The Schaefers

We cousins didn't know much about the Schaefers. For reasons that probably resulted from his personality, our grandfather Walter Schaefer was estranged from his brothers and sisters. He was born in the Ironbound district of Newark in 1890, the son of George Jacob Schaefer and Margaret Bahr. George Jacob, a baker, was born in Germany. He can be found (unmarried) living in Newark in 1880. He had disappeared by 1900. We were told that he was kicked by a horse delivering bread and went insane. How long he lived after that event we don't know, although his last daughter, Elsie, was born in 1895.

Margaret was born in 1855 in New York (probably Tusten). The children were Allwin Peter(1885), Florence (1888), our grandfather Walter Augustus (1890), and George Wilbur (1892), followed by Elsie in 1895.

The family remained in Newark through 1910. In 1920 we find Allwin living in Irvington NJ with his wife Elizabeth (Ploeser)and daughter Emma born in 1914 and son Allwin born in 1918. Elizabeth's mother also lived in the household. Allwin's profession is noted as plumber. By 1930, there had been a major change. His wife was now Tillie and although Emma was still with them, Allwin was gone. I have to assume that both Elizabeth and young Allwin were deceased. Allwin's (the father) profession had now been upgraded to HVAC contractor.

The core family including Margaret, Florence, George, and Elsie also moved out of Newark to East Orange where we find them in 1920. Our grandfather Walter and young family were in Bloomfield, moving to Nutley shortly after 1920. Ten years later in 1930, Margaret now 75 was living in Miami with the youngest daughter Elsie. Florence had married a William Bowe and was living in Monmouth NJ.

George in 1930 was now in Hillside New Jersey with his wife Hazel and daughter Mildred born in 1922. His profession is noted as jewelry firm. The jewelry firm is reported as Enos Richardson of Maiden Lane New York City on George's 1942 draft registration card.

What is interesting to me is that Walter, Martha, and FL had first cousins of common age (Allwin's daughter Emma and George's daughter Mildred) in neighboring NJ communities who I never heard mention of. Mona tells the story that our grandfather had a fight with his brother George over the value of some jewelry he had acquired from him. Maybe Allwin had given him a bad deal on some plumbing work.

Our grandfather lived to over a hundred, dying in 1990. From the social security death records, I find that George passed away in 1978 at age 86 in Berkley Heights NJ. There is also a social security death record for a Florence Bowe in 1988, although I cannot confirm it to be Florence Schaefer Bowe. The others were not possible to track. It is always the case that women in the family who marry are especially hard to find because of the last name change. And those that died not qualifying for social security are also difficult to track.

It is very likely that we have cousins who are descendants of Emma or Mildred Schaefer, but it would require a trip to the Essex or Union County clerks office to find them. I'm interested but not that interested.