A Special Lost and Found for Alfred Elling

In Spring 2007, Pastor Kramer tapped Al on the back while we were talking in the narthex between church services. "Come with me," he said, "I have something to show you."

He and Al walked down the hall to St. Paul's Lutheran School library.

"See what the librarian found!" he told Al.

"Where did you get this?" Al asked when Pastor Kramer gave Al his 7th grade report card.

What a SURPRISE! 63 years lost in transition. Double-click on the top photo to see Al's good grades. (Letters represent percentage scores in "those days.")

 

Pastor Kramer explained that the librarian had cleaned a top shelf in the library and found an old, dusty box.

The box had been moved from the old church building into the new school library many years before.

It contained three old report cards dated 1935-1936. (Al's 7th grade years would have been 1933-1934, indicating typos on the report card envelope. He graduated from 8th grade and was confirmed in the Spring of 1935.)

 Grandma Elling signed the report card each period.

A Surprise in an Old Newspaper

The last two days have been research days for me.  I've left the laundry and the mundane behind to go exploring in libraries, feeling the  twisted "joy" of becoming nauseated from hours upon end of viewing galloping microfilm and inhaling the musty smell of old books.  But sometimes it all pays off in a treasure or two.  My goal was to find some old letters home during World War I (see my other blog http://www.attheriverbend.blogspot.com/ for that info) but always when reading old newspapers, I get caught up in the other stories...and sometimes, there's something fun to be had.

Today I was browsing through the 1947 Northwest-Signal looking for a certain obituary (which I never did find) and I came across this article on the FRONT page on June 19th.  Why wouldn't it catch my eye?  The name ELLING was in caps and bold letters.  


"ELLING - HAUSCH
A very pretty and impressive candle light wedding took place Sunday, June 15, at 5 o'clock in St. Paul's Lutheran church, when Miss Lorna Elling, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Albert Elling, became the bride of Edward Hausch, son of Mr. and Mrs. Geo. Hausch of Archbold.

Before the altar banked with palms and garden flowers, Rev. Martin Zschoche performed the double ring ceremony.  Miss Elling entered the church on the arm of her father, who gave her in marriage. The bride was attired in a long white satin gown and veil.  She carried a bouquet of white carnations.
Linda Lou Hicksted, niece of the bride, served as flower girl. She was pretty in a long pink gown of dotted swiss.  Her bouquet was of assorted flowers in pink.
Miss Eleonora Elling was maid of honor.  Her gown was of yellow rayon marquisette and lace over taffeta.  She carried a bouquet of pale pink carnations.
Miss Louise Elling and Mrs. Rudolph Elling served as bridesmaids.  Their gowns were of blue rayon marquisette over taffeta. They carried bouquets of red carnations.

Menno Hausch, brother of the groom, served as best man.  Rudolph Elling and Peter Hausch served as ushers. 
David Druhot, nephew of the groom, served as ring bearer.

The bride's mother wore a navy dress with black accessories.  Her corsage was of white carnations.  The groom's mother also wore a navy dress with black accessories and her corsage was of white carnations.

Following the ceremony, a reception was held at the Harrison Grange Hall for about two hundred guests.  The couple will reside with the groom's parents, Mr. and Mrs. George Hausch of Archbold."

Wedding Gowns of Aunt Louise, Aunt Lorna, Aunt Ginny
as displayed at 2009 Elling Family Reunion
Photo by Jane Elling Haas

This post originally appeared on the Elling Family News blog in December, 2010.

Don't Forget the Coffee Cake

But then...ah, yes...the old German Coffee Cake recipe appeared.  I can remember my mom making it a few times, but it must have been so frustrating for her because it disappeared in an instant once all six of us began eating.  I know we always had it at Elling Christmas dinners and I can envision eating it at Aunt Kate's table.  It was always (and still is) a treat, but when I look over this recipe, I think the odds of my attempting to make it again are slim. 
But for the more ambitious, here is the recipe. 

