Day: March 31, 2015

Photograph believed to be that of Lloyd Albert Otto. Photo courtesy of Vicki Schrader Shreve.

I had originally planned to write about this ancestor some time in the fall of 2015 after I had, hopefully, stumbled upon more information about my paternal grandfather, Lloyd Albert Schrader. However, the optional theme for this week in the 52 Ancestor challenge, “Different”, prompted me to move this post up some months. I would have loved to have titled this post after the infamous (at least, to my generation) catch-phrase from Monty Python’s Flying Circus, because it was my exact thought upon finding a piece of information a few years ago. But, you know…although I could not find information that the phrase is copyrighted, I would rather err on the safe side and not use it. I believe that a majority of us probably have some version of Michael Lacopo’s Hoosier Daddy? simmering on the back burner in our family histories, but probably few of us are able to put forth that story in such an eloquent and entertaining manner. (I admit that after I had found his blog, I binge read his installments until I got caught up with the series.)

I have admitted here before that I have not researched my father’s family as often or as in-depth as I have my mother’s. A lot of that has to do with the fact that it was my maternal grandmother who peaked my interest in the family history and who passed me a lot of information, sometimes just written on the back of an envelope. When I started actually working on a family tree, though, it bothered me a lot that I knew nothing at all about my paternal grandfather’s father. Nothing. Zilch. Nada. The only thing that I had to go on was the name of the father listed on my grandfather’s death certificate, “Wm. A.”.

I had spent somewhere around seven years attempting to track something down with that information. During this time, I would take my children along with me to the county library for a Saturday “Library-a-thon”. With my daughter in a Snuggly front carrier or a backpack and my son close by my knee, we would pretty much spend the entire day at the library while I searched through old books and microfilm and while the kids looked through a huge stack of board books, and then later on, as they were grew older, they would check in with me every half hour from the children’s department. With the advent of genealogical information becoming available online, everything changed. Slowly, at first, tediously trolling through bulletin board systems. And then, the information available (literally at your fingertips) exploded! And that’s when I found the fact that had me doing a 180, or at the very least, a 165…

Lloyd Albert Schrader

The facts, then:

My dad’s father was born, Lloyd Otto, on Wednesday, 19 April 1899, in Plain Township, Stark County, Ohio to Lydia Pearl May, the unmarried daughter of Joseph C. May and Margaret F. Dobson. The father is listed as Albert Otto.

Lloyd Otto birth 1899.

In the 1900 census of Plain Township, we find Lydia listed in the household of one Louisa Stoner as a servant, along with her year-old son, A. Lloyd Otto. Although technically, Lloyd is listed as the son of the head of household, we know that census takers can and did note things incorrectly and that the 61 year old, widowed, Louisa Stoner could not be the mother.

1900 Census Middlebranch, Plain Twp, Stark County, Ohio

Lydia Pearl May married William S. Garner on 16 February 1905. In the 1910 census, we find 11-year- old Lloyd Otto listed as a servant in Lydia and William’s household and it is noted that he is a “helper” on the farm.

1910 Census Osnaburg Twp., Stark County, Ohio

In 1918, Lloyd registers for the WWI draft using the name Lloyd Albert Schrader. Hmmmmmmm. This is the first instance where I have a document with the surname Schrader. Lloyd is described as being tall, of medium build, with brown eyes, and dark hair. He lists his mother, Lydia Garner, as his nearest relative. He states his occupation as a thrasher working on the farm of a Fred Brown where he is apparently also boarding, according to addresses given.

WWI Draft Registration

In the 1920 census, we find Lloyd Schrader living in North Industry as a boarder in the house of Albert F. Deible. His occupation is listed as a truck driver, hauling coal. Mr. Deible is a coal dealer, so it would seem that Lloyd is probably working for him also.

1920 Census North Industry, Stark County, Ohio

On 29 October 1923, Lloyd married 19-year-old Mary Bruce Geisinger, daughter of Erin Bruce Geisinger and Rosa Manley, in Holmes County, Ohio. Lloyd’s occupation is a steam shovel operator and he lists his parents as Harry Schrader and Lydia May.

Marriage to Mary Bruce Geisinger

We find Lloyd and Mary Schrader in the Louisville City Directory living at 123 S. Chapel St. in 1927 and Lloyd is working at Oyler Brothers.

