Missing Persons
Missing Persons

Short List of missing persons. Click on name for more details:

1. Julius Strike (or Streich) and family
2. Thomas W. Russell, Jr, and family
3. David Russell

1. Julius Strike (or Streich) and family

LOOKING FOR INFORMATION on Julius STREICH or STRIKE, b. 1880; Leah LININGER, nee Leah LEWIS, b. 1885; Martha SMITH, nee Martha Strike, b. 1904; James SMITH, b. 1885; Gilbert ROOK, b. abt 1914. (see UPDATE below)

DETAILS:
Julius STRIKE, as his name was spelled on his Clearfield County marriage application, was born 2 May 1880 in Prussia, probably in the Province of Posen. He was confirmed 1 Apr 1894 in St. John's Evangelical Lutheran Church, Houtzdale. Julius was married 23 Nov 1903, in Decatur Twp, Clearfield Co, PA, by the Justice of the Peace, to Leah LEWIS, daughter of Job and Ellen. Leah Lewis was born Sep 1885. Julius and Leah had a daughter, named Martha Strike, born 4 Nov 1904 in Decatur Twp. Shortly before Martha was born, Julius seemed to have abandoned his family. On 2 Aug 1904, in Cambria County (the next county south of Clearfield), Julius filed a Declaration of Intention and a Petition for Citizenship. His Citizenship was granted on the same date. Nothing is known of Julius after this date.

Julius' daughter, Martha "Strike", married James SMITH, son of Archie Smith and Catherine Drylissing, on 30 Aug 1920, at the town of Clearfield, Clearfield Co, by the Justice of the Peace. Martha, then a resident of Castillo, stated her parents were Julius Strike, then deceased, and Leah LININGER, formerly Leah Lewis.

In the same year that Martha Strike was married, she was enumerated in the 1920 census as 15 years old and living in the household of her grandmother, Elanor Lewis, head, widowed, age 70. Also enumerated in the household were: William Lewis, son, age 49, Leah, dtr, age 34 (this was obviously Martha's mother), and Gilbert ROOK, grandson, age 6.

I doubt if Julius Strike's daughter, Martha (Strike) Smith, is still alive- she would be about 95 years old in 1999. However, if she and James Smith had any children, there is still hope that we may find living descendents of this branch of the family.

UPDATE: The whereabouts of Julius Strike and his wife, Leah Lininger, nee. Lewis, is still unknown, BUT their daughter, Martha Strike has been FOUND. Responding to my query on the Clearfield Co, PA, Rootsweb, a Mr. Bopp emailed me early 1999 and stated that Martha Strike was buried at Southport, in Cambria Co, PA. Apparently Martha Strike's first husband was an ancestor of Bopp's family. In July 1999, I visited Falcon Feild Cemetery in Southport, found Martha Strike Smith's tombstone and her obituary in the Johnstown Tribune. Go to Top of page.

Tombstone: Martha Strike Smith Tombstone for Martha Smith, nee. Strike, "Mother, 1904-1987". Martha married 2nd Thomas Hebden.


2. Thomas W. Russell, Jr, and family.

Thomas Russell, Jr, and familyPhoto taken in 1950's: Thomas W. Russell, Jr, Thomas A., two unindentified daughters, and "Mayme".  Thomas W. Russell, Jr, (1882-1962) and his wife, Mary Ashton (1880-1959), and their 9 children moved to Philadelphia, PA, about 1929.  Old city directories indicate that Thomas lived on Ludlow Street, Philadelphia, from 1935 to 1960. Names of children were: Thomas Andrew Russell, b. abt 1907; Mary E., b. abt 1909 (probably married to Mr Hummel); Mabel, b. 1911; Blanche, b abt 1913; Robert, b. abt 1915; Esther, b. abt 1917; Margaret, b. abt 1920 (married to Sylvester Connor); Elanor, b. abt 1921; and William G. (1924-1933). The parents and their son, William G., who died young, are buried in Arlington Cemetery at Drexel Hill, near Philadelphia. I would like to contact any living descendents. Go to top of page

3. David Russell

David Russell, close upDavid Russell, born mid-1800s and died probably around 1911. David appears with five of his siblings in a family portrait taken in late 1880's in Kruger's Studio, Houtzdale, PA (see image at left or go to Russell Album- colateral family). Family tradition suggests that he was a bachelor and that he was the personal secretary to the President of Berwind and White Coal Company. Thus, David probably resided near the coal workings of the B&W company which had mines in Clearfield, Cambria, and Someset Counties in PA.  Matter of fact, the town of Windber in Somerset Co, PA, is a transposition of the Berwind Surname.

I talked to a grand neice of David's who told me that she once received an ink well as a momento of David's job with B&W. The ink well has since been lost.

I am surprised that David Russell who appears to be about the same age as my great grandfather, Thomas W. Russell, was not mentioned in Thomas Russell's Durham County Journal, nor does David appear as yet in any of the family resources (censuses, parish records) of Durham county, England. I have not found a David Russell in censuses for Houtzdale or Barnesboro. David Russell is clearly the "mystery Russell" of our family.

Today, the B&W Company has diversified interests, one being a land holding company. I telephoned their headquarters in Philadelphia in 1994, but they had no records, archived or otherwise, that contained information on a David Russell. However, the company has published an admirable biography of the Berwind family which starts with the Bavarian immigrant, John Berwind, who set up a guitar-making shop in Philadelphia in 1856. The family biography contains several old photos of mine workings- one being an 1884 picture of dozens of miners surrounding the pit head of Eureka No. 5 in Houtzdale. Go to top of page.

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