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Genealogical Research on George (Arnold) Romer (1793–1898)

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Background and Research Objective

George Romer (born circa 1793, place unknown; died 1898 in Greenfield, Milwaukee County, Wisconsin) presents a challenging brick wall in genealogy. He lived to an exceptionally old age (about 105 years) and settled in Greenfield, WI, but his parentage remains unconfirmed. The goal of this research is to uncover any information about George’s parents. This will involve examining major genealogy databases (FamilySearch, Ancestry), grave records (Find A Grave), Wisconsin regional records (vital records indexes, census, church and land records), and any indirect clues (such as associated family members in censuses or probate files). If direct evidence of his parents is not found in American records, we will identify likely parent names from other sources and suggest next steps for verification.

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U.S. Records and Findings for George Romer

Census Records: George Romer appears in mid-19th century censuses for Milwaukee County under the name Arnold Roemer (or similar spellings). In the 1850 U.S. census, for example, he is enumerated in the Town of Greenfield as “Arnold J. Roemer” with wife Elizabeth and several children. This record indicates he was born in Germany around 1793 and confirms his residence in Milwaukee County by 1850. Subsequent census entries (1860 and 1870) also show Arnold/George and family in Greenfield, WI. These records establish George’s approximate birth year and German origin, but (as typical for U.S. censuses) they do not list his parents’ names.

Death Records: Wisconsin did not require state-issued death certificates in 1898 (statewide vital registration began in 1907). However, there is a Wisconsin pre-1907 Death Index that sometimes provides basic death information. A search of these indexes did not readily show a “George Romer” in 1898, possibly due to spelling variants or the index’s limitations. No state death certificate exists for him, but a family tree entry on Ancestry confirms his death year and location and even provides a crucial clue: it lists his father’s name as Christian Roemer (source). (This appears in an Ancestry user-submitted family history, showing “Arnold Goswein Roemer, b. 11 Jan 1793 Germany, d. 1898 Greenfield, La Crosse, Wisconsin, Father: Christian Roemer.” Note: “Greenfield, La Crosse, Wisconsin” is likely a data entry error – George lived in Greenfield, Milwaukee Co., not La Crosse County.)

Burial and Obituary: Thus far, a specific gravesite or obituary for George has not been found online. The Find a Grave index did not return a memorial for George/Arnold Romer under obvious spellings. It’s possible he was buried in a local cemetery without a surviving headstone or under a variant spelling of his surname (such as Roemer). For example, the Honey Creek Cemetery in West Allis (which served the Greenfield area) has a Roemer family buried there, but only a Bernard Roemer (d. 1900) is listed, not George (source). George’s wife Elizabeth (Catharina Elisabetha “Eliza” Roemer) is also not explicitly found in online cemetery listings, though she reportedly died around 1886. One of their daughters, Johanna Pauline (Roemer) Stallman, has a Find a Grave entry that names her parents as “Arnold Roemer and Elizabeth Roland” (source), corroborating George’s and his wife’s names.

Land and Probate Records: Since George lived and died in Milwaukee County, land or probate records might yield clues. If he owned property in Greenfield, a deed or land grant could list when he purchased it (potentially useful for tracing his migration). Milwaukee County probate files around 1898 could exist if his estate went through probate. These records might name his heirs (his children were known) but are unlikely to list his parents. Still, they could confirm his death date and place. (Contacting the Milwaukee County Register of Deeds or the Milwaukee County Historical Society for an 1898 probate record is a reasonable next step.)

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Evidence of George’s Origins and Parentage

Research into George’s European origins provides the most direct information about his parents. Multiple independent sources indicate that “George Romer” of Greenfield was originally Arnold Godwin (or Goswin) Roemer from the Rhineland region of Germany. According to compiled genealogies on WikiTree and FamilySearch, Arnold “George” Roemer was christened on 12 Jan 1794 in Flamersheim, Rhein province (Prussia). (His birth is often given as 11 Jan 1793, which is very close – this discrepancy could be due to calendar issues or recording delays, but clearly refers to the same person.) These records strongly point to George’s father being one Christian Roemer. In fact, a WikiTree profile for Christian Roemer (born 1755, died about 1820) lists a son “Arnold Goswinn Roemer, christened 12 Jan 1794 in Flamersheim” – clearly matching George (source). The Ancestry tree data cited earlier likewise names Christian Roemer as the father.

George’s mother is identified through marriage records and compiled family trees. Genealogical evidence shows that Arnold (George) Roemer married Anna Catharina Elisabetha “Elizabeth” Rolands in 1825, before emigrating. Their marriage took place at an Evangelical (Protestant) church in Oberwinter, Prussia on 16 June 1825. German church records for that marriage (as transcribed on WikiTree) indicate the groom was Arnold “Goswinn” Roemer and the bride was Elisabetha Rolands of Oberwinter (source). Crucially, such church records usually name the fathers of the bride and groom. According to those sources, Arnold’s father was Christian Roemer, and his mother was Francisca (Franziska) Margaretha Neuhaus.

