The Tetzlaffs - Tetlow - in Philadelphia

Leon John Tetlow was born as Leo Joh(a)n Tetzlaff on a street which is now part of Independence Park in Philadelphia. On the birth registration made out by the doctor who attended Leo's birth, the doctor lists the father as Louis Tetzlaff so unless the doctor is mistaken, Roman's first name known to Anna was Louis (Ludwig in German). My mother says her father said Roman was born 4 October 1845. There is a Ludwig Albert Tetzlaff with his christening 5 October 1844 in Zechendorf, Pommern, Preussen (Prussia). The name Tetzlaff has its Uhrsprung in OberLausitz, so far as I know and some Tetzlaffs went east to work guarding the borders of Prussia. Some of the Tetzlaffs in Pruessen are listed as Kosaken- horsemen and fighters. Most of the records are burned in Hamburg so I doubt I will ever find proof that Roman was not BORN in Hamburg as he claimed, but perhaps in Zechendorf.

Roman's 2nd wife Anna Schockert arrived in Philadelphia about 1870 maybe from Schleiden on the border to Belgium but inside Germany. It is in the Eifel hills of the Rheinland- Westphalen-

Schleiden, Germany
Tourism

Schleiden, in the Northern Eifel, has two old churches and a castle which was once the seat of the Counts of Schleiden.

It has a record of an Anna Catharina Schockert born 6 August 1852 and this would fit her 1880 census data where she lists her age as 28.

In the 1900 census, Anna gives her birthday as August and the 1880 census she says she is 28. I had a hard time finding her. Her husband gave the wrong birth month and year for her on her death certificate- he was probably thinking about his first wife. When they registered to marry in Philadelphia, they both gave themselves as younger than they were. But on her 1900 census she gives her birth month. And in her 1880 census she gives her real age of 28 where she is a seamstress in Philadelphia. I am publishing this in case other people have the same name in the Philadelphia area and are lost. She may have come alone though. She came about 1870 just before the outbreak of the 1871 Prussian War in that area. http://www.rootsweb.com/~deunrhwf/

Husband MICHEL JOSEPH SCHOCKERT
Wife MARIA CATHARINA SCHUER

Children The first 7 girls were named Maria as well as the 8th girl. Only my grandmother had a different name and she went by it.

1. MARIA CATHARINA SCHOCKERT - International Genealogical Index
Gender: Female Birth: 18 MAY 1841 Schleiden, , Rheinland, Preussen
2. MARIA CLARA SCHOCKERT - International Genealogical Index
Gender: Female Birth: 12 MAR 1844 Schleiden, , Rheinland, Preussen married 25 OCT 1867 Schleiden, , Rheinland, Preussen PETER WILHELM GROSS

3. MARIA AGNES SCHOCKERT - International Genealogical Index
Gender: Female Birth: 06 SEP 1845 Schleiden, , Rheinland, Preussen
4. MARIA ELISABETH SCHOCKERT - International Genealogical Index
Gender: Female Birth: 17 OCT 1846 Schleiden, , Rheinland, Preussen
5. MARIA ANNA SCHOCKERT - International Genealogical Index
Gender: Female Birth: 19 JUN 1848 Schleiden, , Rheinland, Preussen
6. MARIA FRANCISCA SCHOCKERT - International Genealogical Index
Gender: Female Birth: 18 JUL 1849 Schleiden, , Rheinland, Preussen
7. MARIA LOUISE SCHOCKERT - International Genealogical Index
Gender: Female Birth: 22 MAY 1851 Schleiden, , Rheinland, Preussen
8. PAULUS Male Birth: 21 SEP 1854 Schleiden, , Rheinland, Preussen
9. ANNA CATHARINA SCHOCKERT - International Genealogical Index
Gender: Female Birth: 06 AUG 1852 Schleiden, , Rheinland, Preussen MY GREAT GRANDMOTHER

not sure about these 2

10. MARIA ROSA International Genealogical Index Gender: Female Birth: 11 MAY 1858 Schleiden, , Rheinland, Preussen11. JOSEPHINA Schocker - International Genealogical Index
Gender: Female Birth Feb 12 1861 Christening: 13 FEB 1861 Schleiden, , Rheinland, Preussen

When she marries for the first time in her life to Roman at the late age of 38 she begins to lie about her age, as mpst women would want to do. Roman Tetzlaff came in both 1883 and 84 as well as 1886, once on the ship Hammonia.

