Sunday, October 20, 2013

Solved: The Thier-Disselbrede Mystery - Part 1


William Disselbrett, my kids' great great grandfather, died April 17, 1910.  He's buried in the Catholic cemetery outside of Browerville, Minnesota.  His grandson, my father-in-law, lives near there still today.  There are dozens upon dozens of his descendants scattered around the country.  All of William's descendants use the surname Disselbrett. 


Yet, when his mother died in 1904, the obituary listed him as "Wm. Tirze of Browersville, Minn" instead of William Disselbrett.

This is the Thier mystery.  And here's the solution to the mystery explained in an eight-part series.

My theory is this:  William Disselbrett and his descendants actually descend from the surname Thier, not Disselbrett. The DNA is Thier.


He was born and baptized Wilhelm Disselbrede in Selm Germany in April 1842.


His parents, William Disselbrede and Angela Elizabeth Moeller, were married with that same surname in 1833.  No Thier there.
He, himself, was married in Burlington, Wisconsin in 1872 with the surname Disselbrede too. He was naturalized a Disselbrett.  Records show he  helped build the first Catholic church in Browerville before the turn of the Century and owned land there--all under the name Disselbrett.

Indeed, there's only that 1904 obit to explain any connection to the name Thier or Thiers or Tirze, when it comes to William.

With his sisters, though, it's a different story.

Part Two continues the story with William's sisters Francisca and Gertrude.

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