Pearce, Steffen & Sparks Families: 1 Reunion, 4 Cemeteries, 2 States

What is the best kind of vacation for a genealogist? 

A vacation that combines a visit with a good friend, meeting a newly-found cousin, a quite-altered family reunion and genealogically-related traipsing through four cemeteries in Iowa and Illinois...Priceless!!!

The Clam Man in
Muscatine, Iowa 

Reunion was next door to this
 house that had belonged to our
 great-great-great grandfather. 

 

 

Crossing Mississippi River
after meeting
newly- found cousin

                                              

It all started over a year ago, when I visited my cousins in northern Illinois for visits and to gather family history information. As I was talking to these cousins about some of our half-cousins, I realized they seemed very unsure of whom I was referring.

So, I started planning a Pearce family reunion for July 2020. Never had organized a family reunion from scratch before, but I felt confident in my abilities. I had this, I could do this!! I mean...what could go wrong?! 😀😉

We were all in for quite the surprise when COVID-19 altered life throughout the world. It stopped all of us in our tracks for several months, before we started to venture out again.

Although our crowd of 100+ had dwindled down to 9, we choose to go forward with the reunion, only with some changes. Masks, social distancing and hand sanitizer were now as much a part of the plan as the visiting and talk of family history.

After the reunion, we all paid
 respects to our Pearce ancestors
at the Pearce Cemetery,
Oswego, Illinois

The hubby and I spent the week before the reunion in Muscatine, Iowa, visiting a good friend of ours. Much time was spent along the Mississippi River, visiting local sites and cemeteries.

First cemetery was in Muscatine itself. I had no ancestors that had ever lived in Muscatine. However, I had recently discovered that my 4x-great grandfather's brother, Green Sparks, had moved to Muscatine at some point, and was buried there in the Greenwood Cemetery, along with his wife and two daughters.

Alas, this is one of those fruitless searches that turns up no stones or grave markers of any kind. The cemetery office has records that show they are buried here in this section, but we found nothing there. 

Greenwood Cemetery:  burial place of Green Sparks, Susan (Hunt) Sparks and two daughters.

A day trip up to Dubuque County to the small towns of New Vienna and Luxemburg where my maternal grandmother was born and raised. Some of her ancestors had arrived here in the 1830's, and her great-grandfather is actually mentioned in a Wikipedia article regarding St. Boniface Church in New Vienna, Iowa.

St. Boniface Catholic Church.
(Photo Credit: Eileen Moore)

If you would like to learn more about this church, I have provided the link here. However, below, you will find the section that mentions my 3rd great-grandfather, (Wilhelm) William Steffen, Sr.

"The church was 64 by 100 feet (30 m) with 22-foot (6.7 m)-high walls. A local resident, William Steffen Sr., was sent with two teams of horses to get three bells for the church. He arrived back in New Vienna just before Easter; the bells were raised in time to chime for the first time on Easter Sunday. This second structure was used until 1887."

The following three photos are three generations of my maternal grandmother, Mathilda (Steffen) Pearce, from her great-grandfather to her grandparents.

William Steffen, Sr., my
maternal grandmother's
 great-grandfather

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Her grandparents, Theodore &
Maria K. (Bonenkamp) Steffen

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And her parents, Frank W. and
Josephine (Schulte) Steffen

Within a five-mile radius, I was able to visit two cemeteries (St. Boniface Catholic Church and Holy Trinity Roman Catholic Church) in two very small towns that was the final resting place of most of my grandmother's siblings, ancestors, cousins and extended family back to the first immigrants from Germany.

Without time to consult my family history papers for specific ancestors, I took photos of all headstones bearing the following surnames:  Steffen, Schulte, Trenkamp, Bohnenkamp and Sudmeier. As I sort through my photos and paperwork in the near future, I will certainly be including more posts about the Steffen line, I am sure.

As I thought about all of those ancestors I had just visited, it made me realize how much I missed two that were not to be found in either cemetery. My Grandma (Tilly) Pearce and her baby sister, Alice Morganegg. 

In her 20's, my grandma had left her home in Luxemburg, Iowa and traveled to Kendall County, Illinois...with Aunt Alice eventually finding her way there, also.

Why, and When? What made these two young ladies set out for northeastern Illinois in the 1930's or so? I have not discovered the answer to this question yet, but I have not given up just yet! Lol

The Steffen sisters: Catherine,
 Alice, Mathilda, Florence

Newly-found cousin and ancestors, Illinois and Iowa, a reunion and 4 cemeteries...and a relaxing visit with a good friend! All in all, I couldn't have asked for a better vacation!

