Paulina (Fink) Snow (1827 - 1882)

Born 23 Jun 1827 in Futzen, Waldshut, Grand Duchy of Baden, German Confederation

Wife of Samuel Sussman (Schnog) Snow — married about 1848 in New York, New York, USA

Descendants

Died 12 Mar 1882 at age 54 in Newtown, El Dorado County, California, USA

Biography

Paulina Fink was born and baptized as a Roman Catholic on 23 June 1827 in Fützen, Bonndorf, Waldshut, Grand Duchy of Baden, German Confederation. She was the daughter of Gallus Fink, 1774–1838, and his wife, ​​Elisabeth Mary Wagner, 1795–1870. They had been married on 2 June 1817 in Fützen, Blumberg, Grand Duchy of Baden, German Confederation. ^[1]

After her father's death in 1838, Paulina emigrated from Baden to the United States around 1848 when she was 21 years old. No record has been found that her widowed mother accompanied her; at least 2 of her brothers eventually settled in California. She was living in New York, New York, when she met and married Samuel Sussman Schnog (1818-1892) around 1848. He had immigrated to New York from Pomerania, Prussia, in 1837. It was unusual for a young Roman Catholic woman to marry a Jewish man at that time but Samuel was educated (he was a physician) and no doubt both were "free-thinkers" in the spirit of the "Revolutions of 1848". No record of their marriage has been found but it's known that they left New York immediately after their marriage and settled in La Croix, Wisconsin. Wisconsin became a US State in 1849 but was still very-much a "frontier".

Dr. Snow had a medical practice in La Croix, Wisconsin, and also engaged in fur-trading (in French: he was poly-lingual, having lived in France) with Native Americans and French Canadians. He was naturalized as an American citizen there on 30 July 1849, choosing "Snow" as a close cognate to his native-German (Yiddish?) surname: "Schnog". Shortly thereafter the family moved south to Council Bluffs, Iowa, where Snow again set up a medical practice and bought a ranch. However, as his epitaph-biography states, the Iowa winters were "too harsh for Mrs. Snow" and so on 16 May 1850, the day after she gave birth to their first-born son, Emanuel Snow, "under a wagon," they headed for California: it was the famous "California Gold Rush" era.

The family arrived in El Dorado County, California, in August, 1850.

On 7 Nov 1850, the small family was living in Placerville, El Dorado, California, where he was listed as working as a "Physician" on the 1850 US Census.^[2]

In 1870, Samuel Snow was the head of the family consisting of himself, his wife and eight children, ranging in age from 1 to 21 years old. The family was living in Diamond Springs Twp., El Dorado County, California, USA.^[3]

In 1880, S. Snow was still living with his family in Diamond Springs, El Dorado, California, USA.^[4]

Samuel "Susmon" Snow passed away on 9 July 1892 at Newtown, El Dorado County, California, USA. He was buried next to his late wife, Paulina Fink, who had died on 2 March 1882, at their home in Newtown, California, at the Jewish Pioneer Cemetery, Placerville, El Dorado County, California, USA. ^{[5] [6]}

Sources

1. ↑ "Deutschland, Baden, Erzbistum Freiburg, katholische Kirchenbücher, 1678-1930," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q1Y8-KJT2 : 16 January 2019), Paulina Fink, 23 Jun 1827; citing Baptism, Fützen, Bonndorf, Baden, Deutschland, , Erzbischöfliches Archiv Freiburg (Archbishop's Archives), Germany.
2. ↑ "United States Census, 1850," database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M491-WFV : 20 December 2020), Samuel Snow, Placerville, El Dorado, California, United States; citing family , NARA microfilm publication (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).
3. ↑ "United States Census, 1870", database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MN6F-GCZ : 10 March 2021), Samuel Snow, 1870.
4. ↑ "United States Census, 1880," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M6GR-RHW : 19 February 2021), S Snow, Diamond Springs, El Dorado, California, United States; citing enumeration district ED 57, sheet 149A, NARA microfilm publication T9 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.), FHL microfilm 1,254,065.
5. ↑ Find A Grave: Memorial #55318284 Samuel Sussman Snow
6. ↑ Find A Grave: Memorial #26801333 Paulina Fink Snow

• Details for Paulina Fink at FamilySearch; cites 10 sources.
• Find A Grave: Memorial #26801333