AUGUST 1996 NEWSLETTER Recent advances on the here-to-fore "closed" Charles Geissinger line. From Austria I have been in contact with Ferdinand Gisinger--- our 7th cousin. He is a direct descendant of Mathaeus Gisinger, our direct great grandfather and father of Charles Geissinger. Ferdinand comes through Charles Geissinger's brother Joannes (Johann Georg GISINGER), born 9 Apr 1747 and 7 years younger that Charles Geissinger. George stayed in Austria and his descendants are there today. Names are being sent to me on this branch of the family from Ferdinand. I have compared many names sent from Ferdinand with the research that Trudy Schenk has done and her research has been verified as very accurate. Here is a letter I sent Ferdinand:

Mr. Ferdinand Gisinger, Altweg 2, A-6850 Dornbirn, Austria 25 May 1996

Dear Mr. Gisinger: My name is Jerry Mower and I believe we are relatives. I have been in contact with Stephen Guisinger of Texas and he has sent me materials that you sent him regarding the Gisinger family of Goetzis. I am a descendant of Josef Karl Gisinger, born 5 Nov 1740 in Goetzis. If you descend from his brother, Johann Georg Gisinger, then we share the same ancestor, Mathaeus Gisinger, born 21 Sep 1697 and his wife Maria Walser.

I am excited to contact relatives of the Gisinger family because I have been searching out my family tree for many years now. Recently we had a great discovery of the birth of Josef Karl (whom we call Charles Geissinger--- as this is the name he went by in America). Let me tell you a little about myself ... (I then did). If you are related to Anton Giesinger born in 1907, then I can tell you my relationship to him. Anton Giesinger is my 5th cousin, twice removed. Here is some information about Charles Geissinger:

Life sketch of Charles Geissinger Charles Geissinger was my 5th great grandfather. He was born in Goetzis Vorarlberg, Austria, and was christened in the Catholic church on 5 Nov 1740. When he was a young man, about age 20, a German prince came into Austria and hired young men to fight in a war in Portugal. My grandfather and several of his friends joined up to fight. In Portugal he was captured and became a prisoner of war and was eventually sold as a "white slave'' or indentured servant into America. He arrived in America in October, 1766 aboard the ship "Cullodian" . His contract was purchased by man who owned a glass factory in Salem county, New Jersey, where he worked until May of 1768. He ran away and escaped. An ad was placed in the newspaper for his recapture. The ad said he was about 27 years of age, 5 feet 4 inches tall, dark complexion, grey eyes, marked with small-pox around his mouth, and had short, brown hair. It said when he ran away that he spoke no English at all.

He next appeared in Pennsylvania where he joined the Revolutionary War in 1776, fighting for the state of Pennsylvania. He enlisted in a German regiment made up of mainly German immigrants from Pennsylvania and Maryland. A John Geissinger was also listed in this regiment and we believe it very likely could have been a brother of his named John. Charles participated in the Battle of Three Rivers in June of 1776 in Canada. Here again he was taken prisoner after 78 members of his battalion had either been killed or captured. He was only a prisoner for a short period of time, and then he was released in a prisoner exchange. He went back to Pennsylvania where he re-enlisted in the war again.

In another highlight of his life, he spent the winter with George Washington at Valley Forge where he served under the command of Mad Anthony Wayne and took part in the capture of Stony Point. Following the Revolutionary War, he lived for about 20 years in Frederick County, Maryland. Maryland was a colony where many Catholic's settled.

>From the census records of 1790 and 1800, we learn that Charles had approximately 12 children. One of his sons was placed as an apprentice to become a farmer. Another was placed as an apprentice to become a blacksmith. His daughter, Catherine, married Michael Mower, and they lived in Bedford county Pennsylvania, which is just over the border from Frederick county Maryland. Michael and Catherine Mower were my 4th great grandparents.

In 1805 Charles was given 100 acres of bounty land for his service in the Revolutionary War from 1776 to 1783. He appears on the Bedford County, Pennsylvania tax lists in 1806 through 1810 when he died. The Geissinger family moved to Ohio upon his death, except Catherine and Michael Mower, who stayed in Bedford County Pennsylvania and raised a family there. Their son, Henry Mower, was living there in 1836. The Mower family moved West to Illinois, and then eventually to Utah, and that is how my family got out west. The Geissinger family that stayed in Ohio spelled their name, GUISINGER, and that spelling has remained. I hope that gives you some idea about this interesting family. A series of clues led us to the Catholic church records in Goetzis where we located the birth of Charles. We know that most of the family remained associated with the Catholic Church in Ohio.

I would so much like to learn more about the Gisinger family. I have a copy of the Stephen Guisinger material including the family Coat of Arms. Can you tell me a little about the Coat of Arms? What do the items shown on the Coat of Arms represent? If these people were just farmers, why would they have a Coat of Arms? Was this unusual for common people? I am enclosing $20 American to reimburse you for any expenses involved in sending me material. Our family association would be very interested in learning more about the Gisinger family. I would be interested in knowing if anyone locally has the genealogies of the WALSER, BUSCHAUER, or GEIGER families? Thank you so much for what you have sent already. I am looking forward to hearing from you. Mit Vielen Dank! Jerry Mower TRUDY SCHENK REPORT ON THE MOWER LINE-- GERMANY TRIP BREAKTHROUGH LEADS TO 4 MORE GENERATIONS OF DIRECT MAURERS.

