The First Michel Family and John Lewis Michel's Early Life

John Michel was an immigrant shoemaker from an unknown country but thought to be from a region of Germany or Alsace Lorraine based on his son (John Lewis Michel)'s handwritten family history wherein he states about his father: "I have no record of my father. He was born, to the best of my knowledge, in Alsace, Lorraine which was under German rule at the time of his birth. He was born about 1865 and was 66 years old when he died. He is buried in Mt. Vernon Cemetery." This statement infers that JLM did not have a relationship with his father, thus further inferring that Anna Michel either divorced or separated from him early in their marriage (about two years later).

John was listed in Boyd's co-partnership and residence business directory of Philadelphia city , first published in 1858, as a shoemaker with a residence at 2600 Montgomery Avenue. There were 22 pages of shoemakers (about 1,610) listed in that directory.¹ Information on shoe-making and its history in Philadelphia is available here. Times have changed as there are now about 190 shoemakers in Pennsylvania in 2024 based on the Pennsylvania Occupational Employment 2022-2032 Long-Term Projections.

John Michel marries Christiana Kunigunda Anna Braun (21 yrs old) of Philadelphia on December 27, 1887 at St. Michael's and Zion Lutheran church (aka Old Zion).

The 1880 Census for Anna Braun's father with her as a resident is at 2400 Thompson St. It is possible that at the time of her marriage that she lived at 2309 Thompson St (her father's 1906 will listed that address on Thompson Street). It is assumed that the address is on today's West Thompson Street (as opposed to East) as it is located much closer to most of the other addresses of the main characters in this family story.

John Michel seemed to move his business/home rather frequently. The 1881 "Boyd's Co-partnership and Residence Business Directory of Philadelphia" listed a "John Michel, shoemaker, home S 22nd c Pine". The 1886 directory listed it as "2417 Montg'y Ave, h 1522 N 24th". 1886-7 issues of the Business Directory lists a John Michel with a shoe business on "W Montgomery Ave" and a home at "1522 N 24th St" in Philadelphia. In 1990, the address is 2417 Ridge Ave. In '91-'94, it was 2428 Ridge Ave. In 1895, it was "N 26th c Montg'y av, h 1901 Jud-" (may be Judson Pl) but I believe this is a publication error as the next directory listing is "Michel, Louis H, baker, 1901 Judson Pl". The last available directory from 1897 has the address as "2430 RIdge Ave"; this roughly aligns with the 2428 Ridge Avenue birth address of JLM listed on his birth certificate in 1890.

The Old Zion Luthern Church is located at the intersection of N. Broad and Mt. Vernon Streets in Philadelphia. At the time of their marriage, the pastor was Rev. Johann Emanuel Nidecker (1883-1914). The church was founded in 1742 with the current building having been built in 1891-92. Two churches were built St. Michael (1743) and Zion (1766), as well a schoolhouse (1761, still existing). The churches gave name to the congregation, "St. Michael's" and "Zion", but in the course of time it became known popularly as "Old Zion." That has been the official name since 1984.

John MIchel's internment is reported by JLM as at Mt Vernon cemetery, located at 3499 West Lehigh Ave, Philadelphia. According to one website "the cemetery is not abandoned; however, no plots have been sold since 1968 and it has become heavily overgrown. Mount Vernon is not open to the public." The cemetery is "currently subject to an action under the Abandoned and Blighted Property Conservatorship Act (a.k.a. Act 135)"and visitation is quite limited. More information on it is available here.

Bertha Michel, John and Anna's first child, was born on 6 Jun 1889. She passed away on 1 Sep 1890 at 2428 Ridge Avenue in Philadelphia; age about 14 months. She was buried in Mt. Vernon Cemetery. No death certificate has been found.

John Lewis Michel (hereafter JLM) is born on 15 December 1890 at 2428 Ridge Avenue in Philadelphia, about six months after Berth's death. Dr. Adam J. Dundore signed the birth certificate for JLM.

Dr. Dundore was born in North Heidelberg Township in Berks County PA and was an 1866 graduate from Jefferson Medical College. His office was at 1400 N 23rd St (now a vacant lot). His death certificate states he died of senility on 21 February 1935 at the age of 92. He led an interesting life; see the article in the gallery for more information.

There are no 1900 US Census records found for John, Anna, or JL Michel.

The Philadelphia Directory has listings for John Michel, shoemaker for 1890 through 1897. How correct these directory addresses are from year to year is unknown. The addresses are: 1890 - 1894: 2428 Ridge Ave; 1895: 26th and Montgomery Sts; 1897: 2430 Ridge Avenue.

