Here's one of my favorites, my whole family all together. The portrait was taken about 1908 in College Point, Queens County, New York. Mrs. Sulzbach moved to College Point with her family, the Zoellers, in 1868. Mr. Sulzbach came to straight to College Point from Germany to join his father. Father and son lived at the Zoeller boarding house. Ahh, the boarding house romance!
Look at their faces. Which one do you think is the doting parent, and which the strict task-master? Which the rebel who left, never to return, and which was Mama's baby? Which ones followed their parents' wishes, and which did the opposite?
The little boy on the left is Albert Jacob or Al, called Albie by his mother. He is my father. He stayed in the general area of College Point. He married Frances Wurtz and had 2 daughters. Frances died and he later married Anne Robertson and they had me. Mama's Baby.
The young woman standing on the left is Gertrude Loretta or Gertie, known for her beautiful singing voice. She married Charley Heck and stayed in the general College Point area. She died young of cancer without having any children. Married Charley against her father's wishes. Charley was a leader of a strike against Pop Jake's factory, but he was also Fritz's best friend and saved his life in World War I. Still, Gertie waited until age 40 to get married.
The young man sitting in the middle is Frederick Xavier or Fred, called Fritz by his family. He married Nora Barclay and moved to Tulsa, Oklahoma. Fred and Nora had 4 children, plus a baby who died. Thank you to their descendants for supplying this picture. The Rebel who Never Came Home. Fritz fought Pop Jake on 3 counts: didn't follow into the family business, went to war against the fatherland, and married a non-Catholic. All 3 at once, actually, but not till he and Nora were 27, even though they were high school sweethearts.
The young woman standing on the right is Angelica Magdelan or Angie. She married Dan Stack and stayed in the general College Point area. They had 5 children. Their daughter Angelica Gertrude, called Sis or Ann, introduced my parents. Followed her parents' wishes, married young, stayed close.
The young man standing on the right is Joseph John or Joe. He married Ida Brooks and had 2 children. Later, after Ida died, he married Helen Leamy. Joe moved to Tulsa and later to San Diego. Somewhere in between; moved far, but stayed close.
The parents of these children are seated. Jacob Sulzbach, called Pop Jake by his grandchildren, was born in Hessen, Germany and immigrated to College Point. By now you've guessed he is the stern task-master. He insisted on European manners at home and practices in business. Disciplined and driven, he was already a merchant at age 19 when he boarded the ship to America.
On the right is his wife. Jake called her Bella. She was baptized Catharina, married as Catherine Arabella, and buried as Arabella Katherine. I think she generally went by Arabella, so I will go with that. Arabella was born a Zoeller in Manhattan to immigrant parents. Family legend says Bella and Jake also had a set of twins who died in infancy. I have only found one so far, Idus, a boy. Yes, she's the doting one, keeping her children and even grandchildren at home until age 7 before sending them to school. Especially Albie.
Arabella had 5 sisters and 1 brother, plus 3 brothers and a sister who died as infants. All of them were born in Manhattan. The family moved to College Point when Arabella was 9 and Alex, the baby, was 2. Alex Zoeller married Ellen Griffin, called Nellie. They lived mostly in College Point. They had a son, Kenneth Joseph, plus a set of twins who died in infancy.
Pop Jake was a manufacturer of dyed silk, which you can see Bella wearing in this picture. Immensely popular in the late 1800s, you can see its decline in the non-silk dresses that Gertie and Angie are wearing, one reason the business ended.
See the Sulzbach Pedigree Chart for where they fit in the family.
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