From Whence I Came - Ella Emma Louise Kolberg

ELLA EMMA LOUISE KOLBERG

My maternal grandmother, Ella Emma Louise Kolberg, was born August 8, 1895 in Stevensville, MI to August Kolberg and Bertha Kramp.  I believe that she was probably named in part for her Aunt Ella Kramp and her Uncle Louis Kramp with her uncle being one of her godparents at the time of her baptism.  Ella was the last of the children of August and Bertha Kolberg and she had 5 older siblings still living.  There was such a disparity between the ages of herself and her eldest sister, who was born in 1880, that in later years they were mistaken for mother and daughter rather than sisters which did not please her sister at all.

The August Kolberg family had a small farm in Stevensville, MI during the early years of my grandmother's life.  She was baptized at Trinity Lutheran Church in St. Joseph and later confirmed at St. Paul's Lutheran Church in Stevensville.  Here is a photo of her at her confirmation:

Family life was not easy during my grandmother's childhood.  The farming her parents did was not enough to produce income to live comfortably.  As a child, my grandmother often accompanied her mother to the neighboring farms of other Kolberg family members, where they were allowed to pick berries which they then brought home to their farm to sell.  In addition, her father, August Kolberg, had a propensity for drinking and life was not pleasant.  I must say, though, that I never heard any of this from my grandmother but rather from elder cousins of hers when I began my genealogy research and after my grandmother was already deceased.

Over the years my grandmother had some interesting experiences.  While I could write about the dates of importance in her life, her marriage, raising her own family, etc much has already been written in my post on my grandfather, Joseph Kijak, and my grandmother's mother, Bertha Kramp.  Instead I am going to list some of the experiences that my grandmother had in her life:

1.  As a 14 year old she was sent from the farm to the city of St. Joseph to live with a wealthy family where she worked as a maid and lived in their home.  When I think of that - 14 years old - I am amazed.  While today a trip from Stevensville to St. Joseph might take 15 minutes tops, in those days it was necessary for my grandmother to "live in" at her employer's home.  She told me the story about how one time the home was robbed and when the police came out to investigate they had to go through everything in the home.  In the closet of my grandmother's bedroom she had a cardboard box in which she stored those "delicate" items that women had to use during those once/month occurrences.  These items had to be hand washed and dried to be used over and over and the police had quite an eye full when they dumped out my grandmother's stash of female products.  She liked to laugh about that in later years but said she was mortified at the time.

2.  As a 16  year old young lady she was dating a particular young man who she never identified to me but she did tell the story of going on his motorcycle for a ride through the countryside, something she said her father would have been livid about.  On this ride, she recounted that she fell, down a long hill and never was inclined to get on a motorcycle again.  Gosh, she was a daredevil.

3.  She went to work at Cooper-Wells Hosiery Mill where she met a young man who she would later marry.  Her marriage to Joseph Kijak took place on June 17, 1914 at the parsonage of Trinity Lutheran Church in St. Joseph.

4.  On August 8, 1914, she received a poignant letter from her mother, Bertha Kramp Kolberg, written to Ella on "your first birthday as a married woman".  I have this letter today and it is amazing to see how it has been preserved for 96 years.  

5.  On February 26, 1915, while pregnant with her first baby, Ella lost HER mother when Bertha Kolberg passed away in Kalamazoo, MI.  This was probably a very hard time for her to lose her mother at the time when she would have needed her most but she did host a memorial service at her home on the day of her mother's funeral.

6.  On April 25, 1918, while pregnant with her second baby, Ella lost her mother-in-law when Mary Kijak passed away in Detroit, MI.  I have often thought how my grandmother's first two pregnancies must have been fraught with grief and loss.

7.  Ella and Joseph Kijak moved many times from home to home before settling on a farm on Cleveland Avenue in St. Joseph where my mother was born in 1925 and where their youngest child was born in 1926.  This was their first purchase of a home and my grandparents worked the farm together.  However, the depression came and in 1929 they lost their home and their farm.  They moved their family into the city of St. Joseph proper and for years moved from rental home to rental home.  

