Ancestors in 52 Weeks - Out of Place

This year's challenge is 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks and is run by Amy Johnson Crow.

Topic:
Did you ever find an ancestor in an unexpected place? I recently discovered that my 3rd-great-grandmother didn't die in the county where I found her in every census. Instead, I found her living 4 counties away from there -- in the county where I currently live. She's even buried here. (I'm still trying to figure out why.) Maybe you found an ancestor in a record you didn't expect (like finding a member of a pacifist religion serving in the Civil War). Or maybe there's an ancestor who always seemed "out of place" with the rest of the family.

I have a few ancestor's which could probably fit this selection. One is my great grandparents and the other would probably be my mother's maternal side moving to Newburgh, NY. For each of these, there are questions around them, but I think I'll stick with my great grandparents.

I've mentioned before my maternal great grandparents - Jules and Anne Gauquie. Well Jules' formal name was Joannes Julius Van Rompaye Gauquie. He was born to an unwed mother, this is where the Van Rompaye comes from, but when his father found out, he married Jules' mother. I think there were many Joannes, as it was a common name among the region, which is why he was always called Jules, or that's what I've put together over time.

What area are you questioning? 
According to the topic, did I ever find them in an unexpected place, is the question to be answered. Boy, did I ever find them in a weird area. I'll explain below.

After I found my grandfather's last name, I did searches on the name and started to find family on things like the census of 1910, 1920, 1900. This lead me to Belgium, but I had a hard time to where to get started. I found a system like Ancestry, but it was for Europe called Geneanet. I posted what information I had there in hopes to find my great grandfather's family. After I had help finding Jules' birth entry in Belgium, I could then narrow down when he came to the US.

I contacted the county clerk in New York where they were apart of. I asked them if they had Jules or Annie's passport applications as I was looking for information about them. Also, it would be great to see if the applications had pictures so I could see what they looked like, but this was a bonus.

Soon after I received information on them both and she asked me if I knew an Aloyis Gauquie. This left me stunned because according to the birth entry this was Jules' father! I answered back stating he was Jules' father. Within hours I had an email with copies of all (Jules, Annie, and Aloyis!) their Naturalization Paperwork.  Most of it confirmed the information I had already from my research.

Part of Aloys Gauquie Naturalization paperwork. Credit: Orange County, NY Register 

What shocked me is when it stated Annie and Jules' got married in St. Paul's Minnesota from Annie's Declaration of Intention paperwork. As far as I knew, we had NO relatives there.

Page 1 of Annie Gauquie's Petition for Naturalization listing where she was married. Credit: Orange County, NY Register

Why St. Paul's Minnesota?
This is the question I went searching for many times. This and why did they leave their countries to come to the USA. Both of these questions have answers which are pure speculation on my part.

Where St Paul MN and NY are on a map. Credit for map: Google Earth

But come on this is the 1890s and this was no small trip. If you went straight without stopping from one circle to the other its 982 miles. For back then, this is a huge amount of area to travel and expensive.

Here's some history of Minnesota. France had come to this area in the 17th century and Europeans came here in the 19th century driving out the Indians.  Minnesota Territory was named in 1849 and became the 32nd U.S. state on May 11, 1858 (credit). So for Jules and Annie to be married there in 1896, it would have still been pretty young part of the country.

Robert Street Bridge in St Paul, MN Credit: LOC

You can see just how small and how less populated it was in this 1896 picture from the Library of Congress.

It was researching the Homestead Act in 1862 facilitated land claims by settlers which started me thinking about why they went there. Could it be they wanted to claim land there? But it could have been the railroad industry, led by the Northern Pacific Railway and Saint Paul and Pacific Railroad, advertised the many opportunities in the state and worked to get immigrants to settle in Minnesota (credit).

I could see Annie travelling there if she thought she could get work either on a farm or on the railway. However, would Jules? I know from the census I found, Jules was a farmer which put my thinking back to the Homestead Act and farming.

