You might’ve noticed in my posts about Paul Mayer and the Lichtenfels that when Paul Mayer married Caroline she had a second surname, Hammann. Caroline had in fact been married before marrying Paul, to Christian Hammann. Caroline and Christian were married 27 February 1862 in Richmond, Indiana. They had 4 children, 2 of whom survived. The two who died were listed in the local newspaper. Only one child was identified, Emma, age almost 5 at her death in August 1866. The second child was not listed as male or female, no age, died in August 1867. The surviving 2 children were daughters, Mary Otilia, born 2 December 1862, and Mary Anna, born December 1866. I am not sure what the correct birth order is. It almost seems as though Emma and Otilia might’ve been twins, then the third child was born and subsequently died, and Mary Anna was born last.
Christian was a partner in a brewery in Richmond, called Hammann & Winterling. On the 1860 census for Richmond, I found a “Christopher” Hammann living with a John Hammann and his family plus a Henry “Winderling.” Christian fell ill with consumption and returned to Germany in 1867 in hopes of finding a cure. He died there, however, in August 1867. It is interesting to note that John Hammann died in August 1866 from cholera, as well as Caroline’s youngest sister Sarah. No cause of death was listed for Emma Hammann, but she also died in August 1866.
I must mention here that I had to look up what a Leiderkranz was. In Richmond at that time, apparently it was a Beethoven Liederkranz, a German musical group.
Unfortunately, I have found no record of burial for either Hammann child who died young. In studying the history of St. Andrews Cemetery (St. Andrews Catholic Church is where they attended), I did find out that there was a first cemetery located just south of the church, but it was soon found to be too small and the cemetery is now at its present-day site. The info, however, did not state if the burials at the first cemetery had been moved or if that small first cemetery is still present. I need to work in more time for research in Richmond!
To me, it sounds as if the mid 1860s were kind of rough for both Paul and Caroline. In my mind, they knew of one another before their respective spouses died, probably moved in the same circles in the mid 1860s, what with going to the same church and being employed in the same line of work and living in the same neighborhood. At some point between January 1868 and January 1869, they must’ve kept one another company in grief. They were married on 4 February 1869 and expanded their family to include:
Joseph Fred, b: Sept 1869 (Joseph on the 1870 census and Fred on the 1880 census), d: 1900
Caroline Elizabeth, b: February 1871, married to Henry Lennard, d: 1906
Albert F., b: December 1874, d: 1929
George William, b: June 1877 (Willie on the 1880 census, George on the 1900 census), d: 1907
Eva P., b: May 1879, married to Joseph Sauer, then Frank Egley, d: 1963
Thomas, b: May 1881 (he was 4 years old when Paul, his father, died), d: 1930
(Of note, on the 1870 census, Caroline’s daughters with Christian Hammann are listed as Otillia [sic] and Anna; on the 1880 census, they are listed as Hannah and Mary. Neither Hannah/Otilia or Mary Anna had any surviving children. Otilia’s marriage certificate to Frank Macke lists her as “M. Otillia” and on censuses with Frank she is listed as “Mary” and “Mary O.” I’m not sure where Hannah came from.)
(Of note, on the 1900 census, the last census Caroline was listed on as she died in 1902, she is noted as having had 10 children, 8 surviving.)
(Of note, I found Otilia’s obituary/death announcement! Three things: She is listed as the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Christian ‘Hammon’, went by ‘Tillie’, and her birth date was listed as 2 December 1862!)
(Of note, I’ve requested death certificates on some of the individuals above, so I might add more specific dates in the future.)
LifeCitation 