The Ancestors: Jean Schmit of Hautcharage and Eva Ducker of Differdange

On 6 November 1756 Joannes SCHMIT of Oberkerschen (also known as Hautcharage) married Eva DUCKER of Differdingen (also known as Differdange).¹ No other information was given in the three short lines written in the Obercorn parish register. Differdange at the time belonged to the Obercorn parish.

1756 Marriage Entry in the Obercorn parish register. Courtesy of FamilySearch.

Time for a little Latin lesson

The word Octobris (or October) was marked out and corrected with 9bris in the marriage entry above. Nine does not designate the number of the month, but rather the name of the month in Latin when September, October, November, and December were the 7th, 8th, 9th, and 10th months. Nine was novem in Latin, making 9bris the month November, and not September the 9th month as we know it today. The suffix -bris or -ber indicates the number is to be spoken and pronounced as the standard names.

While searching for records, if you are using dates abstracted by someone who unknowingly assumed the number referred to the month as we number them today, this is likely what may be tripping you up. If you cannot find a record abstracted as July, it may be dated 7ber or September.

The children of Jean and Eva

Jean and Eva, my 5th great-grandparents, made their home in Niedercorn, a village in the parish of Obercorn. Their seven known children were born in Niedercorn and baptized in Obercorn.

Nicolaus SCHMIT (1756-?)

Jean and Eva cut it close when they married. Their first child, a son, was born less than a month after their marriage. Nicolaus was born and baptized on 1 December 1756. His godparents were Rdus (Reverendus or reverend) Dominicus SCHMIT of Oberkerschen and Catherine DÜCKER of Rodange, formerly of Differdange.² No further record was found for this child.

Franciscus SCHMIT (1758-1814)

The second child of Jean and Eva was baptized on 27 September 1758. His godparents were Franciscus SCHMIT and Maria SCHMIT, both of Niedercorn.³ Franciscus was married twice. He married(1) Elisabeth KETTENMEYERS on 8 January 1788.⁴ Elisabeth gave birth to two children⁵,⁶ before dying on New Year’s Eve in 1792.⁷ Franciscus married(2) Magdalena NOEL on 20 November 1793.⁸ They had at least two sons, one born in 1795⁹ and a second in 1804.¹⁰ Franciscus died on 7 April 1814 at the age of 55.¹¹ Magdalena died on 8 November 1820 at the age of 63.¹²

Marianne SCHMIT (1760-1824)

The first daughter and third child of Jean and Eva was my 4th great-grandmother Marianne SCHMIT. She was born and baptized on 21 December 1760. Her godparents were Frederico SCHAUS of Niederkorn and Maria DECKEN (a variation of DUCKER) of Differdange. Her baptismal name was Maria.¹³ Later, when she married, had children, and died her name was seen as Marianne. She married Pierre FOURNELLE (1748-1816) on 1 April 1783.¹⁴ Marianne was 22 and Pierre was 34. They were the parents of ten children. Their oldest lived only a little more than a year. Eight of the nine children married. One son has not been traced after his baptism in 1791. Marianne’s husband Pierre died on 17 October 1816 at the age of 67.¹⁵ Marianne died on 14 Jun 1824 at the age of 63.¹⁶ More about this family can be read here: 52 Ancestors: #40 The Fournelle-Schmit Family of Rodange.

Jean SCHMIT (1762-aft. 1821)

The fourth child of Jean and Eva, Jean was born and baptized on 19 Sep 1762. His godparents were Jean REDING from Reding and Margaritha THILTGES from Niedercorn.¹⁷ He married Françoise MARTIN on 6 February 1792 in Rodange.¹⁸ Jean was 29 and Françoise, a widow, was 50. Witnesses to the marriage were the bride Françoise’s father Jean TONNELIER (he was her step-father) and her son Pierre VAUDOIS, and the groom Jean’s brother François SCHMIT, and his brother-in-law Pierre FOURNELLE. Jean TONNELIER had married Françoise’s mother Angélique MUSQUIN following the death of his wife Catherine DUCKER. Catherine was the sister of Jean’s mother Eva. Therefore Jean TONNELIER was Jean’s uncle by marriage and became his step-father-in-law. Jean and Françoise likely didn’t have children due to her age at the time of the marriage. Françoise was 79 years old when she died in Thil, Meurthe-et-Moselle, France, on 29 October 1821 at the home of her husband Jean SCHMIT.¹⁹ A death record after 29 October 1821 was not found in Thil for Jean.

