Von Deck Marriage Certificate

1. Emil Von Deck
+ Maria Amalie Zantop
2. Pauline Von Deck
+ Adam Koerner III
4. Ruth E Koerner
+ George Willard Munson
5. Edward Deck (Ned) Munson
+ Debra Florence Dahlquist
6. Scott Edward Munson

Emil Von Deck and Maria Zantop were married about 8 years after the Koerners of the previous post, so the type of information on the Marriage Certificate and Return of a Marriage form is basically the same as we have already seen.  Fortunately, the copy quality is much better on this certificate so we do not have to guess at some of the last names.

Emil von Deck & Maria Amalie Zantop
Certificate of Marriage

One piece of information which was unreadable on the Koerner certificate but which is very clear here is the name of the minister and church which performed the marriage: Dr. E. F. Moldehnke pastor of St Peter's German Lutheran Church.  St. Peters is still an active church today at 53rd Street and Lexington Avenue. By searching the church historical records I may be able to find other references to the Von Decks or Zantops.

On the Return of a Marriage, Emil von Deck's birthplace is listed as New York City and his current address is 447 East 78th Street, New York City. This is in a neighborhood on the Upper East Side which is known as Yorkville.  Many German immigrants lived in this neighborhood.  Emil's birthdate is April 29th and he was 25 on his last birthday.  This means he was born in 1862.  Like Adam Koerner, his occupation is listed as barber.

Return of a Marriage

Emil's father is Johann Matthaeus von Deck.  From Census records we know that he used the name Matthaeus and/or Matthew and was born in Germany about 1821.  It was not uncommon in Germany at the time for a family give two or more of their children the same first name with a different middle name to distinguish.  Matthaeus may have had a brother named Johann Frederick or Johann Adam and so he chose to use his middle name regularly.  Notice as a witness to the marriage on the bottom of the return, he signs his name as Matthaeus Deck.  He address is 329 East 72nd Street, not too far from where Emil lived.

Emil's mother is Lina Angelica Junginger. From census records we know that she was born in Germany about 1830.  We also know that she died before 1900 when Matthaeus is recorded in the Census as a widower. 

Maria Amalie Zantop was my father's Great-Grandma Von Deck. She was born September 28, 1866 in Johanisburg, East Prussia.  Although a strong German presence existed there at the time,  Johannisburg is located in Poland today and has changed it's name to Pisz.

Pisz, Poland today from the website http://www.pisz.pl/

Maria's parents are recorded as Carl Zantop and Amalie Ziehfuss.  So far, I have been unable to locate any additional information about Carl. It is probable that he stayed in Europe or died before the rest of the family came to America.

Amalie and four Zantop siblings came to America: Maria, Pauline, Minna and Richard.  Pauline is one of the witnesses to Emil & Maria's marriage.  She lived in the city and never married. She is burried next to Maria in Greenwich, Connecticut. Minna married Julius Becker in 1895. They moved to Greenwich some time between 1900 and 1910.  Amalie lived with them. Richard died in 1895 at the age of 18.

Emil and Maria moved to Greenwich, Connecticut some time before 1900. Their two children, Richard and Pauline (my Grandma Munson's mother), were born in New York City before they moved. Emil and Maria are burried together at Putman Cemetery in Greenwich, Connecticut. Pauline and her husband Adam Koerner are burried with them.

Koerner Marriage Certificate

1. Adam Koerner

+ Maria Eberhardt

2. Adam Koerner

+ Pauline Von Deck

3. Ruth E Koerner

+ George Willard Munson

4. Edward Deck (Ned) Munson

+ Debra Florence Dahlquist

5. Scott Edward Munson

I was very excited recently to receive in the mail two marriage certificates from the City of New York. One was for my Grammy Munson's paternal grandparents and the other for her maternal grandparents.

Adam Koerner & Maria Eberhardt's Marriage Certificate

Adam Koerner and Maria Eberhardt were married on April 27, 1879 in New York City. Quite a bit of information is included on the certificate and the Return of a Marriage form. First, notice that the original German spelling of Koerner is used for Adam's name: Korner with the umlaut over the o. While most of the documentation I have found for the family show that "Koerner" was used after coming to the U.S., occasionally Korner was used. Here, even though his name is listed as Korner, he signs the return as Koerner.

Adam was born in New York and his address is listed as 500 East 12th Street, New York. This is the address where Adam's parents are listed as living a year later at the time of the 1880 Census. It proves this is my great great-grandparents and not some other Adam Koerner and his wife. This is further confirmed by the listed occupation: barber.

Return of a Marriage - whatever that means!

Next, Adam's parents are identified as Adam Korner and Maria Bercke. This is the first indication I have found of the immigrant Mary Koerner's maiden name. Remember that they came from Germany just before Adam Jr. was born and I have been unable to find any information about the family in Germany. Now I have a clue to further investigate. Too bad I don't know German!

One of the great thrills in researching family history is discovering maiden names, and marriage records are one of only a few sources for this information. Here, the bride is listed as Maria Eberhardt born and currently living in College Point. This is a neighborhood in Queens not too far from where I now live. Her parents are listed as Jacob Eberhardt and Maria Weickes.

It turns out that there is a family listed in the 1870 Census in College Point which is almost certainly that of Maria. Jacob "Everhart" age 52 is listed with his wife Mary age 48 and children Philip age 23, Adam age 18, Peter age 15, Mary age 13, Jacob age 10, Lizzie age 8 and Johnnie age 6. The parents and two oldest children were born in Prussia and the other children were born in New York. Jacob and his two oldest sons worked in a Rubber Factory of which there were several in Queens. Adam Eberhardt is one of the witnesses to the marriage of Adam Koerner and Maria Eberhardt. The other is Adam Koerner's brother, Philip.

102 St Mark's Place today.  Adam was a barber and
possibly lived here with his family in 1884.

Further research has revealed that Philip Eberhardt, Maria's older brother, had almost certainly married Lena Koerner, Adam's older sister in 1875. It is also almost certain that two of Maria's brothers were butchers, the occupation which would eventually be passed down to our happy couple's oldest child Adam, my great grandfather.

Adam and Maria are recorded in the Census a year after their marriage living at 544 East 11th Street with their newborn baby Adam, my great-grandfather.  Adam was a Barber and is listed at 102 St. Mark's Place in the 1884 and 1888 New York City Directories.  This was the heart of Little Germany at the time.  By 1892, though, the family had moved to Greenwich, Connecticut where young Adam met and fell in love with his future wife, Pauline Von Deck.

Pauline's father, Emil Von Deck, was also a barber in Greenwich who had moved from New York City. My next post will be regarding his marriage to Maria Zantop.  She was still alive when my father was a child and was known as Grandma Von Deck.