Other Bavarian Relatives
44
Helen (Kirmse) Hacker said that when Amanda (Kirmse) Mehner was asked about how the Schuetz family was connected to the Kirmse family, she remembered that her parents, attended the funeral of Adolph Schuetz. Mildred Brickhaus provided a description of what Amanda told her as is given in the following excerpt of a letter she sent to Norma (Kirmse) Rauh .
When I visited Amanda Mehner – she told me that she remembered her parents attending the funeral of Adolph Schuetz – She had to stay home with her brothers and it was very muddy outside. She also said the Adolph Schuetz had two daughters and one got burned. (That is the way she put it) He was – the service was held at the Point Rest Lutheran Church, Bois Brute Bottoms – Presumably he wa buried in the Church Cemetery. There is a record people interned there, I copied some dates from it. But, I can’t remember just how it was presented.
Information Source
Undated letter to Norma from Mildred Brickhaus.
Looked for Gravestone
Helen tried to find a gravestone for any Schuetz at the Point Rest Cemetery as is noted in the following excerpt from a letter she wrote Norma Aug 12, 1990.
We looked in Point Rest Cemetary but no Schuetz on any stone. There are spaces with apparent burial places but no tombstones on them. Amanda mentioned the Adoph Schuetz funeral there and her folks had to go and leave her home by herself and she was a little girl and couldn’t understand why it was so important for them to go with the muddy roads too. It could very well be that she has a wrong first name or wrong place since she was remembering it from a child. It could very well have been a son of Anna but would seem more like her husband since it was maybe 60 or more years ago. (I’m guessing
As noted, Helen was not successful in locating any Schuetz gravestones at the Point Rest Cemetery.
Hence, the mystery of who Adolph Schuetz was and how he might have be related to the Kirmse family. This is explored below.
When Was the Funeral?
Amanda Edna Kirmse was born 01 Nov 1911 Longtown, Perry, Missouri to parents August Karl Kirmse and Amelia B. Hacker.
Amanda did have two step-brothers, Paul Andrew Heise born 07 Dec 1899 and Eugene Alfred Heise born 31 Aug 1902. Amanda also had a brother, August Martin Kirmse born 08 Aug 1908 in/near Crosstown, Perry, Missouri, USA. But, August died died 24 Aug 1908. So it would have been Amanda’s step-brothers who stayed with her.
It appears that Amanda was probably at least three to five years old and maybe as much as 15 years old when the funeral she is remembering took place. So given that Amanda was born in 1911, the funeral was likely between 1914 and 1925.
WHERE WAS THE FUNERAL?
From Mildred’s letter, the funeral service took place at Point Rest Lutheran Church, Bois Bule Bottoms, Missouri.
A check of the records of Trinity Lutheran Church, Point Rest, Missouri for Schuetz/Scheetz names finds there is only one Scheetz in the burial records:
A Theresa (Widow) Scheetz; Death: 3 Feb 1928; Buried: 5 Feb 1928; Age: 68y4m27d; Cause of Death: winter fever ; Survivors: 9 children; 6 grandchildren; 3 sisters – listed in Burial Records for 1901-1942..
And, there are no Schuetz/Scheetz names in the Point Rest Lutheran Cemetery grave list.
Hence, there is no evidence of an Adolph Schuetz burial at Point Rest Lutheran Church, Bois Bule Bottoms, Missouri. However, a funeral service could have taken place at Point Rest (even though the church record does not record one) and the burial was elsewhere.
George Adolf Schuetz
The first person considered was the Adolph Schuetz (AKA George Adolf Schuetz) listed in the 1910 US Census record as the son of Heinrich Schuetz. As found in Chapter George Adolf Schuetz (1891-1957), George Adolf Schuetz died in 1957. Hence, George Adolph Schuetz/Sheetz is NOT the “Adolph Schuetz” whose funeral that Amanda remembered.
Johann Heinrich Schuetz
So who else might be the person whose funeral did Amanda remembered? Possibly the deceased was the father of George Adolf Scheetz, Johann Heinrich Schuetz. The death certificate of Henry John Scheetz shows that (AKA Johann Heinrich Schuetz) died September 26, 1921 (See Chapter: Johann Heinrich “Henry” Schuetz (1861–1921)).
Amanda would have been almost 10 years old, so the funeral of John Henry Scheetz may well have been the person whose funeral Amanda remembered.
Note: Henry John Scheetz was buried in the Home Cemetery, Perryville, Missouri, However, his memorial/funeral services could have been at Trinity Lutheran Church, Point Rest, Missouri.
Oliver Adolf Theod. Scheetz
Could the deceased have been a son of George Adolph?
Birth
The Zion Lutheran Church, Crosstown, Missouri Baptism Records gives the following baptism record:
Oliver Adolf Theod. Scheetz Born: 13 Jan 1914; Baptized 3 Aug 1924. Parents: Adolf Scheetz & Virginia Cappius; Sponsors: Theodore & Mrs. Josephine Bodenschatz; Rev. Norden
Zion Lutheran Church, Crosstown, Missouri Baptism Records 1902-1924.
Death
George Adolph Scheetz’s son named Orville J Scheetz died at the age of 4 years 5 months 23 days on July 7, 1922.
And was buried in the Home Cemetery, Perryville, Missouri, USA.
Find A Grave
| Name | Orville John Scheetz | |||
| Event Type | Burial | |||
| Event Date | 1922 | |||
| Event Place | Perryville, Perry, Missouri, United States of America | |||
| Photograph Included | Y | |||
| Birth Date | Jan 1918 | |||
| Death Date | Jul 1922 | |||
| Affiliate Record Identifier | 37708692 | |||
| Cemetery | Home Cemetery |
Conclusions
- George Adolph Scheetz’s father or son may be the person whose funeral Amanda remembered. Amanda would have been respectively 10 or 11 years old. My bet is on the father. Johann Heinrich Schuetz.
- While the burials were in the Home Cemetery in Perryville, possibly given the prior membership of Schuetz/Scheetz family in the Trinity Lutheran Church, Point Rest, Missouri, the memorial/funeral service could have been held at Point Rest.
- George Adolph Schuetz sometimes used his middle name Adolph as his first name.
- The Schuetz family changed the spelling of their surname to Scheetz. This was commonly done around WWI. While phonetically essentially the same, this spelling would less likely to be mispronounced and this spelling of the names appears to be less German.
- Amanda’s parents concerted effort to attend the funeral of “Adolph Schuetz” may suggest a family relationship. However, nothing definitive has been found in this research.
- The relationship could have been that Johann Heinrich Schuetz was a first cousin of Amanda’s father, August Karl Kirmse. via his mother, Barbara (Kraus) Kirmse being a sister of George Adolph Scheetz’s mother, Margaretha (Kraus) Schuetz.
Addendum
This person’s death and burial do not fit Amanda’s memories about the Adolph Schuetz funeral. Amanda (born 01 Nov 1911) would have been less than 3 years old – hence would not likely to have remembered the details about her parents leaving her at home. The burial was in Olivette. St. Louis County, Missouri. which is a long way from Longtown, Missouri. .