Don & Jeanette

Don and Jeanette (Laubenstein) DeFere.
Taken April 14, 1946.

One of Two Brothers

This has to be one of two brothers.... Ferdinand or Hugo DeSombre. Dad isn't sure at all but I think he is leaning towards Ferdinand. My money is on it's his dad Hugo.

Dad had told me...and it seems to be true from pictures... that Ferdinand parted his hair in the middle his whole life. The photo of Hugo in the previous post where he is dressed up I think looks similar. Both also have a tie tack thingy being used too.

Unfortunately, the picture was not labeled.

Emma, Hugo and Ev

Emma DeSombre and her son Ev DeSombre.





Emma (Hagel) DeSombre (L), Ev DeSombre (C) and Hugo DeSombre (R)



A young Ev DeSombre.



Hugo DeSombre holding his son Ev.


Ev DeSombre and an unknown young lady holding him.



All these photos are taken in the late 1920s. Probably all are taken in Pennsylvania.

Group Photo 02

Another group photo of relatives taken in front of George DeSombre's home in Sheboygan. The picture was taken sometime in the first half of the 1940s.


1. Thought to be a boyfriend of Jeanette Laubenstein (#4), name unknown
2. Ella (DeSombre) Pfeiffer
3. Anna (DeSombre) Laubenstein
4. Jeanette Laubenstein
5. Alma DeSombre (Charles' wife)
6. Charles DeSombre
7. Ferdinand DeSombre
8. August Pfeiffer
9. Andrew Laubenstein
10. Kenneth DeSombre
11. Meta DeSombre
12. Viola DeSombre
13. Eugene DeSombre
14. Clemawelle DeSombre
15. George DeSombre

This is the only photo of Charles and Alma DeSombre that I have found so far.

Party & Christmas

Julianne DeSombre and her boyfriend Don Kemmer came to Sheboygan to visit relatives the day after their high school prom. They were King and Queen of their prom and wore their attire when they came to visit.

Vacation Time

A movie clip of my family on vacation in the mid 1960s. It was a cabin rental on Metonga Lake near Crandon, WI. Thr trip was taken with Ede & Lena (Emma Hagel DeSombre's sisters from Pennsylvania - not relatives on the family tree) and Ella DeSombre-Pfeiffer.

The second part of the movie is at a nearby petting zoo. The critter at the end that is hard to see is a fawn laying down.

The School House

The photo is a scan of a photocopy of a newsprint photo ... so the quality is not the best.

The school is Stokes School (District School #2) that was on the west side of the intersection of Hwy 57 and O in southern Door County, Wisconsin. The school was torn down in the 1970s.

Some Carl DeSombre's children attended the school. I know Anna, Ella, Lydia, August and George all went to the school. I am not sure if the older children (Charles, Reinardt, Ferdinand, William and Hugo) went to the school also.

They lived near the school between 1894 and about 1920 before returning to Sheboygan.

Group Photo 01

This group photo was taken in front of George DeSombre's home on April 14, 1946. It was his son Ken DeSombre's confirmation.


Ken by himself on that same day.


Identification of the group. I will edit this post later when I find out who the people are that I don't have names for.


01 - Walter Schmidt
02 - August Pfeiffer, Sr. (not part of family tree)
03 - Helen Schmidt (Walter's (#1) wife)
04 - Viola (Schmidt) DeSombre (1906-1992)
05 - August Pfeiffer (1901-1960)
06 - Meta (Gartman) DeSombre (1893-1994)
07 - Richard DeSombre
08 - Lester Engelhardt (1913-1990)
09 - Donald DeFere
10 - Clemawelle (DeSombre) Engelhardt (1911-1990)
11 - Ferdinand DeSombre
12 - Anna (DeSombre) Laubenstein (1895-1970)
13 - "Grandpa Schmidt" (Viola Schmidt DeSombre's father - not part of family tree)
14 - "Grandma Schmidt" (Viola Schmidt DeSombre's mother - not part of family tree)
15 - Ella (DeSombre) Pfeiffer (1902-1987)
16 - George DeSombre (1905-1961)
17 - Julianne DeSombre
18 - Kenneth DeSombre
19 - Eugene DeSombre

