George M. Waltz was the youngest son of Christianus Walz and Barbara Maurer.  He was born in Riedseltz, Alsace, France on March 1, 1798.  I previously thought that George was born in Strasbourg, because that is what he listed on his "Declaration of Intention" papers in the United States, but I have located him in the Riedseltz records which were microfilmed by the LDS Church.  Riedseltz is a much smaller village, not too far from Strasbourg--maybe George listed it because it was the closest larger city that people might recognize.  Also, George did NOT list Strasbourg as his city of birth on his "Petition for Naturalization" papers, but rather listed himself as a  "native of the Province of Wissembourg in France"--and Riedseltz lies within the Province of Wissembourg.

It was in this village that he met his future wife, Marie Anne Catherine Heintz, born December 14, 1796.  After arrival in the United States, she spelled her name as "Catharine Hines."  Catherine was the daughter of Jacques Heintz and Marie Eve Buckenmeyer. 

George and Catherine were married in Riedseltz on September 18, 1824.  Although they were citizens of France, they both spoke German.  Riedseltz was a Catholic village.  The family attended St. Jacques Church in Riedseltz.  The same church building is still standing today. 

NOTE:  Please click here to view the web site that I am creating on the village of Riedseltz.  You will find many interesting facts and photos of the area.

They had three children while still living in France:

I learned from the Groupement Généalogique du Havre et de Seine Maritime (GGHSM) that this family emigrated to the United States from the French port of Le Havre on April 19, 1831.  The departure record stated that the ship was headed for Baltimore, but it did not give the name of the vessel.  Unfortunately, Baltimore's records at this time were very spotty, and do not contain  passenger ship lists for any of the vessels entering Baltimore in 1831--so to date, I have been unable to determine the name of the ship or the date they arrived in Baltimore.  I did learn, however, that during this time period, the voyage took anywhere between one and two months to complete.  The departure record from GGHSM also gave George's age as 32 years, which differs from the age he had on his naturalization papers.  However, this age agrees with the age listed as his birth date in the Riedseltz records.   The record also states that traveling with him were his wife, two children, and a servant.  (The listing of a "servant" was a bit of a surprise for me, and I still have no idea of who that might have been.)

Le Havre

I do not believe that the Waltz family stayed in Baltimore for any length of time.  According to the Cyclopedia of Cambria County, after arriving in the United States, the family first lived in Hollidaysburg, Huntingdon County, PA, (this area became Blair County in 1846), where George was employed in a warehouse. While in France, he had learned the trade of a carpenter, and during his residence in Hollidaysburg he assisted in the building of the first bridge across the Juniata River at Hollidaysburg.

Soon after he came to this country he purchased a farm in Chest Township, from Mr. McConnell.   He moved his family there once, but they only stayed there a short time, and returned to their former home in Hollidaysburg.  By 1841 the family had permanently moved to the farm in Chest Township. 

George and Catherine had seven children in total:

I located this family in the 1840 census in Huntingdon County, in the Borough of Hollidaysburg.  Their name was incorrectly spelled as "Walts."  (only George's name is listed on the census, as it was the practice in the 1840 census to only list the name of the head of household.)

I located this family in the 1850 census, Cambria County, White Township, Reel No. 761, page no. 1-B, enumerated July 20th by Henry Cook (note:  In 1853, Chest Twp. was formed from Susquehanna & White Twp. and in 1858 Chest Springs Boro was formed from Allegheny & Chest Twp.) The family name was incorrectly spelled as "Watz."  The following family members were listed: George, age 53, male, farmer, val. 200, birthplace Germany; Catherine, age 53 female, birthplace Germany, Catherine, age 21, female, birthplace Germany; John, age 23, male, laborer, birthplace Germany; Michael, age 15, male, birthplace PA, attended school within the year; George, age 13, male, birthplace PA, attended school within the year; Jacob, age 9, male, birthplace PA, attended school within the year.

I also located the Waltz farm in the 1850 agricultural census. In July of 1850, George Waltz was living on his farm in White Township.  He had a total of 100 acres, 20 of which were "improved."  The cash value of his farm was listed as $200 and the value of the farming implements and machinery was $25.  He owned 3 milk cows, 2 working oxen and 4 other cattle.  There were also 8 sheep and 6 pigs.  The total value of the live stock was listed as $114.  During the previous year, the Waltz farm produced:  50 bushels of wheat, 52 bushels of rye, 10 bushels of Indian corn, 15 pounds of wool, 210 bushels of Irish potatoes, 70 bushels of buckwheat, 25 pounds of butter, 10 tons of hay, and 4 bushels of clover seed.  The value of animals that were slaughtered was listed as $32 (although, this number was difficult to read, so may be incorrect.)

George filed his "Declaration of Intentions" on December 6, 1852, and his "Petition for Naturalization" on June 2, 1856.  Jacob Kline & Valentine Yoner signed for George on his Petition for Naturalization.  [Copies of both of these documents are available in the "Waltz Documents" section of this site.]

Only George and Catharine were listed for the family in the 1860 Census, living in Cambria County, Chest Township, microfilm #M653-1088.  This was enumerated August 20, 1860 by James Murray. (Written page 241, line 28, dwelling 1691, family 1693).  George listed himself as  60 years old, a farm laborer with a personal value of 250, born in France.  Catherine was listed as 62 years old, also born in France.  Their son, John, and his family were listed as living in a separate home in Chest Township on this same census page. 

George is listed in the 1861 Chest Township Tax List:
WALTZEY, George: 1 cow

Only George (age 73) was listed in the 1870 census for Cambria County, Chest Springs Borough, Roll 1317, page 136.  Catharine died in 1874, so she should have been listed, but wasn't.  Perhaps she was ill and moved in with one of their children so that they could take care of her - I still need to pursue this further.  Also, George is now listed as living in Chest Springs Borough (instead of Chest Township), so he must have moved to be near his son, Michael.

It is interesting to note that not only did their birth country change over the years of the various censuses, but also their birth dates changed!

Catharine died on March 31, 1874 and George died on November 11, 1878.  They are buried in St. Benedict Roman Catholic Cemetery, Carrolltown, PA.