Emil Mathwig
1858 - 1922
Emil Theodore MATHWIG was born on 22 Dec 1858 in Schebetwigholstine, Germany, died on 1 Mar 1922 in Tacoma, Washington, USA and was buried in Oakwood Cemetery, Tacoma, Washington, USA. He immigrated to America about 1882.
Emil was married about 1885 to Hatwig Doman. The marriage ended in divorce circa 1890. Hatwig Elizabeth DOMAN was born in 1869 in Berlin, Germany and died in 1947
Emil and Grandma, as I understand it, worked for a farmer to pay off their passage money to come to America from Germany, and it was on this farm that they met. I do not know where the farm was located, Pa., Wis., or Ill. or none of those. Their son Harry was born cir 1886 in Chicago, Illinois. Daughter Elsie was born on 21 May 1888 in Chicago, Cook Co, Illinois, USA and died on 14 Jun 1980 in Olympia, Washington, USA. the 3rd child, Waldemar Edward "Walter", was born in Tacoma, Washington (maybe California).in 1890.
For some reason unknown to me, while grandma was out, grand dad Emil took his three babies to the church and told the reverends to keep them. Then he left. The Minister had Hattie sign her X on a paper to get her children back, he said. By not being able to read, Hattie did not notice she instead signed her sons to an orphanage and her daughter's adoption papers. Little Elsie was lost to her family for years. The oldest, Harry, aged 6, ran away and more or less was his own man from there on, the second, Elsie 3 1/2 was adopted by Mr. and Mrs. DENCH, of Astoria. Elsie was renamed Mary Johanna Dench. Baby Walter was recovered by grandma with the help of her employers, neighbors and friends. Grandma could neither read or write English, the churchmen had she sign her X to get her babies back .... instead it was an adoption paper.
With the help of her friends Hattie found where her children were, and after a long hard battle she finally got her boy's back. Harry (about 5 1/2 years) by than had a taste of fending for himself and began to work out and away from home and became more or less his own man from that time on and was constantly on the look out for his lost sister. Waldemar "Walter" was about 18 months when his father abducted them. -
In the early 1900's Emil became a boot maker and made boots for the loggers and the brewery men at 45$ a pair. His son Walter could repair shoes and inherited some of his dad's tools.
Emil wanted Walter, my Dad, to reclaim his true name, Mathwig, and in return Dad would be put in the will. Dad refused. You can always change a will. Emil Sr. had caused his mother & the family too much suffering. The only Father he ever knew was Phillip OHLEGSCHLAGER.
(This is a shady gray area for me) I was there the day Emil came to see Dad, on the Mill Creek farm, but I thought it was granddad Emil I saw until my niece Gloria BAILEY BRAIN, sent me information in 1994/5 that shows Emil Sr. died in 1922. I really do not know what happened that day at the farm. I was pre-school & lived most my life thinking I Emil Sr. had come.
Emil married for a second time, to Elizabeth, and had three more children, Emil, Ruth, and Rolf. Elizabeth had two sons by a previous marriage, Herbert Posner and Irvine Posner. Daughter Ruth, aged abt 96-97, lived in Newport Oregon. Some of her descendents are in Washington.
On September 14, 1907 Emil, his wife Elizabeth, and children Rolf and Ruth passed through Ellis Island. They arrived on the Ship "Amerika" departed from Cuxhaven, Hamburg, Germany. Emil is 48 years, Elizabeth is 39, Ruth is age 3 and Rolf is age 2. Elizabeth's first two sons do not appear in the manifest.
Following is information from the Ellis Island webpage. http://www.ellisislandrecords.org/
Passenger Record for Emil Mathwig
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Name: |
Mathwig, Emil |
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Ethnicity: |
USA |
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Place of Residency |
Tecoma, WA |
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Date of Arrival |
September 14, 1907 |
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Age on Arrival |
48 y |
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Gender |
M |
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Marital Status |
M |
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Ship of Arrival |
Amerika |
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Port of Departure |
Cuxhaven, Hamburg, Germany |
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Amerika's Manifest
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Text version of Amerika's Manifest - Page 173
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| Mathwig, Emil | September 14, 1907 | Cuxhaven | - | 173 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Information about the ship "America"
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Emil died on March 1, 1922 in Tacoma, Washington and was buried in Oakwood Cemetery.
from the Tacoma Dailey Ledger - March 3, 1922:
FUNERAL ANNOUNCEMENTS
EMIL MATHWIG - Friday at 1:30 p.m. from Mellinger's. Rev. Arthur Sydow officiating; burial in Oakwood cemetery.
Funeral Record
Emil's gravestone in Oakwood cemetery
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