BINNEY---GOW---HANMER---MEISSNER---POMNITZ

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

  1.  Purpose of this Newsletter
  2.  Family Stories, Events and Biographies:
       »  Family Reunion 2003
  3.  A History of Pomnitz' Origins (Part IV) - Ed Pomnitz, Sr.
  4.  "Passages": Births, Anniversaries, Deaths
  5.  Family Projects:
       »  Family T-Shirt Now Available!!
       »  Family Cook Book Being Considered
  6.  Pomnitz Family Fund Report - Ed Pomnitz, Sr.
  7.  Services Offered To Family Members
       »  New Photo Gallery II
       »  New Automated Subscriptions
       »  Chat Room Access
       »  Internet Dial-Up Service
  8.  Newsletter Mechanics:   
       »  Format & Layout of the Newsletter
  9.  Contact Information:
       »  How to subscribe/unsubscribe
       »  Where to send articles & news
10.  Notizen Aus Dem Ziegenstall (Notes From the Goathouse)
11.  Next Newsletter Date
12.  Final Quote

1.  THE PURPOSE of this newsletter:  to note and share items of possible interest for the "greater Pomnitz Family".  The 177 family names mentioned in the Family Tree are listed at http://www.pomnitz.net/history/surnames_list.htm.   Please do send me suggestions or ideas for future newsletters:  they will be taken seriously.

2.  FAMILY STORIES, BIOGRAPHIES AND NOTES OF INTEREST:

THIS ISSUE:  FAMILY REUNION 2003
It's time to make your plans for attending the greatest Family Reunion ever!  Please check our website for details and updates on our 8th Biennial Reunion.  If you don't have online access, please contact our 2003 hosts, Donal & Marion McKeown at the following address:

Donal & Marion McKeown
619 Old Orangeville Road
Fergus, Ontario N1M2W4

Online Details:  http://www.pomnitz.net/reunions/pomnitz2003.htm

3.  POMNITZ AUS DEUTSCHLAND (POMNITZ OF GERMANY) Part III of IV - At Obermöllern - A History - By Ed Pomnitz

PART III REVIEWED
In Part III, to our relief, we found that the name Pomnitz survived the Thirty Year War remaining in Obermöllern until the end of the 17th Century.  In Part IV, our final chapter, we will follow the Pomnitz branch that migrated from Obermöllern to Donndorf, Germany.  We will conclude our journey as Adelbert Pomnietsky, father of our beloved Adelbert Richard Pomnitz, arrives in the United States.

A MIGRATION TO DONNDORF
In about 1700 Adam Pomnitz, the son of Johannes, migrated north to nearby Donndorf, Germany, establishing the Donndorf branch of the Family.  It appears that Johannes remained behind and died in Obermöllern.  He was reported to be the last Pomnitz there.  Adam’s son, Johann Christian Pomnitz, was born in Donndorf in about 1721.  Johann Christian then had a son, Johann Friedrich Pomnitz, (Sr.) who was born in 1747.

During the war Prussia began its rise to power under the Hohenzollern family.  Frederick William I created a military state.  His son Frederick II the Great made Prussia a leading power of Europe.  After he seized Silesia from Austria in the Seven Years' War, from 1756 to 1763, he annexed part of Poland.

AFTER THE SEVEN YEARS’ WAR
Just after the Seven Years’ War Johann Andreas Pomnitz (later establishing the Cölledaer branch) was born of Johann Friedrich Pomnitz in 1777.  Johann Friedrich married Henriette Kirschman in 1778.  They had 6 children in total.  We have now come to a point that we have little knowledge.  We believe that one of these six children was another son who was his namesake, Johann Friedrich Pomnitz, Jr.  Johann Friedrich passed in 1798 and Henriette in 1818.  We will find Johann Jr. passing in about 1867, his will being executed on February 23, 1867 in Kiel, Germany.  He had two sons, Gustave Heinrich Friedrich Pomnitz (we have no date of birth or death) and Adelbert Petrus Friedrich Pomnitz Born in 1821 (likely in Donndorf?).

