Elizabeth Warnes (Varnes) Gonser
1821 – 1897
Christopher’s 4th great-grandmother · ancestor no. 71 · generation 7
Evidence: identity compiled lead
Family
- Spouse: Anthony G. Gonser (1817–1887)
- Family notes: Anthony G. Gonser + Elizabeth Warnes (m. 1838)
- Children in this vault: Martha Gonser (1839–1908)
Life and evidence
Warnes is an English surname (typically Norfolk) — a surname-only lead for the Miller-side English-ancestor story. Nothing more known.
D. Paul Miller's memoir (2011)
D. Paul wrote that the Varnes and Gonser families were from England, and that Elizabeth’s mother, “Grandma Varnes”, was a full-blooded Cherokee born around 1800 who married a white man; a photograph of her is in the book. Both are family traditions. They point to the same place as Christopher’s English-ancestor memory: this Gonser–Varnes branch, the one part of D. Paul’s ancestry that was not Amish or Mennonite. See English ancestor recollection (Miller side).
In their lifetime
- 1833 — 1833 First Swiss Mennonite settler in Putnam County, Ohio
- 1835 — 1835 The Ramseyers sail on the Richmond
- 1852 — 1852 Swiss Mennonites found Berne, Indiana
- 1869 — 1869 The Fieguths move from Prussia to Am Trakt
- 1874 — 1874 Military service ends the exemptions
Sources
Narratives and research
- Stories: English ancestor recollection (Miller side)
- History: 1833 First Swiss Mennonite settler in Putnam County, Ohio, 1835 The Ramseyers sail on the Richmond, 1852 Swiss Mennonites found Berne, Indiana, 1869 The Fieguths move from Prussia to Am Trakt, 1874 Military service ends the exemptions
- Sources: Find a Grave, Miller - From the Dust Bowl to the Corn Fields (2011)
Research log
- 2026-11-01: D. Paul Miller’s memoir (2011; archive.org lending copy, search excerpts only): ‘Varnes and Gonser were from England’; her mother ‘Grandma Varnes’ said to be a full-blooded Cherokee, born around 1800, married to a white man (family tradition). Archive.org full-text search for Warnes/Varnes with Gonser, Holmes, Coshocton: no record of her parents
- 2026-10-31: Descendants of Jacob Hochstetler (1912) full text and Descendants of Barbara Hochstedler and Christian Stutzman (1938) full text searched for Warnes: no match; parents not found
Record compiled 1 November 2026.
About this research
Supporting documentation is linked throughout. This project is an exercise in AI-assisted research and development, and I haven’t manually verified every link or conclusion. All transcriptions and translations of Swiss parish records were made with AI, and their accuracy should be treated accordingly.