Thu, May 20, 1999
Anton Ott (aka Antoine DeOtto)
Son of Jgnatz and Theresa Ott

His death certificate from Milwaukee, Wisconsin states he was born 16 
March 1831 in Germany and died 19 August 1903. The certificate indicates 
the primary cause of death was from exhaustion. The secondary cause was 
from  senile dementia. He died in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin in the Milwaukee 
Hospital for the Insane. He had the disease for two years prior to his
death.
According to Dorothy Neitzey of Colonial Beach, VA, her grandfather, 
Antoine DeOtto came from a well-to-do family in Alsace Loraine, France. 
Apparently he fell out with his family and immigrated to Wisconsin and 
settled in a German community.

Grace Raschig is the daughter of John Ott a product of Anton's second 
marriage. She advised that Anton first settled in the south when he 
emigrated from France. She believed he first lived near Richmond, Virginia, 
He came to Wisconsin during the civil war as he was a northern sympathizer. 
He allegedly had money sewn into his clothes when he came north. I presume
to hide his money in case he was robbed.

He was a cooper (barrel maker) and spent time in Sheboygan and Manitowoc, 
Wisconsin. She believed there was one son, William, by the first marriage 
and three girls--Annie, Lou and Maggie. She recalled something to the 
effect that William settled in Montana. She knew nothing about the first 
wife or her demise. The second wife was Mary Buckley an Irish lass. There 
were eight children by the second marriage. Bill, Mame, John, Lou (a 
second one), Albert, Edward, Fred and Agnes. Anton is buried in Holy Cross
Cemetery, Milwaukee, Wisconsin in a plot owned by his son, Fred Ott.

He allegedly changed his name from DeOtto to Ott because he settled in a
German community in Sheboygan and didn't want his name to sound French. 
Mary Rashig saw a picture of him once and he was very handsome and wore a 
beard.

Note: Much of the information from Mrs. Rashig does not coincide with 
information I determined later--She was basing hers on what she recalled 
having heard.

Mon, Mar. 10, 1997
The Registrar of Deeds in Manitowoc revealed that on 11 October 1869, 
Anton Ott bought lots number seven and eight in the Village of Clarks 
Mills. On 30 March 1891 Anton and Mary Ott sold those lots.

Holy Cross Cemetery records in Milwaukee revealed that Anton Ott died in  
1902 at age of 60 and was originally buried in Cavalry Cemetery in 
Milwaukee. In 1922, Fred Ott purchased a cemetery plot in Holy Cross 
Cemetery and Anton's body was reinterred there. He was married to Mary who
was 74 when she died on 19 Dec 1928 and is buried in the same plot. She 
had lived in the Home for the Aged prior to her death. Also buried in the 
plot was Maria Ott who died in 1922 at age of 31, Agnes who died at 44 in 
1960 and Beullah (not further identified).

A telephone call to the Recorder of Deeds office in the Manitowoc, 
Wisconsin revealed that on 5 October 1873 a son was born to Anton and 
Margaret Ott. The son s name was Anton Ott. This son died as an infant on 
14 March 1874.

Birth records for Manitowoc were all hand written and the letters are 
subject to interpretation. A letter from the Register of Deeds in 
Manitowoc reveal that Anton Ott and Margaretha Knirr (sometimes appears to
be Krinik) had the following children whose birth was recorded in 
Manitowoc County, a son whose name appears to be Valentin born 18 March 
1864 and a daughter, Margaretha, born 3 June 1871.

Birth records also revealed that Anton Ott and Mary Buckley had a son, 
Edward born 6 January 1886 and a son, Anton F, born 22 August 1888. These 
records also reveal that they had the following additional children, 
Willie, Mary, John, Julia, Albert, and Anthony.

1870 Census records for Manitowoc, Wisconsin have a hand written record of
Anton Ott, which list him as a 43 year old white male born in France whose
occupation was Tavern. He was a US Citizen. His wife's name was listed as 
Margaret age 30. She was foreign born but no country was listed. She was 
not a US Citizen. The following children, all born in Wisconsin, were 
noted: Carolin, age 10, Joseph age 7, Florentine, age 6, a name that looks
like Treass, a female age 4 and Ann age one. Florentine is probably a 
misspelling of Valentin as the age corresponds. Ann is probably identical 
with Annie C Ott, (Dorothy Neitzey's mother) who was born 25 September 
1870. Treass was probably Treasa Louise (Lou) Ott.

Mon, Mar 10,1997

A Mrs. William G. Larson of Manitowoc, determined the following information 
for me: The 1880 census in the town of Cato listed the following:

Ott, Anthoni, 54 yrs, cooper, born France US Citizen
Mary wife 29 yrs	born Ireland  
Joseph, son, 18 yrs. born Wisc.
Walter, son, 16 yrs
Teresia, Dau. 14 yrs
Annie, Dau. 12 yrs
Maggie, Dau. 10 yrs
William, son, 5 yrs
Mary,	Dau. 3 yrs
John,	son, 10 months

Note: The 1870 Manitowoc census did not list a Walter born in 1864. It did
list a Florintine born in 1864. I believe Walter and Florintine are one 
and the same.

