Martha Jane Reese Schwartz

Martha is one of the four sisters of my great-grandfather, Amos Reese (the other three are Elizabeth, Florence, and Gladys). I had information from someone I met on Ancestry that she died in Carteret, NJ in 1940. I wanted to find her burial place, so I ordered a copy of her death certificate. Turns out it's the wrong Martha Schwartz.

Mine was born in Hazleton, PA in 1874 to Benjamin and Sarah Jane (Wildman) Reese and was married to Philip Arthur Schwartz.

The Martha Schwartz who died in NJ in 1940 was born in March 1878 in Hungary. Her parents' names are listed as "unknown." She was married to Samuel Schwartz, who pre-deceased her. She was survived by her daughter Mrs. Daisy Pearl from Perth Amboy, and buried in Baron Hirsch Cemetery in New York. I've created a listing for her at Find-A-Grave.

And the moral of this story is: never take anything from another genealogist at face value, even if they seem like they know a lot about this person. I'm sure my source searched just enough to find the death listing, but never took the step to verify that it was actually the right person. So it's back to the drawing board for me, concerning Martha.

One odd note: the State of New Jersey blocked out the section listing the cause and place of death when they made me the copy. I wonder why? I've ordered several death certificates from PA, and I've never had that happen.