Charles Fredrich Offerman, 1876-1931

Family history post – April 14, 2023

147 years ago today, one of my Great Grand-Uncles was born.  Charles Fredrich Offerman was born on April 14, 1876, on his parent’s farm in Otto Township in Kankakee County, Illinois.  He was the 5th known child and 5th son of Heinrich (Henry) Christian and Maria Sophia (Doscher) Offerman. At the time of his birth, his parents had left Germany and had been living in the United States for 9 years.  A few months after Charles’ birth, his father became a United States citizen.

Kankakee County map showing Otto Township

A distant cousin wrote of him… “Charles attended school for four years.  As soon as he was old enough, he was hired out as a hired hand.  He worked by the week, coming home on Sunday for clean clothes and a plug of tobacco.  He turned all his pay over to his father.  He continued to work as a hired hand until he married.”

1898 Offerman family - Charles is back row, far left

That marriage happened on October 15, 1902, in Kankakee.  His new wife was Emily Scheppler.  Charles and Emily had 7 known children, from 1903 to 1923.  The 1910 census tells us that Charles owned a farm in Otto Township.  Next door to him was his brother John (my Great Grandfather).  Three farms down the road was their brother Frank’s farm… and another four farms down was their sister Minnie’s family’s farm.

1910 census

By 1914, however, Charles had decided to get out of farming.  He moved his family into Kankakee, and into a large 2-story house (5 bedrooms, large yard and garden) at 1194 South 6th Street.  He and his brother August went into the dray business together.  Their first location was on East Water Street, on the south side of the river.  According to a distant cousin, this business prospered and they expanded into the moving and hauling business.  A new partnership was formed with Charles and August, including Charles’ brother in law, Emile Scheppler.  They moved their location to 186 North East Avenue in Kankakee (now a parking lot), and called themselves “Offerman and Company.”

1929 Kankakee City Directory

In 1918, Charles filled out a registration card for WWI.  His description was stated as… “Tall, stout, gray eyes and brown hair.”

A cousin once wrote this… “The family had a custom of getting dressed up on a Sunday afternoon and going for a ride in the big seven passenger Oldsmobile touring car.  At the end of the ride, they stopped at Kohler Drug Store on South Main Street for ice cream sodas.”

1918 7-passenger Oldsmobile... an example of what the family might have had

date unknown... wife Emily, son Victor, Victor's wife Myrtle, and Charles

Sadly, Charles died on December 28, 1931, at the age of 55.  It’s mentioned that it was a “sudden and untimely” death, however, I do not know the cause at this time.  My curiosity got the best of me, though… and I have sent off for a copy of his death certificate.  So we’ll find out when I get that back.  There are no Kankakee newspapers digitized on the newspaper website that I use, either… so I was not able to find an obituary.  I have contacted the Genealogy person at the Kankakee Library, though, in hopes that she can find one for me.

1920's downtown Kankakee

#52Ancestors, Week 15, "Solitude"

 #52Ancestors , Week 15

Theme:  "Solitude"

This was a HARD one to decide who to write about.  Other people were posting about an only child, a widow, an ancestor that was the end of the line, etc.

I had another ancestor that I was preparing to write about on this one...Elsie Gustin, who was born shortly after her father's death.  Then I decided to write about another ancestor, Richardson Mathews, who is buried in a forgotten cemetery.  I just wasn't happy with where their stories were going at this time, so I set out to find another ancestor.  I landed on John Miles, Sr.

It's not a long story... it's probably not even all that interesting.  But it's a common story that a lot of people have in their family trees.  One where people get forgotten more easily, because they weren't around very long.

John Miles, my 3rd Great Grandfather, was born about 1821 in Washington County, Virginia.  He was a son of Pascal and Susannah (Halfacre) Miles. At age 20, he married Miss Mary Jane Russell, in Washington County.  They had one child within a year, William, who was born there in Virginia.

Washington County, Virginia

Some time between 1842 and 1847, the Miles' family moved to northern Kentucky.  There, they had 2 more children, John in 1847, and Martha in 1849.  John Jr. is my 2nd Great Grandfather.  His obit states that he was born "near Covington".  The 1850 census shows the family in Gallatin County, Kentucky.  Covington is NOT in Gallatin County... so the story is unclear here.  Did they live in Covington first, then moved over to Gallatin County (only one county is in-between)?  Or was the memory wrong on where John Jr. was born?  I am sure I will never know the answer.

View of Cincinnati Ohio, from Covington Kentucky, 1850

In 1850, John Sr. is listed as a Laborer.  Laborer for what?  Farming, most likely.  However, living so close to the Ohio River, who knows?  Perhaps he had some kind of river job, working with boats or anything else river related?  