German Coffee Cake

3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup peeled cooked potatoes that have been mashed up
1 cup of the hot potato water in which they have been cooked
1 cup milk
1/2 cup melted lard (Yes, we used lard then!)
1/8 lb. yeast (6 envelopes or cakes)
salt (no measurement given - just guess)
6 - 7 cups flour

Mix ingredients in order listed and let rise until triple in size (about 1 hour)
Knead by the handful.  Roll to 1/4 inch thickness and press into greased pans.
Grease top with melted butter or margarine and let rise until double in size.
Dot with butter and sprinkle with sugar.
Bake at 375 degrees until brown (about 15-20 minutes)
Remove and spread with butter/sugar/cinnamon mixture.

Whet your appetite yet?

Meeting Cousins at Spengler's

Yesterday we met some of the cousins for food and conversation at Spengler's.  What fun it was to see each other again and to catch up with each other's lives.  The time goes by so quickly!  We have to do it more often!

 This post originally appeared on the Elling Family News blog on October 31, 2010.

Spengler's in Napoleon

Family Treasures - Aunt Ginny's Quilts

And now back to our previously scheduled program... continuing the story of family heirlooms in the possession of my aunts and uncles and sharing  memories of their earlier lives with my Elling grandparents.  Aunt Ginny had many things to share, so let's get to it.

 Just look at this lovely wedding ring quilt, given to my aunt Ginny and Uncle Alfred as a wedding present from his mother and my grandmother, Ida Spoering Elling.  As Aunt Ginny tells the story, she and her then fiance', Alfred, went to his parent's house for Sunday supper and there were Grandma Elling and three of her Spoering sisters - Lydia, Freida and Annie - working on this quilt.  Grandma said, "Ginny, this is going to be yours, so you need to put some stitches in it."  Ginny said she put in three stitches, pricked her fingers and when the blood began to flow, she was told to quit!


 


 Isn't it fun to look at all the vintage fabrics used?  Most of them were probably someone's clothing at one time or another, as I doubt if new fabrics were purchased for a quilt during those days.
Ginny and Alfred were married in April 1946, so this quilt can be pretty accurately dated...and best of all, we know the stitchers were the Spoering sisters.  Any little blood spots on there to mark your quilting debut, Aunt Ginny?

 This second quilt was given to Aunt
Ginny from Aunt Kate, Albert's second wife who was a sister of his first wife, Ida - both born Spoering.
One Christmas Aunt Kate gave quilts to all the daughters and daughters-in-law - some time in the early 1960's perhaps.  No one seems really sure if she pieced the quilts or not (there would have been seven quilts to do), but we are fairly certain they were quilted by one or more groups of church ladies in a quilting circle, probably from Hamler.  Aunt Kate died in 1968.

 







 The posts concerning family treasures all appeared in August, 2010 on the Elling Family News Blog.

A Few More Family Treasures from Aunt Ginny and Uncle Alfred Elling

Grandpa Albert and Grandma Ida Elling used this solid oak rocker in their home.

Alfred refinished the rocker in the 1990s.

 

 Grandma Elling bought this hand-painted sugar and creamer set

at a household auction. There was never a lid for the sugar bowl.

 

Family Treasures - Aunt Ginny and Uncle Alfred Elling

Aunt Ginny brought along to our "Family Treasures" get-together a number of books that belonged either to Uncle Alfred or Grandpa Albert Elling.  A closer look will reveal that they are catechisms or prayer books...but one is an arithmetic book. 


































Some have German on one side of the page and the facing page has the English translation.  Uncle Alfred was confirmed in the church in 1935 and his service was in German, as were his catechism studies.  Aunt Alma stated that it was often confusing for them because none of the brothers and sisters could speak English when they started school - only Low German.

Then by the time they went to catechism as young teens, they knew English and Low German, of course, but the books were in regular German, which created a problem for them.
Grandma Ida used a fibel (German primer) to help them learn the German they needed.

Grandpa Elling's arithmetic book - note copyright date.  I see Alma and Paul's name on
the cover, too.  And were those numbers like grades? 

Math problems

 


 Uncle Alfred and Aunt Ginny also have a hanging lamp that hangs in their foyer. It once burned kerosene and hung over the dining room table of Albert and Ida and family.  Grandpa Albert "electrified" it.