Valentin Nafziger

Notes:

His grandfather, Jacob Pelsy, was witness to his birth.

Rough translation of birth document:
Rhodes, August 16, 1876
The cultivator Pierre Nafziger, dwelling with Milbert (family?) near Robecourt, Mennonite, and Catherine Pelsy his spouse, Mennonite, dwelling with Milbert, has remained with her husband at Rhodes, without notice of farmer Jacob Pelsy August 16 of the year one thousand eight hundred seventy eight has a child male who has been given first name of Valentine. Approved and signed by the declarant, Pierre Nafziger.

Other Events and Attributes:

• Occupation: Cultivateur

Notes:

Lived in Rhodes in 1876 at the time of Valentin’s birth.

Birth:
Near Sarrebourg.

Pierre married Catherine Pelsy in 1870. Catherine (daughter of Jacob Pelsy (Pelzel, Bellesley) and Madeleine Schertz) was born on 20 Apr 1851; died in 1935. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Christian + Marie Kempf. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

Died:
Maurice Hebert

Buried:
Pelsy family Cemetery

Jacob married Madeleine Schertz on 15 Mar 1847 in Rhodes, Moselle, FR. Madeleine (daughter of Jean Schertz and Catherine Abresol) was born on 3 Oct 1827 in Recherey, Moselle, FR; died on 1 Jun 1897 in Rhodes, Moselle, FR; was buried in Chassey Beaupré, Meuse, FR. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

Around 1920, after the departure of her sons who rented a farm near Thionville, Barbe went to join her daughter in Chassey, where she was buried.

Birth:
near Herbeviller

Died:
Personnes citées : 1. PELSI ; PELSY Christian Christophe - 504 - , né en 1814 à Rhodes (57), Famille 6 cultivateur Rhodes 1846, Frère

Notes:

Married:
Maurice Hébert

Other Events and Attributes:

• Occupation: Famille 62 Cultivateur Rhodes 1846 (Ste. Croix)
• Residence: until 1810, Azoudange, Moselle, FR

Notes:

Christian was at Rhodes in 1774. He was mayor of Rhodes from June to September 1819.

Christian and Catherine had a total of ten children, all of whom stayed in Rhodes, except for Joseph, Jean and Catrina.

“At Hellocourt ‘Christianne Belzele’ appeared as a witness on two wedding entries: André Vercler and Barbe Rupp on Feb. 1, 1804 (he was a brother-in-law of the groom), and Jacob Bachman and Barbe Vercler the following day (he was a brother-in-law of the bride). He is described as a worker in Hellocourt. On the second entry, another witness was minister Joseph Engel (son of elder Christian Engel), later to be an Amish Mennonite elder, who was also described as a brother-in-law of the bride.”

In Rhodes Christian was a successful cultivator and served as interim mayor June 9-July 6, 1819, signing four etat civil entries in that capacity. His farm, close to Rhodes, was St. Croix.
——————————————

Cimetière Anabaptiste-Mennonite de Rhodes - Moselle Jan 4, 2016 FB post

While their older brothers Joseph (Red Joe), John and Peter, as well as their sister Catherine emigrated to the USA one after the other, Christian, Jacob and Nicolas Pelsy all chose to get married and settle in their hometown. Christian and Nicolas got married to 2 Abresol sisters, Catherine and Barbe, who were both from Rhodes. As for Jacob, he found his wife Madelaine Schertz in Rehere (Meurthe et Moselle), a village near the town of Baccarat. All of them are burried in the cemetery.

It should be noted the existence in the 19th century on the levee of the pond of the mill (Farm of bachats) of a mill operated by the family abresol.
This one is now destroyed, only remain the two wheels in the gardens of the field.
———————

Residence:
Domaine de Hellocourt-fFour children were born here

Died:
Sources : 1. Maurice hébert 2. Swic ucgl, 12/06/1837: 3. Robert boehm

Christian married Catherine Verkler (Wirckler) before 1802. Catherine (daughter of Joseph Verkler and Marie Abresol) was born on 1 Jan 1778 in Oberstinzel, Fenetrange, Moselle, FR; died on 4 Apr 1860 in Rhodes, Moselle, FR. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

Birth:
(57)

Died:
(57)

Other Events and Attributes:

• Occupation: Miller

Notes:

From Guermange. Lived in Reherrey, below Herbeviller, Moselle. He was in Gondrexange for several years during the Revolution.

Jean evidently had a first marriage that produced Andrés.
Madeleine’s birthdate is after Catherine's death. Was there a third wife?
———————
Jean had lost a child by accident with a firearm in 1794.
A boy of 10 years playing with his companion manipulates a loaded firearm that has killed the small boy. The drama happened in the Ketzing gap. The captain of the National Gendarmerie in Blamont made the following report [summary]:
“A child about four years old was accidentally killed with a shot of a gun. I stopped at citizen Jean Chertz’s house to get necessary information. I asked the mother of the child, but she could not give details.
A young man aged ten, joking to amuse the child actually aimed a loaded weapon toward the child on a bench opposite. The weapon discharged and killed the child.
Questions were asked:
To whom did the gun belong? Jean Schertz, to another Anabaptist family from Ketzing? To a ranger from the forest of Ketzing? Why was a weapon in a Ketzing family? What kind of arms was it, a hunting weapon or rifle? Hunting, in our opinion, was not allowed by the peasants of the Old Regime.”
The report of the Captain gives no answers.

Birth:
(1758-60)

Jean married Catherine Abresol on 16 Sep 1807 in Rhodes, Moselle, FR. Catherine was born in 1760; died on 23 Aug 1812 in Sarrebourg, Moselle, FR. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

Witnesses:
Jacques Abresol, 28, brother of the bride; Christopher Rocher, 40 of St. Croix; Michael Salzman, St. Croix, 50; and Jean Gingerich, cultivator and owner of St. Croix.

(Oct 27,2004 email from Joe Staker.)

Married:
Witnesses: Jean Gerack [Schrag] (1777-1838), and Anna Engel (1772-1809)