Mary A. Stahler and Joseph A. Gross

Mary A. Stahler was a sister of my great-grandmother, Clara M. Stahler. Mary was born June 9, 1847 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Her name also appears as Maria, but everyone in my family called her Mary.

Mary married Joseph August Gross. He was born in 1847 in Nassau, Prussia. Joseph worked as a cooper (maker of wooden barrels and tubs). He was also a fine violin player who according to family tradition played for royalty back in Europe before he emigrated to the United States. During the Civil War he fought for the Union.

Mary and Joseph had four children.

• Joseph A. Gross was born December 15, 1867 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He worked as an electrician. Joseph married Helen M. Enk on April 16, 1911 in Chicago, Cook County, Illinois. They had one son.

  • Joseph Francis Gross was born June 22, 1912 in Chicago, Illinois. He died October 20, 1973 in Chicago never having married.

  Joseph A. Gross died March 22, 1930 in Chicago, Cook County, Illinois. Helen Enk Gross died in 1961.

• John Frank Gross was born April 10, 1872 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Her married Martha S. Reyels on Movember 23, 1892 in Chicago, Cook County, Illinois. Martha was born November 7, 1876 in Germany to John and Helena Reyels.

  John and Martha had three children.

  • Helen Mary Gross was born November 3, 1893 in Chicago, Illinois. She married Joseph John Friedel on August 9, 1922 in Sacred Heart Church in Chicago, Illinois.

    

    Helen Mary Gross and Joseph John Friedel on their wedding day.

    

    Helen Mary Gross.

    Helen and Joseph had two children.

    • Dorothy Eva Friedel.
    • Joan Helen Friedel.

    Helen died March 18, 1959 of acute coronary thrombosis at Little Company of Mary Hospital in Chicago, Ilinois. She is buried in St. Mary's Cemetery in Evergreen Park, Illinois.

  • Eva Josephine Gross was born February 9, 1895 in Chicago, Illinois. She was named for my grandmother Eva Josephine Burns who also acted as Eva Gross's godmother at her baptism.

    Eva married Oliver A. Johnson on November 24, 1921 in St. Leo Church in Chicago, Illinois. Oliver was the son of Ole Johnson and Margaret Trench.

    

    Eva Gross and Oliver Johnson wedding.

    Eva and Oliver had one son.

    Ronald Johnson. He married Joan Raven. They had four children.

    

    Eva Gross Johnson in her wedding dress.

    

    Eva Gross Johnson.

    Eva died July 19, 1976 in Chicago, Illinois.

  • Joseph Francis Gross was born July 28, 1898 in Chicago, Illinois. He eloped with Theresa Clara Wessendorf on April 10, 1919. They had three children.

    

    Joseph Francis Gross.

    

    Theresa Wessendorf and Joseph Francis Gross.

    Joseph died Novembeer 18, 1963 in Chicago, Illinois.

  

  Family of John Frank Gross and Martha Reyels about 1910.
  Top row, left to right: Joseph, Eva, Helen
  Bottom row, left to right: John, Martha

  John Frank Gross died March 4, 1942 in Chicago, Illinois. He is buried in St. Mary's Cemetery in Evergreen Park, Illinois. Martha died April 24, 1955 in Chicago and is also buried in St. Mary's Cemetery.

• Frank P. Gross was born March 18, 1877 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He never married. Frank committed suicide by shooting himself in the head on December 17, 1925 in Chicago, Illinois.

• James Lewis Gross was born August 28, 1887 in Chicago, Cook County, Illinois. He married Laura M. Lamkin on October 6, 1909 at St. John the Baptist Church in Chicago. They had two children.

  • James Joseph Gross.

  • Rita Marie Gross.

  James and Laura separated in 1918 and divorced in 1921. Laura married John Brennan in April 1923. The children took the last name Brennan at this time.

  James later married Gwendolyn Beaghler, a school mate of my aunt Margaret A. Burns. Gwen was the daughter of Roscoe Beaghler and Ocia Stump. James and Gwen had three children.

  • Mary Delores Gross was born October 9, 1929. She never married. Mary suffered some physical and mental impairments. She died June 19, 1997 in Joliet, Will County, Illinois.

  • Gilbert Clarence Gross was born in 1933 in Chicago, Illinois. He married Rosemary C. Savaglio. They had three children.

  • Patricia Ruth Gross was born in 1935 in Chicago, Illinois. She married Frank J. Mancuso. They had two children.

  For a time James worked for Swift and Company on south State Street in Chicago. He sold coal and worked as a chauffeur. Around the time of his divorce with Laura he became a member of the Union of Operating Engineers, local 143. He was employed by the Chicago School District from 1929 until he retired in 1959. He worked at Barnard School from 1933 to 1959. A former union president recalled "Jimmy" as a big man who attended every union meeting.

  James was also an avid Chicago White Sox (baseball) fan.

  Although Gwendolyn was much younger than James, she predeceased him, dying June 29, 1951. She is buried in St. Mary's Cemetery in Evergreen Park, Illinois.

  James died May 26, 1962 in Chicago. His funeral was held at St. John the Baptist Church on May 29, 1962, where he had been a member of the Holy Name Society for many years. James is buried in St. Mary's Cemetery.

Joseph August Gross died December 19, 1889 of Bright's Disease. Mary Stahler Gross died August 19, 1919.

Dorothy Allen provided most of the information and several of the photos.

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Last modified by pib on August 8, 2010.