Mary Kopp Merlau
Charles Frederick Merlau was born on November 12,
18484, in Sheldon, New
York, the first child of Johann Karl Merlau and
Maria Christina Zapf. He grew up on the family farm on Goose Hill
Road. He undoubtedly helped on the farm, as well as attending school. By 1870, at
the age of 31, Charles was working as a farm laborer, living on the farm of John
Friend. Presumably, he was earning the money needed to purchase a farm of his own.
On June 20, 1872, Charles married Mary Elizabeth Kopp at St. John's Evangelical and
Reform Church in Sheldon2. Mary was
born about 1850 in Sheldon, the daughter of Michael Kopp and Anna Maria
Heberle. Mary's parents were immigrants from Hesse-Darmstadt and Alsace,
respectively, who met and married in Sheldon. After their own marriage, Charles and
Mary settled in Sheldon where they began a life of farming.
Marriage of Charles and Mary
The 1875 New York Census14 lists Charles
F. Merlau as owner of a farm in Sheldon and gives a snap shot of its operation. Charles
and Mary's farm, consisting of seventy-three acres, was valued at $2300, while buildings were
worth $200; live stock, $500; and tools and implements, $200. These valuations suggest
that Charles had borrowed a significant amount to money to purchase the farm. Most of
the land, fifty-two acres, was used to plant in crops, including wheat, oats, barley, corn and
potatoes. An additional twelve acres were devoted to meadow, grazed by seven cows, two
heifers, two horses and six sheep. In addition, Charles and Mary had 2 pigs and
chickens. Adding twelve acres of woods, this leaves about one acre for buildings,
vegetables and orchard. In 1874, the farm yielded gross sales of $230.
It would appear that Charles initial try at farming was unsuccessful, since, in 1880, the family
was living in the Town of Wales, Erie County, New York15. Leigh Zahler, Charles grandson, remembered that
Charles rented a farm on Schang Road near Wales Center, and later lived near Wales Hollow on
another rented farm16. He
also recalled that Charles later purchased a farm on Factory Road, which straddled the boundary
between Wales and Sheldon, with most of the farm in Wales and the buildings in
Sheldon16. Leigh
states that Charles sold 4 or 5 acres of the land on this farm to a neighbor, because he was so
heavy in debt16, further
indicating Charles' early difficulties in making a go of farming.
Charles continued to work the farm on Factory Road until his death in
19084,8. After
Charles' death, Mary continued to live on the farm with her children, Nettie and
Herbert19. Then in
1920, she was living with Herbert and his wife Mertie20, on their
farm. Finally, in 1930, the year before her death, Mary was living with her daughter
Minnie and son-in-law, Floyd Zahler21, in Sardinia,
New York.
The children of Charles and Mary are:
| i. | George Andrew Merlau | George was born on April 29, 18761, and he died on August 10, 18761.. |
| ii. | Nettie Louise Merlau | Nettie was born on September 10, 18781, and she died on June 29, 196217. Nettie married Cyrus Lee Casey |
| iii. | Wilhelmina "Minnie" Merlau | Minnie was born on January 9, 18821, and she died on January 27, 196917. Minnie married Floyd Eugene Zahler. |
| iv. | Herbert Adolph Merlau | Herbert was born on November 1, 18851, and he died on August 23, 196318. He narrued Mertie V. Nichols |
| v. | unknown child | As shown by the U.S. Census, Charles and Mary had a fifth child, whose name and birth date are not known. This child died young. |
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