Was It Really Worth It?

My husband's side of the family ~the Pointer's~ seem to think they have the corner on bad ancestors. When in Iowa last summer, I got the chance to ask a few of them just why they thought their ancestors were so bad.  More than one replied, "Because," and in a loud whisper they continued,"We have a murder in the family. Possibly two. And possibly 2 murderers"


[Snort.] Well, I'm no mathematician, but in my family? 6 murders + 1 possible murderer + 1 possible pirate + 1 accused & imprisoned witch + 2 publically accused fornicators (one who later married the publically accused & imprisoned witch = I win. [Not that I'm keeping count of all the naughty people in the family, or anything.]


Now, Big Paw Paw never murdered anyone, at least not that I've found. And no one ever murdered him, which is amazing. Again, I'm not a mathematicion, but his 4 marriages + 3 divorces + 2 confirmed extra-marital liasions [may have been more, but hard proof on extra-marital affairs is hard to come by] + being a lousy husband 4 times + being a lousy father 2 times + being kicked out of his family 1 time + being kicked out of the Catholic Church 1 time [may have been more & may have been a formal excommunication] = 1 naughty Big Paw Paw.


And it's very easy for me to list all of Big Paw Paw's faults and mistakes.  [Mainly because there are so many of them.]  And it's also very easy for me to forget that Big Paw Paw didn't always make bad choices.  Why? Because those who knew him, didn't think very highly of him. And Big Paw Paw didn't leave much of a paper trail behind on things he did get right.


However, I'm proud to announce that I've found hard proof that indicates that Big Paw Paw wasn't wrong all the time. [Amazing. I know.] Well, at least the 45th District Bexar County Court Judge didn't think Big Paw Paw was wrong in 1938.


I mentioned in my post A Review of All the Players a piece of property with a house that Big Paw Paw sues his sister, Jane Rosin, over.  When I first read in the San Antonio Express that Big Paw Paw had sued his sister, I rolled my eyes and shook my head. Suing a family member never turns out well. If divorcing his 1st wife, who was the younger sister of Otto Rosin, Jane's husband, wasn't bad enough, then suing Jane later over some property and a house definitely did not help familial relations. But, of course, you and I have 20-20 vision in this case and Big Paw Paw was a bit nearsighted [and so was Jane].


Big Paw Paw first acquired the house and property located at Lot number 14 in Block numbered 1, New City Block 6000 in the City of San Antonio, said lot having 50 feet fronting the East side of Palmetto Ave. in Dignowity Place on 20 Aug 1925 from a C.E. and Alice Scull [sic].  So, he purchased this home approximately 2 years after his divorce from Emma.


Then, according to his 2nd wife's petition to the court during their divorce [Her story is forthcoming. LOTS of drama], Big Paw Paw had practically abandoned this home, which she was living in at the time she filed for divorce. This petition was filed Aug 1927. She explains to the court that Big Paw Paw was refusing to pay her weekly allowance of $15 set by the court; that he wasn't paying the mortgage or the insurance on the home; that he wasn't paying the creditors on the liens on the home; that he wasn't securing the home against theft and vandalism; and that he wasn't paying the payments on the furniture in the home. Basically? Big Paw Paw just wasn't paying for diddly squat when it came to Oveta. So they asked the court to appoint a receiver to handle all the community property. The best part of this petition? She states the actual address of the house [Hallelujah!]: 730 N. Palmetto, on the southeast corner of Palmetto & Burnett [sic] Streets. [But don't go rush to look it up just yet. Lemme finish the story. Then, I'll show it to you.]


I'm sure by know Oveta was thinking she pulled one over on Big Paw Paw. A receiver, Bernard Loben, was appointed to take over the community property 7 Oct 1927. [Poor Bernard. And Oveta. They had no clue who they were up against.]


On 5 Dec 1927, Big Paw Paw files a Public Affidavit [Gawd, I love his paper trails.]. In this affidavit  he says this same property was purchased before his marriage to Oveta, that she had no interest in it whatsoever, that she had abandoned him, and that she hadn't lived with him for at least 6 months. [So there.] Interestingly, the affidavit wasn't filed until 7 Mar 1928. [Hm.]


Because Big Paw Paw apparently didn't like to leave anything to chance, he executed a Warranty Deed with V/L [Vendor's Lien] with a John Marshall, Jr. of Galveston, Texas [who I've always believed to be his older brother] on this same property for $5000. And like the affidavit, it was executed on 5 Dec 1927 and filed 7 Mar 1928 in Bexar County, Texas.  The Vendors Lien part just meant that Big Paw Paw would go on making the lien payments and at the conclusion of the liens, the property would be owned outright by John.


So, Round 1, Big Paw Paw.


Remember how I told you in my post Smiling Big and Laughing Hard that Big Paw Paw's first wife, Emma [Again. This was Otto Rosin's, Jane's husband's, little sister.], contracted tuberculosis and died 11 Mar 1931? Good. Keep on remembering that.


Now. The next bit of documentation on this property that I could find was where John Marshall, Jr. [Big Paw Paw's big brother] executes a Warranty Deed with Otto Rosin effectively selling this property & house of Big Paw Paw's [or what used to be his] "...for a good valuable and sufficient consideration to me in hand paid..." No amount was recorded for the selling price. It was filed on 5 Feb 1932. Coincidentally less than a year after Emma died at such a young age.


Then in an act that would wake the sleeping giant, Otto Rosin executes a Warranty Deed with his wife Jane Rosin [Big Paw Paw's oldest sister], and sells her the same property for $3000 on 24 Jun 1937.


Enter Big Paw Paw.


On 2 Jul 1937, Big Paw Paw files a lawsuit in the 45th District Court of Bexar County.  And he claimed the following [But I re-worded the legalese. You're welcome.]:

• That around 30 Jun 1937, Jane Rosin, et. al. "seized and possessed" the now infamous [at least in my mind] property.
• That Jane Rosin, et. al. [Otto] "unlawfully entered...and ejected" Big Paw Paw from his house and took possession of his house to the tune of $7500 in damages. [Now, that? I would've loved to have seen.]
• That the rental value of the home was $500 per month.
• That he purchased the home from Mr. Schull in 1925.
• That in 1928 he conveyed the property to his brother, John Marshall, Jr. [Do you realize how many hours I looked for direct proof of their kinship? To think that all this time it was just sitting there. In a lawsuit. Yowzer.] And that the deed was to be held in trust by John Marshall, Jr. and that no consideration was paid. 
• That in 1932 that Big Paw Paw requested that his his brother, John, place the deed in the name of a person in San Antonio [Remember. John was from and in Galveston, Texas] "...in order to facilitate the handling of said property." And it was understood, according to Big Paw Paw, by all parties that the deed was to be held in trust by Otto Rosin and that Otto didn't pay anything for the property. So, according to Big Paw Paw, John essentially transferred the deed to Otto Rosin. I guess Big Paw Paw was still paying on those liens on the property. Otherwise, why not sell it back to Big Paw Paw?
• That before the execution of the deed from Otto to Jane on 30 Jun 1937, that Jane had no interest in the property and that even though the deed had been conveyed from Otto to Jane, it had not been "...placed of record in Bexar County, Deed Records." [Oops.]
• And that  Big Paw Paw had been unlawfully kicked out of his home. That no money had changed hands between Otto and Jane. That this was fraud. And that, "Jane Rosin well knew that her said husband had been the holder of the title to said property in trust for plaintiff..." all before the transaction. [Big Paw Paw was fit to be tied.]

