1940 Federal Census, Arkansas County, Arkansas, 13 April, Ethel, District 1-26,
page 6B, Oak Flat School and Church Rd, Hse #101, Rents $200
Bisswanger, Al Head M W 32 Grade HS-1 b Arkansas same house in 1935 Fisherman
Bisswanger, Harriet Wife F W 30 Grade 8 b Arkansas same house in 1935
Housekeeper
Bisswanger, James Son M W 2 Single Grade 3 b Arkansas
U.S. Phone and Address Directories, 1993-2002
James Bisswanger
Residence Ethel, Arkansas 72048-2048
Residence Years 1994 1995 1996 1997
U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007
James Alfred Bisswanger
Birth 12 Sep 1937 Ethel, Arkansas
Death Date 31 Jan 2006
Father Alfonso Leonard Bisswanger
Mother Harriett Angeline Criswell
SSN 430644253
Aug 1953 Name listed as JAMES ALFRED BISSWANGER; 15 Feb 2006 Name listed as
JAMES A BISSWANGER
Social Security Death Index
James A. Bisswanger
Born 12 Sep 1937, Died 31 Jan 2006
Last Residence Ethel, Arkansas, Arkansas 72048
SSN 430-64-4253 issued Arkansas (1953)
James A Bisswanger
Birth Sep 12, 1937
Death Jan 30 [? grave has 31 Jan], 2006
Burial Mount Pleasant Cemetery, Arkansas County, Arkansas
Created by Dale Houghton May 07, 2012
-- Find A Grave Memorial #89742926,
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/89742926
In the 1910 census the age of Joseph is given as 1 year old. The census was in
May that year, so if the age is correct, he had his first birthday sometime
before May 1910. This means he was born no later than the month of July 1909.
1910 Federal Census, Craighead County, Arkansas, 9 May, Nettleton Township,
District 27, page 7A, Hse/Fam #118
Bisswanger, Joseph Son M W 1 AR Germany MS
In 1920, he is listed as Joie and his age is 10 for the January census. If,
again, this age is technically correct, he has not yet had his 10th birthday.
So his 11th birthday, 10 years after he was 1 year old, will be some time in
January or later. But from the 1910 census we know his birthday will occur
before 1 May. Thus I am reporting his birthday as between January and May
1909. This also matches his age reported as 21 in the 1930 census.
1920 Federal Census, Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, 14 January, Oklahoma City,
District 144, page 18A, Hse #104, Fam #254
Bisswanger, Joie Son M W 10 AR Bavaria MS
Arkansas, County Marriages Index, 1837-1957
Lois Scruggs
Age 18, Birth 1911
Residence Ethel, Arkansas, Arkansas
Spouse's Name Joseph Bisswanger
Spouse's Age 21
Spouse's Residence Saint Charles, Arkansas, Arkansas
Marriage 26 Jan 1929 Arkansas County
Marriage License Date 26 Jan 1929
From the 1930 census, I found his middle initial is J. In 1930 he and Lois
had one child Marilee, 10 months old and thus born about May 1929. They are
living with Lois' parents William M and Kate V Scruggs.
1930 Federal Census, Arkansas County, Arkansas, 22 April, Prairie Township,
District 25, page 7B, Ethel and Chute Rd, Hse #123, Fam #129
Scruggs, William M Head Owns Farm M W 58 First Married at age 16 AR TN TN
Farmer
Scruggs, Kate V Wife F W 58 First Married at age 16 AR GA AL
Bisswanger, Lois Dau F W 18 First Married at age 16 AR AR AR
Bisswanger, Marilee Granddaughter FW 10mos AR US AR
Bisswanger, Joseph J Son-in-law W 21 First Married at age 20 US Germany AR
1940 Federal Census, Arkansas County, Arkansas, 4 April, Ethel, District 1-26,
page 6B, Oak Flat School and Church Rd, Hse #97, Owns $500
Scruggs, Bud Head M W 68 Widow Grade 6 b Arkansas same place in 1935 Farmer
Scruggs, Kate Wife F W 68 Grade 5 b Arkansas place house in 1935 Housekeeper
Bisswanger, Lois Dau F W 27 Single Grade 6 b Arkansas same place in 1935
Housekeeper
Bisswanger, Joe Son-in-law M W 31 Single b Arkansas same place in 1935
Fisherman
Bisswanger, Merry Lee Niece F W 10 Grade 5 b Arkansas same place in 1935
Tennessee, Death Records, 1908-1958
Joe Bisswanger
Age 43, (Birth Date not recorded, abt 1909) Arkansas, USA
Usual Residence Ethel, Arkansas, Farmer
Father Leonard Bisswanger
Mother Helen Hackleton
No informant named
Death 14 September 1952 Baptist Memorial Hospital, Memphis, Shelby County,
Tennessee, stay of 9 days
Cause of Death Acute Monocytic Leukemia
Removal 14 September 1952 for preparation for Burial in DeWitt, Arkansas, by
Essex Funeral Home, DeWitt
Filed 15 September 1952
Joe J Bisswanger
Birth 1909
Death 1952
Gravestone Inscription - "Thy Will Be Done"
Burial Chute Cemetery, De Witt [should be St Charles], Arkansas County,
Arkansas
Created by Lin Canamore Quigley May 02, 2011
-- Find A Grave Memorial #69223545,
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GScid=53450&GRid=69223545&
Note the burial location given here. Chute Cemetery is not at DeWitt, but
just south of St Charles about 15 miles east of DeWitt on the White River.
