CIRCUS-FOLK-L Archives

Archiver > CIRCUS-FOLK > 2003-10 > 1065121573


From: "Sharon Buethner" <>
Subject: Re: [CIRCUS-FOLK] Violet (Vi) Emma Hofer Roop, Ringling (1904-13),Bareback Rider/High Wire
Date: Thu, 02 Oct 2003 14:06:15 -0500
In-Reply-To: <050501c387aa$4d258340$732a0444@pv.oc.cox.net>


Hi Anne,

Do you have the info from the 1910 Census?

Shows Bernice, age 11 months, along with her parents [Bernis, age
19 and Violet, age 21] living with ? - possibly Great Grandparents
(hard to read copy) Abraham Roop [age 73] and his wife, Mary L.
[age 65] in Montgomery Co., OH.

If you need the full info, let me know.

Sharon


On 30 Sep 2003 at 16:26, Anne wrote:

> Christy:
>
> How exciting!!! Yes, James was the youngest and would've only been a
> baby when Violet died. Bernis did remarry, but I don't think it was as
> soon as 1920, but I'm not certain of that. If he had, I would think
> there would have been another woman's name listed in the census.
>
> Violet's parents are Lewis Hofer and Agnes Henshaw. I looked in the
> free 1880 census and came up with nothing. I have a state of Ohio
> document about a search conducted in 1919 to obtain Violet's place of
> birth, marked 'unknown.'
>
> I saw your offer to help us in a past list message and was going to
> contact you. What an angel you are!!! Thanks so much for doing this. I
> will write you directly with a few more details.
>
> Gratefully,
>
> Anne
>
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Kilikini" <>
> To: <>
> Sent: Tuesday, September 30, 2003 11:44 AM
> Subject: Re: [CIRCUS-FOLK] Violet (Vi) Emma Hofer Roop, Ringling
> (1904-13),Bareback Rider/High Wire
>
>
> >
> >
> > Kilikini wrote:
> >
> > > Anne,
> > >
> > > I found Bernis, Bernice, Willard & James in the 1920 census in
> > > Miami, Montgomery County, Ohio. Bernis is still listed as married
> > > (which is weird) and his youngest son, James was born around 1918.
> > >
> > > I have subscriptions to both Ancestry.com and Genealogy.com and
> > > can try to help you do some searches. It would help alot if you
> > > could give me Violet's parent's names and I'll see what I can
> > > find.
> > >
> > > Christy Vandekieft Gibson
> > > Wailuku, Maui, Hawaii
> > >
> > > Anne wrote:
> > >
> > >> Greetings to everyone!!! I'm new to the list. I've been reading
> > >> past postings and have learned so much already. Thank you. My
> > >> heart goes out to all who are lookinng for evidence of their
> > >> loved ones. I had no idea I would have so much 'company.' I wish
> > >> you all success in finding the information you seek. Here's my
> > >> story.
> > >>
> > >> Looking for my grandmother, Violet Emma Hofer Roop, who was a
> > >> bareback rider with Ringling sometime between 1904-1913. She also
> > >> performed with a highwire act. I believe her nickname was "Vi."
> > >> Her husband, Bernis (Bernie) Roop, was a cornet player in the
> > >> circus band. In 1909, they had a daughter (Bernice) while on tour
> > >> in Jersey City, NJ; who was referred to as "Baby Vi." They were
> > >> both from the Dayton, Ohio area and would winter there. They
> > >> settled there in 1913 when her costumes and his cornet were lost
> > >> in a huge flood that hit the area, as they were about to rejoin
> > >> the circus. Violet died in 1918 during the worldwide influenza
> > >> epidemic, after nursing her entire family (which then included
> > >> two more children), and neighbors back to health. Her descendants
> > >> have never seen photos of her because a stepmother burned them.
> > >>
> > >> I'm determined to find her; to fill in this void for the family.
> > >> Armed with only the info above, plus knowing she was born in
> > >> 1888, I finally recently stumbled upon her death certificate
> > >> which has given me her birthdate and the names of her parents,
> > >> but no birth place for her, or them. The 1880 cencus is not
> > >> turning up anything for me, either. Years ago, I tried the Circus
> > >> World Museum, but was told me they had nothing; that route books
> > >> for that era were probably burned. Does anyone know anything
> > >> about that? I've written them again, hoping there might be new
> > >> information.
> > >>
> > >> Thank you for letting me share this with you. I am just beginning
> > >> my search in earnest for information. If you have any advice for
> > >> me, I would appreciate it.
> > >>
> > >> Plus, I have three general questions.
> > >> 1) Were there any American circus newspapers/magazines/journals
> > >> of that era that could be researched? 2) Are the Joe McKennon
> > >> books still available; I haven't looked around yet; any tips? 3)
> > >> I haven't been able to find a birth certificate for my mother,
> > >> Bernice. What can you tell me about children who were born while
> > >> the circus was on tour? (New Jersey has no documentation)
> > >>
> > >> Thanks again.
> > >>
> > >> Anne Davison
> > >>
> > >>
> > >> ==============================
> > >> To join Ancestry.com and access our 1.2 billion online genealogy
> > >> records, go to:
> > >> http://www.ancestry.com/rd/redir.asp?targetid=571&sourceid=1237
> > >
> >
> >
> > ==============================
> > To join Ancestry.com and access our 1.2 billion online genealogy
> > records,
> go to:
> > http://www.ancestry.com/rd/redir.asp?targetid=571&sourceid=1237
> >
>
>
> ==============================
> To join Ancestry.com and access our 1.2 billion online genealogy
> records, go to:
> http://www.ancestry.com/rd/redir.asp?targetid=571&sourceid=1237
>


This thread: