MATHIAS HOTLE

MATHIAS HOTLE was born in Germany, most likely in Baden Germany (as noted in 1860, 1870 and 1880 census)  between 1807 and 1815. Most records give his birth date as somewhere between 1811-1815 however his death certificate lists his birth date as 1807. Some sources list his father as John but I have found no confirmation of that and none of his children were given that name.

Mathias' arrival date into the United States is unknown. He was married around 1835 probably in Washington County, Pennsylvania to AMELIA COX, daughter of Zachariah Cox and Emaline Fry. so he obviously arrived before that time. Did he come over on his own or did he come with family? There is a Saml  Hotle in Bucks County PA in 1782 and a couple of other Hotle's in New York and Georgia. But Hotle, spelled HOTLE is a relatively uncommon name. And as of today's date, there are no DNA matches on the HOTLE name.  More research needs to be done.

Shortly after the birth of his first son Zachariah (named after his father-in-law), Mathias and his wife Amelia started their move westward. In 1840 they were in Harrison Ohio according to some sources for the birth of son Henry. It is unclear as to whether that refers to a town called Harrison or the county of Harrison but they didn't remain there long. If this location is valid, I suspect it may be the county as it is one county away from Pennsylvania. His daughter Rebecca was supposedly born in Pennsylvania in 1844 so they may have moved back and forth. The family moved to Iowa by about 1846.

The first official record of Mathias Hotle and family in Iowa was the 1848 birth of son Peter, born in Keokuk County.  They remained in Keokuk for a few years but were in Washington County by 1851. The family remained in Washington County until around 1860 when they moved back to Keokuk County. Mathias remained in Keokuk County the remainder of his life.

It is unknown what lead to the moves back and forth between Washington County and Keokuk County. They border each other and the move, in actuality would have been a move of about 15 miles maximum.

Most records indicate that Mathias was a farmer. In 1860 his land was valued at $2500 and in 1880 it was valued at $4500. More research needs to be done on his land ownership. There is also an 1864 tax assessment that appears to list Mathias as a hotel keeper. There is no other information that leads me to believe that this is true or if true, that it was an occupation that he continued with.  (Another possibility is that there was confusion with his name Hotle/Hotel when noting his occupation.)

Mathias and his wife Amelia had 7 children that are known. Their children are not spaced out in the average two year time span and in some cases there is as much as 6 or 7 years between children so it is possible that there were more children that were born and died young.

1. Zachariah, born 1838 in Pennsylvania, married to Julie Smith in Iowa in 1862 and moved to Sonoma California between 1870 and 1872. He raised his family of four children in California and died there in 1920. 
2. Henry, born in 1840 in Ohio, married to Mary Ann Shockley in Iowa to 1865 after having served in the Civil War as a Corporal in Company F of the 8th Iowa Regiment. He died in 1896 in Keokuk County, Iowa having fathered 10 children.
3. Rebecca Jane was born in 1844, probably in Pennsylvania. She married Edwin Singmaster in 1864 in Keokuk County and she and her husband eventually ended up in Sonoma California near her brother Zachariah. Rebecca had 4 children and died at the young age of 47. 
4. Peter was born in 1848 in Keokuk County Iowa, the first of the children to be born in Iowa.  He married Elizabeth Evans in 1872 in Des Moines after living in Henderson County Illinois for a short time. He died in 1889 in Kansas at the age of 41 leaving behind a 14 year old and a 3 year old.
5. Martha was born in 1850 in Keokuk County Iowa and married Thomas Beery in 1867 at the young age of 17. She had two children before dying in Henry County in 1880 at the age of 30.
6. Jacob Hotle (See future blog for more information) was born in 1857 in Washington County Iowa, married Ida Belle Reighard in 1880, had 9 children and died at the age of 83 in Washington County.
7. George W.  was born sometime between 1860 and 1862 in Keokuk County Iowa. He died at the age of 27 having never married.

Mathias lived an uneventful life. He doesn't show up in newspaper articles or in other records. He just quietly worked and raised his family and lived the normal life of an Iowa farmer. Mathias Hotle died in 1881 in Keokuk County Iowa at the age of 74. He is supposedly buried in the Shockley Cemetery but there isn't a photo of his tombstone to be found. His wife followed him in death in 1884. 

More research needs to be done to uncover the origins of Mathias and his time in Pennsylvania. If you are related to Mathias, please contact me as I have source information for the above.