The "Smith" Problem

I've completely given up on the 52 Ancestors in 52 weeks, but I will keep using this blog as a way of writing about the family history and as a problem solving tool.

I've previously written about Joseph Schmidt here, and his mother Vilma, here.  I've been trying to find more information about the family so that maybe I can track them back to Hungary.

I've been driving myself crazy and feel like I'm running in circles trying to find information on the Schmidts/ Smiths. Instead of a narrative, I'm going to list out the information I have. Maybe I'll find a hole or clue that I missed, or maybe I'll find a direction to start looking. 

I'll start with Joseph Schmidt.

His Death Certificate (1) states:

• Name: Joseph G. Smith
• Birthdate: January 21, 1892
• Birthplace: Austria
• Death Date: January 10, 1955
• Father's Name: Unknown
• Mother's Name: Unknown
• Informant: Hospital Records
• Burial: Saint Lucas Cemetery

His Obituary (2) in the Chicago Tribune states: Joseph G. Smith, Jan. 10, of 9621 Dobson avenue, beloved husband of Florence Genotte Smith, loving father of Florence Muth, Rose Donnelly, and the late Harry. Funeral Thursday, 10 a.m., at chapel, Jeffery boulevard at 77th street. Interment St. Lucas' cemetery. South Shore 8-8822

His WWII Draft Registration Card (3) indicates the following information

• Name: Joseph George Smith
• Birth Date: 21 Jan 1892
• Birthplace: Austria-Hungary
• Residence: Chicago, IL
• Name and Address of Person who will always know your address: Margaret Buck Lillian Barna

His original Certificate of Naturalization (4), which still is in family possession, contains the following information:

• Name: Joseph George Smith
• Address: 15315 Lexington Ave, Harvey, IL
• Subject of Hungary
• Naturalization date: 23 March 1922
• Naturalization place: Circuit Court of Cook County
• Age: 30
• Height: 5 ft 5-1/2 inches
• Name Changed by order of court from Joseph Schmidt

This same information is found on the Naturalization Record Index (5).

 His Petition for Naturalization (6) contains the following information:

• Name: Joseph Schmidt
• Address: 15315 Lexington Ave, Harvey, IL
• Birthdate: 22 Jan 1892
• Birthplace: Pankota, Austria
• Emigrated from: Bremen Germany in May 1907
• Arrival: New York, NY on 11 May 1907
• Ship: Graf Waldersee
• Declaration of Intent made: 26 March 1917 in Chicago, IL.
• Wife: Florence, born 20 July 1898 in Chicago
• Children: Florence born 2 May 1918, and Rose 26 Sept 1920

His Marriage License (7) to Florence Genotte contains the following information:

• Name: Joseph G. Smith
• Age: 25
• Birth year: abt 1891
• Marriage Date: 25 Nov 1916
• Marriage Place: Chicago, Cook, Illinois
• Spouse Name: Florence Genotte
• Spouce Age: 17

The Passenger List for the Graf Waldersee (8), arriving in New York on 11 May 1907 lists the following people in Joseph's family:

Vilma Schmidt, age 33; Josef Schmidt, age 15; Vilma Schmidt, age 11(this would put Vilma's birth year around 1896/1897)

• Nationality: Hungary
• Race or People: German
• Last Residence: Pankota
• Final Destination: Philadelphia
• Whether going to join a relative or friend: and if so, what relative or friend, and his name and complete address: br.i.l (brother-in-law?): Johann Feher, Philadelphia, Pa, N. Amerikan St 8
• Place of Birth: Pankota (for all 3)

The 1910 Census (9) shows that Vilma Schmidt (the mother) married again and had another daughter.  The following information is on the 1910 census:

