Indirect Date of Birth

An announcement of a wedding date provided an indirect date of birth of a grandparent.

Shirley Adele Hofacker and William John Geerke announced the date of their upcoming wedding in The Newark Sunday Call. "June Bridal On Birthday" explained that June 24, 1939 was the 72nd birthday of Shirley's grandfather, Charles Lutter.

Newspaper article providing the date of Shirley Hofacker's wedding in 1939.
The Newark Sunday Call. April 23, 1939. Page 4.

Shirley and William were indeed married on June 24, 1939 in at Saint Leo's Catholic Church in Irvington, Essex County, New Jersey.

Shirley's mother was Florence Lutter (1892-1983). Florence's parents were Karl Lutter Anna Lau (1869-1914). Karl was anglized to Charles. He was likely a cousin of mine as discussed in an earlier article , "Connecting the Lutters of Newark, New Jersey." Charles was born in a German area, likely in or near the town of Scheibe, where my Lutter line originates. I do not have his record of birth; however, his death certificate provides this date as June 24, 1868. That would make him 71, not 72, on the day that his granddaughter married.

Death certificate of Charles K Lutter,
died September 26, 1952 in Newark, Essex County, New Jersey.
Father- Karl Lutter. Mother- "Unknown."
His parents were Robert Lutter and Nathalia Zitzman.

Shirley's date of birth is given on her marriage record: October 11, 1918. Again, a record of birth made at the time of the event would be better evidence of when she was born. Shirley's birth certificate is accessible from the New Jersey State Archives. (Births through 1924 are public in the Archives as of this writing.) On this document, Shirley was born on the 12th of October- not the 11th as stated on her marriage record.

Birth certificate of Shirley Adelle Hofacker
October 12, 1918 in Newark, Essex County, New Jersey.
Father- Adam Hofacker. Mother- Florence Lutter.
Record available through the New Jersey State Archives mail or in-person.

A note about researching in online newspapers:

Not all text will turn up in a search feature. On the page of The Newark Sunday Call where Shirley's article was found, there are several blank spots. Any print that was there did not carry over to the electronic scan and will not turn up in a search. If the date of an event is known, you may have to check newspapers published on and around this date to locate possible articles.

The Newark Sunday Call newspaper
April 23, 1939. Page 4.
Digitized version found at OldNews.com.
Shirley's wedding announcement is in the upper left.

1940 High School Graduation

An admission ticket to a graduation ceremony was among family pictures I received recently.

The small red stub was for entrance to the commencement exercises of Central Commercial and Technical High School on June 19, 1940. The event was held at South Side High School. Both these schools were in Newark, Essex County, New Jersey.

Whose graduation was this?

My first guess was my paternal grandmother, Beulah Bernice Cook (1921-1940). She was the right age and her family lived in Newark in the 1940 census.

Yearbooks for Newark are online at Archive.org.

Cog 'N' Pen, the yearbook of the graduating class of 1940, features Beulah!

Photograph of graduating senior Beulah Cook
Central Commercial and Technical High School

The school as it appeared in 1940

The building that housed this high school still stands, though it is now part of the campus of the New Jersey Institute of Technology. It sits on Summit Street and Dr Martin Luther King, Jr Boulevard (formerly High Street) between Warren Street and New Street.

Modern day aerial view of campus buildings
New Jersey Institute of Technology, Newark, New Jersey
Google Maps

Central High School was constructed around 1910 and 1911. These pictures are also available on Archive.org. Eberhardt Hall is visible in the background with its eyebrow dormers. Eberhardt Hall still stands today. It was constructed in the 1850s to house the Newark Orphan Asylum.

Construction of Central High School on Summit Street

In Newark today there is a school called Central High School that credits its descent from the Central High School founded in 1911. 

Pending Orders

Below is the list of records not available online that were ordered and not yet fulfilled.

The last published list was May 5, 2025.

Death Certificate Peter Vanderhoof, 1931

Requested of Wisconsin State Vital Records Office. Form F-05280 mailed September 15, 2025.

$20 check. 

Death Certificate Mary Catherine Vanderhoof (née Atkins), 1922

Requested of Wisconsin State Vital Records Office. Form F-05280 mailed September 15, 2025.

$20 check.

Naturalization Records William Schoenberg, 1907-1925

Requested of the Office of the Clerk of Hudson County, New Jersey. Form Naturalization Search Request mailed September 15, 2025.

$3 check.

Death certificate of James Cummings, 1912

Requested of the New York State Department of Health. Form DOH-4384 mailed February 9, 2024.

$22 check. (Died in Catskill, Greene County, New York March 11, 1912.) Check cleared July 30, 2024.

Death certificate of Jane Cummings, 1899

Requested of the New York State Department of Health. Form DOH-4384 mailed February 9, 2024.
$22 check. (Died in Catskill, Greene County, New York July 7, 1899.) Check cleared July 30, 2024.

Death certificate of John Grant, 1882
Requested of the New York State Department of Health. Form DOH-4384 mailed February 9, 2024.
$22 check. (Died in Catskill, Greene County, New York December 27, 1882.) Check cleared July 30, 2024.

Death certificate of Edward Sheeby [Edmond Sheehy], 1893

Requested of the New York State Department of Health. Form DOH-4384 mailed March 1, 2022.
$22 check cleared April 2, 2022.
Originally requested in 2015.
Town of Amenia provided an obscure ledger entry in 2023.