Adventures in Genealogy

Photo: My grandparents, Jackson Co. natives Cecil and Pearl (Hopson) Stoll on their wedding day in 1937.

I love doing genealogy! It's like putting a puzzle together or solving a mystery, sometimes working from the tiniest of clues. And most of my genealogical adventures have a link to Jackson County, Iowa, home base for all of my family lines at some time. So I am inviting you to join me on my quests and enjoy the ride with me. Please let me know how you like my blog. [sic] - means that I left the spelling just as I found it in the original record. Anything else in [square brackets] is my addition for clarity. And since genealogy research works best as a group effort, feel free to add corrections or point me to more information. But most of all, Enjoy! LuAnn

Friday, August 12, 2011

Stoll-Sherberger Photo Collection

I have a collection of digitized photos I call the Stoll-Sherberger collection. The photos belonged to Viola (Sherberger) Stoll of Maquoketa, Iowa. Viola, born in 1882, was raised in Mahaska and Muscatine Cos. of Iowa. In 1906, she married Anthony Stoll of Fulton, Iowa and lived most of the rest of her life in Jackson Co.
The dates of these photos run from about 1888 up to the 1960’s. There are lots of family photos, some of friends and classmates, and I am happy to share them, but many are as yet unidentified. To me, such photos are very sad: beautiful and precious, but lost from their families forever. The names below are the main family lines shown in these photos for each county, but there are many more and may not include all the names of friends.
You can find more information on any of these families at this free link: http://wc.rootsweb.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?db=stoll-shimerda. Additions and corrections are welcome.
If you can help to identify anyone, I would appreciate hearing from you. Please feel free to let me know if you have any questions. You can view the photos at this free link: https://www.facebook.com/#!/media/set/?set=a.1756651836103.2087883.1233205371

Jackson/Jones Co. names include: Stoll, Henry, Gleason, Russell, McCutcheon, Shimerda, Bennett, Pierce, Bierlein, Dostal, Morse, Silberhorn, Clute, McComb, Henry, Rowe, Hopson, Zabortsky, Waters, Blizek, Mayberry, Bollinger, O’Donnell, Hayward, Morse, Copus, Wentworth.

Muscatine Co. names include: Sherberger, Minor, Mowry, Holzhauer, Doran, Dockweiler, Schwin, Bedford, Knott, Moyers, Wacker, Peeks, Wyatt, Van Atta, Kulles, Eshleman, Bates, Atwell, Cooling, Wallace, Shouse, Dice, Wierhauser, Chartiere, Lockshart, Shore, Mulford, Stevens, Silberhorn.

Mahaska Co. names include: Minor, Sherberger, Hoskins, Fry, Beal, Huff, Zane.

Monday, August 8, 2011

Union Center Sunday School photo, 1910-1915

I recently came across this photograph marked simply "Union Center Sunday School." It appears to have been taken about 1910-1915. I've been able to identify a few people, but would appreciate any help in identifying the rest.
Lower left corner: Opal Russell, age 3-4, sister, Leitha Russell. Their mother, Anna (Smith) Russell, is on the far right. Their maternal grandmother, Sarah (Beers) Smith, is above them holding a small boy. Their paternal grandmother, Clara (Cunningham) Russell, is standing in the open church doorway. Fred Mychalek is in the center of the picture, with probably one of the ministers to his left.
The Union Center Methodist Episcopal Church was located in Section 31 of Fairfield Township, just at the Maquoketa township line, 7 miles east of Maquoketa. The cemetery is easy to get to, just off Hwy. 64. The land for the church was donated by Bert Haylock from his farm. The sanctuary was built about 1870. The church was on the Methodist circuit and served by pastors from Preston and Charlotte - two of whom were Rev. Williams and Rev. C.W. Clemo.
We would like your help in identifying the other people in the photograph. So if you recognize anyone, please let me or Don Wentworth know.










You can also find this photo at this link: photo. You do not have to belong to Facebook to see this picture.

Or ask Don Wentworth to see the printed photo.

Thank you for your help! © 2011 LuAnn Goeke