Two surnames that take up a whole lot of space in our German Family Tree are Roth and Mueller. However, I did a search in our files for a record for a Roth and Mueller marriage used on this blog prior to today, and found none. On the other hand, the lady who provides many of my breakfasts who runs the Old Bank Coffee Shop is a Mueller who has a Roth husband. Today, you will read about another Mueller woman who married a Roth man many years ago.

We begin with Theodore Jacob Roth, who was born on June 9, 1889, so today would be his 133rd birthday. Theodore was the 3rd of 8 children born to August and Pauline (Hoffmann) Roth. The two children born prior to Theodore died early, so Theodore became the oldest child in this Roth household shortly after his birth. The baptism record for him from the books of Immanuel Lutheran Church in New Wells is displayed below.

When the 1900 census was taken, Theodore was 11 years old and working on his father’s farm in the Apple Creek Township of northern Cape Girardeau County.

The last census in which we find Theodore as a single man was the one taken in 1910. He was still working on his father’s farm.

Now, we will turn our attention to the Mueller woman who would become Theodore’s wife. Lydia Susanne Mueller was born on July 25, 1888, the daughter of Joseph and Ernestine (Dellert) Mueller. Lydia was baptized at Concordia Lutheran Church in Frohna. We can take a look at her baptism record below.

There is a puzzle in this record. A previous post addressed this mystery. If you want to read more details about it, you can find them in the post, The Frohna Albert Mueller. I will summarize it here. Joseph Mueller had previously been married to Ernestine Thomas, but she died in 1886. Joseph then married another Ernestine, Ernestine Dellert (her maiden name). That Ernestine’s father had died and the mother married a Ruehling, so Ernestine was a stepchild in a Ruehling family but her surname was Dellert. In the record above, it indicates that her maiden name was Ruehling, but it was actually Dellert. Are you confused yet? A photo was taken of Joseph and Ernestine Mueller. I’m not 100% positive which Ernestine is pictured.

Lydia was the first of 3 children born to Joseph and his 2nd wife. Lydia is found in her first census in 1900 at the age of 10. Her father had died in 1891, so her mother was the head of the household. You will see a Ruehling in this household. Herman was Ernestine’s half-brother.

I was unable to find Lydia in the 1910 census. I do know that she was not living with her mother. That leads us up to the Roth/Mueller wedding.

Theodore Roth married Lydia Mueller on April 26, 1911 at Concordia Lutheran Church in Frohna. We can first look at the church marriage record for this couple. This record states that Lydia’s mother had a maiden name of Dellert.

The marriage license for Theodore and Lydia can also be viewed.

Theodore had his World War I draft registration completed in 1917. This is the only document in which I found this couple living in Cape Girardeau. It says that Theodore’s employer was the International Shoe Company.

This pair has no children listed in our German Family Tree, and we never see any children in any of the census entries for them. However, a later obituary says there was a foster child at some point in time. The 1920 census shows Theodore and Lydia living in the Apple Creek Township where Theodore was a farmer.

The Roth couple is then found in the 1930 census.

In the 1940 census, we find the Roth’s living in the Shawnee Township. Theodore was still a farmer.

In 1942, Theodore was required to complete a World War II draft card. It gives his address as Shawneetown.

I was able to locate the Roth’s in the 1950 census where we find them in their 60’s.

Theodore Roth died in 1952 at the age of 63. We can take a look at his death certificate.

Lydia Roth died in 1968 at the age of 79. Her death certificate says she died at the Village Boarding Home in Cape Girardeau.

I managed to find an image of Lydia’s obituary. This is the document that mentions a foster child of the Roth’s. That foster daughter’s married name was Evelyn Patterson. I do not know her maiden name.

Theodore and Lydia Roth are each buried in the Trinity Lutheran Cemetery in Shawneetown.

Because there were no children born to this couple, this branch of the very large Roth family tree has no descendants.

If you ever get to Altenburg, make sure you find the time to patronize the Old Bank Coffee Shop which is operated by Lindy (Mueller) Roth. Her marriage is a present-day example of a Roth/Mueller pair. Her food and coffee earn my five-star rating.