Wednesday, January 29, 2020

Anna Elisabetha Jenta 1816-1881

Lizbeth Frei gave birth to Anna Elisabetha Jenta on the 8th of April 1816. Ten days later she died on the 18th of April 1816. She had lived 41 years 5 months 5 days. Sad as it may seem, at the time of her death she had already lost her first four children. A year later Rudolf Jenta married Mary Hüber who raised Anna Elisabetha. 

The naming tradition in Switzerland used about 20 male and female names. For males names like Heinrich, Johannes and Rudolf were extremely common. For women names like Elisabeth, Anna and Veronica were likewise common. So it is no surprise that Rudolf Jenta and Lisbeth Frei named their last child Anna Elisabetha.  

In 1824 when Susanna married her sister Anna Elisabetha was 12. I think it is safe to assume Susanna's husband Johannes Sidler knew his wife's siblings including Anna Elisabetha. They were 27 miles apart and in spite of the fact this would take some effort to make the journey it would seem that getting to know your wife's siblings would be important. When Johannes died in 1834 Anna was 18 years old and  her sister Susanna was 30. Anna may have come to help with Susanna's children. 

In any case eight years later in 1842 Anna was 26. Around this time Anna definitely came to visit Susanna because she met, fell in love and married Johannes Sidler from Ottenbach. Johannes is a cousin of Susanna's husband and of course they share the same name. 

Anna's Johannes was born 10 July 1809 which put him 5 years older than Susanna and seven years older than Anna Elisabetha. They married 7 March 1842 in the Ottenbach Kirche. Johannes and Anna lived in Ottenbach and had two children, Jakob Sidler born 22 January 1848 and Elisabetha born 8 September 1853. Jakob died 8 May 1864. He was15 years 11 months 17 days old. His sister Elisabetha married Johannes Huber of Bonstetten, Zürich, Switzerland. We know nothing of Johannes Huber or his family at this posting. The town of Bonstetten is 4.5 miles north/east of Ottenbach. They have a train station with a travel time of about 23 minutes to Zürich. About 800 people lived in the village when they married.

Anna lived 64 years 9 months 19 days dying 27 May 1881 in Ottenbach. She lived 7 years 29 days without her husband Johannes.

Documents relating to Anna Elisabetha Jenta:

Johannes Sidler and Elisabetha Jenta marriage 27 February 1842 film 8126955 page 873
Johannes Sidler from Ottenbach and A. Elisabetha Jenta from Ettenhausen, Switzerland

Rudolf Jenta Family Civil record, Wetzikon E lll 139.21 p 1734





Johannes Sidler and Anna Elisabetha Jenta family from Sidler-Hegetschweiler Temple book by Julius Billeter  pages 85, 86


Johannes Sidler death Dec 29, 1873 film 80126955 page 590
Final entry