• Furez, Joseph, Head, Age 26, Marriage 1; Married 1 years, Birthplace: Hungary, Father's Birthplace: Hungary, Mother's birthplace: Hungary, Immigration year: 1904, Naturalized, Speaks English, 
• Furez, Wilhelmina, Wife, Age 33, Marriage 2; Married 1 years, 3 Children born, 3 children still alive. Birthplace: Hungary Germany, Father's Birthplace: Hungary, Germany, Mother's Birthplace: Hungary, Germany. Immigration year: 1907, Speaks English
• Furez, Margaret, daughter, Age 4/12, Single. Birthplace: Pennsylvania, Father's Birthplace: Hungary, Mother's Birthplace: Hungary
• Schmidt, John, stepson, Age: 17, Single, Birthplace: Hungary, Father's Birthplace: Hungary, Mother's Birthplace: Hungary, Immigration year: 1908, Alien, Speaks English
• Schmidt, Wilhelmina, stepdaughter, Age: 15, Single, Birthplace: Hungary, Father's Birthplace: Hungary, Mother's Birthplace: Hungary, Immigration year: 1907, Speaks English

The Philadelphia Pennsylvania Marriage Index (10) has the following information about Vilma Schmidt's marriage. (I am waiting for a copy of the actual license).

• Name: Wilhelmina Schmidt
• Spouse: Joseph Furesz
• Marriage Place: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
• Marriage Year: 1910
• Marriage License number: 249305

I have only been able to find Joseph Smith and his wife and children in the 1920 census (11) in Chicago. I have not found his mother nor his sister anywhere. Interestingly here's the information for Joseph and his family:

• Schmidt, Joseph, Head, Age 26, Year Immigrated; 1896, Naturalized: yes, Birthplace: Hungary, Native Langauge: Magyar, Birthplace of Father: Hungary, Language of Father: German, Birthplace of Mother: Germany, Language of Mother, German
• Schmidt, Florence, Wife, Age 26, Birthplace: Illinois, Birthplace of father: Illinois, Birthplace of Mother: Illinois.
• Schmidt, Florence, daughter, Age 1 6/12, Birthplace: Illinois, Birthplace of Father, Hungary, Birthplace of mother: Illinois

In the 1930 Census, I found Joseph Smith and family, AND Vilma (his mother) and Margaret (his half-sister) living in Chicago. 

The entry for Joseph's family (12) states:

• Smith, Joseph, Head, Age: 38, Married, Age at Marriage: 25, Birthplace, Hungary, Father's Birthplace, Hungary, Mother's Birthplace: Hungary, Language: German, Immigration year: 1905, Naturalized: yes, 
• Smith, Florence, Wife, Age: 30, Married, Age at Marriage: 17, Birthplace: Illinois, Father's Birthplace, Illinois, Mother's Birthplace: Illinois
• Smith, Florence, daughter, Age 11, Single, Birthplace: Illinois, Father's Birthplace: Hungary, Mother's Birthplace, Illinois
• Smith, Rose, daughter, Age 9, Single, Birthplace: Illinois, Father's Birthplace: Hungary, Mother's Birthplace, Illinois
• Smith, Harry, son, Age: 6, Single, Birthplace: Illinois, Father's Birthplace: Hungary, Mother's Birthplace, Illinois

The entry for Vilma and Margaret (13) states:

• Furez, Wilma, head, Age: 56, Widowed, Birthplace: Germany, Father's Birthplace: Germany, Mother's Birthplace: Germany, Language: German, Immigration year: 1910, Naturalized, 
• Furez, Margaret, daughter, Age: 19, Single, Birthplace: Pennsylvania, Father's Birthplace: Germany, Mother's Birthplace, Germany

In 1940, Margaret got married. Her Marriage information (14):

• Name: Margaret Furez
• Marriage Date: 28 Aug 1940
• Spouse: Fred Mark
• Location: Cook County, IL
• License: 1651772

The 1940 Census has Wilma living on her own, and shows Joseph's family.

The entry for Wilma (15) states:

• Furez, Wilma, head, Age, 66, Widowed, Birthplace: Austria Hungary, Naturalized Citizen

The entry for Joseph's family (16) states:

• Smith, Joseph E, Head, Age: 48, Birthplace: Hungary, Naturalized Citizen
• Smith, Florence A, wife, Age: 40, Birthplace: Illinois
• Smith, Rose M, daughter, Age: 19, Birthplace: Illinois
• Smith, Harry C, son, Age: 16, Birthplace: Illinois

Here is what I do NOT know:

I do NOT know when Wilma Furez died. I have not found any death information for her. No certificates, no obituaries, nothing!

