German immigrant; settled in Russell, Kansas, a wheat farmer who also bought land from struggling railroad-era settlers.
Naming history. 2. Spencer then stated directly that his name was John Woelk. 3. Two independent pieces of evidence then surfaced, both pointing back to "Christian," not "John," as Leila's actual father: (a) Wölk v. Wölk, 174 Kan. 130, 254 P.2d 297 (Kan. Sup. Ct. 1953) — a freely-readable probate case naming a Christian Woelk of Russell County, Kansas (d. Sept. 22, 1932, owning "two sections of land" there) as father of Leila F. Woelk Shawhan, with a separate son John Woelk (d. 1949); (b) Spencer's own Ancestry.com family tree, which independently shows Christian F. Woelk (1852-1932) m. Emma E. Smyser (1855-1959) as Leila's parents, and John Clare Woelk (1888-1949) as one of Leila's siblings — matching the court case's John Woelk almost exactly (same death year, 1949). I thought it was Christian but it is not that way in Ancestry.") that his earlier "John Woelk" statement was his own mistake — Christian Woelk is the father, John (Clare) Woelk is Leila's brother.
Life events
- 1852Born, Germany
- (year unknown) — Too small/young to be accepted into the German army; emigrated
- (year unknown) — Settled in Russell, Kansas, drawn by suitability for wheat farming
- early 1900sBought land in Russell County from settlers unable to make a living after railroad troubles; kept the two sections without oil after later selling the rest
- 22 Sep 1932Died, Russell County, Kansas
Sources
- Spencer S. Shawhan’s Ancestry.com family tree
- Wölk v. Wölk, 174 Kan.
- History and Genealogy of the Shawhan and Related Families