SGS2026: Immigrant

Everyone has probably heard the saying "revenge is a dish best served cold." Well, there is a genealogical corollary: occasionally, we need to revisit our research "cold," and instead of revenge, we'll find ourselves rewarded.

For years, all I knew about my great-great-great grandfather was his name, John H. Younker (1820-1886), and that he had been born in Germany. Later, as my research into this branch expanded, I learned his middle name was Hubert or Hubertus, and that he had served in the Civil War as a blacksmith. 

John married relatively late in life, at the age of 49, to Anna Catherina Thomas. Katie, as she was more commonly known, was fourteen years younger and a German immigrant, as well. She was the widow of John Kible and the mother of six children. She and John Younker would have two sons together, John Hubertus (1871-1948) and John Henry (1873-1950).

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As I dug deeper into John's Civil War service, I learned he had served as a blacksmith with the 5th Illinois Cavalry, Company B. Available records helped piece together John's life after his marriage, but his early life remained a mystery. 

I had already reviewed John's disappointingly thin Civil War pension file while on a research trip to the National Archives in Washington, DC. With a little extra time available, I decided to request his service record file. I had never looked at one before and expected it would add a bit more detail about his Civil War service, but not much else. 

As I reviewed the monthly muster cards, I learned about lost blankets John was charged for, sick days, and then one detail leaped off one of the cards. Although they tracked similar details from month to month, there are many versions of the cards, and one card included the question of birthplace. Aachen. Initially, I didn't even comprehend the information, but then the fireworks started going off in my head... Aachen, that's in Germany!

That stirred a memory from my first-ever research trip to the FamilyHistory Library in Salt Lake City. After spending the majority of my time pursuing U.S. records, on the last day, I ventured to the basement and the International floor. I had absolutely NO IDEA what I was looking for. 

The volunteer on duty listened to my vague details about John Younker (even more vague at that point) and directed me to one of the computers with a variety of CD-ROM databases, including Regierung Aachen—Aachen Government. I found one entry that seemed to match and quickly made a copy and made a hasty retreat having realized I didn't have enough information to do successful international research at that point.

Now, with a birth location, there was suddenly additional context for the long-ago record I copied. Although I now had a starting place, it wasn't until Archion came on the scene that I was able to connect John with his German roots in the village of Linnich, in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. 

I am still working on locating a ship's passenger list and learning whether John immigrated on his own or as part of chain migration, but this success story was my first discovery of a German ancestral village. Linnich, located on the Rur River, dates to the 9th century and was part of the historical Duchy of Jülich region. The area has been shaped by various rulers, Celts, and abbeys throughout its long history and was heavily bombed during World War II. 

Welcome home, John!

Copyright 2026 by Lisa A. Oberg, GeneaGator: Vignettes of Yesteryear. All Rights Reserved.

SGS2026: Hidden Half

For Women's History Month, the writing prompt for the SGS Write All About it! group is #hiddenhalf. The theme was inspired by a classic reference work, The Hidden Half of the Family by Christina Kassabian Schaefer. 

I have several "hidden" women in my family history, I have written about previously in Hidden Mothers and Hellion Fathers, including Mary Grainger Keely Johns (1834-1871) and Catherine Thomas Younker (1834-1912). 

Since I first wrote about Mary and Catherine, I have made some headway by connecting them to their parents and gaining a deeper understanding of their lives. There is certainly more to learn, but their stories are both starting to take shape. The third woman, however, Mariam Williams Kirkendall, remains stubbornly cloaked by obscurity. 

The details of Mariam's life are scant:

• Mariam Williams was married to Robert Kirkendall in Green County, Wisconsin, on 26 August 1838.
• Robert Kirkendall appears as a head of household in the 1840 Federal Census for Green County, Wisconsin, with one female household member between the ages of 15 and under 20, presumably Mariam.
• Mariam and Robert were divorced in 1849. Their divorce records are the stuff of headline news today, with both sides alleging infidelity, drunkenness, and more. In keeping with the time, custody of their two daughters, Eliza Ann Kirkendall Shultz (1841-1929) and Mary Lucas Kirkendall Eastwood (1843-1928), was awarded to their father. 
• Mariam is mentioned as Robert's first wife in his 1897 obituary, which seems unusual.

Unidentified hidden mother photo. 

Mariam's fate following the 1849 divorce remains a mystery. There is a Miriam Kirkendoll in the 1850 Federal Census, living in neighboring Lafayette County, Wisconsin, with Elisabeth and John Chilton.

Mariam and Elisabeth are close in age, both born in Delaware, suggesting they might be sisters or some other relationship. The Chiltons have a five-year-old daughter named Miriam, which also strengthens the possibility of a family connection. 

Also enumerated with the family is two-year-old Caroline Kirkendall. There was no mention of Caroline in Robert and Mariam's divorce. Was she the result of the infidelity alleged in the divorce? Because of her young age, did she remain with her mother? Was she born after the divorce was finalized? Or, did the enumerator simply make a mistake, and Caroline was actually the daughter of John and Elisabeth? Since the 1850 census does not indicate how members of a household are related, confirmation of relationships requires additional research.  

