Part 903bk – Brunhammer Katz – Who is Charles Custer? Was he Great-Grand-Uncle Charles Brunhammer?

Good Day,

"Who was Charles Custer?" Was he Great-Grand-Uncle Charles Brunhammer? Was he GG-Grandparents Jacques (aka Jacob) and Marie (aka Marie née Katz) Brunhammer's eldest son?

According to the Board for Certification of Genealogists – Skill building: Proof Arguments - Very often the process of writing a proof argument will reveal to us weaknesses in evidence and logic where additional research is required. When reasonably exhaustive research, careful analysis, and correlation of evidence lead to a sound genealogical conclusion, a proof argument should be constructed to defend it. (Wikipedia)

Here is some of the evidence.

1. Based on the Autosomal DNA test – Andy Brunhammer and WQ are related, per the Ancestry.com testing to the “Possible range: 4th – 6th cousins”.

2. In a discussion with WQ it was stated “that my family lore was that my great grandmother's surname by birth was Custer - the same great grandmother through which I'm related to the Brunhammers? I still say, speculatively, that Charles Brunhammer used Custer as an alias for whatever reason(s).”

1905 New Jersey State Census

3. In the 1905 New Jersey State Census “Mary Brunhamer and Charles Brunhamer” are listed at 905 Jersey Ave., Gloucester, Camden, New Jersey. Mary and Charles are listed at being born in May 1841 and November 1862, respectively.


4. Per the 1920 US Census for Philadelphia City, Pennsylvania GG-Grandmother Marie (née Katz) Brunhammer is listed as “Mary Brunhamer – Boarder – Age:79 – Place of Birth: France”.

1920 US Federal Census, Philadelphia, PA

5. Also at the same house at 1679 North 56th Street is one “Charles Custer – Boarder – Age:55 – Place of Birth: France”.

6. Both Mary Brunhamer and Charles Custer list on the same 1920 US Census as their “Year of immigration to the United States” as “1876” and their “Year of naturalization” as “1890”.

1922 Certificate of Death -
Mary Brunhammer

7. On Mary Brunhammer’s Certificate of Death, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, File No. 109606, dated 11 December 1922, “Charles Custer” is listed as the Informant. His address is included as “245 S 3 St. Glouster, NJ.”

8. Mary Brunhammer’s “Place of Death” is listed as “1679 N. 56th St.” in Philadelphia. This is the same address that she and Charles Custer are boarding at per the 1920 US Federal Census.

Linked  1920 US Census versus 1922 Certificate of Death

9. Included in Great-Great-Grandparents Marie Katz’s and Jacques Brunhammer’s 1867 Marriage Registration is the following paragraph -

“Et aussitôt les nouveaux époux, nous ont déclaré qu’il est né d’un enfant, du sexe masculine, inscrit aux les régistrés d l’État civil de Soultz (Haut-Rhin) en daté du quinze novembre mil huit cent soixante-deux, sous les nom et prénom de Katz Charles, lequel ils reconnaissent pour leur fils, voulant que la présente déclaration légitime sa naissance. De toute quoi nous avons dressé le présente acte en présence de 1re, Ambroise Roos, coutre-mâitre de fabrique, agé de trente-six ans, 2ieme, Antoine Doger, fondeur, agé de trente-neuf ands, 3ieme, Rodlolphe Gôtz, tailleur d'habite, agé de trente-neuf ans, et 4ieme, Georges Lux, cordonnier, agé de trente-un ans, les quatre domiciliés ã Thann, non parens ni alliés des contraitanté(?), de moins choisis par les nouvèaux épouix qui ont signé avec eus, le père de l'époux, la mère de l'épouse et nous après lecture faite de présente acte.”

1867 Marriage Registration,
Soultz, Haut-Rhin, Alsace, France
Jacques Brunhammer and Marie Katz

Translated, (as best as I can) –

“And immediately the new spouses told us that he was born of a child of the male sex registered in the registrars of the Civil State of Soultz (Haut-Rhin) dated the fifteenth of November one thousand eight hundred and sixty-two, Under the name and first name of Katz Charles, which they recognize for their son, wanting that the present declaration legitimizes its birth. From all of which we have drawn up the present deed in the presence of 1st Ambroise Roos, factory-mate, aged thirty-six, second, Antoine Doger, founder, aged thirty-nine, third, Rodolphe Gotz, tailor Georges Lux, a shoemaker, who was thirty-one years of age, the four domiciled in Thann, who were neither parents nor allies of the contraitanté, less chosen by the new spouses who had signed with The father of the husband, the mother of the wife and us after reading this act.”

10. In 1876 the Amerique Manifest, both Marie Brunhammer and 6 of her children are included when they arrived at New York; and then moved on to Philadelphia. Charles is listed as the eldest of the children who made the voyage across the Atlantic.

Within all the documents that I have been able to gather both GG-Grandmother Marie (aka Mary) Brunhammer’s and Great-Grand-Uncle Charles Brunhammer’s and/or Custer’s ages correspond closely to the possibility of their given birth years. Is it possible that Great-Grand-Uncle Charles did change his surname for some period?

In the 1905 New Jersey State Census “Charles Brunhamer” is indicated as “M” which stands for “Married”. In the 1920 United State Census for Philadelphia “Charles Custer” is listed as “Div”, standing for “Divorced”.

With these facts and Charles Custer being the "Informant" on Great-Great-Grandmother Mary Brunhammer's Death Certificate, I would tender to say that there is a possibility that Charles Custer must be Charles Brunhammer.

And there are some more documents to search for in order to find to help with the question “Who is Charles Custer?”

These include if they exist:

1. 1910 United States Census showing either Charles Brunhammer or Charles Custer
2. A Marriage Registration for Charles Brunhammer
3. A Divorce decree for Charles Brunhammer or Charles Custer
4. A Death Registration for Charles Brunhammer or Charles Custer

And these documents could have been completed in either of New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, or even Delaware.

Oh yeah, I just located the actual registration 1862 Birth Registration in Soultz, France for Charles Katz? Stay tuned for my posting on A Genealogy Hunt.

Katz, Brunhammer, Custer - “Who is Charles Custer?” I wonder if he was ever been acquainted with Ayn Rand?

Family connections can be seen on the family tree, the Brunhammer Doherty Family Tree. If you would like access to the tree you will need an invitation from me. You can sign up with Ancestry, and from what I understand, WITHOUT having to take a membership subscription. Feel free to contact me at jsmith58@gmail.com.

If you have any comment, question, thought, idea please feel free to contact me via email at A Genealogy Hunt.

Regards,

Jim