Mrs. Larson forwarded a copy of an article that appeared in the Manitowoc 
Tribune dated 21 February 1878. It read Anton Ott, saloon keeper doing 
business in Clarks Mills was brought to the city on Thursday last and 
committed to jail in default of payment of a fine of $10 assessed against 
him by a Justice of the Peace of that village for selling liquor in 
violation of the town law. On Saturday he was taken out on a writ of 
habeas corpus but failing to secure his release he was recommitted. Having
boarded at the expense of the county a sufficient length of time to suit 
his taste he purchased freedom at the price of his fine and costs and 
departed home while Treasurer Damler raked the funds into the county 
coffers and moralized upon the benefits accruing from the sternness of 
justice. 

The 1878 Plat Map Index lists Anton Ott proprietor, hotel, Clark Mills.

Notes for Margaretha KNIER
Thu, May 27, 1999

Margaretha Knier
Daughter of Joseph and Anna Knier

Birth records in Manitowoc, Wisconsin revealed that on 18 March 1864
Anton Ott and Margaretha  Knirr  had a son, Valentine Ott. On 3 June
1871, Anton Ott and Margaretha  Krinik  had a daughter named Margaretha. 
(This is probably Aunt Maggie). The daughter was born in Clarks Mills, 
Cato, Wisconsin. On 5 October 1873 Anton Ott and Margareth (sic) Ott had a
son Anton.

Anton, the son died as an infant on 14 March 1874. Margaretha Ott died 12 
October 1873. Her death certificate stated she was thirty six at the time 
of her death. She died in Clarks Mills, Town Cato, Manitowoc, Wisconsin. 
The cause of death was not listed. (NOTE-As she died shortly after the 
birth of her son, Anton Ott, she may have died from complications of child
birth.)

(IGI records of the Mormon church list names phonetically. Knier is listed
under NARE so I am assuming that the name is pronunced Nare).

Mrs William G. Larson, Manitowoc, WI conducted some checks at public 
sources for the writer in Manitowoc. She determined that Margaretha Knier 
Ott was buried in St Gregory Cemetery, St Nazianz, WI. Cemetery records 
indicate she died 10 Oct 1873 (Death record indicate 12 October 1873). The
name of the Tombstone was Margaretha Knier Ott. Buried in the same plot 
was her son Anton who was six months old when he died 13 March 1873 (this 
date must be wrong as Recorder of Deeds list his death as 1874) and a 
daughter Carolina, who was eleven years old when she died 16 March 1871. 
The same cemetery contained the remains of thirteen members of the Knier 
family whose origins were Joseph and Anna Knier. Joseph was born 6 Jan 
1812, Bohemia, Austria and died 6 Dec 1888. Anna was born 12 mar 1810 and 
died 20 Sep 1886.

St Gregory Church Cemetery, St Nazianz is in Eaton Township; Manitowoc 
County, Wisconsin. From Manitowoc you take highway 149 to the south on 
highway 151 to the north to County Trunk A. Proceed on A to Church Street.
Take Church St west. The cemetery is located on the north side of the 
street just past the church. The oldest remaining stone dates to 1861.

Mrs. Larson informed me that there was someone living near St Nazianz, WI 
who might be a relative. I wrote him a letter and he passed the letter to 
his cousin, Clarence Schad, who had done some research on the family. 
Schad's mother was Margaret Kneir who married Peter Schad.

Margaret Kneir was the daughter of Wenzel Kneir and Margaret Heller.
Wenzel Kneir is the son of Joseph Kneir and Anna Trotschmit. Margaretha
Kneir, my great grandmother was Joseph's and Anna's daughter. She was
the first wife of Anton Ott.

According to Schad, Joseph and Anna Kneir arrived in the United States on 
6 June 1852. They came from Plizen, Bohemia, Czechoslovakia, which at that
time was part of the Austrian Empire. Joseph worked in a cuckoo clock 
factory in Pilzen. ( Note: he spelled it Plizen one time and Pilzen 
another. He is probably referring to Plzen, which in part of Bohemia and 
is pronounced by some as Pilsner.)

According to Schad, the family had fourteen children before they left. The
entire family except one, who stayed in Plizen, boarded a sailing ship 
that took four months to arrive. During their time at sea the Kneir's lost
eight of their sons to diphtheria and their bodies were thrown overboard. 
So, he states, there were only four children left when they arrived 
(either one more died or his math is off).

The family settled in the town of Eaton, Wisconsin which is part of
Manitowoc County and were farmers. Joseph Kneir was born 6 January 1812 in
Pilzen. He died 6 January 1888 and is buried in St. Gregory's.
Anna Trotschmit was born 12 March 1810 in Germany. She died 20 September 
1886 and is also buried at St. Gregory's. Margaret was born 10 October 1833
in Pilzen. She died 7 March 1865 and was buried at St. Gregory's.

The World Book Encyclopedia lists the following about Plzen, 
Czechoslovakia-- pronounced PUL zen or Pilsen or PILL sum. The city is one
of the most important in Bohemia. It stands at the junction of two rivers,
the Mies and the Radbusa. It was a great Roman Catholic stronghold in the 
days of the religious wars and withstood many sieges. The famous Skoda 
iron and steel works was established there. Plzen lies in the great hops 
growing region of Bohemia and its Pilsner beer is known throughout the 
world.