Roman married unknown and had Robert and then he married Anna after his first wife's death. He lied about his age on the marriage license. Known children are:

TETLOW, ROBERT 183-05-1474 born PA 18 Jan 1886 died Feb 1964 PA

TETLOW, IDA 159-10-8656 born PA 21 Aug 1891 died Mar 1983 PA Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19121

TETLOW, LEON 547-46-0100 born PA 4 May 1897 died Dec 1979 CA San Diego California 92115

My mother said:

Anna Schochert was said to be born in America. But maybe not. That's
what the Phila. records show. I think she was well-educated (for her
day) and tutored my father at home - for he skipped the 3rd and 5th
grades. He said that he was still at the head of his classes though he
had skipped 3rd and 5th. Therefore, perhaps his mother was still
tutoring him at home.
So, just maybe Anna was born & educated on the Belgium border in the
educational" city where she lived. Then came to America. She was a
seamstress by profession - which was a common 'career' back then.
Dresses had to be hand-made back then. She lived with a family in
Phila. at that time which indicates that her parents were not likely in
Phila. or she'd have lived with them.

I'd be sure, really, that Anna sailed with a
friend or two - one could have been Roman's first wife -- since he
married Anna only 4 months after his wife died...seems to me he already
knew Anna. Anna would not have sailed alone - not in those days.

About Roman:

Roman Tetzlaff had sailed on the Salier in 1882 to America. He supposedly had 8 sisters or more and was an only son, supposedly. He was from Harburg beiHamburg. he was in the 1871 Prussian war. he was born 1845. He was a cabinet maker for the Pullmann Co. in Philadelphia. His first wife is unknown and died prob. in childirth. He has a son Robert Tetlow listed in St Vincent's Orph. Phil. in Tacony, as Robert Tetzlow born in Germany, although he claims he was born in Philadelphia 1886. Roman then married Annie Schockert in 1890 and had Margaret Ida Z. Tetzlaff who never married, known as Ida Tetlow.

Residence : 1900 Philadelphia City, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Household Members: Name Age Roman Tetclaff 49 Annie Tetclaff 39 Ida Tetclaff 8 Leo Tetclaff 3

The ship Hammonia on which he arrived to Philadelphia from Hamburg

built by J & G Thomson Clydebank,
Yard No 188 

---

Last Name: VERSAILLES (1889)
Launched: Wednesday, 13/09/1882
Built: 1882
Ship Type: Passenger Cargo Vessel
Tonnage: 4336 grt
Length: 373.7 feet
Breadth: 45.3 feet
Owner History:
1882 Hamburg-Amerika Line, Hamburg 
1889 Cie. Generale Transatlantique, Saint Nazaire
Status: Scrapped - 6/1914
Remarks: Broken up at Genoa, sold 6/1914 

S.S. Hammonia III

Built for the Hamburg American Line by J & G Thomson, launched 13 SEP 1882. 3,969 tons, 373 x 45 feet, straight bow, 2 funnels, 3 masts, steel construction, screw propulsion, service speed 15 knots. Accommodation for 150 1st class, 100 2nd class, and 700 3rd class passengers. Maiden voyage 28 FEB 1883, Hamburg-Havre-New York. Last voyage 11 NOV 1889, Hamburg-Southampton-New York. Sold in 1889 and renaned Versailles. Scrapped in 1914. Roman Tetzlaf arrived 1886 on this ship.

Leo Tetzlaff died as Leon Tetlow in Cal.. Roman left for Germany on a ship in 1932-33 to live with a nephew and to receive his war pension from Hitler. Roman died shortly thereafter somewhere in Germany.