8.  During the years from 1929-1940, Ella ran her home, raised her 4 children, cared for her father-in-law and uncle-in-law who lived with them and invited into her home 3 young men, brothers, who became part of their family adding to the amount of cooking, cleaning and laundry that she had to do.  In addition to her work at home, she took employment at the Manley Resort on Langley Avenue in St. Joseph, where she worked as kitchen help, washing dishes.  While this resort is now gone, there is a Manley Street at this location.  Later she worked as a maid at the Whitcomb Hotel in St. Joseph.  She certainly knew the meaning of hard work but did so at all times with a sunny disposition.  While working at the Whitcomb she cut her finger badly while cleaning and developed a deep infection which would not heal.  She later visited the house doctor at the Whitcomb for an exam.  He asked her "do you play the piano" and she replied "no" to which his response was "then you won't care if I cut the finger off at the first joint".  Needless to say she didn't let him near her and went to another physician in town who was able to save her finger.

Here is a photo of Ella with children, Eloris and Leslie, on the USS Theodore Roosevelt on a voyage from St. Joseph to Chicago, IL, across Lake Michigan ca 1934:

Here is a photo of Joseph and Ella Kijak with eldest son, Harris, and younger children, Eloris and Leslie, in approximately 1943 in St. Joseph:

9.  Ella was also very active in her church during these years and made sure that her children and husband attended as well.  All 4 of her children were baptized and confirmed in the Lutheran faith and her husband converted from his Catholic faith at the beginning of their marriage.  Her two youngest children attended Trinity Lutheran grade school as well.  Ella took part in many activities at the church including Ladies Aid, where she held offices.  She also participated in the Lutheran Women's Missionary League, sewed projects for the church and made cancer dressings.  She also sewed at home and began a sideline business of making craft items and doll clothes some of which I have to this day.  I can remember one room in her home filled with supplies for her craft projects and she always had a project or ten going on at one time.  Here are some examples of her craft items:

10.  During WWII, all three of Ella's sons served in the Armed Forces and she proudly displayed their photos in uniform on her living room wall along with a photo of her daughter, my mother.  Her six grandchildren's photos were displayed in another area of the living room as well.

11.  One story she told about her years renting rooms in her home involved the time one of her renters was found to be involved in counterfeiting.  After the man vacated the room my grandmother found supplies left behind that indicated the counterfeiting of coin.  The man was later apprehended and my grandmother had to go to federal court in Kalamazoo, MI to testify against him. 

12.  After the death of her husband in 1960, Ella continued her activities.  She continued to have renters in her home as well; fortunately the entrance to the second floor was separate from the entrance to her home itself so there was safety but there were several renters that she had to evict and she did so with gumption.

My grandmother stayed in her own home, alone, for over 10 years after my grandfather died and then was able to secure an apartment in a newly built senior citizens complex.  She moved into her little "doll house" as she called her 14th floor apartment and lived there for the rest of her life until she passed away on May 29, 1973.

My memories of my grandmother are many.  She was the sweetest and kindest person ever and I was extremely close to her.  While she had very little finances, she was happy and positive her entire life.  I am pleased, even at this time, when I see people here in St. Joseph who tell me they remember my grandmother and recount wonderful stories about her.  She was truly the best grandmother that any person could ask for.

Today I am thinking of her on this the 126th anniversary of her birth.

Copyright 2021, Cheryl J. Schulte

From Whence I Came - Elmer Meyer Schulte

ELMER MEYER SCHULTE

My paternal grandfather, Elmer Meyer Schulte, was born August 4, 1894 in Detroit, Michigan to Rudolph Myer Schulte and Juliane Feucht.  He was their only child, though they had lost an infant daughter two years earlier.

