Fact #1 - François and Frederique ROPP immigrated to America in 1893 aboard the ship Le Bretagne, which left Port Le Havre, France and arrived at Ellis Island on 03 April 1893. They had with them 3 children, Eugene (11 years old), Marie (14) and Ernest (19). According to the ship passenger list, François was 51 at the time of their arrival and listed his occupation as "farmer." Frederique was 41. They originated from France and were heading to Woorcester [sic] upon arrival. (Source: original ship manifest available online at http://www.ellisisland.org)
Fact #2 – In the 1900 Census there is no F. ROPP in Worcester, MA (where I assume the ship manifest is referring) but there is a Frederique ROPP listed as Head of Household in Boylston, MA (Worcester County) who had 2 children: Eugene A. and Marie M. All are the right age for our family members and all are listed as being born in France and arriving in America in 1892. Frederique is a farmer. Eugene is a Milk Dealer, and Marie M. is a weaver at a woolen mill. (Source: 1900 Census Boylston, MA available at ancestry.com: http://tiny.cc/ck6dk)
If this is the same family, where are Ernest and François?
Fact #3 – According to "Centennial History of The Town of Millbury Massachusetts Including Vital Statistics 1850-1899" (published 1915) on page 775 under the "Deaths" section,there was a Francois ROPP who died Nov 12, 1893 in Millbury at age 53. This François was the son of a “Christopher” and “Hannah” (Source: The book referenced is available online at the internet archive: http://tiny.cc/2azx0)
Millbury is a community just a few miles south of the present day city of Worcester, so this could very well be our François ROPP. His passing would explain his absence in the home of Frederique in the 1900 census.
Fact #4 – According to the Boylston Historical Society Records (http://www.boylstonhistory.org) Frederique ROPP died in Boylston in 1926 and was buried in a cemetery in the town of Millbury. My assumption is, of course, that she was buried with her husband, François who had died and was also buried in Millbury, but I have not confirmed this yet. Somewhere in my notes, I wrote that the two are both buried in Millbury Central Cemetery, although I didn’t capture a source for this information. I have an open findagrave.com photo request for these 2 stones in this cemetery that has not been claimed yet. I may make the trip to MA myself to do some searching.
This is about all I know about François ROPP. I know some of the dates don’t match up exactly, but they are close enough to make me think these are the people I’m looking for, particularly knowing the ROPP family was in the Worcester area based on the stories of current ROPP descendants.
Anyone else have something to share, or correct me on?
Some Questions:
Does anyone have a death record for François?
Does anyone have documentation and/or family story that would help prove or disprove our François was the son of Christopher and Hannah, or have any general information about where in France this family originally immigrated from?
Hi Brian,
ReplyDeleteI have been getting all your recent research sent to me by Auntie Mary Lou, Vaughn's sister. I am the youngest daughter of Carol, Vaughn's youngest sister, Helen's youngest child. I knew Nana, Helen, well until she passed away in 1986.
Not sure how much you know about Nana (Helen)? She was a wonderful lady, I miss her very much and think of her often.
Growing up we also would her stories about Nana's childhood, who raised her, that her Mom left her at a very early age to pursue a career as a dancer.
I had met my Uncle Vaughn also a few times when I was just a child. What I remember about him is that he would take the time to "sit" and play with me, and he was an excellent ant talented drawer. He passed away 2 years after Nana, in 1988 and is buried beside her in my hometown of Avon, MA.
It sounds like you have come across a lot of great history and I thank you for sharing it. It's always nice to know your roots.
Sincerely,
Darlene
Hi Darlene,
DeleteIt's been a while since I have posted anything about the ROPP family history on roppgenealogy.blogsport.com, but I got a new document and some information about Alice ROPP this week that was just posted. Hope you find it interesting.