Amanuensis Monday: Joseph HEYMANNS’ birth certificate

My great-grandfather Harry STROESSER’s sister Anna STROESSER married Peter HEYMANS in 1898, and ten months later their first daughter Susanna arrived. This is the ordinary course of events in the STROESSER family, according to my research: A couple marries, and has their first child within about a year. To continue in this ordinary, and probably socially expected, routine, Anna should have delivered another child every year and a half or so. However, according to my records, it was eight years before she and her husband received another visit from the stork.

I have no explanation for this surprising circumstance, unless they moved out of the commune of Folschette for a period of time, having their other children there, and then moved back in time for the birth of Joseph. The other likely theory, though much gloomier, is a series of miscarriages. Of course there are numerous other possibilities, but I consider the two I mentioned as the most probable.

In Folschette during that period of time, other HEYMANS (or the alternate spelling HEYMANNS) families did have some children; their fathers were named Stephan and Jean. Perhaps they were brothers or cousins of Peter, but I haven’t done the research to connect them.

At any rate, on 7 Feb 1907 Anna STROESSER presented her husband Peter HEYMANNS (that is the spelling recorded on this certificate) with a son, and the following day Peter went to the proper authority to have the birth recorded.

This image has been trimmed from the original at FamilySearch.

Transcription (the italicized parts were handwritten on the record):

Im Jahre tausend neun hundert sieben, den achten

des Monats Februar um ein Uhr vor mittags ist vor Uns

André Miller, Bürgermeister Beamten des Civilstandes

der Gemeinde Folscheid , im Kanton Redingen , Großher=

zogthum Luxemburg, erschienen Heymanns Peter

alt drei Zig zwei Jahre Maurer

wohnhaft zu Rambruch , welcher Uns ein Kind männlichen

Geschlechts vorgestellt hat, geboren zu Rambruch, gestern

um vier Uhr vor mittags, im Hause Nr. -- Gasse,

erzeugt von ihm Comparenten und seiner Ehegattin

Anna Stroesser, ohne Stand alt dreizig

Jahre, wohnhaft zu selben Rambruch

und welchem er den Vornamen Joseph

geben zu wollen erklärt hat.

Diese Erklärung und Vorstellung sind geschehen in Gegenwart des Alphonse

Schnachtgen , alt zwanzig neun Jahre Lehrer

wohnhaft zu Folscheid und des Nicolas

Berg , alt vierzig sechs Jahre Wagner

wohnhaft zu Hostert und haben die Comparenten diese

Urkunde, nachdem sie ihnen vorgelesen worden, mit uns unterschrieben.

Line by line Translation:

In the Year one thousand nine hundred and seven, the eighth

of the Month of February at one o'clock before noon is before Us

André Miller, Burgermeister Officials of the Civil State

of the Commune of Folschette , in the Canton Redange , Grand-

duchy of Luxembourg, appeared Heymanns Peter

aged Thirty two Years Mason

residing in Rambrouch , which to us a child of the male

Gender has presented, born in Rambrouch, yesterday

at four O’clock before noon, in House No. -- Street,

begat by the Appearing Party and his Wife

Anna Stroesser, without Occupation aged thirty

Years, residing in the same Rambrouch

and which he the First Name Joseph

has declared to want to give.

This Statement and Presentation are done in the Presence of Alphonse

Schnachtgen , aged twenty nine Years, Teacher

residing in Folschette and Nicolas

Berg , aged forty six Years Coach-builder [or wheelwright]

residing in Hostert and the Appearing Parties have this

Deed, having been read to them, with us signed.

Source:

Folschette, Luxembourg, birth certificate no. 5 (1907), Joseph Heymanns; digital image #350 of 699, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, “Naissances 1882-1923 Mariages 1831-1850,” FamilySearch (www.familysearch.org : accessed 22 Nov 2014).