Sunday's Obituary Prompt ~ Mary Warner Severance

(Sunday’s Obituary is a daily genealogy prompt that can include an obituary and other information about a person, developed by Leslie Ann at Ancestors Live Here)

Have you ever had a brick wall  that you thought you would never break? The ancestor just seemed to appear out of nowhere, and start a direct line to your family?! 🔍🔍🔍

Mary Warner Severance was one of my biggest brick walls. In all my research on her, I had found maiden names of Warren, Warner and all kinds of variations. New York was always listed as the place of birth, but I could never find a town listed anywhere. And, last but not least, I had never heard of any children other than my great-grandmother, Frances.

Thanks to my genealogy angel and newly-discovered third cousin, Stephanie...I now have an obituary for my 2x-great grandmother, Mary Warner Severance! 

It was taken from the Aurora Daily News (June 14, 1907, p. 15), and gives much of the information that I was missing. I also discovered four more children that I didn't know existed. The only drawback that I noticed in a 1907 obituary is the daughters lack their own names. Instead, you will notice they are all Mrs. (insert husband's name).

This is so much more information than I already had for Mary, so I would like to transcribe it below to make it searchable for others. 

                                Aurora Daily News (June 14, 1907, p. 15)

(Transcribed obituary of Mary Warner Severance)

Obituary

   Mary Warner was born in Chittenango, Madison County, N.Y., May 2, 1816 and died June 10, 1907, at the advanced age of 91 years, one month and eight days.

   She was united in marriage to David Severance in 1835 and was a resident of Oswego for many years. For several years she has made her home with her daughter, Mrs. Orson Pearce, near Yorkville, where she received the best of care. All that loving hands could do was done for her comfort. She was a patient sufferer for months.

   She leaves to mourn her loss four daughters and one son, Mrs. Edward Walker, of Indiana, Mrs. Jos. Hinchman, Mrs. Will Smith and Mrs. Orson Pearce of Oswego and Charles Severance.

   The funeral was held at the house Tuesday afternoon and was largely attended. The floral offerings were exceedingly beautiful and profuse. The sermon was preached by Rev. G.A. Erving. The music was furnished by W.W. Church and Miss Lillian Nading. The pallbearers were the four grandsons, Gerald Pearce, Van Andrews, Clarence Smith and Loren Hinchman.

Happy Ancestorversary to Daniel Pearce!

Family Search let me know this morning that it was the 230th Birthday for Daniel Pearce. 

Daniel was born in 1789 in the state of Maryland. He first married Elizabeth Johnson, with whom he had three children: John, William and Nancy. After Elizabeth's passing, he married Sarah Burgess and they proceeded to had two children. His 2nd wife passed away a few years later, and he remarried one last time to Sarah Titsworth. 

Sarah T. and Daniel proceeded to have nine children. 

Daniel and his family were the first permanent settlers of Oswego, Kendall County, Illinois. His 2nd house still stands at the Fox Bend Golf Course on his original property.

🎂 HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DANIEL! 🎂

Pearce: All Signs Point to Oswego, Illinois

Lately, I have been working on my Pearce family line...and decided to take a trip home to delve a little deeper.

It is not my hometown, but it was for many, many years for the Pearce family. My 3x-great grandfather, Daniel Pearce, settled here with three of his siblings in 1833. They were the first permanent settlers in the area. 

I have heard rumors that a good portion of this large town is built on land that once belonged to Daniel, or his siblings (Rebecca Wilson, John & Walter Pearce).

But, I am not sure... 

I am not seeing any signs that this is true. LOL

What do you think?

This is a restaurant, along with a golf course,
that sits on Daniel Pearce's land. 

All joking aside, it was wonderful seeing all this Pearce history all around me. I met with my 1st cousins on the Pearce side while in the neighborhood, and I enjoyed telling them about what I had discovered. My seventeen-year-old cousin lives here and even learned a few things from me.

I made a point to stop in at both the Oswego and Yorkville public libraries to see what I could uncover. Let's just say, I spent a small fortune on copies! Lol

I have fallen down the rabbit hole!!

Next stop was to the Kendall County Courthouse, where I was able to retrieve my mother's birth certificate, my grandfather's birth certificate, and my great-grandfather's death certificate. 

