josef Fettig Mannheim 1898-Nov-11 19 Russian S
39.Josef Fettig Strossburg 1898-Nov-11 26 Russian M
40.Josef Fettig Necharouluo 1904-Aug-24 14 German S
41.Josef Fettig Steinmauern, Germany 1908-Apr-8 28 German S
42.Josef Fettig Ludwigshafen, Ger. 1910-Dec-16 34 German M
43.Josef Fettig Steinmauern, Germany 1912-Nov-12 19 German S
44.Josephine Fettig Staufen 1903-Jun-16 29 German M
45.Josephine Fettig Mulhausen 1903-Aug-14 57 German W
46.Jossif Fettig Strassburg, Russia 1909-Jun-1 9 m Russian/German S
47.Jrma Fettig Scheuern, Germ. 1922-Oct-4 23 German S
48.Juliana Fettig Strassburg 1903-Jun-3 31 Russian/German M
49.Karl Fettig ..., Germany 1907-Feb-22 16 German S
50.Karl Fettig Bremen, Germany 1923-Dec-19 31 German M
51.Kaspar Fettig Strassburg 1903-Apr-22 7 Russian/German S
52.Katharina Fettig Strassburg 1903-Apr-22 2 Russian/German S
53.Louise Fettig U.S. 1892-Nov-10 35 USA
54.Louise Fettig 1895-Oct-4 56 USA
55.Louise Fettig Nachein, Germany1923-Sep-8 36 German S
56.Louis J. Fettig 1906-Jun-16 33 USA M
57.Louis J. Fettig 1914-Sep-5 42 USA W
58.Ludwika Fettig 1898-Nov-11 26 Russian M
59.Magdalena Fettig Strassburg 1903-Apr-22 17 Russian/German S
60.Magdalena Fettig Strassburg 1903-Apr-22 44 Russian/German M
61.Margaretha Fettig Strassburg 1903-Apr-22 15 Russian/German S
62.Mathias Fettig Strassburg 1905-Jun-2 23 Russian/German M
63.Mathilde Fettig 1893-Jul-5 21 German
64.Michael Fettig Strassburg 1903-Jun-3 31 Russian/German M
65.Paul Fettig Strassburg 1903-Apr-22 11 Russian/German S
66.Petr Fettig Strassburg, Russia 1909-Jun-1 4 Russian/German S
67.Philip Fettig Strossburg 1898-Nov-11 3 Russian S
68.Sophie Fettig 1896-Sep-19 29 German M
69.Thomas Fettig Strassburg, Russia 1909-Jun-1 3 Russian/German S
70.Valentin Fettig Strossburg 1898-Nov-11 30 Russian M
71.Carl Fattig 1892 34 German M
72.Alice Fetig 1907 37 USA M
73.Wm K Fetig 1907 46 USA M
As you can see from passengers # 71 through 73, when searching online
databases, it is necessary to use variations of the surname in order to pick
up the mistakes that are made in Secondary sources.
Email Len
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Site by: Tom P. Fettig