When I write a story about a person born in the 1880’s or 1890’s, I sometimes think about the fact that such a person would have been in the same generation of my grandparents. I will be writing another such story today. I also will be entering the Hoehn family again. That surname occupies quite a large section in our German Family Tree so I sometimes get lost in its branches.
Irma Hoehn was born on September 10, 1893, so today would be her 130th birthday. Irma was the daughter of Ferdinand and Emma (Fassold) Hoehn. She was the firstborn of 9 children that are listed in our German Family Tree for this branch of the Hoehn tree. Irma was baptized at Peace Lutheran Church in Friedenberg. She is found in her first census in 1900 at the age of 6. In the early census entries for her, she is called Ermie. Her father was a farmer in the Central Township.
Irma was confirmed at Peace, Friedenberg in 1905, and then we find her in the 1910 census as a teenager.
We will now take a look at the man who would become Irma’s husband. His name was Joseph Bernard Tucker, who was born on January 1, 1895. It appears that his parents were an example of a Tucker marrying a Tucker. His parents’ names were John and Dorothy Tucker. Joseph is found in the 1900 census at the age of 5. His father was a farmer in the Saline Township.
Joseph’s father died in 1904, and his mother married again. Her next husband was Jasper McDowell. Joseph is found in the 1910 census living with his mother and older brother, but his stepfather, Jasper, is not in the household. Joseph was called a 15 year-old farmer.
I believe Joseph Tucker married Irma Hoehn sometime around 1915, but I failed to find any documentation for their wedding. Their first child was born in St. Louis in 1916. In 1917, Joseph had his World War I draft registration completed. This form says Joseph was employed as a shoeworker for the United Die Block Wood Heel Company. It says he had a wife and one child.
When the 1920 census was taken, the Tucker’s were living in St. Louis where Joseph was called a worker at a shoe factory. There were 2 daughters in the family.
The 1930 census indicates that 2 sons had been born in the 1920’s. Also, we find both Joseph and Irma in the work force. Joseph was a laborer at an auto company, while Irma was a milliner for a hat company. Also in the household was Irma’s younger brother, Louis Hoehn.
The Tucker’s are found in the 1940 census in which Joseph was an auto body man. Just one daughter was still living with her parents. They were living in Normandy, a municipality found in the north end of St. Louis.
Joseph had his World War II draft card completed in 1942. Joseph was not employed, and his address was not far from where I grew up in Jennings.
The last census the public can view is the one taken in 1950. The Tucker’s were living in Pine Lawn, another municipality in north St. Louis. Joseph was an auto body inspector.
Irma Tucker died in 1878 at the age of 84; Joseph Tucker died in 1981 at the age of 86. These two are buried together in the Memorial Park Cemetery in Jennings.
This Tucker couple, made up of two Perry County natives, are yet another example of a pair that moved up the interstate to St. Louis where they spent the lion’s share of their lives.