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From: Joan Meddaugh <>
Subject: Schwartz and various spellings of Schwartz
Date: Mon, 6 Feb 2006 12:46:43 -0500

Hi list,

I am in need of some very bad help.

I have a grandfather named David L. Schwrtz, Swartz and who knows what
other ways it was spelled.

He was born between 1849-1851 perhaps in the Lancaster area of Pa. I
have checked with various court houses in the area to see what I could
find about his birth and marriage. They tell me that these records don't
much exist because of the time period.

He came from a family of about 14 children spoke both high and low German
and was a stone mason by trade and in later years a farmer with his son
Herman and Will in Hector, Pa. I was also told he was Pennsylvania
Dutch.

I do know the following about him and his family:
Date of birth: about May 1849-1851 perhaps in Lancaster, Pa.
Date of Death: April 26, 1926 in Coutersport, Pa in the poor house. (
their records were destroyed in a fire.)
Place of burial: Ulysses cemetery with date of birth listed as 1850 and
the spelling listed as Schwartz.

Family members:
Wife #1 May Say I don't know date of birth or death
Child # from first marriage Mouvinta ( also known as Tenta and Vinta) she
was born Nov. 15th about 1877 or 1878 in Oil City in Venango Co.
She was about 7 years old when her father married my grandmother
Honora/Nora C. Wheeler of Allegheny, Cattaragus Co.,NY about 1885.

Vinta ran away and got married to a Eli Gardner from the local Pa. area.
They were married in Union City Steuben Co.NY in October 1892 that would
have made her 14 years of age. When she signed the marriage book, she
signed her last name as Swartz and not Swartz. ( which was way before my
uncle Jim, from David's second marriage to Nora, changed the spelling of
the name from Schwartz to Swartz). Eli was said to have been about 10-16
years older than she. I was told that he may have left her after a few
years. I don't know if they had children or not.

Then when she was about 21 about 1899 she got married to a Lewis/ Louis
Edwards, they lived in and around Union City before they moved to
Horseheads and later Elmira Heights where she lived till she died in
1966. They had a number of children.

I understand that she may have had a brother Gerald who worked for the
RR. I don't know much about him but do know that he isn't mentioned in
the obit for my grandfather David when he died in April of 26. I also
know that Gerald worked for the RR and that he broke his back. They my
Aunt Mary Schwrtz/Swartz Elsworth wife of Roy Elsworth and possibly a
widow by the time she was taking care of Gerald took care of him for a
while but for how long I don't know.

David, my grandfather married again about 1885 to Nora Wheeler from
Allegheny, Catt. Co, NY. And in 1886 their first known child was born
Aunt Mary. She was born we think in Ulysses. Then in 1887 Uncle Jim was
born, in 1891 Aunt Emily was born and in 1895 Uncle Will was born. In
1899 My mother Ella Dorcas was born and in 1900 Uncle Herman was born, in
1908 Aunt Marjorie was born.

By 1917 or might be before grandma Nora, My mother Dorcas, her sisters
Emily and Marjorie moved to Trumansburgh, NY where they operated a small
store. Emily died there in January of 1921. I am not sure of the dates
as to when they came to Candor but by 1920 my mother and her mother and
Marjorie were in Candor which is where my mother met my father. They were
married in June of that year. Aunt Marjorie and her mother Nora moved to
Niagara Falls were they remained.

I have tried my very best to locate him and his family previous to 1885,
but have no success.

One would think that a family that had a daughter with an unusual name
of Mouvinta/Tenta/Vinta would show up some place on a Pa census but it
hasn't.

If someone out there can give me any help I would really appreciate it.

Joan Beebe Meddaugh

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