Busam Genealogy
This web site contains information to help those interested in Busam genealogy. Here is a list of topics:
Busam Immigrants to the United
States, pre-1900
Descendents of Josef Busam (b.
1723, Nussbach (Nußbach, Baden, Germany)) (courtesy of Beverly Zanon)
Descendents of another Joseph
Busam (b. perhaps around 1760, Nussbach) (courtesy of Beverly Zanon)
Family Origins
Origin of name and pronunciation
Updating Information
Book I found useful
Additional Busam Immigrant Information
Page last updated 16-Jan-2005.
Busam Immigrants to the United States, pre-1900
This page contains a list of all known Busam Immigrants to the United States before 1900. Along with each name is the person's birth, marriage, and death information - at least as much as is known. For families that immigrated together, only one main entry is listed. When available, contact information to descendents) is provided.
Being interested in genealogy and as owner of the busam.com domain name, I will keep this web page current. Hopefully, it can be a starting place for descendents of Busam immigrants who want to trace their history. See the section on "Updating Information" for how to send me information for this page. Because of privacy concerns, this page only lists contact information for persons that have given me permission to list them. Finally, the information contained herein is the best I have available but may contain errors.
Alexander | settled: Cincinnati, OH contact: |
Bernhard | born: Apr 18, 1842 Nussbach, Baden, Germany parents: Ignatz Busam (b. 1801) and Agatha Konig (b. 1816) grandparents: Martin Busam (b. 1769) and Elizabeth Schneider great-grandfather: Josef Busam (b. 1723) married: Caroline Benz, date/place unknown died: Sep 27, 1882 Chicago, IL immigrated: Jan 31, 1868 to NY on ship Cella from Havre settled: Chicago other: brothers Ignatz and Stephen also immigrated contact: |
Cecelia | born: Baden-Baden, Germany settled: Springfield, OH other: brother Joseph Francis also immigrated contact: (none known) |
Engelbert | born: Nov 8, 1832 Sulzbach, parish of Lautenbach, Baden married: c1861 Katherine Zimmerer (b. c1842 Baden) died: Jan 11 1886, Cincinnati, OH immigrated: 1860 settled: Cincinnati, OH other: parents: Johannes Busam and Katharina Borsing (information from Mike Husman) contact: (none known) |
Francesca Wilhelmina | born: Dec. 18, 1884 in Baden Baden, Germany married: Christian Joseph Mack July 10, 1910 in Chicago, Illinois died: Oct. 15, 1971, Chicago, IL immigrated: 1907, aboard Compagnie Generale Transatlantique from Paris to NY other: niece to Francis Xavier Busam and Wendell Busam contact: |
Frank | born: circa 1848, Baden married: before 1875 Margaurette (Margaret) Cline (b. KY) settled: Louisville, KY died: Dec. 14, 1892, Louisville, KY other: When a son of Frank died in 1940, his obituary asked Cincinnati, OH newspapers to copy suggesting relatives there (information from Mike Husman) contact: (none known) |
Francis Xavier, Sr. | born: Mar 9, 1859, Nussbach, Baden, Germany parents: Moritz Busam and Frances Huber married: June 16, 1888, Helena Scheurer (b. Aug 15, 1864, Nussbach, Ger, d. Oct 1954) settled: Frankfort, KY died: Jan. 11, 1923, Frankfort, KY other: Michael Busam & Mary Ann Kern also had a son named Francis Xavier Busam, b. NY,NY Jun16, 1845. Uncle of Francesca Wilhelmina. contact: From Brad Rogers 11/27/2004 (email: brogers146
"at" hotmail "dot" com): |
Henry Busam | born: July 9,1860 died: Aug. 22,1912 in Chicago emigrated circa 1879 father: LAWRENCE mothers maiden name: SAUER settled: Chicago, IL contact: |
Ignatz | born: Jun 14, 1847 Nussbach, Baden, Germany married: Victoria Meyer, 1876, Chicago died: May 2, 1912 immigrated: probably 1872 settled: Chicago other: brothers Bernhard and Stephen also immigrated contact: |
John Gregory | born: Nov 1816, Baden, Germany married: before 1840, Mary Ann Mueller (b. Baden) immigrated: before 1840 settled: Cincinnati, OH died: Oct 6, 1890, Cincinnati, OH other: information from Mike Husman contact: (none known) |
