Amanuensis Monday: Catharina STROESSER’s birth certificate

When my great-grandfather Harry STROESSER’s brother, little 18-month old Johann STROESSER, passed away on 23 Nov 1882, his mother Barbara THINES must have been pregnant. What a blow to any parent is the death of a child, but how much more distressing must it be to a pregnant woman!

The expected child arrived less than two months after the death of its brother, on 9 Jan 1883. This child was a girl, christened Catharina.

This image has been trimmed from the original at FamilySearch.

 

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

Im Jahre tausend acht hundert drei und achtzig, den neunten

des Monats Januar um sieben Uhr Nach mittags ist vor Uns

Johann Eduard Brassel, Bürgermeister, Beamten des Civilstandes

der Gemeinde folscheid , im Kanton Redingen , Gross=

herzogthum Luxemburg, erschienen Peter Stroesser,

alt vierzig sieben Jahre Eisenhándler

wohnhaft zu Schwiedelbruch , welcher Uns ein Kind weiblichen

Geschlechts vorgestellt hat, geboren zu Schweidelbruch heute

um sechs Uhr Nach mittags, im Hause Nr. -- Gasse,

erzeugt von Zie Comparenten und seiner Ehegattin Barbara Thinnes,

alt dreiszig sieben Jahre, ohne Stand, wohnhaft in selben Orte

und welchem er den Vornamen Catharina

geben zu wollen erklärt hat.

Diese Erklärung und Vorstellung sind geschehen in Gegenwart des Johann Punsch

-- alt dreiszig acht Jahre Tag löhner

wohnhaft zu Schwiedelbruch und des Johann Peter Stephany

-- alt dreiszig acht Jahre Notar=Gehilfe

wohnhaft zu Rambruch und haben die Comparenten diese

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

Line by line Translation:

In the Year one thousand eight hundred and eighty-three, the ninth

of the Month of January at seven o'clock After noon is before Us

Johann Eduard Brassel, Burgermeister, Officials of the Civil State

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

duchy of Luxembourg, appeared Peter Stroesser,

aged forty-seven Years Ironmonger

residing in Schwiedelbruch , which to us a child of the female

Gender has presented, born in Schweidelbruch today

at six O’clock After noon, in House No. -- Street,

begat by The Appearing Party and his Wife Barbara Thinnes,

aged thirty-seven Years, without Position, residing in the same place

and which her the First Name Catharina

has declared to want to give.

This Statement and Presentation are done in the Presence of Johann Punsch

-- aged thirty-eight Years, Day laborer

residing in Schwiedelbruch and Johann Peter Stephany

-- aged thirty-eight Years Notary-Assistant

residing in Rambrouch and have the Appearing Parties this

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

You may notice a familiar witness on Catharina’s birth certificate. Johann Peter Stephany had also appeared as a witness on the death certificate of little Johann. Although I have not determined the word following “Notar” beyond the shadow of a doubt, I feel much more confident this week in declaring it to be “Gehilfe” than I did last week in calling it “Gesuche.”

Source:

Folschette, Luxembourg, birth certificate no. 3 (1883), Catharina Stroesser; digital image #966 of 1489, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, "Naissances 1821-1890 Mariages 1800-1823, 1797-1830," FamilySearch (www.familysearch.org : accessed 21 Jul 2010).