In his Arkansas family, he was known as Leonard, with the full name Leonard
Alfons. Other German sources give us the German form of his name Leonhardt
Bisswanger, sometimes with the middle initial B. A ship passenger manifest
indicates he left Hamburg, Germany, on his way to New York on 3 August 1922.
I have not been able to identify Leonard Alfons Bisswanger in the 1900 US
census. The 1920 census reports that he was in the US from either 1897 and
1930 has the year of immigration as 1898. The censuses report he was
naturalized in 1902. But there is a record indicating he traveled from
Hamburg to NewYork. Perhaps this was a return from a return trip to Germany.
This passenger manifest reports him as a resident and citizen of German. This
would not have been the case if he had been naturalized in 1902. I am
wondering if this was a different Leonhardt Bisswanger. This record wa
attached to our Leanoar Bisswanger on a genealogy profile for him.
Early US records of Leonard place him in Iowa, where his first marriage
occurred. In his genealogy of the Bisswangers, Steve Abernathy reports in his
genealogy that they married in Iowa, and there is an Iowa record matching
their names. But there is no date included in the text index record.
Margaret Dalch
Birth 1878
Marriage to Leonard Alfons Bisswanger 16 SEPT 1900 Oklahoma, USA
"Apparently a brief marriage, resulting in one child"
[It appears Margaret died in childbirth or soon after. Leonard married Helena
Kummel in Prairie County, Arkansas in May 1902.]
Birth of Daughter Anna Augusta Dalch
Born 5 SEP 1901 Oklahoma
Death 1902
-- Keith Bisswanger, Ancestry,
http://person.ancestry.com/tree/23267025/person/26067740674/facts
Iowa, Select Marriages Index, 1809-1992
Leonard Bisswanger
Spouse Margaret Dalch
Child Anna Augusta Dalch
[no marriage date in this index records]
His first wife died in 1903 according to some genealogies. He made his way to
Arkansas and in May 1904 his second marriage to widow Helena Kummel was
recorded in Prairie County, Arkansas, just north of where most of our story
takes place. In his record of marriage to Helen or Helena, Leonard's
(Leonhard's) reported age gives an estimated birth year of 1873. Sources vary
between the year 1873 and 18781. The date given to/used by the funeral home
was 14 February 1871.
Arkansas, County Marriages Index, 1837-1957
Leonhard Bisswanger
Age 31 (born abt 1873)
Residence DeValls Bluff, Prairie, Arkansas
Spouse's Name Helena Kammell
Spouse's Gender Female
Spouse's Age 26 (born abt 1878)
Spouse's Residence DeValls Bluff, Prairie, Arkansas
Marriage 22 May 1904 Prairie County
Marriage License Date 21 May 1904
The 1910 census reported he had been married to his second wife Helen for
about 6 years. Helen was born in Arkansas. This is Helen's second marriage
also.
1910 Federal Census, Craighead County, Arkansas, 9 May, Nettleton Township,
District 27, page 7A, Hse/Fam #118
Bisswanger, Lenord (Leonard) Head M W 37 2nd marriage, Married 6yrs Germany
Germany Germany immigrated 1898 Resident Alien Farmer
Bisswanger, Helen Wife F W 32 2nd marriage, Married 6yrs AR MS MS
Bisswanger, Margret F W 4 AR Germany MS
Bisswanger, Alfonso Son M W 2 AR Germany MS
Bisswanger, Joseph Son M W 1 AR Germany MS
Kummel, Gace (Grace?) Dau [step-daughter] F W 13 AR IL MS
Kummel, Miltret Dau [step-daughter] F W 11 AR IL MS
Kummel, Blanche Dau [step-daughter] F W 8 AR IL MS
Helen's maiden name was Hackledon or Hackleton. See more details on Notes for
Helen Hackledon. She was first married to Louis Kummell. We see here three
children with the last name Kummel (also a German name) whose father was born
in Illinois. We find these Kummel children were born in Arkansas. So Louis
Kummel came to Arkansas, married Helen, and we assume, died there after siring
these three children. But Helen married Kummel in September 1895.
The census says Leonard and Helen have been married 6 years so they would have
married about 1904. Margret was born in 1905 or 1906. Before 1920 they moved
to Oklahoma City.
