Joseph Striffler

Notes:

Tri-County Chronicle
Cass City, Mich., Friday, February 28, 1902
Vol. 3 No 41
Page 1

Passed the Portals

Another Pioneer citizen, Joseph Striffler, passed away last Tuesday morning. During the past three years he had been gradually failing, and most of the time was as helpless as a child. During all those weary weeks and months he made his home with his daughter, Mrs. Samuel BENKELMAN, who with unusual filial love cared for her father, although at times the care and anxiety thurst upon her became exceedingly burdensome. Joseph Striffler, during his younger years, was a man of sterling character, always true to his convictions and was more than ordinarily successful in the affairs of this world. His days were many. He lived to be nearly 77 years old. The deceased was born in Alsace, Germany, Sept. 17, 1825. He came to American with his parents in his fourth year and settled in Erie county, N.Y. In the year 1854 he was united in marriage to with Rosanna BALBASH of Lancaster, N.Y. and the same year moved to Scotland County, Mo., residing there elven years and from thence removed to Lee County, Ia. In November, 1876, he moved with his two daughters, and a foster child, now Mrs. J. BENKELMAN, his wife having died the previous year, to Cass City, where he has lived ever since. His two daughters, Mrs. Jacob MAIER and Mrs. Samuel BENKELMAN, survive him. The funeral was held at the Evangelical church on Thursday morning, Rev. L. BRUMM officiating. The remains were laid to rest in Elkland Cemetery.

Note: Joseph Striffler's foster daughter was Augusta Krehl, who married John Adam Benkelman.

A copy of his actual death certificate can be viewed online here:

http://seekingmichigan.org/

Indexed as Joseph Striffler



(Research):
Census Information:

1850 Census
New York, Erie County, Lancaster
Enumerated 23 Aug 1850
Page 200
1048-1082
Otil Strifler 59 F $2550 Germany
Jacob Strifler 30 M Farmer
Susanna Strifler 27 F
Joseph Stifler 24 M Farmer
Christian Strifler 22 m Farmer
John Strifler 17 Farmer New York (sic)
David Strifler 14


1860 Census
Missouri, Scotland County, Green Township
Enumerated 31 July 1860
Page 196
1405-1376
Joseph Striffler 35 M Farmer $500 $375 France
Rosanna Striffler 25 F Wirtemberg
Fanny Striffler 4 F Iowa

1870 Census
Iowa, Lee County, Franklin Twp, P.O. Franklin Center
Enumerated July 1870
27-27
Striffler, Joseph 45 M W Farmer $4000 $7600 France
Striffler, Rosina 35 F W Keeping House Wurttemburg
Striffler, Fannie 14 F W Attending School Iowa
Striffler, Mary 8 F W Mo

1880 Federal Census, Michigan, Tuscola, Elkland, ED 400
Page Fifteen SD 3D ED 400
Enumerated on the 12th of June 1880
George D. Peterhaus
C, 96
#140-140
Striffler, Joseph W M 54 Farmer France France France
Striffler, Mary W F 19 Daughter Housekeeper NY? France Wurtemberg
???, Augusta W F 10 Boarder At School Iowa Wurtemberg Bavaria (Foster Child?)

The home immediately following his was that of Jacob & Louisa Striffler.

1900 Census
Michigan, Tuscola County, Cass City
Enumerated 9 Jun 1900 A.D. Gillis
SD 8 ED 111 Sheet 5B

HH 109-112 Adam (b. 1861 NY) and Susan MUCK (b. 1862, NY)

HH 110-113
Bankleman, Samuel Hd W M August 1857 42 M 18 NY Germany Germany
Bankleman, Mary Wife W F Dec 1861 48 M 18 3/3 Mo Germany Germany
Bankleman, Bertha Dtr W F August 1883 16 S Mich NY Mich
Bankleman, Joseph Son W M Oct 1889 10 S Micg NY Mo
Bankleman, Ward Son W M Feb 1894 6 S Mich NY Mo
Striffer, Joseph F in Law W M Spet 1826 73 W 40 Mich (sic) NY (sic) Mo (sic)