Neither Mariam nor Caroline has been located in subsequent censuses. John Chilton died in 1857, and his probate file indicates his wife, Elisabeth, predeceased him, leaving two daughters, Louisa and Mariam. Caroline Chilton does appear in later Wisconsin records, but at this point, potential relationships are just speculation. So, for now, Mariam's story is still shrouded in mystery, and her half of the story remains hidden.

Copyright 2026 by Lisa A. Oberg, GeneaGator: Vignettes of Yesteryear. All Rights Reserved.

SGS2026: Scandal!

Nebraska, 1900 Federal Census: Soundex and Population Schedules.
Soundex: S421/424 Ralph thru S513 (NARA Series T1057, Roll 89).

For the second SGS Write All About It! writing prompt, I chose SCANDAL. I didn't have a particular scandal in mind, but the more I thought about it, the more I was drawn back to the first ancestral scandal I discovered years ago, when I was just starting my genealogical journey, and one that remains unparalleled in the family secrets I have unearthed.

Back in yesteryear, the best entrée to the U.S. census was the Soundex. For genealogists, the creation of the Soundex was a transformative project conducted by the Works Progress Administration during the Great Depression. Beginning with the 1880 census, indexers used the Soundex phonetic indexing system to group individuals with similar-sounding surnames, enabling officials to efficiently locate those who needed proof of age in order to apply for newly established Social Security benefits. In addition to the 1880 census, the 1900, 1910, and 1920 censuses were also later indexed. For anyone doing genealogy before 1990, you know how critical these indexes were to your research.

Years ago, when I enrolled in an introductory genealogy course, the instructor opened her first lecture with the announcement, “If you can’t live with the knowledge your great-grandfather was a horse thief, leave now!” My first inkling that my great-great-great-grandfather, Cuyler Shultz, might fall into this dubious category of ancestors came while searching the Soundex for the 1900 Census, when I discovered that Cuyler was an inmate at the Nebraska State Penitentiary in Lincoln. Questions and rampant speculations immediately began racing through my mind about how he got there and what followed in the years until his death.

But first, before I could answer those questions, I needed to start at the beginning. I had been researching my paternal Shultz ancestors, Cuyler and Eliza, who originated in Wisconsin, later moved to Iowa, before settling in Nebraska in the 1880s. I was able to trace them relatively easily in the census using the printed indexes to the 1850, 1860, and 1870 censuses, using the process of elimination and winding and rewinding many microfilm reels. 

When I got to 1900, however, I noted that Cuyler was not enumerated with his large family in Grand Island, Nebraska. The enumerator indicated that his wife, Eliza, was married and not widowed, so I set out to find out whether he was living elsewhere or had been excluded for some reason. As I browsed the Soundex, I found Cuyler, but was surprised to learn he was living in Lancaster County, Nebraska, home of the state capital, Lincoln. As I read further down the card, I almost fell out of my chair when I read the words "Nebraska State Penitentiary"! Cuyler was 69 years old at the time, so I didn't know how long he had been incarcerated. Fortunately, Nebraska is one of the states for which the 1890 Veterans' census survived, and he was enumerated in Grand Island, where I expected to find him, so I was able to narrow down my search for his crime(s) to 1890-1900.

So, what happened and when, and how'd he end up in the Pen?

History of Hall County, Nebraska,
by A.F. Buechler and R.J. Barr, 1920.

On a research trip to the FamilySearch Library in Salt Lake City, I located a history of Hall County that provided a few scant details and a date. There were no online newspapers to consult at the time, so I wrote to a local genealogical society and paid for a researcher to check area newspapers for me. 

After a few months, I received a tantalizingly large envelope arrived in the mail with a treasure trove of articles about the trial. To say it was the talk of the town is an understatement. In a nutshell, in a fit of rage, Cuyler shot his neighbor, J.P. Farr, over long-standing disagreements unprovoked and without remorse. During the course of the trial, which centered around an insanity defense that Cuyler himself rejected, it was revealed that, as a result of injuries received during the Civil War battle of Shiloh, Cuyler had shrapnel in his head. He had a history of erratic behavior after the war and was violent and a heavy drinker as a way to manage his ongoing pain.

Omaha Daily Bee, March 21, 1892, Page  1.

Regardless, he was convicted and sentenced to hang. At some point, his sentence was reduced to life without parole. After nearly 10 years in prison, the Shultz family petitioned the governor of Nebraska, Ezra P. Savage, for clemency for Cuyler, citing his advanced age and the family's pledge to manage his activities. Clemency was granted, and Cuyler was released in 1901. After their youngest daughter, Ida, was married in 1910, Cuyler moved to the Nebraska Soldiers and Sailors Home in Grand Island, where he lived until he died on June 10, 1917. 

Curiously, his obituary makes no mention of his murder conviction, but does make note of his Civil War service. His daughter, Christina, left behind an 80-page manuscript with many minute details of her life, and also neglects to mention anything about his murder conviction, although she does speak very candidly about his alcohol consumption, how her mother had to sell eggs and butter to provide food for the family when her husband didn't, and his violence towards his family. 

I have since located other direct ancestors with less-than-stellar histories, as well as nefarious activities of extended family members, but Cuyler holds the prize for being the most notorious of them all!

Copyright 2026 by Lisa A. Oberg, GeneaGator: Vignettes of Yesteryear. All Rights Reserved.