1850 CENSUS - Gallatin County, Kentucky

Another question I don't have a clear answer to, is what killed John?  Some time in 1851-52, John Sr. died.  He would have been about 30 years old.  Illness?  Work related injury?  Natural disaster?  One thing is for sure... it wasn't old age!

The reason I chose him for this "solitude" entry, is because of his death and location.  In September 1853, Mary Jane remarried.  Shortly after that, this newly formed family moved down river to Hardin County, Illinois, where they remained the rest of their lives.  Mary died there in 1888.

John is still in Gallatin County, Kentucky.  I hope he would have given his approval to what happened to his little family.  

#52 Ancestors, Week 14... Begins with a Vowel

 Week 14 of #52Ancestors already!  

This week's theme is "Begins with a Vowel"... which means you could essentially come up with ANYTHING for this.  First name, last name, town, country, occupations, etc.  But I went with an ancestor with a first name starting with a vowel.

Meet my 2nd Great Grandmother, Amke Feyke Sterrenberg...  Not a lot is known about her.  Nothing on a personal level, for sure.  No pictures... no physical descriptions, etc.  What we do know, is what can be found on paper.  And honestly, that's true for most ancestors... not just mine.

But today I focus on Amke.

We know she was born on November 6, 1840, in Oldendorp, Lower Saxony, Germany.  Her parents were Jan Peter and Fijke Willems (Bley) Sterrenberg.  Jan Peter passed away in 1856.

marriage record for Jaus Wubbena and Amke Sterrenberg, 1868

On July 5, 1868, at the age of 27, she married Jaus Wubbena (changed to Wabbena in America).  Shortly after they were married, they came to America with Amke's mother and four siblings (2 sisters and 2 brothers).  They arrived on the Bremen Ship Admiral at New York on September 7, 1868.  They had all marked their destination to be Illinois.

passenger list Bremen Ship Admiral, 1868

I don't know why, but Amke and Jaus wound up in Kansas.  They had two children... the first one was born in 1869, in Woodford County, IL.  The second was born in 1872, in Labette, Kansas.

Amke died at the age of 33, in Labette, Kansas, in 1873 (date and cause are unknown).  After her death, Jaus and the young children went back to Illinois.  They settled in Iroquois County.

Rev. John A. Rodman, 1831-1896

 I am on the Historical Committee at my church, and this past week I have been gathering things to use in my April display.  We have a large table-like display case in the lobby, and we try to change it out once a month.  Since April was both the beginning and end month of the Civil War, I thought I'd showcase our 2nd pastor, who served as a Union soldier.

I have spent so much time with this guy in my head, that I thought I'd share him here, too. I'd love to find any living descendants of him... to see if there are any family photos or other info that I couldn't find online.  I'm always on the lookout for things I can add to the church history collections!

*** All of my information below has been found in census records, pension records, Regiment histories, newspapers, and our own church history.

#52Ancestors, Week 13... Light a Candle

Week 13 of #52Ancestors... "Light a Candle"

I had NO CLUE who to write about this week. I googled the word "candle". One thing that came up is that it "symbolizes the warmth of friendship and love." So this week I am writing about a family friend, who was always like an extra grandmotherly type to me. 

Frieda Mae Neber was born in Williamson County, IL, in February 1916. Her parents were William and Nora (Bevil) Neber. She was married three times, and had six known children (some from each marriage). She mostly lived in Williamson County all of her life... with some time in Chicago and Sioux Falls, SD (according to records). The 1950 census says she was a sales clerk in a jewelry store. I know that she also worked as a waitress for a while. 

a young Frieda

 I met her when I was a baby, in 1976. She went to our church, and was a member of my Grandma's Sunday School class. My parents hired her to babysit me during the day, while they were at work. In today's world, she'd likely be called a "nanny", but we always just referred to her as our babysitter. 

Frieda Reimer, 1976-1977 at my Grandma's house during a Sunday School class get-together

 She'd keep the house cleaned up, bring the mail in, sometimes she'd cook a meatloaf and have it ready for my mom to warm up when she got home. Frieda took me to Sonic and we'd get tater tots... then drive to the park and eat there. We'd play and sometimes feed the ducks and geese that were always there at the pond. We went for walks around the neighborhood (I lived in a rural area)... in earlier years, she'd push me up and down the road in the stroller. 

She watched her soap operas every day, and inevitably I'd find her asleep on the couch... but she always insisted she was just "resting her eyes." She taught me how to play Yahtzee, Kings Korner and Solitaire. When my brother came along, and I was in school... I'd fake being sick some days just so I could stay home and hang out with Frieda. A few times, I was allowed to spend the night with her in town. She lived in the town high rise apartment building... and from her 4th floor windows, we could see the water tower that was down the road from my own house. She always sang songs (some were silly, some I just thought were silly at the time) while we'd swing in the backyard. 

