A New Start in a New Country

Migration is a factor in most, if not all, family trees. Whether moving from region to region, country to country, or continent to continent, the human family does not stay in one place across the decades, centuries, or millennia. My research found that my ancestors immigrated to the United States mostly in the 19th century. The following list summarized those immigrants I have identified to date.

Maternal Line

Edouard Alma Desjarlais, my 2nd great-grandfather, immigrated to the United States from Québec, Canada in the 1870s. He was born in Canada around 1866, and married my 2nd great-grandmother Azama May Joubert, who was also born in Canada. Edouard worked in a variety of occupations. He was a worker in the cotton mills in Warwick, Rhode Island, in the 1880 census, a fruit peddler in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, in the 1900 census, and a foundry laborer in North Adams, Massachusetts, in the 1910 census.

Joseph Varin, my 2nd great-grandfather, immigrated to the United States from Canada in the late 1800s. He was born in Canada in the early 1860s and married my 2nd great-grandmother Georgiana Gagnon on 20 March 1885 in Southbridge, Massachusetts. Georgiana was also born in Canada in the 1860s.

Paternal Line

August William Boelter, my 2nd great-grandfather, immigrated to the United States from Germany likely in the 1880s. He was born in Germany in 1879 and married Anna A Schmidt in Wisconsin around 1907. The censuses show he lived in Neenah, Wisconsin, for most of his life, working as a brewer (1910), a creamery deliveryman (1920), a sporting goods salesman (1930), and a lunch counter waiter (1940).

Franz Cziske, my 3rd great-grandfather, immigrated to the United States from Prussia in 1866, passing through New York City on the way to Wisconsin. Born in Prussia in 1835, he immigrated with his wife Justina and their infant daughter Martha. Justina was born in Prussia around 1841. Franz was a farmer in Harrison township in Calumet County, Wisconsin.

John E Schubert, my 3rd great-grandfather, immigrated to the United States from Germany in 1845, passing through New York City. Likely born in Bavaria in 1840, he married Matilda Luscaine in Wisconsin in 1862. Matilda was born in Prussia around 1841, immigrating to the United States around 1855. John was variously employed as a mason, in the 1850 census, as a saloon keeper, in the 1860 census, as a moulder, in the 1870 census, and as "dealing drug and groceries," in the 1880 census.

John A Strelow, my 2nd great-grandfather, immigrated to the United States from Prussia around 1882. Born in Prussia in 1878, he married Minnie Schroeder around 1899. Minnie was probably born in Brandenburg, Germany, around 1884, and immigrated to the United States around 1887 with her father, John Schroeder, and mother, Marie. John was a dairy farmer.

As I continue to work back in time, I know I will find more international immigrants in my family. Documenting them and attempting to determine why they decided to uproot their lives and move to a new country across the sea is a wonderful research challenge.