Tombstone Tuesday–Jacob & Martha (Sundmacher) Hiller

Jacob & Martha Hiller, Kessler Cemetery, Mercer County, Ohio. (2015 photo by Karen)

Jacob & Martha Hiller, Kessler Cemetery, Mercer County, Ohio. (2015 photo by Karen)

This is the tombstone of Jacob and Martha (Sundmacher) Hiller, located in row 6 of Kessler Cemetery, Mercer County, Ohio. The marker is inscribed:

FATHER
Jacob
1842-1926
MOTHER
Martha
1848-1922
HILLER

Jacob and Martha were the parents of Katharina Hiller (1882-1910), who married Georg Linn, a couple I recently wrote a Tombstone Tuesday about.

Jacob Hiller was born 14 November 1842 in Hamilton, Butler County, Ohio, the son of Johann “John” and Maria Margaretha (Müller) Hiller. Jacob’s parents were natives of Bavaria and immigrated to America in about 1839. They lived in Butler County, Ohio, for about 8 years before moving to the Adams County, Indiana, area, close to Chatt in about 1847. The Hillers attended Zion Lutheran in Chatt and church records indicate that Jacob was baptized in Butler County but confirmed in Mercer County.

In 1850 the Hillers lived in Jefferson Township, Adams County, Indiana. In the household was John Hiller, 48, a weaver; Margaret, 45; Jacob, 8; and George, 4. [1]

In 1860 the family had a New Corydon, Indiana, post office address and Jacob’s father John was a farmer. In the household was John, 54, Bavaria; Margaret, 60, Bavaria; Jacob, 16, Indiana; George, 15, Indiana. [2]

Jacob Hiller married Martha Sundmacher on 20 February 1868 at Zion Chatt, married by Rev. George Heintz. [3] Martha was the daughter of Johann Dietrich Reinhard and Rebecka Sundmacher. Zion’s records indicate that Jacob Hiller was 26 years of age and from Hamilton, Butler County, Ohio, and that Martha Sundmacher was 22 years of age, from Weseloh, Amt Bruchhausen, Hannover. George Hiller, Jacob’s brother, was the witness to the marriage.

In 1870 Jacob and Martha had a New Corydon address and Jacob farmed. He and Martha had two sons by this time and Jacob’s mother Margaret and his brother George lived with them. In the household was Jacob, 28, Ohio; Martha, 24, Hanover; George, 1, Indiana; John, 10 months, Indiana; George, 24, Ohio; and Margaret, 69, Bavaria. [4]

By 1880 Jacob and Martha had six children. In their Jefferson Township, Adams County, Indiana, household: Jacob, 38; Martha, 32; George, 11; John, 9; Henry, 8; Mary, 7; Lizzie, 4; and Edward, 1. Henry is listed as “maimed, crippled, or bedridden.” [5]

In 1900 the Jacob Hiller family consisted of Jacob, 57, Martha, 51, John, 29, Henry C, 28, and Katie, 18. The Hillers had been married 31 years and Martha had given birth to 7 children but only 5 were living. [6] Their children Lizzie and Edward had passed away five years before.

Their daughter Katharina, widow of Georg Linn, and her two daughters Clara and Maria lived with Jacob and Martha in 1910. That census was enumerated on 18 April, just a month before Katharina died of consumption on 22 May. Also living with Jacob and Martha was their son John. They lived near John Bollenbacher, Michael Kuehm, and Conrad Heffner. [7]

By 1920 only three of Jacob and Martha’s seven children were living, George, John, and Mary. Living with Jacob and Martha was their son John, age 49 and single, as well as two of their granddaughters, sisters Clara and Marie Linn, children of their daughter Katharina. Jacob and Martha still lived close to Chatt in Adams County, Indiana. Some of their neighbors were Otto Bollenbacher, Lewis P. Wendel, John M. Bollenbacher, Raymond Becker, Welker E. Woodruff, and a couple of my Brewster relatives—Frank D., Winfield S., and Rachael Brewster. [8]

Margaret Hiller died of old age on 24 February 1922. She was buried on the 28th and was survived by her husband, 2 sons, and 13 grandchildren.

