1832 - Andreas Pomerenke first appears in the church books of Szczepanowo on 30 September 1832 with the death of an unnamed infant (burial was 2 October); his wife is listed as Marianna Kawasowa. There is both a village and a parish record of this event; in the other records Marianna's last name is spelled Kamasowa. The "owa" is a feminine ending for a family name so her father's family name would be Kawas or Kamas. See 1837 for more on Marianna.

In that same year of 1832, a Peter Pomerenke and his wife Marianna Mialezankenka are in the nearby village of Karokwo; their daughter Margaretha dies at age 3 on 14 July and is buried the next day. Peter is related to Andreas. See 1838 below.

1833 - On 13 and 17^th October 1833 there is more heartbreak. Andreas and Marianna (Kamasa this time - yet another spelling) lose two sons, Michael and Martin, aged 4 and 8 days old. This event is shown both in the parish and Szczepanowo village church books.

1835 - On October 27, 1835 Andreas and Marianna Kamasa's daughter Elisabeth is baptized; she was born 25 October; their village is again shown as Szczepanowo in the parish church book.

1837 - On July 21, 1837 Marianna Kamaca dies at age 27. Looking at the next sheet, the record notes her husband is Andreas Pomerenke and her village Szczepanowo. She is buried on July 22.

1838 - Peter Pomerenke reappears on a 7 November 1838 death record for Johannes Pomerenke, aged 80; the village is listed as Szczepanowo. This is shown in both the village and parish records. Peter was Johannes's son and also Andreas was the son (filius is Latin) of Johannes. So Peter and Andreas are brothers.

1839 - 21 October 1839 is a happy day for Andreas and his new wife Marianna Suplicka with the birth of their daughter Ursula; she was baptized 23 October 1839. The village listed is Szczepanowo in both the village and parish records. Given the usual 9 months to produce a baby, Andreas must have remarried no later than January 1839. There will be more on this later. Ursala dies on 30 November of that year.

1840 - On 21 October 1840, Andreas and Marianna Suplicka again produce a daughter; Catharina is baptized on 1 November. Their village is listed as Szczepanowo in the parish records. She dies in 1847.

1842 - On 18 September 1842 Andreas and Marianna Suplicka produce daughter Michelina; she is baptized on 29 September and the village is listed as Szczepanowo in the village records.

1845 - Andreas and Marianna Suplicka continue producing daughters as Josepha is born on 3 February 1845 (the baptism date is blurred in the village records). On 16 April 1846, this daughter dies.

1847 - Adalbertus Pomerenke was 10 April 1847 to Andreas and Marianna Suplicka; he was baptized on the same day. Their village is Szczepanowo. He dies a year later in 1848. Catharina, born 7 years prior, dies on 29 December 1847. 1847 is the same year my great grandmother Micheline (Wilhelmine) Harwardt was born in Szczepanowo.

1848 - Adalbertus, born one year earlier, dies on 21 September 1848.

1849 - There is good news for Andreas and Marianna Suplicka on 13 September 1849 with the birth of their daughter Veronica (Veronian?). She is baptized on 18 September 1849. She dies on 16 December and is buried on 18 December.

1851 - Next Andreas and Marianna Suplicka have a son named Stanislaus. He is born 9 May 1851 and baptized 10 May 1851; their village is listed as Szczepanowo.

1854 - 12 March 1854 is the birth date for Marianna daughter of Andreas and Marianna Suplicka. Her baptism date is 25 March 1854 and the village listed is Szczepanowo.

There are no further Pomerenkes in the church books of Szczepanowo except an Adalbertus Pomerenke son of Francis Pomerenke who married in 1868 at age 22; do note that the existing church books are damaged and incomplete. For example there are no birth records for 1862 or 1863 (Emilie's birth year). And there is no evidence of the birth of Heinrich Pomerenke in any of the years between 1864 and 1872 including 1869.

In the above records Andreas is listed first as married to Marianna Kamas (prior to 1836) and in 1839 and later as Marianna Suplicka. As noted I found the death record for Marianna Kamaca in 1837; she is 27. This suggests Andreas was born before 1810.

I could not find the marriage record for Andreas and Marianna Suplicka. About the time Marianna Suplicka appears, many Suplicka family members began to appear in the church books. The marriage record of a likely brother Joanes son of Michel Suplicka in 1838 shows this family to be from the village of Woscura (Wenedja in Znin Parish?). Perhaps as was the custom in that time, Andreas was married in the village of his bride that may have been in another parish.

In any case Emilie Pomerenke, our real interest, was said to be born to Andreas Pomerenke and Wilhelmine Drews in Szczepanowo in 1862 or 1863. So Marianna Suplicka must have died after 1854 and before 1861 and Andreas Pomerenke must have remarried to Wilhelmine Drews sometime during that period. It is interesting to note that there were also Drews family members in this largely Polish village.

January 21, 2002