UNIVERSAL MILITARY TRAINING
Just prior to Adelbert’s birth, Napoleon victoriously carried his wars into Germany.  After he formed the Confederation of the Rhine, the Holy Roman Empire collapsed.  The French crushed the Prussians at Jena, not far from Pomnitz and Donndorf, in 1806.  Prussia then undertook reforms.  Its leaders abolished serfdom, organized local self-government, and established universal military training.  Prussia then went on to help defeat Napoleon at Leipzig in 1813.  At the Congress of Vienna (1814-15) the several hundred German states were reduced to 39 and grouped into a loose German Confederation.  After Napoleon's defeat at Waterloo in 1815, Austria and Prussia struggled to control the Confederation.  In 1848 a revolutionary movement failed to unify Germany under a democratic government.

POMNIETSKY AND SPECULATIVE FAMILY LORE
Here is where we are presented with a bit of speculative family lore.  We see that Prussia had established universal military training.  We don’t know precisely when Adelbert entered the United States, but it is believed to be around the time of the large German emigration of 1846.  Oddly, but likely due to the mandatory military service, Adelbert fled Germany and performed an illegal name change to "Pomnietsky" before, upon (most likely), or shortly after his arrival in the United States.  This name change will cause several Pomnitz descendants some difficult
problems in the years to come.

FIVE FAMILIES UNITE THROUGH MARRIAGE
At the time Otto von Bismark enters politics in 1847 and begins to work towards a unified Germany, Adelbert meets Sarah Caroline MacAlwee from Baltimore, Maryland and they are married in 1850.  They had a daughter and three sons.  Among which is our beloved Adelbert Richard Pomnietzky, Sr. (Pomnitz) who marries our beloved and great matriarch, Ida Marie Ernestina Telschaw in 1875.  We still have a family artifact, their original marriage license bearing the name Pomnietzky.  Their 10 children later directly yield our current day Binney, Gow, Hamner, Meissner and Pomnitz families.  The families regularly reunite every other year alternating between southeast Michigan and Fergus, Ontario, celebrating their common ancestry that that issues from the union of Adelbert and Ida Pomnietzky (Pomnitz).

WAS ADELBERT PETRUS MURDERED?
As for Adelbert Petrus Friedrich Pomnitz (Richards father), he leaves us with a seemingly mysterious disappearance.  There were rumors of him being sought for his flight from the mandatory German service.  The last reference of record to him is in the Detroit City Directory of 1868/69 where he was listed as Constructing Engineer and Architect.  He seems to have fled to Cleveland where he was either murdered or took on yet another new life.  We are hopeful to find yet undiscovered records and evidence, possibly in Ohio, to give us a better insight to his fate.

THE NOW MANY POMNITZS
An undetermined number of souls bare the name of Pomnitz.  By design, in our four part series, we did not delve into other branches of Pomnitz. Nor did we address in our earlier branch Gustave Heinrich Friedrich Pomnitz, Adelbert Friedrich’s brother, and three young sisters found in Kiel, Germany.  Let’s also not forget the other three children of Adelbert & Sarah, Agustave O., Edwin W. and Caroline, who also early on open doors for other branch(es) of Pomnitzs in the United States.  It is my belief as we continue to our research that we will find MANY MORE Pomnitzs who indeed are related at some "juncture" (branch).  Some (male) Pomnitzs may turn out NOT to be related at all as either they or their forefathers merely took on the name (a topic addressed in the Pomnitz Family Web in an article called "The Problem with Germanic Names").  Certainly all of us, who bare the name Pomnitz, have no less than the common heritage of our name itself, started by the "old folks" in Germany who also called us "Pumlitz" by remembering Sorbic name "settlement of Pomnen", a man who liked to remember heroic stories of the wars.

Though we shall likely never be able to present a complete picture, lets just say that the "man, who liked to remember heroic stories of the wars" could have had no idea of what all would come from his little farm "on the northern part of the fertile, inclined mountain slope of the Haselbachtal (The Hasel River Valley)"!

This concludes our Pomnitz Aus Deutschland journey through time.

Story by Edwin Charles Pomnitz, Sr. January 2002.

Excerpts included from Compton's Interactive Encyclopedia (c) 1994-1995, the Pomnitz and Senf Family Tree (Hermann Mitgau), The Pomnitz Family Database and The Pomnitz Family Web.

4.  PASSAGES:  EVENTS REPORTED SINCE THE LAST NEWSLETTER (births, graduations, marriages, deaths, careers):

• None Reported: Please send your announcements to editor@pomnitz.net.