Elmer Schulte at his baptism:

While I don't have many details of his early childhood, many photos exist of those years.  I do know that he and his parents lived in Detroit, that his father went off to the Spanish American War in 1898 when Elmer was just 4 and that he and his mother were extremely close.  Here is a photo of Julie and Elmer Schulte in 1895:

The 1900 Detroit, Michigan, US Census shows this family below:

In approximately 1900 this photo was taken of Elmer with two of his cousins, Evelyn and Mamie.  All 3 children had been born in 1894 with Elmer, of course, being born to Rudolph Schulte, Evelyn being born to Rudolph's sister, Elizabeth and Mamie being born to Rudolph's sister, Ida.  Mamie is on the left, Elmer sitting and Evelyn on the right:

In 1906 this photo of the Rudolph & Julie Schulte family was taken and it is my most prized genealogical photo.  Elmer was 12 years old at the time:

In January, 1907, following the taking of the above photo, Elmer's mother, Juliane, passed away of liver cancer leaving a 12 year old boy without a mother.  My grandfather told me many times when I was growing up how much he had loved his mother and how he had missed her terribly after her death.

Elmer's father didn't waste too much time, though, in marrying again just a few short weeks after Juliane's death which just amazes me when I think of it.  By February, 1907, following the January 14th death of his beloved wife, Rudolph Schulte married Juliane's sister, Elizabeth, who had been widowed twice.  Elizabeth came into the family with 4 children from her first marriage and a son from her second marriage giving my grandfather many cousins (or step siblings) to share a home with.

In 1910 the Detroit, Michigan, US Census shows this combined family living on Concord Avenue in Detroit:

Elmer in 1915:

During the start of WWI, my grandfather enlisted in the US Army and was stationed in San Antonio, Texas.  Prior to shipping off to Europe, his fiancee (my future grandmother), Ella Wellhausen, made a secret journey to Texas and returned to Michigan a married woman.  How my grandparents had met is a mystery but it is thought that they met through Ella's aunt who lived in Detroit and whose sons were good friends of Elmer.

In any event, Ella, snuck off to Texas with the above mentioned aunt, in order to wish her beloved Elmer farewell prior to leaving for France.  When she returned, a married woman, her parents were none too happy and her mother was not that happy with her own sister - the above named aunt.  Ahh, rebellious children in the early 1900's!!

Ella and Elmer were married on Christmas Eve, 1917 at the First Lutheran Church in Waco, Texas.  This is the original oil painting of their marriage which I still have 104 years later:

Original marriage certificate which unfortunately they preserved by folding for many years:

My grandmother was a no-nonsense, tough, outspoken person in my memory so I have no doubt that she eagerly took this trip to Texas with the intent of becoming married.  In any event, Elmer shipped off to Europe, was injured, was awarded the Purple Heart and they did not see each other for over two years.

Upon his return from WWI, Elmer and Ella set up a home on Hendricks Avenue in Detroit as evidenced in the 1920 Detroit, Michigan, US Census:

In September, 1920, son Melbourne was born, followed in 1923 by my father, Mylen, and in 1928 by daughter, Marilyn.  According to the 1930 Detroit, Michigan, US Census, the family lived on Strasburg in Detroit and Elmer was a driver for Bond Bread.  As a child in the 1950's I can still remember him bringing us little loaves of bread from his Bond Bread company:

The Elmer and Ella Schulte family in 1938:

Through the years my grandparents had a good life.  They both inherited some money following the deaths of their respective parents and their life was more affluent than my maternal grandparents.  Through it all, they had a strong faith and were active in their church and in the community.

Though they only had 4 grandchildren, I was the only granddaughter and while my grandfather was loving and kind to all 4 of us I like to think he had a special place in his heart for me.  I can remember him driving me to and from school as my parents worked, he would bring me home to his house until my parents could pick me up after work and he spent time with me asking how my day was and always had a genuine interest in what I was doing and thinking.

In December, 1967, my grandparents celebrated their 50th anniversary with a renewal of their wedding vows and a large party:

Shortly after their 50th anniversary, on January 21, 1968, my grandfather passed away after a sudden and unexpected heart attack.