1920 Federal Census, Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, 14 January, Oklahoma City,
District 144, page 18A, Hse #104, Fam #254
Bisswanger, Leonard Head M W 56 Married Bavaria Bavaria Bavaria immigrated
1897 Naturalized 1902 Farmer
Bisswanger, Helen Wife F W 43 Married AR AR AR
Bisswanger, Margaret F W 14 AR Bavaria MS
Bisswanger, Alfonso Son M W 12 AR Bavaria MS
Bisswanger, Joie Son M W 10 AR Bavaria MS [ref Joseph in 1910]
Bisswanger, Louisa Dau F W 6 AR Bavaria MS
In this census the Kummel children are all off on their own. From the
marriage information in 1910, we may conclude that Louisa is the daughter of
Helen, born in about 1912. Here we see that the birthplace of Helen's parents
has now changed to Arkansas. Now Leonard's place of birth information is
given under the name of his actual country Bavaria, instead of the general
term Germany. They wete back in Arkansas County, Arkansas, before the 1930
census.
1930 Federal Census, Arkansas County, Arkansas, 29 April, Prairie Township,
District 7, page 9A, No Road, On White River, Hse #165, Fam #166
Bisswanger, Leonard Head M W 57 Married at age 26 AR Germany AR Fisherman
Immigrated 1898, naturalized 1902
Bisswanger, Loisa (Louisa) Dau F W 17 Single AR Germany AR
This report shows Leonard as married, but there is no wife reported in the
household.
In 1934, Leonard was killed in a houseboat gunfight on the Arkansas River near
DeWitt, Arkansas. The first reprot in the DeWitt Era-Enterprise newspaper
reports that the incident occurred on Friday evening (21 December 1934) about
8 PM. That article reprots details about the incident. Later articles in
other papers on 24 December 1934 reported no date or reproted the incident as
occurring on Saturday, not Friday.
Leonard was killed in a gun battle aboard his houseboat on the Arkansas River,
near Ethel, by a robber, Clark Martindale. Three masked men knowced on
Leonard's houseboat door incident on Friday evening (21 December 1934) about 8
PM and told him they were going to kill him. They shot him three times in the
chest. He shot one of them, Van Livingston, who later died in the woods after
his companions carried him off in Leonard's motor boat.
Thanks to Steve Abernathy for the DeWitt article and other documents on
Leonard not previously found. Abernathy gives his German name as Leonhardt B
Bisswanger. It is not clear what the B initial stands for, since in other
records and family references he was known as Leonard Alfonso.
-----------
Two Killed on White River Friday Night
"Last Friday night [21 December 1934] about 8 o'clock according to a statement
by occupants of Leonard Bisswanger's houseboat, three men with handkerchiefs
tied over their faces knocked on the door of the boat. They open[ed] fire and
three bullets took effect in his chest. He fired one shot. It toook effect
in the leg of Van LIvingston of LIttle Prairie. ... Both bodies were brought o
the Essex Undertaking Parlor in DeWitt and prepared for burial. ...
"Bisswanger was buried at Mt Pleasant, Monday, and [Van] Livingston at
Tichnor, in the Malcomb Cemetery."
-- DeWitt Era-Enterprise, 22 December 1934 [Saturday],
http://person.ancestry.com/tree/12577407/person/12496846098/gallery
--------------------
Houseboat Gun Battle On White River Accounts for Two Deaths
Little Rock, Ark, Dec 24
A gun battle Saturday night [22 Dec 1934] aboard a houseboat on the White
River below De Witt left Leonard Bisswanger, 55, a fisherman and Van
Livingston, 20, dead. Mrs Bisswanger, wounded in the throat, was taken to the
home of relatives in Ethel for treatment. Sheriff C C McAllister placed
murder charges against Clark Martindale, 23, in connection with the affair.
-- Fayetteville Daily Democrat, 24 Dec 1958, p 1, accessed 12 March 2016 on
NewspaperArchive.com
--------------------
--------------------
Two are slain in Gun Battle
DeWitt, Ark - Dec 24
First degree murder charge was placed today against a man docketed as Clark
Martindale, 23, in connection with a gun battle that claimed two lives in the
recesses of White River country south of here.
Sheriff C C McCallister charged the man with death of Leonard Bisswanger, [?]
fisherman, shot in a battle in which Van Livingston, 20, was also killed.
Mrs Bisswanger, shot in the throat by a stray bullet, was rushed to Ethel and
treated. Her condition is considered not serious.
The sheriff is said to be seeking another man in connection with the shooting,
which he said resulted from an attempt to rob Bisswanger.
-- The Camden News, Camden, Arkansas, Dec 24 1934, p 1, accessed 14 March
2016 on NewspaperArchive.com
--------------------
--------------------
"A gun battle Saturday night [22 Dec 1934] aboard a houseboat on the White
River below De Witt left Leonard Bisswanger, 55, a fisherman and Van
Livingston, 20, dead. Mrs Bisswanger, wounded in the throat, was taken to the
home of relatives in Ethel for treatment. Sheriff C C McAllister placed
murder charges against Clark Martindale, 23, in connection with the affair."
