One Brick Wall Conquered

Since my last post in 2018 life took a turn from normal to one that stopped us in our tracks. It is now 2021. 

When the pandemic crossed the pond to America in 2020 researching changed from onsight researching in repositories to becoming an 'armchair genealogist'. By that I mean I joined the many others who rely on public family trees for clues, upgraded my basic subscriptions to access German records, and Zoom to continue my genealogy education. 

I finished projects to give as Christmas presents. I broke through several genealogy brick walls, and shared what I learned of my combined families with others. However the biggest achievement was confirmation of my dad's maternal lineage, one that I dubbed the 'quiet German ancestors'-my Monath family.

My great great grandfather Christian Monath came to America 21 July 1852 with his parents and several siblings. Prior to their arrival several of his siblings sailed the Atlantic Ocean and settled in Baltimore, Maryland. For years I read what others posted to their public trees. I wanted to trust what I read, but the need to be accurate was greater than just putting names into my database. 

The image of a German family record to the right is proof that Johann Christoph Monath married Anna Dorothea Weber and proved their children's births and names. One stuck out from the rest and that is Johann Georg Weber. He was born in 1825 in Hergershausen, Darmstadt-Dieburg, Hesse, Germany to Anna Dorothea Weber prior to her marriage to Johann Christoph Monath, which happened in 1829.  He was later accepted into the Monath family. BINGO! Now I can continue building my Monath family tree.

Another treat was meeting a lady online who is the older brother to my gr grandfather George Monath. It is nice to share even if on line with another extended cousin.

So, as we continue to move away from life in the pandemic and return to a life of more normalcy, I consider my achievements quite satisfying.