He and my grandmother are buried in Gethsemane Cemetery in Detroit, Michigan on a family plot:

I was extremely close to my grandfather, he was very special to me and when he died I remember my grandmother telling me at the funeral home "your special buddy is gone".  He was a sweet, kind, gentle grandfather who never raised his voice and always showed his love to me.  I spent much time during my youth in my grandparent's home and the memories of my grandfather remain with me to this day.

I have many keepsakes of his, his WWI metals and honors from his service, numerous photos but the most important thing I carry with me is my memory of my grandfather on this the 127th anniversary of his birth.

Copyright 2021, Cheryl J. Schulte

From Whence I Came - Joseph Kijak

JOSEPH KIJAK

To continue my series of posts on my grandparents and great-grandparents, this is a week in which three of my four grandparents had birthdays.  As a child, I can remember the pure joy of having three birthday celebrations in a week for three of my special grandparents.

Joseph Kijak was born August 3, 1892 in Bay City, Michigan to John Kijak and Mary Anna Rubis.  He was their first child and only son.  His birth was followed by the births of three sisters, Anna, Martha and Rozalie.  Joseph Kijak would be my maternal grandfather and he was a very special grandparent who I have many fond memories of even though I was only 12 when he passed away.

While I do remember my grandfather well, I have very little information regarding his childhood.  I don't have any photos of him from his childhood years but I know that he was baptized in the Catholic faith as a newborn and that he lived in Bay City, Michigan with his parents and sisters as evidenced by the 1900 Bay City, Michigan, US Census:

From what I have learned over the years from other relatives the marriage of my grandfather, Joseph's parents, was not a pleasant one.  His mother had been only 16 when she was married to John Albert Kijak who himself was 30.  This was no doubt an arranged marriage after both families had arrived in the US from Poland.

Somewhere during the period from 1900 (when the Bay City census shows the family still together) to 1903 when Joseph Kijak's step sister, Emma, was born in South Bend, Indiana, mother Mary Kijak left Bay City with her 4 Kijak children, Joseph, Anna, Martha and Rozalie and settled in South Bend, Indiana with a man named Frank Banner.  Her husband, John Albert Kijak, remained in Bay City, Michigan.  John and Mary Kijak never divorced.

My grandfather, Joseph, spent his youth living in South Bend with his mother, sisters, step sister, step brothers and his mother's companion, Frank Banner.  This is the only photo I have of Joseph Kijak as a young man:

The 1910 South Bend, Indiana, US Census shows this family though the 4 Kijak children are listed with the surname "Banner" which was incorrect.  It is amazing the steps a genealogist has to go through to find hidden data.  For years I could not put my finger on a 1910 census for my grandfather and never thought to look under the surname Banner.  We must always be alert to all possibilities:

While living in South Bend, my grandfather found a job in St. Joseph, Michigan working for Cooper Wells, a hosiery manufacturing company.  This was only a 30 mile drive from South Bend and it was here, at work, that he met my grandmother, Ella Kolberg.  How long they dated, I don't know,  During their courtship Joseph Kijak did rent a room in a home at 417 Court Street in St. Joseph undoubtedly to be closer to work and most likely to be closer to his girlfriend:

On June 17, 1914 Joseph Kijak and Ella Kolberg were married at Trinity Lutheran Church in St. Joseph:

They began their married life in St. Joseph where my grandfather continued to work at Cooper Wells.  Their first marital home was a rental at 614 Price Street in St. Joseph which is still standing in very good condition 107 years later:

In 1915, son Harris was born and in 1918, son Elden was born.  The 1920 Berrien County, Michigan, US Census shows this family living at 211 Court Street in St. Joseph.  This house is no longer standing:

In 1925, their daughter (my mother, Eloris,) was born, followed in 1926 by their 3rd son, Leslie.  With these 4 children their family was complete.  At this time Joseph and Ella had a fruit farm on Cleveland Avenue in St. Joseph and the work and toil was their income.

In 1929 my grandfather had a unique experience with a member of the Al Capone gang which I have previously written about.  This experience led to his discontinuation of driving.

