The photo below has been displayed before in a post, Tales from a Palisch Picture. It shows the Ernst and Cora Palisch family. Today, I will finally get around to telling the story of Ernst and Cora Palisch, the parents in this photo. Cora, pictured on the right side, is today’s birthday girl.

Cora Johanna Mueller was born on July 25, 1888, making today her 135th birthday. Cora was the daughter of Benjamin and Johanna (Sommer) Mueller. That qualifies Cora to be part of what we refer to as the “Frohna Mueller’s”.

There is an unusual fact about Cora’s birth and baptism. Cora had a cousin named Lydia Mueller who was also born on July 25, 1888. Not only did those two cousins get born on the same day, but since each of their sets of parents were members of the same church, they were also baptized on the same day. Cora and Lydia were baptized on July 29th in 1888, which was a Sunday. They were each baptized at Concordia Lutheran Church in Frohna. Later, these two cousins would be part of the same confirmation class at that congregation. It makes me wonder if the extended Mueller family ever got together to celebrate Cora and Lydia’s birthdays at the same location. I wondered how Grandma Mueller would have handled having two granddaughters from two different families with the same birthday. However, both of the Mueller grandparents of Cora and Lydia had died before they were even born, so Grandma and Grandpa Mueller were not even around for that double baptism. Unfortunately, I am once again not in Altenburg, so I cannot display Cora’s baptism record. The best I can do is show Lydia’s baptism record because I have already written a post about her titled, Theodore and Lydia – A Roth/Mueller Pair. The record for Cora would be found right under Lydia’s in the Concordia books. I must not have noticed that the two Mueller cousins were born and baptized on the same day back when I wrote that post.

Although I cannot display her baptism record, I am able to display Cora’s Perry County birth record.

Cora is found in her first census in 1900 at the age of 11. Her father was a farmer in the Brazeau Township. Cora was the oldest of 3 daughters in this Mueller family.

Cora is found in the 1910 census as a single woman, but later during that year, she got married.

Now, we will take a look at the man who would become Cora’s husband, Ernst Rudolph Palisch. Ernst was born on September 17, 1889, the son of Theodore and Josephine (Bruhl) Palisch. Ernst was the oldest of 3 sons born to Theodore and Josephine. Like Cora, Ernst was baptized at Concordia Lutheran Church in Frohna. Although a lot of Palisch’s lived in Altenburg, this Palisch family could be called a “Frohna Palisch”. Ernst is found in his first census entry in 1900 at the age of 10. His father had died in 1896, so we never see Ernst and his father in a census entry together.

Ernst’s mother married again in 1902 to Andrew Hilpert, but when the 1910 census was taken, Ernst was no longer living with his mother and stepfather. He was living in the Edward Fischer household. Edward Fischer was a merchant, and Ernst was a salesman at his store in Altenburg. Edward Fischer’s mother was a Palisch.

Ernst Palisch married Cora Mueller on September 22, 1910 at Concordia Lutheran Church in Frohna. I cannot show their church marriage record, but I can display their marriage license.

According to our German Family Tree, Ernst and Cora had 4 children, the 4 that you see in the above photo. In 1917, Ernst had his World War I draft registration completed. It gives him a Frohna address and says he had a wife and 2 children. It also says he was a farmer.

The 1920 census shows the Palisch family with 3 sons. Ernst is called a merchant. He is even called a manager.

Ernst must have been working at the Palisch Store in Frohna. That store was established by a few of his uncles. The present-day East Perry Pub is now located just to the right of this store. And to the right of the Pub is the home in which the Ernst Palisch family lived. It is seen in the background of the prior photo of the Palisch family.

The 1930 census shows all 4 children, with Ernst called the proprietor of a retail store.

The last census entry in which we find Ernst is the one taken in 1940. Included in their household is the one year-old Darlene Petzoldt. Darlene was one member of a set of twins born to Esther (Mueller) Petzoldt in 1938 which resulted in Esther’s death. She was then raised by these Palisch’s.

Ernst Palisch died in 1949 at the age of 59. His death certificate below says he died of pancreatic cancer.

The widow, Cora Palisch, is found living in Frohna when the 1950 census was taken. In her household, we see that Darlene Petzoldt was still living with her. Also, her daugther had married Hugo Boettcher, and that young family was living with her as well.

Cora Palisch died in 1985 at the age of 97. Both Ernst and Cora are buried in the Concordia Lutheran Cemetery in Frohna.

Perhaps Ernst, while he was working at the Fischer Store in Altenburg may have attended an Altenburg church, but if you ignore that, the Palisch/Mueller couple is another one in which both the bride and groom were born, baptized, confirmed, married, raised a family, died, and were buried while being members of the same congregation.

This Palisch story intersected with my life. The oldest Palisch son, Wilbert, became a teacher who spent much of his career at St. Paul’s Lutheran School in Jackson, Missouri. Wilbert and his wife had a son name Dan. Dan was the principal of Christ the King Lutheran School in Memphis, Tennessee when I was called to be a teacher there. However, by the time I moved to Memphis, Dan had taken a call to Little Rock, Arkansas, which was also in the Mid-South District. Dan is now living in Jackson, and has served as a docent at our museum. Perhaps Dan will read this story about his grandparents.