In order to understand the title to this post, you have to know that around here, the surname Popp is pronounced more like the word, “pup”. Also, since this is the second consecutive post that has told about Popp’s, I must tell you that these two Popp’s were not part of the same Popp clan. Today’s Popp is also today’s birthday girl.
Cecilia Estelle Popp was born on October 20, 1885, so today would be her 140th birthday. Cecilia was the daughter of John and Mary (Denezit) Popp. We have evidence in our German Family Tree that indicates that John Popp was a Lutheran, but his wife, Mary, was a Catholic. It is quite likely that Cecilia and her other siblings were baptized at a local Catholic parish. Instead of displaying a baptism record, I am able to display a Perry County birth record for Cecilia.
Cecilia would be a teenager before we can see her in a census entry. In the 1900 census entry for the Popp’s shown below, we find this family living in Perryville. Cecilia’s father was a brickmaker.
Next, we find Cecilia in the 1910 census at the age of 24. This time, her father was called the proprietor of a brick yard.
Cecilia would get married during the next decade, so we will now turn our attention to the man who would become her husband. His name was Francis Leo Cissell, who was born on January 16, 1889. Francis, who was sometimes called Frank, was the son of Louis Clark and Mary Olivia (Brewer) Cissell. I also suspect that Francis’s baptism record would be found in a local Catholic parish, most likely the one found in Brewer. I am also able to show Francis’s Perry County birth record.
Francis is found in the 1900 census at the age of 11. His father was a farmer in the Saline Township, which is where Brewer is found.
In the 1910 census, Francis was a 24 year-old veterinarian. He was still living with his parents in the Saline Township.
Francis had his World War I draft registration completed in 1917. He is given a Perryville address and is called a veterinarian.
Not long after that draft form was completed, Francis Cissell married Cecilia Popp on October 1, 1917 in St. Louis. A St. Louis marriage record shown below indicates that they were married by a Catholic priest at St. Vincent (Depaul) Catholic Church, which is located not far from Trinity Lutheran Church in Soulard.
Francis did serve in the military during that war. His military record is displayed here.
Francis and Cecilia had 3 children, all girls. When the 1920 census was taken, there was just one young child in the Cissell household. Francis was still a veterinarian.
The Cissell’s are found in the 1930 census with all 3 of their daughters. Their youngest daughter was named Frances (with an “e”).
When the 1940 census was taken, just their youngest daughter, Frances, was still living with her parents. Francis and Cecilia were in their 50’s.
The last census entry in which we find Francis and Cecilia was the one taken in 1950. They had an empty nest, and Francis was still a veterinarian.
Francis Cissell died in 1956 at the age of 66. His death certificate below says that he died at the Perry County Memorial Hospital in Perryville.
An obituary, complete with a photo of Francis, was published in the Perry County Republican.
Cecilia Cissell died in 1958 at the age of 72. Her death certificate says that she died as a patient at DePaul Hosptial in St. Louis.
The Perry County Republican also printed an obituary for Cecilia.
Francis and Cecilia Cissell are buried together in the Mt. Hope Catholic Cemetery in Perryville.
Dr. Cissell, a veteran of World War I, would go on to become the first commander of the American Legion in Perryville. I will say that there are several veterans organizations in Perryville that continue to operate today. They provide a variety of services to the public. I know that veterans organizations like the one in which Francis was a member, have provided new United States flags to our museum over the years when they have been needed.
This post is the first one which includes the surname, Cissell. I seem to recall this name showing up while I have been researching people over the years, but never have I had the occasion to write about a Cissell. It required me to make a new surname folder for Cissell. And, as far as the Popp family in this story is concerned, I do not believe I have written a story including anyone in this particular Popp clan. It’s almost as if I researched two brand new families for this post, even though I wrote a story about a Popp yesterday…or should I say pup.