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A 1977 letter that Gran Goetz wrote to Thomas and Anneliese
offers some information about the Goetz family we never knew as kids.
That letter, along with photos and information Peggy dug up, give us
the summary here.
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Our great-grandfather William Goetz was married to
Caroline Herzler. She seems to have been from Germany. (We have a
German church certificate of some kind for her---maybe birth, maybe Baptism,
maybe Communion, dated 1869.) Does anyone know whether William was from
Germany? Does anyone know how William and Caroline met or when they
married? (I've
been to the Ellis Island Web site, but I haven't been able to pinpoint Caroline or
William.)
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These Goetz's---Great-grandfather William and
Great-grandmother Caroline---had five children: Caroline, Elizabeth,
Catherine, Jacob---who changed his name to James--- and William (our
grandfather). All these kids were born in Brooklyn. And, their dates
of birth probably all jam in around 1880s-1890s
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Great-grandfather William Goetz died in an
"accident" in 1905. Gran Goetz mentions that he worked "for
a gas company in Brooklyn." I wonder if the accident was work
related. She also mentions that Caroline and William's son William---our
grandfather---"was 14 years old" when his father died. So, that
would mean that our grandfather William was probably born in 1891.
Great-grandmother Caroline Herzler Goetz died March 20, 1920.
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William and Caroline's son William---our
grandfather---met Catherine Slade (born in Hoboken New Jersey, January
16, 1894) in 1913. They were married January 21, 1914. For
as long as I can remember they lived on 54th Avenue in Elmhurst
New York. They had two children: Margaret and William (born
1924). I wish I knew how William and Catherine met.
Early photos seem always to place them on the beach or in the
mountains. I wonder if they met on a holiday outing
somewhere. How did Catherine Slade get from Hoboken to Brooklyn?
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The first photo on the Ancestor page
shows Great-grandmother Caroline Herzler Goetz with her first
grandson. All we know about that boy (who is Margaret and
William's first cousin, our first cousin once removed) is that he is
Jacob/James Goetz's son. That little boy's kids would be our
second cousins. All the children that Caroline, Catherine,
Elizabeth and Jacob Goetz might have had would be our second
cousins. Gran Goetz says in her 1977 letter "I never hear
from these families."
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I can remember Aunt Margaret telling me
a long time ago that the Goetz relatives we never knew---her first
cousins, our second cousins---lived in New York or New Jersey. I'm
having no luck at all finding them. But, over time, maybe a
relative or two will appear.
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We have a little information about
the Slade portion of the Goetz family. We know our
great-great-grandparents were James McNamara---from King's County
Ireland---and Mary Malone---from Queen's County Ireland. James and
Mary McNamara had three children: Catherine---our
great-grandmother, James, and Annie McNamara. Catherine
McNamara married a man named Slade and seems to have settled with him in
Hoboken. We know two facts about our Great-grandfather
Slade: first, his reputation for meanness is monumental; second,
he was a "sheepherder on the hills of Hoboken." Slade
and Catherine McNamara Slade had three children: our grandmother
Catherine, Marie, and George Slade. We knew Aunt Marie for a long
time. She married John Croudle; they lived in Brooklyn---Greenpoint,
I believe---for years and years, and years. (We visited them in
their walk-up apartment many times.) George Slade---our
great-uncle---served in World War I. Peggy says he died in the flu
epidemic 1916. We are the only grandchildren from the
Slade-McNamara match. And, I wonder if we have Slade great-great
uncles and aunts---maybe third cousins---of whom we have no knowledge.
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