Last Name Changed half way through the 8 children born
A friend who recently passed did some research for me on Archion.de. She passed before we were able to do any further digging. The church records for my maternal great great grandparents (Martin Fregin 1798 - 1863 & Eleanore Seltz Fregin 1798 - 1891) shows the spelling of their last name changes from Wirgin for the first three children, to Fregin for the last five. Originally I thought the spelling change was caused by a change in priests. I would like to know if anyone can find these documents and see if the first three children's last names were spelled Wirgin and the next five children were spelled Fregin in a different handwriting. I contacted Katherine Schober at Germanology Unlocked and asked her opinion, she explained that the V and F letters sound alike and look similar in the old hand writing. But what has us both stumped is why a W? So what I'm trying to get my hands on is a copy of those church records for all the children's births, that shows the parents. My friend could have possibly misread the records. That way I can see if the letter is actually a V or a W. My thoughts were that maybe the mom was married before but all other records for the children show both Martin and Eleanora as the parents on all 8 children: Christina "Wirgin" 1815-1815, Henrietta "Gertie" "Wirgin" 1817 - 1885, Catarina "Wirgin" 1822 - 1823, Gottfried Friederick "Alfred" Fregin 1824 - 1909 was the first child to show his and his parent's last name as Fregin, Johann "John" Fregin 1826 - 1907, Emil F "Ginto" Fregin 1829 - ?, Carl William "Charles" Fregin 1831 - 1916 and Julius Hermann Fregin 1833 - 1916. When the last name spelling for the children changed, so did it change for both parents. Any ideas or help with this would really be appreciated. I am not able to real old world German.
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In order for anyone to find the records, you need to tell us what town in what place (e.g. Hesse or Baden, etc.) these people came from. Or if you have copies of the records you're describing, post them here.
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You are soooo right!!! I completely forgot to include that info which is crucial to finding those records again. I wish I knew how to edit my original post but since I don't know how, I've included that info below. I unfortunately do not have a copy of any of those documents. For those unable to research for them, even a guess about why a name change would be interesting to hear and if you've ever seen this before.
Martin Wirgin "Fregin" was born abt 1798 in Eichenberg, Kreis Berent, West Prussia. Married Eleonora Seltz about 1814-1815 in Eichenberg, Kreis Berent, West Prussia
Eleonora Seltz was born 7 Sep 1798 in Prussia, not sure the exact area but assume it was near or in Eichenberg, Kreis Berent, West Prussia
These first three children's last name and their parent's last name is listed as Wirgin in the records, but the rest of the children and the same parents are listed as Fregin in the church records.
Christina Wirgin "Fregin" born 16 Nov 1815 in Eichenberg, Kreis Berent, West Prussia and died 16 Dec 1815. 1 month old.
Henrietta "Gertie" Wirgin "Fregin" born 13 Jan 1817 in Eichenberg, Kreis Berent, West Prussia. Died 7 Jan 1885 in High Falls, Papineau, Quebec, Canada. All her arrival records and other sources spell her last name as Fregin, not Wirgin.
Catharina Wirgin "Fregin born 30 Oct 1822 in Eichenberg, Kreis Berent, West Prussia and she died 7 Apr 1823 at 6 months old. On her baptismal records, there is a George Wirgin but unsure his relationship to Catharina. Maybe a brother to her father, Martin?
Gottfried Friedrick "Alfred" Fregin born 29 Mar 1824 in Eichenberg, Kreis Berent, West Prussia, baptized 4 Apr 1824. Died 30 Sept 1909 in High Falls, Papineau, Quebec, Canada.
Johann "John" Fregin born 21 Jun 1826 in Eichenberg, Kreis Berent, West Prussia. Married Caroline Wilhelmine Amalie Felske on 18 Sept 1855 in Danzizg-Westprussia, Deutschland. Died 11 Jun 1907 in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. These are my great grandparents.
Emil F "Ginto" Fregin born 1829 in Eichenberg, Kreis Berent, West Prussia. He did travel to Canada with the family but unfortunately I've lost his trail at this point and am still looking. He might have moved to Minnesota instead of High Falls, to be with his younger brother Carl.
Carl William "Charles" Fregin born 10 Aug 1831 in Eichenberg, Kreis Berent, West Prussia, Baptized 14 Aug 1831. He didn't settle in High Falls with the rest of the family and went to Minnesota where he married a Pauline Florentine Lietzau on 30 Jun 1863. Died 18 Jul 1916 in Waconia, Carver, Minnesota, USA.
Julius Hermann Fregin born 25 Dec 1833 in Eichenberg, Kreis Berent, West Prussia. Baptized 5 Jan 1834. Married a Caroline "Johanna" "Anna" Nitschke in 1866 in High Falls. He died2 Mar 1916 in High Falls, Papineau, Quebec, Canada.
I hope someone researching this family line might know more about this anomaly and be able to shed some lite. Thanks in advance for any help offered. Your time is appreciated!
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Leaving a comment to put at the top of Discussions.
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