5.  FAMILY PROJECTS:

FAMILY T-SHIRT NOW AVAILABLE!! -A Pomnitz Family T-Shirt is now available.  Full ordering information is at http://www.pomnitz.net/wc/t-shirts.htm  INSIDER TID-BITS: You just HAVE TO KNOW a couple things about the shirts: 1) - The graphics printed on each shirt were graciously designed and donated by Kathy Kelm-Cronin (daughter of June Meissner Kelm).  Kathy is founder and Director of NISDA (Nantucket Island School of Design and the Arts).  You can get a peek at what she does by going to http://www.nisda.org. 2) - The Tag inside the neck of the drawing of the Coat of Arms says "Einfuhr Aus Deutschland" ("Imported from Germany").  That means YOU, not the shirt. 3) - The "Volunteer Shirt Model" (with that sleek male physique) is none other than our esteemed Web Meister, Edwin Pomnitz, Sr.  (Note the hair on his chinny-chin-chin.)

A FAMILY COOK BOOK?  There has been NO response received from anyone.  If you are interested in having us consider putting together such a book, please let us know before the next newsletter (in February).  Thank you.

6.  THE POMNITZ FAMILY FUND REPORT - (A Note from Ed Pomnitz, Sr.):  The greatest significance of our Family Reunions, our Family Newsletters, our Family Tree Database, Family Website and ongoing Research that they help us to:  1) Understand our rich heritage...  2) Stay in touch with one another.

Thanks to our contributors in 2002, we have enough funding to stay online through the end of this year.  We are now in need of funding for the 2003 year.  You can help out through the purchase of a family T-Shirt or by simply making a contribution.  ALL profits from our T-Shirt sales go towards the Family Fund!  We STILL have a way to go to pay for the initial run of T-Shirts (-$73.19).

FAMILY FUND REPORT - From Ed Pomnitz, Sr.

------------------------------------------
Balance from Last Quarter
------------------------------------------
$  46.89
======

------------------------------------------
Receipts
-------------------------------------------
$   0.00 - Mail-In Contributions
$   0.00 - Profit From T-Shirt Sales
======
$   0.00

------------------------------------------
Disbursements
------------------------------------------
$  38.85 - Web Hosting Pomnitz.com & Pomnitz.net  10/01/02 - 12/31/02
======
$  38.85

------------------------------------------
Current Balance
------------------------------------------
$   8.04
======

If you desire to make a contribution to the Pomnitz Family Fund, you can mail your check or money order to:

• Myra Pomnitz
  7891 Marlbourough Ave.
  Parma, Ohio 44129

7.  SERVICES OFFERED TO FAMILY MEMBERS:  Please contact Ed Pomnitz regarding these services at webmaster@pomnitz.net.

	NEW - PHOTO GALLERY II:  Now Family members can load their own family photos directly onto our website for all to see.  The Pomnitz Family Web Photo Gallery II can be found at: http://www.pomnitz.net/pg/gallery_ii.htm. We would like to see at least one photo of each family member posted here.  You can include a title and description of your photo as well as "keywords" to help others search for your information.  Please follow the categories that have been supplied.  If you require a new category, please E-Mail webmaster@pomnitz.net with the photo category you would like to see added. Join in the FUN.  Registered family members can post new photos, leave comments and even vote on any of the photos in this area. Registration is simple.  Just use your FIRST and LAST NAME when asked for a USER NAME.  Then select a PASSWORD of your choice and provide a valid E-Mail address.
	NEW - AUTOMATED SUBSCRIPTIONS: Our automated subscription service is back online and better than ever.  You can subscribe or un-subscribe from this newsletter online.  You may also elect to receive Web Update Notices.  An update notice will let you know when something has been changed or added to our website.  To subscribe or unsubscribe go online to: http://www.pomnitz.net/news/newsletter/subscriptions.htm. Those already receiving this newsletter by E-Mail should notice a NEW format.  Our newsletter is now being sent in HTML format and thus will appear similar to our online version.  If you are having difficulty with this format, please report such to webmaster@pomnitz.net.
	CHAT ROOM ACCESS: The family website now offers family members (only) their own 'chat-room', where you can (at no cost to you) chat with others anywhere in the world.  You can find it in the "In Touch" area, http://pomnitz.net/intouch/index.htm and just click on "Family Chatter".  This area requires a USER ID and PASSWORD.  Contact webmaster@pomnitz.net for your password.
	INTERNET DIAL-UP SERVICE:  Family members are offered an economic way to get to the Internet as well as having e-mail AND their own Web Site, if desired.  Ed Pomnitz' computer consulting company (FXtra) which handles the technical side of "Pomnitz.net", is also able to offer Family Members a low-cost connection to the Internet, called "EZDial".  A special offer for low-cost EZDial is available in both the US and Canada, is economic ($15.95 USD per month) and reliable, with no pop-up ads, no-spam, privacy (does not sell your e-mail address), no set-up fee, free web space, unlimited access.  If you are interested and want to join-up, you need to go to http://www.fxtra.com/deal and enter this PIN number when prompted: "ae80701".  If you need more information before you do, contact Ed at webmaster@pomnitz.net via e-mail.  The added benefit to us all is that Ed's company will donate another $2 per month to the Pomnitz Family Fund, which helps to underwrite our website and our other family activities.

