• 2011: Discovered that my father, Harold Stotzer, had a third brother Ernst or Earnest that passed away at age six months in 1909.
• 2010: Discovered that my grandfather, Gottlieb Stotzer, had a cause of death of: "strangulation, suicide" and had been arrested a few weeks before his death for chasing the family doctor around with a gun!
• Swiss Stotzer Family Trees Received and Uploaded in March 2003! Around 1955, a Mr. Theodor von Lerber was commissioned to research parts of the Stotzer family in Switzerland by members of our family. The results of his work were at least eight large, graphical family trees (download or view a sample (800+KB) and various other research documents. Recently, many of my Swiss Stotzer "distant cousins" and I contributed money to buy the above family trees and supporting data from Mr. von Lerber's daughter, Elisabeth. I'm pleased to report that this priceless family data was ceremonially turned over to the city of Büren an der Aare on May 27, 2003 for safe-keeping and public access in the city archives (See contact information below). I also entered all the family data into my computer using "FamilyTreeMaker" software (latest version = FTM 2012). I uploaded the data in the form of a 3+MB GED files to RootsWeb WorldConnect on 3/31/2003. The Stotzer family tree data of Mr. Von Lerber's research covers the various US and Swiss Stotzer groups as follows:

Von Lerber Stotzer Family Tree Number/Description	Stotzers or Stotzer Groups shown on this tree	Notes
1/"Zweig des Emanuel, 1802-1873" Download this Family Tree (700KB) Download Color Version (1.2MB) To download: Right click on the link. Choose "Save File as.." or "Save Link as.." Save it on your hard drive.	Nicole Stotzer's Swiss Group NOTE: The downloadable copies of the trees are large. Use the zoom in feature of your grpahics program to view the details!	Note: Trees 1, 2 and 3 share a common ancestor: Jakob Stotzer b.abt.1660-1670 who married (m.) an Elisabeth Bader Connects to tree 5 via this marriage: Alexander Stotzer b. 1843 (tree 2) married Maria Luise Stotzer b.1846 (tree 5). Connects to tree 8 via this ancestor: Jakob Stotzer b.1769 d.1841.
2/"Zweig des Rudolph, 1773-1849" Download this Tree (1.0MB)	US Cleveland, Ohio, Pennsylvania/New Jersey Groups plus the "Stetchers" of Chicago.	Same as above note. Also connects to the Illinois/Wisconsin (I/W) group via this marriage: John Stotzer (I/W) with Edith Owen (tree 2) from the PA/NJ group.
3/"Zweig des Rudolph, 1772-1848" Download this Tree (1.2MB)	US Texas Group	Same as above note. Also connects to tree number 6 below via this marriage: Ernst Rudolph Stotzer b.1887 (tree 3) married Anna Stotzer b.1886 (tree 6).
4/"Zweig des Joh. Jakob, 1759-1821" Download this Tree (1.6MB)	US New York Group	No connection to others trees yet.
5/"Zweig des Rudolph, 1751-1817" Download this Tree (1.5MB)	US Archbold and Ottawa, Ohio plus Willy Stotzer's Swiss Family Groups	Connection to Trees 1-3 via this marriage: Alexander Stotzer (tree 2) b.1843 married Maria Luise Stotzer (tree 5) b.1846
6/"Zweig des Samuel, 1796-1869" Download this Tree (1.5MB)	All Swiss family members-no USA	Connects to tree number 3 above via this marriage: Ernst Rudolph Stotzer b.1887 (tree 3) married Anna Stotzer b.1886 (tree 6).
7/Unnamed Download Tree 2 above (See Notes--->>)	All Swiss family members-no USA	The data on this tree is a subset of what is contained in tree 2 above.
8/Unnamed Download this Tree (Soon!)	US Mineral City, Ohio Group	Connects to trees 1-3 via this ancestor: Jakob Stotzer b.1769 d.1841.
NA/NA Download this Tree (Soon!)	US Illinois/Wisconsin (I/W) Group plus the Iowa "Stotsers"	There is no von Lerber Stotzer family tree or data for this the US Illinois/Wisconsin Group. This group, however, connects to tree 2 (PA/NJ) via this marriage: John Stotzer (I/W) with Edith Owen from the PA/NJ group.

