Address 1: 705 Cypress Place
City: Sun City Center
State: FL
Postal code: 33573
Country: United States of America
Phone: (813) 634-9157
Born in America, two months premature. She only weighed 3 pounds -- there were no incubators at the time and she was at home. Her sisters and mother would wrap her in blankets and put her in front of the open stove to keep her warm. She went to Hungary/Romania first when she was an infant and then again in 1920 when they stayed for 2 1/2 to 3 years, and later when she was of marrying age.
She fell in love on the last trip in Hungary when she saw Henry (Pinczés) Keller -- the nephew of her brother-in-law, Joseph. They were married in 1931 and Henry went into the army in 1932. Katherine hated living in Hungary. There was no inside plumbing -- she was Americanized. She told her parents that she wouldn't live in Hungary, so they returned to America while Henry was still in the army. Since she was a citizen, he could enter the US as her spouse.
In her later years she suffered a great deal from arthritis. Fractured her hip and was hospitalized. She made her husband promise that she wouldn't die in the hospital or in a nursing home. He brought her home and had assistance with two nurses. He said that he was feeding her a soft cereal and saw blood on the spoon.
She was a woman of many talents and was the most modern of the Wagner girls. Because her husband was a tailor, she wore very fashionable clothing and always looked very well put together. She had a talent for decorating and loved keeping her home. She worked for many years as a cafeteria worker in schools. She loved yard/garage sales and would peddle her three-wheeler (adult size) around her neighborhood looking for bargains. Very talented at handwork such as crocheting and embroidery. When she was younger she always reminded me of June Allyson.
When I began writing letters and asking questions, she filled me in on many things . . . the contents of one letter were . . .
We [Katherine, her parents (Adam and Elizabeth Wagner), her sister and brother-in-law, Joseph and Mary Keller and their two children at the time, Henry and Elizabeth] went back to Semlac after the World War One. Now we stayed until 1923 [Joseph and his family left after a very short time]. In November the 11th, we came back. I was about eleven years old. When we came back this is the house we left then. It had low ceilings, dirt floors, small windows, and a tatched [sic] roof. when we returned to Semlac in 1931 the house was remodeled. Grandma sent their money to her brother, the one who had the Lumber Mill. He had the house remodeled.
The Internet site of Ellis Island verifies Katherine's recollections:
Source: Ellis Islands Internet Site. Sailed from Bremen, Germany to Ellis Island, New York (lines 21-23). Grandpa, Adam Wagner, was accompanied by his wife, Elisabeth, and his 11-year-old daughter, Katherina. On the steerage manifest the following was listed:
Amount of money bringing in: $118 which was almost double what the rest were bringing in.
Ever here in America before: 1909-1920 in Harrisburg, PA
Going to: Son-in-law Stif Holzinger [sic] which would be Stefan Holczimmer who was living at 31 Oakman Street, Rochester, New York
Intending to return to country of origin? No.
Hair color: grey (Adam), brown (Elizabeth), blond (Katherine)
Eyes: blue (Adam), brown (Elizabeth), brown (Katherine)
Skin: fair (all three)
Height: 5'7" (Adam); 5'7" (Elizabeth)
Didn't have a ticket to final destination
And when we came back from Semlac in 1923, Grandpa what they called four keta land. I don't know what a keta land is but I know one keta is a lot more than an acre. When we went back in 1931, Grandpa had all together ten keta land and, of course, the house remodeled. In 1931, I was nineteen and this is what the house looked like: the ceilings were raised, big windows put in, wooden floors put in and a tile roof put on. Now Grandma and Grandpa were comfortable. You said Grandma was the domineering one. She had to be in some things. Grandpa would have given his shirt away. One time I needed a summer robe. I saw one in a store window and it wasned [sic] to bad for the money. You see I gave all my money to Grandma. I got two dollars spending money. Some of that I used to buy stockings. Grandma used to buy me stockings on sale in Edwards basement. They were marked down maybe from $1.50 to 59¢. She would have all colors. One time one pair was orange color. I said to her, "I'm not wearing these things." She thought they were pretty. I said to her, "I'll look like a duck wearing these things." She tried to save the money. Getting back to the robe. She finally said to Grandpa, "Go get her the seven dollars for the robe." He came back with ten dollars and told me to get myself something else. Grandma grapped [sic] the ten dollars and said, "I said seven dollars." But you see but going back to the old country she never wanted to go back. All her children were here, and she was sick a lot. But she never got her way with that. She went back to please him. When he saw how miserable she was with her kids here, he came back again. Yes, I know they loved each other dearly. And it still tears at my heart when I went to your mother's one day, I asked where Grandpa was. She said, "in the stall with Heidi." He didn't know I was coming. He was crying. His cheeks were full of tears. He tried to wipe them quickly but I saw. He was crying for her. I had a good cry when I got home. It still gets me when I think of it.
