The Unsolved Puzzle of Lizzie Gerner

I thought there was one Lizzie Gerner; now I see there are two Lizzie Gerners, and possibly a third also.  What a puzzle to solve!  My original goal was to find a marriage record and death information for Lizzie Gerner, born about 1851, sister to my g-grandfather Fred Gerner.  Having more than one person with the same name in the same county complicates the search.

My first acquaintance with Lizzie Gerner was when I saw her name as a witness on the July 24, 1872, marriage record of my great-grandparents, Fred Gerner and Elvira Bartley.  The marriage took place in Sugar Creek, Venango County, Pennsylvania, and was performed by Abner Hales.  It looks like Lizzie signed the document because the handwriting is different from the other witness's handwriting, but perhaps not.  (Click the image to enlarge it in a new tab.)

This was the first record I saw with Lizzie's name and I guessed that Lizzie might be a relative of Fred Gerner but had no idea the relationship.  I wondered if she could be Fred's sister, or the wife of one of his brothers, Christian, John, or Charles.

I next encountered with a few years later when I saw her name in the 1860, 1870, and 1880 censuses, enumerated with Christian Gerner (variously recorded as Christian Gardner (1860), Christopher Gardner (1870), and Christian Garner (1880)).  For a further explanation of how I determined these were the same man whose name was Christian Gerner, read this post and this post.  (The census records are viewable with a free FamilySearch account.)

No relationships were recorded in the 1860 and 1870 U.S. Censuses but in the 1880 census I learned that Lizzie is the daughter of Christian.  It's interesting that she is recorded with three different names, as is one of her brothers.  I've learned that's not uncommon during that time period.

• In 1860, Isabell, age 9, is listed with Christian and Elizabeth Gardner, 3rd child of 6 listed.
• In 1870, Elisabeth, age 19, is listed with Christopher and Elisabeth Gardner.  The oldest of the children is no longer listed.
• In 1880, Lizzie, age 29, is listed as the daughter of Christian and Elisabeth Garner.
  

If the Lizzie of the marriage record is the same as the Lizzie listed in these census records, Lizzie would have been ~21 at the time of Fred and Elvira's marriage in 1872, and Fred and Lizzie were siblings.

Searches for a marriage record for Lizzie/Elisabeth/Isabell Gerner at FamilySearch, Ancestry, and MyHeritage have yielded no results. 

In my next, and, to date, last encounter with Lizzie Gerner she may have been recorded as Elizabeth Gerner.  In fact, there are two females recorded as Elizabeth Gerner and it seems unlikely that either is the Lizzie Gerner who is Fred's sister who was born about 1851.

This first of the two women named Elizabeth Gerner died in 1890 and was the wife of H. J. Gerner.  She is buried in Saxonburg Memorial Church Cemetery.

I do not know who H. J. Gerner is but I know that Saxonburg is a small town in Butler County, Pennsylvania.  Fred and Elvira lived there for a time.  Neither do I know who this Elizabeth Gerner is.  Is she related to my ancestors and, if so, in what way?

The other Elizabeth Gerner is, without a doubt, Fred's mother, Christian's wife and, therefore, my great-great-grandmother.  The birth year on this memorial coincides with the estimated birth year based on census records for g-g-grandmother.  She died on September 30, 1883, and is buried in Fairview Cemetery near Petrolia in Butler County, Pennsylvania.

But I have yet to find the Lizzie Gerner who is Fred's sister.  I will contact both cemeteries to request more detailed information, if it's available.

Notes and Comments
There are few things I truly know about Lizzie Gerner (and they may not be true). 

• Based on census records (if they can be trusted) she went by three different names at various times of her life:  Isabell, Elisabeth, and Lizzie. 
• In 1872 she called herself Lizzie (if the woman who witnessed Fred and Elvira's marriage is Fred's sister).
• She was still alive in 1880, was about 29 years old, and was still living with her parents.
  

It's a pitiful bit of information.   The search will continue.

-–Nancy.

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