John Ignatz | born: Feb. 21, 1832, Oberkirch, Baden parents: Joseph Busam and Franziska Meyer immigrated: before 1869 married: Dec. 24, 1869, Anna Sophia Bode (b. Indiana) died: after 1883 settled: Bartholemew, Jackson Counties, IN until 1883, after then his whereabouts is not known other: Brothers who immigrated are Leopold and Ludwig (Louis), information from Mike Husman contact: (none known) |
Joseph | born: Jul 1827, Baden married: Jan 1855 Reading, Hamilton County, OH, Helena Huber (b. Jun 13, 1832, Hesselbach, Baden) died: Oct 19, 1878, St. Bernard, Hamilton County, Oh married: Helena Huber settled: just north of Cincinnati, OH in 1854 other: When Joseph Busam's son Joseph died in 1913, his obituary asked Louisville papers to copy (usually meaning relatives are in the area). While no relationships have yet been identified, there was a Frank Busam family living there. contact: |
Joseph C (aka Franz Joseph) | born: Nov 12, 1833/34, Baden married: three times, 1st unknown; 2nd to Lucy Marx, probably after 1871, Ohio; 3rd to Mrs. Louise Vieth, Jan 2, 1886 in St. Louis, MO. settled: by 1859 in OH; 1870 and 1880s in Cincinnati, OH; after 1880s in St. Louis died: Jan 12, 1902, St. Louis, MO other: served in Union Army during Civil War - Co. M., 5th Regt. Ohio Vol. Calvary (information from Mike Husman) contact: (none known) |
Joseph Francis | born: Baden-Baden settled: Piqua, OH other: |
Joseph | settled: about 1900 Brooklyn, NY, then NJ contact: |
Leopold | born: Nov 11, 1836 Oberkirch, Baden, Germany parents: Joseph Busam and Franziska Meyer immigrated: Sep 12, 1853 on ship Elvira from Havre to NY married Jun 27, 1865 Madisonville (now part of Cincinnati), OH to Susan Herr (b. Apr 1843 Bavaria) settled: Cincinnati, OH area died: Dec 15, 1922, Cincinnati, OH other: Served in Union Army during Civil War 9th Ohio Infantry, brother of John Ignatz and Ludwig (Louis) contact: |
Louis (Ludwig) | born: Jun 16, 1847 Oberkirch, Baden, Germany parents: Joseph Busam and Franziska Meyer married: Sep. 3, 1883 (prob. Cincinnati, OH) to Annie B. Beulter (b. Berne, Switzerland) immigrated: Sep 1865 on Ship "Atal..." Havre-London-NY settled: Cincinnati, OH died: Jul 1, 1922 Cincinnati, OH other: brother of Leopold and John Ignatz contact: |
Michael | born: 1804, Baden, Germany married: May 6, 1828, Mary Ann Kern, (b. 1801 Baden, d. May 8, 1893) died: NY, NY Jan 8, 1852 immigrated: Sep 1829 (naturalized Apr 9, 1844) settled: NY other: son William (b. Mar 28, 1929 Latinger, Alsace) immigrated with them, William died Jacksonville, FL 1895. Son Christian killed in Civil War. contacts: Sister Emma Cecilia Busam, OSU |
Michael | born: Apr 1828, Baden married: Fredericka Buel (b. 1831 France) immigrated: before 1853 settled: Cincinnati, OH died: Aug 22, 1869 Cincinnati, OH other: information from Mike Husman contact: (none known) |
Moritz F (Morris/Maurice F.) | born: Jan 31, 1861, Nussbach, Baden, Germany parents: Morris Busam and Francis Hoover (Huber) married: Freda Zink. (b. Apr 1864 Germany) immigrated: Filby's Germans to America, Dec 1880-Apr 1881 show a Moritz Busam, age 20 settled: listed in Franklin Co., KY in 1900 & 1920 census died: Jan 9 1922, Franklin County, KY other: brother of Francis Xavier Busam and Wendell Busam (information from Mike Husman and Frank Busam), (per B. Zanon) also brother of Stephen Busam (b.1860) and also a brother, Stephen, and 2 sisters that remained in Germany. contact: (none known) |
Stephen | born: Apr 2 1849 Nussbach, Baden, Germany) married: Caroline (sic Victoria) Benz, Oct 29, 1884 died: Dec 7, 1887 immigrated: probably 1879 settled: Chicago, IL other: brother of Bernhard and Ignatz contact: |
Wendell | born: Oct 23, 1862, Nussbach, Baden Germany married: before 1889, Laura E. Duffey (b. 1856) settled: in Franklin Co., KY 1900 & 1920 census died: Oct 31, 1925, Franklin County, KY other: brother to Frances Xavier and Moritz (information from Mike Husman and Frank Busam) Last name also spelled Busin. Had one son, Wendell, Jr., unmarried. Uncle of Francesca Wilhelmina. Note from Vince Busam: Just a couple of miles south from Nussbach is a small country chapel called St. Wendelin. I have visited it twice since it is very beautiful. Perhaps this is the source of the name Wendell. |