Marie SCHMIT (1765-aft. 29 Nov 1803)

Jean and Eva’s 2nd daughter and 5th child, Marie was born and baptized on 30 March 1765. Her godparents were Peter LIPPERT and Maria SAMPSON, both of Niedercorn.²⁰ Marie married Antoine MAUER on 10 February 1789 in Obercorn.²¹ They were the parents of five children born between 1789-1803. No trace of this couple or their children was found after the birth of their last known child and only daughter Maria on 29 November 1803.²²

Magdalena SCHMIT (1766-1785)

The third daughter and 6th child, Magdalena was born and baptized on 14 October 1766. Her godparents were Michael LORANG and Magdalena DECKES (a variation of DUCKER), both of Niedercorn.²³ Magdalena never married. She died on 17 May 1785 at the age of 18 while visiting or living with her sister Marianne in Rodange. Her brother-in-law Pierre FOURNELLE was present at her funeral and signed the burial notice.²⁴

Susanne SCHMIT (1769-1819)

Jean and Eva’s youngest child was a daughter Susanne born and baptized on 5 March 1769. Her godparents were Michael GRUND and Susanna BASSENDORF.²⁵ Susanne was likely the mother of a natural child born and baptized on 22 October 1789 in Rodange. The child was named Angelique SCHMIT. Her godparents were her uncle Pierre FOURNELLE and Angélique MUSQUIN, wife of Jean TONNELIER (her mother Eva’s brother-in-law).²⁶ By elimination, only Susanne could have been the mother. Angelique died at the age of two months on 2 January 1790. The entry in the parish records for her death and burial does not name her parents. The death was witnessed by her godfather/uncle.²⁷ Five years later, Susanne married Joseph PHILIPPART on 23 January 1795 in Rodange.²⁸ Joseph was the brother of my 5th great-grandfather Jacques PHILIPPART. Susanne and Joseph were 25 and 30 when they married. They were the parents of six children born between 1796-1809. Susanne died on 17 September 1819 at the age of 50.²⁹ Her husband Joseph died at the age of 63 on 19 January 1828.³⁰

Death on Wedding Anniversary

The marriage of Jean SCHMIT and Eva DUCKER lasted exactly 21 years. Jean died on their anniversary, 6 November 1777 in Niedercorn. He was buried the following day in the cemetery of Obercorn.³¹ He was a sexagenarian at the time of his death, i.e. born before 1717.

Eva, 50 years old, was left with two sons and four daughters aged between 9 and 19 years.

Eva died fourteen years later on 18 March 1792 in Niedercorn. She was buried the following day in the cemetery of Niedercorn. Her oldest son Franciscus was a witness who signed the death/burial record. Her funeral was said by J. B. NEUERS of the parish of Obercorn, the same priest who had celebrated her husband’s funeral.³² Eva had lived to see four of her children marry. Two children predeceased her.

Research Manager

Jean SCHMIT and Eva DUCKER’s names were found in the 1783 marriage record of my 4th great-grandparents Marianne SCHMIT and Pierre FOURNELLE. When I wrote about Marianne and Pierre in December 2017, I mentioned the family book for the village of Obercorn.³³

Eva’s parents were Peter DUCKER, formerly of Mamer, and Maria SCHMIT of Niedercorn, They raised their family of eight children in Differdange. While Eva’s parents and siblings were found and documented with the help of information found in the family book of Obercorn, a few questions remain.

As Eva’s mother and husband shared the SCHMIT surname, were they related? Who were the parents of Jean SCHMIT from Oberkerschen or Hautcharage?

SCHMIT is the number one most common family name in Luxembourg. Without any finding aids, it’s nearly impossible to research a person named Jean SCHMIT or John SMITH.

Baptismal records for Hautcharage are available from 1713-1793 on FamilySearch and Matricula. Marriages and burials are not available until 1779. Marriages before 1779 can be inferred from the baptismal records of the children of married couples.

Jean SCHMIT died in 1777 and was a sexagenarian, i.e. born before 1717. There were two SCHMITT men in Hautcharage having children with their wives around the time Jean SCHMIT was born: Henricus and Jacobus. A third man Joannes who used the surnames MERCIENIUS, SCHMITT, and MORITZ at the time of three daughters’ baptisms is also a candidate.³⁴ More records than the baptismal entries of the children of these three SCHMITT men will be needed to prove if any of them were the father of Jean SCHMIT of Oberkerschen.