Joseph married Rosina Margaretha Ballbach about 1854 in New York. Rosina was born on 12 Jan 1935 in W?rttemberg, Germany; died on 17 Apr 1874 in Lee County, Iowa. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

1. Fannie Striffler was born on 17 Feb 1856 in Lee County, Iowa; died on 4 Dec 1938 in Cass City, Tuscola County, Michigan; was buried on 6 Dec 1938 in Elkland Township Cemetery, Cass City, Tuscola County, Michigan.
2. Mary Striffler was born on 8 Dec 1860 in Madison, Monroe County, Missouri; died on 5 Aug 1952 in Cass City, Tuscola County, Michigan; was buried in Elkland Township Cemetery, Cass City, Tuscola County, Michigan.

Notes:

According to the Rev. Roy J. Striffler, the Striffler's emigrated from the Alsace-Lorraine region of France to New York State in 1830. They were part of the German-speaking population of Alsace. Some of the older Striffler family members recalled a family joke---there were 11 boys in the family, and all of them had a sister Susanna. She married Christian Oscar Lenzner. Family genealogists have only been able to account for eight of the 12 children however. Two of the boys married Benkelman sisters. One son married Mary Rommel, and as there were several Benkelman/Rommel marriages as well, the two families became further intertwined.

Although the family originally settled in New York only Jacob's son David remained in New York. Peter pushed further west, to Kansas. Around 1880, most of the others settled in Cass City, Michigan, where they lived until their deaths. They cut off the stumps remaining on the land they built and turned the wilderness into fruitful farm land.

(Excerpted from Art Peck's THE TEN BENKELMANS WHO EMIGRATED TO AMERICA. He in turn references a September 4, 1950 article from the "Striffler-Benkelman Broadcast", Volume 13, Cass City, Michigan)

Both the flyleaf of the Striffler family Bible, and the tombstone of Jacob Striffler in Lancaster, showed him to be be born in Kirrberg, "departmente de Rhein." (Jacobs, p. 164). In the chapter on the Striffler family in her unpublished 1981 manuscript, BonnieMargaret Jacobs noted that widely spread family stories stated that the Striffler family originated in Switzerland (p. 164). It would appear these were either errorneous, or that the family moved from Switzerland to Alsace.


BonnieMargaret Benkelman Jacobs, in an undated family report she prepared for some of the descendants of the Striffler brothers who married Benkelmann sisters, wrote that birth records had been of the children born to Jacob and Otillia "Have been extracted from the French civil records and translated, and show 8 children born in France, two of whom died while still just children (one was only 15 months old, the other just a few months past their sixth birthday). She stated that "these official civil records support the oft repeated family joke, "There are seven brothers and each one has a sister." On page 165 of her unpublished 1981 manuscript documenting the Benkelman family, she repeated this saying, adding however that "one Striffler heard the riddle with 11 brothers and it should be noted that there is still much to be learned about this family."

With the records in France showing 8 children were born there, and census records show two known children born in the United States, it appears we can account for 10 of the 11. It is possible that records may be uncovered one day to find the final child, or that this final son may have been stillborn or died at a young age, and his memory passed down only through the family joke or riddle.

Jacob married Ottila "Odila" "Otil" Zimmerman on 4 Nov 1809 in Kirberg, Imperial Territory of Alsace-Lorraine, Imperial Territory Of Alsace-Lorraine, Elsa?-Lothringen, Germany. Ottila was born on 10 Nov 1790 in Kirberg, Imperial Territory of Alsace-Lorraine, Imperial Territory Of Alsace-Lorraine, Elsa?-Lothringen, Germany; died on 17 Sep 1863 in Lancaster, Erie County, New York. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

Her father was a school master.

(Research):

Census Listings;

1850 Census
New York, Erie County, Lancaster
Enumerated 23 Aug 1850
Page 200
1048-1082
Otil Strifler 59 F $2550 Germany
Jacob Strifler 30 M Farmer
Susanna Strifler 27 F
Joseph Stifler 24 M Farmer
Christian Strifler 22 m Farmer
John Strifler 17 Farmer New York (sic)
David Strifler 14

1860 Census
Not located