The theme for Week 11 of the 2015 edition of the “52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks” challenge is “Luck of the Irish” and my ancestor is my 5th great-grandfather, Jakob Zinsmeister. As you can probably guess by Jakob’s name, he wasn’t Irish. My challenge for this week was the fact that I have zero Irish ancestry. I realize that these weekly themes are “optional” but for me, they aren’t – that is what makes it a personal creative challenge. I’ve been writing about more than 52 ancestors here for the last seven years; finding a story that fits makes it fun.
The English major in me wondered what the phrase “Luck of the Irish” means and where it came from. According to that super-reliable source, the internet, half of the sites say the phrase came about due to the luck of Irish immigrants in surviving tough mining work. But just as many sites insist the phrase is meant in a more sarcastic or even derogatory tone meaning that the Irish are the unluckiest people in the world.
My Bavarian ancestor, Jakob Zinsmeister, had what I would call a rather unlucky demise. So, depending upon your personal view of the phrase, he either had the luck of the Irish or could have used some!
Jakob’s Story
Jakob Zinsmeister was born around the year 1741, probably in the small town in which he spent his life, Puch, near Pfaffenhofen an der Ilm in Bavaria, Germany. Although some church records date back to 1612 for the town, the birth records from 1690 to 1764 are not available. Therefore, I do not know Jakob’s birth date or his parents names.
Jakob married Josepha Mair and they had at least four children that lived to adulthood: sons Konrad and Andreas, and daughters Kreszens (my 4th great-grandmother) and Franziska. Jakob was a farmer in Puch – the town is so small that it was either a very small farm or he was one of the only farmers in the town.
Death of Jakob Zinsmeister from the Catholic Church records of Puch, Pfaffenhofen, Bayern, Germany.
I don’t know if Jakob was either lucky or unlucky in his life, but he was surely unlucky in death. On 09 May 1796, Jakob was killed suddenly at the age of 56. The Latin death record shown above is translated as: “On May 9, by a tree suddenly dropped from a cart in the forest of the Puch community, was killed and here buried the honest Jacob Zinsmeister, farmer, aged 56.”
Just the Facts
- Name: Jakob Zinsmeister
- Ahnentafel: #162 (my 5th great-grandfather)
- Parents: unknown
- Born: about 1741, presumably in Puch, Bavaria
- Siblings: unknown
- Married: Josepha Mair (1750-1832)
- Children: Konrad Zinsmeister, Andreas Zinsmeister (1775-?), Kreszens Zinsmeister Bergmeister (1776-1852), Franziska Zinsmeister Kölbl (1784-1845)
- Died: 09 May 1797 in Puch, Bavaria
- My Line of Descent: Jacob Zinsmeister-> Kreszens Zinsmeister Bergmeister-> Jakob Bergmeister-> Josef Bergmeister->Josef Bergmeister->Margaret Bergmeister Pointkouski-> father-> me
Written for the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: 2015 Edition– Week 11: Luck of the Irish
#52Ancestors
What's Past is Prologue 
Hi Donna,
According to their marriage records, Jacob’s children were born in Rohrbach near Rennertshofen (not to be confused with Rohrbach an der Ilm near Pfaffenhofen), so I assume that Jakob and his wife got married and were probably born around there as well. Rohrbach is less than 2 miles from Rennertshofen, but it belongs to the Diocese of Eichstätt whereas Rennertshofen belongs to the Diocese of Augsburg. Eichstätt still hasn’t put church records online.
I found a Jacob Zinsmeister born in Rennertshofen in 1840, but I cannot check Rohrbach marriage records whether this is the right Jacob.
Do you by chance have access to Rohrbach church records?