Metzner Family Enjoys First Reunion in Many Years

Portland, Indiana Commercial Review, July 20, 1909, page 1

EIGHTY-SIX AT DINNER

Double Birthday at Westchester Attended by Crowd

Auto Bears Unusual Burden

Metzner Family Enjoys First Reunion in Many Years

Eighty-six person enjoyed the dinner spread on the wide porch and lawns of the Axe home at Westchester Sunday, for a reunion of members of the family.  The occasion celebrated the birthdays of Mrs. Catherine Metzner, 90 and Mrs. Amanda Axe, 28.  Mrs. Metzner has been in the country since 1835, when she came from Germany.

The day was enlivened by games and exchanges of reminiscences of childhood days.  In the afternoon, a memorable hour, for Grandma Metzner at least, was a short trip in George Maxwell's auto.  With him also rode the youngest attendant, the 14 months old baby of Irvin Metzner.

Those present were: Wesley Metzner and family, William Metzner and family, Mrs. George Stolz, Mrs. Mary Huey of Rome City, Mrs. Harry Green and family, Mrs. Lydia Smith and family, Irvin Metzner and family, Mrs. Amanda Axe, Mrs. Nora Bergman, Mrs. Gilbert Pierpont of Indianapolis, Jacob Haley and family, Geo. S. Haley and family, William Haley and family, Levi Patterson, Fred Martin, Jacob Haley, E.T. Haffner, Mrs. Philip Stolz, Wesley Metzner, Eli Via, William Axe of Michigan, all Haley, George Maxwell, Mrs. Nora accompanied by their families. [typesetting error : should read from Wesley Metzner, Eli Haley, George Maxwell, Mrs. Nora Via, William Axe of Michigan, all accompanied by their families]

There were present, four children, six granchildren and 15 great grandchildren, besides other relatives.

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Always wonderful to have these family reunions published in the papers, particularly the mention of the all of the names of the relatives.  The trick is seeing if I can identify each of these named individuals and how they are related to Grandma Catherine Metzner

Wesley Metzner and family - This is Wesley T. Metzner (1855-    ), her son.

William Metzner and family - This is William F. Metzner (1844-1929), her son.

Mrs. George Stolz - This is Catherine E. (Metzner) Stolz (1853-1943), her daughter.

Mrs. Mary Huey - This is Mary A. (Metzner) Huey (1862-1925), her daughter.

Mrs. Harry Green and family - This is Loetta J. (Metzner) Green, her granddaughter.  Loetta was the daughter of William F. and Mary A. (Haley) Metzner. 

Mrs. Lydia Smith and family - This is Lydia Ann (Metzner) Smith, her granddaughter.  Lydia was the daughter of William F. and Mary A. (Haley) Metzner.

Irvin Metzner and family - This is Irvin G. Metzner (1879-    ), her grandson.  Irvin was the son of William F. and Mary A. (Haley) Metzner.

Mrs. Amanda Axe - This is Amanda A. (Metzner) Axe, her granddaughter.  Amanda was the daughter of William F. and Mary A. (Haley) Metzner.

Mrs. Nora Bergman - This is Nora May (Stolz) Bergman, her granddaughter.  Nora was the daughter of George W. and Catherine E. (Metzner) Stolz.

Mrs. Gilbert Pierpont - This is Lena (Orcutt) Pierpont, her granddaughter.  Lena was the daughter of James and Samantha E. (Metzner) Orcutt.

I was able to identify the four children and the six grandchildren from the list of names.  The others mentioned include members of the intermarried Haley and Metzner families.

Grandpa John Metzner was shot

Found an interesting tidbit while searching through old newspapers, the fact that in 1872 my grandpa John Metzner was shot. 



Portland Commercial, Portland, Indiana, May 2, 1872, page 2

The case of the State vs. John A. Bergman for shooting John Metzner was tried last week.  The Jury returned a verdict of guilty of an assault and battery, and accordingly fined him $26.

Question is, which grandpa John?  Was it my 2nd-great grandfather John Adam Metzner (1840-1895), or his father John Metzner (1805-1888)?  Will have to go to the Jay County courthouse to sort this out, though I am leaning on the victim being the younger John, a Civil War veteran.  However, there is the fact that he was often referred to by his middle name "Adam", and the article clearly states the victim was John.

Unfortunately, I've been unable to find any other mention of the incident in the local newspapers that have survived.

Who was John A. Bergman?  I believe he was the husband of Caroline H. Metzner, daughter of John (b. 1805).  This would mean that Mr. Bergman shot either his brother-in-law or his father-in-law.  Either way, this must have made for an interesting family dynamic

Caroline Metzner (b. 1852) and John A. Burgman were married March 11, 1869 in Jay County, Indiana.  The image of their marriage license was located at Familysearch.  Indexed as Burgman, his surname is spelled both Bergman and Burgman in the same document.



