Martha Wilke and William Meincke

Martha Wilke was born in 1858-1860, the second daughter of August Wilke and Minna Schoenebeck. She either born in Angermünde, Prussia, about 72 km northwest of Berlin, or in Berlin itself. Her middle name was either Elise, Augusta or possibly both, as German names of this era tended to be multipartite.

Martha immigrated to the States in 1868, where she lived with her parents and sister Anna in Manhattan. As of 1880, she and her parents were living at 12 Forsyth Street. Martha was working in dress trimmings.

Three months after her father's death, on February 4, 1883, Martha married John William Meincke in Manhattan. William, as he was usually called, had been born in Hamburg in 1846-1840. According to the marriage record, his parents' Anglicized names were Henry and Henriette. However, his death certificate gives their names as Robert Meincke and Sophie Behran. It also gives his name as William Christopher Meincke. He immigrated to the States probably in 1860-1865, although possibly as late as 1875.

The couple had a son named Emil William August born January 2, 1884, and a daughter named Annie Francis [sic] born June 30, 1890. It's the children's two birth records that supply the two different last names for Martha.

The 1900 census found the family living at 10 St Mark's Place in Manhattan. William was working as a cashier in a theatre and William Jr, as a clerk for an asphalt company. The family was well off enough to have a servant.

By 1905, the Meinckes had moved to 10 East 128th Street. William was still working as a cashier, William Jr as a clerk. They'd let the servant go and had taken in eight boarders instead. By 1910 they'd moved again, this time to 2035-2037 Seventh Avenue, where they only had one lodger. By then William was working as a salesman of restaurant supplies, William Jr as a shipping clerk at a coal yard and Francis as a stenographer in an office.

The 1910 US Census was insistent on middle initials. William is William C rather than William J, which was to agree with his death certificate. Martha is Martha E, presumably for Elise. William Jr is William E, presumably for Emil. Frances is Frances O, suggesting that she might borrowed the name Ottilie from her aunt Anna Franciska Ottilie.

I lost track of William Jr after 1910.

As of 1920 Frances and her parents were still living on Seventh Avenue, although at number 1965. They had two lodgers. William was working as a printing house collector and Frances, as a stenographer at a bank.

Frances married Bartholomew Edward Longthon in Manhattan on December 31, 1925. Bartholomew was born on June 12, 1878, in Coxsackie, Greene County, New York.

Martha passed away on September 22, 1928. She was living at 562 West 164th Street in Manhattan, which is also where William, Frances and Bartholomew were living in 1930. She was buried in Woodlawn Cemetery. Her death certificate gives her parents' names as "William" Wilke and "Nina Schoenfeld."

The 1930 US Census record for the Longthon/Meincke household is rather hilarious. The official census date was April 1, 1930. Frances and Bartholomew arrived in NYC on April 28 aboard the SS Dresden out of Cherbourg. The passenger manifest gives their address as 562 West 164th Street, NYC, the same address as on Martha's 1928 death record. However, when the census taker came to call on April 11, they were told that the household consisted of "Abe" Longthon born in 1888, his wife "Bertha" born in 1890 and Bertha's father "Charles" Meincke born in 1860. It was "Bertha" who supplied this information to the census taker. "Abe" and "Bertha" had supposedly been married in 1913. "Abe" had been born in New York to German parents. (Bartholomew's father was French Canadian, his mother was born in New York state.) "Bertha" and "Charles" had been born in Germany - true at least in William's case - and had supposedly immigrated in 1895. Abe worked as a salesman of coats and suits.

There are no other existing records for "Abe" and "Bertha" Longthon. I suspect that Martha simply didn't feel that she owed the government information.

William passed away on June 5, 1937. At the time he was living at 601 West 168th Street in Manhattan. His death record gives his birth date very specifically as April 10, 1847, which agree with the 1900 US Census and therefore might actually be correct. Like Martha, he was buried in Woodlawn Cemetery.

The most likely lead I've been able to find for William Jr is a William "Charles" Meincke born January 2, 1884, in NYC. As of 1940, he was living at 39 East Ruby Avenue in Palisades Park Borough, Bergen County, New Jersey, with his wife, Barbara L Meincke. Barbara was born in or around 1890 in Pennsylvania. William was working as tools salesman, Barbara as a private duty registered nurse. By 1942 the couple had moved 6 km away to 63 West Hudson Avenue in Englewood, still in Bergen County.

I wasn't able to find any records for William and Barbara before 1940. Barbara may be the Barbara L Meincke born December 25, 1889, who died on September 1, 1992, in Luzerne, Pennsylvania.