-- Fayetteville Daily Democrat, 24 Dec 1958, p 1, accessed 12 March 2016 on
NewspaperArchive.com
--------------------
--------------------
DEWITT, Ark - Dec 24
A first degree murder charge was placed against Clark Martindale, 23, in
connection with the affair.
A gun battle that claimed two lived in the recessess of the White River
country south of here.
Sheriff C C McCallister charged the man with the death of Leonard Bisswanger,
55-year-old fisherman, shot in a battle in which Van Livingston, 20, also was
killed. Mrs Bisswanger, shot in the throat by a stray bullet, was rushed down
the the river by boat to Ethel, Ark, and treated. Her condition was not
regarded as serious.
McCallister said he sought another man in connection with the shooting, which
he said resulted from an atempt to rob Bisswanger, who was reported to have
kept a relatively large sum of money in his shanty boat.
--------
"DEWITT - 24 Dec 1934 - Death for two men and a desperate race down a dark
winding river against death with a bullet in her throat, was the fierce swift
code of the White River country.
Officers today paddled into the stretches of the river in an effort to
determine the facts of a shanty boat battle which left Leonard Bisswanger,
55-year-old fisherman, and Van Livingston, 20, dead, and Mrs Bisswanger
wounded by a stray bullet as gunfire roared back and forth in the confines of
the flimsy craft.
The shooting occurred Saturday night [22 Dec 1934], but news filters slowly
out of the flats between the levees, and Sheriff C C McAllister learned of it
Sunday. The sheriff made a trip into the flats yesterday [23 Dec 1934]. The
sheriff made a trip into the flats yesterday to investigate, and
[Page 3]
brought here with hm a man listed as Clark Martindale, 23. No formal charge
had been placed against him but Sheriff McAllister [sic] said that from the
man he had obtained details of the slayings.
Bisswanger died were he stood in the narrow confines of his shanty boat home,
the sheriff said, with six bullets in his body. The body of Livingston was
foun a quarter of a mile form where the boat had been moored. He had been
shot once, and had evidently fled from the scene to save his life, McAllister
said. The body was found by the sheriff's party.
Struck in the throat by a bullet, Mrs Bisswanger and a daughter rowed a skiff
down the river to her son's houseboat, and from there was taken to Ethel, Ark,
for treatment.
-- Monroe News Star, Monroe, Louisiana, Dec 24 1934, pp 1, 3
--------------------
Keith Bisswanger was kind enough to share on his genealogy information he
received from Essex Funeral Home on Leonard.
----------------------------
Letter explaining about Leonard A Bisswanger
To Keith Bisswanger form Essex Funeral Home
14 December 2013
courtesy of Keith Bisswanger, Ancestry.com, accesses 14 March 2016
From: Essex Funeral Home
Date: December 14, 2013 at 1:02:30 PM CST
To: "bisswanger@hotmail.com"
Subject: Leonard Bisswanger info.
Date entered into our records Dec. 22, 1934
Leonard Bisswanger
Age - 63
Place of birth - Germany
Date of birth - Feb. 14, 1871 [other sources indicate the year was closer to
1873]
Vocation - fisherman
The service was charged to A.L. Bisswanger of Ethel.
The order to do the funeral service was given by John Stephens.
The coroner was the certifying physician.
Place of death - on house boat
He had lived in Arkansas about 20 years.
All the information that was given about his parents was that his father's
last name was Bisswanger and that he was born in Germany. There was no info.
on his mother.
Funeral services were at Mt. Pleasant Cem. at 1:00 p.m. on December 24, 1934.
Rev. Johnson of Ethel was the preacher.
This is all the information that we have. It's not much. People didn't have
need in those days I guess to give the funeral home lots of information. Our
record books are kind of large and awkward to fit on our copier. Sometime they
don't copy so well. So I didn't make a copy to send you, but if you are ever
in DeWitt stop by the funeral home and look at the record book if you want. We
are in the office Monday - Friday from 8-4.
Mr. Livingston's info. was even less than Mr. Bisswanger's. He was 20 at the
time of his death and was buried on Christmas Day at the Malcomb Cemetery in
Tichnor.
If we can help any more just let us know.
Laura Essex
----------------------------
1940 Federal Census, Arkansas County, Arkansas, 13 April, Ethel, District 1-26,
page 6B, Oak Flat School and Church Rd, Hse #101, Rents $200
Bisswanger, Al Head M W 32 Grade HS-1 b Arkansas same house in 1935 Fisherman
Bisswanger, Harriet Wife F W 30 Grade 8 b Arkansas same house in 1935
Housekeeper
Bisswanger, Leonard Son M W 9 Single Grade 3 b Arkansas same house in 1935
Bisswanger, Charles Son M W 7 Single Grade 3 b Arkansas same house in 1935
Bisswanger, James Son M W 2 Single Grade 3 b Arkansas
A cousin reports that Charles and Leonard Bisswanger were tall. And Leonard
played professional baseball for a while.
"The first two were rather tall, and Leonard especially so. He played pro
baseball."