Jacob Hiller died of cancer on 9 January 1926, at the age of 83 years, 2 months, and 3 days. He was buried on the 12th and was survived by 1 brother, 2 sons, 14 grandchildren, and 8 great-grandchildren.

Jacob and Martha are buried near several of their children, including their daughter Katharina Linn.

Jacob & Martha (Sundmacher) Hiller had the following children:
John “George” (1869-1959) married Della
“John” Dietrich (1870-1952)
“Henry” Conrad (1871-1905)
Maria Rebecka “Mary” (1872-1921) married David Burger
Elisabeth Wilhelmina “Lizzie” (1875-1895), married Fred Hoffman
Jacob “Edward” (1878-1895)
Katharina Hiller (1882-1910­) married Georg Linn

 

[1] 1850 U.S. Census, Jefferson, Adams, Indiana, p. 63A, dwelling & family 809, John Hiller; digital image by subscription, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : accessed 27 Oct 2015); from NARA microfilm M432, roll 135.

[2] 1860 U.S. Census, Jefferson, Adams, Indiana, p. 234, dwelling 1649, family 1629, John Hiller; digital image by subscription, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : accessed 27 Oct 2015); from FHL microfilm 803242, from NARA microfilm M653, roll 242.

[3] “Ohio, County Marriages, 1789-2013,” database with images, FamilySearch k(https://familysearch.org : accessed 27 Oct 2015), Jacob Hiller and Martha Sundmacher, 20 Feb 1868; citing Mercer, Ohio, marriages, Vol. 3, p.178; from FHL microfilm 914956.

[4] 1870 U.S. Census, Jefferson, Adams, Indiana, p.39B, dwelling & family 66, Jacob Hiller; digital image by subscription, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : accessed 27 Oct 2015); from FHL microfilm 545795, from NARA microfilm M593, roll 296.

[5] 1880 U.S. Census, Jefferson, Adams, Indiana, ED 133, p.50B, dwelling & family 51, Jacob Hiller; digital image by subscription, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : accessed 27 Oct 2015); from NARA microfilm T9, roll 263.

[6] 1900 U.S. Census, Jefferson, Adams, Indiana, ED 4, p.11B, dwelling & family 202, Jacob Hiller; digital image by subscription, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : accessed 27 Oct 2015); from FHL microfilm 1240357, from NARA microfilm T623, roll 357.

[7] 1910 U.S. Census, Jefferson, Adams, Indiana, ED 4, p.2B, dwelling 36, family 36, Jacob Hiller; digital image by subscription, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : accessed 25 Oct 2015); from FHL microfilm 1374351, from NARA microfilm T624, roll 338.

[8] 1920 U.S. Census, Jefferson, Adams Indiana, ED 4, p. 7B, dwelling 143, family 153, Jacob Hiller; digital image by subscription, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : accessed 14 Nov 2015); from NARA microfilm T625, roll 420.

2 comments

    • Mary Anne on November 17, 2015 at 10:14 am
    • Reply

    Can’t quite figure the age of Margaret out!! If she was 45, in 1850 and died in 1922, was she really 117 yrs. old? Also, record indicated she was 45 in 1850 and 60, in 1860!! Was that a different math than we had? LOL

    1. The names get a little confusing. “Margaret” (Margaretha) Mueller Hiller was Jacob Hiller’s mother. She was the one who was enumerated at age 45 in 1850 and age 60 in 1860. Martha (Sundmacher) Hiller, Jacob’s wife, is the one who died in 1922. Ages and other information can vary a lot on different census enumerations, depending on who gave the information to the census taker. Sometimes the informant’s math or knowledge wasn’t so good. Thanks for reading!

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