Snapshots: Serving as information source. Most modern of her sisters -- but, then, she was born in this country. Had mastectomy when in 20s.
The "Eulogy" I wrote upon hearing of the death of my aunt . . .
My little Aunt Katherine is no longer with us — I wasn't able to attend her funeral and I feel a great emptiness at the loss of the last of my aunts. If I had been there, I would have asked to speak a few words about her and this is what I would have
said . . .
Katherine Wagner Keller
Born March 7, 1912 in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania — the only daughter of Adam and Elizabeth Wagner to be born in the United States. She was their treasured baby child.
Married December 3, 1931 in the little town of Semlak in the county of Arad. Semlak was originally part of Hungary but after World War II, through the dissolving of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the village was made a part of Romania.
And she died March 18, 2000 in Miami, Florida.
What happened on those eventful days? What happened in the years between them? I'll try to answer those questions based on what my aunt told me and what I heard and observed in my family.
Born in America, two months premature, she only weighed three pounds. There were no incubators at the time and she was born at home. Her three sisters (Mary, Elizabeth, and Magdalena) and her mother (Elizabeth Wagner) would wrap her in blankets and put her in front of the open stove to keep her warm. The doctor told Elizabeth that if she was a good mother, the baby would live. Well, as we all know, she was, indeed, a good mother and we all had the pleasure of having that little baby with us for 88 years.
At the close of World War I, her family returned to their homeland when little Katherine was only two years old. They remained there for a time and then returned to the United States. When she was eight years old, her parents once again returned to Semlak — after all, they were only in America to make money to improve their home and always expected to return there. They stayed this time for 2½ to 3 years — once again traveling back to America. The last time her parents, Adam and Elizabeth, returned to Semlak was when Katherine was in her late teens. She wanted to remain in America but, at that time, it wasn't considered proper for a young girl to be on her own.
She told me the one good thing about returning to Semlak was that on that last trip she saw and fell in love with Henry (Pinczes) Keller — the nephew of her brother-in-law, Joseph. They were married in December of 1931 and Henry had to fulfill his obligation to the army in 1932. Katherine told me she hated living in Hungary. There was no inside plumbing — she was Americanized, for goodness sake! She told her parents that she wouldn't live in Hungary, so they returned to America while Henry was still in the army. Since she was a citizen, he could enter the United States as her spouse.
Henry was finally able to join her in America and soon, just like so many other industrious immigrants, they saved enough money to buy a little home on Mozart Place in Rochester. They worked very hard to fix it up. After a few years, his cousin Henry (who was also her nephew) was looking for a home and he told Katherine about a nice place on Highwood Avenue. Uncle Henry said she "pestered" him until he agreed to look at it and they bought the place. What a lovely home that was! I was always so impressed with the pretty things my little aunt had in her home and how beautifully she displayed them. There was one table I still remember with wonder. It had a glass top and sides and inside it were displayed some of her treasures.
Their next home was in Hilton, New York where they had a farm. Henry was never happy in "sinus country" and when his cousin Henry moved to California, he said to Katherine, "I'm going to California. I can't stand it here any more. If you want to come, good! If not, there's nothing I can do — I'm going." Even though she shed many tears because she didn't want to leave her parents, she went, of course, because she loved her husband and wanted to be with him. They lived in California for many years and would come home to Rochester periodically to visit family. I always looked forward to seeing them as they seemed to be the glamorous members of my family. He was so smart and handsome and she was so pretty and modern.