Here is a list of Busam Emigrants (Auswanderers) from the Generallandesarchiv in Karlsruhe, Baden, Germany. This list was kindly provided by Beverly Zanon. For all these emigrants, except one noted in the table, the destination was Nordamerika. Also, all were marked with OG between the city and the year, except for two that had RA (noted in the table). The meaning of the OG and RA codes is not known to me. I have seen microfilm of a couple of handwritten Auswanderer lists from the Karlsruhe archives (some of which are below on this page) and unfortunately they don't give any information beyond that contained in the following table. (Following table added 8-Feb-2004)
Emigrant # | Name | Origin | Year |
115770 | Busam, Josef | Butschbach, Stadt Oberkirch | 1868 |
154767 | Busam, Johann | Haslach i.K. (?) | 1853 |
160884 | Busam, Anton | Herztal, Nußbach, Stadt Oberkirch | 1869 |
160885 | Busam, Bernhard | Herztal, Nußbach, Stadt Oberkirch | 1867 (Vince's ancestor) |
160886 | Busam, Bernhard | Herztal, Nußbach, Stadt Oberkirch | 1870 |
160887 | Busam, Ignatz | Herztal, Nußbach, Stadt Oberkirch | 1872 (Vince's ancestor's brother) |
160888 | Busam, Lorenz | Herztal, Nußbach, Stadt Oberkirch | 1854 |
160889 | Busam, Stefan | Herztal, Nußbach, Stadt Oberkirch | 1879 (Vince's ancestor's brother) |
160928 | Busam, Bernhard | Herztal, Nußbach, Stadt Oberkirch | 1867 |
160929 | Busam, Ignaz | Herztal, Nußbach, Stadt Oberkirch | 1872 |
160947 | Busam, Helene | Hesselbach, Butschbach, Stadt Oberkirch | 1875 |
197545 | Busam, Engelbert | Lautenbach | 1860 |
197546 | Busam, Josef | Lautenbach | 1854 |
203398 | Busam, Stefan | Maisenbühl, Bottenau, Stadt Oberkirch | 1879 |
226838 | Busam, Franz Xaver | Nußbach, Stadt Oberkirch | 1880 |
226839 | Busam, Heinrich | Nußbach, Stadt Oberkirch | 1880 |
226840 | Busam, Moritz | Nußbach, Stadt Oberkirch | 1881 |
226980 | Busam, Franz Xaver | Nußbach, Stadt Oberkirch | 1879 |
226981 | Busam, Heinrich | Nußbach, Stadt Oberkirch | 1879 |
226982 | Busam, Moritz | Nußbach, Stadt Oberkirch | 1881 |
231054 | Busam, Franz | Oberkirch | 1883 |
231055 | Busam, Franz Josef | Oberkirch | 1882 |
231056 | Busam, Ignatz | Oberkirch | 1853 |
231057 | Busam, Katharina | Oberkirch | 1905 to Frankreich |
231058 | Busam, Leopold | Oberkirch | 1853 |
231059 | Busam, Ludwig | Oberkirch | 1865 |
238325 | Busam, Anton | Oppenau | 1851 |
238326 | Busam, Leopold | Oppenau | 1891 |
238444 | Busam, Leopold | Oppenau | 1891 |
243281 | Busam, Bernhard | Rammersweier, Stadt Offenburg | 1856 |
243282 | Busam, Josef | Rammersweier, Stadt Offenburg | 1876 |
243283 | Busam, Michael | Rammersweier, Stadt Offenburg | 1855 |
281863 | Busam, Christian | Ulm, Stadt Lichtenau, RA | 1880 |
281864 | Busam, Josef | Ulm, Stadt Lichtenau, RA | 1854 |
282350 | Busam, Franz Josef | Ulm, Stadt Renchen | 1873 |
286370 | Busam, Anton | Urloffen, Gde. Appenweier | 1872 |
286801 | Busam, Anton | Urloffen, Gde. Appenweier | 1872 |
304033 | Busam, Bernhard | Zusenhofen, Stadt Oberkirch | 1864 |
304034 | Busam, Josef | Zusenhofen, Stadt Oberkirch | 1872 |
304035 | Busam, Sebastian | Zusenhofen, Stadt Oberkirch | 1854 |
304036 | Busam, Xaver | Zusenhofen, Stadt Oberkirch | 1865 |
304037 | Busam, Xaver | Zusenhofen, Stadt Oberkirch | 1851 |
304160 | Busam, Josef | Zusenhofen, Stadt Oberkirch | 1872 |
The area around Oberkirch, Baden, Germany is loaded with Busams. See my notes on my trips to the Oberkirch area to find my ancestor's origin (http://www.busam.com/MyBusamAncestors). There are also a number of Busams from Baden-Baden which is just a little north of the Oberkirch area. By the way, Oberkirch is just across the Rhine river from Strassbourg, France. There are reports of Busams having emigrated from the Alsace area of France, but the reports I have are only from verbal history and I haven't heard of any records substantiating these reports.
