Josephine and Henry

 

Josephine Kern Zengel-Smith & Henry O. Smith.

As noted yesterday, Josephine Kern Zengel (daughter of Antoinette Halter Kern) married Henry Otto Smith in New Orleans in 1915, when she was 49. He was originally from Brooklyn, New York. From the available records, it appears that they traveled quite often. In 1921, the couple went to San Francisco, and then sailed on the S.S. Manoa of the Matson Lines. Josephine and Henry departed San Francisco on 20 July, arriving in Honolulu on 27 July 1921.

Huntington Library. S.S. Manoa.

Josephine and Henry returned from their Hawaiian vacation on the S.S. Maui, arriving back into San Francisco on 10 August 1921.

In April 1922, Henry applied for a US Passport in order for to travel to Europe. The photo at the top of the post comes from Henry's passport application. Charles Huber, husband of Josephine's step-sister Magdalena, served as a witness on Henry's application. Josephine and Henry departed New York in June 1922, with planned stops in the United Kingdom, Holland, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, Gibraltar and France. They made the voyage with Josephine's niece, Hilda Zengel. Charles Huber also served as a witness on her passport application. Hilda's parents died before 1908, so she had been living with Josephine from before her marriage to Henry. Hilda continued living with them after their marriage.

Hilda Zengel, 1922.

Josephine, Henry and Hilda returned to New York on the S.S. Nieuw Amsterdam from Plymouth, England on 9 September 1922. Their passenger arrival was processed at Ellis Island.

Josephine and Henry took another trip to Europe in 1928. They appear on a passenger arrival list at Ellis Island arriving on the S.S. Stavangerfjord of the Norwegian America Line from Oslo on 10 September 1928. Curiously, the arrival list has Josephine's birth date as 14 March 1870, but the New Orleans Birth Records have her birth date as 28 February 1866.

Source: Gjenvick Archives.

Josephine and Hilda took a trip to Europe in 1932, arriving back in New York on 3 August 1932 on the S.S. Europa from Bremen.

Josephine passed away on 6 August 1940 in New Orleans.

New Orleans Times-Picayune, 7 Aug 1940.

Antoinette's Children

Picking up from yesterday's post, I'm following the family of Antoinette Halter Vollrath Kern. The New Orleans records keep revealing interesting connections and travels as I extend down this side of the tree.

Antoinette's first son, Philip Vollrath, married Mary Agnes Cary in 1897. He worked as a dairyman and laborer, and died on 16 May 1918. Antoinette's second son, Henry Vollrath, had an unexpected connection to Francois Halter (my wife's 4th-great-grandfather, and Henry's uncle). Henry married Catherine Myers in New Orleans on 4 October 1876. Francois witnessed the marriage, signing the license as Franz Halter (and also written by the Justice of the Peace as Frank Halter). The license was also witnessed by Filippo Ciofalo, first husband of Magdalene Vollrath, Henry's sister.

New Orleans Marriage Records, 1876.

Antoinette's first daughter, Magdalena Vollrath, married Sicilian immigrant Filippo Ciofalo on 17 November 1874. He worked for many years as a barber, but died without children on 1 March 1888. Magdalena remarried on 5 June 1893 to Charles Huber, a Swiss immigrant and sugar maker.

Charles appears in several travel records. He visited in Havana, Cuba in 1903. 

In 1911, Charles, Magdalena and Josephine Kern Zengel (Magdalena's step-sister) took a trip to Europe to visit Charles' ancestral home in Switzerland. The departed Le Havre on 30 September 1911, and arrived in New York on the S.S. Chicago on 10 October 1911. Josephine had married Frank Zengel on 16 September 1902. He was a prominent lawyer in New Orleans. He died on 22 October 1909.

S.S. Chicago arrival into NY, 10 Oct 1911

S.S. Chicago, 10 Oct 1911

Josephine's Swiss Emigration Form shows that she visited Altdorf in the Canton of Shaffhausen, Switzerland, along the Swiss-German border. Magdalena and Charles' Swiss Emigration Forms shows that they visited the village of Wynau in the Canton of Bern, Switzerland.

Frank and Josephine visited Havana, Cuba in February 1905. They appear on the ship manifest arriving into New Orleans on 2 March 1905.

Josephine married Henry Otto Smith on 12 October 1915 in New Orleans. I will have more on their travels in another post.

Magdalena died on 29 August 1939 in New Orleans without children of her own. Josephine died on 6 August 1940. 

Antoinette

Continuing with the Halter family in New Orleans, I'm shifting attention to Antoinette Halter, younger sister of Francois Halter. She was born in Bas Rhin, France in 1829. Antoinette immigrated to New Orleans, and first married Jacob Vollrath. They had three children:

- Philip Vollrath, 1852-1918

- Magdalene Vollrath, 1854-1939

- Henry Vollrath, 1859-1920

Antoinette later married George Kern, a German dairyman on 26 May 1862. They had two children:

- Joseph Kern, 1864-1907

- Josephine Kern, 1866-1940

Antoinette executed a will on 1 August 1887, naming George as executor and providing for her five children. She died on 21 October 1887. There is an extensive probate file available on Ancestry which provides substantial detail on her real estate and property holdings in New Orleans. I have pulled a few selections from the probate file to include with this post.

Source: Ancestry. Louisiana Wills, 1887.

 

The file provides a wealth of family history detail on Antoinette's family, mentioning her children, their husbands, her property, and containing signatures.

Frank Zengel, husband of Josephine Kern, provided his legal services as part of settling the estate. Antoinette's daughter Magdalene also chose to have her own counsel.

George Kern died on 24 May 1907. His will transferred some of the property that originally belonged to Antoinette down to his daughter Josephine. Joseph Kern, son of George, died on 20 June 1907.

My next post will follow Antoinette's children.

A Witness to a Marriage

I am continuing my look into New Orleans records, but shifting to the other side of the family tree. I previously wrote about my wife's 4th-great-grandfather Francois Halter in 2015. His signature appears on the marriage record of his daughter Louisa to Jean Baptiste Carbonetto (also spelled Carbonneti) in 1867.

New Orleans Marriages, 5 Feb 1867.

Like Francois, Jean Baptiste was also a gardener. He and Louisa appear in the 1870 US Census.

Source: Ancestry. 1870 US Census, New Orleans.

They had at least two children:

- Appolonia Pauline Carboneti, 1871

- Catherine Carboneti, 1875

Jean Baptiste died on 26 February 1895. It isn't clear what happened to Louisa.

Marriage Annulled

After looking into New Orleans Parish Marriages and news articles I previously missed, I'm taking one last recap on Marguerite Barba, first wife of my great-grandfather Harry O'Brien. After separating from Harry and returning to New Orleans (likely in 1909 or early 1910), Marguerite married Charles LeMore in New Orleans on 14 November 1911. Her sister Leonora was one of the witnesses (listed as Mrs. F. H. Jaubert).

FamilySearch. New Orleans Parish Marriages, 1911.

A problem was that Marguerite was still technically married to Harry. While the divorce had been filed in Illinois on 24 June 1911, the petition was not granted by the court until 28 November 1911. Marguerite did not learn of this until January 1913. By then her marriage to LeMore was also over, but she still had this problem to resolve. According to a news article in the New Orleans Times-Picayune from 22 January 1915, Marguerite petitioned the court in New Orleans to dissolve her marriage to LeMore.

New Orleans Times-Picayune, 22 Jan 1915.

Marguerite continued living with her mother, operating their home with rooms for rent. Her mother passed away on 28 June 1945.

Marguerite died in New Orleans in August 1982, almost 98 years old.