The Sheboygan County Historical Research Center has received a donation of four books of genealogy regarding four different but related families from Washington and Sheboygan counties. The titles of the books are "Written Images: The Family History of Phillip Hammen," "A Journey in Time: The Family History of Phillip Kirchner," "Immigrant Footsteps" The Family History of Elizabeth Nehrbass" and "Roses in the Vale: The Family History of Heinrich Christoph Rosenthal."

The books were all researched and written by Jeanette Hammen Miller of Kewaskum and were published from 1988 through 1990.

The history of the Hammen family has the closest ties to Sheboygan County, with the family settling in the Town of Scott. The other books are more closely connected to Washington County but overlap in many instances.

Each book contains descendants from the immigrant ancestor and descends through seven generations. There are many period pictures that enhance the books and a brief biography of the immigrant ancestor.

The earliest immigrant ancestor was Heinrich Christoph Rosenthal, who emigrated from Germany in 1847. The family settled in Washington County. They had eight children. Their eldest child, Gottlieb, was married twice and had 18 children. Some of the surnames of the married daughters of the Rosenthals are Haag, Bohnhoff, Meyer, Prahl, Borkenhagen and Erdman.

In the Hammen book, surnames of the married children include Schilder, Stahl, Seyfert, Werne,. Stolper, Krautkramer, Bohannon and Konen.

Kirchner family names include Schuller, Wenzel, Boettcher, Faber and Matthies.

Names in the Nehrbass family include Jones, Seyfert, Zarling and Hintz.

All four books will be on the shelves in the center's library shortly.

Question: My ancestor died Nov. 26, 1891, from tuberculosis. She lived in the Town of Mitchell on a farm in Sheboygan County. Would you have some information as to which sanatorium was closest to the Town of Mitchell where she might possibly have stayed? Also, her daughter also died of TB on June 1, 1907, from surgery in Milwaukee. I am interested in what type of surgery was performed for TB. Where would the records from the sanitorium resides?

Answer: Sheboygan County had many residents who suffered from TB. Until Rocky Knoll Sanatorium was opened in August 1926, residents had to spend time in sanitoriums elsewhere in the state. In 1921, there were 34 patients in sanitoriums outside of Sheboygan County, but these places were not named specifically.

I cannot speculate about surgery performed on her daughter. It may or may not have been connected to her TB. Perhaps a death certificate from Milwaukee County could settle this question. However, deaths did not have to be registered in Wisconsin until October 1907, so any death certificate you may find before this date is a gift.

Jan Hildebrand is a member of the Sheboygan County Historical Research Center. She can be reached at 467-4667.