Add Another Branch

Still perplexed about the birthplace of Herman Lutter, I decided to give the online Red Bank Register another try.  Herman died in Wall in Monmouth County, New Jersey.  The Red Bank register carried a notice of his pending divorce in December of 1923, citing a Spring Lake residence.  Previous searches turned up results mostly for the word "latter" or for ads of farm-fresh butter.  Today I lucked out.

Red Bank Register (Monmouth County, New Jersey)
23 July 1924  page 1

His will was probably probated in Monmouth.  His name is absent from the probate index in Essex County.  I do not know at this time if he and Emma divorced.  The notice of their pending divorce appeared in December of 1923; according to the above article, Herman wrote his will in June of last year [1923], which would have been before the divorce action.

So now I know that Herman was not an only child.  He had a sister with three children in Germany, as well as a brother, Otto, here in New Jersey.  A preliminary search of my own records shows that Otto appeared once in the Newark city directories in 1893; occupation blacksmith; residing at 36 Beacon.  He died Sunday, 11 July 1909, aged 64 years; leaving behind a widow, Martha.  Their address was 513 Middlesex in Harrison.  The notice of death appeared in the Newark Evening News on 12 July 1909.  He was buried at Woodland Cemetery in Newark in section 69; no tombstone exists; the undertaker was Schott.  I have all of this information already because I collected whatever information I could find on any Lutters in Newark.

Otto and Martha seemed to have only one child who survived to adulthood:  Augusta or Gussie.  She married James Kittson.  I have found only one child of hers, a son named James Kittson, born around 1920.  I need to find out what happened to this Kittson family.

I also need to get copies of the actual will and related estate papers.  This is very exciting to finally find more family for Herman.  But the witness to his 1888 marriage to Clara Uhl still looks like Alex Lutter.  Who was he?

According to Herman's death certificate, he was buried at Fairmount Cemetery in Newark, but no records of such a burial have been located.  No gravestone, never mind one costing at least $600, has been located for Herman.

Brewer Fire Engine Company of Monsey, New York

Abraham Lent Brewer was born around 1826 and died in 1901.  He was a grandson of Solomon Brewer of Massachusetts, a supposed actor of the Boston Tea Party.  Abraham married Frances "Fannie" M. Duryea, born about 1830 and died just after Abraham in 1901.  Her estate papers helped clarify most of her siblings and their children, as she died intestate with no husband and no children.

The only blip about this couple was that the Abraham L. Brewer, Jr., living with them in 1860 and 1870, was not their son, but rather Abraham's nephew.  Other than that, the couple was straight forward, living by his and her families in the 1850, 1860, and 1870 federal census years.  Abraham worked as a watchman or a warden, according to the census as well as city directories for New York City.  This was a common occupation in both the Brewer and Duryea families.

By 1880, Abraham and Fannie had completely left New York City and were settled in Ramapo, Rockland County, New York.

1880 federal census for Ramapo, Rockland County, New York; ED 59; page 263B; enumerated 28 June 1880.

Nettie L. Duryea, and George W. Duryea are the nephew and niece of both Abraham and Fannie.  James Duryea is of no relation, but just happened to be living next door to this Brewer/Duryea family, perhaps to add intrigue for people looking at this 130 years later.

I do not find Abraham and Fannie in the 1900 census.

When I received Fannie's death certificate, I found out that she was buried at Brick Church Cemetery in Spring Valley, Rockland County, New York.  I took a trip to the cemetery and found the stone.  It's difficult to read.

Abraham L. Brewer, 1826-1901.
His wife, Fannie M. Duryea, 1830-1901.

Jeanette L. and Charles H. Quackenbush are buried by Fannie and Abraham.

I figured that was pretty much it.  I found out what became of Fannie Duryea and Abraham Brewer, as well as Jeanette Duryea and Charles Quackenbush.  I posted the graves at findagrave.com.

A while back, someone added a photo of Abraham Brewer- and I'm not talking about another gravesite picture.  It was his actual image.  Unknown to me, Abraham Brewer had established the Brewer Fire Engine Company in Monsey, New York, and his picture hung at the station.  I have no photos of this group, so this was a first.

Yesterday, I took a trip to Monsey to see what I could see.

I had the correct place.  The Brewer Fire Engine Company of Monsey, New York- named for Abraham Lent Brewer.  Go figure.

My original contact was inside and showed me the picture on the wall.

Abram L. Brewer 1826-1901
Who, in February 1877, organized the Fire Engine Company
that bears his name, and who was its constant benefactor.
This photograph presented by the children of Mr. Brewer's daughter,
Mrs. C. H. Quackenbush.

