Future Research
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Family lore has that Barbra (Kraus) Kirmse had two sisters living in Perry County, Missouri. Initially there was uncertainty as to who they were. Eventually, Renada, wife of George Krauss, and Margaretha, wife of George Schuetz, were thought to be Barbara’s sisters. The following evidence supports the relationship of Barbara Kraus to her two sisters in Missouri.
Margaretha (Kraus) Schuetz
According to the Hutschdorf parish church birth records, Margaretha Kraus was one of Barbara’s sisters (See Chapter: Kraus – Hutschdorf Letter)
1868 Baptism Record of Maria Kirmse
Another relationship clue is that The Salem Lutheran Church records. The baptism record of Barbara’s first child, Maria Kirmse, shows a possible connection to Barbara’s two sisters:
Georg & Mrs. Schuetz and Georg & Mrs. Krause are the baptism sponsors of Barbara and Julius Kirmse’s first child, Maria: This is evidence that Margareta (Kraus) Schuetz and Renada (Kraus) Krauss were sisters of Barbara (Kraus) Kirmse. A common practice was to have baptism sponsors of a child be close relatives. The sponsors accepted the responsibility of caring for the child in the event of the parents become not able to do so.
The record further states that Maria’s mother, Barbara, was (geb. = geborn) born Schuetz. This is incorrect – the pastor or whoever entered the baptism in the church records possibly knew that Barbara was related to the Schuetz and/or Krauss couples and was confused as to the exact family relationship. Helen (Kirmse) Hacker said that this entry showing Barbara’s maiden name as being Schuetz initially led to assuming that Julius Kirmse had been first married to another Barbara. Once Barbara and Julius’s marriage record was found, this misdirection of research was corrected.
1870 US Census Record
The 1870 US Census shows that Barbara’s two sister’s families were living near each other.
Note that daughters of Renarda and George Krause are Hannah and Catharine. And the daughters of Margaret and George Schuetz are Barbara and Anna. Norma had Barbara’s sisters given names as being Anna (Schuetz) and Katarina (Krauss) however these are the names of the daughters respectively of Margaret Schuetz and Renarda Krause.
Except for the youngest daughter of George and Margaret, Anna, who was born in Missouri, the other family members were born in Bavaria. Also, in the 1870 US Census, Barbara (Kraus) Kirmse is reported as born in Bavaria.
Uncle George
Julius Henry Kirmse, grandson of Julius and Barbara (Kraus) Kirmse, had childhood memories of calling Barbara’s husband, George Krauss, Uncle.
Barbara And Renada Photos
Consider the headshots of Barbara and Renada as shown below:
There is a definite similarity of their facial features.
Future Research
The Hutschdorf parish church birth/baptism records should be searched for Renada Kraus to see if she has the same parents as Barbara and Margaretha.