My favorite female ancestor? Well, that is a tough question, because I come from long lines of strong, independent females. I admit, I have to cheat a little bit. This is technically a blog about the Gerke family and related surnames, but the female ancestor I have chosen for this post, is actually a Kirschbaum from my mom's maternal line. I simply do not know enough about the Gerke family to choose someone on that side. So, meet my 4th Great Grandma, Caroline (Reinke) Kirschbaum:
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| Caroline Kirschbaum | | | | | |
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She was born December 18, 1847 in Friedricshorst, Germany to Michael and Christina Reinke. She married August Kirschbaum in 1866. She came to America with her husband in 1869, and they eventually made their way to Minnesota. She had 20 kids (yep, you read that right), including four sets of twins. Out of those children, 16 survived. Here's a picture of the children:
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| From the left front: Caroline(Rebers), Reinhold (my g-g-g grandpa), Emma (Schultz), Christ, Louisa (Henke), August. Middle Row: Julius, Anna (Just), Herman. Back Row: Bertha (Hulke), Agusta (Menge), Otto, Wilhelm, Martha (Schroeder) and Leona (Giese) |
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When Caroline passed away in 1932, all children were present but one.
WOW!!
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