8.  NEWSLETTER MECHANICS:  TROUBLE VIEWING THE NEWSLETTER IN THIS FORMAT??:  Please notify editor@pomnitz.net to describe any problems you are having.  This Newsletter is composed and sent to you in "html format".  Some subscribers may not have computers capable of handling html or graphics in their e-mail.  If you are having difficulty with this E-Mail, go to the Newsletter section on our family website.  http://www.pomnitz.net/news/newsletter/index.htm.  You can print a copy if you wish.

9.  CONTACT INFORMATION:  To Subscribe or Un-subscribe to this Newsletter, or to correct names and addresses, please do so online at:

http://www.pomnitz.net/news/newsletter/subscriptions.htm

or send a regular postal letter to the address below.

PLEASE DO SIGN OUR GUEST BOOK on your next visit to The Pomnitz Family Web:  http://www.pomnitz.net.

SEND E-MAIL REPLIES TO editor@pomnitz.com.  Replies by regular postal mail may be sent to Art Meissner, Editor, Pomnitz Family Newsletter, 15 Three Oaks Road, Rhinebeck, NY 12572-2675, (845) 876-6407 OR TO OUR ASSOCIATE EDITOR!!, Nancy Meissner, at nlmeissner@aol.com.

10.  NOTIZEN AUS DEM ZIEGENSTALL (Notes From The Goathouse):  By Art Meissner, Editor.

Dear Folks -

I've found a real pleasure in gathering tidbits of history about our Grandmother Ida Telschaw.  I am putting them together for an article in a future newsletter.

Did you know that there are only (to my knowledge) four (4!) of us who actually knew her... can remember being in the same room with her?  Charles Edwin Pomnitz (our Historian, son of Jacob), James Gow (son of Nora), Jean Binney Smith (daughter of Walter Binney, Jr.) and John C. Meissner, Jr., (son of Celia).  That's it!

Each of them has delved into their own personal memories and given me some insight into Ida Telschaw.  Since Ida died in 1934, all four of them knew her when they were fairly young, and thus their memories are sketchy and a bit faint, due to the passage of time.  (I was only two at the time of her death.)

I've enjoyed pulling together what pieces each gave me.  (I must say that I've especially enjoyed getting to know Jean Binney Smith if only by telephone.  Her impish love of life and family is infectious, to say the least.  Plans are afoot to make sure she can be at the next Family reunion next July, which is a MUST for all of us.)

I humbly suggest that those of you who know these 4 individuals gently help them probe for more memories of Grandmother Ida. I've found that you never know what you are going to remember till someone asks you the 'right' question.

Try it some time:  ask the Elders in your families for memories of people and events of long ago. I think you will find it both enjoyable and enlightening. You will also find that Your Elders can tell you of a way of life which shall never be ours again.

Do not forget:  The next Family Reunion will be hosted by Marion (Gow) and Donal Mckeown in Fergus, Ontario: July 12-13.  Save the dates and plan to be there.  More details in future newsletters.

Warm best wishes to you all.

Art Meissner

11.  NEXT NEWSLETTER is tentatively scheduled for February 1, 2003.  It will contain a summary of then-current Family news as well as any articles submitted by family members.  Please help by submitting newsletter items no later than January 15, 2003.  You do not have to do a lot of writing:  Just list WHO in the Family did WHAT, WHEN, and WHERE.  ("How" and "Why" are optional.)  We will edit it for a future issue.  THANKS!