My Dolisi Family History & Picture Album

Written by Carole Dolisi Beaver

1st Edition, dated 12-22-2018

Excerpt #2 for the Gardner Historical Museum’s Website:

Dolisi Family Beginnings & Immigration

Carole Dolisi Beaver

I had always heard that my Dolisi family came from France, but I never knew exactly where in France. Some old obituaries and those early records I got from France helped me pinpoint the area. I now know that our branch of the family lived in the Lorraine Region, Moselle Department in several little towns (called communes) named Audviller, Hinsing, Hirbach, Holving, Schweix, Steinbach, Ventzviller and Val de Gueblange. It would be many years before I clarified this information and found a map detailed enough to show these little towns.

The Lorraine Region is shown in green in the upper right of the map below. A Region in France is roughly equivalent to a Region (such as the Midwest) in the United States. You may have heard the term Alsace-Lorraine in France. That actually refers to two different contiguous Regions in France. We are from the Lorraine Region.

Map of France showing the different Regions along with the location of Le Havre port & Ventzviller (one main home of Dolisi folks)

© 2018 Written by Carole Dolisi Beaver Excerpt #2, page 3 French geography divides that country much like our country is divided into Regions/States/Counties/ Townships/Cities. Here is the actual full French geographic description of the commune of Ventzviller where we are from and an example comparison to my home town of Gardner, KS, to help you understand the terminology: United States France Region (Midwest) Region (Lorraine) State (Kansas) Department (Moselle) County (Johnson) Arrondissement (Forbach) Township (Gardner) Canton (Sarralbe) City (Gardner) Commune (Ventzviller)

Below is another map upon which I have shown the general location for the important surnames of Dolisi, Deprez, Kayser/Kaiser and Moll. You can see where they lived in relation to each other. The blue river running top to bottom is the Rhine River. France is to the left of it and Germany to the right. One thing that threw me off for many years was the spelling of the town Ventzviller. Old obituaries said the family came from Wentzwiller and, wouldn’t you know, there actually is another town in France that is spelled that way with W’s. It is NOT the right place. Ours is the town spelled Ventzviller.

Surname Locations in France and Germany

© 2018 Written by Carole Dolisi Beaver Excerpt #2, page 4 My 2-gr-grandfather Jacob Dolisi Jr. married Marie Catherine Deprez and you can see that their families lived near each other in France. That marriage occurred in Ventzviller, home town of the bride. My Dolisi family immigrated to America in January 1848. My 2-gr-grandfather Joseph Francis Moll Sr. married Regina Kaiser, but that marriage occurred in New York City after both families came to America. It is my belief that my Moll family immigrated to America in the 1st Q. of 1832 and that my Kaiser family immigrated to America between June 1830 and June 1831. Did the Moll & Kaiser families know each other in Europe? Probably not, but I do not actually know the answer to that question. I expect they met at the German speaking St. Nicholas Catholic Church in New York City. That is where they married, anyway.

In France, my direct Dolisi ancestors appear to have stayed in a relatively small geographic area in the Lorraine Region. Roughly in chronological order, the records I found happened in this order of location: 1. Hirbach (was the earliest commune mentioned) 2. Holving 3. Hinsing 4. Schweix 5. Ventzviller

Ventzviller is the main town that I consider “home” for my Dolisi family because it is the first town I saw in old obituaries. But, in reality they also resided in many little towns near Ventzviller. For example, the town of Schweix is a very important one for the family, too. To help me visualize the location of all these little towns, I found the map below and I have highlighted them in the lower left in pink.

Current Location of Specific Towns

Chapter 2 - Dolisi Migration Pattern

In studying genealogy, a person gets involved in analyzing migration patterns. It never ceases to amaze me how brave and adventuresome my ancestors were. They endured many hardships in their lives. I have often wondered why they left one location for another and how did they even know about these new locations? I am sure the motivation was always a promise of a better life for them and their family. They mostly worked the land as farmers, so I am sure they looked for the promise of better, more productive land. Even though my Dolisi family came from France, I now know that they were also fluent in the German language. In fact, they sought out and attended German speaking Catholic churches in both Mascoutah, IL, and Eudora, KS. Perhaps they heard about these new locations from other church members and their families.

For my Dolisi family (Edward Cornelius Dolisi and his ancestors), I can break down their migration into 8 phases. In many cases, the family lived out on a farm rather than in a city, but for this purpose I have listed the closest city for them. When summarizing things, it is my usual personal preference to abbreviate an American location in the order of State, County, City because I think it makes the movement between states be more obvious.

