The name, Jacob, can cause problems when researching for this blog. First of all, Jacob is a very common first name for male babies. Second, there were some Jacob’s who had the surname, Jacob. And then there is the town of Jacob which is located in Jackson County, Illinois, just across the Mississippi River from Perry County. Today’s story will center around one of the folks who carried the Jacob surname. However, before we get to him, let’s look at today’s birthday girl.

Martha Margaretha Schmidt was born on July 21, 1879, making today her 144th birthday. The documents for this woman alternate between calling her Margaret and Martha. I am going to use Martha, partly because I will not have to type so many letters, but also because that is what appears on her gravestone. Martha was the daughter of Henry and Sophia (Ross) Schmidt, who I would describe as one of the Frohna Schmidt clans. She was baptized at Concordia Lutheran Church in Frohna. An image of her baptism record is pictured here.

Martha is found in her first census in 1880 as a very young child. Her father was a farmer in the Brazeau Township. We know that the Schmidt farm was located just north of Frohna.

Martha was still single when we find her in the 1900 census at the age of 20. You can see several other younger siblings in this Schmidt family.

Martha would get married later that year, so we will now take a look at the man who would become her husband. His name was Adolph Christian Jacob, who was born on February 8, 1875. Adolph was the son of Henry and Johanna (Hinkelmann) Jacob. His father had been married to Maria Kramer, but she died in childbirth in 1873. He then married Johanna (Hinkelmann) Roediger, and Adolph was the first child born to that couple. He was baptized at Trinity Lutheran Church in Altenburg. We can take a look at his baptism record from that congregation’s books.

Adolph is found in his first census in 1880 at the age of 5. His father was a carpenter in the Brazeau Township. Johanna, his mother, had been previously married to Gottfried Roediger, and that couple had taken in two Burroughs foster children. One of those children, Henry, is in this household listed as an adopted son. I might add that another Burroughs household can be found as neighbors to Martha’s Schmidt family in Frohna.

In 1900, we find Adolph at the age of 25. His mother had died in 1898, and his father is listed by himself in that year’s census. He was likely a carpenter in Altenburg, and had left his farm to Adolph. This Adolph Jacob household was full of Adolph’s siblings. The Martha in this entry is Adolph’s sister, not his wife.

Adolph Jacob married Martha Schmidt on October 23, 1900 at Concordia Lutheran Church in Frohna. We can view this couple’s church marriage record below.

The marriage license for this pair is displayed here.

The German Family Tree lists 4 children born to this couple. All of them were baptized at Trinity Lutheran Church in Altenburg. The 1910 census shows the Jacob household with their first 2 children. Also in their household was a young man named Ernst Buenger who was working on their farm. Ernst was the son of Fritz Buenger, which also makes him a grandson of Dr. Ernst Eduard Buenger, who has been mentioned on this blog on many occasions.

The 1915 plat maps for Perry County shows the A. Jacob farm located outside Altenburg.

The 1920 census turned out to be the last one in which we find Adolph. All 4 of his children are listed in this entry, along with his elderly father, Henry Jacob.

Adolph Jacob died in 1927 at the age of 52. His death certificate shown below says he died on a farm in Cape Girardeau County as a result of being gored by a bull.

Adolph Jacob is buried in the Fairmont Cemetery in Cape Girardeau. His gravestone says he was born in 1874, which does not agree with his baptism record or his death certificate.

Martha Jacob, now a widow, was still living in Perry County, Missouri when the 1930 census was taken. Just her son, John, was living with her. She is called a servant at a hotel. Perhaps she was working at the Wagner Hotel in Altenburg.

When the 1940 census was taken, Martha was living in Cleveland, Ohio. She was a housekeeper in the Herman Manns household. Martha’s son, Edwin, had become a Lutheran pastor and was serving a congregation in Cleveland in 1940.

Once again, we find Martha living in Cleveland when the 1950 census was taken, only this time, she was living with her son, Edwin and his family.

Martha Jacob died in 1965 at the age of 86. Her death certificate from the state of Indiana states that she was living in Decatur, Indiana at the time of her death. That is also where her son was then serving as a pastor.

Martha Jacob is buried in the St. John’s Lutheran Cemetery in Decatur, Indiana.

Because of circumstances in her life, Martha and her husband, Adolph, are not buried in the same cemetery. They are even buried in different states. Whoever had Martha’s gravestone engraved wanted people to know that her husband is buried in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. Adolph’s father is another person who is buried in another state, despite having 2 wives buried in Perry County. Henry Jacob, Adolph’s father, is still the person that I consider the last of the original immigrants from 1839 to die in America. That story is told in the post, Which of the Original Immigrants Was the Last to Die? Part 2. You might be interested to know that Henry’s story also involved another Pastor Jacob.