Cross-reference with the vault, and what to photograph next
Compares the photographed pages (see Ramseyer Family Record 2002 - page index) with what the vault already had, on 2026-10-31.
1. Agrees with the vault
| Fact | Book | Vault before | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Johannes’s birth | 3 Apr 1780 | 3 Apr 1780 (Staker, French records) | ✔ |
| Parents | ”Issak and Anna Augsburger” | Isaac Ramseyer and Anna Augsbourg | ✔ spelling only |
| Marriage | 30 May 1800, Mancenans | 30 May 1800, Mancenans-Lizerne (civil index) | ✔ |
| Johannes’s death | 4 Jul 1853 | 4 Jul 1853 | ✔ |
| Barbara’s death | 1844 | 1844 | ✔ |
| Richmond passengers 1835 | facsimile of the manifest | same names and ages | ✔ the book’s facsimile is the original record |
| 60 acres, Section 33, 13 Aug 1835 | ✔ | ✔ | the book adds price, mortgage and legal description |
| Peter’s birth | 5 Nov 1822, Maîche | 5 Nov 1822, Maîche | ✔ |
| Elizabeth × Michael Zehr | 1844 | 24 Nov 1844, double wedding with Peter | ✔ |
| 1859 house and barn; Old Beech Cemetery | ✔ | ✔ | the book adds map locations |
| Early line Peter → Ludwig → Hans → Ulrich → Christian (1672) | ✔ | ✔ (Staker) | probably the same source (Adolph Ramseyer), so not independent |
| Christian (1672) × Christina Gosteli, Anabaptists | ✔ | documented in the Eggiwil registers | the registers confirm the book |
| Christian (1700) → Isaac | ✔ | Staker, unverified | still unverified: same source |
2. New information added to the vault
- All ten children of Johannes and Barbara, with birth dates, places, spouses and fates → Johannes Ramseyer (1780–1853) and the family note.
- Why they emigrated: France’s 1830 draft; Joseph’s 1834 scouting trip (and the sixty white shirts). This also explains the “1834” arrival date in the 1910 county history and the 1986 booklet → Peter Ramseyer (1822–1880).
- The route from New York to Minerva by Hudson, Erie Canal, Lake Erie and the Ohio & Erie Canal.
- The land deal: 200 note to Joseph Sommers due 8 Aug 1836; SE ¼ Section 33, T17 R6; mortgage recorded 28 Jul 1836 → Ramseyer Family Record 2002 - documents and maps (pp. XVII-XXI).
- Three places on a map: the 1835 farm, Peter’s 1859 farm, Old Beech Cemetery → Paris Township (Stark County).
- Early Ramseyers: birth years for Peter (1535, Signau), Ludwig (1568) and Ullrich (1640); Hans bought a farm in 1629; Ullrich was a saddler.
- Isaac’s brother Abraham; Marguerite married his grandson Johannes (b. 1800), the Amstutz line on pp. 797ff.
- Notable cousins: Joseph (b. 1814) moved to Ontario before the Civil War and is buried at Baden; his grandson J. E. Ramseyer founded Fort Wayne Bible College; another grandson, Henry, was secretary of the Northern Bible Society. Nicholas joined the Apostolic Christian church at Fairbury, Illinois, and moved to Harper, Kansas.
- Edna as genealogist: 50+ years of work, 45,000 names, taped storytelling sessions, and a second archive: the Edna Ramseyer Kaufman files at Bluffton College (University) Library → Edna Ramseyer Kaufman (1910–2001).
3. Differences (recorded in Conflicts)
- Johannes’s birthplace: Mancenans, France (book) vs Eckenweil/Eggiwil, Bern, 1776 (1907 booklet) vs the family in Neuchâtel then (Staker).
- Johannes Jr.: the vault has him dying in 1839 at Moos; the book says he was born at Moos and stayed in Mancenans.
- The deed’s first signature looks like “Jacob” Ramseyer, not John.
- The book calls p. XXI a purchase agreement, but the page is actually the mortgage back to the seller. The purchase deed itself (Sommers to Ramseyer) is a separate record.
- A correction in the vault: Johannes’s note listed his European-staying children as “siblings”. Fixed.
4. What else to photograph (priority order)
Living people stay out of the vault (AGENTS rule 1), so the useful pages are the history sections and the early generations.
| Priority | Pages | Why |
|---|---|---|
| ★★★ | XIV–XVI | The end of the introduction: Peter’s own section (our direct ancestor) and the map of southern Alsace (p. XV) |
| ★★★ | LI “Johannes Ramseyer’s Ancestors 1535–1780” | The book’s pedigree back to 1535; check for dates, places and sources against the Bern registers |
| ★★★ | 815 Bibliography (and 816) | Shows where Edna got the early Swiss and French data (Adolph Ramseyer? specific archives?) |
| ★★ | XXII–XXIV | The rest of the deed (“over”), and the Will of Johannes Ramseyer (an original record) |
| ★★ | L, LII | Abbreviations and the numbering system, so the register can be read correctly |
| ★★ | The register entries for the direct line: Peter (no. 11), Daniel (1856), Alvin C. Sr. (1880), and Alvin Jr. (1921). Use the index (p. 659ff.) to find the pages. | Dates, places, spouses’ parents (Barbara Reich, Rebecca Smiley, Mary Ellen Schrock) and church affiliation, to compare with the vault |
| ★★ | Register pp. 1–~20 | Johannes’s ten children and grandchildren (all long dead): spouses’ parents, places, deaths |
| ★ | XXV–XXVIII | The Anna Ramseier and Johannes Schwartz emigration story (a narrative of 1853) |
| ★ | XXIX–XXXIV | J. E. Ramseyer’s letter; the Peter Ramseyer barn description |
| ★ | XXXV–XLIX | Old Ramseyer recipes and the Ramseyer song (family culture) |
| ★ | 797–809 | The Johannes (1800) × Barbara Amstutz line (cousins) |
| skip | most of pp. 100–658 | Mostly 20th-century people, many living |
Tips for the photos: shoot straight down, one page per photo, in good light (these were excellent). Index pages can be grouped. For the index, only the surnames on Christopher’s direct line are needed: Ramseyer (Peter, Daniel, Alvin), Reich, Smiley, Schrock, Conrad, Plank.
5. Other leads the book opens
- Bluffton University (Musselman Library) archives: the “Edna Ramseyer Kaufman files”, the genealogy material left out of the book task/human
- The taped storytelling sessions with Edna: ask the family whether the tapes survive (they would be an oral history) task/human
- Stark County Recorder: the 1835 deed from Joseph Sommers and the 1836 mortgage (check the “Jacob” signature) task/human
- Stark County probate: the will of Johannes Ramseyer, 1853 (the book prints it on p. XXIV) task/human
- Adolph Ramseyer, the Swiss police officer and genealogist: does his research survive (Staatsarchiv Bern, a family association)? task/ai
Record compiled 31 October 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.