Then I found Jules had cousins in Minnesota named Jerome or Jerry/Gerry and Camiel Gauquie. I did some researching for the areas of Lake Benton, Ivanhoe, and Vallers area and its still about 150 miles which is a huge trip for Jules. However, maybe he came for a visit and ended up getting married on the way back.

Jules and Annie's marriage license and certificate in 1896. 

As I know by their marriage certificate I found, they did get married and stayed married in New York until Annie passes away in 1931 from pneumonia at St. Luke's Hospital, Newburgh, New York. 

Annie and Jules' resting spot in Blooming Grove, NY during my visit January 2019

I really want to know how they met and what attracted them to the other along with how they chose to go to St Paul, MN.

What we do know what is written inside Jules' wedding ring my cousin found a few years ago.

Jules' wedding ring my cousin Teri found. We had thought it lost forever.

It looks like it says 8 K gold. There are 2 suggestions for the rest.

A Loves JG (Annie loves Jules Gauquie) or it could say AL to JG which is Annie Larson to Jules Gauquie.

What do you think it says?

A-Z Blogging Challenge -The letter M is for Malkinia Gora, Poland & Minnesota!

In 2017, there was a challenge. I heard about it from jillballau blog and more information can be found out about it on the A-Z Blogging Challenge (which was at http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/) page itself. However, as I was testing links I found the A-Z Blogging Challenge link is no longer working *frown*

Many people had done this challenge in April 2017, but I’m a rebel and do things when I have time, so I’ll do mine now. I’ve been working on it over many days, and was hoping to get it all done before posting BUT it’s taking me a lot longer than I expected. I’ll do a few posts now and work on the rest. 

I know I have about ½ of this challenge done in draft format, so not too bad.  

What can I say – I’m an original. So, here I go…

The letter M is for Malkinia Gora, Poland & Minnesota!

Malkinia Gora, Poland

This is the last place of residence of my grandmother and great grandmother in Poland. I know this because on their ship manifest they've put it down. 

The area described above from Google Earth

1920 Ship Manifest from Ellis Island website. You can clearly see Malkin (which is the area of Poland I was talking about) and New Jeresy. 

Also, I can further say they were in this area because my great grandmother's sister was married in the area just before my grandmother and great grandmother left Poland for good. 

My paternal great aunt's marriage certificate in 1919. 

This was not far from where my grandmother was born and my great grandparents were born, married and lived together before leaving for the US. 

They left Malkinia Gora and walked/train/caught wagon rides to Danzig and left from there. With the way things were during this time, they had very little food, due to World War 1 just ending, and the Russians making their way towards Warsaw in fighting all around them. I can only imagine what it was like to get from where they were up to the port. 

This Google Earth image shows where the fighting was during the time my grandmother and great grandmother were trying to leave Poland before Warsaw fell.

St Paul, Minnesota

This is where my maternal great grandparents married in the late 1890s. 

What makes this so interesting, is no one in the family picked it up until I was able to get first my great grandfather's immigration paperwork. Then when I was given my great grandparents and 2x great grandfather's immigration paperwork it was written in there. 

Taken from Annie Gauquie's naturalization paperwork I got from NY Orange County Registrar. Shows where they got married.

I asked my cousins about it and no one knew. 

Then I went in search of the wedding certificate itself. It took some time but eventually I was able to find it. 

My great grandparent's wedding certificate from Minnesota. Taken from FamilySearch.org Minnesota, County marriages area. 

Just after I did find it, my cousin in New York, posted a picture. It was of my great grandfather's wedding ring someone found in a couch which everyone thought was lost. Only for years later the couch was moved and the ring was found. 

Picture from Cousin Teri of our great grandfather's wedding right from our great grandmother.

What was even more touching was what was said to be inscribed on it.  

For all the doubt I had about my great grandfather, at least at one point it sounds like my great grandmother did love him.