I do NOT know what happened to Wilhelmina Schmidt (the sister).  I have recently been searching through Philadelphia Marriages, and found 3 Wilhelminas.  I'm not certain that any of them are actually her.  I don't have any death information for her either.

I do NOT know when Joseph Furez died.

I do NOT know the whereabouts of Wilma Furez and Margaret between 1910 and 1930.

I do NOT know who this Johann Feher is who is the person that the Schmidt's were supposedly going to live with in Philadelphia.

I do NOT know Wilma Furez's actual birthday NOR any information about her first husband.

I do NOT know anything about Joseph prior to his arrival in New York on the Graf Waldersee other than that he was born in Pankota.

Any suggestions or help that you can give would be awesome. I really have no idea where to look next.


(1) Cook County, Illinois, death certificate no. 50-697 (1955), Joseph G. Smith; Cook County Clerk's Office, Chicago. Cit. Date: 30 Dec 2014.

(2) Obituary 1 -- no title. (1955, Jan 11). Chicago Daily Tribune (1923-1963) Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/178826471?accountid=58010 

(3) Ancestry.com. U.S., World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010. The National Archives at St. Louis; St. Louis, Missouri; World War II Draft Cards (Fourth Registration), for The State of Illinois; State Headquarters: Illinois; Microfilm Series: M2097; Microfilm Roll: 273

(4) Certificate of Naturalization Joseph George Smith, No 1478784, Circuit Court of Cook County, IL, March 23, 1922, Contained in Family Documents

(5) National Archives and Records Administration (NARA); Washington, D.C.; Soundex Index to Naturalization Petitions for the United States District and Circuit Courts, Northen District of Illinois and Immigration and Naturalization Service District 9, 1840 - 1950 (M1285); Microfilm Serial: 1285: Microfilm Roll: 162 Ancestry.com U.S. Naturalization Record Indexes, 1791 - 1992 (Indexed in World Archives Project) [database on-line], Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010

(6) Petition for Naturalization, Petition number 37757, January 25, 1921 Circuit Court of Cook County.

(7)  “Illinois, Cook County Marriages, 1871–1920.” Index. FamilySearch, Salt Lake City, Utah, 2010. Illinois Department of Public Health records. "Marriage Records, 1871–present." Division of Vital Records, Springfield, Illinois.

(8) Passenger Lists of Vessels Arriving at New York, New York, 1820-1897. Microfilm Publication M237, 675 rolls. Records of the U.S. Customs Service, Record Group 36. National Archives at Washington, D.C. Year: 1907; Arrival: New York, New York; Microfilm Serial: T715, 1897-1957; Microfilm Roll: Roll 0890; Line: 2; Page Number: 32 Ancestry.com. New York, Passenger Lists, 1820-1957 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010. 

(9)  Ancestry.com. 1910 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2006. Year: 1910; Census Place: Philadelphia Ward 13, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Roll: T624_1390; Page: 1B; Enumeration District: 0181; FHL microfilm: 1375403

(10) Ancestry.com. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Marriage Index, 1885-1951 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011.

(11)  Ancestry.com. 1920 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2010. Images reproduced by FamilySearch. Year: 1920; Census Place: Bloom, Cook, Illinois; Roll: T625_358; Page: 10B; Enumeration District: 9; Image: 592

(12) Ancestry.com. 1930 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2002. Year: 1930; Census Place: Flossmoor, Cook, Illinois; Roll: 414; Page: 7A; Enumeration District: 2332; Image: 483.0; FHL microfilm: 2340149

(13) Ancestry.com. 1930 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2002. Year: 1930; Census Place: Chicago, Cook, Illinois; Roll: 422; Page: 8A; Enumeration District: 0199; Image: 949.0; FHL microfilm: 2340157

(14) Ancestry.com. Cook County, Illinois Marriage Index, 1930-1960 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2008.