-- Kennert Wirt McSwain, email to Orville Boyd Jenkins, 9 June 2014
After a visit to Ethel, including some time with his cousin Bob Bisswaner, Ken
further said about Bob's uncle Leonard:
"Leonard was the tallest if the boys, and an athlete. He played pro baseball
with the Detroit Tigers. I dropped by to visit him, just a short distance from
the Ethel intersection, before he died. He said he had been roommates with
Warren Spahn. I asked him how it was he was so much taller than his brothers.
'They wuz just picked green, I guess.' He had a pear tree beside his house and
insisted that we take a bag of them home. Good folks all. [Leonard's nephew]
Bob [Biswanger] said yesterday he gave it up because he got homesick. There's
something special about Ethel."
-- Kennert Wirt McSwain, Facebook comment to Orville Boyd Jenkins, 27 May
2016
See more details about Leonard's baseball career in his obituary below.
A directory listing for Leonard gives us his birth date as well as his address
before his death, in the community of Ethel, Arkansas County, Arkansas
U.S. Public Records Index, 1950-1993, Volume 2
Leonard Bisswanger
Birth Date 1 June 1930
Bellview Rd, Ethel, AR, 72048
U.S. Phone and Address Directories, 1993-2002
Leonard Bisswanger
Residence Ethel, Arkansas, 72048-2048
Phone 501-282-3271
Residence Years 1994-1997
U.S. Phone and Address Directories, 1993-2002
Leonard Bisswanger
630 Belleview Rd, Ethel, Arkansas, 72048-9509
Phone Number 870-282-3271
Residence Years 1998-2002
Social Security Death Index
Leonard H Bisswanger
Born 1 Jun 1930, Died 4 Jun 2008
Last Residence Ethel, Arkansas, Arkansas 72048
SSN 432-58-2469 issued Arkansas (Before 1951)
The RootsWeb Obituary Index reports only the basic details, indicating that
the obit was published on the 5 June 2008, one day after his death. The
burial was the next day, according to the obituary pubilshed in the Stuttgart
Daily Leader.
RootsWeb Obituary Index
Leonard Bisswanger
Obituary Date 5 Jun 2008
Death Abt 2008 Ethel AR
Age 78, Birth Year abt 1930
--------------------------------
Stuttgart, Ark. - Leonard Harvey Bisswanger, 78, died Wednesday, June 4.
A lifelong resident of Ethel, he was born June 1, 1930 to A.L. and Harriet
Criswell Bisswanger.
He was a retired federal game warden. He was an avid fisherman until his
health failed.
He played Minor League Baseball for the Memphis Redbirds in 1948, then played
one year Major League Baseball for the Boston Braves in 1949. He fought in the
Korean War in 1950, cutting short his baseball career.
He was preceded in death by his parents, his wife, Lorraine Bisswanger; two
brothers, Charles and James Bisswanger.
Survivors include a son, Corky Bisswanger and his wife, Renee of Ethel; two
daughters, Jeanie Trussell of Michigan and Cathy Orman and her husband Mark of
Ethel; four grandchildren, Corby and Candice Bisswanger, Nikki Vansickle and
Taylor Orman; two great-grandchildren and two brothers, Jerry Bisswanger of
Ethel and Durrell Bisswanger of DeWitt.
Funeral services will be held Friday, June 6, 2008 at 10 a.m. at Bellview
Baptist Church.
Burial will be in Mt. Pleasant Cemetery by Essex Funeral Home.
Memorials may be made to Mt. Pleasant Cemetery, 318 Bellview Road, Ethel,
72048.
-- Stuttgart Daily Leader, original no longer online; archive available at:
United States Obituary Collection,
http://www.ancestry.com/search/obit/view.aspx?db=web-obituary&kw=Bisswanger+Marilee&pid=18594905&url=http://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll%3Frank%3d1%26new%3d1%26MSAV%3d0%26msT%3d1%26gss%3dangs-i%26gsfn%3dMarilee%26gsln%3dBisswanger%26msbdy%3d1929%26msbpn__ftp%3dArkansas%2b(probably%2bArkansas%2bCounty)%26msfng0%3dJoseph%2bJ%26msfns0%3dBisswanger%26msmng0%3dLois%2bV%26msmns0%3dScruggs%26uidh%3dig1%26_83004003-n_xcl%3dm%26mssng0%3dHerbert%2bH%26mssns0%3dHorton%26ftm%3d1%26db%3dweb-obituary
--------------------------------
Leonard H. Bisswanger
Birth Jun 1, 1930
Death Jun 4, 2008
PFC US ARMY KOREA
Spouse Lorraine M. Bisswanger (1929 - 2003)
Burial Mount Pleasant Cemetery, Arkansas County, Arkansas
Created by Dale Houghton May 07, 2012
-- Find A Grave Memorial #89743210,
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=89743210
Family sources have her name as Louise, but in early the records it appears to
be Louisa. On her marriage record it is Louise.
