Schenk family of Signau that lived in Vechigen

The methodology of Billeter’s research to place everyone in their heimat regardless of where they lived has led to countless errors.  While both Schenk families were from Signau, only one actually lived in Signau. Take the example below:

I began to look at the parents of Anna Schenk of Signau and was surprised to find that the line is incorrect.  It is the result of Billeter’s research in the 1930’s. Christian Stettler married Anna Schenk (KHCL-WLP) in Bolligen in 1809.  The marriage record says her father’s name is Hans Ulrich.  There are two Anna Schenk’s born in 1788 when she was born.  Ulrich Schenk and Anna Kupfer had a daughter, Anna (LDMF-Z5N), in May of 1788 in Schwimmbach; and Hans Ulrich Schenk and Elisabeth Krayenbuhl had a daughter, Anna (KHCL-WLP), in February of 1788 in Vechigen.  The records indicate that the Anna from Schwimmbach, died 3 November 1792, age 4.  Schwimmbach is a hamlet in Signau parish. Vechigen is about 12 miles east of Signau.  When Anna Schenk died in 1859 her birth is recorded as February 1788.  Three months after their marriage in Bolligen their first son, Christian, was born in Vechigen as well their second child, Anna.  The witnesses to the ten children of Christian Stettler and Anna Schenk are inconclusive in identifying possible relatives of Anna.  It is obvious that the Anna Schenk that married Christian Stettler is from Vechigen and counter to the conclusion found in Billeter’s research.

Upon looking at the Hans Ulrich Schenk who lived in Vechigen I find additional errors.  Billeters research provides no clues as to where the children were born other than Signau which is the heimat of this Schenk family.  Hans Ulrich Schenk had 12 children with 2 wives.  The first 3 children were born in Worb where he married Elisabeth Rüfenacht, he had three additional children in Vechigen and then Elisabeth Rufenacht died in 1778.  He then married Elizabeth Krayenbuhl in 1779 and had 6 additional children, one of which was Anna in 1788.  Hans Ulrich then died in Vechigen in 1811 at the age of 75 years and 7 months which puts his birth in February 1736.

Billeters research divides the two families of Hans Ulrich Schenk into two separate families with one connected to a Hans Ulrich born in 1837 (KH5M-2S9) and the other Hans Ulrich born in 1842 (KZ5B-GT3). The Hans Ulrich born in 1837 may be the correct person since the age is within a year, yet with all the other inconsistencies I find in Billeter’s research concerning this family I doubt any conclusions found. The research appears to be based on convenient guessing rather than real research.  In fact, some of errors are so obvious it appears to be an act of disinformation. 

I might mention Ulrich Schenk and Anna Kupfer had a son, Christian who was a well known mechanical engineer or inventor, and grandparents of Johan Karl Schenk a famous pastor, politician, and member of the Swiss Federation Council. 

If you have any Schenk ancestors from Signau it may be a good idea to revisit the research and verify the accuracy of the current research in the FamilyTree.

Baumgarten and Röthenbach Bösiger’s

After sorting out the Schenk family of Signau that lived in Vechigen I move onto the Bösiger family.  The Bösiger family lived in Herzogenbuchsee kirchgemeinde.  It is commonly written Boesiger, since umlauts were not used in American research (ö = oe).   This kirchgemeinde has 14 gemeindes in it.  Our ancestors are found in the gemeindes of Röthenbach and Graben.  The research for this family was conducted about 1964, submitted 1966.  

What is unique about Graben is that the registers generally do not mention Graben by name but the hamlets within the gemeinde.  Baumgarten is a small area within the Gemeinde; north of there is Burrach and south of there is Kleinholz.  In familytree and many old family group records the place is simply written Baumgarten without a mention of Graben or Herzogenbuchsee.  With the breakdown of the families in these specific hamlets it becomes easier to sort the numerous Bösiger’s in the area.  