Everyone at the station was great, listening to what I knew about Abraham, filling me in on what they knew; speculating to try to fill in the blanks.  There is nothing in the family stories that mentions Abraham and his founding of a fire engine company.  More research to be done.  More about the fire department's history may be found on their website.

Thank you to the members of the Brewer Fire Engine Company for their help with uncovering more about the life of Abraham Lent Brewer, as well as their dedication to serving the community.

Another Great eBay Find

A name that could be Alex Lutter witnessed the 1888 marriage of Herman Lutter to Clara Uhl in Newark, Essex County, New Jersey.

I can't find Alex Lutter in Newark.  I can find Alex Lutter in Chicago.  He is dead before the 1900 census.  He left behind a wife, Odelia, and three children, Emma, Adolph, and Gertrude.  By the 1910 census, Odelia is dead, and the children are wards of Gustav Schwabe.

1910 census, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois; ED 897; page 18B; enumerated 29 April 1910.

Their bank books turned up in an auction on eBay.  This is incredible.

These little bank books are mostly accountings of monthly expenses, perhaps because the children were drawing from some kind of an inheritance from their deceased parents.



Expenses of Adolph Lutter

Expenses of Emma Lutter- music lessons from Miss E. McIntyre

Expenses of Gertrude Lutter

The best part of these little bank books was written by Emma.  She wrote names and addresses, perhaps of relatives.  None from Newark.



Friends or relatives of Emma Lutter

Except for Mrs. Jerry Shaw of Boston, everyone else resides in Clinton, Iowa.  I don't see the connection at this time.  Alex and Odelia Lutter, the parents, were from Germany.  The Iowa state census for various years is available at ancestry.com.  Most of these people are easily found, though the connection remains unclear.  The 1925 Iowa state census is amazing, listing the parents and birthplaces of those enumerated.  (Use with caution- this is not primary information!)

Iowa state census, 1925, for Albert and Bertha Lorenzen at 435 1st Avenue, Clinton.  His parents were Paul Lorenzen and Christine Powers; her parents were Charles Kohler and Sophia Kamp.

Mystery Photos: The Winterton Family Album

Many years ago, I acquired the "Winterton" family album.  This collection of photographs perhaps came into its current name because some of the photographs are identified as William Winterton.  William Gladstone Winterton (1898-1976) was the son of William W. Winterton and Catherine Dunn of Monmouth County, New Jersey.

Only one other picture is labeled on the back:  William J. Newcomb, age 6 months, 2 days.  The photographer was A. Werner of Brooklyn, New York, and the date of September 1903 is included in the imprint.

The baby in the photograph is probably the seven year old boy found in Brooklyn in 1910 with his parents, Lydia M. and William D. Newcomb.

1910 Federal Census, Brooklyn, Kings County, New York; ED 76; page 26A; enumerated 29 April 1910.

Why wasn't the woman in the picture named?  Is she William's mother, Lydia?  According to the census, William was 7 years old and his parents were married for 7 years.  Could be possible, or could be a mistake.  Maybe the woman in the picture is not the baby's mother.  There is a potential marriage for this couple over at italiangen.org:  William Newcomb to Sydia Bexer on 22 June 1903 in Kings County, New York.

So what is the link between this Newcomb family and William Winterton?  The baby William's paternal grandmother was Emma Dunn.  Emma Dunn's sister was Catherine Dunn, mother of William Winterton- the 8 year old boy in the first photos.  So this is really more of a Dunn family album than a Winterton family album, I think.

Another photo provides a clue as to its date, though not its subject.

This photograph measures almost 4 inches long and 2 1/2 inches wide.  According to billblanton.com, such stamps were part of a tax to raise revenue for the Civil War; specifically, two cent playing card stamps were used in the summer of 1866.  This particular stamp looks like it was cancelled by the photographer, MM, or Moses, November 16.  We could perhaps date this photo around 1866.  I need to find a man related to the Dunn family living in the Trenton area during the Civil War.

The other photographs are mysteries for now.

Neighbors and business partners

In researching the connection between the Place and Duryea families, I am reminded of two things to always pay attention to:  the business partners and the neighbors.

My current theory is that John Place was a brother of Lydia Place.  In poking around in documents I already have, John now jumps out as a business partner of Stephen C Duryea in the grocery business.  They are mentioned in a deed in 1836, taking over the lease of 309 Spring Street in New York City from John H. Duryea, deceased.

New York City deed book 362, page 294

John Place is found in New York City in the 1850 census- on the same page as George W. Duryea (brother of Stephen and John) and Fannie Brewer (their sister).

1850 United States Federal Census, New York Ward 8, New York, New York; roll M432_542, page 241B, lines 19-22.

The more names that you acquire, the harder it becomes to organize everything and realize the links.  I recommend typing out transcriptions of documents, at least of the names, so that you can easily find the names on a search function of your files.