This research will be saved for another day. The subjects of my next post will be Marianne SCHMIT’s parents-in-law Pierre FOURNELLE and Jeanne NEU.

Genealogy Sketch

Name: Jean SCHMIT of Hautcharage
Parents: Unknown at this time
Spouse: Eva DUCKER of Differdange
Parents of spouse: Peter DUCKER and Marie SCHMIT
Whereabouts: Niedercorn, Luxembourg
Relationship to Cathy Meder-Dempsey: 5th great-grandparents

1. Jean SCHMIT and Eva DUCKER
2. Marianne SCHMIT and Pierre FOURNELLE
3. André FOURNELLE and Marie Catherine PHILIPPART
4. André FOURNELLE and Odile Lucie SCHLOESSER
5. Jean Joseph FOURNELLE and Catharina FRANTZ
6. Marie Marcelle FOURNELLE and Nicolas WILDINGER
7. Living WILDINGER and Fred Roosevelt DEMPSEY
8. Catherine Ann “Cathy” DEMPSEY and Living MEDER
9. Our children

© 2021, copyright Cathy Meder-Dempsey. All rights reserved.

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1. Luxembourg, registres paroissiaux, 1601-1948 (images), FamilySearch (original records at Luxembourg National Archives, Plateau du Saint-Esprit, Luxembourg), Obercorn > Mariages 1727-1770, sépultures 1727-1737, 1740-1778 > image 68 of 96. 1756 Marriage Record (left page, 7th entry). (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-89WS-9T2?cc=2037955&wc=STH8-44M%3A1500974001%2C1501083590 : accessed 9 July 2021). ↩
2. Ibid., Obercorn > Baptêmes 1728-1778 > image 45 of 103. 1756 Baptismal Record (left page, 4th entry). (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QSQ-G9WS-9ZCS?cc=2037955&wc=STH8-HZW%3A1500974001%2C1501099482 : accessed 18 June 2020). ↩
3. Ibid., Obercorn > Baptêmes 1728-1778 > image 48 of 103. 1758 Baptismal Record (left page, 9th entry). (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-99WS-9ZRD?cc=2037955&wc=STH8-HZW%3A1500974001%2C1501099482 : accessed 18 June 2020). ↩
4. Ibid., Obercorn > Baptêmes 1779-1793, 1797, mariages 1790-1793, 1796-1797, sépultures 1779-1793 > image 240 of 407. 1788 Marriage Record (left page). (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-L9WS-9HYH?cc=2037955&wc=STH8-4W1%3A1500974001%2C1500974002 : accessed 4 November 2021). ↩
5. Ibid., Obercorn > Baptêmes 1779-1793, 1797, mariages 1790-1793, 1796-1797, sépultures 1779-1793 > image 257 of 407. 1789 Baptismal Record (left page, first entry).(https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-L9WS-9HR1?cc=2037955&wc=STH8-4W1%3A1500974001%2C1500974002 : accessed 4 November 2021). ↩
6. Ibid., Obercorn > Baptêmes 1779-1793, 1797, mariages 1790-1793, 1796-1797, sépultures 1779-1793 > image 324 of 407. 1791 Baptismal Record (left page, entry).(https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QSQ-G9WS-9H2Z?cc=2037955&wc=STH8-4W1%3A1500974001%2C1500974002 : accessed 4 November 2021). ↩
7. Ibid., Obercorn > Baptêmes 1779-1793, 1797, mariages 1790-1793, 1796-1797, sépultures 1779-1793 > image 371 of 407. 1792 Death Record (left page, first entry).(https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QSQ-G9WS-9ZFG?cc=2037955&wc=STH8-4W1%3A1500974001%2C1500974002 : accessed 4 November 2021). ↩
8. Ibid., Obercorn > Baptêmes 1779-1793, 1797, mariages 1790-1793, 1796-1797, sépultures 1779-1793 > image 385 of 407. 1793 Marriage Record (left page and top right). (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-99WS-9894?cc=2037955&wc=STH8-4W1%3A1500974001%2C1500974002 : accessed 4 November 2021). ↩
9. Ibid., Obercorn > Baptêmes 1704-1727, 1746, 1794-1797, 1800-1805, mariages 1795-1797, 1800-1807, sépultures 1794-1797, 1802-1807 > image 110 of 296. 1795 Baptismal Record (right page, 2nd entry).(https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-99WS-9SCB?cc=2037955&wc=STHZ-N3T%3A1500974001%2C1500974302 : accessed 4 November 2021). ↩
