Obituary
This obituary for Minnie was found in the Monday, May 20, 1946, edition of The [Steubenville, Ohio] Herald-Star, on page 2, column 5.
Mrs. Minnie Schuette
Summoned Suddenly
Mrs. Mannie Kropp Schuette, 80,
who made her home with her
nephew, John C. Kropp, on a farm
near Maple Lake Park, died at
6:25 p. m. Saturday following two
day's heart ailment.
She was born, October 15, 1865
in Hanover, Germany, a daughter
of the late Carl and Sophia Mein-
gen Kropp and had come to the
United States when a child. She
was a devout member of the Zion
Evangelical and Reformed church.
She was an industrious woman of
good Christian character and
traits. Her death will be a matter
of regret to friends.
Her husband, Henry Schuette,
died several years ago. Surviving
are a sister, Mrs. John Spahn,
Sunset boulevard and several
nieces and nephews.
Friends may call at the McClave
Funeral home.
Notes and Comments
Minnie is often a nickname for Wilhelmina, possibly Minnie's real given name. Minnie had a niece named Wilhelmina. An interesting side-note is that Sophia's assumed brother, Henry Meinzen, named a daughter Wilhelmina Elizabeth (or depending on which record one views, Elizabeth Wilhelmina), born in January 26, 1885. Could it be that Wilhelmina was a family name?
Minnie's mother's maiden name is given as "Meingen." If the typesetter had been looking at handwritten copy it's easy to imagine that the letters g and z might look similar depending on the handwriting.
The obituary states that Minnie came to the U.S. when she was a child. I have not yet found an immigration record for her. She was not on the same ship as her parents and younger sister, Sophia, when they arrived in September, 1887. There are plenty of possibilities in this circumstance.
Certificate of Death
Minnie's Ohio Department of Health Certificate of Death of May 22, 1946, gives additional information not in the obituary. Below is extracted information from the certificate.
- Place of Death: R.D. #4 Sunset Lake, Cross Creek Township
- Length of time in the community: 60 years
- Widow
- Husband: Henry Schuette
- Date of Birth: October 15, 1865
- Age: 80 years, 7 months, 3 days
- Father: Carl Kropp, born Germany
- Mother: Sophia Meinzen, born Germany
- Informant: John C. Kropp, R.D. #4, Steubenville, O.
- Burial: Union Cemetery
- Date of death: May 18, 1946
- Cause of death: Coronary thrombosis
Notes and Comments
Again, Minnie is noted as her given name; her husband is identified as Henry Schuette; and she was born October 15, 1865.
New information is that she had been in the Steubenville area for 60 years, which suggests an approximate arrival year of 1886.
The informant was probably her nephew. The obituary states she lived with her nephew, John C. Kropp, and the address where she lived and where the informant lived are the same.
While Minnie's mother's surname is noted as Meinzen, neither of these documents confirms or leads to a conclusion that Minnie's mother, Sophia Meinzen, and Henry Meinzen are siblings.
The search continues.
--Nancy.
Copyright ©2016 Nancy Messier. All Rights Reserved.
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If she was not on the ship with her mother, then how did she get to America? Is it possible she was actually born in America but somewhere along in time it was assumed she came over from Germany?
ReplyDeleteI haven't researched immigration for Minnie or for her brothers, Wendy. Both of her brothers' death certificates claim they were born in Germany, too. Perhaps those three older children came over together earlier. Perhaps they came with another relative. If Minnie came in, let's say, 1885, she would have been 20. Her brothers' ages are within a year or two of hers. There's still plenty of research to do.
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