Being Surprised by Vincent Sievert’s Actions

We never can really know our ancestors. We locate documents that suggest what they did or not do, where they lived, and who their families were. However, we do not know what they thought, what kind of personality they had, and what their goals were.

Sometimes we do find records that hint to a personality.

My 2x-great-grandfather, Vincent Sievert, was one of my German-speaking immigrant ancestors, who came in 1852 with his family from a part of present-day Poland where Germans had settled.[1] He first started out in Will County, Illinois, as a farmer,[2] but later worked as a stonecutter.[3] He and his wife, Susanna, had eleven children, eight whom grew to adulthood.[4]

Domestic Goose
JJ Harrison, CC BY-SA 3.0,
via Wikimedia Commons

Assault Charge
I was surprised to discover from a newspaper article that Vincent was charged in the County Court with
assault with a deathly weapon.[5] Oh, my, what had he done? The next month he was arraigned and he plead not guilty.[6]

Newspapers covered trials because it got people to buy the paper. There was a long column about the trial of The People vs. Vincent Severt. It was reported that the evidence on both sides was brought forth. The reporter summarized the case:

“A goose belonging to the Fiday family, who are the complainants, got into a field of Severt’s. He went for the feathered biped with a dog and whip. Barbara Fiday, a charming young lady, saw his actions, and scolded him for persecuting a poor goose that knew no better than to trespass upon his property. She also threw a stone at the dog, it is said, which hit Severt on the head.

“This may or may not be true; if she threw the rock at the dog and Severt was within reaching distance, he was just as liable to get hit as the dog, for the woman is yet to be found who can throw a stone and hit what she throws at.

“But then Severt strode forward and with a whip, lashed her severely, leaving a scar on her arm which is yet plainly visible.

“For the latter deed Severt should have his pistol pocket kicked up over his left ear; a man who will strike a woman under any circumstances deserves severe punishment and public censure.”[7]

There is a lot to digest in this article. First, Barbara Fiday was Vincent’s niece, the daughter of his sister, Henrietta, who married Joseph Fiday.[8] Second, the newspaper man insulted women, as some certainly can throw well with aim. But he redeemed himself with his last paragraph saying no man should ever strike a woman and deserved severe punishment. Third, that my ancestor should whip a member of his own family – that is just mind-blowing and leaves me very unsettled.

Jury was waived and the case was submitted for trial.[9] Vincent was adjudged guilty to two counts, and after a motion in arrest of judgment, the case was taken under advisement.[10] In November, Judge Olin fined him $25 on one count and $10 on the other.[11] The court case file was not available.

Civil Case
However, a case file was located where Barbara Fiday filed a charge of trespass against Vincent Severt and damages of $2000 in the same month.[12] Vincent stated he was not guilty. In her testimony, she claimed:

“on the 7th day of September 1882 he assaulted me violently seized and laid hold of me and bruised and beat me and then and there with a certain stick and horse whip and with his fists struck me a great many violent blows and strokes on differ parts of my body and then and there with great force and violence shook and pulled me down and threw me down on the ground and violently kicked me with great force and violence and damaged my clothes to wit one dress and hat valued at $25. That I was sick, sore, lame, and disabled and disordered and so remained for a long space of time, to wit, the space of three months. That I suffered great pain and was hindered from performing my affairs and business during that time.”[13]

In October 1883, in the case of Barbara Fiday vs. Vincent Severt, there was a motion for “rule on plaintiff to file security for costs.”[14] These are the only documents in the case file. It is unknown if he paid her for her injuries or costs of the clothing damaged.

I image this put a great strain on any familial relations between Vincent and his siblings. He died on 23 January 1890 of senile gangrene, “a gangrene due to lack of blood supply resulting from sclerosis of blood vessels.”[15]

Summary
How does one reconcile learning about bad behavior of an ancestor? All I can do is report what I know from surviving documents. It may seem like we have the whole story, but much is missing. The court case of the original trial is not available. There are missing papers in the civil suit. No story has been passed down through the family. I just feel very sad that this happened and makes me not want to get too attached to any ancestor because we cannot really know what they were like.

