Need help returning a 100+ year old baggage tag to family.

Yeah, still waiting on a response on my end



We are doing the proper thing here. I think of it like this, if it was me and some one returnd a name tag bearing the name of my grandfather who spent a year as a swaby on the Lusitania in 1914. Actually was not a swaby but my point gets across.
 

Find-a-grave is good. Sometimes if you find a person's grave it will link family members. I have gone a long ways by finding one person's grave. They often include fotos of the grave as well.

You need not pay Ancestry. com, though that is okay if you want to pay. Family Search; the Latter Day Saints genealogy data base; is also excellent and free. Except for certain information only available to LDS members. FS sometimes gives you images of census records or marriage and death certificates.
 

Family Search has a Fred Gastel in the 1910 census, Ward 8, Lake, in Hammond. Age 54, born in Germany 1856 of German parents. Wife age 47 born in Indiana. Son William age 19 born Indiana. Daughter Henrietta age 24 born Indiana. Daughter age 13 Madaline born Indiana. The census only reports those in the house at the time of the census and obviously Fred Jr. had already moved out.

There is a link to pay pages on Ancestry.com. Census form if complete may often supply things like addresses.

Fred Sr.'s marriage to Gertie, 1882.

Fred Sr. death in 1917 listed buried in Oakhill Cemetery in Find-a-grave.

Jr.s 1906 wedding listed, too.

Fred, b. 1868 shown in 1930 census in Gary, Lake. Ind, but not same wife as Fred Jr. married in 1906, wrong birth date so probably not Fred Jr. MIL living with him.

1870 census shows Fred Sr. still at home with parents and siblings, mostly shown born in Prussia.

Son William's 1913 wedding to a woman from Canada.

I am not an expert on ancient suicide methods. But, I tend to think you are looking at a cross culture issue in that today people don't cut their own throats.

I remember as a boy in the early 50's, when the neighbors came to "butcher'. That is what they did, and it grossed me out. They cut the bull's throat and ditto for the hogs, and they died rather fast with no pain except the cutting itself. So, I can see that people might have seen such things often and concluded that was a fast and relative painless way to die.

I am saying I believe the written reports were correct as written. That is my opinion.
 

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Family Search has a Fred Gastel in the 1910 census, Ward 8, Lake, in Hammond. Age 54, born in Germany 1856 of German parents. Wife age 47 born in Indiana. Son William age 19 born Indiana. Daughter Henrietta age 24 born Indiana. Daughter age 13 Madaline born Indiana. The census only reports those in the house at the time of the census and obviously Fred Jr. had already moved out.

There is a link to pay pages on Ancestry.com. Census form if complete may often supply things like addresses.

Fred Sr.'s marriage to Gertie, 1882.

Fred Sr. death in 1917 listed buried in Oakhill Cemetery in Find-a-grave.

Jr.s 1906 wedding listed, too.

Fred, b. 1868 shown in 1930 census in Gary, Lake. Ind, but not same wife as Fred Jr. married in 1906, wrong birth date so probably not Fred Jr. MIL living with him.

1870 census shows Fred Sr. still at home with parents and siblings, mostly shown born in Prussia.

Son William's 1913 wedding to a woman from Canada.

I am not an expert on ancient suicide methods. But, I tend to think you are looking at a cross culture issue in that today people don't cut their own throats.

I remember as a boy in the early 50's, when the neighbors came to "butcher'. That is what they did, and it grossed me out. They cut the bull's throat and ditto for the hogs, and they died rather fast with no pain except the cutting itself. So, I can see that people might have seen such things often and concluded that was a fast and relative painless way to die.

I am saying I believe the written reports were correct as written. That is my opinion.

I do believe when the papers say Cut his own throat, it is what them meant.
that his throat was cut & the weapon was in his hand .
However.
I still find it difficult to believe a person can cut deep enough on their own throat.
on purpose. that is unless they were numbed out and the knife was as sharp as a razor.
and even then :icon_scratch:

but then I wouldn't be able to stick myself with a needle
& break the outer layer of my skin enough to get a drop of blood either.
 

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