If you have been reading my posts recently, you know that I have discovered a 3rd Pearce cousin on a FB group a fews years ago. Cousin Pearce has helped me tremendously, but we hadn't been able to meet up yet.

No photos to show, as I would like to protect her privacy. But we had a very enjoyable visit, comparing notes and just getting to know more about our our families.

As I am attempting to join the DAR eventually through Daniel's father (also a Daniel), Cousin Pearce has said that I can join through her. I would only have to prove to where our families converged, and then her application proved back to Revolutionary War veteran, Daniel Pearce.

I have my birth certificate, my mother's, and my grandfather's, all in my possession, but I still needed to prove my great-grandfather, Orson Seth Pearce, was the son of John Pearce.

Sometimes, you find help in unexpected places! I stopped in the Little White School Museum on their "Research in the Archives" day, hoping I might find a thing or two.

The Little White School Museum 

The staff there were wonderful! They were able to find 1842 and 1870 plat maps, obituaries, newspaper articles and so much more. Also, this museum had been a Methodist church first, before it was used as a schoolhouse. I discovered that it happened to be the church were Daniel, John and Orson Seth would have worshipped during their lifetime!

While they found so much for me, I was still on the trail of something that would prove Orson Seth Pearce was John Pearce's son. Bingo!!!  I discovered a will for Orson Seth's sister, which listed all the children (and a few grandchildren) of John Pearce.

So, with this piece of the puzzle, I can now prove that I am a descendent of the Daniel Pearce, a Revolutionary War veteran, and start my application process with the DAR.

What a wonderful vacation!  Over the course of a week, I was able to visit with 1st cousins, 2nd cousins, and a newly-found 3rd cousin! I visited the Pearce Cemetery, and paid my respects to my grandparents.

I found the missing puzzle piece for my DAR paperwork and got a tremendous amount of research done. I was able to walk on their land, and walk into the same church building that they had once walked, too.

What a remarkable week! How was yours?

Are They My Cousins Too, Or Just Yours?

Where do you go on vacation when you want to visit relatives, do some genealogy work and pay your respects to your ancestors?🤔🤔🤔

With these temperatures, I wish I could tell you Hawaii or Florida! 🌡⛄🌊   Lol

But, this coming week, I am heading up north to Kendall County, Illinois to do just that. 🚗🚗🚗

By now, you are asking what does this have to do with the title of  my blog post, right? Why in the world would I pick that title?  ❓❓❓

The title of this post actually comes from conversations I have had over the years from my relatives in Oswego and Yorkville in Kendall County, Illinois.

I have three different sides of my family tree all represented here in these towns where my mom grew up,...but my dad had never lived.

Let's climb aboard a time machine 🚀, and jump back to where these trees started growing in Kendall County.

First stop ~ My maternal grandfather, Gerald Pearce, was born in 

                     Oswego where his great-grandfather, Daniel Pearce, was

                     one of the first settlers. Gerald had been married with a 

                     daughter, and widowed, before meeting my 

                     grandmother. His one daughter had 12 children.

Gerald and Tillie Pearce

Second stop ~ My maternal grandmother, Mathilda Steffen, and her 

                     younger sister, Alice, moved from Iowa to Kendall 

                     County. Grandma "Tillie" married Grandpa Gerald and     
                     raised my mother and uncle in Yorkville. The 12       

                     children above (their half-neices/nephews), were     
                     approximately their age range and went to school with
                     them.

Third stop ~ My paternal grandmother, Ethel, was born and raised
                    southeastern Indiana along with her eight siblings. One
                    of her sisters, Clara, married and moved to Kendall
                    County. Clara and Tillie became good friends. When my
                    Grandma Ethel and family would visit, my mother got to
                    got to meet my father.

(L-R) Clara, Ethel Gladys and Loren Haessig

I truly hope that I haven't completely confused you yet! It was honestly has made for some interesting conversations with relatives over the years.

I am related to the Goins families in Kendall County, because my Great-aunt Clara moved from southeastern Indiana and raised her family there.

But the rest of my Illinois relatives are related to them in any way.

My Grandma Tillie Steffen married Grandpa Pearce, so I am related to all the Pearces in the area.

My Great-aunt, Alice, had moved from Iowa with big sister, Tillie. She stayed and raised a family in Kendall County, also. I am related to her children here. But, only my immediate family and closest Pearce cousins are related to them, also.

What makes all of this quite interesting is the fact that Yorkville and Oswego are small towns. They know each other as neighbors and classmates.

We, however, are in a unique position to call everyone: FAMILY!!!