His grandchild says;

My grandfater, Ludwig Albert Roman, returned
to Germany in about 1932-33. He was 87-88 when he sailed
- alone. My father took him to the departation port - don't know if it
was Phila. or N. Y. - think Phila. My father went back into the Army in
about May 1933 -- his father had already sailed back to Germany. So I
believe he sailed in late 1932 - possibly early 1933. However, I
vaguely remember my father looking for mail from his father - it never
came. So I guess he sailed late 1932 when my father was at home & not
yet back in active Army service. I read more recently that the German
government would not allow Germans to write to Americans during those
years. Yep. Tis so. That's why my father never heard again from his
father -- but my father didn't know about it, you see - no one did.
Don't know if my grandfather was permitted to receive mail from America,
either. Possibly not. This info is in black & white on record. But
wasn't known at that time. My father never heard of his father's
death, either, Absoluetly nothing. Well, Germans didn't know that this
was going on. They know it now.

Anyway, he sailed to Germany in 1932 but possibly early 1933. I
remember that it was nice weather when my grandfather came to our house
for a couple of days (for a weekend, I guess) - then Daddy took him to
his ship. It was not winter-time -- so maybe early Fall of 1932. He'd
have been 87 years old (born in Oct. 1845). Daddy never dreamed he'd
never hear from him again. Nor did Ludwig Albert Roman.

So - do correct the date of his sailing to 1932 - but possibly early
1933.

He was a pleasant looking person - quiet - soft-spoken - wore black
suits with snow-white shirts & I happen to think a bow tie. Not a big
person. I vividly remember him descending our big oak staircase one day
-- he was so straight - kind of slow-motion (for he was elderly) -
holding the banister. I was at the foot of the staircase.

When Leon was 12 his mother Anna Schockert got lung sickness and his father Roman sent him to work with a friend who had a bakery. Up until that point he had been in a private school and had skipped 2 grades. When he forced to attend the public school by his father Roman Louis (Ludwig) Tetzlaff, they made him go back to the grade which other students Leon's age were attending. This was of course very boring for our brilliant grandfather whose mother had been brought up in a town known for its excellence of education in Schleiden, Germany. So Anna stayed awhile on Parkside Ave where Roman rented an apartment which was much better than the crowded 2 bedroom row house in South Philadelphia at 1812 South Second Street. Finally she died in a TB hospital. Leon received a postcard announcement of her death from his father. His siter had also been forced out of the house when her mother got sick. They had lived in a little tiny 2 bedroom row house in Philadelphia with his wife, 2 children and 2 Chinese laundrymen. No bathroom. It was there that his wife caught TB because there was poor health care and crowded conditions in Philadlephia at that. After school Leon was made to carry huge bags of flour from the basement up to the bakery. Still this was better than his half brother had fared when Roman's first wife had died. His half brother Robert had been shipped off to Tacony Orphanage for Catholics and there he stayed till being released when his father came to pick him up to start an apprenticeship. Finally Ida Margaret and half brother Robert ended up living together.

1910:	Philadelphia Ward 24, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 24 April 1910
Household Members:	Name Age Robert J Tetlow 24 head Anna M Tetlow 18 wife Ida Z Tetlow 18 sister

Robert married and had 2 girls and when she died he also took his children to Tacony Orphanage. Ida lived her life alone until she died in smoke inhalation in her sleep at age 80 or 90.

At some point Leon left for NY and somehow got in the Army after training.

1935 at the ICC Camp after hunting Turkey

he had a close contact Millicent

Before the crash Leon worked with a stock broker in his firm. And as a CPA. During the depression he was forced into driving a Taxi to support his growing family. Finally he was hired to run an Army Camp in the mountains of Pennsylvania.

23rd regiment at Camp Cotton, EL PASO, TEXAS

Leon joined the military perhaps as a National Guard but maybe as full military. I have a certificate for him, made out in December of 1916 at Camp Cotton in El Paso- the 23rd Regiment of the Army. Leon Tetlow must have been there by mid August of 1916 when the reported flash flood occurred, as he mentioned to my mother how he lost all his belongings and photos in a flash flood while in Camp.

