G2G: Who were the parents of Eva Anna Zender?

Question

I'm trying to solve a DNA match for the daughter of Eva Zender. She shares 2% (132cM) of her DNA with my father. From our mutual matches, I know she is a descendant of Johannisson-33. He had descendants that moved to North Dakota where she was born. There is a tree on Ancestry, but this doesn't seem to match the sources on familysearch.

I wonder if it is possible to solve this DNA mystery?

Answer 1

In her marriage record, which is available in the Michigan, U.S., Marriage Records, 1867-1952, her parents are named as Nicholas Zender and Regina Londy (sic), not the couple listed on the pasted family tree.

https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?indiv=1&dbid=9093&h=5195579&tid=&pid=&queryId=e2cb06ee0e29399b93fd55f5cf4c4db3&usePUB=true&_phsrc=daq1476&_phstart=successSource&_gl=1*1k08it9*_gcl_dc*R0NMLjE2NzcyODY5NjUuYjQ0ODVkMDU1MmU5MThlZTA2NzYzZWZjMGNmOGFmZmY.*_ga*MTU3MTQ2ODU3MC4xNjczMjExODgw*_ga_4QT8FMEX30*YWExYWRkOTQtODVlNi00ZTQ0LWJkYzMtYTdhNDIzZjkyYWVmLjExOC4xLjE2NzkyMzQzNzUuNDkuMC4w

Comments

Could Regina Londy/Lonely be related to the father stated above, Gordon Loney? There is a Nicholas Zender, married to Regina Zender in the record of Minnesota deaths in 1918. His mother's name was Eva. Maybe your Eva was the daughter of Nicholas and Regina but was raised by a maternal relative after his death? Regina shows up in the 1920 census as a widowed live-in housekeeper in Minneapolis.

-Elisa

Link to Nicholas Zender death record: "Minnesota Deaths, 1887-2001," database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:C1P5-PCPZ : 1 June 2020), Nicholas Zender, 8 Dec 1918; citing Death, Minnesota State Department of Health, St. Paul.

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Well spotted, Elisa! I got lost among the Nicholas Zenders - there was more than one - and didn't find one married to a Regina.

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The profile for Eva (Zender) Lucas cites the marriage record of Anton Lucas and Eva Zender, as found on FamilySearch.

"Michigan, County Marriages, 1820-1940," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VNKK-MD3 : 2 March 2021), Anton Lucas and Eva Zender, 15 Sep 1932; citing reference ID , various county clerks and libraries, Michigan; FHL microfilm 1,784,625. 

As noted by Roger and Elisa, the record names Eva's parents - Nicholos Zender and Regine Lonely - the image is of a typed and very readable document. The spelling may of course differ from what the persons themselves used, but otherwise these documents are generally very reliable.

My question to Hans would be: what are your grounds for trusting the Ancestry tree?

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Thank you all for looking into it. I agree with Elisa's theory, and thank you for finding the death record. I think Regina was proibably the biological mother and then maybe she was raised by her relative Gordon. 

I don't think Gordon or Nicholas were the biological father. Due to the DNA we share and our mutual matches, I think the biological father must be one of the children or grandchildren of Johan Thelin and Stina Johannesdotter. I'm thinking the father could possibly be Johannes Edvard Thelin (1865-1929). Though this is probably hard to prove on paper.

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I think I've solved it! I thought the other potential father could be Axel Fredrik Thelin. In the 1910 census he is living in the same household as Carl Pearson and Alma Johnson. She must have been the biological mother then! I already have a confirmed DNA descendant of Axel, so I just need to convince them both to upload to gedmatch to confirm!