"Indiana, Marriages, 1811-1959," index and images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/V6RG-H1P : accessed 04 Jan 2014), John A Burgman and Caroline Metzner, 1869.

In the 1870 census, I've located John and Caroline (Metzner) Bergman living in Bearcreek Township, Jay County, Indiana, with their 5 month old son, George W.  John A. Bergman was working in a saw mill.  Bearcreek Township is where several Metzner families lived.

 I know that Caroline married again in Jay County, Indiana on January 1, 1874 to James W. Huston, and that they had a daughter, Della.  So John and Caroline must have divorced sometime between 1870 and 1874 in Jay County, another avenue for me to research.  A good guess would be that the divorce occurred shortly after he shot John Metzner.

By the 1880 census, John A. Bergman was listed as a 38 year old divorced male living in the village of Bellfountaine, Noble Township, Jay County, Indiana, still listed as a sawmill worker.  I've found no other record other than the 1870 census for son George W. Bergman.  A search of Mt. Zion cemetery records at FindAGrave did not locate a memorial.

Once the weather improves and I can get up to Jay County, will definitely be researching this court case to see what all of the particulars were.  Sounds like an interesting family feud.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Nora May Stolz (1877-1971), Jay County, Indiana

Working on filling in some gaps in my database by utilizing the "Indiana Marriages, 1811-1959" database at Familysearch.org to see what updates and corrections I could find.

Nora May Stolz (1877-1971) was the daughter of George W. and Catherine E. (Metzner) Stolz.  Her marriage on May 16, 1903 in Jay County, Indiana to George C.D. Bergman was found in the database.  Prior to this find, I did not have the exact location of their marriage.

"Indiana, Marriages, 1811-1959," index and images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/V6RG-K5J : accessed 17 Oct 2013), George C D Bergman and Nora Stolz, 1903.

Nora was my paternal first cousin three times removed.  Our common ancestors were John Metzner and Catherine Young.  Nora and George had two children.  She died June 19, 1971.

Ara Carl Badders (1890-1963), Jay County, Indiana

Working on filling in some gaps in my database by utilizing the "Indiana Marriages, 1811-1959" database at Familysearch.org to see what updates and corrections I could find.

Ara Carl Badders (1890-1963) married June 14, 1922 in Jay County, Indiana to Ruth Whipple.  Prior to locating this record, I did not have her maiden name.

"Indiana, Marriages, 1811-1959," index and images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/V6RG-J6C : accessed 23 Jun 2013), Ara C Badders and Ruth Whipple, 1922.

Ara was previously married to Hilda Nation Eberling on July 21, 1913 in Jay County, Indiana.  Hilda was the daughter of Lewis Eberling and Mary M. Holland.  This was a previously unknown marriage to me, and apparently his first marriage.  Hilda was the daughter of Lewis Eberling and Mary M. Holland.

"Indiana, Marriages, 1811-1959," index and images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/V6RR-N5Z : accessed 23 Jun 2013), Ara Carl Badders and Hilda Nation Eberling, .

Ara married Gay Kathryn Bergman in October 1944 in Jay County, Indiana.  Gay was my second cousin twice removed, the daughter of George Calvin Bergman and Nora May Stolz. Our common ancestors are John Metzner and Catharine Young. This would have been Ara's third marriage.

On This Day : August 8

1652 - Joseph SCHÜRCH born.  Joseph was the son of Peter SCHÜRCH and Anna REINHARD.


1706 - Nicholas FESSENDEN married Sarah Parker COOLEDGE.  Nicholas was the son of Nicholas FESSENDEN and Margaret CHENEY.


1707 - Thomas BROUGHTON born.  Thomas was the son of John BROUGHTON and Hannah BASCOM.


1711 - Esther WILLSON born.  Esther was the son of Samuel WILLSON and Hester OVERTON.


1722 - Rebecca ALLEN born.  Rebecca was the daughter of John ALLEN and Amy COX.


1725 - Ann LEWIS born.  Ann was the daughter of John LEWIS and Anna CLARKE.


1769 - Rebecca HILLYARD born in Burlington County, New Jersey.  Rebecca was the daughter of Isaac HILLIER and Sarah HAINES.


1787 - David OSBORNE married Lydia DAVIS in Guilford County, North Carolina.  David was the son of Matthew OSBORNE and Mary REYNOLDS.


1791 - John WRIGHT born.  John was the son of John WRIGHT and Sarah FLEMING.