Dear Jerry, It is now time that I put my mind at ease and send you a report of my findings at the Neuenstein county archive on the Maurer line. I checked the Lagerbuecher land records and the Abgabe tax books. The village Goggenbach had a section in each book. Martin Maurer, (also spelled Meurer) is the earliest Maurer mentioned first in 1665. He is recorded as the son of Michael Maurer from Jungholzhausen in 1665 when he does buy one half of the estate of Simon Gundel. This Simon Gundel could be Martin Maurer's father-in-law. In 1618 a Simon Gundel, probably the father of the younger Simon is recorded living on a farm, added at a much later date is noted "now owned by Martin Maurer". Martin Maurer has a son Philipp who is listed many times in connection with tax pay, after 1691, page 340. In December of 1691 Martin Maurer pays the following:

One piece cash, one chicken from Spring, one Christmas chicken, 2 1/2 chickens from the Fall, and one sack of oats. This tax he has to pay yearly.

Martin Maurer owns many pieces of land, meadow and farm land. His son Georg Michael also mentioned with a brother-in-law called Paulus Heyhold. Georg Michael Maurer has a son Johann Friederich who becomes his heir. Either Philipp or Georg Michael has to be the father of the emigrant Michael Maurer. My guess is Georg Michael. There is also one Adam Maurer mentioned, but no further information. He could be the son of Martin as well as a Johann Jacob Maurer who lives in Eschental by 1717. In 1731, Martin Maurer gives his son Georg Michael and his son-in-law, Paulus Heyhold his land.

As I now look at my previous Maurer research I see that Martin Maurer who comes to Goggenbach ca. 1665, was christened 1 Feb 1642 in Jungholzhausen, a son of Michael Maurer and of Barbara. Since there are earlier records of Doettingen 1562 on, we can continue research on the Maurer and Hoenlin lines. In 1731, Martin Maurer gives his son Georg Michael and his son-in-law Paulus Heyhold part of the estate and Georg Michael gives his son Friedrich the estate later on.

I conclude that Philipp was the brother to Georg Michael the younger and not the heir. He was probably given his share in cash and his son Johann Philipp Maurer and Johann Michael Maurer the nephew came to America. Johann Philipp being the younger in his family and Johann Michael the younger of his siblings. Philipp Sr. must have owned some land for there is an exchange or trade made in 1719. Nothing else mentioned. I searched every record there was which gave information on Goggenbach and it's people. The land records mostly showed the location of each piece of land and who was the owner of the bordering land on each side.

In this connection the following names are mentioned along with Martin Maurer/Meurer: Hans Metzger, Martin Weiss, Hans Michel Foerstner, Georg Schumacher, Georg Roth, Georg Thomas Carlin, Simon Boehn, Martin Gundel (probably a brother-in-law), Hans Jacob Maurer in Eschental, Georg Pfruemmer, Georg Michelbacher, Peter Krauss, Jakob Wolf, Georg Steinbach, Georg Kistner, Martin Wegelin, Hans Michel Eberlin in 1687, Georg Schmid in 1691, Caspar Rueger, Lienhard Loechner, Michel Krebs, Heinrich Faerber, Friedrich Schwab in 1701, Hans Roll, Simon Hobach, Georg Vettermann and Stephan Mueller in 1709.

As I made it a point to drive to Goggenbach I found it to be a very small village. Only a few homes along two roads. No store of any kind. It seems as though it would have been a larger place ca. 250 years ago. I also took a few pictures of the Lagerbuch entries and the Tax book. These I took so you can see the names. The information written on the side was entered in part at a later date... So much on the Maurer research. I'm still working on the Brill to get it ready to send to you. Liebe Gruesse, Trudy Schenk.

P.S. Having this new information now I once more turned to the church records of Doettingen to do more detailed work on the Michael Maurer the earliest previous Maurer I found. Checking deaths in detail revealed that Michael's first wife, Barbara died and he remarried to another Barbara. I searched this out and found she is from Orlach and Michael Maurer is her 3rd husband.

Her maiden name was recorded when she married the first time. Abelin, the dau. of Andreas Abelin. She therefore is Martin Maurer's mother who went to Goggenbach. Since the mother's maiden name is not given in the early records and she is a Barbara also, there was no way to know that she was a different Barbara after 1639. I also checked the Eschental marriages once more which begin in 17 19, hoping that the new information will help put the Maurers in the correct pedigree line. I feel confident that the connections I have made are correct. As I studied these marriage records once more I found the marriage of Johann Georg Schenk in 1733 with Elisabetha Dorothea Faulhase. He is on the same ship with Philipp and Michael Maurer. (On 9 Nov 1738 the ship, Charming Nancy, arrived with Palatines on board. A Johan Michael MAURER age 18 and a Hans Philip MAURER age 32 were on board and now we have identified another ship passenger, Georg SCHENK.)

Summary: Trudy's trip to Germany was very successful for our family for the Maurer research alone. She has added 4 generations to Michael Maurer's pedigree for us by searching the land and tax records of Goggenbach. She has also search all available records for Goggenbach, which are not microfilmed. This trip was valuable because it was the only way of knowing that the Jungholzhausen Maurer family we have identified in other records (which were microfilmed) are our Maurer family. Our Maurer family moved from Jungholzhausen to Goggenbach according to the land records. When the Goggenbach church records burned in 1741 we thought this meant a dead end genealogically speaking. The trip to Europe was the only way to learn the truth and lead us on to new searches. We are still researching the Maurer family now with new clues because of this trip. The Brill information is yet to come from Trudy, but irregardless of that research, our prayers have been heard and new records were opened to us. Pedigrees and group sheets of all Maurer and Kolb families and Goggenbach pictures will be forth coming in future newsletters. JM