I focused on the 1st and 2nd families of Hans Bösiger.  He married Ursula Gränicher in 1743, after she died in 1762, he then married Maria Gygax in 1763.  There are 13 children between the two marriages, of which 7 or 8 survived into adulthood. View the family in the familytree, it is a work in progress

In the first family the 4 marriages of the children were incorrect or missing, and a key name in that family was altered from Urs to Ursula.  Urs Bösiger is found as a witness to many of the baptisms of his siblings. In the second family only one marriage was incorrect.  To view the genealogy as it was submitted in 1966 see film 564385, item 5.  These 5 marriages result in 5 new families which adds 30 new people to the tree, and many others in the following generations. Since the incorrect data has been around for 50 years or more I would expect some people to be baffled by the changes.

I also have come to realize that Hans Bösiger married a Maria Gygax born in 1842 rather than 1835. The Gygax family is from Thörigen gemeinde.   The witnesses to the baptisms of the children of Hans Bösiger and Maria Gygax align perfectly with the Maria Gygax born in 1742.  There is also a match for the Maria born in 1835 who married Joseph Staub in 1766.  The death records for the 2 Maria’s are yet to be found, and that would provide absolute proof.  It appears the Maria born in 1835 was chosen simply because of her age.

This is the same scenario of Hans Ulrich Schenk.  He married and had a family with his wife, when she died after about 20 years of marriage, he married a 20 year old, which means that the oldest children from his first marriage are about the same age as his new wife.  He then went on to have numerous children with his new wife.   

Within the family of Hans Bösiger and Maria Gygax I have found three descendants who have who joined the Mormon Church.  

If the Bösiger’s, Gygax’s, or any other family in Herzogenbuchsee are to be properly researched and or organized, they need to be noted in the familytree or any genealogy with the gemeinde they come from not the parish, Herzogenbuchsee, since there are 14 gemeindes.  The same surname will be found in numerous gemeindes within the parish, and there is no point in trying to connect them since they will not be related. In the case of Graben, it is hamlets, since the records separates the families by hamlets.  

Julius Billeter's Notes

Julius Billeter's Notes

As I have noted in past posts, most people in the Switzerland are associated exclusively with their hiemat regardless of where they lived. By reviewing Billeter’s notes one can see that this was his methodology. In the computer age the advantage that Billeter gave us is to be able to find records on people and families much quicker using the dates and the hiemat a person was associated with. His work can be used as a means to an end.

Transcription of family entry. View Original 
Top of Page - Jufer v. Melch. (Melchnau)
Jb (Joh) 2.10.78   19.8.42    d 26.6.83 - (4th family down left side)
Barb Frauchiger v. Auswil (Joh) 
Barb 22.10.79 4.99 Jb Ladermann v. Madiswil
Magd 13.5.81 ?? d 18.2.93 11.9
√ J Uli 30.3.83
Abbreviations - Jb =Jacob; Joh=Johannes; Barb=Barbara; Magd=Magdalena; J Uli=Johann Ulrich 
(There are a few errors in the notes. Barbara Frauchiger was from Eriswil not Auswil, The second child was Maria not Magdalena.)

Julius Billiter was quite remarkable in his ability to research so many people in an organized manner. Where ever a person was living their baptism, burial, and marriage was recorded in their hiemat. If they happened to be living anywhere other than their hiemat it was recorded there as well, so for many people there are two copies of the event in different handwriting. Deciphering the handwriting can be difficult at times. Having two copies makes it easier. It is wise to check every copy available since the pfarrer or pastor in each parish did not always record the same facts. It appears that Billeter did not consult multiple copies of a record.

 It has been noted that there are errors in his work in connecting adult married children to parents; however, pre 1810 the records can be sparse with information. Every family basically used the same given names. Starting in the 1810’s the record keeping increased substantially, thus making it possible to make solid connections from one generation to the next. The most important record keeping change can be found in the marriage record when they started recording the getauft or baptism date of those who were getting married. The death records started to record the exact age a person down to the day and you will begin to find a death date written on a baptism record. Getauft or baptism records started to record the grandfathers name consistently and the parents’ marriage date. Some parishes adopted the new standards quickly while other lagged behind.

