A Genealogy Hunt

29 October 2009

Afternoon,

Well great-great-grandfather Jacques definitely was here! For sure in Pennsylvania and New Jersey...

As to when gg-grandfather Jacques Brunhammer arrived on the shores of the United States is not a readily available date. As I mentioned in Part 92b we spent quite a bit of time searching for a hint of a passenger manifest or some immigration papers that could give us an answer. That search has been unsuccessful. Assistance at The National Archives in Philadelphia informed us that at times there are missing sequences of records, and of course, the sequence of manifests that we need to see, are those that occurred in the last four months of 1875.

But he was here… and he had to have been waiting at the Port of Philadelphia when the Amérique arrived on 17 May 1876. He had to have been there to meet his wife, gg-grandmother Marie and his children, Charles, Eugène, Geies, Jacques, Marie, and Camille.

The Port could well have been extremely crowded and awe-inspiring for the Brunhammer family from Dornach, in Alsace. By the time of the city's Centennial Exposition in 1876, Philadelphia was one of the largest cities in both Europe and America, surpassed only by New York, London, and Paris.

It was the year of the Centennial International Exhibition of Industry, a world’s fair, at Philadelphia. It was also the Centennial year of the United States of America. Seven days before the Brunhammers arrived; the Exposition had been ceremoniously opened by President Ulysses S. Grant on 10 May 1876 at Fairmount Park, as depicted in the above-inserted image.

The Brunhammers must have stared wide-eyed at the crowds of people coming and going at the Port. I can just imagine.

Did they ever get to the Exposition? Can’t say, but it may be nice to think they did, and that they may have visited the France Pavilion, (insert on right). Who knows?

(Sources: Centennial Exhibition Digital Collection, 2001, Free Library of Philadelphia, PA, and Centennial Exposition, Wikipedia.)

And can I say that the celebrations, the grandeur, the people, and the noise convinced gg-grandfather Jacques to quickly accept his and his family’s new found freedom? No, but it’s a nice thought, but we do know that within the next few years on the 21st of October 1880 he petitioned for American Citizenship in Camden County, New Jersey.

On 31 January 1883 in Camden County, New Jersey, gg-grandfather Jacques, aka Jacob Brunhammer swore to and was admitted a Citizen of the United States, duly marked by his “X”. And by the general rule “derivative” citizenship would have been granted to gg-grandmother Marie (aka Mary) and all their children who were under the age of 21. All-things-being-equal all the Brunhammers born in the Alsace region became Citizens.

The following is a copy of gg-grandfather Jacob (aka Jacques) Brunhammer's document of citizenship.

And my transcription -

In the Court of Common Pleas of the County of Camden, New Jersey,
OF THE TERM OF January A.D. 1883

      Be it Remembered, That on the thirty first day of January in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and Eighty three personally appeared Jacob Brunhammer, an Alien and Free White Person, and prayed to be admitted a Citizen of the United States, and is thereupon appearing to the Court that the said petitioner did, on the Twenty first day of October eighteen hundred and Eighty - before the Clerk officer

Court of Common Please Camden County

on his oath declare, that it was bona fide his intention to become a Citizen of the United States, and to renounce for-ever all allegiance and fidelity to any foreign Prince, Potentate, State or Sovereignty whatever, and particularly to
the

Republic of France

of whom he was then a subject, as by a duly certified copy of the record of the said declaration now exhibited to this Court fully appears. And the Court being satisfied, by due proof, that the said petitioner has resided in the United States five years at least, and within the State of New Jersey one year at least, and that during that time he has behaved as a man of good moral character, attached to the principles of the Constitution of the United States, and well disposed to the good order and happiness of the same. And the said petitioner having at this time declared an oath in Open Court, that he will support the Constitution of the United States, and the he doth abso-lutely entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to every foreign Prince, Potentate, State or Sovereignty
whatever, and particularly to the

Republic of France

       of whom he was heretofore a subject.

This Court do thereupon order, that the said Jacob Brunhammer be and he is hereby admitted a Citizen of the United States, agreeably to the Constitution of the United States, and the Acts of Congress in such case made and provided. - Done in Open Court, the day and year first above mentioned.

his
Jacob X Brunhammer
mark

Court of Common Please of Camden County, Term of January 1883 CAMDEN COUNTY, to wit: William C. Guy of the County of Camden in the State of New Jersey, a Citizen of the United States, being duly sworn according to law, saith, that he is personally acquainted with Jacob Brunhammer the foregoing petitioner; that he is a free white person, and, to deponent's knowledge, has resided within the United States for the continued term of five years at least next preceding this day, without at any_____ during the said five years out the the Territory of the United States, and one year at least within the State of New Jersey; that during that time he has behaved as a man of good moral character, attached to the principles of the Constitution of the United States, and well disposed to the good order and happiness of the same.

Sworn at Camden, this 31- day}
of January 1883 in Open Court.} William C. Guy

CAMDEN COUNTY, to wit Jacob Brunhammer the foregoing petitioner, on his oath declareth that he will support the Constitution of the United States, and that he doth absolutely and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to every foreign Price, Potentate, State and Sovereignty whatever, and par-ticularly to the

Republic of France

          of whom he was before a subject.

Sworn and subscribed, this 31}
day of January 1883 in Open Court.}

his
Jacob X Brunhammer
mark

Joss Hollinshead
Clerk

And by this date at least two more American-born Brunhammers had been added to the family clan; Harry and Joseph. Great-granduncle Harry had been born in 1877 in Pennsylvania and great-granduncle Joseph was born in New Jersey in 1880.

And that's it for this afternoon.

Enjoy,

Jim