No information has been found about any schooling for John Lewis, e.g. a report card or diploma. However, a newspaper clipping exists thanks to Bessie, JLM's wife who was an inveterate newspaper clipper and material hoarder about a Norriton school reunion that lists JLM as "President" and the evening's "toastmaster" — so he obviously attended high school there. Given his birth date of December 1890, he would have attended high school there from about 1905/6 through 1909/10. Norristown High School yearbooks on-line go back only to 1927. The Alumni Association has not responded to emails for information.

An archivist of the Historical Society of Montgomery County reviewed the information on JLM's estimated attendance dates and shared this:

"Norriton township was a part of Montgomery County until 1909. That year it was divided into two townships: East Norriton and West Norriton".

"Given the years you estimate your grandfather attended high school, that would mean he was likely the last graduating class for the township. There were five schools in the district. The closest one to the location mentioned in the article was Penn Square School, which was located on Germantown Pike, east of Swede Road according to one source". ⁴

A 1923 newspaper clipping on his new position at a bank in Hazleton reported that JLM "graduated from the Philadelphia Public Schools, Temple University, Pierce Business College, and concluded a business training at the Wharton School, of the University of Pennsylvania". His attendance at any of these institutions has not been verified.

A picture was found with "JLM lived here with his grandparents" handwritten on the back but no date given. Norriton is the town the house is supposedly located in but no street address was provided. The car in the picture looks like it is from the 1920-30s so it may have been taken some time after JLM lived there or have been contemporaneous. The note could have referenced JLM Sr. or JLM II. If it meant JLM Sr., the grandparents referenced would have been his mother's (Anna Braun) parents Mathias and Kunigunda Braun. However, Mathias died in 1905 and his obituary has them living in Brewerytown (it could have been a summer home). It is also possible that JLM SR. lived there in the 20s or 30s during a period when he was changing jobs somewhat frequently.

If the JLM referenced on the photo was JLM II, the grandparents would have been Anna and SY Fredrick (after her marriage to Samuel Y Fredrick in Hazleton 16 Nov 1917) but their main residence was Hazleton or Charles and Laura Howard (Bessie's parents) but Charles died in 1913 and Laura in 1904 so they are out for JLM II. JLM II attended Germantown Academy school, starting in 1927. That school isn't too far from the approximate area.

Three want ads were placed in the Philadelphia Inquirer in 1907 by a John Michel; all related to chickens and eggs. The addresses are not all the same but it is unlikely they were placed by different "John Michels". JLM would have been 17 years old at this time. It is possible that he may have been trying to make money to help support his mother and/or himself. Some nine years later, in 1916 and 1918, JLM won prize ribbons for chickens at the Great Mt. Holly Fair in New Jersey, so it is very likely they were JLM's ads.

At some point after the birth of John Lewis Michel in 1890 and the 1910 US Federal Census, Anna and John Michel are divorced. The 1897 Philadelphia Directory previously discussed has John's address as 2430 Ridge Ave but the 1910 US Federal Census lists a "Anna K Michel" residing at "1810 Van Pelt St, divorced". The census lists her occupation as "head of boardinghouse", with one border (Edgar K Davis, 38, a railroad brakeman) and her son, John Lewis (JLM) in residence. JLM is 19 years old and his occupation is listed as a "stenographer at a bank" (some info on stenography here). In 1900, stenographers (mostly female) were paid about $900/yr with male clerks earning $900-$1200. ²

The 1913 and 1914 Philadelphia White telephone pages lists a "Mrs Anna K Michel 1810 N Van Pelt St, Philadelphia". There is a "John MIchel 2320 N 23rd St" but it is unknown if this could be Anna's former husband. There were no shoe-related businesses in the books related to a John Michel or to his known historical addresses. No other phone directories from that period were available for review. As an aside, an early history of telephones in the US available here.

According to JLM's written family history, his father dies some 66 years after an estimated birth date about 1865 making 1931 as the approximate year he died. He was to have been buried in Mt. Vernon Cemetery. A search of death records in Philadelphia and obituaries failed to find a death certificate or newspaper notice for a John Michel dying in the early 1930s.

Admittance to Mt. Vernon cemetery is very difficult at present. A search of findagrave.com did not find any information for a Michel in this cemetery but given the situation there, the records are likely incomplete. The Philadelphia Inquirer published an article on the cemetery on 8 Sep 2021 that describes the situation well.