Can someone make suggestions for how I should proceed in the search for the name of and information on a gr-gr-gr-grandmother? All we knew about her is that her name was Ellen, she was born in Germany (probably Prussia according to census records of her children), came to the U.S.A. at age 17 and was married to John Heidy sometime around 1840, probably in the Wisconsin-Minnesota-Iowa area. John and Ellen’s first child was born in Lafayette County, Wisconsin in 1842. She is listed as Ellen Heidy with the family in the 1855 Wisconsin State Census. One daughter was listed variously as Ellen or Nellie (later Horne) in census reports. Other children were Jane (Newton), Mary Ann (Hayden) and John. According to the 1925 Iowa State Census listing of daughter Mary Ann, her name was Helen Frisdligh. I did an online Ancestry search and found the following information: Helen Phis???, age 17, left Hamburg and arrived in New York in August 1837. She was traveling with Johan Phis???, age 2, and Margaret Phis???, age 4. Yes, this is the way the surname is listed on Ancestry; this is a transcription, this film is not yet on Ancestry. Doing an Ancestry wild-card search (Phis***), I was unable to find any of them after their arrival in New York. Is this Helen the same as Helen Frisdilgh and my Ellen? Frisdilgh is an unusual name; was the name phonetically spelled by the census taker?? How do you interpret this information? Where do I go from here to learn more including the correct spelling of the surname? All ideas will be appreciated.
Helen or Ellen is believed to have died in Lafayette County, WI well before John’s death in 1880, though no records or burial have been located. The family was probably Lutheran or Methodist – can someone suggest how to proceed to find records of these churches?
Thank you very much,
Merrily in southwestern Iowa
lilliemay@mchsi.com (please reply directly to this address)