"A Most Remarkable Woman"

We all have stories—at least in the New World—of ancestors who arrived on American shores and settled into life, whether following the same routine or following a vastly different path than they were accustomed to in the "old world." It makes me wonder, though, just why an immigrant ancestor chose the specific place which came to be the family's adopted home.

In the case of Theresa Blaising's mother, Mary Blaising selected New Haven, Indiana, as the next home for her children. By the time of her death in 1907, she—or someone among her children—was well enough connected to the community to have a tribute published on the front page of the Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette. Headlined as "A Most Remarkable Woman," Mary Ann Blaising, at her death, became subject of a flowery composition which stretched well beyond the fold line.

The article was written in the sentimental style of that time period, and basically contained the same information we've already seen in her obituary. What I had hoped for, however, was some clue as to why someone in far away France would know to head thousands of miles away, straight to a town which, at the time, boasted a population of barely nine hundred people.

My first thought was to check the 1870 census and search for any other potential family members sharing her married name, Blaising. Other than her own household, though, the only possible surname match was actually spelled Blessing, not Blaising. Each of the children in that other household was born in Indiana, but the parents—Catherine and Peter—were said to have been born specifically in Wurttemberg. On the census page where Mary's own household was included, only a few nearby homes included people born in France, but no sign of any possible fellow travelers that I could find in that 1870 census.

My next thought was to examine the names of others buried in the same church cemetery where Mary Blaising was laid to rest. Again, the only contemporaries sharing that surname seemed to be Mary's own children, their spouses, or their descendants.

Another approach, which indirectly led to further information, was to look at the occupations listed for Mary's sons in the 1870 census. At the time, only two of her children were listed as working outside the home: Henry and John. The entry for each of her eldest sons noted that they worked in a stove factory.

Well, that's a clue, so off I went to seek information on a stove factory in New Haven, Indiana. 

I was unsuccessful in my attempt.

Meanwhile, plying Google with every keyword variation I could conjure up, I ran across some other information. A lot of information, in fact. Enough to fill yet another day's post, if not more—and it's well worth the review, in case anyone else is stuck researching the same heritage.

My approach eventually led to the many nooks and crannies of the Internet where unknown-to-me organizations (or even individuals) had posted what was important to them about the place in Allen County, Indiana, called New Haven.

While I'll save the main points of that search for tomorrow, I'll cut to the chase on where Henry and John Blaising were employed in 1870. It likely wasn't a stove factory where they worked; it was a stave factory.