 She sent me postcards when she'd go on a vacation, and always brought some little trinket back for me. Once she went to visit a daughter who lived in Washington state... and brought me back a little bottle of Mount St. Helens volcano ash. I'm sure I could mention all sorts of other things about her... she was kind, loving, and quite possibly is still my favorite person today. I even named one of my current cats after her! 

Frieda the Cat, born 2018

Human-Frieda passed away in July 1999, but will ALWAYS be remembered.

Herrin City Cemetery

#52Ancestors, Week 12... Membership

 #52Ancestors... Week 12... "Membership"

This was a hard one to think of something to write about...  A lot of people in the group were writing about the Masons or Oddfellows...and things of that sort.  I do have ancestors that belonged to the Oddfellows, but I was trying to come up with something different.  

One thing that's been a constant for generations and generations... is religion.  It's been important to me and my generation, and every generation before me.  So I am writing about church membership.

My Great Grandparents, John and Clara Belle (Lively) Rosan, were married March 1899, in Perry County, IL.  John was 22 years old, and Belle was 23.  In the 1900 census, they were living in DuQuoin, IL.  John was a coal miner in a local mine.  Their first child, Weston Lively Rosan, was born in 1899 and died a short time later in 1902.  The second child, Nolan Albert Rosan, was born in 1902 (died 1985).  Their third child, Norton John Rosan, was born in 1909 (died 1985).  And finally my grandmother, Clara Flossine Rosan, was born in 1911 (died 2000).

Rosan family, circa 1916

While living in DuQuoin, the family were members of the DuQuoin First Baptist Church.  John was a Deacon there (and coincidentally enough, also belonged to the Oddfellows Lodge, as well!).

DuQuoin FBC, circa 1910

One day while I was skimming through some online images on FamilySearch.org, I came across some images from the DuQuoin First Baptist.  I felt like I hit the jackpot when I found the Rosan's mentioned in the records dated April 1915.  They were being granted permission to move their church membership to the Christopher First Baptist Church.  I had never known until then, what time frame they had moved from one town to the next.  

DuQuoinFBC record from 1915

Christopher FBC, circa 1920's

At some point, the Christopher church built a brick building.  I don't know who took it or why, but I'm happy to have a picture of my Great Grandfather on the front steps of that building...

Christopher FBC brick building

John P. Rosan at Christopher FBC

Joan Davis and the "I Married Joan" TV show

The TV station that I work at has a family channel that we stream online 24/7.  We air kids shows and movies, and public domain television shows.  Recently I was given a 2nd computer screen so I could have this channel on while I work.

I've been watching for a little over a month now.  I have discovered that I really enjoy the TV shows from the 50's.  They aren't always "politically correct" for today's world...and that might bother some people... but it doesn't bother me.  It is what it is, and it is how it was.  

One of my favorite "new" shows is "I Married Joan."  After watching it for a few weeks, I decided to look up the actress and see if she had done anything in her later years that I might have seen.  Turns out, she did not.  But I did learn some things.

Joan Davis was born in 1912, in St. Paul, Minnesota.  She was an only child, born to LeRoy and Nina Mae (Sinks) Davis.  She began her showbusiness career  in Vaudeville at the age of 7.  Her first film was in 1935, and featured a then unknown Roy Rogers.  One bio states, "she was tall and lanky, with a comically flat speaking voice... she became known as one of the few female physical clowns of her time... she had a reputation for flawless physical comedy."  According to her obituary, at one time she was the highest paid woman on radio.

When "I Love Lucy" became a top rated TV series , sponsors wanted more of the same.  "I Married Joan" premiered in 1952, "casting Davis as the manic wife of a mild-mannered community judge, who got her husband into wacky jams with or without the help of a younger sister."  Joan's husband was played by Jim Backus, and her sister was played by her real-life daughter, Beverly Wills.  Joan was even nominated in 1953 for Best Comedienne at the Emmys (she lost to Lucille Ball). The series was cancelled in 1955.  

I was saddened to learn that Joan's life ended in May of 1961, when she died at her Palm Springs home  of a heart attack, at age 48.  She was so young!  And there's more... in 1963 (just two years after her death), there was a house fire... Joan's mother, her only child Beverly, and her only two grandchildren all perished, and the legacy of Joan Davis came to a heartbreaking and tragic end.  

Do yourself a favor and try to watch some episodes of "I Married Joan"...