Meet The Urechs

Here's a little hunk of family on my mother's side; the Urechs of Switzerland.  I haven't been able to trace the line too far back, only into the early 1800's, and this is a common occurrence when dealing with immigrant families.  It seems a lot of European countries either didn't keep the greatest records, or it's difficult to connect relatives who move to the States with those who stayed back in the old country.  Then again, it might be that a lot of the information hasn't been digitized, and I'm not able to go digging into foreign archives.  I've had some luck on certain lines from England and Germany, though.

As I mentioned, the Urechs came from Switzerland.  The earliest relative I've been able to identify is John Rudolf Urech, my 3x great grandfather, and the son of John Urech and Suzanna Karper.  He was born September 14, 1839 in Aargau.  He moved to Ohio sometime before the Civil War, and married Minnie Mary Smith on February 15, 1864 in Cuyahoga County.

John & Minnie Urech had four daughters, the first being Adella Emma (b. August 6, 1864 /Died March 14, 1943)-The proximity of their marriage to the birth of their first child may suggest they had premarital relations.  Their other children were Elizabeth (b. 1867), Ada Belle (my 2x great grandmother, b. December 23, 1870), and Effie (b. 1871 /Died December 16, 1963).

Adella Urech married a man named Malva Morris Daniels (b. June 1863 /Died November 2, 1941), on July 9, 1888.  They had two sons, Roger Urech Daniels (b. November 20, 1891 /Died October 6, 1918 in Miami, Florida), and Edgar Eugene Daniels (b. July 27, 1893 /Died September 1966).

Elizabeth Urech became a school teacher, and from what I've gathered, it seems she never married.  She was still single and living alone in 1930.

Effie Urech married Charles Mills Terrell (b. October 15, 1870 /Died July 1, 1926).  They moved to Miami, Florida, where their daughter Mary was born in 1914.  Last I heard, Mary was still alive, living somewhere in Vermont.  That is an amazing thing to think about, that my great-grandfather's first cousin might still be alive today.

Okay, getting back to my own line:  Ada Belle Urech married Ira Rogers Nelson (b. January 3, 1863 in Toledo, Ohio /Died November 13, 1932) on March 22, 1886.  They had 4 children that I've been able to identify:

Edward F. (b. December 3, 1888 /Died September 1968),

Mary Alice (my great-grandmother, b. January 22, 1893 /Died September 28, 1974),

Ira R. Jr. (b. June 1895)

Adelaide (b. 1908)

It's clear that Ira and Effie Nelson moved around a bit (work related, I'd guess).  Edward was born in Montana, Mary Alice and Ira were born back in Ohio, and Adelaide was born in New Jersey.

Edward F. Nelson married a woman named Aula sometime in the Teens, and they had at least 2 children:  Edward (b. 1917), and Ruth (b. 1919).

Mary Alice Nelson married Julius John Kirton in 1917, as I previously stated in my Kirton blog post here.

I haven't been able to find out anything else about Ira or Adelaide.

So, there's the Urech line, which merged with the Nelson line, which merged with the Kirton line.  In conclusion, I'll leave you with this fine family photograph, of John & Minnie Urech with their daughters.  It was taken sometime in the late 1880's by my estimation, and it is one of the many pictures that spurred me to research my family history.  It's nice to place where a face belongs in your own past.



Top (left to right): Effie, Ada Belle, Elizabeth
Bottom: Della, John R., Minnie Mary