It’s been awhile since I last posted… For those of you who have requested some type of ‘certificate’ you can understand my anxiety — I am waiting for 3 death certificates from Pennsylvania! I have been awaiting their arrival for about 10 weeks now and daily look for that much anticipated blue envelope! (I had to include a self addressed, stamped envelope so I made it blue.) The arrival of the 3 death certificates will help me better place a ‘connection’ to the Stroempl line I currently have running in and out of the Pimsners! Franz Stroempl married my great grandfather’s sister (a Dittmer from Hamburg Germany) so I have a kind of ‘double’ connection!! Johann Dittmer married Anna Marie Pimsner 🙂
It seems this Stroempl family also emigrated from Metzeinsefen. Some stayed in Germany and others, like Franz, traveled further and came to America. The problem is, I can’t identify who the parents are for Franz (who changed his name to Frank…) and am pretty sure this missing puzzle piece will be included on his death certificate!!! Franz and his wife, Henriette, lived in Pittsburgh PA and that is where they died and are buried. Their daughter, Sister Mary Henriette, is also buried in a Pittsburgh suburb cemetery and son John, left Pittsburgh with his wife and children and moved to Cleveland where he is buried…
I still have one additional ‘child’ to find of this union. Franz and Henriette had 3 children according to two census reports – only problem is, I don’t know whether this 3rd child was born in Germany and stayed there or, was he/she born in the US… (Another puzzle piece to find!)
Because I know Henriette died after Franz, she may be listed as the ‘informant’ on his death certificate. They were married quite a number of years so she probably was able to supply ‘correct’ information (i.e. parents names, place and date of birth, etc…) The problem with MOST death certificates, unfortunately, is that they are usually completed by someone who doesn’t really KNOW the information! They ‘think’ they remember and yet, when in the midst of a very sad time, they are expected to actually recollect…
Birth certificates are beyond a doubt your best source of information solely because they are usually completed by the mother! Yeah for mothers, huh??
Now marriage certificates are not the same as marriage licenses just in case you thought they were… The license is where the bride and groom complete, to the best of their knowledge, information about themselves and their parents. (I can not imagine NOT knowing where my parents were born much less their birth dates but that often happens where children just don’t pay attention and/or take this kind of data for granted…) So the marriage certificate is what we usually receive when requested and it just states that Mr X and Miss Y were married on this date by Mr/Rev Z.
My bet is on birth certificates as the TOP choice when trying to find someone!!!
Ta ta for now…
Franz and Henrietta I believe are my great grandparents. My grandfather is John Stroempl who lived in Cleveland where my Dad Francis (the family called him Franz) was born as was I. I now live in the Indianapolis area. My name is Dan
Frank Stroempl, Pittsburgh, PA, signed my great-grandfather’s petition for naturalization in 1904. My great-grandfather’s name was John Joseph Krupitzer and my grandmother always said her father was from Austria. The name Stroempl has appeared with the Krupitzer name several times. My great-grandparents had Joseph Stroempl listed as an adopted son on the 1920 Census, but in 1930 the name changed to John Stroempl. Are you aware of any marriages between Stroempl and Krupitzer? All relatives lived in the Pgh area.
I am NOT aware of any marriage with this family but that doesn’t mean it might not have happened… I have discovered that Franz/Frank was quite the ‘witness’ with regard to other immigrants in Pittsburgh and the neighborhoods he and his family lived in! His name appears quite often 🙂
I need to see if I can find the 1920 Census and then backtrack the Joseph Stroempl you have mentioned… Johann/John M Stroempl was Franz/Frank and Henriette’s son. I know Franz/Frank had other siblings who emigrated to the U.S. but am not sure of their names…
I’ve been busy with life (2nd granddaughter was born) and have started back in on my Krupitzer research. I also find Krupitzer names in Ohio. The information I obtained from the diocese of Pittsburgh on my grandmother and her siblings list Hollop (my Krupitzer relative’s mother’s maiden name) and Dorothy Quallich as a sponsor to two of my grandmother’s siblings. Any of those names mean anything to you? I will check back here (hopefully sooner this time). Please feel free to email me if you would like. Did those death certificates every arrive?
Yes, certificates DID arrive! I did get a mother’s maiden name from Frank’s death cert and have since ‘found’ more information on this Stroempl family!! Though I tell people birth certificates are THE ultimate font of information (‘mom’ is usually the source of information…), sometimes deat certificates can provide much sought after data… But, because not every family member remembers basic information and, considering the occasion, grief can many times cause memory lapses or inaccuracies – take the data but research and verify.