And what did the court find? That Big Paw Paw was right:

• That the first conveyance to John Marshall, Jr. "...constituted nothing more than a mortgage, and the legal title remained vested in Joseph Marshall." 
• That Big Paw Paw payed off the debt.
• That John conveyed it to Otto at the insistence of Big Paw Paw; that "...Otto received said deed for indemnity purposes constituting a mortgage, the legal title remaining in plaintiff."
• That Jane & Otto had no "further liability."
• That Jane had been fully aware of the situation before the last conveyance from Otto to herself.
• That Jane Rosin, et. al., give the deed to Big Paw Paw.
• That Jane Rosin, et. al., not pay any damages to Big Paw.

Round 2, Big Paw Paw


So what happened to the property?  Well, Big Paw Paw and my grandmother, Paw Paw (his 4th wife), finally sold it in 1946 to an Isaac and Esther Mora and their son, Oswaldo Mora for $3000.


And what does it look like today? Well, I didn't get a chance to go by there when I was last in San Antonio because my silly living relatives wanted to do a whole bunch of stuff. [It's hard balancing the living and the dead.] But I did find it on Google Maps. It's depressing, really. It looks abandoned. The windows are all boarded up. However, if I ever win the lottery and after I purchase my 2nd great-grandparent's home which is 3 blocks south of the Riverwalk there in San Antonio [prime real estate], I'm gonna buy this house.


But I think it's ironic and sad that Big Paw Paw worked so hard to keep this house, and now it's abandoned. I also think it's ironic and sad that Jane SO wanted to get back at Big Paw Paw [O.K., I'm guessing.] with this house, and now it's abandoned. Was it really worth it?


The address is 730 North Palmetto, southeast corner of Palmetto and Burnet, but the address doesn't take you to the southeast corner of Palmetto and Burnet. But this is the photo of the house on the southeast corner. [If you're not able to see it here, then click the link, "View Larger Map" down below.]

View Larger Map

Sentimental Sunday: A Beggar Wishes

My Dad & Aunt Carole ca.1942

"O.K., who's up for an "All the Houses I Grew Up In" tour?

While visiting family in San Antonio when I was younger, I think my dad asked that question just to hear our groans.  We really didn't have a choice in the matter.  We were going and we were gonna start with the house he was born in.  Just like every other single time.  And the tour wasn't just of the houses my dad grew up in either.  [Of course not.]  It included his high school; his junior high; his hang-outs; where he used to drag race [In the dark. With no headlights.]; where he and mom used to go on dates; where he ran the Air Force guy off the road to tell him that *he* [my dad] was her boyfriend & that she wasn't available for dates anymore [I'm sure he was very polite about that. *snort*]; etc.


A quick glance at the calendar reminds me that March 12th is the 7th anniversary of his death, and it's approaching quickly.  Perhaps that's why he's crept into my thoughts.

Did you know he was the reason I got into genealogy in the first place?  He was.

I remember my senior year in high school and working on my genealogy school project.  And I remember him asking me to "do" our genealogy.  That he only knew a few things about his dad, Big Paw Paw.  And that he wanted to know more.

At the time, I found it strange that he wanted to know more about a man who had been mean to him.  A man who had never shown him love or kindness.

I didn't realize how important it was to him, and at the time, I didn't pursue our family's history other than what my Gran and my Paw Paw shared with me.  Our stories.  I was too busy living in the "now" to look up some guy from the past no one liked.

Then "life" happened, as it tends to do.  Dad's health problems rotated between battling heart attacks and kidney cancer [renal cell carcinoma], and the battles would continue for the rest of his life.  In between all that, my younger brother was diagnosed with a rare mitochondrial genetic disorder, and then passed away a year and a half later.  I married, and began having my children.  Additionally throughout the years, my mom's mom, my Gran, died; my mom's brother-in-law, my Uncle Lloyd, died [He's a character with some stories.]; my dad's mom, my Paw Paw, died; my mother-in-law died from breast cancer; and then my dad died.

Like I said, "life happened."

And then one day, "life" got me to thinking about my dad's original request.  I remembered those few details that my dad had told me about Big Paw Paw.  And, well, I started looking.  I chronicled that rough & rocky rookie family history journey here.  [It's not pretty, and, um, it's in 6 parts.  So grab some coffee and donuts and get comfy before reading.]

I wish I'd started researching our family's history when he was alive.  I wish he was here doing it with me.  My dad loved researching on the internet, loved history, and loved technology.  He would've loved genealogy.

But like mom always used to say when I was younger, "If wishes were horses, Caroline, beggars could ride."

*Sigh.* She's right, as usual.

So, I plug along.

Researching.

Writing.

Chronicling my ancestors' lives.

But I must be a "beggar" at heart.  'Cause I still keep wishing for my dad to come riding in on a horse to give me one of his dang "All the Houses I Grew Up In" tours.

How a Baker Led Me to Ducky Hour

Image by Smaku via FlickrWhy, oh why, did I look?  I know better.  I suppose I still wasn't happy with Emma's unhappy ending.  I suppose I was looking for a little reassurance about her happiness.  But I should've left well enough alone.

When I read on the 1930 census [where Louis & Emma appear together] that Louis had been a manager at a bakery, I thought to myself, "Oh good.  A man with a low-key occupation.  Someone that ~hopefully~ [fingers crossed] was good to her.  Not someone that was 'bigger than life' like Big Paw Paw."

I know better than to make assumptions like that, but I was really pullin' for Emma, you know?  So, as I was updating her info in my family tree database, the blanks for Louis M. Seidemann taunted me.  "Fill me in.  Fill me in.  You know you wanna know."  Dang it.  Did I really wanna know?

Apparently, yes.

I quickly looked at their 1930 census entry & notated some details about Louis, and then hopped on over to FamilySearch.org for his death certificate.  [We're really spoiled here in Texas with our death certificates.]  And I found him.  Or at least who I thought was the correct Louis M. Seidemann.  The info coincided with the info on his 1930 census, or at least nothing ruled them out as being the same person.  His father was Peter Seidemann and his mother was Genoveive Holzinger.  He died in New Braunfels, Comal Co, Texas in a nursing home in 1969.  And he had been a baker. 

Louis M. Seidemann's Death Certificate

I then hopped back onto Ancestry.com and quickly looked for him in any previous censuses.  I had remembered seeing another Louis M. Seidemann with a wife with a funny given name when looking for Louis M. and Emma in the 1930 census.  [No offense to all the Hedwig's out there.]  Yup. right there.  Louis M. and Hedwig Seidemann.  Living in San Antonio, Bexar Co, Texas.  3 kids.  Yadda, Yadda, Yadda.

