Focke Dies Twice and Too Many Babies in 1906 Part I

 Indexes are finding aids to be used in conjunction with the records they index.

They are not standalone records.

There is an index entry in "Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, Records, 1875-1940" indicating that Focke Goldenstein was buried in Golden, Adams County, Illinois, in June of 1906.

There was only one Focke Goldenstein in Golden, Illinois, during that time period. And that Focke Goldenstein died in Golden in 1913.

Who was the Focke Goldenstein that died in 1906?

Before speculating on who it was it's best to view the actual record.

There was no other Focke Goldenstein. The 1906 death of "Focke Goldenstein" was not Focke after all. Instead it was a child of Focke and his wife. Ancestry.com's index creator saw "Focke Goldenstein" (ignoring the & Frau part) and decided that was whose funeral was conducted in June of 1906.

Focke Goldenstein and his wife moved to Golden from near Basco around 1905.

Ancestry.com's database "Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, Records, 1875-1940" indicates that Focke and Anna (Dirks) Goldenstein a child baptized at Immanuel Lutheran Church near Basco (which Ancestry.com locates in Carthage) in November of 1906.

How could Focke and Anna have a child in June and November of 1906? It is the same couple. We'll have an answer in a future blog post.

Only in that update we will see that Ancestry.com is not entirely to blame.

Stay tuned-for part two.