Mystery Monday: Searching for Mary Ann, part 5

Mystery Monday is a daily prompt at Geneabloggers encouraging bloggers to share mystery ancestors or mystery records – anything which is currently unsolved.  With any luck fellow genealogy bloggers will lend their eyes to what has been found so far and possibly help solve the mystery.

Searching, part 1

Searching, part 2

Searching, part 3

Searching, part 4

Records for John Ermentraudt, son of Johan Friederich, have not been found, likely destroyed during the Civil War when Union soldiers overtook the wagon carrying Rockingham County’s deeds, wills, and records of marriage, birth, and death to safety. 

My next effort to find a mother and siblings for my 3G grandmother Mary Ann Armentrout Jollett is to look at Friederich’s other children.  Perhaps Mary Ann’s uncle or cousins bought and sold land or left wills that might offer a clue to solve this mystery.  Maybe Mary Ann and Fielding Jollett sponsored a niece or nephew at baptism.  But first I need to identify the possible candidates.

Friederich and Maria Catrina Hedrick Ermentraudt had seven children besides John. 

1. Anna Magdalena was born in 1747 in Berks County, Pennsylvania, but since there are no further records for her, it is believed she might have died as a child.

2. George was born in 1750 in Berks County, Pennsylvania.  He was 54 when he married Elizabeth Michael in Rockingham County, Virginia.  Given George’s advanced age at marriage, it is possible he had been married before making it also possible that there are more children unaccounted for.  Alas, no record.  He and Elizabeth had three children: Barbara (1806), Michael (1807), and Magdalena (1809) who would have been roughly Mary Ann’s age.  Surely they would have known each other and played together as children.  Unless I can find marriage records, the two girls will be difficult to trace.  Michael married and moved his family to Ohio and then to Iowa.  My one hope is that he purchased and then sold land in Rockingham County before he moved.

                Next step:  Look for deeds and will for George first and then Michael.

3. Christopher was born 1761 in Augusta (now Rockingham County), Virginia.  He married Mary Catherine Pence in 1792.  The two lived in Rockingham County at least until he died in 1812.  They had 5 children: Ann Mary (1793-1825), Barbara (1794 - ), Mary C (1796 - ), Christopher (1798 - ), and Margaret (1800 - ).  This line will likely lead to a dead end as to date nothing is known about the three middle children.  Ann Mary married Alexander Trout but died early.  Thirteen days later he married her sister Margaret. 

                Next step:  Check Christopher’s will

4. Charles was born May 8, 1763 in what is now Rockingham County, Virginia and died two days before his birthday in 1836 in Ohio.  He married Christina Gray of Ohio, but they had no children.  It is not likely he left any bread crumbs in Virginia because as soon as he came of age, he was drafted into the Militia and served throughout the Revolutionary War.  He moved to Ohio right afterwards. 

                Next step:  Skip him

5. Augustine was born in Rockingham County January 22, 1765 and died before 1850, still in Rockingham.  This is good news.  He and wife Margaret Schneider had seven children, all of whom remained in Rockingham:  Magdalena (1791 - ), John George (1793 - ), Emanuel (1801 – 1890), Charles (1805 – 1863), Frederick (1808 – 1882), Amanda (1815 – 1890), and Anna Rebecca (1816 – 1880).

                Next step:  Concentrate first on Augustine, his land dealings and will.

6. Frederick was born about 1767 in Rockingham County and died in 1837 in Allegheny County.  I am not too hopeful that Frederick will lead me to the answer to my question:  Who was Mary Ann’s mother?  He married Elizabeth Wolfe in Botetourt County.  For a time they owned land in Monroe County (now West Virginia) and may have lived there as well, but for most of his adult life he was in Allegheny.  And that’s where all nine children were too:  Jacob (1800 – 1879), Mary (1802 - ), George (1804 - ), Catherine (1806 - ), John (1808 - ), Abraham (1810 - ), Joseph (1814 - ), Elizabeth (1820 - ), Sarah (1824 - ).

                Next step:  Eh, go back to Augustine.

7. Catherine Barbara was born in 1769 in Rockingham County.  She married Fredrick Geiger/Kyger.  Kyger is still a BIG name in Rockingham County, so it’s a safe bet they stayed put even if the children moved around.  They had 9 known children:  Anna Elizabeth (1794 – 1841), Barbara (1797 – 1875), George (1799 – 1837), Catherine (1800 – 1883), Anna Maria (1802 - ), Rebecca (1805 - ), Christina (1806 - ), Lucy (1810 – 1860), and Charles (1811 - ).

                Next step:  Look for land dealings of Fredrick Geiger/Kyger. 

CONCLUSIONS:  The cold, hard facts about the siblings of John Ermentraudt offer no clues to Mary Ann’s mother, on the surface at least.  At this point I need to stop this series until I can get to the Library of Virginia to learn whether any wills and deeds are available.  My gut feeling is to start with Augustine.

© 2014, Wendy Mathias.  All rights reserved.