But wait a minute.  That's the 1930 census that they're together in.  And my Emma and her Louis M. were together in the 1930 census in Guadalupe Co, Tx.  Crap.  Did I have the wrong guy?

So then I took a look at the dates the enumerator, um, enumerated these households to see if perhaps Louis had been married to Hedwig for the census in one county, and then perhaps divorced her and remarried Emma ~ all between the 2 enumerations.  [Don't look at me like that.  It could happen.]  However, um, both households were enumerated on the same day, 2 Apr 1930.

Usually, when this happens, it means I've mixed up 2 people with the same exact name.  However, there were no other Louis M.'s or Louis' or L.M.'s that fit this man's age, birth date, birth place., etc.  And the clincher?  I'll give you three guesses as to what this Louis M. Seidemann's [who was married to Hedwig with 3 kids in the 1930 census] occupation was.

Right.  A baker.

Image via Wikipedia

Under Main Street Photo by Timothy Miller

I even went  back to the 1910 census, and found Louis M. Seidemann and Hedwig together in Houston, Harris Co, Texas.  He was a baker, then, too.  I also took both of them back to their parent's households.  His parents were Peter and either Genevieve or Genovese Seidemann.  According to their descendants' online trees (partially sourced), Louis and Hedwig had both been born in Boerne, Texas, [pronounced Bern-ie] a small town (that I actually know some people in) just north of San Antonio.  I love Boerne.  It's so cute.  You could even call it quaint.  I've always wanted to live in a town that had a duck crossing smack dab in the middle of the town.  That's right.  A duck crossing.  On Main St.  The ducks have a crossing so that they can get to the 150-year-old mill pond off of Cibolo Creek safely.  In this town, one must drive slowly enough so that one can brake quickly so the ducks can cross the road.  That's a town I could get used to, you know?



Anyways, back to my identity crisis.  Well, Louis' identity crisis.  I found a Louis Michael Seidemann's World War I draft registration card.  Residence? Boerne, Kendall County, Texas Occupation?  Baker.  And wife?  Lucked out.  He put down her first name.  Hedwig.

Louis Seidemann's WW1 draft registration card

Now I don't really have to tell you that there just aren't  that many Hedwig's in this world, do I?  That were born in Boerne, Texas?  Who married a Louis Michael Seidemann?  Also from Boerne?  A Louis M. Seidemann who happened to be a baker?  Who also both lived in San Antonio, Bexar Co, Texas?
 
So was this the same Louis M. Seidemann that was on the 1930 census with Emma?  Well, I couldn't find any other likely candidates before or after 1930 in any of these counties.  And both of the 1930 census entries for these Louis M.'s indicate that they were both married.  To 2 different women.

Not having online access and in the interest of getting this story out quickly, I wasn't able to run over to these counties for a look-see at some marriage records.  But I did remember to check something out.  Hedwig's death certificate.  [How many Hedwig's could there be, right?]

Well, lucky for me when Hedwig died, her last name was still Seidemann.  Hedwig died in 1961 in San Antonio.  And her marital status? Divorced.  [I'll just bet she was.]

Hedwig Seidemann's Death Certificate

 

So, what happened?  I dunno.  There's a lot of scenarios for this one.  Maybe there was  another Louis M. Seidemann who was a baker, who was the same age, and who both had parents that were born in Germany.  *shrugs*  It could happen.  Right?

Or maybe it is the same Louis M. and he and Hedwig were separated, and for appearances sake, Hedwig put him down as the head of her household.

Or maybe Emma had been Louis-the-baker's mistress.

Or maybe, um, Louis had 2 lives with 2 wives.  At the same time.

Did Emma just have bad luck with men?

Goodness.  I don't know what to think.  This won't be settled until I see some marriage records and some divorce records.  *sigh*

Image by photine via Flickr

Floating Down the River

Well, I definitely will be going back to the Bexar County courthouse  [Thanks, Big Paw Paw].  And I really need to find Big Paw Paw's mama's origins [she's another Emma].  All of Big Paw Paw's siblings' death certificates list either Seguin or New Braunfels as her place of birth, which means Guadalupe County and Comal County.  So while I'm there "Emma Schleicher" hunting, I could do some "Seidemann" hunting as well.  At least, there's some great places to get some German potato salad, bratwurst, & sauerkraut in New Braunfels.  And maybe I could fit some tubing down the Guadalupe River into my schedule as well.

The Dodging Duck Brewhaus

And I guess I could go visit the ducks while I'm in Boerne, which is in Kendall County [right next to Bexar and Comal counties].  If I plan carefully, I can even spend some time at The Dodging Duck Brewhaus and Restaurant  right there in Boerne ~ a fine establishment that has managed to bring home, according to its website, 3 gold and 3 silver medals from the World Beer Championships; that touts its motto with pride ~ Carpe Anatem [Seize the duck.]; and that advertises "Ducky Hour" every weekday from 3-6pm.  Yeah.  I could get used to a place like that.  Sounds like a place I could really get in touch with my German-Texan roots.   

For research, of course. [wink]

Smiling Big & Laughing Hard

No one in my family ever knew that Big Paw Paw had been married more than once.  I guess it's human nature to not question what is because how could it be anything else?  Right?  Well, just because something is one way, doesn't mean it can't be another as well.  How do I know?  Because my ancestors keep proving it to me over and over again.  In fact, it's gotten to the point that when I see an ancestor one way, I automatically look at them another way.  And that's when I usually learn something new about them.
Image by marzbars via Flickr 
So, when I  was at the courthouse, I took the list of case numbers that I had made that involved Joseph Marshall and his women and his kinfolk up to the desk, and the very nice lady told me that I could have a seat because it was going to take her a while to pull all that microfilm.  [Thanks, Big Paw Paw. Still pissing off women way after your death, I see.]  So, I sat down and chatted with her and the other ladies.  One of the other ladies was contemplating walking 3 blocks for a chocolate shake.  The other ladies were asking her if she was crazy.  And then she asked me what I thought.  Well, goodness.  This is chocolate.  I totally understand the "must have chocolate now" emotion.  It's strong.  The only thing that comes close to it for me is shopping.  I asked her, "How bad do you want it? 'Cause, if you want it that bad, go get it.  You won't be happy until you do."    Knowing that she had just found another kindred chocolate soul, she left on her chocolate shake quest.

Soon thereafter, the lady pulling the microfilm for me indicated that she was done and that I should follow her around the filing cabinets to the... [drumroll, please] ...automatic microfilm readers.  Now, when I say "automatic", I mean that they automatically feed the film into the machine. I'm not talking about press a button & watch visions of your lunch pass by as you skippety-doodah through the film.  [Yes, this one did that to, but it was so fast, that no image was really seen, so no visions of my lunch.]  All thoughts of shopping and chocolate vanished at the sight of these babies.  She quickly showed me how to slip the film reel in to the plastic case, how to push it into the machine, and PRESTO! It was loaded and ready to view.  Then she showed me how to focus and how to make copies.  Let me just say, it was love at first sight.  If I found nothing out about Big Paw Paw, the trip was worth it just for the opportunity to operate this machine.  I mean, really.  Feeding the film into the regular semi-automatic microfilm readers can be tedious at times and a nuisance at best.  [And, then of course, there's that whole "visions of lunch" phenomenon.]

