Category Archives: Sechler

We earlier discussed third great grandparents Jacob Sechler (1800-1869) and Elizabeth Mensch (1804-1850). Elizabeth’s parents were our fourth great grandparents Abraham Mensch (1774-1861) and Elizabeth Miller (1780-1804; who may have died in childbirth with Elizabeth). Abraham’s grandparents all came from Germany in the early-mid 18th century. A search of Mensch family trees found this historicalContinue reading “The Mifflinburg Potter”

Danville is in central Pennsylvania on the north shore of the Susquehanna River, about 50 miles southwest of Scranton, 150 miles west of New York City. In 1768, the Treaty of Fort Stanwix ceded a swath of Iroquois land to the expanding British colonies. In 1774 William Montgomery–soon to be patriot, statesman, and Revolutionary WarContinue reading “Danville”

At least two members of the Sechler family served in the Revolutionary War: our first cousin (5x removed) Michael Sechler and our fifth great uncle John Sechler. Michael Sechler (1762-1847) was the son of our fifth great uncle Abraham Sechler, whose role in the attack of 1757 was described in a previous post. A markerContinue reading “The Sechler Family in the American Revolution”

Great grandfather George Sechler had deep roots in Pennsylvania going back to the early 18th and even late 17th century. The following diagram maps George’s traceable ancestors back to their points of immigration to America. From this view, we can see that most of the ancestors of George Sechler’s father, Aaron Sechler, came from Germany.Continue reading “The Sechler Family of Pennsylvania”

An irony of the life story of great grandfather George Sechler is that we know far more about him because of his early death than we would if he had survived the events of April 14, 1907. The two best sources of information about George years during and after his police career are newspaper articlesContinue reading “Glimpses of George Sechler’s Life and Personality”

I present this article pertaining to the aftermath of the shooting of great grandfather George Sechler as much for the item that appears below it as for the details on the arraignment of Salvatore Governale.  The clipping is from the New York Sun, April 16, 1907. In 1907, the Williamsburg Bridge had been in serviceContinue reading “The New York of 1907”

During the summer of 1874, four year old Charley Ross and his six year old brother Walter were kidnapped by two men in an affluent Philadelphia neighborhood, resulting in a sensationalized investigation and series of events thought to be the first of its kind (the Lindbergh kidnapping would occur 58 years later).  Walter was setContinue reading “The Charley Ross Kidnapping”

The aftermath of the Sechler shooting in New York City in April 1907 included an outpouring of sympathy for George’s widow and baby. According to newspaper accounts, the police department did everything it could to provide for the family, but the system was not very well set up for this (George was only something likeContinue reading “The City Attends to George Sechler’s Widow and Baby”

The body of George Sechler, accompanied by family members from Brooklyn, arrived by train in Danville the morning of Thursday April 18, 1907. It was Georgeʼs dying wish to be buried with his family there. This account was published in the Danville Morning News the following day… George’s family remains buried today in the OddContinue reading “George Sechler returns to Danville”

Wednesday April 17, 1907 Wednesday April 17, 1907 was a day of honor and remembrance for George Mowrer Sechler of Danville throughout New York. On this day, the New York Times published the following editorial honoring George and his fellow officer Alfred Selleck: That afternoon, a wake was held for George at the home ofContinue reading “New York remembers George Sechler”