The Depression came in 1929 and with it the loss of their home and farm though the 1930 Berrien County, Michigan, US census does still show them living on Cleveland Avenue:

After the loss of their home and farm the family lived in a variety of rental homes until approximately 1940 when Joseph and Ella were able to purchase a home at 818 Pleasant Street in St. Joseph.  During these years, no longer farming, Joseph worked as a painter and decorator and in later years at the S&H Green Stamp store.

In 1945 my grandparents had a professional photo taken of themselves on the occasion of my grandmother's 50th birthday.  This is a favorite photo of mine:

As a teenager, my mother had a birthday book in which she had friends and family members sign their names on the date that was their particular birthday.  Her father, Joseph, signed his name in this birthday book as follows and it is special to have an example of his handwriting though he signed on the page for August 2nd instead of the 3rd!  He had always thought his birthday was on August 2nd and celebrated it on that day all of his life.  When I began my genealogical research and visited the Court House in Bay City, Michigan, I was able to obtain a copy of his birth certificate showing his birth was actually August 3rd.  I also visited the church in Bay City where he was baptized and that also indicated a birth date of August 3rd:

Though photos with my grandfather are few and far between this one of myself and my brother with my grandmother as well is one that I particularly remember:

My memories of my grandfather are many - his coming to Detroit on various occasions to help my parents with construction work when my parents bought their first home, building shelves in the basement to hold all our toys, planting a maple tree in the back yard and planning the placement of the tree so as not to obstruct a future garage, getting paint poisoning and having to bandage his fingers for the rest of his life and living in extreme pain from the poisoning.  He was a gentle man, never raised his voice and was a loving husband to my grandmother and a good father to his four children.

My grandfather became ill in October, 1960 and was diagnosed with a cerebral aneurysm.  The hospital in St. Joseph could not treat this condition at that time and he was transported to a hospital in South Bend, Indiana where he passed away on October 23, 1960.  I was only 12 at the time but have vivid memories of our drive from Detroit to South Bend, having a car accident on the way, getting lost trying to find the hospital in South Bend and my mother arriving to see her father just before he passed away.

He was a wonderful grandfather and I have always remembered him.  He and my grandmother are buried in Lincoln Township Cemetery in Stevensville, Michigan and his memory lives forever in my heart:

Today I am thinking of him on this the 129th anniversary of his birth.

Copyright 2021, Cheryl J. Schulte

From Whence I Came - Bertha Kramp

BERTHA KRAMP

Bertha Kramp was my mother's maternal grandmother though Bertha had died long before my mother was even born.  When my mother was growing up nothing was ever discussed about her grandmother and she knew nothing about her.  I have always wondered why my grandmother never mentioned her own mother to me either as I am sure there would have been many stories that I could have heard.

Bertha Kramp was born July 26, 1860 and she was the second of ten children of Albert Kramp and Emilie Rott.  At the time of Bertha's birth the family lived in Borntuchen, Kreis Bütow, Pommern, Germany where the first four children of this couple were born.  Between 1864 and 1866, Albert and Emilie Kramp moved their family to the nearby village of Klein Tuchen, Kreis Bütow, Pommern, Germany where their remaining six children were born.  I was able to visit these areas in 1993 and took these photos of Borntuchen:

Nothing is known of Bertha's early years but on October 4, 1878 in Groß Tuchen, Kreis Bütow, Pommern, Germany she married August Kolberg at the Evangelical Church.  Interestingly, Bertha's sister, Pauline Kramp, married on the same date in the same church to Heinrich Gersonde:

It should be noted that I received the above certificate in 1983 from the now Catholic church in Tuchomie, Poland - the area is now part of Poland and Groß Tuchen has been renamed Tuchomie.  The former Evangelical church is now a Catholic church though the former Evangelical church books are still there; the priest recorded this marriage on a Catholic/Polish form but the facts are still accurate.

The former Evangelical church of Groß Tuchen, now a Catholic church in renamed Tuchomie as I viewed it in 1993:

At least three children were born to August and Bertha (Kramp) Kolberg while they were still living in Klein Tuchen.  These children were:

Paul Lui Robert, born June 8, 1879 and died October 20, 1879.