40s Movie 2 ID

00:01:33
Meta DeSombre (L) and Julianne DeSombre (R)


00:02:05
Oliver and Alice DeSombre


00:02:18
Ferdinand DeSombre (L), Clemawelle DeSombre (C) and Julianne DeSombre (R)

40's Movie 2

Another black and white movie from the 1940s. The beginning is the start of a parade. I believe the entire clip takes place in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

One of the floats has a sign "Gertie the duck that made Milwaukee..." on it. Gertie the duck's story began in April of 1945.

Her story according to Wikipedia is: "Gertie the Duck is a world famous mallard and an icon of Milwaukee history. The story of her heroic efforts to hatch six ducklings became an inspiration for many Americans near the end of World War II. Gertie's story unfolded as a daily serial in the local newspaper for 37 days, captivating the residents of Milwaukee, the state and eventually the country."

The second half is a gathering of relatives. My father remembers Ferdinand DeSombre fondly. He had passed away before my birth, so I only got to know his wife Meta. He appears in this clip.

Cool Wedding Photo

The photo is of Ferdinand Bahr and Sara Eisold's wedding. There is only one relative in the photo, Clemawelle DeSombre. She is the bridesmaid standing on the far left of the picture. All of the remaining folks are not part of the family tree.

Lynn's 4th Movie Clip ID

00:00:03


00:00:13


00:00:22
Emma is not a relative on the family tree. She and her family were close friends of my family. She was also my proxy sponsor (godparent) along with her husband Al.


00:00:30


00:00:40


00:00:45

There are also two other women towards the beginning of the clip that I will have to identify.

Lynn's 4th

My sister Lynn DeSombre's 4th birthday party. The film was taken at our family home on North 9th Street in Sheboygan during August of 1966.

Party 3

Yet another movie clip that I cannot identify many of the people. I do see Lester and Clemawelle (DeSombre) Engelhardt, George and Viola DeSombre and August and Ella (DeSombre) Pfeiffer. At least part of the movie appears to have been taken at August and Ella's home. It may be their 25th wedding anniversary celebration.

Charles and Roderick

Christian and Johanna (DeSombre) Huebner's son Charles Huebner (1884-1965) holding the flag on the right side of the photo and his son Roderick Huebner (1927-1980) holding the flag on the left side of the photo.

It was a flag dedication ceremony at St. Paul's Lutheran School in Sheboygan in October 1941.

Party 2 Movie Clip ID

Oliver DeSombre standing....August Pfeiffer sitting (Ella DeSombre's husband).
00:00:03


George DeSombre
00:00:11


Alice DeSombre throwing a ball to her daughter Julianne DeSombre
00:00:21


Anna (DeSombre) Laubenstein
00:00:31


Ken DeSombre (L), Eugene DeSombre (R) and Julianne DeSombre sitting in front
00:00:37


Meta DeSombre (L) and her daughter Clemawelle (DeeSombre) Engelhardt (R)
00:00:59


Seated...Ella (DeSombre) Pfeiffer (L), Alice DeSombre (R) and Meta DeSombre standing
00:01:01


Left to Right.... Ella Pfeiffer, Alice DeSombre, Anna Laubenstein
00:01:37


The mystery guests. I have to find out who they are. They may be related to Viola?
00:02:07

Party 2

I think this is one of the best clips so far. It has quite a few DeSombres in it.

I'll have to confirm it with Ken DeSombre once he watches the movie....I think it is a movie of his parents George and Viola DeSombre's anniversary.

The event took place outside George and Viola's home on North 10th Street in Sheboygan.

Note: Milk in a glass bottle with a paper cap.

Party 1 Movie Clip ID

0:00:11
Meta DeSombre (L) and Clemawelle DeSombre-Engelhardt (R).

Party 1

I am uncertain what this party was held for. The majority of the people are Engelhardt relatives and not DeSombre relatives. The party was held at Meta DeSombre's home. Meta and her daughter Clemawelle are in the clip.