Summary of Billeters notes:

• At the top of each page are the Surname and the hiemat
• Birth and death dates are exclusively associated with the hiemat
• The dates are accurate with a few exceptions
• All the given names are abbreviated
• What resembles a check mark next to some people means that line continues on another page
• Billeter’s handwriting can be difficult to decipher
• Birth, Death, and Marriage dates are recorded without location
• The spouses full name is recorded and her hiemat
•  Females took their spouses hiemat upon marriage
• Not digitized - On film

 It is not really necessary to review the notes on every family, only when there is a question with the family connections. Knowing the date and the hiemat is typically enough to locate a person in the parish registers. Use Billeters notes as a means to an end in creating an accurate genealogy by consulting the church books. The results of Billeters work is on Family Search Family Tree, start adding places, correcting errors and making accurate lineage connections with sources.

Swiss genealogies on Family Tree at familysearch.org

Julius Billeters notes 

Since most of the Swiss genealogies are the result of Julius Billeter's research, the same inherit problems I found in my research, will be found in most genealogies on Family Search Family Tree. It is estimated that Julius Billeter research resulted in the submission of over 1 million names during his career as a genealogist. The genealogies are submissions made pre 1960’s, and many of the genealogies on Family Tree are unchanged from those submissions. Family Tree has the largest collection of Swiss genealogies in the world. For those of us with Bernese ancestry it just became a lot easier to create an accurate genealogy. Now with the click of the mouse one can view the same parish registers that Julius Billeter used to compile all those genealogies.

The Stettler’s of Bolligen on the Family Tree is the result of research conducted by Julius Billiter in the 1920’s, 1930’s and 1940’s. Ernest Stettler and others paid Julius Billeter money over the years to gather genealogies of particular families. Billeter sent them over 15,000 names over the years. Now we have a snap shot of the research on the FamilyTree that is a result of the submissions made to the church as a result of Julis Billeters research. I have gone through my various lines adding sources, and I found errors, omissions, and duplication of submissions. I have added over 100 new people to the genealogy.

The problem is twofold; how Billeter recorded the information and how it was submitted to the church. The family group sheets which were started in the early 1940’s contained no place to enter the death or marriage place of children. On Family Tree rarely is there a death place, and the marriage place is not recorded or the place can be a gemeinde, not a kirchgemeinde. When I started researching 6 months ago I had the Maurer family from Zollikofen. Every records says they were born and married in Zollikofen; however, I could find no entry in the catalog referring to Zollikofen. Zollikofen is a gemeinde in the kirchgemeinde of Bremgarten, so all the births, deaths, and marriages will be recorded there. Anyone who lived in Zollikofen or had a hiemat there will be found in the church books of Bremgarten.

While all the dates are quite accurate, the place names are based on the hiemat or community from which they originate from. The Frauchiger family from Eriswil who were living in Busswil bei Melchnau as early as 1740 are still recorded as being born in Eriswil, or Wyssachengraben which is a gemeinde of Eriswil, in the 1850’s. People moved around often, yet this is not reflected in the genealogies. One would think that they lived in one gemeinde for centuries without change. Typically they did not live far from there hiemat.

This article focuses on Bern canton. With the Church books of Bern Canton online now it is possible to compare, correct, and source the genealogies on Family Search Family Tree. Filmed copies of the church books were made available in the early 1990’s at familysearch (before computers); thereafter, digital copies of the church books were made available on CD. Now the church books are online, 500 thousand pages worth.