Christian Roemer and Franziska Neuhaus were a married couple in the Rhineland – they wed in Düsseldorf in 1780 – and appear to be George’s parents. In other words, the available evidence points to Christian Roemer and his wife Franziska Margaretha (née Neuhaus) as the parents of George (Arnold) Roemer. This aligns with multiple independent clues: the Ancestry family history, the baptism record, and the marriage record all support Christian Roemer as the father. (Franziska’s name comes from the marriage and baptism context; e.g., a Linkpendium summary of a Roemer family group lists Christian Roemer married to Franziska Margaretha Neuhaus, and includes a child born 11 Jan 1793 in Flamersheim – clearly Arnold.)

It should be noted that thus far we have no direct American document (like a death certificate or obituary) naming George’s parents. The names Christian Roemer and Franziska Neuhaus come from German records and compiled genealogies, not from George’s own statements. However, given the strong consistency of these findings across sources, they are credible. For example, Bernard Roemer (1831–1900) – George’s son – has a record stating he was born in Flamersheim to Arnold Goodwin Roemer and Catharina Elisabeth (source). This ties the Milwaukee County Roemer family back to Flamersheim, confirming we have the right German family. By extension, the Flamersheim baptism of Arnold Goswin Roemer is indeed our George, and it names Christian as father.

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Recommendations for Further Research

While the compiled data gives us likely answers, proof of parentage ideally comes from primary documents. Here are next steps and resources to solidify the findings:

Obtain German Church Records:
The Evangelisch (Protestant) church registers are key. A copy or transcript of the 1794 baptism in Flamersheim should list George’s parents’ full names (and often the father’s occupation and mother’s maiden name). Similarly, the 1825 marriage record from Oberwinter will explicitly name the groom’s and bride’s fathers. These records can be sought via the FamilySearch Catalog or the church archives in Germany. (Flamersheim, now in Nordrhein-Westfalen, had its Protestant records possibly kept in nearby parishes or in regional archives. The Oberwinter marriage is noted on WikiTree, so that church book entry exists and could be retrieved for documentation.) The FamilySearch collection “Germany, Select Births and Baptisms, 1558–1898” may already have an index entry for Arnold’s baptism, but obtaining the original image from a German archive or the Archion.de website (a repository for German Protestant records) would provide definitive evidence of his parentage.

Local Wisconsin Church Records:
Determine what church the Roemer family attended in Wisconsin. Given they were Protestant from Germany, they may have joined a German Lutheran or Evangelical congregation in the Milwaukee area. In fact, a German Evangelical church (St. John’s Evangelical) was established in Greenfield by the 1890s, and earlier they might have attended services in Milwaukee. If church death registers for that congregation (or a predecessor) exist for 1898, George’s death/burial entry could be recorded, sometimes including birth place or parent names. The Milwaukee County Genealogical Society or the Milwaukee County Historical Society may help identify relevant church record collections. The Archdiocese of Milwaukee Archives hold Catholic records (not applicable if the Roemers were Protestant), but the Wisconsin Historical Society or local historical societies might have microfilmed Protestant church books.

Milwaukee Newspapers:
A thorough search of 1898 newspapers (e.g., Milwaukee Journal or Milwaukee Sentinel) around the date of George’s death could yield an obituary or death notice. Given his advanced age, a notice might mention his birthplace in Germany and possibly surviving family; occasionally, obituaries of immigrants name their parents or noble lineage, though that’s less common. The Milwaukee Public Library and Wisconsin Historical Society have newspaper archives. Online newspaper databases (Newspapers.com, GenealogyBank, etc.) can be searched for the surname Romer/Roemer in 1898 Wisconsin. For example, a quick search in the Milwaukee Sentinel index or GenealogyBank might be worthwhile, as a death notice could at least confirm the date of death (which appears to be July 27, 1898, according to one genealogy source).

Probate and Cemetery Records:
As mentioned, checking Milwaukee County probate records for an estate file in 1898–1899 could provide details on George’s death date and heirs. It won’t list parents, but it helps confirm that the “Arnold/George Roemer” in these records is the same person identified in German documents. On the burial side, if a specific cemetery can be identified (perhaps through an obituary or church record), one might contact that cemetery or check Milwaukee burial permits (the city of Milwaukee kept burial permits even before state death certificates). The West Allis/Greenfield area had multiple small cemeteries; Forest Home Cemetery in Milwaukee, for instance, was a common burial site for 19th-century Milwaukeeans (though more often for those in Milwaukee City – yet it might be worth a lookup). The Find a Grave community or Milwaukee genealogy forums could assist in locating a burial if volunteers have transcribed tombstones in Greenfield.

Local Historical Societies:
Since George lived in Greenfield for decades, the local historical society might have compiled information on early settlers. The West Allis Historical Society (covering Greenfield/West Allis history) has already transcribed Honey Creek Cemetery records (where some of George’s relatives are buried) (source). They or the Milwaukee County Genealogical Society may have family files or published articles on the Roemer family. It could be fruitful to reach out and inquire if they have any record of a 105-year-old “old settler” dying in 1898 – sometimes centenarians were noted in local histories.

Summary:
In summary, available evidence strongly suggests that George Romer’s parents were Christian Roemer and Franziska Margaretha (Neuhaus) Roemer. This conclusion comes from connecting U.S. records of the Greenfield family to German church records and compiled genealogies. To firmly establish this, obtaining the original German baptism/marriage documents is recommended. Even if no American record explicitly names his parents, the convergence of sources gives a high degree of confidence in the parentage. Going forward, researchers should focus on those German records and any remaining local sources (obituaries, church death entries) to conclusively document the lineage.

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Sources and Further Reading

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