#52Ancestors: Week 44 – “What Surprised Me Most”
This is my ninth year working on this year-long prompt, hosted by Amy Johnson Crow (https://www.amyjohnsoncrow.com/) at Generations Cafe. I write each week in one of my two blogs, either Mam-ma’s Southern Family or My Trails into the Past. I have enjoyed writing about my children’s ancestors in new and exciting ways.

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[1] "Hamburg Passenger Lists, 1850-1934," imaged, Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/1068) > 1850-1859 > Direkt Band 003 (1 Mär 1852-1 Jul 1852) > image 191 of 246, Johanna Elise, 15 Mai 1852, W. Sievert; Staatsarchiv Hamburg.

[2] 1860 U.S. census, Will Co, Illinois, Joliet, p. 612 (penned), dwell/fam 2791/2721, Vincent Sever.

[3] 1870 U.S. census, Will Co, Illinois, Joliet 2nd ward, p. 211 (stamped), dwell/fam 133/159, Vincent Seivert.

[4] Susanna stated she had eight children with eight living. However, baptism records at St. John the Baptist Catholic church counted ten children. The eleventh child came to the U.S. with Vincent and Susanna. 1900 U.S. census, Will Co, Illinois, Joliet, ED 122, sht 2a, p 79 (stamped), fam 21, Susana Sivert. "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, Winzent Seivert.

[5] “Little Happenings,” The Daily News (Joliet, Ill), 8 Sep 1882, p. 4, col. 1.

[6] “County Court News,” The Daily News (Joliet, Ill), 2 Oct 1982, p. 1, col. 1.

[7] “Circuit Court Notes. People’s Cases,” The Daily News (Joliet, Ill), 6 Oct 1882, p. 1, col. 3.

[8] For parents’ names: “Illinois, U.S., Catholic Diocese of Joliet, Sacramental Records, 1800-1976,” Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/62097) > St John the Baptist, Joliet >, > Combined Register, 1855-1869 > image 81 of 212, p. 77, no. 65, Barbara Feitag, 16 Aug 1863. Feitag was later Americanized to Fiday. The Feitags traveled to the U.S. with John Sievert. "Hamburg Passenger Lists, 1850-1934," imaged, Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/1068) > 1850-1859 > Direkt Band 006 (15 Apr 1854-7 Dez 1854) > image 105 of 459, Elida, 15 Apr 1854, J. Freytag; Staatsarchiv Hamburg. John and Vincent lived next door to each other in 1860. 1860 U.S. census, Will Co, Illinois, Joliet, p 377, 2792/2721, John Sever.

[9] “The People’s Cases,” The Joliet Daily Republic, 6 Oct 1882, p. 4, col. 3.

[10] “Circuit Court,” The Joliet Daily Republic, 14 Oct 1882, p. 6, col. 3.

[11] “Severt’s Mentence,” The Joliet Republican, 15 Nov 1882, p. 1, col. 5. The title of the article should read “Severt’s Sentence.”

[12] Will Co, Illinois, Circuit Court case file 10656, Barbara Fiday vs. Vincent Severt, Nov 1882; Joliet, Illinois.

[13] Will Co, Illinois, Circuit Court case file 10656, Barbara Fiday vs. Vincent Severt, Jan 1883; Joliet, Illinois.

[14] “Circuit Court,” The Joliet Republican, 19 Oct 1883, p. 1, col. 6.

[15] State of Illinois, State Board of Health, Return of Death to County Clerk, Will County, no. 3419, V Seavert, 1890. For cause, see “Senile gangrene,” definition, Merriam-Webster (https://www.merriam-webster.com/medical/senile%20gangrene : accessed 29 Oct 2026).

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