THE KRAMER FAMILY

George Michael Kramer came to America from Bern, Germany in 1857.  He settled in Rochester, NY.  He came with five children.  Two would die at sea and another would die soon after landing. On Nov 17, 1857 he married Elizabeth Meyer.  They would live in Rochester for nine years before moving across country to Moniteau County, MO.  George was known for the most part as Michael.  Michael and Elizabeth would have eight children: Mary, Barbara, Joseph, Theresa, William, Margaret, George and Emelia.  Michael died Jan 28, 1909 and Elizabeth followed on Feb. 11, 1912.  They are both buried at St. Andrew's Cemetery, Tipton, Moniteau, MO.

Joseph Kramer was born July 25, 1862.  He moved to Moniteau County MO with his parents when he was four years old.  On Nov 6, 1888, he married Johanna Mueller.  Joseph was a farmer and he and Johanna would have ten children:Laura, Michael, Hilda, Henry, William, Leona, Clemens, Eva, Urban, and Anton.  Joseph died April 30, 1941 and Johanna on June 2, 1953.  They are both buried at St. Andrew's Cemetery in Tipton, Moniteau, MO

THE REED FAMILY

The Reeds are the most intriguing family that I am researching. I have to thank my Aunt Helen Mertle Meyer. She has been researching these families for almost twenty years.  Without her help and generosity in sharing files I would be on square one with the Mertle and Reed families. You can't talk about the Reed history without talking about the Hollingsworth history. These two families started out as neighbors in Ashe County, NC.  Vinson Hollingsworth bought a piece of land in 1793  which was border on one side by Stephen Reed.  Throughout time Reeds and Hollingworths married each other and soon all the families moved to Clay County, KY.  By 1810 they were living in Clay County.  Then some of them started moving north to Morgan County, IN Here by 1830 a large number of the William and John Hollingworth families settled along with the John and James Reed families. Then by 1850 most of them had moved to Gasconade County, MO.  This where they stayed.  Another interesting fact about the Reed family is that they changed their race for different years on the census.  The same families would be Free Colored in 1820 and 1840  but white in 1810, 1830, and 1850. This is a mystery to us today.  The one thing we know for sure is that you could not change your race from census to census.  The Free Colored category was a broad category that covered Indiana, African Americans, other dark nationalities or a mixture of races.  When Reeds married Hollingsworth the Hollingsworth were for the most part marked as white.  Family tradition says that Rhoda Reed who married William Hollingsworth in 1800 was full blooded Cherokee.  We believe that Rhoda was the daughter of Stephen Reed.  The fact of Cherokee has not been proven.  Some say this is why in 1830 they marked white because the government had started the Indian Removal Act.  Now when these same families moved to Morgan County, IN they were considered to be among the first African American settlers.  A professor has written a book about these settlers.  He chose families that marked Free Colored on their census. In Morgan County  a Reed family cemetery  still exists from this time period.  The stones are broken and weeds have overtaken the cemetery but it is there if you look for it. A newspaper article from Morgan County states that it is a possibilitiy that Reed Chapel and cemetery were  a stop for the Underground Railroad in Indiana.. Whatever their race we applaud their courage and determination to make a life for themselves  in what must have been a difficult time for a people of mixed heritage.