• Notes about the possible origin and spellings of the surname STOTZER:
  • The earliest STOTZER on record found so far is: "Hans der Stotzer" born 1395 or 1396 in Rottweil, Germany.
  • The STOTZER surname can be found back into the 1500s in both Germany and Switzerland. For now we assume we share a common family heritage that probably began in what is now Germany.
  • The STOTZER surname may be descended from earlier (12th-14th Century) German surnames like STUCSE, STUZER and STÜTZER (STUETZER)-Please visit the German website of Dr. Andreas Stützer for more details.
  • Today, STOTZER seems to be the common Swiss/US spelling of the name while STÖTZER is the the most common German spelling.
  • Those that can't type an umlaut (the two dots over the "O") spell STÖTZER as STOETZER in typewritten correspondence.
  • One branch of the STOTZERs in the US that settled in Iowa changed their last name to STOTSER while another group in connected to the Cleveland group changed the name to STETCHER for unknown reasons back in Chicago in the mid-1800s.
  • Lastly, Some official records also misspell the name (or get the surname mixed up with the names) STOZER, STOLZER, STOTZELL, and STATZER
• Stotzer Research Goals: See the Research Notes page.
  • Discover the family links between the all the US/Swiss Stotzer groups shown on these pages. Status: In work-see the Missing Links page.
  • Trace the origin of the Stotzer surname in Europe. Status: In Work-need help over in Switzerland to search old records. See the Unresolved Issues page.
• Stotzers or Stotzer descendants heard from that have provided useful information in my research:
  • Via EMail (If you change your email address please let me know!): Csaba Stotzer from Hungary (traces his ancestors back to Germany in the 1800s); Sylviane Stotzer (French only) from Geneva, Switzerland; Willy Stotzer, Martin Stotzer, and Dorothea Stotzer from Bern, Switzerland; Susan Stotzer Null from Texas; Bruce Stotser from Iowa; Sandy and Beatriz Olvera Stotzer from Los Angeles, California; Andreas Stötzer from Benshausen, Germany; Peter Stotzer from Australia; Marc-André Stotzer from Clarens, Switzerland; Robin Roberts from Holly Hills, Florida; Franz Stotzer and Christoph Stotzer from Büren an der Aare, Switzerland; Helen Stotzer from La Chau-x-de-Fonds, Switzerland; Nicole Stotzer from Solothurn, Switzerland, Gaston Edgardo Alegre Stotzer from Argentina, Magnus Zetterberg from Sweden, Jerilyn Lewis Ormsby (Stotser ancestor) from Spooner, Wisconsin, Charlotte Soderblad frm Sweden.
  • In person or via regular mail/telephone: Sam Stotzer from Saratoga, California; Heidi Stotzer from Bern, Switzerland; Adolph Stotzer from Büren an der Aare, Switzerland; Mildred Stotzer from Elizabeth, New Jersey; Fred Stotzer from Star Lake, New York; Mary Jeanette Stotzer from Pewaukee, Wisconsin; Walter W. Stotzer, Fritz Stotzer and Aline Stotzer Gribi from Mineral City, Ohio; Don Stotser from Huntsville, Alabama; Stevens Stotzer from Sister Bay, Wisconsin; Edward Campbell from Whiting, New Jersey; Betty Kness from Iowa Falls, Iowa; Robert P. Stotzer from Altus, Oklahoma; Robert G. Stotzer from Durant, Oklahoma; Albert J. Stotzer III from Winnemucca; Nevada; Jane Brownell Clement from Troy, Ohio; and Jack Konig from Key West, Florida
• A note to all those who submitted their entire Stotzer family tree data: I have not entered all the family members down to the latest child or grandchild into the family trees on these pages. Once I make the main Stotzer group connections, I will enter the remainng family members. I hope to someday enter all the names/dates into a family tree program to later distribute to all those interested in keeping the data on their computer and updating it later for their Stotzer family.
• Special Thanks to:
  • Willy, the other Stotzers from Switzerland and Monica Laubscher, Brigitte Fellmann from the City of Büren an der Aare archives office for all their help and support in acquiring the above noted Stotzer family trees and supporting data in 2003.
  • Mr. Gustav Wehrli and Mr. Theodor von Lerber, both professional Swiss genealogists (sadly both are now deceased) for their extensive Stotzer family research work in the past.

• Here is a page of internet links to the best Genealogical Search Sites
• Also try the International White and Yellow Pages website
• City of Büren an der Aare:
  • For Swiss/Stotzer family histories back to the mid-1700s, contact the "civil records office" in Büren an der Aare (In German or English). Ask for a "Familienschein" of the person you are looking for.
  • The heraldic citizens of Büren (like Stotzer): www.bg-bueren.ch
  • The city's website is: http://www.bueren.ch.
  • Email Brigitte Fellmann the city archives office: [email protected]
  • The regular mailing address is:
  Burgergemeinde Büren
  Burgerschreiber
  Rathaus
  CH-3294 Büren an der Aare
  Switzerland

• Canton Bern:
  • For Swiss/Stotzer family histories before the mid-1700s you have to contact the State Archives of Canton Bern in Bern (the capitol of Switzerland) look for links to "Staatsarchiv" then "Familienwappen."
  • Homepage: http://www.sta.be.ch
  • Email: [email protected].
  • The regular mailing address is:
  Staatsarchiv des Kanton Bern
  Abt. Geneologie
  Falkenplatz 4
  CH-3012 Bern

• Family Tree Software-is used to enter family trees and detailed information into your computer or read Gedcom (*.GED) or Family Tree (*.FTM) files on your computer.
  • Family Tree Maker (FTM) latest version is "FTM2005." May be the best selling family tree program for Windows.
  • Brothers Keeper Free! You can use this to read the above GED files. You can also download it here (2.7MB)

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