A Christmas Card from Oregon, c. 1928 - 1942

Among the many photos and scanned items my second cousin Bill shared with me from his grandmother's collection was that of this Christmas card, pictured at left.

At the top it says "Portland, Oregon" and "Merry Xmas,"  at the bottom it is signed "From Mr. &  Mrs. Ewald T. Pape."  This card was folded such that just the home showed, and placed in a frame and hung on the wall somewhere.

Ewald Theodore Pape is the son of Lorenz (or Laurenz) Pape, the youngest brother of my great-grandfather John Pape, and youngest son of Jacob and Elizabeth Gierse Pape. Ewald was born on 10 December 1894 in Dusseldorf, Westphalia, Germany.

Ewald came to New York from Bremen on 4 December 1913 on the Friedrich Der Grosse, with his brother Joseph (or Josef) Anton and sisters Mary (or Maria) and Nellie (or Petronella). He listed his father Lorenz, living at 1043 Sherman Avenue in Chicago (the home of John & Gertrude Pape and family), as the family member he was joining. Lorenz had arrived on 27 May 1913 in Boston on the Marquette out of Antwerp, Belgium, accompanied by sons Karl (or Carl) James and August Peter, and going to the home of John Pape (again at 1043 Sherman Avenue). Karl/Carl and Joseph/Josef had apparently originally immigrated in 1909, arriving on August 31 in New York City on the Kroonland out of Antwerp, Belgium. The passenger list shows them as going to join their uncle Johann Pape at 1043 Sherman Avenue in Evanston, Illinois.

According to Nellie/Petronella's obituary, Karl/Carl James, Joseph/Josef Anton, Mary/Maria, August Peter, Ewald Theodore, and Nellie/Petronella (born in that order) apparently had one more sister named Margaret, but it is not yet known when and where she was born. There was also a brother named Lorenz Jr. who apparently stayed in Germany, according to the obituary. According to their passenger list, the nearest relative in the country of origin for Karl and August is their mother Maria at 37 Benderstrasse in Dusseldorf, but she is listed as the stepmother (same address) for Ewald, Nellie, Maria, and Joseph on their passenger list. This may not be correct, as both August's and Joseph's death records (Illinois Deaths and Stillbirths, 1916 - 1947, from FamilySearch) show their mother as Henrietta Kamp, also born in Duesseldorf.  Lorenz is listed as married on the 1920 census in Port Edwards, Wisconsin, but no wife is listed on the form, so she may have stayed in Germany.

Ewald was single and living in Wilmette, Illinois, in 1917; and in Port Edwards, Wisconsin, in 1920. He married his wife Alma D. (born 8 August 1898 in Wilmette, Illinois) on 23 November 1923 in Vancouver, Washington, and their son Albert T. was born 20 March 1928 in Portland, Oregon. They were living in Portland, Oregon, in 1930. Ewald still has a Portland address in 1936 (naturalization) and 1942 (World War II registration). Ewald died 29 May 1976 and Albert on 29 May 2003, both in Downey (L.A. County), California, while Alma died 13 Feb 1983 in Maywood (L. A. County), California.

According to Bill, "4416 Mozart" is written on the back of the card - probably an address.  I can't find that address in Portland, Oregon - but I can in Chicago, Illinois!  And amazingly, the house there on the Google Maps street view looks very similar to the one in the picture!  On the 1930 census, Ewald is listed as an architect, so perhaps he designed the house pictured.

© Amanda Pape - 2010