Louisville City Directory

Lloyd and Mary have two sons, but on 06 June 1928, Lloyd is granted a divorce from Mary. Around this point in time is where my grandmother Erma R. Minnie Pittman, daughter of Jeremiah Mason Pittman and Sarah “Lena” Pool, comes into the picture. We find Lloyd and Erma in the 1930 census in North Industry, Stark County with Lloyd’s two sons from his previous marriage and a new son. Lloyd’s occupation is still as a shovel operator and says that he is a “road-builder”.

1930 Census North Industry, Stark County, Ohio

In December of 1936, Lloyd applies for his Social Security Number. Notice that the year of his birth is incorrect on this document (below). He is now working for Garaux Brothers and has listed his parents as being Albert Schrader and Lydia Pearl May.

Lloyd’s Application for a Social Security Number

The 1940 census finds Lloyd and Erma and their growing family living in Plain Township, Stark County, Ohio. It is stated that they were living in Canton, Ohio in 1935, but this might be the North Industry home as the area is also known as Canton South. Lloyd is working for Garaux Brothers as a shovel operator.

1940 Census Plain Twp., Stark County, Ohio

On 03 January 1943, Lloyd died of a “heart malady”. He left seven sons and three daughters besides his widow, Erma. He is buried at Valley Chapel Cemetery on Trump Road in Stark County, Ohio in Section 3 South End, Row 7.

Death Certificate

There are a lot of unanswered questions for this line of my ancestry. Besides Lloyd, my grandmother, Erma, the two oldest sons and the youngest son, have all passed away. I have two documents that I have not been able to find that would prove my descent from Erma and Lloyd and those are the marriage document of Erma and Lloyd and the birth document for Erma. Neither one seems to be in existence where they should be located. I have no idea and no viable theories about the name change from Otto to Schrader. After a long search, I have located an Albert Otto associated with the May family in Pennsylvania, and believe him to be the father of Lloyd; however, this is just speculation at this point. It took looking at many, many census records and looking at collateral lines to come up with this information. Because of obvious reasons, foremost being that this is only a theory, I have not laid out my research here that led me to this conclusion.

As far as DNA? I realize that when comparing autosomal DNA results, the results for comparison are only as good as the number of people from a certain surname who have tested, but it is interesting to note that, so far, I have not a single match to anyone with the Schrader surname in their lines, but have more than a dozen carrying the Otto surname. Until more members from my family test, I’m just kind of grasping at straws here.  I have no doubt that eventually this mystery will get figured out. It’s just taking such a very long time…

I have to remind myself that patience is a virtue.

Schrader Coal truck with two of Lloyd’s sons flanking his nephew. Photo courtesy of Vicki Schrader Shreve.

This is my Week #13 post for Amy Johnson Crow’s

52 Ancestors 52 Weeks Challenge.

The optional theme for this week was “Different”.

SOURCES:

Database online. Year: 1900; Census Place: Plain, Stark, Ohio; Roll: T623_1323; Page: 12A; Enumeration District: 143.

Database online. Year: 1910; Census Place: Osnaburg, Stark, Ohio; Roll: T624_1232; Page: 10A; Enumeration District: 0215; Image: 646; FHL microfilm: 1375245.

Database online. Year: 1920; Census Place: Canton, Stark, Ohio; Roll: T625_1433; Page: 3B; Enumeration District: 21; Image: .

Database online. Year: 1930; Census Place: Canton, Stark, Ohio; Roll: 1871; Page: 2B; Enumeration District: 60; Image: 539.0.

Database online. Year: 1940; Census Place: Plain, Stark, Ohio; Roll: T627_3151; Page: 13A; Enumeration District: 76-91.

Database online. Certificate: ; Volume: Lloyd A Schrader – Ohio, Deaths, 1908-1932, 1938-1944, & 1958-2007

Social Security Administration. Copy of original document.

Database online. Registration Location: Stark County, Ohio; Roll: 1851190; Draft Board: 2.

U.S. City Directories, 1821-1989. Louisville 1927 Directory. Database Online.

“Ohio County Births, 1841-2003” https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:X6JD-KR8

“Ohio County Marriages, 1789-2013” https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:X8PB-6ZW

http://roots4u.blogspot.com/2014/02/in-beginning.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/And_Now_for_Something_Completely_Different