There is mention on internet of a man who joined the 23rd regiment and was in El Paso:

"Luis Raúl Esteves Völckers was the first Puerto Rican to graduate from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point on June 19, 1915. He did join the Army as a Second Lieutenant and was assigned to the 23^rd Infantry, stationed in Texas City, Texas under the command of General Pershing. This was during the time Mexico was undergoing a civil war and the US was having border skirmishes Pancho Villa, along the Texas and New Mexico - Mexican border. He was then sent to in El Paso, Texas during the "Pancho Villa Incident" by the Army, where they felt he would be a big help, due of his knowledge of the language."

Maps from Pancho Villa Incident-

The populace of Columbus, NM was in a state of hysteria. Columbus lay virtually demolished, so completely burned and pillaged that it never recovered its former vitality. To prevent repetitions of the Columbus outrage, President Wilson called out 15,000 militia and stationed them along the U.S. - Mexico border (Map 1). Wilson also informed President Carranza that he intended to send a military expedition into northern Mexico to capture Pancho Villa, and Carranza reluctantly agreed. President Wilson then appointed Brigadier General John J. Pershing to lead 4,800 troops (mostly cavalry), supported by aircraft and motorized military vehicles (the first time either were used in U.S. warfare) on a punitive expedition into Mexico to capture Villa.

Villa’s men mingled with the populace at will by simply removing the cartridge belts they normally strapped across their chests. They even mixed with the Americans and attended Western “cowboy” movies with Pershing’s officers.

"On June 19, 1916, the entire Michigan National Guard was called out for service on the Mexican border instigated by raids on American border towns by the Mexican bandit, Pancho Villa. The Thirty-second was mustered into federal service on the first of July. The organization of the 2nd included four companies from Grand Rapids, two from Kalamazoo, and one each from Coldwater, Adrian, Ionia, Grand Haven, Muskegon and Big Rapids.

"This war also became known as the Pancho Villa Expedition.

"Shortly thereafter, the regiment departed for El Paso, Texas, arriving at Camp Cotton on July 12, located a mere three hundred yards from the Mexican border. Upon its arrival, regular army inspectors took note of the excellent condition of the regiment and the short amount of time it took to get settled into camp. The next four weeks were spent in intensive training. During this time, details were organized to guard important points in the vicinity of El Paso. On August 15, the regiment took over the entire outpost along the Rio Grande River and the boundary line in New Mexico. This consisted of a line stretching fromFort Hancock, 50 miles (80 km) southeast of El Paso, to Las Cruces, New Mexico, for a total of 47 miles (76 km) in length. While the Grand Rapids battalion was on the border, construction work on the new Michigan Street armory was completed.

" Saturday, January 13, 1917, the final inspection of the regiment had been conducted. The regiment struck camp on Thursday and returned to Fort Wayne, where it was mustered out of service on February 15. Under federal laws Congress adopted in June 1916 the regiment reverted to its National Guard status." WIKIPEDIA

THE FOLLOWING REPORT ON CAMP COTTON IS FROM THE BLOG AT WORDPRESS:

Camp Cotton was called the “City of Tents” by its inhabitants and was constructed on a level stretch of desert between the Mexican Border and El Paso. Although the climate was called the “North Shore of Hell” by the Massachusetts troops and seemed to be an incinerator under a merciless sun, the locale was 5,000 feet above sea-level which led to a universal condition of nose-bleeds and cracked lips. Wind and sand storms were commonplace and wreaked havoc with the canvas shelters erected on the flat plain. In addition to the threat of guerilla incursions from across the border, the troops became aware that there was a security threat from the Mexican population residing within the United States as well. In 1916, the population of El Paso itself was 60% Mexican which represented the significant dangers of a Fifth Column comprised of restive Revolutionary sympathizers who were actively engaged in smuggling and sabotage operations that the National Guard had been assigned to prevent.