1810 - Mary ROBINS married Samuel PANGBURN in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania.  Mary was the daughter of Obadiah ROBINS and Susannah HODGKINS.


1824 - Cornelius S. DAVIS born. Cornelius was the son of Nathan J. DAVIS and Keziah DAVIS.


1832 - Cornelius ANTONIDES died.  Cornelius was the son of Pieter ANTONIDES and Catherine VANDERVEER.


1836 - Robert Conway RINEHART died in Henry County, Indiana.  Robert was the son of Jacob RINEHART and Mary ADNEY.


1839 - Sarah Springer CHEW married Lemuel Daugherty BECKETT in Gloucester County, New Jersey.  Sarah was the daughter of Elisha Dunham CHEW and Elizabeth HERITAGE.


1853 - Nathan HUNT died.  Nathan was the son of William HUNT and Sarah MILLS.


1856 - James Smith MAXSON born in Wisconsin.  James was the son of Jonathan MAXSON and Christiana DAVIS.


1860 - Charles Alexander West CHEW born in Darke County, Ohio.  Charles was the son of Ezekiel Cooper CHEW and Caroline Bishop WOOLSTON.


1881 - Franklin Ault LEE born in Bledsoe County, Tennessee.  Franklin was the son of William M. LEE and Elizabeth BROWN.


1902 - Erma M. RANTS born.  Erma was the daughter of Homer RANTS and Caroline KADERLY.


1905 - Erma Rhea BERGMAN born in Jay County, Indiana.  Erma was the daughter of George Calvin BERGMAN and Nora May STOLZ.


1905 - Anderson LEE died in Bledsoe County, Tennessee.  Anderson was the son of Burrell Russell LEE and Louhaney SWAFFORD.


1921 - Opul Louise CUMMINGS died in Clay Township, Dunklin County, Missouri.  Opul was the daughter of John James CUMMINGS and Zella May MEREDITH.

On This Day : March 24

1680 - Rachel BACON married Thomas PIERCE.  Rachel was the daughter of Daniel BACON and Mary READE.


1721 - Jonathan WAITE born. Jonathan was the son of Peter WAITE and Abigail PIERCE.


1753 - Anna Maria JACOBI born in Berghofen.  Anna was the daughter of Johannes JACOBI and Anna Elisabeth ________.  Anna was Corinne's 6x great-grandmother.


1806 - Hannah MAXSON born in Clark County, Ohio.  Hannah was the daughter of Jesse MAXSON and Sarah SUTTON.


1851 - Jesse MAXSON died in Clark County, Ohio.  Jesse was the son of Ephraim MAXSON and Elisabeth DAVIS.  Jesse was my 4x great-grandfather.


1864 - Boater BALES married Saphrona CORY.  Boater was the son of Aaron BALES and Susannah RUSSELL.


1861 - Hannah DAVIS died.  Hannah was the daughter of Jonathan R. DAVIS and Elizabeth COVEY.


1862 - Mary A. METZNER born in Jay County, Indiana.  Mary was the daughter of John METZNER and Catherine YOUNG.


1866 - Eli Weldon HALEY born in Erie County, Ohio.  Eli was the son of George Washington HALEY and Mary Jane SHERRICK.  Eli was my great-grandfather.


1866 - James William BURCHFIEL born in Dandridge, Jefferson County, Tennessee.  James was the son of Joseph Rmenia BURCHFIEL and Louisa LEE.


1882 - Albert SWAFFORD born in Ray County, Missouri.  Albert was the son of Allen Aaron SWAFFORD and Meda LILES.


1900 - Perry D. GROENENDYKE married Anna MILLER.  Perry was the son of Elias GROENENDYKE and Hester TEAFORD.


1904 - Clara Eliza POSTLEWART died in St. Joseph, Missouri.  Clara was the daughter of Charles Sherman HAGAMAN and Lydia MOULTON.


1907 - Gay Kathryn BERGMAN born in Jay County, Indiana.  Gay was the daughter of George Calvin BERGMAN and Nora May STOLZ.


1910 - Kenneth E. CHEW died in Madison Township, Jay County, Indiana.  Kenneth was the son of William Anderson CHEW and Emma Susan STRAIGHT.


1961 - Luman Walker WEHRLY died.  Luman was the son of John P. WEHRLY and Catherine LeMASTERS.


1976 - Isabelle Helene BILLING died in Tucson, Pima County, Arizona.  Isabelle was the daughter of Ord Otterbein LeMASTER and Emma W.G. GARMHAUSEN.


1984 - Lella Lewis SLINKARD died in Fresno, California.  Lella was the daughter of William Clifford LeMASTER and Lella Edith LEWIS.