It is not often that I get to write a story about a man and woman who get married and they have the same birthday. That is the case with a pair that are part of today’s tale. However, you are going to discover that this story will include quite a few marriage records. Also, the numerous marriage records were the result of a husband or wife losing their spouse, so there will be several deaths mentioned in this post, but death records are a bit more elusive to find. Several of the characters in this post were probably Catholics, so I do not have access to Catholic church records.

I will focus on the two characters who are part of our German Family Tree and then branch out to some other individuals as the story pans out. I will begin with the birthday boy for today. His name is Johann Hornberger, who was born on June 6, 1849. John was the son of Adam and Elizabeth (Baer) Hornberger. He was baptized at Peace Lutheran Church in Friedenberg, so we cannot view an actual image of his baptism record. John is found at the age of 1 in the 1850 census. He was the firstborn child in his family. His father was a farmer in the Brazeau Township.

When the 1860 census was taken, John was 11 years old. This time, the Hornberger family was listed as living in the Cinque Hommes Township.

Now, we will take a look at today’s birthday girl. Her name was Johanna Sophie Schaupert, who was also born on June 6th, but was born in 1856, exactly 7 years after John was born. Johanna was the daughter of John and Dorothy (Klobe) Schaupert. Like John, Johanna was baptized at Peace Lutheran Church in Friedenberg. Johanna, often called Hannah, is found in the 1860 census at the age of 4.

The 1870 census shows Hannah at the age of 13. This was probably about the time that Hannah was confirmed.

According to the Friedenberg Remembrances book, John Hornberger married Johanna Schaupert on November 12, 1874. John’s information from that book is pictured below.

Before I move on, let me say that I was unable to find a photograph of John Hornberger, but I have previously placed this photo of his 3 sisters on the blog.

A civil marriage record can be viewed for this pair. Several other couples are included on this document.

According to our German Family Tree, this Hornberger couple had 2 children. The first was baptized at Peace, Friedenberg, but the second was baptized at the Cross Congregation which was located in the rural area between Friedenberg and Longtown. That congregation was in existence for a short time. Both of those children were born after the census was taken in 1880, which shows John and Johanna with an empty nest. John was a farmer in the Central Township.

John Hornberger died in 1883 at the age of 34. He died during the time when Perry County kept death records. The one for John is displayed below in 2 images. Typhoid malaria is given as the cause of death.

Johanna would marry again, so we will now look at the man who would become her second husband. His name was Archibald Hager, who was born on October 17, 1851. Archibald was the son of Aaron and Nancy (Penny) Hager. Evidence seems to indicate that the Hager’s were Catholics. Archibald is found in the 1860 census at the age of 10. He is part of a very large household. His father was a farmer in the Cinque Hommes Township. You might notice that Archibald’s parents were both born in North Carolina.

Next, we find Archibald at the age of 19 in the 1870 census. He was working on his father’s farm.

Archibald Hager got married in 1871. His first wife was Mary Pinkerton. That wedding took place on March 14, 1871 according to the civil marriage record shown here. It says the wedding was conducted by a Justice of the Peace.

I found no evidence that any children resulted from this marriage. It did not last long because Mary died in February of 1873. I found no death documentation for Mary’s death, nor did I find a place of burial for her. It did not take long for Archibald to get married again. On May 28, 1873, Archibald married Martina Mathilde Brewer. The marriage record for that wedding is pictured here.

It was during the time when Archibald was married to Martina that the 1880 census was compiled. According to some family trees on Ancestry.com, this couple had quite a few children, but several of them died early. In 1880, the Hager’s had a nephew and 3 children in their household. Archibald was the manager of the County Farm in Perryville. I am told that the County Farm was located where the Independence Care building is now found. Right below the Hager’s in this census entry are 6 individuals who were residing at that County Farm. It was also sometimes called a poor farm.

There is a cemetery for the County Farm on Findagrave.com. It contains this photo of a monument found there.

That marker has a photo of a building that likely was the one in which the Hager family once lived. I enlarged it as best I could.

Sometime along the way, this photo was taken of Archibald Hager.

Martina Hager died in 1885 at the age of 39. I found her Perry County death record which states that she died partly due to complications with childbirth. Right below her death record is one for a premature baby that died on the same day.

That finally leads us up to the time when Johanna Hornberger married Archibald Hager on October 7, 1886. The Missouri marriage license for this wedding can be viewed. A probate judge performed this wedding, and it looks like it may have been Judge Charles Weber.

I do not think any more children were born to this couple. I was not able to find out when Johanna died. Some family trees on Ancestry.com say she died about 1898. When the 1900 census was taken, Archibald was living as a boarder in the Phil Poehner household and is called a widower. This entry is from the Salem Township pages of that year’s census.

Later in 1900, Archibald married for the 4th time. He married Louisa Black on October 14, 1900. Below is an image of that couple’s marriage license. This was another Justice of the Peace wedding.

The 1910 census is the last one in which we find Archibald. He was a 58 year-old farm laborer in the Central Township. A stepson named John Black was living with them.

Archibald Hager died in 1916 at the age of 65. We can take a look at his death certificate.

Of all the characters in this post, I was only able to find gravestones for 2 of them, Archibald Hager and his 2nd wife, Martina. They are each buried in the Mount Hope Cemetery in Perryville.

Today, we say Happy Birthday to both Johanna Schaupert and John Hornberger, who spent a short time as husband and wife. June 6th must have been an interesting day for this pair as they may have exchanged birthday presents for one another.