Phase Description 1. Ventzviller, Lorraine Region, France → Le Havre port, France

2. France → America (from French port of Le Havre to American port of New Orleans; arrived on 2 separate ships, one on 1-3-1848 & the other on 1-22-1848)

3. Up the Mississippi River → IL, St. Clair Co., Mascoutah (arrived bef. 8-16-1850)

4. IL, St. Clair Co., Mascoutah → IL, Clinton Co., Carlyle, then Memphis (IL, not TN) (moved bet. 6-14-1856 & 9-13-1860)

5. IL, Clinton Co. → KS, Johnson Co., Olathe (probably moved bet. 9-28-1864 & 8-8-1865)

6. KS, Johnson Co., Olathe → KS, Douglas Co., Eudora (started moving there in 1865)

7. KS, Douglas Co., Eudora → AR, Benton Co., Hickory Creek area (moved on 11-22-1886)

8. AR, Benton Co., Hickory Creek area → KS, Johnson Co., Olathe/Gardner (moved bet. 11-15-1914 & 1-16- 1915)

Phase 1: Ventzviller, Lorraine Region, France → Le Havre Port (left Ventzviller area probably in the Fall of 1847)

My Dolisi family arrived in America in January 1848, but their journey began in late 1847 when they traveled from their home in the Ventzviller area to the busy port of Le Havre, France. By land, Ventzviller is about 385 miles from Le Havre. I don’t know how they traveled to the port, but I imagine it was mostly on the system of rivers. One major river, the Seine River, terminates on the west at Le Havre. If they traveled by water, I expect they somehow made their way to that river in order to end up at Le Havre. I have read how families arrived in Le Havre back then and had to wait days, even weeks, before boarding a ship for America. Those with some money stayed in local inns, but those without literally lived on the street until they could board a ship. The Dolisi family who took the Brunswick ship was a party of 12 people – 5 adults and 7 children ranging in age from 1 to 12. I imagine getting from Ventzviller to Le Havre was a journey of its own and who knows how long it took.

Hopefully they did not have to wait long before boarding their ships. My research shows that in 1848 the journey across the ocean typically took 36 – 45 days. Jacob Dolisi Jr. took a ship named Chesapeake which arrived in New Orleans on 1-3-1848. The others took a ship named Brunswick which arrived in New Orleans on 1-22- 1848.

Phase 2: France → America (left Le Havre in Nov/Dec 1847 and arrived in New Orleans on 1-3-1848 & 1-22-1848)

In the year 2000, I first found Jacob Dolisi Jr. (b. 7-24-1817) on an immigration index CD at a library in Plano, TX. The transcribed name listed in the index was Jacques Dolis, but I had a hunch it might be my guy based on his name, age (was exact) and his being from France. It was an important discovery because it gave the ship’s name, port of departure, port of arrival and date of arrival. I could not completely prove my hunch until 2007, when I discovered that Ancestry.com had actual ship’s manifest images online. Using the information from the index, I was able to locate him. He was traveling under the name of Jacques Dolisi. He arrived alone on a ship named Chesapeake on 1-3-1848. His name is listed on page 4 of the manifest, line 136.

Ship Manifest for Chesapeake

For many years after finding Jacob Jr. alone on this ship, I wondered “where in the heck is his family?” I knew that he was married with children at that point. It would be in 2004, some 4 years later, before I lucked into finding the answer to that question. I was at the downtown Dallas, TX, library and the head librarian was helping me look. He handed me a book on German immigration and in it I found the names Jacques Dolisi (same man I already knew about above) and Jacob Dolisy (father of Jacob Jr., and an immigrant name I hadn’t seen) in the index and then on the transcribed ship manifest lists. I couldn’t believe it. I had been looking for years and it was like finding a needle in a haystack! But it would prove to be more of Jacob Dolisi Jr.’s family including his wife, kids, parents, sister and her family - 12 family members total. I discovered that Jacob Jr. came ahead of the other family members. They arrived on a ship named Brunswick which arrived 19 days later on 1-22-1848.

When I looked at the actual ship’s manifest images for the Brunswick, I saw their names, although misspelled. His wife and kids were traveling under her maiden name of Deprez (misspelled as Dupri for her). Back then in France, married women kept their maiden name rather than adopting their husband’s last name, so to see her traveling under Deprez/Dupri did not surprise me. What did surprise me was seeing the children’s names listed with that last name since French custom had the children adopt their father’s last name. I imagine whoever checked them on to the ship just put Deprez (again, misspelled as Dupre) for the children because they were traveling with their mother, not their father. It was an exciting moment when I realized that I had found more of Jacob Jr.’s family.

Below is a list of our family members who were on the Brunswick. Jacques Dolisi in the ship manifest records is the man who came by himself on the Chesapeake on 1-3-1848, but please note that in my records I refer to him as Jacob Dolisi Jr. Likewise, the Jacob Dolisy in the ship records below is Jacob Dolisi Jr.’s father and in my records, is referred to as Jacob “Jacques” Dolisi Sr. Too many guys named Jacob or Jacques ☺!