Anyways, back to Big Paw Paw.  I decided to look at everything in chronological order.  So, I started with Case No.B-30897 Emma Marshall v. Joseph Marshall.

Let me just back up and say that when I found their marriage record four years ago I was shocked to find that Big Paw Paw had married Emma Rosin in 1917.  I hadn't been doing genealogy research for long back then.  And that was the day when I learned that my ancestors were full of secrets.  I quickly made the connection that she was Big Paw Paw's older sister's husband's youngest sister.  [Ancestors can be so complicated and messy.  Just like our own lives.]  Then, as I've mentioned in previous posts, she just disappears.  What happened to Emma?  Did she die?  Did they divorce?  Did she remarry?  If she did remarry, how was I going to find her?

Knowing some of the stories that have been passed down about Big Paw Paw, I knew that he'd been a difficult man to get along with, to say the very least.  So, when I pulled up the court records for Emma Marshall v. Joseph Marshall, I wasn't really surprised that it was a record of their divorce that was filed for in 1922 and finalized in early 1923.  After about 5 years, Emma had had enough, and so had Big Paw Paw.  There aren't very many details about their relationship.  Further, there's no evidence that there were any children.  [Also, a search in the Texas Birth Index confirms no children.]

But Big Paw Paw wasn't just divorcing Emma, though,  he was divorcing family.  So what did he do that made Emma want out?  I dunno.  Maybe no one did anything in particular.  Maybe they just didn't get along. However, Big Paw Paw goes on to other relationships that don't work out either.  So, I'm inclined to think that Big Paw Paw must have done something [or a whole lotta something] to upset Emma.  But it may have been Emma that did the upsetting.  [You know, just to be fair.]



I do know that at the time of the divorce, they had some newer furniture that they had purchased on account from Eagle Furniture Company located on 128 Soledad St. and 118 Main Ave. in San Antonio.

According to the divorce decree, Eagle Furniture Co., agreed to take the furniture back in "...full settlement and cancellation of its indebtedness."


A receiver was then ordered by the court to sell their home and property at 811 Florida Street in San Antonio.  It was sold to a R.C. Roos, Jr. for $2700 with $550 paid in cash and $2150 would be on loan and with $100 paid in earnest.  It had been a 5-room home that fronted Florida Street on the south side.



View Larger Map

The remaining furniture that had been owned outright by Joseph and Emma went to Emma and was listed as the following:

Emma also received $62 from Big Paw Paw.


And what did Big Paw Paw get?


His Dodge Roadster.


Now, I had an inkling that I had a photo of his Roadster [with my grandma in it from the early 1930's].  But to be sure, I Googled "early 1920's Dodge Roadster". 

Image via Wikipedia

Yup. If the Dodge Roadster in my photo isn't this Roadster from the divorce, then it's one just like it.  And if it was the same car, how many women had it seen before my grandmother, Paw Paw?

Big Paw Paw & Paw Paw ca. 1931

So, Emma and Big Paw Paw divorced, and thanks to his penchant for women and lawsuits, I know what happens to Big Paw Paw.  But whatever happened to Emma (Rosin) Marshall?  The one who put up with Big Paw Paw first?  Had any of their marriage been good?  Goodness, I hope so.  I hope it wasn't all bad for her.


In my quest for some kind of happy ending, I went looking for her.  In 1923, she would have been 31 years old, newly divorced, and childless.  She would've had her older brother Otto and his wife [and Big Paw Paw's sister], Jane, to turn to for support there in San Antonio.  Not knowing if she remarried again, I thought it best to look in the Texas Death Certificates on FamilySearch.org for an Emma who died in San Antonio, Texas with a mother named Caroline [love her name].  Her father's name was Wilhelm, but he died right after the family came to Galveston from Prussia.  So, I didn't know if it might be listed as William on her death certificate or not.


Indeed, Emma did remarry to a Louis Seidemann.  With a quick lookup in the census on Ancestry.com, I found Louis M. and Emma R. Seidemann living in Guadalupe County, Texas [postal: Schertz], which is right next to San Antonio in Bexar County.  So, they married sometime between 1923 and 1930.  Also, they had an 18yo boarder living with them with no obvious relationship between them.


Sadly, according to her death certificate, Emma passed away at age 38 on 11 Mar 1931 from pulmonary tuberculosis.  It lists that she had been ill 3 years and that she'd been in the Grace Lutheran Sanitarium in Schertz, Texas when she died.  Her brother, Otto, is the informant on her death certificate, and another search in the Texas Birth Index offered no positive "hits" for her having been a mother.   It doesn't seem that Emma had had a very happy life.  However, there's time in between these events that happiness could have touched her.  And I hope it did.  I hope that her marriage to Louis was a good one.  I hope that he'd been good to her.   I hope that when she had the chance to smile, that she smiled big.  And I hope that when she had the chance to laugh, that she laughed hard.

Next? Another one of Big Paw Paw's women.

Review of All the Players

For the benefit of those who are new to Big Paw Paw, I thought I'd give you a run-down of those related to Big Paw Paw [blood-related & those unfortunate enough to marry who married him].  Because I can get even more blog posts outta Big Paw Paw what I found at the courthouse will make a whole lot more sense.

Players [or if you're Big Paw Paw, Playa']
 
John Marschall - was Big Paw Paw's dad and a Prussian immigrant who was born 6 Jun 1856 in Gorszewice, Kreis Samter, Posen, Prussia. [Saying that 5 times real fast won't be harder than it was for me to find the name of that dang village.]  John passed 20 Sep 1927 in Hitchcock, Galveston County, Texas.

Emma (Schleicher) Marschall - was Big Paw Paw's mom who was born to Prussian immigrants on 14 Feb 1856 in either Guadalupe County or Comal County, Texas.[You'd think it'd be easy to find the Schleicher family in Texas back then. And you'd think it'd be easy for me to get to those counties for research. No. On both counts.] Emma passed 30 Jun 1928 on Galveston Island, Galveston Co., Texas.

John Jr. - Big Paw-Paw's big brother & eldest child of John & Emma's. (1880-1943) Had several occupations including being a dairyman before settling on being a realtor in Galveston.  Married Josephine Ballou and was an "Islander" (Born, lived & died on Galveston Island) [I wonder if he was called Big John? *snort*]

Robert - Another older brother of Big Paw Paw's born in 1883 but died as a young child, so Big Paw Paw never knew him.

Jane - Big Paw Paw's oldest sister (1884-1954); married Otto Rosin; After the Storm of 1900, Otto and Jane moved to higher ground in San Antonio, Texas.  Otto was the son of Wilhelm and Caroline (love her name) Rosin, who brought their family to Galveston Island from Prussia.  Otto had a younger sister named Emma who was born after the family came to Galveston.  Otto and Jane go into the same business as Big Paw Paw in San Antonio after a stint with a dairy farm.  So, family & business competitors.  [That always turns out well.]