1920 Federal Census, Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, 14 January, Oklahoma City,
District 144, page 18A, Hse #104, Fam #254
Bisswanger, Leonard Head M W 56 Married Bavaria Bavaria Bavaria immigrated
1897 Naturalized 1902 Farmer
Bisswanger, Helen Wife F W 43 Married AR AR AR
Bisswanger, Louisa Dau F W 6 AR Bavaria MS
1930 Federal Census, Arkansas County, Arkansas, 29 April, Prairie Township,
District 7, page 9A, No Road, On White River, Hse #165, Fam #166
Bisswanger, Leonard Head M W 57 Married at age 26 AR Germany AR Fisherman
Immigrated 1898, naturalized 1902
Bisswanger, Loisa (Louisa) Dau F W 17 Single AR Germany AR
Arkansas, County Marriages Index, 1837-1957
Louise Bisswanger
Age 23, Birth Year: abt 1913
Residence Saint Charles, Arkansas, Arkansas
Spouse's Name W E Hamner
Spouse's Age 29
Spouse's Residence St Charles, Arkansas, Arkansas
Marriage 25 Apr 1936 License Date: 25 Apr 1936, Arkansas
County
When I first found Jerry Keith Bisswanger's Bisswanger genealogy, he gave the
exact birth date of Margaret as 17 September 1902. Dot Kirk also reports this
birth date and the death date of 18 June 1988.
These date come from a Social Security Death Index also report of a Margaret J
Flowers. But her full name is Margaret Carr Flowers, which means her middle
or maiden name was Carr. The North Carolina record reports her father';s last
name was Jones. It seems odd that someone in North Carolina who also married
a man named Jones would have the exact same birth and death dates as Margaret
Bisswanger Jones in Arkansas.
Social Security Death Index
Margaret J. Flowers
Born 17 Sep 1902
Died 18 Jun 1988
SSN 240-07-7930 issued North Carolina (Before 1951)
Later I found that Keith had changed the date to that on a record for a
Margaret Barbara Flowers. On her North Carolina Death Certificate was the
following information. The certificate reports her father's last name as
Bisswanger (no image of the certificate).
The census ages (1910-4, 1920-14, 1930-24) match a birth date in 1905 or 1906,
and the Social Security Death Index indeed reports her birth date as 20 Aug
1905. Her death certificate reports birth date as 20 Aug 1904. 1905 matches
the consistent age reports of the censuses, and thus appears to be the correct
one. How the death certificate year could be wrong, though, is a mystery.
But I have not seen the original. See transcriptions below. The ages match
for these two censuses. In 1930 Margaret is reported as 24 years old, and
married at age 17, thus about 1923.
1910 Federal Census, Craighead County, Arkansas, 9 May, Nettleton Township,
District 27, page 7A, Hse/Fam #118
Bisswanger, Lenord (Leonard) Head M W 37 2nd marriage, Married 6yrs Germany
Germany Germany immigrated 1898 Resident Alien Farmer
Bisswanger, Helen Wife F W 32 2nd marriage, Married 6yrs AR MS MS
Bisswanger, Margret F W 4 AR Germany MS
1920 Federal Census, Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, 14 January, Oklahoma City,
District 144, page 18A, Hse #104, Fam #254
Bisswanger, Leonard Head M W 56 Married Bavaria Bavaria Bavaria immigrated
1897 Naturalized 1902 Farmer
Bisswanger, Helen Wife F W 43 Married AR AR AR
Bisswanger, Margaret F W 14 AR Bavaria MS
The 1930 census indicates that Margartet and her husband Ralph George Flowers
lived in New Jersey when their children Ralph and Barbara were born. But by
1930 they were in Lakeland, Florida.
1930 Federal Census, Polk County, Florida, 7 April, Lakeland, District 29,
page 1B, 1025 Nelson Ave, Hse #22, Fam #24
Flowers, Ralph Head Rents $8 M W 30 First married at age 23 NC NC NC No
Occupation
Flowers, Margaret Wife F W 24 First married at age 17 AR Germany Germany
Flowers, Ralph Son M W 6 Single New Jersey NC AR
Flowers, Barbara F W 4yrs9mos Single New Jersey NC AR
Bisswanger-Kummel researcher Ann Burkley referred me the North Carolina death
certificate reporting a Margaret Flowers whose father's last name was
Bisswanger but the age here does not match the reported date of birth. Note
that she is age 34, which should make the year of birth 1905, which is in fact
the year reported by the SSDI. Burkley also provided the dates of birth and
death for Margaret Bisswanger's husband, Ralph George Flowers, which indicate
he was born and died in North Carolina.
North Carolina Death Collection, 1908-2004
Margaret Barbara Flowers
[Margaret Barbara Bisswanger]
Residence Hickory, Catawba County, North Carolina
White Female, Widowed
Father's Last Name: Bisswanger
Age 84, Birth 20 Aug 1904 Arkansas County, Arkansas
Death 3 Mar 1989 General Hospital, Hickory, Catawba County, North Carolina
Burial in state
Social Security Number 240-16-1616
Here is the proper SSDI record for Margaret Barbara. Note that the SSDI says
the year of birth was 1905, a year later than that reported by the death
certificate. But 1905 matches the AGE reported in the death certificate.