Ship Manifest for Brunswick

Line Name Age Sex My Notes______71 Jacob Dolisy 56 M On page 2 (Jacob “Jacques” Dolisi Sr., father of Jacob Dolisi Jr.) 72 Marianinn Dolisy 54 F On page 2 (Marie Jeanne Matz, mother of Jacob Dolisi Jr.) 73 Michel Molter 33 M On page 2 (son-in-law of Jacob & Marie Jeanne) 74 Anna Maria Molter 32 F On page 2 (daughter of Jacob & Marie Jeanne, wife of Michael Molter and sister of Jacob Dolisi Jr.) 75 Michel Molter 7 M On page 2 (young son of Michael & Anna Molter) 76 Catharine Molter 2 F On page 2 (young daughter of Michael & Anna Molter) 77 Mariainn Dupri 32 F On page 2 (Marie Catherine Deprez, wife of Jacob Dolisi Jr.) 87 Jacob Dupre 9 M On page 3 (Jacob Dolisi, son of Jacob Dolisi Jr. & Marie Catherine Deprez. He later married Mary Moll.) 88 Anna Marie Dupre 7 F On page 3 (Anna Mary Dolisi, daughter of Jacob Dolisi Jr. & Marie Catherine Deprez. She later married Joseph Moll Jr.) 89 Rosina Dupre 5 F On page 3 (Marie Dolisi, daughter of Jacob Dolisi Jr. & Marie Catherine Deprez. She died in Mascoutah, St. Clair Co., IL, in Oct. 1862.) 90 Johan Dupre 2 M On page 3 (John Dolisi, son of Jacob Dolisi Jr. & Marie Catherine Deprez. He later married Elizabeth Moll.) 91 Nicolas Dupre 1 M On page 3 (Nicholas Dolisi, son of Jacob Dolisi Jr. & Marie Catherine Deprez. He never married.)

This is a picture of the port of New Orleans in 1852, just 4 years after they arrived. Can you imagine how scared and overwhelmed they must have felt! Where did they stay and how did they locate Jacob Jr. who had traveled there some 19 days earlier? And their journey was far from over, since their final destination was apparently Illinois.

Phase 3: Up the Mississippi River → IL, St. Clair Co., Mascoutah (arrived bef. 8-16-1850)

From New Orleans, I strongly suspect the family took a river boat up the Mississippi River and got off in St. Louis, MO. From there, they made their way about 30 miles east to a small Illinois town in St. Clair Co. called Mascoutah. At this point, the family members lived out in the country and were farmers.

I don’t know why or how they picked that particular town for their destination. Did they perhaps know someone who had come there before them? I do know that in the August 1850 census Jacob “Jacques” Dolisi Sr. and 4 of his children (Jacob Jr., Anna, Theodor and Nicholas) lived in St. Clair Co. We know that son Jacob Jr. and daughter Anna traveled at the same time as their parents in January 1848. When did sons Nicholas b. 1-1-1813 and Theodor b. 5-6-1826 immigrate? I know both were born in France. And, in the 1865 state census yet another son Michael lived in that area and I know he was born in France on 9-7-1819. When did he come to America? And, who is the Peter Dolese (spelled many ways) b. 1798/99 whom I see on a ship from France on 7-11-1838, then next living in La Salle Co., IL, in the 1840 census, and finally in Cook Co., IL, in the 1860 census? Is he a family member? I can’t yet place him in my family. Immigrants did follow other family members and ethnic migration paths. This area did have strong French and German populations.

While living in Illinois, my Dolisi family attended Holy Childhood of Jesus Catholic Church in Mascoutah. In 2018, that church is still in operation and I have been there to see it. It is interesting that back in the 1800’s it was a German speaking church. I have often wondered why my French family would seek out German speaking churches, but they did. I own the original 1st Communion certificate dated 6-5-1859 for my gr-grandfather John Dolisi and it is in German. It is a beautiful lithograph and is from this very church.

My Moll and Kaiser families followed a different migration path, but it ultimately led them right there to St. Clair Co., IL, and attending the same Holy Childhood of Jesus Catholic Church in Mascoutah. These surnames came from Germany in the early 1830’s and took sail boats instead of steam ships. They also traveled out of the French port of Le Havre, but they entered America through the port of New York. That was before Ellis Island even existed. Those families stayed in the New York City area for several years, and then migrated (in this order) to Perry Co., MO, St. Clair Co., IL, Johnson Co., KS, and some went on to Douglas Co., KS. They, too, attended German speaking Catholic churches all along their way.

It was while living in St. Clair Co. that the Dolisi family met the Moll family. A person can’t discuss my Dolisi family without also discussing the Moll family because of the multiple marriages between those two families. Three children of Jacob Dolisi Jr. would go on to marry three children of Joseph Francis Moll Sr. Those families probably met at this Catholic church in Mascoutah. I say that because I see many entries in the church records that show members from both surnames. The Dolisi people lived out in the country around Mascoutah and Joseph Francis Moll Sr. lived more around the town of Mascoutah. What they had in common was the church.

Here are some simple maps I created that show roughly the migration paths taken by the Dolisi family (in blue) and the Moll family (in red). While they started out in different countries and landed in different American ports, they ultimately ended up meeting each other in that little town of Mascoutah, IL. The Moll family was the first to head to Kansas from Illinois, but the Dolisi family was not far behind them given the multiple marriages between the families. I’ll have more about that later.

Migration Maps for Dolisi & Moll Surnames

Simple diagram of the COMPLETE migration paths for both Surnames

Simple diagram, ZOOMED IN on just the France & Germany part of the migration paths for both Surnames

Simple diagram, ZOOMED IN on just the United States part of the migration paths for both Surnames

This excerpt concludes here, but the book continues with the remaining 5 phases.