Karen Bennett

Greetings from the Chattanooga, Ohio, area. Yes, Ohio has its very own Chattanooga, aka Chatt, a small village in west-central Ohio, near the Indiana border. I have been doing family history research for over 20 years and am a Board-Certified genealogist, certified by the Board for Certification of Genealogists®. My main genealogical interests are family research, cemetery research, and historical and genealogical research of the Chatt area, with a focus on two area Lutheran Churches, both named Zion Lutheran, one in Chatt and the other in Schumm, Ohio. Family names I am researching include Miller, Schumm, Brewster, Rueck, Reid, Headington, Huey, Bryan, Whiteman, Schinnerer, Scaer, Breuninger, Bennett, and a few others. I belong to several lineage societies, including the Daughters of the American Revolution, U.S. Daughters of 1812, First Families of Ohio, and First Families of Mercer and Van Wert Counties. I am also a retired dental hygienist and our church organist. I hope you enjoy Karen's Chatt.

Most commented posts

  1. Golden Wedding Anniversary — 37 comments
  2. Haunted Mercer County? — 34 comments
  3. The Old Willshire Hotel — 30 comments
  4. The Milligan Painting — 22 comments
  5. Metal Cemetery Monuments — 21 comments

Author's posts

Dec 27

Early Chattanooga Telephone Service

Last week I showed some newspaper ads of Chattanooga businesses in 1933. My friend Miriam noticed that several of the businesses had telephone numbers from a couple different telephone companies and she wondered why they did this. I do not know for certain but I came up with a couple good ideas. Over the years …

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Dec 24

Merry Christmas

Wishing blessings to you and your family this Christmas, as we celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Merry Christmas from Karen’s Chatt.

Dec 20

Chattanooga, Christmas 1933

Heffner & Heffner Grocery, Andrews Garage, Lehman’s Home Restaurant, Egger’s Grocery, Dr. Metcalf, Johnson’s Garage, Smith & Sons Hardware, Wendel’s Motor Sales, Schroeder’s Barber Shop, Vining Stock Yard,. Do any of these businesses sound familiar? They were business establishments in Chattanooga, Ohio, back in 1933. They all had advertisements and Christmas greetings in the 1933 …

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Dec 17

Tombstone Tuesday–J. J. Schumm

This is the tombstone of Johann Jacob Schumm, located in row 5 of Zion Lutheran Cemetery, Schumm, Van Wert County, Ohio. All that is legible on the marker is J. J. Schumm. Johann “Jacob” was the sixth child born to Johann Georg and Ann Maria (Fisher) Schumm. Jacob was born 26 Sep 1815 in Rupppertshofen, …

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Dec 13

What Chatt Folks Expect of Santa Claus, 1933

The folks of Chattanooga, Ohio, have always been a close-knit community with a knack for making the best of the times. Even during the Great Depression. They worked hard in the little village but they also knew how to have a good time. And they enjoyed kidding around with each other. Some of this good-natured …

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