Summary of original genealogies on Family Tree

• Perhaps we should call it, Billeter's genealogy
• people are recorded as being born in there hiemat exclusively
• marriages are associated with a persons hiemat rather than where it took place
• most deaths and many marriages have no place name attached
• errors or omissions exist, but only will be discovered by reviewing the church books
• Deaths records are marginalized, valuable information can be found in death records
• Getauft and geboren dates are interchangeable

Gemeinde, Kirchgemeinde, Switzerland

I have found a few very useful websites in sorting out the community where people lived as well as a description of the gemeinde or community of each place in Switzerland. As an example I will focus on the gemeinde and kirchgemeinde of Melchnau in Bern Canton. The gemeinde of Melchnau was 4 square miles and the kirchgemeinde was 10 square miles and included the gemeindes of Busswil, Gondiswil, and Reisiswil. To determine which surnames that belonged to each gemeinde, hiemat, or community go to the website, Register of Swiss Surnames. In german is its called, Familiennamebuch der Schweiz. The kirchgemiende of Melchnau is where the church records were kept for the 10 square mile area. The parish registers are on film, CD, and online at familysearch. While baptisms may have taken place in the hiemat or community, the marriages would have taken place in the parish church in Melchanu. Or as I have learned they may have went to a nearby parish church or kirchgemeinde to get married.
To get an idea about the gemeinde or community where they lived go to the website, Historisches Lexikon der Schweiz; type a place name in the search box (Melchnau, Busswil, Gondiswil, and Reisiswil), and then click the link to the place. It will come up in german. Copy the text into Google translate and in seconds you will have an English translation. These communities or gemeindes were in the district of Arawangen but now in the district of Oberaargau. Wikipedia provides details about each place.

138 year Closure Period for Records in Switzerland

Now we know that the family lived in Recherswil we can look at marriages of the children. The seven girls in the family would have married men from the area, so they would not be found in Affoltern registers, except for their marriages. The women took the hiemat of their husbands. It doesn't matter anyway. In Switzerland the closure period for records begins in 1876. This means that those who married after 1876, there is no marriage record available for viewing; therefore, all those young people who married post 1876 cannot be traced to the next generation. It is not possible to trace post 1876 descendants in Switzerland. When I was at the zivilstandsamt in Tracheswald some years ago I was able to get the familienschein for the Christen family. The familienscheins are limited to direct line ancestors; although, I’m not sure how they police this standard since I produced family group sheets of the family as evidence of my connection. I would assume this 138 year closure period is why so few Swiss genealogies can be found, and those found with people after 1876 can be considered unreliable since no records can be used to verify the accuracy.
I used to think a hundred year closure period was harsh. When they do change the closure period to 1900 it will take many years for the records in the form of microfilm or online images to become accessible. Probably after 2025.

Did your Swiss ancestor live in their hiemat?

The concept of recording the hiemat of a family for a birthplace rather than where they lived or born is and was a wide spread practice in Swiss research. It is for one simple reason, their records were kept there; however, a record was kept where they lived as well. As time marched on more and more people were no longer living in their hiemat. I have wondered how Anna Christen (1861-1917) from Affoltern met and married Gottfried Jaggi (1860-1918) in 1883 in Kriegstetten, canton of Solothurn. The family group sheets of the past provide no clues. I followed the paper trail (parish registers) of Anna’s family from when her parents, Peter Christen and Maria Bürki, married in 1860 in Affoltern im Emmental. They had 11 childern from 1860 till 1881. They never lived in Affoltern im Emmental after they married. For 9 years after their marriage they lived about 8 miles north of Affoltern in Rohrbach parish, and many years in the town of Lemiswil. About 1870 is when they arrived in Recherswil. Both Anna and Peter died there.

Distances: Affoltern im Emmental to Rohrbach – 8 miles; Rohrbach to Lemiswil – 3 miles; Lemiswil to Recherswil – 12 miles Distances

Family group sheet prepared in the 1950’s by Gottfried Jaggi

Jaggi Stettler website; Peter Christen and Anna Bürki

A picture of the baptism record of Anna Christen (1861-1917) (#29)
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