28 – Random

My great-grandmother Eliza Greub married a neighbor and Civil War veteran, Nicolas Bader, when she was 16 going on 17, on Christmas Day of 1867; at 39 he was over twice her age. They had three boys before Nicolas died of appendicitis Dec 6, 1873, almost six years into their marriage:

1868 Nov 28, William Ernest Bader 

1870 Aug 17, Frank Amos Bader 

1873 Jan 21, George Nicolas Bader 

 

Eliza's first three boys: Frank, George, and Will Bader

Will, the first born, came 11 months after marriage; Frank, the second, 21 months later, and George after another 29 months. Having appendicitis seems a particularly random way to die, especially after surviving a war and early pioneer life in Colorado. So Eliza was left a widow with three young sons at the age of 23, living on a farm next to her parents. Which brings us to a younger man named Clemens Knaus.

The 1870 census shows Clemens Knaus, age 27 and single, listed as a laborer on the farm of Nicholas Bader 42, and Lizzie Bader, 19. We don't know how long Clemens worked there; one source has him coming to Colorado from New York in 1866 and working on the Bader farm with his brother John before moving to Blackhawk where he was a butcher. But, about a year after Bader died, he did come back. On Nov 17, 1874, Eliza married Clemens Knaus, my great-grandfather, bringing her three boys and a farm to that new marriage.

After a year off between marriages, Eliza did not wait long to become pregnant, and about 14 months after marriage gave birth to a fourth son, John. From then on a rhythm is introduced: a baby every two winters. 

1876 Jan 7, John Alex Knaus 

1878 Jan 11, Matilda Jane Knaus 

1880 Mar 6, Mollie Etta Knaus 

1882 Feb 7, Albert Jacob Knaus 

1884 Jan 9, Clemens Edward Knaus 

1886 Feb 19, Fred Knaus 

1888 May 2, Emma Louise Knaus 

1890 Mar 1, Daniel Knaus (my grandfather) 

1892 Apr 20, Jessie Myrtle Knaus 

1896 Feb 26, Carl H Knaus

There is a decided non-randomness to the biennial births. Emma and Jessie were a couple months late, coming in early spring. 1894 was skipped: did Eliza have a miscarriage? Her last child, Carl, was born when Eliza was just about to turn 45. Here's a photo taken about 1896 showing Clemens and Eliza in front of their home, with the last nine of their children:

Fred, Clemens holding Carl (baby), Mollie, Dan (front), Albert, Tillie, Jessie (front), Clem, Eliza, Emma

So Eliza and Clemens were procreating in the springtime, in rhythm with the many animals on the farm doing the same. And they skipped those springs when Eliza was nursing a new baby. Eliza is the Swiss part of my ancestry, and so I looked back over four generations of my Swiss; none of them were nearly as punctual as Eliza.