Also, the ages in earlier censuses of 4, 14 and 24 match birth in 1905, not
1904. The image copy of the Birth Certificate is not available on Ancestry,
only a transcription, so I have not been able to verify the date reported
there.
Social Security Death Index
Margaret B. Flowers
Born 20 Aug 1905
Died 3 Mar 1989
Last Residence Hickory, Catawba, North Carolina 28601
SSN 240-16-1616 issued North Carolina (Before
1951)
1930 Federal Census, Arkansas County, Arkansas, 22 April, Prairie Township,
District 25, page 7B, Ethel and Chute Rd, Hse #123, Fam #129
Scruggs, William M Head Owns Farm M W 58 First Married at age 16 AR TN TN
Farmer
Scruggs, Kate V Wife F W 58 First Married at age 16 AR GA AL
Bisswanger, Lois Dau F W 18 First Married at age 16 AR AR AR
Bisswanger, Marilee Granddaughter FW 10mos AR US AR
1940 Federal Census, Arkansas County, Arkansas, 4 April, Ethel, District 1-26,
page 6B, Oak Flat School and Church Rd, Hse #97, Owns $500
Scruggs, Bud Head M W 68 Widow Grade 6 b Arkansas same place in 1935 Farmer
Scruggs, Kate Wife F W 68 Grade 5 b Arkansas place house in 1935 Housekeeper
Bisswanger, Lois Dau F W 27 Single Grade 6 b Arkansas same place in 1935
Housekeeper
Bisswanger, Joe Son-in-law M W 31 Single b Arkansas same place in 1935
Fisherman
Bisswanger, Merry Lee Niece F W 10 Grade 5 b Arkansas same place in 1935
Arkansas, County Marriages Index, 1837-1957
Herbert H Horton
Age 19, Birth Year abt 1929
Residence St Charles, Arkansas, Arkansas
Spouse's Name Marilee Bisswanger
Spouse's Age 19
Spouse's Residence Ethel, Arkansas, Arkansas
Marriage 25 Jul 1948 Arkansas County
Marriage License Date 23 Jul 1948
"Marilee Horton was the third grade teacher in the St Charles school until
1956. She left the year I was to go into her class."
-- Edith Marie McSwain Jenkins, personal comunication, 5 November 2011
U.S. Public Records Index, Volume 2
Marilee B Horton
Marilee L Horton
Birth Date 18 May 1929
POB 4l, St Charles, AR, 72140 (1986)
Address PO Box 204, Saint Charles, AR, 72140-0204 (1991)
"Keep the Horton family in your prayers Mrs. Marilee Horton passed away early
this morning. Her services will be at St. Charles Baptist Church, Sunday.
Visitation at 2 pm with services beginning at 3pm."
-- Marilyn McSwain Rousseau, Facebook Post, 1 September 2017
"She was my 2nd grade teacher. One of my favorites. So sorry to hear of her
passing."
-- Patricia Graves, Facebook Post, 1 September 2017
"Many prayers for all! She was my 5th grade English teacher at St Charles!
Mrs. Marilee was so precious! My grand mother Hamner passed away before I ever
met her and I never knew who my grandmother family was. Mrs. Marilee told me
that her father was my grand mother older brother Joe Bisswanger. Then she
told me about my other cousins! She was so sweet!"
-- Charlene Hamner, Facebook Post, 2 September 2017
------------------
Obituary
Marilee Bisswanger Horton, 88, of St. Charles passed away September 1, 2017.
She was born May 18, 1929 in Ethel to Joe and Vera Lois Bisswanger. She began
her teaching career at the age of 17 in 1946. She was a member of St. Charles
Baptist Church and was an adult Sunday School teacher. She also attended
Strong Women.
Marilee was preceded in death by her parents and her husband, Herbert Horton.
She is survived by her three children and their spouses Sherry Allen (Ronny)
of Gillett, Phil Horton (Susan) of St. Charles, and Don Horton (Shanna) of
Fayetteville; eight grandchildren Doug Allen (Millie), Laura Soileau (Jared),
Chris Allen, Drew Horton, Lindsey Spears (Jacob), and Ethan, Emma, and Ellie
Horton; and three great grandchildren Gage Currie, Levi Soileau, and Sutton
Spears.
Funeral services will be 3:00 September 3 at St. Charles Baptist with
visitation one hour before the service. Burial will follow in Cecdarcrest
Memorial Gardens by Essex Funeral Home.
