Edyth's older sister, Leonor, put together a Grohndorff family tree in 1969. Here's what she had to say about her father's mother and grandmother:
"Great Grandmother was a Schiller. She married a Smith who died. Later she married an army officer. She came to the U.S. alone with her family of two boys and three girls, brought with her a complete dowry for each of her three daughters. (Grandmother’s linens were beautiful). Her children were Lizette, William, Fred, Caroline and Louise (all Smiths). Caroline Smith, my grandmother was born in Germany, October 20, 1841."
-- Leonor Grohndorff-Kroll, May 1, 1969
It wasn't a lot to go on, so Caroline's parents have appeared in our family tree only as "Smith" and "Schiller" from Germany, and the army officer has appeared simply as "unknown". But last year I had my DNA analyzed and compared against that of others interested in sharing research and getting in touch with estranged relatives. One such estranged relative was a fourth cousin descended from a "Schmidt" who lived in DePere, Wisconsin at the same time as Caroline. Comparing our research, we discovered that our great x2 grandmothers were sisters, and that the army officer their mother had married was Carl Donner.
Below are some subsequent discoveries:
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| From the manifest of the S.S. Raleigh, arriving in NY 12 June 1854, showing our great x3 grandmother, Sophie Schiller, her children (which includes our great x2 grandmother, Caroline Schmidt), and her second husband, Carl Donner. |
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| The 1860 U.S. Census for Woodville, Calumet County, Wisconsin, showing the Carl Donner family, which includes our 2nd and 3rd great grandmothers. |
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| Headstone of our great x3 grandmother, Sophie Schiller (10 Jul 1811 - 21 Feb 1882), who died as Sophia Donner and is buried at Cady Cemetery in DePere, Wisconsin |
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| Headstone of Carl Donner (1826-1894), the second husband of our great x3 grandmother. Buried at Cady Cemetery, DePere, Wisconsin |
In 1861, Sophie's daughter Caroline married Carl Friedrich Grohndorff, the father of Edyth's father (and our dads' grandfather), William. We have no pictures of Caroline, but we do have pictures of her sister, Sophie (1840-1918), and of Sophie's husband, Joseph Bauer (1835-1910).
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| Our great x2 grandmother Caroline's sister, Sophie Schmidt Bauer |
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| Sophie Schmidt's husband, Joseph Bauer. |