Antoneta "Nettie" - Another older sister of Big Paw Paw's (1886-1953); married Nikolas Pericles Legatos/Legate (but they just called him Pete), son of Greek immigrants; It's probable that Pete taught Big Paw Paw to fish, but whether that's true or not, they did fish together for a living back when Big Paw Paw was 17 yrs old in 1910.  Also, Nettie died in Rusk State Hospital [mental institution] under mysterious circumstances. [More detective work needed.]

Laura Ellen "Ella" - (1890-1962) )Another older sister of Big Paw Paw's married first Miles Breen. Then when he passed, she married Thomas Cobb.  My aunt remembers visiting her once.


Rolland or Roman (but probably Rolland - long story) - (1891-1912) Another older brother of Big Paw Paw's, Rolland died as a young adult from a massive heart attack.


Mary - (1895-1922) Big Paw Paw's younger sister, Mary married Harry, who owned a dairy. [True. Can't make this stuff up.]  She and her husband passed early in their marriage in San Antonio- Harry from diabetes and Mary a couple of months later from Strep. [Thank God for modern medicine, eh?]


Child - Name Unknown - John & Emma had another child but it must have died before they could christen him/her.


So, Big Paw Paw was the baby brother to all except Mary.


Emma Rosin - In 1917 in San Antonio Big Paw Paw married Emma Rosin, his older sister's (Jane's) husband's (Otto's) baby sister.  I know this because I have their marriage record.  She also appears in various land records that Big Paw Paw and she were involved in due to what he called Burnett Wrecking Company that included wrecking homes but also buying them first and the land and re-building and he sold and rented homes and he had lumber yards.  So it really wasn't just a wrecking company, but more like real estate development.  Big Paw Paw's business transactions involving land and homes are well-documented in Bexar County's historical land records. [Hallelujah.]


These land records, though, left a lot of clues about his personal life.  Suddenly in the transactions, Emma just isn't there.  Did she die? Did they divorce? Big Paw Paw was born and raised a Catholic, and perhaps Emma was too?  I dunno.  But Big Paw Paw couldn't have divorced her, right? I mean, he'd be in trouble with the church and his family, especially his mother.  But I do know there was something that happened in the family that caused a "break" between Big Paw Paw and his family. Could this be it?


Further along in his land  transactions, Big Paw Paw files an affidavit concerning some land that basically says that a particular piece of property located in San Antonio was his before he married Oveta Marshall and that she had no interest in it whatsoever.  AND that Oveta had not lived with him for 6 months and that she abandoned him.  It's dated 5 Dec 1927, but it wasn't filed until 7 Mar 1928.  Funny, that.


Hold the presses!  Who the heck is Oveta?  Is this Emma? Was this a second wife? If so, what happened to Emma?  No matter, I'm guessing someone was gearing up for a divorce, and Big Paw Paw was bound & determined to not lose that land.


Then on the same day, 7 Mar 1928, Big Paw Paw sold this same piece of land to a John Marshall, Jr. of Galveston, Texas for $5000. [Bound & determined.]  I've always been 99% sure that this was his older brother.  Also note that in the land record, John's last name was spelled Marshall and not Marschall.  However, further research suggests that Big Paw Paw is the only one in the family that changed his last name to Marshall.

Next, 18 Jul 1928 John and Josephine Marschall of San Antonio, Texas (but they were really of Galveston, but I guess because their land was in San Antonio?) conveyed this same property & 26 shares of stock that they owned of the Farm & Home Savings & Loan of Missouri to the same for $5 to secure $2600 owed to the Association.  Apparently, if I read all the legalese properly, Big Paw Paw still owed $1600 on his original loan on this property that he originally purchased 15 Aug 1925.  Also it involved a renewal of a $350 loan by John & Josephine to pay an indebtedness of Oveta Marshall's as per a divorce decree filed 13 Aug 1927, Cause No. B-47593 "Oveta Marshall v. Joseph Marshall".

It also goes on to state that John & Josephine's homestead was in Galveston, Tx and not at this property. [Of course, it took them 2 paragraphs, lots of commas, & half a page to say that John and Josephine didn't live in that house, but one in Galveston.]


So, the plot thickens.  At this time, I still didn't know if Emma & Oveta were one and the same, right?


Before I get back to these land transactions [Who knew they could be so interesting?], it's important that you know that I have old photos of my grandma, Paw Paw [I know. We're a creative bunch, aren't we?], and Big Paw Paw together as a couple with the earliest dating 1930, and their hair, dress, & other details in the photos substantiate the date.  Now, back to land.


In 1932, John Marschall, Jr. (and Josephine) sell this same piece of land to Otto Rosin, his and Big Paw Paw's brother-in-law.  [Also, um, a competitor of Big Paw Paw's.]  Now, though, they include the actual names of the streets: corner of Burnett and N. Palmetto Streets.  However, no amount was recorded, just "for a good valuable and sufficient consideration."  [*snort* I bet Big Paw Paw was none too happy about that.  The phrase, "fit to be tied" comes to mind.]

In 1937, Otto Rosin then sells it to his wife Jane (Big Paw Paw's sister) for $3000. [Again. Fit to be tied.]

Then 2 things I found in the San Antonio newspapers that applied to either the land or, um, his relationships with women [Had to clarify because Big Paw Paw was always in the papers selling stuff or suing people or getting sued.] were:


In 1937, Big Paw Paw files a lawsuit against Jane Rosin, et al. for theft of damages of property. [Any guesses as to what property? Anyone? Anyone?]


In May of 1936, Joseph Marshall files for divorce from Ola Mae Marshall. [I discovered this right before I went to the courthouse.]


29 Dec 1936, My dad is born to Rettie Mae Martin, my Paw Paw. [Huh. I wonder why Big Paw Paw needed to get a divorce?]


And Holy Toledo, Batman.  Who the heck is Ola Mae?


So there ya' go.  That's the background and the info which led me to the Bexar County Courthouse's basement and to the purchase of a really cool necklace.

Stay tuned for the next post. It'll help to tie some of this stuff together.

Family Stories at the Courthouse

Image via Wikipedia

Yes, I went to San Antonio, Texas the week after Christmas to visit my sister and family.  But I also had high hopes of discovering more about my secretive grandfather, Big Paw Paw.  And all his women.

And I was not disappointed.

Before going to the courthouse for uncovering all of Big Paw Paw's secrets research, I visited with my aunt (Big Paw Paw's daughter; my dad's sister), and she reminded me of something about him that I hadn't really forgotten but really needed to hear again.  He hadn't been a nice person to his family.  He had been mean.

I know I've mentioned all that to y'all before.  It's just easy to forget because I never knew him, and I have distance.  So when I make fun of him and make you (& myself) laugh at him, I'm really making fun of him and laughing at him.  It's no mistake that I use a lot of sarcasm.  I mean, shouldn't some good come from Big Paw Paw? It's high time he caused people to smile, don't you think?

So the day after visiting with my aunt, my sister took my kids to North Star Mall in San Antonio, a place I love. Sisters can be so mean, right?  But I love genealogy more.  So she offered to buy the boots like hers for me that I had tried on in her closet & instantly wanted.  Badly.  And I set off to go digging around in Big Paw Paw's past at the courthouse.  (So, sisters aren't so mean, eh?)

