Two years ago I posted about Grandma’s uncle Fred Waldeck and his wife Caroline Meir (Meier). Fred was terribly injured in a streetcar accident. Because of severe brain damage, he had to live out the rest of his life at the State Hospital in Kalamazoo. He lived there for over 53 years.
Before the accident, the young couple had had one child, Edward. He also was involved in an accident when he was fourteen years old–when a man hit his bicycle in a hit-and-run!
Here are two posts about Fred, Caroline, and Edward.
The Waldeck Search Begins to Yield a Few Answers
I had never seen a photograph of Caroline or Ed, although I do have the one photograph of Fred with his family of origin. Fred is the man standing on the left, behind his father. The mother is Alwine, the younger sister of August Noffke. The little girl seated is my great-grandmother, Clara.
Recently, I made contact with a man named Roy through Ancestry.com who is related to Caroline Meir Waldeck. He rescued some negatives of the Meir family that his father was going to throw away and had them made into photographs.
Caroline Meir Waldeck, Wilhelmina Draheim Meir, and Louise Meir Schulz (Caroline’s sister)
Both Roy and I would like to know if Edward Waldeck is in the group shots. Edward August Gottfried Waldeck (1897-1971) was my first cousin, 2x removed.
Here is one of the young men so you can focus on them. Roy has names for the ones on each end, and thinks he knows who the second from left is.
Could the third from left be Edward?
Here he is with a young woman, maybe his future wife or wife Cora van Strien? Does he show resemblance to Caroline and/or to Fred? If you know who these people are, please let us know.
So wonderful that Roy saved the negatives and thus the images of the Meir family!
The Family Kalamazoo 
Such a sad story. Wish I could help with the photos, but obviously I don’t know these people. Good luck!
Thanks, Amy. Yes, I posted them in hopes that someday someone will see search the name and will be able to answer who they are!
Yep—I hope that happens. You never know—Google does bring lots of people to our blogs. Good luck!
So many wonderful acquaintances, photos, information, documents, and even that beautiful scrapbook have come my way through this blog!
Yes, for me as well—and something I never once expected when I started doing this four years ago. Amazing!
Me too. I was kind of just trying things out and figured it would be a one year easy project. LOL
🙂
Thank goodness Roy rescued those negatives. I hope you find the answers.
Can you imagine how many people just pitch the negatives, thinking nobody is interested?! Makes me crazy thinking about it!
It’s wonderful that the negatives were saved. I hope you are able to identify your relatives in the photos 🙂
Thanks, Su. Maybe someone will recognize one or more people in time from this post! You never know! Look at all the contacts I’ve made through TFK!
True. Good luck 🙂
Nice memories. I am glad you were able to save them.
Roy is the hero here. But can you even imagine how many are destroyed when others would want them?
Oh Luanne how wonderful the negatives were saved and printed. I would venture a guess the the 3rd from the left is Edward, the same man with the woman (possible future wife) and I would also guess that the man 2nd from right, directly behind the woman in the front row is also Edward. My guesses are based on the ears and hair cut (those ears are out there) and are just guesses. They are wonderful pictures!
We’re only guessing that the man in the photo with the woman is Edward. The problem is that there were four other young men in the family at that time (the one Fred Waldeck married into), so is it Ed or not? But the others look more like each other than they do like him, which makes him look less like the rest of them–and to my mind, a bit more like Fred and Fred’s father Gottfried Waldeck. I hope we can find out! Have a good day, Sharon!
Wow…so wonderful the photos wee saved!
Right?! And they were so close to being thrown away!
* he saved….need to slow down when I type…lol
Yes, a very sad story! I hope someone comes across this who can add some information. I’m glad the negatives were rescued. I have a beautiful 11×17 framed portrait of my great grandmother that she handpainted herself. I rescued it from the trash at my Grandma’s house years ago (her daughter). My Grandma is famous for throwing stuff out. Sigh.
You were really in the right place at the right time to get the painting, Amberly! Isn’t it amazing about that impulse to throw out ;)?!
Yes! It shocks me every time I hear about some treasure that my Grandma threw out. But I understand that she had way too much stuff to care for all of it properly. I just wish she had been a bit more patient and asked if anyone wanted it. Although… I do have 3 large boxes from her so I feel guilty complaining. 😉
I was watching some people on the news tonight whose houses burned down and they lost their heirlooms and photos. We are so blessed to have what we have—and the more we digitize the better!!!
Yes! I worry all of the time about my treasures. I am digitizing but it feels like a drop in the bucket so far. There is sooooo much to scan.
I feel the same way! And I can’t seem to organize things well because at this point it would mean taking two full days to pull all my file drawers apart and reorganize. But I never get that kind of undisturbed time.
I can so relate.
Whew, it’s so sad that two people that family were severely injured.
Poor Caroline! Her only husband and her only child, too! But we know Edward was ok in the end because he became a pastor as an adult.
What a strange twist of fate that 2 of them were in bad accidents. It makes you realize how rehabilitation (or lack of it) makes such a huge difference in how people function afterwards. If you want my vote…I’d say that was Edward (the 3rd from the left). The ears are the same!
Thanks, Patti. Can you even imagine the emotions Caroline was dealing with when she heard her son was hit by a car after bringing him up alone because his father was in the asylum because of the accident he was in!
I have absolutely no idea how she coped with that. Two accidents. So sad.
It is. I am amazed at how strong our ancestors had to be!
What a sad story about the Waldeck family.
Edward August Gottfried Waldeck married in 1918 to Cora Van Strien in Grand Rapids. I could not find if they had children. Edward was a Reverend in California and passed away in Los Angeles in 1971. His wife probally went back to Grand Rapids as she was not burried with Edward, but she was burried in Grand Rapids. Probally she wanted to be with her family as she still had many nephews and nieces in Michigan. Cora was the youngest of 4 sisters.
Cora is a very far relative of mine and thats why I found her.
I also see that the Meir family was a big family as Edwards mother Caroline came from a family of 11 children.
Kindly
Efa Reinewald
Hi Eva,
Thank you for your comment. I have not discovered any children of Edward and Cora. I have discovered where the Waldeck came from in Europe if you are interested. They came from northern Pomerania which was part of Prussia and is now in Poland.