Hedwig Johanne Auguste, born June 2, 1880.

Berta Hermine Franziska, born January 14, 1883 and who died on September 7, 1883.

In the fall of 1883 the family of August, Bertha and young Hedwig (age 3 years old) began their long journey to America.  August's brother, Heinrich, had already made the journey and had settled in Lincoln Township, Berrien County, Michigan.

Passenger list information from the port of Castle Garden in New York states the following:  August, Bertha and Hedwig COLBERG arrived in New York, on the ship, Lessing, on November 28, 1883.  They traveled from the port of Hamburg in Germany, to the port of Havre in France and then on to the US.  Their name was spelled Colberg on the ship passenger list.  Bertha's sister, Emilie Kramp, and Emilie's future husband, Friedrich Skibbe, also traveled with them on the same ship.  Arriving in New York they took a train to Michigan and were met in St. Joseph by brother, Heinrich:

Bertha brought with her to the US her German prayer book which I am fortunate to have received from my grandmother and which I still have and treasure:

Once in the US another six children were born to August and Bertha.  These children were:

Frederick Gustav Emil, born November 6, 1886 and who died July 13, 1887.

Amelia Alvina Henreitta, born December 6, 1887.

Kurt Paul Hugo, born July 23, 1890.

Robert Ernest Paul, born September 19, 1892.

Hugo Otto Heinrich, born May 29, 1894.

Ella Emma Louise, my grandmother, born August 8, 1895.

According to US census records, Bertha had given birth to 11 children and it is believed that the remaining two unknown children were perhaps born in Klein Tuchen as well given the three year gap between daughter Hedwig's birth in 1880 and daughter, Bertha's birth in 1883.  No additional birth or death records for children of this couple were ever located in county or church records in Berrien County, Michigan.

When I began my genealogical research, my grandmother was already deceased and I had to rely on the memories of many of her cousins for information.  I only have this one photo of my great-grandmother, Bertha, which based on the ages of the two daughters in the photo, must have been taken around 1889.

August and Bertha Kolberg with Hedwig (sitting) and Amelia (standing):

When I interviewed several of my grandmother's cousins I was told that August and Bertha Kolberg did not have much prosperity in their lives.  Times were very hard and August had a desire for excessive drinking.  I was informed that Bertha and daughter, Ella, would come to the farm of another Kolberg relative to pick berries which they would then sell on a stand in front of their own property for a little money to keep the family going.  I was told that on many a morning August would ride his horse through the countryside in Lincoln Township on his way to town to drink.  At night he would ride back with the horse knowing the way without guidance.  A very religious woman, this must have been a trying lifestyle for Bertha.  When talking to four different cousins of my grandmother, on separate occasions, it was interesting that each one of them all remembered these same incidences.

In early 1915 Bertha became too ill to remain at home and her son, Kurt Kolberg, took her to Kalamazoo, Michigan, approximately 60 miles away, where she was admitted to the Kalamazoo State Hospital. She passed away there on February 26, 1915 with her death certificate stating death was due to nephritis (inflammation of the kidneys), aggravated by mental depression and exhaustion.  Perhaps the hard life that she was forced into in this country and the loss of five children, along with having to work extremely hard to raise her family, became too much for her.

Newspaper articles reporting her death and funeral showed the religious woman that she was and how she would be missed by many:

August and Bertha Kolberg are buried in City Cemetery in St. Joseph, Michigan very close to my home.  Even though I never knew my great-grandparents I do place flowers on their grave every year to let them know that somebody is thinking of them:

I often have thoughts of just how difficult my great-grandmother's life was in this country and the fact that she died so young with her own mother outliving her by a good 10 years.  It is a sad commentary on her life but I hope that somewhere during her 54 years of life that she had happy times - perhaps with her children and the grandchildren that she was able to know.

Today I am thinking of my great-grandmother on what would be the 161st anniversary of her birth and I like to think that she would be pleased to see how large her family had become by the year 2000 when we had a Kolberg Family Reunion:

Copyright 2021, Cheryl J. Schulte