Image via WikipediaParking is easy and great for a city of San Antonio's size.  Plus, it helps that I know downtown like the back of my hand.  So after going through security, I headed down to the basement.  Yes, I said, "basement".  In Texas.  You see, the river runs through downtown, and there's a river level with shopping and restaurants.  Then, there's a street level with, well, the downtown area.  Like many of the buildings downtown, there's a river level, or "basement", and then the above ground levels or stories.  And the place I was looking for, the District Clerk's office, was down below.  And easy to find.  A lady took me behind a door with a security code to the much coveted area of original city recording books, microfilm, and way cool automated microfilm readers.  And beautiful jewelry?  Yes, a friend of the ladies in the basement was selling some handmade jewelry, which we all were oohing and aahing over.  With the thought that this was meant to be otherwise why was it here? thinking, I purchased a really cute necklace.

Image via WikipediaWith the shopping out of the way, the lady who was assisting me asked me the years and surname that I was interested in looking at so she could pull the correct record book.  She pulled it and directed me to an unoccupied desk.  She was really pleased that I already had the file number of my grandfather's divorce suit.  I also told her that I'd like to peruse the "Marshall" surname and all the entries for more of Big Paw Paw's lawsuit activity, and she said it'd be no problem.  She went to shop for jewelry, and I began to shop for Big Paw Paw's secrets.  I wasn't disappointed.  Big Paw Paw had been popular, or maybe infamous, at the courthouse.  I quickly wrote down the necessary info for them (There were several very nice and generous ladies in the office.) to pull the microfilm.  

The microfilm that would tell me some of Big Paw Paw's secrets.  

Secrets about his family and women.


[Stay tuned for Big Paw Paw's secrets. I didn't really have to tell you that, did I? ;) ]

They Had Balls

[This was my submission for the McSweeney's Internet Tendency Column Writing Contest.  I didn't win, but I thought I'd share it with y'all.  The intended audience was those who don't know anything about genealogy or family history.  Hope you like...]

Brief Description

I have just under 5000 dead people [well, mostly dead] in my family tree so far.  They have many things in common [not the least of which, is me], but 2 things stand out the most.  They have a story to tell.  And they had balls.  I yearn to tell their stories and bring them back to life.  So, each installment will be a fresh perspective [and by "fresh" I mean sarcastic] on an ancestor's life story, and how they had moxie, guts, audacity, and balls to get through their lives.

The Dead Talk

I search for dead people and their stories. 

Well, I don't search for just any dead person's story. I search for stories of those folks who I'm related to – mostly those I'm blood-related to, but not always. Sometimes I'll mix it up and search for those crazy people who decided to marry into the family.  Or those who lived near the family.  Or those who have no apparent connection to the family, but they have a funny name or they're ugly (or if I'm lucky, both). No matter who they were though, once I track them down, I ask them about their story.

I know what you're thinking. Dead people don't talk, so how can they possibly tell their story? A forensic scientist would beg to differ with you on that. And being a genealogist and family historian, so would I. On a good day, I can't get some dead people to shut-up. 

On the other hand, some days, dead people can be very tight-lipped. Ornery, in fact. 

And the thing about these dead people – all of them – is that they have at least one story to tell. Sometimes it's funny.  Sometimes it's sad.  Sometimes it's downright naughty (if I'm lucky).  Sometimes it'll make you think, “What the hell?”  But there's always a story.

And there's something else about dead people. They had balls. You know, when they were alive.

Take my grandfather for example. I never met my Big Paw Paw, and apparently he was one of those people who thought he could keep his secrets after he died, but he was wrong. Once he started telling me his story, he couldn't stop. He was the son of a Prussian immigrant, a survivor of the Storm of 1900 on Galveston Island, and a veteran of World War I. 

But he didn't stop there.  [No siree.]

He was a lover of women. Mostly young women, but not the icky, “she's-too-young” young, but the “wow-she's-way-younger-than-him” young. In fact, Big Paw Paw, at last count, had 4 wives (one of them my grandmother), 3 divorces, 3 mistresses (and, yes, my grandmother was one before Big Paw Paw married her), and 1 excommunication from the Catholic Church. [Apparently, the Catholic Church is serious about that whole “no divorces” rule thingy.]

Big Paw Paw may have loved those younger women, but they were certainly his downfall. You see, he was also kicked out of his family after he divorced his first wife. Probably because his first wife had been his sister-in-law [his older sister's husband's younger sister]. And I guess they liked her more than him and thought that Thanksgiving and Christmas would go a whole lot smoother without the lying, two-timing, cheating Big Paw Paw. (Personally? I think he would've been the life of the party, but, hey, what do I know?)

Big Paw Paw's response to being kicked out of the family was a big “I-don't-need-you-screw-you” kind of response. He changed the spelling of his last name, which really threw me off when I went looking for him, and he never communicated with his family again.

Well, if you don't count the times he sued them.

Anywho, Big Paw Paw wasn't all bad. He was part of the housing boom in San Antonio back in the late 1920's and 1930's. In fact, he stayed in the housing business until he died in 1968. And he wasn't in it to make money just for himself either. [Nope.]  I mean, with all the wives and mistresses he had over the years, he was still able to keep them in the lifestyle they had become accustomed to.  

Which was mighty generous of him.  

For all his faults though, he sure was a looker.  I mean, I can see why all the younger ladies were going all crazy about Big Paw Paw.  If the photos of him are anything to go by, he was a well-dressed man. And if his photos of my grandmother are anything to go by, he dressed his women well.

So, yeah, he was dead by the time I decided to get to know him. But once I found him, he talked. And he had balls. Balls to survive a devastating storm when he was just seven years old. Balls for fighting in World War I. And balls to juggle that many women no matter what everyone else thought about him, including his family. 

But I think the ones who had the “big brass ones” were Big Paw Paw's women. They never killed him when they found out about each other. 

It takes some pretty big balls to take the high road.

Brief Descriptions of 3 Additional Installments

1. What does an ancestor do when charged with fornication?  And just why the hell was he charged with fornication when he was married to her?

2. What does an ancestor do when everyone else doesn't believe the same thing as him, and they are at his door?  And they have him surrounded.  Oh, and they brought fire with them?

3. What does an ancestor do when his son is locked up in the nastiest prison ever, and he's not willing to just let him sit there and wait it out 'cause he's never done that before so why the hell would he do that now, dammit?

Biographical Note

Caroline Pointer is the author of the genealogy and family history blog, Family Stories, as well as the author of the column "In2Genealogy" for the digital magazine Shades of the Departed.  As a professional genealogist, a family historian, a wife, and a mother, she enjoys writing about and laughing at her ancestors.  Well, laughing at them until she recognizes a little bit of herself in them.

He Never Promised Me A Rose Garden

He lived his life in the papers.

Consistently.

Thank God.