Katherine was her mother's pet and whatever she did — it was okay, it was the way things should be done. I can remember I was in high school and I was plucking my eyebrows. My grandmother thought only bad girls did that sort of thing and was complaining to my aunt about my doing such a terrible thing. When Katherine said, "but Mummy, I pluck my eyebrows" — grandma said, "Oh," and never picked on me about the subject again.
Aunt Katherine was also the one who would give me special gifts--especially at Christmas and I can remember when I was about seven she gave me a Shirley Temple doll. How I loved that doll--I wish I had it today because I always associated that doll with my pretty blond aunt. She knew what a little girl wanted.
Katherine and Henry couldn't have children of their own due to a medical problem when Katherine was a young woman so they decided to have children of the heart and they adopted their son, Norman, and their daughter, Joanne. She so enjoyed being a mother and was fulfilled in that role.
When they returned from California, they built a home in Henrietta near her sister, Elizabeth. All of her sisters and their families were so happy to have them back in the fold. Once again, she put together a beautiful home and was busy baking her wonderful desserts and cooking good food. She was a marvel in the kitchen and some of my favorite recipes are ones she passed on to my mother who then passed them on to me.
Their last state of residence was Florida where the climate was much more to Henry's liking. We visited them in their home in Sun City and found that even though they were older, they still maintained a beautiful home and yard. Uncle Henry had all kinds of interesting plants in his yard and Aunt Katherine had her pretty china and linens along with the dolls that she created. She was quite arthritic but insisted on preparing a lunch for us — she scooted around in the kitchen preparing a feast for us. I asked her not to go to so much fuss but she only said, "Oh, this isn't anything!" Well it was delicious!
Since then I've written often to her and Uncle Henry and they have answered many questions for me about our families--the Kellers and the Wagners. She has written me funny little stories about various family members and I treasure a tape I asked her to do telling me about her parents' families. I only wish we had lived closer so that I could have seen her and my uncle more often.
She was a woman of many talents and was the most modern of the Wagner girls. Because her husband was a tailor, she wore very fashionable clothing and always looked very well put together. She had a talent for decorating and loved keeping her home. She worked for many years as a cafeteria worker in schools. She loved yard/garage sales and would peddle her three-wheeler (adult size) around her neighborhood looking for bargains. She was very talented at handwork such as crocheting and embroidery. I am proud to have some of her handiwork — there's one tablecloth I am very fond of because it shows her thriftiness combined with her sewing talents. The tablecloth had a hole in it — she covered it with darning, but the darning looks just like a flower in the pattern of the tablecloth! She didn't patch it, she creatively covered the hole with beauty! When she was younger she always reminded me of the movie actress, June Allyson. She was blond, small, pretty and had a husky voice.
In her later years she suffered a great deal from arthritis. She would write letters to me and apologize for her handwriting. She fractured her hip and was hospitalized. She made her husband promise that she wouldn't die in the hospital or in a nursing home. He kept his promise and brought her home and had assistance with two nurses. And then . . . our family, once again, grew smaller when little Katherine Wagner Keller died just a short while after her 88th birthday. She wasn't famous, she didn't make any magazine covers, or discover some life-saving medicine or invent anything. But, she was loved and she had a heart filled with compassion. She worked hard all her life because she believed that if you tried hard enough you would succeed. She was thrifty but so generous in giving to others. She was a wonderful hostess who loved to please her guests with good food. She loved her family and did all that she could to be a good mother and wife. She was a role model for all of us. And as for me, she was the best of aunts and I shall miss her very, very much.
Snapshots:
She had a bubbling personality and was always dressed fashionably. She was interested in keeping her home beautiful, loved good furniture, collected lots of things, was craft talented, crocheted and loved her garden. Uncle Henry made most of her clothing.
