KOFINK GENEALOGY UPDATE

This is going to be of interest to relatives of Carl Kofink of Chicago.  I have previously made some family pictures available here

http://a-pilgrims-place.blogspot.com/2008/08/kofink-family.html
 

and here

http://a-pilgrims-place.blogspot.com/search?q=Kofink

Today I am posting some documents and a bit of genealogy that I have uncovered.

Common knowledge in the family was that my great-grandfather Carl Kofink was born in Heidelberg, Germany October 8, 1858. Carl’s birth certificate has been passed down in the family to me. Here’s a copy of it.

It shows that he was born Karl Kallenberger son of Gottliebin Kallenberger. This is an indication of a birth out of wedlock.

On August 7. 1865 Karl was acknowledged as the natural son of Friedrich Kofink and was allowed to us the surname “Kofink.”  Here’s the document.

Notice that the document misstates the date of Karl’s birth as October 7, 1858. A note on the side in pencil shows the name Gottliebin Steiss. I’ll come back to that in a bit.

I have finally discovered a bit more about Gottlieben Kallenberger.  Her full name was Gottliebin Magdalena Kallenberger. She was born June 4, 1827. Her father was Johann Martin Kallenberger (known as Martin) and her mother was Maria Catharina Kraemer (know as Maria). Her parents were married August 17, 1823 in a protestant church in Klein Ingersheim, Neckarkreis, Wuerttemberg, Germany.

At some time she married Johann Theodor Steiss (known as Theodor). They had two children: Pauline Friederike Wilhelmine Steiss, born February 27, 1871, in Stuttgart, Wuertemberg, Germany and Christian Friedrich Ernst Steiss (known as Ernst) born March 23 1873 in Stuttgart, Wuertemberg, Germany. I have further information on descendants of Pauline Steiss.

Gottleibin Kallenberger Steiss died in Berg, on May 5. 1898. She was widowed at the time. Among the family papers are an accounting of her estate which was divided between Karl Kofink and Ernst Steiss. Here’s the document.

A comment on names that I may have made before. My grandfather, the son of Carl Kofink was named Johann Theodor after Carl’s step-father. I now see that several other family members take their names from this side of the family. Carl’s eldest son Paul Ernst Kofink combines the names of Carl’s step-sister and step-brother. Another son Ernst Wilhelm also takes a name from Carl’s step-brother. The name Ernst was passed on to John Kofink’s son Herbert John Ernst Kofink. I also see where the name Martin came into the family (in another of Carl’s sons Walter Jacob Martin) since that was Carl’s grandfather’s name.

Well, that’s what I have for now.

May the Lord bless you on your journey and greet you on your arrival. 

Wayne

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FA MILY PICTURES

I thought everything would return to normal. And I’d be back writings by now. No such luck. Busy, busy busy. I do have some pictures I scanned of my family, so I’ll post them.


My Great-Grandma Kofink. No idea when or where it was taken. You can see the strong features of her face that are still visible in many of her descendants. My Grandpa Kofink looked very much like her when he was in his 50s & 60s.

Great-Grandma and Great-Grandpa Kofink. I know this was taken in the backyard of the Seeley Avenue House, possibly in 1931 which would have been their 50th wedding anniversary. Grandpa has a pipe in his hand and Grandma has a set of figurines of a bride and groom. I never met my great-grandparents. Could you guess that Great-grandpa was German?


The front of the Seeley Avenue house that was first owned by my great-grandparents. By the time I was born the Victorian Gingerbread was gone, but the stained-glass window was still there. Unfortunately it was removed in remodeling in the 1950s.

I have no idea when this picture was taken, but it has to be in the teens or early 20s before the dormers were added to the second floor. Pictures are my Grandma Kofink, her mother-in-law (great-grandma), her sister-in-law Aunt Minnie Wardell, and her father-in-law (great grandma.) Below is a picture of the house today.


Do you see how big the little tree in the first picture has gotten in 80 years or so.

This is my Great-Grandma & Grandpa Angner, my mother's maternal grandparents. I only know this from other pictures of them. This one isn't dated, but it had to have been taken in Louvrin, Romania where they lived. My mother met her grandparents when she went to Europe in 1937. I only got to know Great-grandma years later.


My mother as a very young child, around 1927 or so and her mother, My Grandma Szlavik. I'd recognize my grandmother anywhere. I can pick her out in a family portrait when she was a very little girl. I'd never have recognized my mother if I didn't have a portrait of her when she was a few years old.

This is Great-Grandma Angner back home in Romania in 1966. She had lived in the States for a while in the 1950s, but returned home again. I did get to spend time with her when she was here. Nana and I got along fine even though she spoke no English. I learned to count in German. This picture was taken a few years before her death. It was given to my grandmother with the inscription "Your loving old mother. For you."

That's all for now. May the Lord bless you on your journey and greet you on your arrival.

Wayne



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