Ancestry of Leland Bernitt "Lee" Kolm

Sinking of the Tuscania

2006-01-13T00:40:00.000-08:00

A year ago last November, I wrote about the service of Sidney and Jack Bernitt in World War I. Sidney Bernitt was aboard the troop ship TSS Tuscania when it was sunk by a German torpedo off the Scottish Hebrides on February 5, 1918. He didn't survive. The 200 who died were the first American mass military casualties since the Civil War.One of the most moving stories of the sinking was an "

German Christmas in the Kolm Household

2005-12-20T20:02:00.000-08:00

In October 1984, Lee Kolm (born 1911) recorded his memories of growing up in Oregon. This is how he recalled Christmas time:With German forebearers, I lived in a German Christmas atmosphere. As a boy my Mother, I remember, lighted candles on the Chrismas tree once an evening. A short burning of candles and then candy was taken from its hanging place on the limbs and passed around. Always plenty

World War I Draft Registration

2005-11-11T13:17:00.000-08:00

In 1917 and 1918, all males born between 1872 and 1900 were required to register for the draft. The draft registration cards are a great source of genealogical information, with registrant's home address, occupation and physical description.Lee's father Will Kolm had to register, as did several of Lee's uncles. Name: William Louis KolmAddress: 490 East Pine, Portland, Multnomah Co., OregonBirth:

Web Site Update: Web Family Cards

2005-10-06T00:43:00.000-07:00

To make navigating through Lee Kolm's ancestors even easier, I've used my genealogy program, Reunion, to generate web cards. You can start with Lee and work your way back to his earliest known ancestor. I've put a handy link in the sidebar, so you can access the webcards page even after this post has been archived.Give the web cards a try, and let me know if you have any problem viewing or

Who Were the Relatives of Nellie (Bernitt) Kolm in Hayward, California?

2005-09-28T01:20:00.000-07:00

Nellie (Bernitt) Kolm (1883-1869) told her grandson, Rich Kolm, that in 1894 she had travelled with her family by ship from Coos Bay, Oregon to San Francisco, to visit the Midwinter Exposition. At that time, she recalled that they had visited relatives living in the East Bay city of Hayward, in Alameda County. The question: who were the Bernitt relatives living in Hayward in 1894?Not to hold the

Major Update: Postcard Photos of Coos County

2005-09-18T15:58:00.000-07:00

I have made a much needed update of the Coos County Postals site. The site was originally set up to document the postcard correspondence of Will Kolm and Nellie Bernitt, focusing on the period from 1909-1914.In addition to a colorful new style (compare to ugly 1999 version), I've expanded on the story of Will and Nellie, and added transcriptions of all of their existing postcard correspondence (

Friedrich Bernitt, sailmaker in Neustadt

2005-09-15T01:17:00.000-07:00

Neustadt in Ostholstein (East Holstein), Germany is a port city on the Ostsee (Lübecker Bucht) and the home of our Bernitt ancestors. According to family stories, Friedrich Bernitt worked there as a sail maker (Segelmacher) "in a large building or loft". Sailmaking was an important occupation in an era when ships were driven by the power of the wind, rather than a motor. A sail making business (

Carl Kolm, Holländer

2005-08-04T00:01:00.000-07:00

The marriage of Heinrich "Carl" Emanuel Kolm and Christine "Maria" Maack in 1829 was recorded in the Hagenow, Mecklenburg-Schwerin parish records. On that record, Carl Heinrich was described as a "Holländer". At first glance, this designation seems obvious: a Holländer is someone from Holland. That is the definition given by German-English dictionaries. Unfortunately, in this case, the

Did the Lüneburg family come to America in 1852 on the ship George Canning?

2005-08-02T15:23:00.000-07:00

We know that Maria Dorothea Caroline "Doris" Lüneburg (born September 2, 1842) came to America from Mecklenburg with her family some time before 1860. In that year, most of the Luneburg family was living in Middleton in Dane County, Wisconsin. Unfortunatelty, Different records list different years for the Luneburg immigration to America. According to Doris's obituary, she came to America at "

When did Henry Kolm come to America?

2005-08-01T10:50:00.000-07:00

According to a family story, when Carl Heinrich Christian "Henry" Kolm came to America, he first stopped in New York, then took a ship to New Orleans. After sailing up the Mississippi River, he got off the boat in Mendota - unfortunately it was Mendota, Illinois, rather than his goal, Mendota, Wisconsin. What we don't know is when Henry Kolm arrived in America. Some records indicate that he may

Colfax County Landscape

2005-07-29T15:09:00.000-07:00

Unlike the forested hills of Wisconsin, the plains of Nebraska were covered by tall prairie grasses. With the coming of the settlers, the prairie was eventually replaced by crops, especially wheat and corn. The land surrounding Schuyler in Colfax County is gently undulating (OK, mostly flat) and almost entirely under cultivation. Trees line the Platte river and are clustered around farm

Luneburg and Kolm Move to Schuyler, Nebraska from Wisconsin

2005-07-27T23:11:00.000-07:00

The first of our relatives to settle in Nebraska were two sons of William and Anna (Klauck) Luneburg: the civil war veteran Henry J. Luneburg (1841-1880) and family, and his brother Fritz Luneburg (1838-1895) and family. The moved from Middleton, Wisconsin to Schuyler in Colfax County, Nebraska between 1871 and 1875.In October 1878 both William and Anna Luneburg died in Middleton, Wisconsin.

Location of Kolm Brothers Furniture Store?

