I bought these two photos online in Germany. They were not sold as a set, but luckily as I browsed the seller's labelled photos, I discovered that these two belonged together. I’m so glad I could keep them together. Hopefully I will also be able to return them to the family together!
According to the handwritten information, these were Herrmann Günther and his wife Wilhelmine Günther née Peters in America. 1891-93 might indicate when this photo was taken. And we also have a clue regarding Herrmann's birth year: 1854. Someone has also written down their address: 3707 (1809) Smedly Street, which I assumed was in Philadelphia where the photos were taken.
The couple was not difficult to find in the records. The only thing that threw me off at the beginning of my search was that Herrmann’s wife Wilhelmine Adolphine Bertha Peters was listed as Bertha Günther in the records, rather than Wilhelmine.
So let’s see what I could find out:
Carl August Hermann Günther and Wilhelmine Adolphine Bertha Peters got married on December 28, 1878 in Berlin, Germany. Hermann was indeed born in 1854 (on July 30, to be exact). At the time of his marriage, he was 24 and upholsterer by profession; Wilhelmine Bertha, born on December 30, 1855, was 22 and seamstress. Curiously, Hermann’s place of residence at the time was the Royal Museum in Berlin (today known as Altes Museum). That was probably due to the fact that his father Carl Günther was an employer of the museum (Galleriediener).
Bertha’s father Franz Adolph Peters was in the business of processing gold.
It seems that Herrmann and Wilhelmine Bertha and their two oldest children, Karl George (born in 1881) and Karolina Martha (born in 1883), emigrated to the US in 1883. Son Edward and daughter Frieda were born in Pennsylvania.
Back in Germany, Herrmann was an upholsterer and looks like he continued in his profession in the US as well, owning a store in Philadelphia.
The Günthers resided at 3711 Smedley in Philadelphia in 1890. By 1900, the Günthers (or Guenthers in America) had moved to 4042 Garraroad. By 1910, the family had again moved and lived at 3901 Folsom Street.
Herrmann applied for the US citizenship in 1914. I can’t speak to the situation regarding local Germans in Philadelphia at the time, but I can imagine that Hermann’s application had something to do with Germany starting WWI in Europe. I don’t know for sure, I also don’t know if the Guenthers were in touch with folks back in Germany at all.
Herrmann passed away in 1922 and was buried at the Fernwood Cemetery and Mausoleum in Landsowne, Delaware County, Pennsylvania.
Wilhelmine Bertha outlived her husband by more than 20 years and died in 1945.
I am hoping to make contact with Hermann and Bertha’s descendants. The youngest, Edward and Frieda were unmarried and didn’t have any children, or so the records tell. Hermann and Bertha’s oldest, Karl Georg married Florence Keighter, but looks like the couple didn’t have any children. Hermann and Bertha’s oldest daughter Martha married Aubrey Hullings and had a daughter Bertha Clark née Hullings who also had a son Robert Clark in 1936. Perhaps he had descendants who’ would like these photos.
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