Week 1: Beginnings

This is my fourth year working on this year-long 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks prompt, hosted by Amy Johnson Crow. I will write each week in one of my two blogs, either Mam-ma’s Southern Family or at My Trails into the Past. I have enjoyed writing about my children’s ancestors in new and exciting ways.

When thinking about genealogy beginnings, the arrival of immigrant families to America could be a beginning of our family history in the United States. For some of my lines, I know who the immigrant ancestors are. Their arrival in the 19^th century were documented by ship arrival records.

For others, who were here before the American Revolution, I have no idea of their beginnings. Three-eighths of my children’s ancestors fall under this category. They include my mother’s southern ancestors and my husband’s Gorrell, Wollam, Shotts, and Bishop ancestors. But I can write about the other five-eighths of their ancestors.

My father’s ancestors arrived here from Ireland, Canada (who were Irish, likely from Co. Tipperary), and Germany (who came from Westfalen and Posen). They are listed below.

Jeremiah and Mary (Sheehan) Sullivan brought their seven or eight children sometime in the 1860s. I have not found their arrival date. Their family scattered, some sons in Rhode Island, some in Minnesota, and Jerry and Mary went to the Michigan Upper Peninsula to the mines.[1] They left their home in County Cork.

Vincent and Susanna (Raduntz) Sievert and their small son, left their home in Schneidemuehl, Posen which is in present-day Poland, traveled to Hamburg to take the ship Johanna Elise to New York, arriving on 23 June 1852. They came with a small boy.[2]

John and Margaret (Tierney) Gleeson and their ten children, left their home in Goulbourne, Carleton County, Ontario, Canada for Dakota Territory, where they homesteaded outside of Mitchell, Davison County.[3] There are no records of border crossing at that time-frame. John and Margaret were children of Irish immigrants to Canada.

Johan Anton Hork came alone to the U.S. from Oberhundem, Kreis Olpe, Westfalen in 1870 aboard the SS Idaho.[4] He was a merchant tailor and made his way west to Joliet, Will County, Illinois, where he met Julia Ann Sievert, daughter of Vincent and Susanna Sievert. Later, a brother, Albert, and a sister, Clementina, also came to the U.S., but there is no evidence that they ever saw each other in person.

My husband’s ancestors, who came in the 19^th century, sailed from England (Co. Cornwall), Sweden (Jönköping, Örebro, Skaraborgs, and Östergötland), and the German states of Pfalz (Bavaria) and Württemberg.

Thomas and Mary (Nicholas) Davey, originally from County Cornwall, left London area for the U.S. aboard the Ocean Queen on 12 March 1852, at least Mary and the children did.[5] I have not found Thomas arriving and he probably came earlier.

Ludwig Wilhelm Wollenweber, originally from Kusel, Pfalz, Bavaria, came to New York City from Le Havre on 24 June 1845 aboard the SS Venice.[6] He married his second wife, Philappina Margaretha Voehringer, who was from Unterhausen, Württemberg. She came to the U.S. aboard the SS Gebhard on 1 September 1857.[7]

His Swedish ancestors came in two waves. Anders Eliasson Lundquist and wife Cajsa Florine Pehrsdotter along with their three surviving children, followed his brother to the U.S., arriving 9 July 1866 from Liverpool aboard the City of Manchester.[8]

Nils Malkom Nilsen first came to the U.S. from Ingarp Södegârd, Åsenhöga, Jönköping län, Sweden in April 1889 to serve as pastor to the Mission Covenant Church in Sheffield, Pennsylvania. After his first wife died, he returned to Sweden to marry again and Hulda Charlotte Anderson-Carlson who was living in Göksholm, Stora Mellösa, Örebro län came to the U.S. aboard the SS Umbria on 8 May 1893.[9]  

Here, the chart shows my daughter’s paternal ancestors (in red and purple) and maternal ancestors (in blue) who came to the United States in the 19^th century. They all arrived here for a new beginning in their own lives.

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[1] 1870 U.S. census, Houghton Co, Michigan, pop. sched., Franklin twp, p 22, dwl 152, fam 162, Jeremiah Sullivan, digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com); NARA M593, roll 674.

[2] "Passenger Lists of Vessels Arriving at New York, New York, 1820-1957," digital images, Ancestry (http://www.ancestry.com), Johanna Elise, 23 Jun 1852, p 2, line 10, Winzent Seivert.

[3] "South Dakota, County Naturalization Records, 1865-1972," images, FamilySearch (http://familysearch.org), Davison Co, 2nd Judicial District, Declarations of Intention 1880-1886, p 31, John Gleeson.

[4] "Passenger Lists of Vessels Arriving at New York, New York, 1820-1957," digital images, Ancestry (http://www.ancestry.com), film 336, 5 Nov 1870, SS Idaho, line 39, no. 1030, Joh Hork.

[5]  “New York, Passenger and Crew Lists (including Castle Garden and Ellis Island), 1820-1957,” digital image, Ancestry ((http://www.ancestry.com), Ocean Queen, arriving 12 Mar 1852, 2nd page, lines 18-25, citing NARA M237, roll 110.

[6] "Passenger Lists of Vessels Arriving at New York, New York, 1820-1957," digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com), SS Venice, 24 Jun 1845, p 2, Ludwig Wollenweber.

[7] "Passenger Lists of Vessels Arriving at New York, New York, 1820-1957," digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com), 1857, SS Gebhard, No. 104, Philippina Vohringer.

[8] "Passenger Lists of Vessels Arriving at New York, New York, 1820-1957," digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com), City of Manchester, 9 Jul 1866, roll 268, Alfred Eliason.

[9] "Passenger Lists of Vessels Arriving at New York, New York, 1820-1957," digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com), SS Umbria, p. 1, line 29, Hulda Carlson.

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