2005-07-18T22:34:00.000-07:00

Will Kolm was working as an embalmer for the Kolm Brothers Furniture Store in Schuyler, Nebraska from 1910 to 1912. The location of the store at that time is unclear. Where was the Kolm Brothers Furniture Store and Undertaking Parlor located?The above ad, probably dating from 1911 or 1912, indicates that the undertaking parlor was located in the "Sun building [by?] Folda Bank".According to the "

Kolm Brothers Furniture Store and Undertakers

2005-07-18T20:39:00.000-07:00

Our ancestor Carl Heinrich Christian "Henry" Kolm was a carpenter and joiner by trade. Only of his sons, Henry William (born 1863) continued his trade. Shortly after the turn of the century, Henry William opened a furniture store in Schuyler, Nebraska. Because the store provided coffins, it had a second business as an undertaking parlor. According to Alice Kolm Stibal the embalming was done by

The Bernitt Boys in WWI

2004-11-11T10:14:00.000-08:00

Today is the anniversary of the official end of World War I, originally celebrated as Armistice Day. It seems appropriate to honor the two the brothers of Nellie (Bernitt) Kolm, who volunteered to serve the United States. Jack Bernitt served as an airplane mechanic in France and returned to America. His brother Sidney Bernitt died before even reaching European soil.Sidney BernittSidney Walter

Henry Kolm & Doris Luneburg in Middleton, Wisconsin

2004-10-19T22:31:00.000-07:00

When Carl Heinrich Christian "Henry" Kolm arrived in America from Mecklenburg, in about 1860, he made his way from New Orleans, up the Mississippi River towards the town of Mendota, Wisconsin. (Family legend says that Henry mistakenly got off the boat at Mendota, Illinois and had to make his way north on foot). Finally, he arrived in the large community of immigrants from Mecklenburg in

Lewis Ancestry in Separate Blog

2004-09-23T18:41:00.000-07:00

The Ancestry of Kathleen (Lewis) Kolm is now in a separate blog. You can learn more about the Lewis, Hopkins, Betts and related families at lewisfamilynews.blogspot.com .

Kolm and Lewis Family Trees Modified

2004-08-31T00:05:00.000-07:00

The family trees for Lee Kolm and Kay (Lewis) Kolm have been updated with photos. You can view the Kolm Family Tree here and the Lewis Family Tree here.

Family Trees Added

2004-08-06T00:07:00.000-07:00

I've added links in the side bar to family trees for Kathleen Lewis and Leland Bernitt Kolm. These don't seem to display correctly in any browser except Explorer (not too surprising, since I used Excel to make them), so they will be modified in the future. However, the URL will stay the same.

1873 Plat Map of Dane County, Wisconsin: Kolm, Luneburg

2004-08-05T01:56:00.000-07:00

Carl Heinrich Christian "Henry" Kolm (1837-1909) emigrated from Mecklenburg-Schwerin in about 1860, settling in Middleton Township in Dane County, Wisconsin, near Madison. There he met and married Maria Dorothea Caroline "Doris" Lüneburg (1842-1924) in 1862. The Kolms remained in Middleton until 1879, when they moved to Schuyler, Nebraska. The Dane County Historical society has put the county

My new family history blog

2004-08-04T18:11:00.000-07:00

Welcome family! I've started this blog at Brian's suggestion. I'm going to use it to publish new information and thoughts about our family history. This will let me easily share the information with you, as well as create an archive of the information. At the moment, the blog won't be catalogued by Google, so keep the link handy. Peg

Mini bio: Eduard Wilhelm & Elisa Margarite (Hilmers) Bernitt

2004-08-03T23:53:00.000-07:00

Brief biography of Eduard Wilhelm Bernitt (1856-1919) and his wife Elisa Margarite Hilmers (1856-1916). Their position in the family tree.Eduard Wilhelm BernittBirth: May 5, 1856 in Neustadt, Ostholstein (Schleswig-Holstein, Germany)Baptism: unknownParents: Friedrich Wilhelm Bernitt & Margarethe Amalia Lisette FrehseKnown residences:--- about 1877 emigrated to America--- 1880 in Marshfield (Coos

Mini bio: William Louis & Nellie (Bernitt) Kolm

2004-08-03T23:28:00.000-07:00

Brief biography of William Louis Kolm (1884-1956) and his wife Nellie Frida Bernitt (1883-1969). Their position in the family tree.William Louis KolmBirth: July 29, 1884 in Schuyler, Colfax County, NebraskaBaptism: unknownParents: Carl Heinrich Christian "Henry" Kolm & Maria Dorothea Caroline "Doris" LuneburgKnown residences:--- 1885 in Schuyler, Colfax County, Nebraska--- 1900 in Grant Precinct

Mini bio: William & Anna (Klauck) Lüneburg

2004-08-03T23:08:00.000-07:00

Brief biography of Carl Friedrich Wilhelm "William" Lüneburg (1807-1878) and his wife Anna Dorothea Klauck (1804-1878). Their position in the family tree.Carl Friedrich Wilhelm "William" LüneburgBirth: December 29, 1807 Mecklenburg-Schwerin (Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany)Baptism: unknownParents: unknownKnown residences:--- 1842 Vellahn, Mecklenburg-Schwerin--- about 1851 emigrated to America--

Mini bio: Henry and Doris (Luneburg) Kolm

2004-08-03T22:41:00.000-07:00

Brief biography of Carl Heinrich Christian "Henry" Kolm (1837-1909) and his wife Maria Dorothea Caroline "Doris" Luneburg (1842-1924). Their position in the family tree.Carl Heinrich Christian "Henry" KolmBirth: August 13, 1837 in Warlow, Mecklenburg-Schwerin (Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany)Baptism: August 15, 1837 in Warlow, Mecklenburg-SchwerinParents: Carl Heinrich Emanuel "Charles" Kolm &