Who Are These Women?

Sometimes you need a score card to sort things out over multiple generations. This page includes my father's side of my family; that is, Klotz and Janke, along with my grandmother Klotz's family, Dean and Schroll. A separate page will discuss my mother's side: Moore, Hyler, Jeffs and Boulton. Friends and neighbors are described on the pages with their recipes.

So here are the Klotzes, starting with the first generation in the United States, my great-grandparents.

Nana (Ida Klotz)

Ida Marie Janke (1875–1956) was born in Germany. She was apprenticed to a florist at age 14. She married Karl Hugo Klotz (1872–1944), called Hugo, who was also a florist in Germany. Hugo spent a couple years in England where he sold flowers in Covent Gardens. In 1904, they immigrated to the States with their young son. Hugo opened a landscaping business, later building greenhouses at 194 Greenbrook Road, Plainfield, NJ. His fluency in English helped him be successful. In 1912, they opened a flower shop to sell Ida's arrangements. Ida and Hugo are Nana and Pop Klotz. More about Nana and an article about Hugo.

Ida Klotz (Nana) on her 80th birthday, February 13, 1955

Vanita Klotz, Senior

Ida and Hugo had one son, Carl Fritz Klotz (1902–1968). He married Vanita Martha Zimmerman (1904-1935). Their children were Carl Hugo (1928–1988) called Bud;, Harold (1930–1953; and Vanita (1931–2024), called Sister. Vanita senior died from a miscarriage. Her Aunt Ma (Martha Lips) kept the children in touch with their mother's family

Carl and Vanita on their wedding day, June 21, 1927

Edith Dean Klotz

In 1937, Carl F. met Edith Mary Dean (1912–2003) at a florists' Christmas party. He knew right away he wanted to marry her, but his father and her mother objected, so they were not married until 1942. Carl F. and Edith are my Grammy and Grampy, but sorting out grammys and great-grammys over multiple generations gets confusing, so I'm going with first names here. Edith was the older daughter of Wilhemina Schroll Dean (Grammy Dean) and Charles Dean, a carpenter, who built the house they lived in, but who died when Edith was a teenager. Aunt Sue was only 3 when her mother died. When she says "Mom." she means Edith. Sue wrote a memorial for Edith.

Edith Dean Klotz

In the next generations:

Grace Klotz

Carl and Grace Klotz, 1958

Carl and Grace had 3 daughters: Jill Averil (me, b. 1952), Martha Vanita (Marti, b. 1955), and Carol Grace (b. 1960). Marti and Carol have children and grandchildren, but this is as far down Grace's line as I'm going for now.

Marti Young, Carol Lambusta, Jill Keen

Aunt Sue (Vanita Hicks)

Vanita and Harris Hicks, 1991

The Klotz family at Edith's 90th birthday, 2002

Front: Rob Lambusta, Marti Young (in front of Allison), Allison Young, Pat Young, Edith Klotz, Jeff Lambusta, Torey Lambusta. Back: Hal Keen, Carlie Young, Grace Klotz, Jill Keen Carol Lambusta, Guy Young, Gerard Young (in front of Guy), Larry Morris, Vanita Hicks (Aunt Sue), Harris Hicks.

Now for the Janke family:

Tante Helene Janke

One of Ida's brothers, Bruno Janke, lived in Chatham, NJ. I must have met him when I was very young, but he died in 1957, when I was 5 and I have no memory of him. Bruno married Helene Leiser (d. 1966). Tante is the German word for "aunt." Pronounce the final "e" in both Helene and Tante.

Tante Helene, 1955

Aunt Dottie Janke

Bruno and Helene had a son Kurt, who was Carl F's cousin, but since he was an adult, I was taught to call him Uncle. Uncle Kurt married Dorothy Piehler (1918–2013), called Dottie.

Aunt Dotty and Uncle Kurt

Erica Janke Horster

Kurt and Dottie's daughter is our cousin Erica (b. 1942). She was the one who got to baby sit me at family gatherings. I probably liked it more than she did. Erica's children are Daniel Mundy and Patricia Reichert from her first marriage to Daniel Mundy, and Karl from her second marriage to Russell Horster. Erica is the one who gave Aunt Sue most of the recipes from the Janke family.

Erica, 1959

There are also some recipes from women in Edith's family.

Grammy Dean (Minnie Dean)

Edith's parents were Charles Dean and Wilhelmina (Minnie) Schroll Dean (1880–1977). Their younger daughter was Amy. Charles was a carpenter who built the house the family lived in. Minnie was the fourth of thirteen children. Her sister Kitty (Katherine Schroll Fredericks, the 10th child), kept a diary in 1918 that tells about almost daily visiting among the grown siblings. (You may remember Aunt Kitty's daughter, Alice Ferris and her husband Don, who had a cabin on Lake Ganoga.)

Minnie Dean and Her Daughters, Edith (left) and Amy (right)

Marie Schroll

Marie Schroll