Re: Ellen Kauffman (Livingston/Livingstone) Pennsylvania
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In reply to:
Ellen Kauffman (Livingston/Livingstone) Pennsylvania
2/22/11
I assume you mean the Catharine and Ellen listed with Jonas Kauffman in the 1880 census of Somerset County, PA.
Do you know who Ellen married, when and where she died? Do you know anything else about Catharine?
Here's a bit of data on Jonas: http://wc.rootsweb.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=Search&includedb=&lang=en&ti=&surname=kauffman&stype=Exact&given=jonas&bplace=&byear=&brange=0&dplace=&dyear=&drange=0&mplace=&myear=&mrange=0&father=&mother=&spouse=mary+hers*&skipdb=&period=All&submit.x=Searchhttp://wc.rootsweb.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=Search&includedb=&lang=en&ti=&surname=kauffman&stype=Exact&given=jonas&bplace=&byear=&brange=0&dplace=&dyear=&drange=0&mplace=&myear=&mrange=0&father=&mother=&spouse=mary+hers*&skipdb=&period=All&submit.x=Search
There are several sources to try: Ellen's death certificate, obituary and marriage record. Jonas' obit doesn't list his children, but he may have left an estate. He might have an estate file at the Somerset or Cambria County Register of Wills. Any land he owned may have been sold by his heirs which would be on record at the Recorder of Deeds in the county he owned the land. The obits for any of Catharine's siblings might list her married name (assuming she ever married).
It's marginally possible a guardian may have been provided for Ellen if she were to inherit anything as a minor. This would have been filed at the Orphans Court which is usually in the same office as the Register of Wills. Sometimes back then the mother would identify the father of an out of wedlock child for purposes of support at the county Prothonotary. It wasn't done very often so it's a long shot.
Ellen's baptismal record may or may not list the father. Most likely she was baptized at the same church her mother and grandparents attended.
I don't know Somerset County very well, but try the Meyersdale Public Library and the Rockwood Area Historical & Genealogical Society. If they cannot help you they should at least be able to point you in the right direction. You could also try the Conemaugh Township Area Historical Society, but I honestly don't know to what extent they can help you.