Page 2 -- More Old Pictures of the Jaffkes, their Friends and other Relatives

East Prussia -- Pommerania

The Jaffkes came to America from East Prussia, also known as Pommerania. Once part of the German Empire, the region is now part of Poland. Frank Sr (Franz) and Mathilde (Zupke) Jaffke lived in the village of Kleine Dubsow, and were married at Gross Gansen, both in the state of Stolp (modern Slupsk).

Three pictures from Germany:
Left: An unidentified young man, a member of the Jaffke family, but who is he? Since the picture was included with those of Otto Jaffke (tentatively identified as a brother of Frank Sr.) and his family, he may have been one of Otto's sons. Or, is this Otto at a very young age?
Center: A theatrical group in a picture dated 1923. The two girls appear to be Otto's daughters, but their names are unknown to me. All I know of these girls are stories once told to me by Aunt Marie (Jaffke) Wagner, daughter of Frank Sr. According to Aunt Marie, the family lost contact with the girls during World War 2; they are said to have married Jewish doctors, and thus may have become victims of the Holocaust. Whether this is true, I may never know. I have no names, and no dates -- only family lore that has been handed down.
Left: A picture taken sometime around 1930 of Otto's wife, Trude. No other information is known about Trude at this time.

Two more pictures from Germany:
Left: Otto and Trude Jaffke in a picture dated 1930. At this time I do not know in what city or town Otto and his family lived. Many years ago, I remembered Aunt Mart talking about a trip she and her husband, John Putz, made to visit relatives back in Germany. This would have been sometime in the 1960s. According to her, there were Jaffke relatives living in what was then East Germany.
Right: Trude Jaffke, Frida, and an unknown third woman. I do not know Frida's relationship to Otto and Trude. Was she Trude's mother? Or a good family friend? And who disliked her so much that someone took a fountain pen and colored her out of the picture?

The Old Neighborhood

As can be seen on these scans, both these pictures appear to have been taken in 1917. They were probably taken at one of the houses on Morton Street in the old South Side of Toledo, Ohio. Two ethnic groups lived in that part of South Toledo during the early 1900s -- the German community, and the Irish community. Although I do not have specific identification for everyone in these pictures, I do have their last names, written on the backs of the pictures. The girls on left are members of the Grohnke and Gronau families, neighbors of Frank and Mathilda Jaffke. I do not have their first names. In the picture of the left are the same two girls. I have a name for the older boy standing between them; he is Al Grohnke.

More Family Pictures

Left: Emmaline (Zupke) Taube, daughter of Heinrich Taube and Karoline Schroeder, and sister of Mathilda (Zupke) Jaffke. Emma was born in 1860, probably in Pommerania or Posen, German Empire. She married Frederick Taube, and the two of them came to America sometime in the late 19th century. They lived in Toledo, Ohio and sold the Morton Street house to Emma's brother-in-law, Frank Jaffke. Their youngest daughter, Elsie, was Anna (Jaffke) Walker's favorite cousin and best friend. Emma died in Toledo in 1937.
Middle: Herman Zanter, born October 11, 1882 in Posen, Germany; died July 6, 1967 in Toledo, Ohio. Amelia (Schmidt) Zanter, born September 16, 1886; died November 4, 1977 in Tiffin, Ohio. Herman and Molly are the parents of Margaret Zanter, who married Frank Jaffke, Jr. The Zanter pictures were sent to me by Roberta Lewis. Thanks, Roberta!
Right: Frank Jaffke, Sr. This picture was taken in Frank's home on Morton Street. His granddaughter Dolores (Walker) Jones recalls the room in which this picture was taken, and says that the chair was a deep red velour. The picture was taken around 1950.

Left: Grampa Frank Jaffke, Sr. with granddaughters Phyllis (left) and Dolores (right). Picture taken in front of Grampa's house on Morton Street.
Middle: Frank Jaffke, Sr. with daughter-in-law, Ella A. (Mueller) Jaffke. Ella was married to Otto Jaffke.
Right: The twins, Marie and Martha Jaffke, in what is probably a confirmation picture.

I don't really have an appropriate place for this picture, but wanted to include it on this website because I think these children look absolutely beautiful. This is one of a number of old pictures we inherited after my Aunt Marie (Jaffke) Wagner died. It is one of two pictures from the family of her husband, Earl, who was born on June 29, 1897 in Bath, Clinton County, Michigan. I suspect that one of these children could be Earl himself, or at least siblings of his. I only wish I knew their names.

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