In the 1920's, San Antonio, Texas experienced a housing boom, and since the Great Depression was slow in coming to Texas for a number of reasons, the prosperity of the 1920's lasted a little longer than in other states.  In the 1930's public housing was on the rise as slums were cleared out, and then in the 1940's another housing boom occurred.

And apparently my grandfather, Joseph Marshall [a.k.a. Big Paw Paw], was in the middle of it all.  If you believe what you read in the newspapers, that is.

When I first started researching my grandfather, I didn't really know much about him, other than he wasn't a nice man.  In fact, if I recall correctly, the word, "mean" has been used to describe him a few times.  Turns out he had a lot of secrets, and maybe - just maybe - if he hadn't been so secretive - you know, kept everything inside- he would've been nicer.  Or at least remembered in a lot nicer way.  And maybe I wouldn't have been so nosy about his life.  

However, he was secretive and I am nosy.

One of the things I did know when I started researching my grandfather [who died 3 years before I was born] was that he had several lumber yards in San Antonio and he'd been involved in demolition throughout the city.  And both of these are true because I've verified them through land records, newspapers, and city directories.  However, that wasn't really the whole story.  There was a fourteen year difference between my grandfather's and grandmother's ages, and by the time "Big Paw Paw" married my grandmother, he'd already lived another life.  Literally.  A life that he kept to himself.

But if he thought that he took his secrets with him to the grave, he was sadly mistaken.  I have some of his genes in me [Goodness, I hope not the bad ones.], and I can be a little tenacious when properly motivated.

And my grandfather's story really motivates me.

If he had wanted to "fly underneath the radar," then he should've stayed out of the papers, but lucky for me, he didn't.  With the combination of census records, city directories, historical newspapers, and historical land records, I've pieced together some of my grandfather's work & business history, and here's what I found:

According to the 1910 census, Big Paw Paw and his younger sister, Mary, were living with one of their older married sisters in Galveston, Texas.  [Another Mary ~rolling eyes heavenward~  This is the Mary that married a Harry who owned a dairy.  I swear it.  I couldn't make this stuff up.] Anywho, "Big Paw Paw" was a fisherman with his brother-in-law at the time.  He must've mentioned being a fisherman to my dad once, because on one of our many fishing trips on the Laguna Madre Bay, my dad shared with me that his dad had been a fisherman in Galveston.  [I've pointed out on the map below where the Laguna Madre is, but to get an idea of where it is in relationship to Galveston, San Antonio, and Texas, click on the link for the bigger map below and "zoom out."








View Texas Coast in a larger map








Big Paw Paw married his sister-in-law, Emma Rosin in San Antonio, Texas in 1917, which was just before he went off to fight in World War I.  [His sister Jane had previously married Emma's older brother, Otto Rosin.]  When he came back, he and Emma were living in San Antonio, Texas, and his listed occupation was a tree surgeon in the 1920 census.

As I shared this week in my Wordless Wednesday post, he must've had a green thumb.  In a San Antonio Express newspaper article dated 12 Nov 1922, Big Paw Paw is pictured with a rose that had a 63-inch stem that he had grown.  I wonder if my dad knew this about his father.  Growing up, I remember countless times working in the yard with my dad, including our rose garden.  He loved it so much that he bought and we ran a plant nursery for a while.  And If you've been reading my stories, you can probably guess my dad was quite the entrepreneur (i.e., truck & trailer business, pet shop, plant nursery, etc.).  Kinda like Big Paw Paw.

Three years later in a newspaper ad on 20 Dec 1925, he's listed as a "Consulting, Developing Landscape Engineer" for the San Pedro Arms apartment building which was touted in the San Antonio Express newspaper as "San Antonio's Newest and Most Modern Apartment Building."  And his business address is listed as well, which made identifying him a lot easier.  [How lucky can I get, right?]  I'm inclined to think this building development may have been where he added real estate to his list of business activities.  Just a guess, though.

Emma is listed as Big Paw Paw's wife until 1923 in historical land records that I have found on the County Clerk's website for Bexar County.  [All of them digitized & available for free. ~ "God love 'em," as my Gran and mom used to say.]  The twelve-page listing of his land records [Yes, I said, "TWELVE."] is a veritable goldmine of information on my grandfather's business transactions, at least, the ones involving land.  He didn't just have a house and building wrecking company and lumber yards.  He purchased real estate, wrecked [if necessary] homes, built homes, sold and/or rented homes.  It's apparent to me from these records that Big Paw Paw liked to be involved in all aspects of the real estate process.  My dad always said he had a home & building wrecking company, but he also told me his dad had taught him to be a carpenter.  I have several photos of my dad when he was little on the work-site with Big Paw Paw.  It seems that Big Paw Paw believed in learning how to work hard from an early age, and that's probably where my dad got that silly idea from and why I began working for my dad at the age of 8.   Additionally, after my dad graduated from college there are land transactions that he executed on my grandfather's behalf, which coincides with what my dad told me about him working for Big Paw Paw early on in his and my mother's marriage.  It makes me wonder why the "home & building wrecking company" memory was bigger to my dad than the rest of the business that Big Paw Paw did.  

Maybe Big Paw Paw didn't talk much about his business activities.  I'm guessing Big Paw Paw wasn't much of a talker.  Period.  Well, it does seem, though, that he was a big talker with the women.  

[For what it's worth, I think he was pretty good lookin', and apparently I'm not alone in my thinkin'.]

Speaking of Big Paw Paw's women, I haven't found Emma on any transactions after 1923, nor have I found a death certificate for her.  She just vanishes into thin air, or she got the hell outta Dodge.  However, Big Paw Paw's land transactions continue consistently, and amongst them is an affidavit dated 5 Dec 1927 [but filed 19 Mar 1928] where he's talking about how he had purchased a particular piece of property before his marriage to his wife Oveta Marshall who had left him 6 months ago, and that she had no interest in this particular property.  Now, I know some of what goes on with Oveta and this property, especially what identifies this Joseph Marshall as Big Paw Paw, but I don't know the whole story.  Like, who the heck is Oveta?  Is this Emma?  However, their divorce story is waiting for me.  In another land transaction in 1928 that pertains to this property, to Oveta, and to Big Paw Paw, everyone was kind enough to leave me the cause number and judicial district court that the divorce was filed in.  [Thank you.]  

Anyhow, I haven't even begun to scratch the surface of Big Paw Paw and his wives and women.  And since Big Paw Paw apparently left really nice paper trails, I suspect I'll be finding a lot more about them.  At this point, it seems that the women that dealt with Big Paw Paw warrant a story and post of their own [and quite possibly a medal, in my humble opinion.  *rolling eyes heavenward*]

While Oveta Marshall never appears in any land transactions, if indeed Oveta is not Emma, Big Paw Paw has a ton more of land transactions through right after he died in 1968.  These last transactions were carried out by the executrix of his will, who interestingly wasn't my grandmother.  [But I'll leave that to his wives' and women's post.]  His land purchases, like so many others at the time, made the newspapers.  [Thank God.]  Big Paw Paw also used the classified section to sell and/or rent his homes.  All of these write-ups and ads in the newspapers usually included his address.  Below is an example of 2 of his many purchases.  It's from a write-up in 5 Apr 1936 in the San Antonio Express "Real Estate and Classified" section where he purchased 2 properties from a Mr. Wm. F. Schutz in San Antonio.  What's so neat about this one is there are articles on the same page describing the rapid growth of San Antonio, how it was starting to drive-up the prices of real estate, and they were encouraging buyers to buy now before the prices went up.  It appears to me that Big Paw Paw was right in the middle of all this real estate hullabaloo, better known as the San Antonio housing boom that started in the 1920's.  Of course, buying houses at the time would turn out to be a big mistake for most people as the Great Depression was right around the corner, and many of these same people who bought homes would be losing them.  However, the enterprising person that he was, Big Paw Paw was right there to rent them a house.