An April 2002 report from another researcher says "You bet there are Busam's in the Offenburg area!!! I have been going through the church records for Weingarten Cath. Church, and the Busam's were there for at least two hundred years, living in Rammersweier, Zell, Weierbach, and Fessenbach. It is a real drag going through those church records because of the German script and the use of Latin, but you sorta get used to it."
Origin of name and pronunciation
When I was visiting my great-grandfather's birthplace and family home (still in the Busam family), I asked Anton Busam, the keeper of the family tree, the origin of the name Busam. He said it was an ancient name and didn't know its origin. I told him that several people had suggested to me that it might be French in origin but he dismissed that idea. In Nussbach, they pronounce the name very much like boo-zam. My family (and several others who have written me) pronounce it bosom.
In September 1998, I received an email: "My name is Mathias Busam and I am from Germany. ... And we of course pronounce it the same way like they do [refer to Nussbach pronunciation, above]. We Busams from Zell-Weierbach did research a lot as well but we found out the origin name came from SOUTH TIROL in the 16th century, nowadays a part of Italy, we found this in old catholic church books, at least that's what I have heard years ago while talking to a cousin who did the family research. I don't think we Busams have French roots, really."
Click here to see a map of the Oberkirch/Nussbach area (113kb).
Click here to see some pictures from Oberkirch (78kb).
Please mail or (if possible) email updated information to:
Vincent A. Busam
15754 Adams Ridge
Los Gatos, CA 95033
email:
Please try to put your information in the same format as seen in the above table (check especially the entry for Bernhard Busam), it will save me time updating the table, especially if I can just cut-and-paste from an email. Please provide me with your contact information, including your email address and web page, if you have one.
I will not put your contact information on the web if you ask me not to. If you don't want your name on the web as a contact, please additionally let me know if you don't want me to give your name out to individuals that make specific requests about your ancestor or his family. I will respect your privacy.
I will also put information you send me (with your permission) on the web, if it is in computer readable format, e.g. an email attachment or PC diskette. (If you can put it in HTML page format, it will make things much easier for me.) I will link it off your ancestor's information above, as I did for my information. This will be a great way for genealogical information about Busam Immigrants and their decendents to be readily available to researchers.
If I can you can-decipher Germanic Records by Edna M. Bentz
84 pages...8 1/2 x 11..spiral bound. Contains samples of German and Danish
script...with many examples of how it is actually written. Many examples of words
as they appear in church records. A glossary of illnesses, occupations. A timeline with
space to enter your ancestors. $16.50 plus 3.50 pstge & pkg. Add 1.28 sales tax if you
are in California.
Edna M. Bentz
13139 Old West Avenue
San Diego, CA 92129-2406
619-484-1708
(Vince's note: I ran across this book years ago and ordered a copy for myself. I liked it so much I also bought a couple of other copies for good friends. If you have access to someone who can read and translate old German records, you might not find this book of much help. But if you have copies of old German records and are having trouble reading them, the information in this book might be just what you need. It has pages of samples of various ways the letters of the alphabet were written. It also has sections of words that are useful to know, such as relationship names, terminology and symbols, common abbreviations, etc.