(15) Ancestry.com. 1940 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012. Year: 1940; Census Place: Chicago, Cook, Illinois; Roll: T627_932; Page: 8B; Enumeration District: 103-344

(16) Ancestry.com. 1940 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012. Year: 1940; Census Place: Chicago, Cook, Illinois; Roll: T627_931; Page: 16A; Enumeration District: 103-338

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: #8 - Vilma what? Feher? Schmidt? Furez?

This is #8 in a Genealogy Blog Challenge issued by Amy Johnson Crow over on her blog "No Story Too Small." The challenge is to write 52 blog posts on 52 ancestors throughout 2014.

Graf Waldersee Hamburg Passenger List

 Vilma? Wilma? Wilhelmina?

She went by a few names in her life, but we don't know her birth name, or the name she died with.

Whoever she was, she was the father of Josef Schmidt (profiled here) and was born in approximately 1874 in Pankota, Austrio-Hungary.

The earliest record that we have of her is a passenger list.  Thirty-three year old Vilma was traveling from Hamburg to New York with her two children; Josef, aged 15, and Vilma, aged 11.  Departing on the 27th of April 1907, they were third class passengers and their ethnicity was listed as "Hungarian."

The Schmidt family arrived in New York two weeks later on the 11th of May, 1907. The New York Passenger list includes much more detail. She was listed as being married and her "calling or occupation" was listed as "wife."  She was able to read and write, and her final destination was Philadelphia. She already had the ticket to the final destination and her ticket was paid for by her "brother-in-law."  She had $8.00 to her name. Her brother-in-law is listed as "Johann Feher, Philadelphia PA., N Amerikaan St 8." She was in good health, not crippled, 5 feet, 1 inch tall, fair complexion, fair hair, brown eyes, and no "Marks of Identification". Her birthplace is listed as Pankota. I have not been able to locate this Johann Feher and have no idea whether he was married to her sister, or if he was related to her husband.

The Graf Waldersee

My grandmother, who was Vilma's grand-daughter, wrote to me once that:

"Any time I would ask my grandmother about my grandfather, she would mutter something in Hungarian and then spit." 

Needless to say, we don't have any information about her husband.

Vilma and her children did make it to Philadelphia, PA.  Sometime in 1910, prior to the census (so before April) Vilma married a man named Joseph Furesz. On the marriage index, her name is listed as "Wilhelmina." I have not obtained the marriage license yet so I do not know the exact date. According to the 1910 census taken in April, he was seven years younger than Wilhelmina. Listed with the newlywed Joseph and Wilhelmina is their 4 month old daughter, Margaret H. The census indicates that this was Wilhelmina's 2nd marriage and that by this time, she spoke English as well as German.

The next time that Vilma / Wilhelmina shows up is in the 1930 census - with the name "Wilma". She had moved to Chicago and was living with her 19 year old daughter, Margaret at 5724 Drexel Avenue. By 1930, Wilma was widowed. The 1930 census shows that she had naturalized, but I have never even found an index card for her, much less any other documents. She was working as a cook in a Steel Plant's restaurant and just so happened to have one of the Steel Plant's Foremen (and wife) rooming with her. She owned a Radio.

The last time Vilma / Wilhelmina / Wilma shows up in any documents, it is the 1940 census when she was 66 years old.  She was living at 6315 Harper Ave, in Chicago. She was living alone and still working as a cook in the Steel Mills making $1025 that year.  She had a 6th grade education.

We don't know when she died or where she was buried. I have not been able to find her death records anywhere in Illinois or even back in Pennsylvania. I have searched under Vilma Furez, Vilma Schmidt, Vilma Feher, Wilhelmina Furez, Wilhelmina Schmidt, Wilhelmina Feher, Wilma Furez, Wilma Schmidt, and Wilma Feher. (The Feher last name is based off the "brother-in-law" mentioned earlier.)

Vilma, Wilma, Wilhelmina is my 2nd great-grandmother on my mother's side.