10. Luxembourg, Registres d’état civil, 1662-1941 (images), FamilySearch (original records at Luxembourg National Archives, Plateau du Saint-Esprit, Luxembourg), Differdange > Naissances 1796-1806 > image 37 of 166. 1804 (12 Prairial An XII) Birth Record (right page).
    (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HT-6LVQ-XRG?cc=1709358&wc=9RYQ-JWG%3A129627401%2C130102702 : accessed 5 November 2021). ↩
11. Ibid., Differdange > Décès 1813-1858 > image 29 of 591. 1814 Death Record No. 46. (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HY-6X1T-D6?cc=1709358&wc=9RYC-GP6%3A129627401%2C129627402 : accessed 5 November 2021). ↩
12. Ibid., Differdange > Décès 1813-1858 > image 103 of 591. 1820 Death Record No. 31. (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HY-6X19-9PY?cc=1709358&wc=9RYC-GP6%3A129627401%2C129627402 : accessed 5 November 2021). ↩
13. Luxembourg Parish Records, Obercorn > Baptêmes 1728-1778 > image 51 of 103. 1760 Baptismal Record (right page, 2nd to last entry). (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QSQ-G9WS-9Z4Y?cc=2037955&wc=STH8-HZW%3A1500974001%2C1501099482 : accessed 18 June 2020). ↩
14. Ibid., Rodange > Baptêmes, mariages, sépultures 1779-1793 > image 35 of 108. 1783 Marriage Record. (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.3.1/TH-1951-32463-14058-91?cc=2037955 : accessed 13 November 2015). ↩
15. Luxembourg Civil Records, Pétange > Naissances 1878-1886 Mariages 1796-1890 Décès 1796-1858 > image 1190 of 1497. 1816 Death Record No. 13. (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.3.1/TH-266-12305-1045-93?cc=1709358&wc=M9M6-LZB:n289380544 : accessed 23 March 2010). ↩
16. Ibid., Pétange > Naissances 1878-1886 Mariages 1796-1890 Décès 1796-1858 > image 1246 of 1497. 1824 Death Record No. 14. (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.3.1/TH-266-12305-1419-81?cc=1709358&wc=M9M6-LZB:n289380544 : accessed 23 Mar 2010). ↩
17. Luxembourg Parish Records, Obercorn > Baptêmes 1728-1778 > image 57 of 103. 1762 Baptismal Record (left page, first entry). (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-99WS-9ZPG?cc=2037955&wc=STH8-HZW%3A1500974001%2C1501099482 : accessed 18 June 2020). ↩
18. Ibid., Rodange > Baptêmes, mariages, sépultures 1779-1793 > image 98 of 108. 1792 Marriage Record (top, left page). (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-99WS-3FF3?cc=2037955&wc=STHD-W3G%3A1501084779%2C1500913302 : accessed 5 November 2021). ↩
19. Archives départementales de Meurthe-et-Moselle (54), browsable images of microfilm collection of parish and civil records (online http://www.archives.cg54.fr/), Villerupt 1799-18475 > Mi 579/R 2 > image 310 of 935. New terms of use: En application du règlement sur la réutilisation des données publiques adopté par le conseil départemental de Meurthe-et-Moselle (délibération de sa commission permanente n°17, en date du 16 janvier 2017), je m’engage à mentionner la source du document téléchargé (Arch. dép. de Meurthe-et-Moselle, [suivi de la cote complète]), en cas de réutilisation. 1821 Death Record (bottom left, and middle right page).
    http://archivesenligne.archives.cg54.fr/ark:/33175/s0054ad10ede2e95/54aeac3faff03 : accessed 12 November 2021). ↩
20. Luxembourg Parish Records, Obercorn > Baptêmes 1728-1778 > image 61 of 103. 1765 Baptismal Record (right page, 6th entry). (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QSQ-G9WS-9ZZJ?cc=2037955&wc=STH8-HZW%3A1500974001%2C1501099482 : accessed 18 June 2020). ↩
21. Ibid., Obercorn > Baptêmes 1779-1793, 1797, mariages 1790-1793, 1796-1797, sépultures 1779-1793 > image 267 of 407. 1789 Marriage Record (right page). (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-89WS-9HFM?cc=2037955&wc=STH8-4W1%3A1500974001%2C1500974002 : accessed 4 November 2021). ↩