-- Essex Funeral Home Inc Obituary, Legacy,
http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/name/marilee-horton-obituary?pid=1000000186544299
-- Also published on Afterlife,
https://www.afterlife.co/us/obituary-saint-charles-marilee-bisswanger-horton-5221288
------------------
In the 1900 census for Crawford County, Arkansas, Ella Bivens Knight had been
married to James B Goodwin for 3 years. She was apparently widowed in about
1902 or so, since in the 1910 census, she was a widow head of household and
the youngest of two Goodwin children, Oscar, was 9 years old.
1910 Federal Census, Crawford County, Arkansas, 26 April, River Township,
District 7, Page 12A, Hse #167,Fam #168
Goodwin, Ella Head F W 35 Widow 7 children/3 living b AR MO AR Farmer rents [b
abt 1875]
Night [Knight], Martha Dau M W 16 Single AR MO AR Farm Laborer [b abt 1894]
Goodwin, Joe Son M W 11 Single AR AR AR Farm Laborer [b abt 1899]
Goodwin, Oscar Son M W 9 Single AR AR AR [b abt 1901]
Ellas has not been found in the 1920 census. She had two more children,
daughter Addie Flora born 1915 and Alta born 1918. Their father was Marlin
Davis.
Ella Bivens
BIRTH APR 1875 Madison, Arkansas
DEATH AFT 1920 Crawford Arkansas
Parents:
Joseph A Bivens 1848-1926
Ann Dorsey 1840-1915
Spouse:
Ezra Israel Bud Knight 1872-1894
Child Martha Ethelbert Knight 1894-1973
Spouse:
James P Goodwin 1860-1910
Children:
Joseph Jodie Franklin Goodwin 1899-1959
Oscar D Goodwin 1900-1979
Spouse Marlin Edward Davis 1895-1970
Children:
Addie Flora Davis 1915-1984
Alta Davis 1918-1977
-- Okie, http://person.ancestry.com/tree/6657516/person/-1253799581/facts
Though Marlin was having children with Ella Bivens, he wwas actually married
to Mary Jemima Freeman, simultaneously building two famliies.
"Flora M. Davis was born to Marlin and Jemima in may of 1915. My grandmother
Addie Flora Davis was born in Oct 1915 to Marlin Davis and Ella Bivens Davis.
Same dad. different moms. He is running back and forth between these two
women having kids with both of them. Ella is a full 20 years older than he is
and is a colorful character to put it mildly. Married 3 times, but I can find
no record of her and Marlin being married although she took his last name."
-- Joy Elaine Fowler, Ancestry Messaging to Orville Boyd Jenkins, 20 July
2016
In 1918 her son Joe Goodwin reported as his ocntact on his WWI registration
his mother under the name of Ellad Davis, resident of Van Buren, Arkansas.
U.S., World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918
Jodie Franklin Goodwin
Residence Van Buren, Crawford County, Arkansas
Birth Date 10 Feb 1899
Laborer for Taylor Black
Nearest Relative (mother) Ellas Davis Van Buren, Crawford County, Arkansas
Medium Height & Build, Blue Eyes, Brown Hair
Registered 12 September 1918 Van Buren
Signed Jodie Franklin Goodwin
Ella has not been found in the 1920 census. It appears that Ella died before
the 1930 census, because the two Davis children Flora and Addie are living in
the household of their older brother Joe Goodwin.
1930 Federal Census, LeFlore County, Oklahoma, 18 April, cowlington Township,
District 40-10, Page 40B, Hse #90, Fam #91
Goodwin, Joseph Head Rents Has No Radio M W 31 First Married at age 25 [abt
1924] TX TX TX Farmer [b abt 1899]
Goodwin, Bonnie Wife F W 26 First Married at age 24 [abt 1928 ?] OK TX TX
Farmer [b abt 1904]
Goodwin, James W Son M W 5 OK AR AR [b abt 1925]
Goodwin, Angie M Dau F W 3 OK AR AR [b abt 1927]
Davis, Flora Sister F W 14 AR AR AR K [b abt
1916]
Tennessee State Marriages, 1780-2002:
Michael Swink
Spouse Rebecca Bivins
Marriage 13 Jul 1818 Rutherford
County
Arkansas, County Marriages Index, 1837-1957
Charley Knowlton, Age 23 (born abt 1880)
Residence Ethel, Arkansas, Arkansas
Bessie Black, Age 18 (born abt 1885)
Residence Ethel, Arkansas, Arkansas
Marriage 1 Nov 1903 Arkansas County
Marriage License Date 31 Oct 1903
1910 Federal Census, Arkansas County, Arkansas, 14 April, Prairie Township,
District 12, page 1A, Hse/Fam #4
Knowlton, Charly Head M W 30 2nd Marriage Married 7 years AR MS AL Farmer
Owns Farm [b abt 1880]
Knowlton, Bertie [Bessie] Wife F W 24 Married 2 children/2 living AR AR AR [b
abt 1886]
Knowlton, Belle Dau F W 8 AR AR AR [b abt 1902]
Knowlton, Florence Dau F W 1 AR AR AR [b abt 1909]
Bessie died in 1914. In the 1920 and 1930 censuses, Charley is reported as a
widower.