Little is known about the origins of our Hoffman ancestors - other than they were from Germany. Based on information that has been researched, some speculative information has come to light in recent days, however, speculation is just that - speculation. As continued research progresses, we hope to find more information on our Hoffman family.

The purpose of this website is to share the information we have about our Hoffman immigrant ancestor, and hopefully, someone out there can add pieces to our puzzle on our Hoffman family.

What we Know

Oscar Hoffman, our immigrant ancestor, was born on October 15, 1834, a couple days from New York City, according to the family stories. The censuses between 1860 and 1910 show various places of birth from "at sea", "New York, and "Germany". Oscar was adopted shortly after coming to America by Moses and Mary Cadwallader from McConnelsville, Morgan County, Ohio. According to a letter written by Oscar's granddaughter, Hazel Linville Wollerman, Oscar's parents were friends with the Cadwalladers. Based on that information, we are hopeful we can find information on Oscar's parents in McConnelsville or Morgan County history.

During the past year, Hoffman cousins from Oscar's line have been able to "meet"  - thanks to the internet! Information about Oscar has been shared and cousins have reunited. As we continue to find more information about Oscar, we will post it here to share with all of Oscar's descendants.

One other tidbit of information. Oscar had an older sister that was adopted by a family in Tiffin, Ohio. Nothing is known of her. If we can find the ship manifest, we can possibly find other Hoffman relatives!

Thanks go to Don Mason and Fred Wollerman for their very special contributions to the Hoffman family history.

Family Stories

The Hoffman family story of Oscar's youth is a fascinating one. A number of family members have shared the story of Oscar going with the Cadwalladers out West with the 49's. Because Oscar had similar features to the indians, he was accepted by the indians and sent ahead of the group to make friends with the indians. Our cousin Don Mason tells a story of Oscar being captured at one point and trading his red vest for his freedom. My Aunt Annis and father tell me a story of Oscar taking a picture of Sitting Bull. According to my Aunt Annis, Grandma Cook (Edith Hoffman Cook) took her to the library at Columbus University to see the photograph, where it hung back in the 1940s, possibly. Hopefully, we can find the photograph.

Important Links

http://www.handfamily.org/xxwillis.htm   - Annis Cheadle's Family Information

Hoffman Pictures