by Michael John Neill
Murphy's Law of Genealogy states that, "If there is one messed up
line on a census record or a manifest, it will be for the family you
need. Guaranteed."
The ship "Ernst Moritz Arndt" landed in New Orleans in June of 1853 full
of immigrants bound for the United States, including a few family
members. Unfortunately, there is a partial tear in the manifest and
it went right through the family whose information I was seeking--the
Schollmeyers. Fortunately for me, this entry is partially legible.
(You can see an image of this record on the blog.)
From what I can read of the manifest, it lists
- Friederich Schollmeyer
- Cath. Schollmeyer
- Nicodemus Schollmeyer, aged 12
- Dorothe Schollmeyer, aged 7
- Elizab. Schollmeyer, aged 2
- Andreas Schollmeyer, aged 53
- Marianne Schollmeyer, aged 52
- Elisabeth Schollmeyer, aged 12
The last three names I recognized as the desired family. The
preceding names (apparently another family related to mine) were
originally unknown to me.
The tear in the manifest obscures the ages of Friederich and Cath.
and leads to differing interpretations of his occupation, last
residence and destination. The problem is that underneath
Friederich's entry, ditto marks are used to indicate the last
residence and destination of all the other Schollmeyers, including
the three of interest. Even though the tear only appears to affect
parts of two entries, it actually affects the entire Schollmeyer
entry. I needed to know what the entry said for Friederich.
One transcription of this manifest indicates that the entries for the
Schollmeyers are "dittoed" from the previous entries. Those
immigrants have a last residence of Lohr and a destination of New
Orleans. Had I only looked at the transcription and not bothered with
the actual manifest, I might have concluded that the Schollmeyers
were from Lohr and were originally destined for New Orleans. (It must
be noted that not every family actually settled in the location
listed as their "destination" on an arrival manifest.) This would
have created even more discrepancies as the Schollmeyers I was
researching were not from Lohr.
The tear in the manifest makes the last residence for the
Schollmeyers impossible to read, but it could be something other than
Lohr. In looking at the original manifest, the destination for the
Schollmeyers does not appear to be New Orleans, yet there is clearly
something written on the line besides ditto marks. The location looks
to be a short word, possibly "Iowa."
A search of the 1856 Iowa State Census at Ancestry seems to bear this
out as the following family was located in Davenport, Scott County,
Iowa.
- Frederick Schoolmier aged 50, in Iowa 3 years, born in Germany
- Cath. Schoolmier, aged 47, in Iowa 3 years, born in Germany
- Nicodemus Schoolmier, aged 15, in Iowa 3 years, born in Germany
- Dora Schoolmier, aged 10, in Iowa 3 years, born in Germany
- Elizabeth Schoolmier, aged 5, in Iowa 3 years, born in Germany
The names and ages and length of time in Iowa are a fit for the names
on the manifest. It also leads one to initially conclude that there
were two Schollmeyer families on the 1853 manifest, one headed by
Frederick and another headed by Andreas.
The last three entries are slightly more problematic, but these
individuals also appeared to have settled in the Davenport, Iowa,
area. The 1856 Davenport, Iowa, census lists
- Andrew Schellmer aged 56, in Iowa 3 years, born in Germany
- Bridget Schellmer, aged 56, in Iowa 3 years, born in Germany
Except for the first name of the apparent wife (Bridget instead of
Marianne) the information is consistent with the entry on the
manifest. Andrew/Andreas' daughter Elizabeth is known to have married
in Davenport, Iowa in 1855 to Paul Freund. She is also enumerated in
the 1856 Davenport, Iowa, census with her husband and his family, as
is Elizabeth Frent, aged 17, born in Germany and having lived in Iowa
3 years.
What's Up with Bridget and Marianne?
Preliminary research indicates they are the same person and that
Marianne might have been a middle name of Andreas' wife or an error
on the manifest. Records in Davenport, Iowa, for Elizabeth Schulmeyer
Freund indicated she was born in 1840 in Beberstedt, Germany. Records
in Iowa also indicated her father was an Andrew or Andreas
Schulmeyer.
Records in Beberstedt indicated that an Andreas and Bridget
(Schilling) Schollmeyer were the parents of an Elizabeth Schollmeyer
born the same day in 1840 as the Iowa Elizabeth Schulmeyer. Andrew
and Bridget Schulmeyer appear in the 1856 Iowa census apparently as
husband and wife. Except for the first name on the manifest, all
other details are consistent and indicate the Andreas Schulmeyer on
the manifest is the same Andreas/Andrew Schulmeyer who settled in
Davenport, Iowa.
Who Are the Other Schulmeyers?
Preliminary research into the other Schulmeyer family on the manifest
indicates that most of them stayed in the Davenport, Iowa, area, at
least through 1870. It is assumed there is a relationship between
Friederich and Andreas, but at this time that relationship is not
precisely known. More research needs to be done.
Summary
- Always refer to the original document or record to verify
information.
- Locating a name on a manifest may require more than a simple
search and it may require completely researching the family in the
area where they settled.
- Immigrants rarely immigrated in complete isolation—remember the
importance of chain migration.
- Keep analyzing information as you locate new information, making
certain your new information is as consistent as possible with
information already discovered.
Michael John Neill is a genealogical writer and speaker who has been
researching his or his children's genealogy for more than twenty
years. A math instructor in his "other life," Michael taught at the
former Genealogical Institute of Mid-America and has served on the
FGS Board. He also lectures on a variety of genealogical topics and
gives seminars across the country. He maintains a personal website
at www.rootdig.com
Upcoming Events With Michael John Neill
> Comment on this article
Ancestry Daily News
