Exploratory Data Analysis : Mary Victoria (Rieber) Schaeffer (1853-1883)

Mary Victoria (Reiber) Schaeffer (1853-1883) was Corinne's maternal 3rd-great grandmother.  What follows is an exploratory analysis of the biographical data I have discovered about her.


1. Vital Records

     Mary was born circa 1853 in Indiana¹, according to census records.  Her christening record lists her date of birth as September 3, 1853 in Evansville, Vanderburgh County, Indiana².

     1.1. Birth Certificate

          The State of Indiana did not require birth certificates until 1907, so Mary will not have a certificate.

          1.1.1. Birth Notice in Newspaper

               Without an exact location or date of birth, it will be difficult to locate any mention of her birth in local newspapers.

          1.1.2. Bible Record

               I am unaware of any surviving family Bible records of the Rieber family.  Will continue to reach out to extended family in hopes that one does exist.

          1.1.3. Baptismal Record

               Mary was christened on September 4, 1853 at the Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Evansville, Vanderburgh County, Indiana².  Her christening record has her name as Maria Victoria Riber.  Her father listed as Petro Riber and her mother as Elisabetha Schuhmacher.  The record gives her birth date as September 3, 1853.

          1.1.4. Adoption Record

                There is no indication that Mary was adopted.

     1.2. Marriage License

          I have not yet located a marriage record of Mary and Charles Schaeffer.  They should have been married circa 1872, likely in Evansville.  Will add this to my list of "to-do" items for my next research trip.

          1.2.1 Marriage Notice in Newspaper

               Without an exact date and location, it will be extremely difficult to locate mention of Mary and Charles' wedding in a local newspaper.

          1.2.2. Anniversary Notice

               Without an exact date for their wedding, it will be difficult to locate mention of their wedding anniversary in a local newspaper.

          1.2.3. Divorce Decree

               There is no indication that Mary and Charles were divorced.

     1.3. Death Certificate

          Mary died September 16, 1883 in Evansville, Vanderburgh County, Indiana^3,4,5,6,7,8. According to newspaper reports, she was shot and killed by her husband, Charles. I do not yet have a copy of her death certificate.  Will add this to my list of "to-do" items for my next research trip.

          1.3.1. Obituary in Newspaper

          I have not yet located an obituary for Mary, however, there were numerous articles written about her murder^4,5,6,7,8.  Will add this to my list of "to-do" items for my next research trip.

          1.3.2. Funeral Home Records

               Funeral home records need to be researched to see what information they might shed on Mary's final arrangements.  Will add this to my list of "to-do" items for my next research trip.

          1.3.3. Tombstone Photograph

               Mary's tombstone in the Saint Joseph Catholic Cemetery in Evansville, Vanderburgh County, Indiana has been photographed⁹.

               A link to her memorial page at the FindAGrave website is here.

2. Census Records

     2.1. Federal Census Records

          2.1.1. 1880 Federal Census

               On June 2, 1880, Mary was enumerated in the Charley Schaeffer household in Evansville, Vanderburgh County, Indiana¹, as Mary V. Schaeffer, wife, age 27, born in Indiana.  Her occupation was keeping house.  Both her father and mother were born in Germany.

          2.1.2. 1870 Federal Census

               I have been unable to locate Mary in the 1870 census.  I assume she would still be living in Evansville, as that was where her mother and other family members were living, but she was not living with the family.  Her father died in 1869, so they family may have split up.

          2.1.3. 1860 Federal Census

               On August 22, 1860, Mary was enumerated in the Peter Reber household in Evansville, Vanderburgh County, Indiana¹⁰, as Mary Reber, age 7, born in Indiana.  She had attended school within the year.

     2.2. State Census Records

          The State of Indiana conducted state census in 1853, 1857, 1871, 1877, 1883, 1889, 1901, 1913, 1919 and 1931.  These, however, were merely for the purposes of legislative apportionment.

     2.3. Agricultural Census Records

          There is no evidence that the Rieber family were anything other than city-dwellers.

3. Military Records

     3.1. Draft Registration

          Not applicable, as Mary was female.

     3.2. Pension Records

          I have not located any records of military service by Mary's father or husband that would have made her eligible for these benefits.

     3.3. Service Records

          Not applicable, as Mary was female.

4. Land Records

     4.1. Deed Records

          Deed records need to be thoroughly searched in Vanderburgh County, Indiana to see what records might mention Mary.  Will add this to my "to-do" list for my next research trip.

