Biography/Notes

Johannes Petrus (John Peter) Courtade was born February 16, 1784 in Altenstadt, Bas-Rhin, France. He married Mary Ann Frey on January 13, 1806 in Schweighofen, France, and they had nineteen children. They lived in Altenstadt, Bas-Rhin, France in house v:29. He was a butcher/laborer.

In 1832, Johannes and his family (including thirteen of his children) sailed for America, leaving the port of Havre, France on board the ship "Logan-Boston." They landed in Baltimore, Maryland, being on the ship for sixty-three days. From there, they progressed to Bellefount, Pennsylvania where one of the older children died. In 1832, they took a wagon from Pennsylvania to Adrian, Seneca County, Ohio. On the original land entries for Seneca County, John Peter Courtade is listed as purchasing land in Big Springs Township, e 1/2, sw 1/4, section 25 on July 5, 1833. He is also listed as purchasing land in 1834 as well. They lived there for a few years before moving to Iowa in 1841. The family resided in Iowa until 1844 when they moved back to the Seneca and Wyandot County areas of Ohio.

Johannes died in 1848 in Iowa and is buried in the Catholic cemetery in McCutchenville, Ohio. After his death, Mary Ann moved back to Ohio and resided with a daughter in Sandusky, Erie County, Ohio until her death.

Marriage record translated from the Catholic churchbooks of Schweighofen, Pfalz, Germany, #70:

Today, the thirteenth of the month of January of the year eighteen hundred six at nine o'clock in the morning got married in our parish church, after three proclamations held at our parish church...at Schweighofen, and there are no obstacles against the marriage of Johann Peter Courdat, a butcher, legitimate son of the deceased couple Dominik Courdat, citizen and farmer, and Maria Eva Weber, married couple that resided in Altenstadt, and Maria Anna Frey, legitimate daughter of Laurentius Frey, citizen and farmer, and Ursula Bast, married couple, residing in this parish. Witnesses were Mr. Joseph Baier of Altenstadt; Joseph Monne, citizen and farmer at Altenstadt; Philipp Frey, citizen and farmer at Kapsweyer; Martin Labbe, citizen and farmer at Steinfeld, who signed this certificate along with me.

Signatures: Jean Pierre Courtade, Maria Anna Frey, J. Beyer, Joseph Monne, Philipp Frey, Martin Labbe, and Joannes Weber, churchly administrator at Schweighofen.

Marriage record translated from the civil records of Schweighofen, Pfalz, Germany, pages 3-4, year 1806:

Certificate of the year 1806. In the year eighteen hundred six, on the sixteenth day of the month of January, appeared before me Jacob Diethrich, mayor and officer of the civil registration of the municipality of Schweighofen, Department Neider-Rhein, Canton of Weissenburg, Jean Pierre Courdat, twenty-one years and ten months of age, a butcher, residing in the municipality of Altenstadt, son of minor age of deceased Dominique Courdat and Maria Eva Weber, who in their lifetime were a married couple and farmers in mentioned Altenstadt, both are dead, according to the death certificate issued by the Mister mayor of that place, dated the tenth of this month, accompanied by his brother of age, Michael Courdat, twenty-four years of age, farmer, residing at Altenstadt, and the virgin Maria Anna Frey, twenty-one years of age, a day laborer, residing at Schweighofen, daughter of age of the citizen Lorenz Frey and Ursula Bast, married couple and farmers, residing here at Schweighofen, who requested us to perform the marriage, that was announced at the main door of our town hall, specifically the first announcement on the fifth, the second on the twelfth of this month, on Sundays, and also on the same days around noon in the municipality of Altenstadt, according to the confirmation of the Mister mayor in his function as officer of civil registration of that place; as no objection was raised against this marriage, we grant their request, and after we read aloud all that is written above and the sixth chapter of the book of civil law, we asked the husband-to-be and the wife-to-be whether they want to take each other as husband and wife; since both of them one after the other answered in the affirmative, we declare in the name of law that Jean Pierre Cordat and Maria Anna Frey are connected by marriage, upon which we issued this certificate, in presence of Mister Joseph Beyer, forty-four years of age, mayor and farmer at Altenstadt; Joseph Monne, forty-eight years of age, also farmer and residing at Altenstadt; Philipp Frey, fifty-three years of age, farmer at Kapsweyer; and Martin Lave, forty-one years old, shoemaker, residing at Steinfeld; all of them related to the wife; who all signed this certificate along with both parties, after it was read aloud.

Signatures: Diethrich, mayor; Philipp Frey; Martin Labbe; Michael Courdat; Joseph Manne; Lorentz Frey; J. Beyer; Maria Anna Frey; and Jean Pierre Courtade.

D

The grave of John Peter Courtade, Sr.,
McCutchenville, Ohio