22. Ibid., Obercorn > Baptêmes 1704-1727, 1746, 1794-1797, 1800-1805, mariages 1795-1797, 1800-1807, sépultures 1794-1797, 1802-1807 > image 179 of 296. 1803 Baptismal Record (right page, last entry). (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-89WS-9S7Y?cc=2037955&wc=STHZ-N3T%3A1500974001%2C1500974302 : accessed 4 November 2021). ↩
23. Ibid., Obercorn > Baptêmes 1728-1778 > image 64 of 103. 1766 Baptismal Record (right page, 4th entry). (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-89WS-9CKY?cc=2037955&wc=STH8-HZW%3A1500974001%2C1501099482 : accessed 18 June 2020). ↩
24. Ibid., Rodange > Baptêmes, mariages, sépultures 1779-1793 > image 55 of 108. 1785 Death Record (left page, 1st entry). (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.3.1/TH-1951-32463-14223-8?cc=2037955 : accessed 18 June 2020). ↩
25. Ibid., Obercorn > Baptêmes 1728-1778 > image 69 of 103. 1769 Baptismal Record (left page, 4th entry).(https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-89WS-9CK4?cc=2037955&wc=STH8-HZW%3A1500974001%2C1501099482 : accessed 18 June 2020). ↩
26. Ibid., Rodange > Baptêmes, mariages, sépultures 1779-1793 > image 78 of 108. 1789 Baptismal Record (left page, first entry). (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-L9WS-3FB3?cc=2037955&wc=STHD-W3G%3A1501084779%2C1500913302 : accessed 7 November 2021). ↩
27. Ibid., Rodange > Baptêmes, mariages, sépultures 1779-1793 > image 75 of 108. 1790 Death Record (right page, 3rd entry). (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QSQ-G9WS-3N6S?cc=2037955&wc=STHD-W3G%3A1501084779%2C1500913302 : accessed 7 November 2021). ↩
28. Ibid., Rodange > Baptêmes 1767-1777, 1779-1796, confirmations 1791, mariages 1767-1777, 1779-1795, sépultures 1767-1777, 1779-1797 > image 83 of 102. 1795 Marriage Record (left, bottom and right, top). (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QSQ-G9WS-3NFN?cc=2037955&wc=STHD-W32%3A1501084779%2C1501084780 : 9 January 2015). ↩
29. Luxembourg Civil Records, Pétange > Naissances 1878-1886 Mariages 1796-1890 Décès 1796-1858 > image 1210 of 1497. 1819 Death Record No. 13. (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HT-62QW-J5N?cc=1709358&wc=9RY3-168%3A130201201%2C130563401 : accessed 30 June 2011). ↩
30. Ibid., Pétange > Naissances 1878-1886 Mariages 1796-1890 Décès 1796-1858 > image 1270 of 1497. 1828 Death Record No. 1. (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.3.1/TH-266-12305-6384-83?cc=1709358&wc=M9QN-BMX:n289380544 : accessed 30 Jun 2011). ↩
31. Luxembourg Parish Records, Obercorn > Mariages 1727-1770, sépultures 1727-1737, 1740-1778 > image 55 of 96. 1777 Death Record (right page, first entry). (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-99WS-99S9?cc=2037955&wc=STH8-44M%3A1500974001%2C1501083590 : accessed 3 November 2021). ↩
32. Ibid., Obercorn > Baptêmes 1779-1793, 1797, mariages 1790-1793, 1796-1797, sépultures 1779-1793 > image 367 of 407
    . 1792 Death Record, part 2 (left page, first entry). (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QSQ-G9WS-9Z8P?cc=2037955&wc=STH8-4W1%3A1500974001%2C1500974002 : accessed 3 November 2021). ↩
33. Armand Logelin-Simon, Livre de famille de Obercorn, Tables familiales manuscrites de la localité de Obercorn d’après les registres paroissiaux. Période: 1637-1804 – Pages: 278 – Langue: Français/Latin (Digitized by Luxracines asbl), page 201, family 81. ↩
34. Robert Wagner, Dépouillement de Hautcharage, Dépouillement des naissances, mariages et décès à partir des registres de la paroisse de Hautcharage. Inclut la filiale de Linger. Période: 1713-1797 – Pages: 48 – Langue: Français (Digitized by Luxracines asbl). ↩