     4.2. Plat map / county map

          Plat maps in Vanderburgh County, Indiana will need to be searched to see what might be relevant to my search for Mary.

5. Supplemental Records

     Supplemental records available for research on Mary include city/county directories, court records and will and probate records.  Will add these to my list of "to-do" items for my next research trip.

Sources:

1. Charley Schaeffer household, 1880 U.S. census, population schedule, Evansville, Vanderburgh County, Indiana, ED 87, SD 1, page 6, dwelling 57, family 68; National Archives micropublication T9, roll 317, page 452B.
2. "Indiana, Births and Christenings, 1773-1933," index,(https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/V2XY-Z27 : accessed 19 Apr 2014), Maria Victoria Riber, 04 Sep 1853; Christening, citing Holy Trinity, Evansville, Vanderburgh, Indiana; FHL microfilm 1433351.
3. Ray Bland, "Matthias and Elizabeth Schaeffer Miller," email message from Ray Bland to Travis LeMaster, 7 August 2010.
4. A Husband Shots His Wife article, Evansville Courier, Evansville, Indiana, USA, September 16, 1883.
5. The Tragedy article, Evansville Journal, Evansville, Indiana, USA, September 17, 1883, page 4, column 6.
6. Another Sunday Murder article, Evansville Courier[?], Evansville, Indiana, USA, n.d.
7. The Wife Murder article, Evansville Courier[?], Evansville, Indiana, USA, n.d.
8. The Schaeffer Murder article, Evansville Courier, Evansville, Indiana, USA, September 19, 1883.
9. FindAGrave Inc., FindAGrave (www.findagrave.com : accessed 25 April 2014), Maria Rieber Schaeffer tombstone.
10. 1860 U.S. census, Vanderburgh County, Indiana, population schedule, Evansville, page 165, dwelling 1225, family 1249, digital images, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : accessed 25 April 2014); National Archives, Washington, D.C.

This post was developed as part of the series relating to Building My 2011 Research Template, an attempt to systematically document and source the details of my ancestors' lives. Comments regarding this template and the conclusions drawn in this article are welcomed.

Obituary : Clara (Moulton) Metzner (1843-1899)

Evangelical Messenger
July 12, 1899, page 443

METZNER - Clara Metzner, nee Moulton, was born Sept. 30, 1843 and departed this life near Portland, Ind., July 4, 1899, aged 55 y., 9 m. and 3 d. She was married to Adam Metzner Nov. 13, 1864; to this union were born 4 children. In 1885 Bro. and Sister Metzner united with the Evangelical Association. They lived as devoted Christians until death. A son and daughter are left to mourn the loss of a Christian mother. The husband and 2 children preceded her in death. J.M. SMITH.

---
Clara (Moulton) Metzner (1843-1899) was my paternal 2nd-great grandmother.  She was the daughter of Albert and Emeline (Philbrick) Moulton.  I do not know what church, if any, they were associated with before joining the Evangelical Association in 1885.

DNA : Dad's Ancestry Composition

Dad had his DNA tested with 23andMe as well, and here are the results of his test, using their Ancestry Composition section.

Here is the "Conservative" estimate of his genetic make-up : 97.1% European and 2.9% Unassigned.

These results were consistent with the paper trail genealogy, though I found the 0.1% Finnish interesting, as well as the 0.6% nonspecific Southern European.

Here is the "Standard" estimate of his genetic make-up : 99.4% European, 0.5% Unassigned and 0.1% South Asian.

Now where that South Asian comes into the family tree I have no idea as there are a few branches that haven't been traced.  There is a larger percentage of Southern European in this estimate as well.

Here is the "Speculative" estimate of his genetic make-up : 99.7 European, 0.1% South Asian, 0.1% East Asian & Native American, and 0.1% Unassigned.

The 29.3% British & Irish and the 17.1% French & German make sense considering how many of his lines I've been able to trace to those areas of Europe.  The 5.5% Scandinavian and 0.3% Finnish, as well as the 1.7% Italian and 0.9% Iberian indicate lines that I haven't established a paper trail.

The most interesting is the speculative 0.1% Native American - there is no tradition or evidence found of any Native American in my dad's lines, and the South Asian - which 23andMe indicates India or Pakistan is totally new to me.  Will have to see if I can get other members of his family to test and see what percentages show up.