Additionally, I found in the 4 May 1935 issue of the San Antonio Express where he'd made a formal complaint of "theft of residence" against a Mr. Ben Nathan of the Loan & Wrecking Company.  Apparently they were squabbling over who actually owned a particular house and property and Mr. Nathan had already taken the house apart and reused the lumber in several new houses.  Big Paw Paw claimed he had owned the property and that Mr. Nathan had stolen it from him.  No outcome was printed in the paper, so I'll have to go down to the courthouse for that one.  I have a feeling that they're gonna know me at the courthouse almost as much as they knew my Big Paw Paw.  [Snort.]

Some of Big Paw Paw's personal life can be gleaned from the newspapers as well.  [Thank God.]  In the San Antonio Light on 3 Jul 1937, I found where he'd filed a lawsuit in the 45th District Court against his older sister Jane Rosin over a title and for damages.  Now because of the date, I have an inkling as to what this was about, but I need those records to know for sure.  [And I'm SO gonna get my hands on those records. ]

Likewise, Big Paw Paw filed for divorce [again?] from an Ola Mae Marshall and the notice was listed in the San Antonio Light newspaper on 28 May 1936.  I have some suspicions about this marriage and divorce, and when I get my little hands on those records and figure out all his wives and women, I'll let you know. [rolling eyes heavenward]

Additionally, I had some more luck in the city directories for Big Paw Paw and my grandmother that yielded me not only addresses, but the name of his company, Burnet Wrecking Company.  I'm guessing that he named his company after Burnet Street located in San Antonio, which is named after David G. Burnet who was the first provisional President of the Republic of Texas.  Just a guess though.

Also, Big Paw Paw was not afraid, apparently, to do business outside his comfort zone because there are several classified ads where he was selling some horses and some puppies in the San Antonio Light newspaper.  Basically, I think Big Paw Paw found opportunities to make a buck and wasn't afraid to capitalize on them.

The old-fashioned way.

The American way.

How else and where else could the youngest son of a Prussian immigrant farmer go from being a fisherman in the Gulf of Mexico to a wheelin' and dealin' businessman in San Antonio, Texas?

As I mentioned before, I never knew my Big Paw Paw, and he certainly never promised me a "rose garden," but he certainly gave me the "fertilizer" and "green thumb" in order to grow one.  And you can bet your bottom dollar that I'll be sharing more of his "rose gardens" with you.  

In the meantime, go see if some of your ancestors lived their lives in the papers.

The newspapers, that is.

You never know.  They may have been married to my Big Paw Paw, or maybe he sued them.  [Snort.] 

Sources and Credits:

Handbook of Texas Online, s.v. "," http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/SS/hds2.html (accessed 4 Mar 2010).

The San Antonio Housing Authority: The Evolution of Public Housing.  www.saha.org/aboutsaha//pdfs/Publications/01%20Evolution%201.2pdf (accessed 4 Mar 2010).

"1910 United States Census," database, Ancestry.com, (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed Jan 2007), entry for Joseph Marschall (age 17), p.4A, Galveston, Texas; citing "NA film no. T624-1554."


"1920 United States Census," database, Ancestry.com, (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed Jan 2007), entry for Joseph Marshall (age 27), p.4A, San Antonio, Texas; citing "NA film no. T625-1779."

Ann M. Tolley, Archives Technician, National Personnel Records Center, St. Louis Missouri, to Caroline Pointer, letter, 18 Oct 2007, summation of military personnel records of Joseph Marshall; Marshall Family, Caroline Pointer's Research Files; privately held by Caroline Pointer, Conroe, Texas.


"The San Pedro Arms," San Antonio Express, 20 Dec 1925, p.A5; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 28 Feb 2010), Historical Newspaper Collection.


"Business Leasing New Sites Here," San Antonio Express, 5 Apr 1936, Real Estate & Classified section, col.4; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 28 Feb 2010), Historical Newspaper Collection. 




"Theft of Residence Charged in Complaint," San Antonio Express, 4 May 1935, p.16, col.2; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : 28 Feb 2010, Historical Newspaper Collection.


"Courts: New Suits Filed in 45th District Court, Judge S.G. Taylor," San Antonio Light, 3 Jul 1937, p.12B, col.1; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : 28 Feb 2010), Historical Newspaper Collection.

"Courts: New Suits Filed in 37th District Court, Judge Harry L. Howard," San Antonio Light, 28 May 1936, p.12B, col.7; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : 28 Feb 2010), Historical Newspaper Collection.

John F. Worley Directory Co, Worley's San Antonio City Directory, 1938-1939 (John F. Worley Co., 1939), 848; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : 28 Feb 2010), U.S. City Directories.

John F. Worley Directory Co, Worley's San Antonio City Directory, 1938-1939 (John F. Worley Co., 1939), 170; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : 28 Feb 2010), U.S. City Directories.

John F. Worley Directory Co, Worley's San Antonio City Directory, 1948 (John F. Worley Co., 1948), 679; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : 28 Feb 2010), U.S. City Directories.

"Bexar County, 1837-1963 Historical Records," Bexar County Clerk's Office, Bexar County, Texas - County Clerk (http://www.countyclerk.bexar.landata.com/Default.aspx : Mar 2007), database and digital images, "Deed, Emma Marshall Grantee and Joseph Marshall Grantor, 21 May 1923," bk 724, p.203.


"Bexar County, 1837-1963 Historical Records," Bexar County Clerk's Office, Bexar County, Texas - County Clerk (http://www.countyclerk.bexar.landata.com/Default.aspx : Mar 2007), database and digital images, "Affidavit, Joseph Marshall, Filed 7 Mar 1928," bk 1019, p.3.

"Bexar County, 1837-1963 Historical Records," Bexar County Clerk's Office, Bexar County, Texas - County Clerk (http://www.countyclerk.bexar.landata.com/Default.aspx : Mar 2007), database and digital images, "Transfer, Joseph Marshall, Jr., Grantor and B.J. Cater, Grantee, 17 Jan 1962," bk.555, p.551.

"Bexar County, 1837-1963 Historical Records," Bexar County Clerk's Office, Bexar County, Texas - County Clerk (http://www.countyclerk.bexar.landata.com/Default.aspx : Mar 2007), database and digital images, "Deed of Trust, John & Josephine Marschall, Jr. Grantor and Farm and Home Savings and Loan Grantee, 17 Mar 1928," bk.1052, p.159.