Here is the name "Ignatz Busam" from the Nussbach church book for an 1841 baptism. Can you decipher this to be Ignatz Busam? )
Additional Busam Immigrant Information
From Mike Husmans genealogy researcher in Karlsruhe:
Busam emigration cases on file:
Joseph Busam, soldier, sneaked off in 1854, probably to America.
Johann Busam, unmarried, sneaked off in 1853.
Johann Busam has emigrated to America before 1853.
Ziriak Busam did not appear to the army in 1815.
Franz Busam, innkeeper, sneaked off to America in 1847.
Joseph Busam, day-labourer, and his family emigrate to North America in 1831.
Anton Busam emigrates to North America in 1852.
Bernhard Busam soldier, is absent in 1846 and 1854.
Franz Michael Busam, b. in 1827, absent soldier in 1849.
Joseph Busam deserted in 1854.
Sales Busam, b. in 1824, absent soldier in 1849.
Mathias Busam, b. in 1824, absend soldier in 1849.
Michael Busam and family emigrate to America in 1854.
Vince Busams research from Morman Church Family History Library microfilm:
Auswanderer Index (Emmigrant Index)
FHL Microfilm 1180095 (end of film)
This microfilm contains a typewritten list of names of people that left Germany in the 1800s. I believe these are all legal emmigrants. I didnt read every entry, but I think I got most of the Busams. The numbers seem to represent the year. "vor" means before. Numbers in parenthesis may be the number of emmigrants. The town names are in italic. Here goes:
page 8 on -
Herzthal* Busam, Bernh vor 70; Busam, Ant (4) vor 69
Hesselbach b/Oberkirch* Busam-Huber, Hel vor 75
Rammersweier Busam, Jos vor 76
Ulm b/Oberkirch* Busam, Franz Jos vor 73
page 118 on -
Butschbach Busam, Jaj 68
Haslach Busam, Joh 53
Herztal* Busam, Bernh 67; Jg 72; Lor (2)54; Stef 79
Lautenbach* Busam, Engelb 60 (could be 50), Jos 54
Oberkirch* Busam, Franz 63, Jg, Leop 53; Ludw 65
(one set of notes also shows the following two names, another
doesnt)
Christ Jg Leop 49; Luwd 54
Oppenau Busam, Ant 51; leop 91
Ulm b/Oberkirch* Busam, Jos 54
Zusenhofen* Busam, Bernh(?) 64, Jos 72, Seb 54, H. ? (7)65, H (11)51
On an index card earlier on the microfilm was
Urloffen* Busam, Anton 1872
(Sorry if this is cryptic, but I tried to copy it as best I could read it. The microfilm was quite dark. All of the towns whose name I recognize are in the Oberkirch area - I have marked them with an asterisk. Also, some names appear to be duplicated between the two different lists.)
Extracts from Filbys Series of Books "Germans to America" about the Busam family (from Mike Husman)
22 Jan 1866 Ship "Atalanta" fm Bremen to NY:
BUSAM, Wilh 28 Shoemaker Baden
Franziska 58
Marianne 30
Theresa 22
Franziska 20
Franz 15
Juliane 4
Franziska .09
25 Apr 1872 Ship "Helvetia" Havre to London to NY
BUSAM, Anton 24 laborer Baden
12 Aug 1864 Ship "Frothingham" Havre to NY
BUSAM, Anton 24 laborer Baden
24 Jan 1857 Ship "Wurtenburg" Havre to N. Orleans
BUSAM, Bernard 45
Johann 44
Sophie 15
George 14
Monica 8
Helena 6
12 Sep 1853 Ship "Elvira Owen" Havre to NY
BUSAM, Leopold 16 Baden
.. Sep 1865 Ship "Atal
" Havre-London-NY
BUSAM, Ludwig 18 farmer Baden
15 Aug 1854 Ship "Admiral" Havre to NY
BUSAM, Joesph 27 farmer Baden
Cecile 20 Baden
And I (Vince) found my great-grandfather:
31 Jan 1868 Ship "Cella" Havre and London to NY
BUSSAM, Bernard 25 Farmer Baden (destination New York)
(His name is Bernhard Busam, the age is correct and from Auswander
records he left in 1867, so I am confident this is him.)