The Genealogy of Raymond and Fanny Best Fickeisen

After debating for years about how to deal with what I know about Raymond and Fanny Best Fickeisen, I have decided to treat it as a present connection to my family history. Around 1945, I moved with my family to 107 1/2 N. Fourth St. in Marietta, Ohio. Our neighbors at 105 N. Fourth St. were Raymond and Fanny Best Fickeisen. They had two sons, Daniel and Lyle True. I used to play with "Danny," who was a couple of years younger than me. My mom tells me that she helped birth Lyle True until Tillie Sarver, Fanny's sister, got to the home.

Also frequent playmates of mine in those early years were the children of Fanny Best Fickeisen's sister, Margaret Best. My mother tells me that Margaret Best had several children with Virgil Erb, and I am uncertain of their marital status. These children, in descending order, were Mary Margaret, Alvena, Virgil, and Dolly. Virgil, whose nickname was "Cricket," was a little older than me, and Dolly was a little younger. Mary Margaret married Charles B. Brown and settled in Coal Run. My mother tells me Alvena lives in Anderson, Indiana, and the others I have lost touch with.

The picture below was taken about 1945 in front of 107 N. 4th Street looking northeast. Directly to the right, across the street was Willard School, where now stands a Kentucky Fried Chicken. From left to right are Jim Andris, Virgil "Cricket" Erb, Daniel Fickeisen, Dolly Erb, Mary Margaret Erb, unknown, Alvena Erb, and Doris "Dodie" Wright.

For many years I have wondered about my relationship to Raymond Fickeisen. I suspected that he might have been descended from Abraham Fickeisen's brother Jacob. Now research has shown this hunch to be true.

The Parents of Raymond Fickeisen

With the able help of Ernest Thode, we determined that Raymond Daniel Fickeisen was born 10 Aug 1922 to parents Daniel and Mildred Young of Whipple, OH, and that the father had died 2 May, 1925. In the Saturday, May 2, 1925 Marietta Times, we found the obituary of Daniel J. Fickeisen, which makes it clear that he was indeed the grandson of Jacob Fickeisen (b. 1823), the brother of my gg grandfather Abraham.

This makes my mother, Lorene Sullivan Andris, third cousins with Raymond Fickeisen. It was my fourth cousins that I was playing with back in 1945.

The obituary states that Daniel Jacob Fickeisen lived in Whipple Run. He died of complications due to appendicitis at the age of 28, and was buried in the Waxler Cemetery. His parents were George and Julia Fickeisen. George had died three years previously, and Julia lived in Columbus, OH. It gives his marriage date to Mildred Young as June 14, 1921, and the names of his two sons, Raymond, aged 2, and Dale, aged 3 months.

The 1920 and 1930 census records fill in some details of Raymond's early life, although they are not mentioned in the obituary. In 1920, we find Raymond's grandfather, George and wife Julia, living on a farm in Fearing Twp. with Daniel still at home (24) and two younger daughters, Hattie, 18, and Laura, 12. Also living down the road from George and Julia (this will become important) are Irvin and Flossie Stark, aged 26 and 28. In 1930 we find Raymond D., 7, and Dale E., 5, living as boarders with Irvin and Flossie M. along with their infant daughter.

The obituary does list the siblings of Daniel J. Fickeisen: Clarence, of Cambridge, and Elmer, of Canton, "and two sisters, Mrs. Laura Amos, of Columbus, and Mrs. Hattie Young, of Whipple Run.

Mom remembered that Raymond was in WW II, and that helped with the genealogical research. Finally, Mr. Thode found that both Dale Edward (1925-1949) and Raymond D (1922-1968) were also buried in the Waxler Cemetery.

According to my mother, Raymond has a great grandson. She recently talked to Fanny, who will be 82 in Aug 2005. Fanny married a Fleming after Raymond died. She said that Daniel lives in Saint Marys, WV, and that recently, his son had a son. I did find a Bruce and Sandi living in Saint Marys through www.switchboard.com