Deep Roots Family Tree Blog

A few weeks ago, my therapist asked me if I thought I would move back to the midwest after we spent some time exploring what brought me to Alaska at 11 years old. “Yes.” I said. “At some point.” I could feel her eyes on me through the screen (we meet virtually). “I want to be closer to home. Not because of the people. The people I would want to spend time with are long gone. I didn’t get to see my niece and nephews grow up. But I do want to be closer to the family I have left.” Last week, I saw my other therapist (yes, I have two…shush), and he asked me if I really missed “home” or if I miss a specific time period of my life. He suggested using Google maps/street view to visit some of those places. Definitely something to think about and explore…

At this point in my life, I feel closer to my ancestors than I do my living relatives. I’ve spent a lot of time gathering documents and piecing together their stories, helping them to become more than just a picture on a screen or a faded photograph. I’m hoping I can reconnect with different family members who might be able to fill in some of the gaps that I’m missing. I hope to be able to visit the cemeteries and graves of those who came before me – I’ve seen them before, but it would be through a different lens this time.

One such grave is of a little girl who likely died as an infant. She is reportedly buried in the Stirum cemetery with a handful of my ancestors. My mom asked me if I could try to find a paper trail and so far, it is proving to be quite difficult. 

Her name was either Frances Irene or Irene Frances. My mom thinks that ‘Amerman’ is on the grave stone which is located in Stirum, North Dakota, but it is likely Bartl. My mom’s maternal grandmother, Alida Amerman (nee. Bartl), apparently had a child before she was married, before my grandma (my mom’s mom) was born.

Mom said that she was sent to Wisconsin when they learned that she was pregnant, and that the baby had died in infancy. She also said that I probably saw her grave when I was little because we would go put flowers on it on Memorial Day. I have no recollection of this.

Amerman was Alida’s married name so I have a hard time believing that Amerman is on the grave stone unless Rozair Amerman was the father and they conceived out of wedlock. According to findagrave.com, there are no Amerman’s buried in the Stirum cemetery and not even a handful of Bartl’s, none of them being the baby. 

Alfred Bartl (Feb. 26, 1899 – Jun. 25, 1961)
Anna Preisinger Bartl (Jan. 29, 1872 – Jun. 7, 1952)

Bessie Tony Agnes Krchavy Bartl (Nov. 3, 1909 – May 9, 1995)

Franz “Frank” Bartl (Apr. 1, 1871 – Nov. 23, 1980)

There is only one or two graves of children who died in infancy. None of them appear to be the child I am looking for.

North Dakota birth and death records are pretty well kept and easy to request, but mom thinks that the child was born in Wisconsin. At first glance, I could not find any ties to Wisconsin. We see a lot of the Bartl’s and Amerman’s living in North Dakota and Minnesota. Census reports also confirm this. 

The first breakthrough I found was in Franz “Frank” Bartl’s obituary. 

“He leaves to mourn his loss, his wife, Mrs. Annie Bartl, five sons and daughters: William and Edward of Duluth (Minnesota); Emil of WISCONSIN; Mrs. Frank LaBounty of Lisbon (North Dakota). Those who remain at home still are: Alfred, Alida (my great-grandmother), Angelia, Helen, and Madeline.”

There is our first tie to Wisconsin. Emil Bartl (1903-1978). He was not there long enough to show up on any census reports for Wisconsin and I couldn’t find any news articles on newspapers.com tying him there. There were, however, some other Bartl’s living in Wisconsin that I have not been able to trace quite yet, but I assume they are distant relatives. 

Mom said that her mom and grandma told slightly different stories. Her grandma said the child was named Irene, but her mom said Frances. They are likely the first and middle names. It is also possible that the last name is spelled wrong in official documentation, if there is any at all. Bartel or Bartle was a common misspelling of Bartl.

Mom also said that her grandmother, Alida, described the home that she was sent to as a “mansion” and that she might have been a housekeeper during her time there. It is possible that she was sent to a home for unwed mothers instead of to live with  extended family during her pregnancy.

The other Bartl’s I found living in Wisconsin owned a pretty popular drinking establishment which likely meant that they had a decent amount of money. I’m wondering of 1. we are related to them somehow and 2. if that is who Alida went to stay with, not necessarily a close relative. This will be my next adventure, trying to see if these random Bartl’s are the puzzle piece I am missing. I am not optimistic.

Meanwhile, there are some things that I cannot discount yet:The baby survived. It’s unlikely, but possible for several reasons:

1. I cannot find the baby on findagrave.com which is usually a very accurate source
2. I cannot find a birth certificate – which might not exist, considering Alida was unwed at the time of the childs conception/birth and this was frowned upon
3. I cannot find a death certificate – which might not exist. If there is no birth certificate, there likely wouldn’t be a death certificate (however, I haven’t looked very hard for this yet)

Alida married Rozair Amerman on June 30th, 1934 in South Dakota. Mom said that the baby was born in the late 1920s or early 1930s. My grandmother, Rozair and Alida’s oldest child, was born in 1935. Again unlikely, Rozair could be the father, but because they were not married at the time, Alida was sent away and unfortunately the baby didn’t survive. I asked my mom if she knew where/how Rozair and Alida met. She said she didn’t know, but likely at a dance in one of the small towns scattered throughout south-east North Dakota. “Street dances” they were called, and they were quite common. 

My current goals for this request:

Solidify connection to Wisconsin, if not that, look at Minnesota

Comb census reports – some decades have a section on the report that documents how many children a woman had and how many were living. I don’t think this will be available in the time periods that I’m looking at but worth a try

Branch out the tree further to see if the Bartl’s in Wisconsin are related

See if someone in ND can visit the Stirum cemetery for me and take a photo of the grave in question. I need to see it.
Go through the rest of the boxes from my Uncle that may have random documents or pictures because my grandparents were apparently hoarders (not complaining, also seems to be genetic)

Look into “homes for unwed mothers” in Wisconsin, Minnesota, and North Dakota

Off on another adventure.