Outpost: Looking Across The Border, 1916

The fact that the troops were now at war was proved immediately when on July 3 a man of the 5^th Regiment was shot and killed by a Mexican sniper not more than 100 yards from the line of tents. Random fire was also frequently exchanged across the Border with the regular troops and Texas Rangers stationed on outposts at the Border’s edge. While the Expeditionary Force of Regular Army troops under General John Pershing pursued the forces of Pancho Villa in Mexico, it was widely anticipated that the newly-arrived National Guard troops would also be called on to join the chase.

Railroad Bridge Outside El Paso, 1916

Along with expecting to advance into Mexico, the Massachusetts troops were assigned duties which included defending the Border from attack and infiltration along with protecting vital industrial and transportation targets from sabotage. Located in the greater El Paso area were two of the largest industrial complexes in the Southwest; the Southwestern Portland Cement Company and a large smelter and refinery that processed approximately 35% of refined metals production in the United States. A squalid industrial village called “Smeltertown” or “El Toro” housed the impoverished Mexican refinery workers in a ghetto along the Rio Grande, and two large railroad bridges connected Texas and New Mexico near the Mexican Border in that area which were vulnerable to attack. Companies of troops rotated duty between resting and drilling in reserve at Camp Cotton, securing the industrial and railroad facilities, and standing outpost duty patrolling the front line on the Border. As Mexican prisoners were taken, they were secured at Camp Cotton under guard.

Camp and Cement Plant, 1916

8th Regiment HQ, Camp Cotton

In mid- August, 1916 the annual rainy season commenced with a sudden deluge, flash flood and high winds that caused widespread destruction throughout Camp Cotton. While this became a daily occurrence each afternoon, it was also augmented by the hurricane that struck Corpus Christi, Texas on August 18, 1916.

Morning Drill, Camp Cotton 1916

By August 20, the political situation with Mexico had changed and it was apparent that the National Guard troops would not be needed for an invasion of Mexico after all. Along with this disappointment, morale among the ranks was negatively affected by several other factors: Constant rumors from the newspapers that the troops would soon be recalled were both ever-present and ever-changing; An order received authorizing the release from duty on September 1, 1916 of any Guardsman who wished to attend college in the Fall was promptly rescinded; and many men whose families suffered serious economic hardship from the extended deployment received no financial relief from the State as had been promised. In spite of this, the Y.M.C.A. helped maintain morale by providing recreational facilities and various support services to the men. Individual Companies also organized and performed vaudeville shows while Regiments competed against each other and nearby units of the Regular Army in sports such as baseball and boxing. Individually the men would sing, play cards or write letters home to while away the evening hours. Overall, the men were happiest when they were busy out in the field both facing the enemy and accomplishing their mission.

Church Service, Camp Cotton 1916

In September the weather cooled off so that while the days were not exceedingly hot, the desert nights became very cold. Plagues of flies and mosquitoes also bedeviled the troops wherever they went. Supplies of cold weather blankets and uniforms were limited, delayed both by logistics and the constant uncertainty of how long the Massachusetts troops would be remaining in the area. Despite this uncertainty, it was clear that the presence of the National Guard on the Border was to become more permanent. Camp Cotton thus underwent a transformation from shelters of canvas and dirt to more durable wooden facilities. Wooden walls and floors were also installed inside the pyramidal tents.

8th Regiment On Brigade March, 1916

During the first half of September, the Regular Army evaluated the standards of the Massachusetts troops through a series of inspections followed by a Brigade march which began on September 13, 1916 in order to test the men’s strength and endurance after three months of active duty.

8th Regiment Men Resting During Brigade March, 1916

A military parade was performed on September 19, consisting of 35,000 Regular Army and National Guard troops which was the largest military column seen within the United States since the Civil War. The parade was formed at El Paso and marched to Fort Bliss where it passed in review and then returned. As the parade had proved to be a great success, the Massachusetts troops were then ordered to perform a long, 14-day campaign march beginning at the start of October.

Passing Review at Fort Bliss, 1916