For the past couple of years, I have been researching the identity of Maria Gossmann’s mother. Maria Gossmann was born on April 23, 1826, in Wehlhieden, Kassel, Germany. Maria’s confirmation record only lists her father’s name as Jost Heinrich Gossmann. Unfortunately, due to record loss, no baptism record has been located.
Several years ago, I discovered that Jost Heinrich Gossmann, my fourth great-grandfather, had been married three times. I wrote about this in a blog post about Franz Gossmann, who is Maria’s half-brother. You can read more about the family here: Who Was Franz Gossmann?. I wrote that blog in 2023, and since then, I’ve been searching for Maria with little success—until just a few weeks ago.
Aside from the confirmation record, I don’t have any other documentation that specifically names Maria. However, I do have a couple of census records in which I believe Maria is included. In the 1834 Wehlheiden Census, Jost Heinrich Gossmann is the only person named, but he is listed as living with 2 males under 14, 2 females under 14, 1 male aged 15-60, and 1 female aged 15-60.
By 1834, Jost Heinrich Gossmann and his third wife, Gertrud Elisabeth Thielemann, had three children: Johannes Gossmann (born 1830, died 1831), Herman Gossmann (born 1831), and Martha Gossmann (born 1833). The other male and female children listed, I believe, were Franz and Maria Gossmann, children from Jost Heinrich’s first and second marriages.
In 1846, Jost Heinrich Gossmann lived with his wife Elisabeth and six children: Franz, Hermann, Jost Heinrich, Martha, Catherina, and Martin. One daughter, who served as a maid out of town, was not listed by name with the household but in a note on the second page. By 1846, Jost Heinrich had seven children still living: Franz from his first marriage, Maria from his second marriage, and five living children from his third wife, Gertrud Elisabeth. Six of his children are listed by name under Jost Heinrich and his wife, with a note on the second page mentioning a daughter who served out of town as a maid. You can see that note on the second page on line 137 next to age 46. That daughter was Maria Gossmann.
While searching for any available records in Wehlheiden to help fill the gap from 1753-1830 on the Arcinsys website, I came across a patient record for Maria Gossmann from the State Hospital in Merxhausen, spanning from 1857 to 1884. This is the second ancestor I’ve discovered who was a patient at this hospital. The index of the record provided information about Maria, including her death date, which was recorded as July 19, 1884, in Merxhausen. This finding explained why I had been unable to locate a marriage or death record for Maria as I was only searching in Wehlheiden.
After discovering this information, I searched for Maria’s burial record in Merxhausen and was able to find it. The burial record confirmed that Maria Gossmann died on July 19, 1884, and was buried on July 21, 1884. Maria was born on April 23, 1826, in Wehlheiden and was the daughter of the mason Jost Heinrich Gossmann and his wife Karolin Gottmann. With this, I had finally identified the second wife of my fourth great-grandfather and the mother of Maria Gossmann.
I contacted the archives that held the hospital record for Maria Gossmann and received it about a week later.
Maria was admitted to the Merxhausen State Hosptial on 12 March 1858. In the admission hospital records that the city of Wehlheiden will agree to pay 12 thaler. 12 thaler is about $30 U.S. dollars today.
In a police directive dated 8 September 1857 it says that the circumstances of the father, Jost Heinrich Gossmann, does not allow him to care for his mental ill daughter during the day as he has business to attend to. He also says that his wife, stepmother to Maria, is hated by his daughter and he fears they are both in mortal danger. This is the reason Jost Heinrich Gossmann was requesting for his daughter Maria to be placed in the Merxhausen State Hosptial. It is also noted that he or other relatives are unable to pay for her time there.
Maria lived in the Merxhausen State Hospital for 27 years until her death on 19 July 1884. The record does not provide details about the extent of her mental illness or what her life was like during her time there. Today, the Merxhausen State Hospital remains in operation as a clinic for Psychiatry and Psychotherapy.
While I was thrilled to finally discover Maria’s mother’s name and solve the mystery of the three wives of Jost Heinrich Gossmann, learning that Maria spent so many years in the hospital was deeply saddening. I can only imagine the struggles she must have faced.
Ella Jane Anne 