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52 Ancestors Henry George Buisch

Henry George Buisch is my great grandfather. His youngest child, Grace Rose, is my grandmother. Henry was born in December 1848 in either Wyoming or Erie County New York to Henry Buisch and Margaret Hausauer. The earliest record I currently have for Henry is the 1860 US Federal Census for New York.

BUISCH_Henry_G_b1848_18600000_FedCen_clip
Henry Buisch, 1860 Census

Henry is 12 years old and living with his grandparents, Michael and Margaret (Zittel) Hausauer. The Hausauers own a large farm in Wales Center, New York. Note the spelling of Henry’s last name — it is spelled the way the name is pronounced. This surname has also been spelled Bisch, Busch and Buesch over the years in census records.

Henry and Mary George meet and marry in Batavia, New York in the 1870s. Mary was born 25 September 1851 in North Java, New York to Michael George and Elizabeth Dupris. Mary is working as domestic help at the Ives farm and Henry is a barber living at the St James Hotel. They marry at an Evangelical Lutheran church in Buffalo, New York on 25 August 1874.

1875 NY State Census, Genesee County, Batavia, Marriage Schedule
1875 NY State Census, Genesee County, Batavia, Marriage Schedule

In the 1880 US Census, Henry and family are living at 66 Main Street near the St James Hotel. Henry’s barbershop is at the same location. The family is listed right before the residents of the St James hotel are enumerated. The St James is where Henry lived when he first came to Batavia.

St James Hotel, Batavia, New York, ca. 1886
St James Hotel, Batavia, New York, ca. 1886

The oldest three children, all boys, have been born by this time.

  • Henry George Buisch, Jr b: 3 June 1875 in Batavia, New York
    • married: Jessie Edith St Clair on 9 December 1896 in Batavia
    • died: 25 May 1912 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
  • Edward William Buisch b: April 1877 in Batavia, New York
    • married 1: Isabel Cummings about 1905 in Rochester, New York
    • married 2: Elsie C Berry in 1918 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
    • died: 1 August 1931 in Drexel Hill, Pennsylvania
  • Louis Herman Buisch b: 5 September 1879 in Batavia, New York
    • married 1: Olive Mary Greenhow on 27 July 1910 in Hornell, New York
    • married 2: Florence Myrtle Hartline
    • died: 19 June 1952 in Ohio

In 1883 the family was still living and working on Main Street. In the early morning hours of 8 January 1886, the St James Hotel burns down. The Buisch family was living on Summit at the time of the fire according to a Batavia business directory, but Henry’s barbershop was still on Main Street. I can imagine Henry concerned about his business in those early morning hours. The fire is something that the family and community would have remembered as it was the second time in the hotel’s history it had been destroyed by fire.

An 1890 Gazetteer & Directory Genesee County shows Henry’s barbershop at 45 E Main and the family is living at 38 Walnut. The family lives at the home on Walnut until the early 1900s when they relocate to Rochester, New York.

38 Walnut, Batavia New York
38 Walnut, Batavia New York

The St James Hotel is reconstructed and reopens in 1889 as the Hotel Richmond. By the close of 1889, Henry and Mary’s family is complete with the birth of my grandmother on Christmas Eve.

  • Evelyn Katherine Buisch b: June 1881 in Batavia, New York
    • married: Harry Roy VanWinkle on 28 June 1916 in Rochester, New York
    • died: 11 July 1962 in Los Angeles, California
  • Mary Helen Buisch b: November 1884 in Batavia, New York
    • married: George W Lauer, Sr on 30 November 1918 in Rochester, New York
    • died: May 1942 in Rochester, New York
  • Gertrude Mary Buisch b: March 1887 in Batavia, New York
    • married: Alfred George Meyers on 9 June 1909 in Rochester, New York
    • died: May 1947
  • Grace Rose Buisch b: 24 December 1889 in Batavia, New York
    • married: Raymond Curtis Williamson on 31 July 1912 in Rochester, New York
    • died: 7 January 1986 in Las Vegas, Nevada
BataviaNY_190000_MainSt
Main Street, Batavia New York, ca. 1900. Hotel Richmond pictured on the right.

Sometime around 1901, the Buisch family relocates to Rochester, Monroe, New York. The move may have been made motivated by opportunities available for the family in the larger city. Interestingly, Henry does not open a barbershop in Rochester. Eventually he begins a painting contractor’s business. Over the years, his sons work on and off in the business with him. Henry and Mary eventually own their home at 256 Warwick Avenue.

I like to imagine that on lazy summer afternoons, the family was able to spend time together at Ontario Beach Park walking on the beach or midway, riding the amusement park rides or just relaxing in chairs on the beach.

On 25 November 1923, Henry George Buisch passed away. He is buried at Mt Hope Cemetery in Rochester, New York. Mary (George) Buisch, who passed away in 1934, is buried next to Henry although the headstone does not have her name on it.

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Notes:

  1. This post was last updated/edited on 14 March 2014.
  2. If you have questions about or corrections to anything posted here, please post a comment or contact me using the form on my Contact Me page.
  3. More about Henry George Buisch can be found on the Buisch Surname Page
  4. Link to another article about the St James Hotel fire

Cite This Page:

Erin Williamson Klein, “52 Ancestors #1 Henry George Buisch.” My Family History Files, 20 January 2014 (https://myfamilyhistoryfiles.com/buisch/52-ancestors-1-henry-george-buisch/: [access date]).

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