I'm sneaking Isaiah "Ike" Tressler into this gunsmith project even though he doesn't quite fit, because he is a relative. When his parents moved to Ohio he was probably a little too young to have apprenticed in Somerset County.
L. Dietle
Chronology
1842: My correspondent on this subject reports that Ike's parents Moses and Mary (Vought) Tressler were married in Somerset County on February 20, 1842 and lived in Addison Township until they moved to Ohio. Moses was a son of Samuel & Frances (Ringler) Tressler, and a grandson of my ancestor Goodhart Tressler. Their marriage certificate indicates that Moses and Mary were residents of Milford Township at the time of their marriage. They were married by Justice of the Peace Hugh Connelly, and both of them signed the marriage certificate with an X.
1850: According to his obituary (below), Isaiah Tressler was born March 24, 1850 in Somerset County, Pennsylvania.
1850: Moses Tressler appears in the 1850 census of Addison Township as a 39-year-old Pennsylvania-born shoemaker with a valuation of $200.00. Also living in his household are 25-year-old Mary Tressler, 11-year-old Sarah J. Tressler, 7-year-old Lenah Tressler, 6-year-old Susan Tressler, 1-year-old William W. Tressler, and 5-month-old Isaiah Tressler, all Pennsylvania-born.
1860: The following excerpt is from the 1860 federal census:
1860: The following excerpt from the 1860 Walker map identifies the Moses Tressler residence along the Turkey Foot Road. I have spent several thousand hours studying the Turkey Foot Road, and describe its Revolutionary War origin in Volume 2 of my 2019 book "Fort Cumberland".
Circa 1864: According to his obituary (below) Isaiah Tresser moved to Ohio with his family when he was 14 years old, which would be circa 1864.
1870: The 1870 census indicates that only Moses' youngest child, then age 4, was born in Ohio.
1872: A Crawford County, Ohio marriage record
indicates that Isaiah Tressler and Mary Elizabeth Parr were married on September 6, 1872.
1880: In the April 30, 1880 issue of the Bucyrus, Ohio newspaper the "Telegraph-Forum", Isaiah Tressler was mentioned with a charge of assault and battery.
1886: According to his obituary (below) Isaiah Tressler's second marriage took place on July 22, 1886.
1900: The following excerpt from the 1900 "Bucyrus City Directory" identifies Isaiah Tressler as a gunsmith who lived at at 224 North Sandusky Avenue, and identifies his wife as Lizzie. Click here to see an image from the 1903 Sandborn fire insurance map of Bucyrus that shows the location of 224 North Sandusky Avenue relative to the public square.
1906: Click here to see an article from the May 11, 1906 issue of the "Bucyrus Journal" that introduces Ike Tressler as, "the gun smith on North Sandusky avenue" and describes a fine quality violin he had just completed. (Article provided by Glenda Tressler Smith.)
1907: Click here to see an extensive article from the October 5, 1907 issue of the "Bucyrus Evening Telegraph" that introduces Ike Tressler as, "Ike Tressler of this city, who conducts a gun shop and repair shop in the old Shealey Building, across from the Royal Hotel on the public square…" and describes his violin making activities over the course of 38 years. (Article provided by Glenda Tressler Smith.) Click here to see an image from the 1910 Sandborn fire insurance map of Bucyrus that shows the location of the Royal Hotel on the public square. Click here to see an image from the 1897 Sandborn fire insurance map of Bucyrus that shows the location of a "repair shop" across from where the Royal Hotel is shown on the 1910 map. I suspect the repair shop on the 1897 map is where Ike Tressler worked.
1914: The following is an excerpt from the 1914 "Bucyrus City Directory". Elizabeth is living alone because Ike is in the state hospital.
1916: The death certificate of "Isaac Tressler" indicates that he died of mitral regurgitation on March 28, 1916, was a Pennsylvania-born gunsmith, had senile dementia, and was a son of Pennsylvanians Moses Tressler and Mary Bought.
1916: The following obituary is from the March 29, 1916 issue of the "Bucyrus Evening Telegraph", a newspaper from Bucyrus, Ohio.
1916: The following obituary is from the March 29, 1916 issue of the "Telegraph-Forum", a newspaper from Bucyrus, Ohio. (Clipping provided by Glenda Tressler Smith.)
1916: The following funeral notice is from the March 30, 1916 issue of the "Bucyrus Evening Telegraph" newspaper. (Clipping provided by Glenda Tressler Smith.)
1916: Isaiah Tressler is buried at the Oakwood Cemetery (40.79883976, -82.98575039) in Bucyrus, Crawford County, Ohio, where his tombstone states, "Isaac Tressler 1850--1916". His wife Elizabeth is also buried there, and her tombstone states, "Elizabeth Tressler 1862--1952".
1966: Click here to see Eber Cockley’s 1966 notes on the Goodhart Tressler family.
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1840: In the Addison Township portion of the 1840 census records of Somerset County, Pennsylvania, the Moses Tressler household has one individual in the 30 to 40 age group.
