William Warden COWIE

William Warden COWIE, brother of Reuben James COWIE, is interesting because a) he married Carolina Wilhelmina SCHIEDER's daughter Annie Margaret - when he was 35 and she was just 18 - and b) because of his military career.

A search on the Commonwealth War Graves Commission website (cwgc.org) reveals that he died on 9th September 1916 in German East i.e. Tanzania. (Odd, seeing as how Tom and I lived in Tanzania for a year! If only we'd known.)

He is buried in Morogoro Cemetery.

His rank was Major, of the South African Horse 3rd Regiment.

His wife was living at Michaelhouse, Ballowan, Natal when he died.

The mystery of Michael SCHAEFER

I am still unsure how Michael SCHAEFER came to be in South Africa. There are various SCHAEFER's (or SCHAFFER's) shown on passenger lists to South Africa from Germany, but I cannot be sure which is the actual Michael. Or whether he came out as a child, or an adult.

The most likely scenario is that he came out as a German Military Settler in 1857 - he would have been 22 - and stayed on, instead of being sent on to India like many others.

He may have been related to earlier SCHAEFERs, like Wilhelm and Wilhelmina SCHAEFER who were also on board the Wilhelmsburg with the KRANZ family. These SCHAEFERs settled in Frankfort, and were born in Louisenhof, Prussia. But, at this stage, it is speculation.

If anyone knows, please share!!

How Carolina Wilhelmina KRANTZ came to be in South Africa

In 1858, a peasant farmer from Werbelow, Prussia, his wife, and their four children, came to Braunschweig, South Africa on board the ship 'Wilhelmsburg'. One of these children was our Carolina Wilhelmine KRANTZ (SCHIEDER/SCHAEFER).
Find the passenger list here.

Manifest of the Wilhelmsburg page 1 - KRANTZ family lines 11-15

Carl Johann Joachim Frederich KRANZ, 42, his wife Wilhelmina Frederike Marie Caroline KRANZ (nee Zernke), 44, and their four children:

Child 1: (age 12)
Caroline (Albertine) Wilhelmine KRANZ
born: 9.1.1846
baptised: 18.1.1846
Werbelow, Trebenow, Prenzlau, Brandenburg, Germany (Prussia)

Child 2: (age 9)
Auguste Wilhelmine Ernestine KRANZ
born: 26.12.1848
baptised: 7.1.1849

Child 3: (age 7)
Carl Wilhelm Friedrich KRANZ
born: 9.12.1851
baptised: 17.12.1851

Child 4: (age 4)
August Friedrich Wilhelm KRANZ
born: 29.6.1854
baptised: 9.7.1854

Some shipping detail of The Wilhelmsburg:

Left Hamburg on 19 October 1858;
Arrived at East London on 13 January 1859;
64 children and one adult died en route.
Ship's captain: Captain C.H. Müller
Ship's doctor: Dr Carl Paul (26), Weimar

Eventually of course, Caroline Wilhelmina died - on 10.3.1918 age 73 in Joubert Street, Bethulie. Three months later, her second husband Michael SCHAEFER also died, age 83 - on 9.6.1918 in his son-in-law's house, Bethulie.

They are buried in the Bethulie Main cemetery:

SCHIEDER - SCHAEFER FAMILY TREE

Here's a simple representation of Caroline Wilhelmina's rather complicated family:

Benjamin Schaefer's family - his siblings and parentage

Benjamin Schaefer was the ninth of ten children born to Carolina Wilhelmina SCHAEFER nee KRANTZ. With her first husband, Johann SCHIEDER, Carolina had five - or possibly six - children. According to records on familysearch.org, Carolina and Johann DIVORCED in Bethulie, Orange Free State around 1880/1881. Here is Carolina and Michael's wedding certificate (in Afrikaans):

Shortly after the divorce, her sixth child - Carolina Louisa - was born. On her baptismal entry, no father is named, but she is baptised Carolina Louisa SCHIEDER (see pic, below); however, 7 months after her birth, her mother remarries Michael SCHAEFER. 

On her own wedding certificate (and in her parents' death notices) Carolina Louisa SCHIEDER is named as Carolina Louisa SCHAEFER. It seems michael may or may not have been her father; either way, he raised her as his own and she took his name.

I can find no trace of Johann SCHIEDER after the baptism of the fifth child, Annie Margaret SCHIEDER, in 1878; did he die? Did they divorce? Did he run off and leave Carolina Wilhelmina? Johann (known as John) was a butcher, and their children are baptised with the parents named as 'John and Caroline SCHIEDER'.

Curiously, there is a baptismal entry for a child of John and Caroline named Franz Heinrich SCHIEDER, born 7.5.1876. He is not mentioned in the parental Death Notices as ever existing; perhaps he died in infancy. Also, a child of a similar age IS named in the Death Notice but I cannot find a baptism record for him; perhaps they are one and the same? Franz Heinrich = William Antonie?

Another curious baptismal entry (pic) is that of Anthony William Richard SCHIEDER to John and Caroline on 16.11.1873. He went on to marry Elizabeth Catherine Pretorius. Scandalously, he is documented as spending two years in Jail sentenced to 'Hard Labour' for being a thief. In 1901 it is documented that he requested 'early release, because of the Coronation'. He is NOT listed as a child of Carolina Wilhelmina on her Death Notice. Was he disowned by the family? He died in 1924.

Here are the Death Notices for Carolina Wilhelmina SCHAEFER and Michael SCHAEFER:

The 'Antonie' middle name seems to come from the father -Johann's full name is once recorded as John Anton Michael SCHIEDER.

Caroline Wilhelmina KRANTZ - SCHIEDER - SCHAEFER seems to have been something of a character; working as a butcher with Johann, bearing 5 or 6 children with him, divorcing, remarrying pretty quickly, and working as a blacksmith alongside second husband Michael SCHAEFER in Joubert Street, Bethulie. Oh, and bearing 4 more children, one of which was Benjamin. An interesting life!

Simple overview of James Cowie's descendents

James COWIE b:1792 England

John COWIE b: 1821 Cape Province

Reuben James COWIE b: 1859 Grahamstown

Mary Blanche COWIE b: 1890 Umtata (marries Benjamin Schaeffer)

Eileen Rita SCHAEFER b: 1915 Germiston (marries Thomas George HARVEY)

Anthony, Timothy, Jonathon and Tom HARVEY (living descendents)

Schaefer - Harvey Family Tree from Jum and Mary Blanche COWIE to today

Here is the tree showing Mary Blanche COWIE (direct descendent of James Cowie - Settler) and Benjamin SCHAEFER, their child Eileen Rita, and her four sons. Job done!