Ken Carstens, Carstens Family Papers, 1843-[2022] (Scattered), and undated

Summary

Creator:

Castens, Kenneth Charles.

Abstract:

This is an extended family collection collected by Ken "Casey" Carstens, documenting his Carstens, Raney, Bloch, and Wicke family members.

Extent:

6.25 cubic ft. (in 7 boxes, 1 Oversized Volume)

Language:

English

Authors:

Collection processed and finding aid created by M. Black, E. Uzarski, Marian Matyn

Background

Scope and Content:

This is an extended family collection collected by Ken “Casey” Carstens, documenting his Carstens, Raney, Bloch, and Wicke family members. The collection is in original order, divided by series by the names of families, couples, or individuals and then by size, alphabetically, and chronologically. Materials in the collection include textual and photographic materials. Textual materials include letters and emails, vital records, family trees, reunion materials, information from Ancestery.com, and U.S. service members’ documents. Books in the collection include family Bibles with family history written into them, religious texts, family histories, and books documenting the history of non-Michigan areas and people related to the family’s history. Photographic materials include photographs, negatives, photograph albums, scrapbooks, and audio and video recordings in several formats. There are also drawings by family members, including children. Some of the materials are in German, which is noted in the folder labels.

Series in the collection include: Anna and William Carstens Scrapbooks; Calvin and Dottie Carstens Scrapbooks and Photograph Albums; Calvin Z. “Cal” Carstens papers; William John Carstens, Jr. papers; Ranney and Bloch families materials; William and Anna Carstens and their family papers: Anna Wicke Carstens papers; Ernestine Wick papers; Rev. Heinrich Wicke papers; Marie Wicke papers; and Elizabeth Vandevoord papers.

Anna and William Carstens Scrapbooks:

There are three volumes of scrapbooks, 1986-1992. Each volume contains family photographs primarily of their children Calvin, Robert, Aldor, William, Delores, Marjorie, and Edwin; of World War I and early twentieth century baseball, newspaper clippings, postcards, and other topics. Photographs are well documented and identified. Volume pages were removed from binders and foldered during archival processing.

Calvin and Dottie Carstens Scrapbooks and Photograph Albums

There are four volumes of scrapbooks and three volumes of photograph albums. The scrapbooks span 1920 to 1960. Each volume contains family photographs primarily of Cal and Dottie and their children Mike, Ken (Casey), and Diane, with newspaper clippings, postcards. The photograph albums span 1985-1986 and 1996-1999. These volumes contain family photographs in Michigan and Cal and Dottie’s travels in the U.S., to Washington University (where Ken earned his master’s and Ph.D.), the Grand Canyon, and the Pacific Northwest. Photographs in scrapbooks and albums are well identified and annotated by Ken Carstens and family. Volume pages were removed from binders and foldered during archival processing.

Calvin Z. “Cal” Carstens papers:

Many materials in this series relate to the history of Cal’s life and the family histories he created in the late 1990s, with related materials. This series includes four diaries, 1939-2016, with the exception of most of 1944. The diary entries are mostly daily, but become more scattered in later years, and describe Cal’s daily life. These diaries were later turned into a multi-volume family history about Cal and Dottie’s lives with many photographs from throughout their lives. Other compiled histories include one volume about Cal’s parents, a three-page history of Pinconning railroads, and a history of Jonathan “Zeno” Theodore Carstens’ life given to Cal by his children. Digital copies of some of these compiled histories are in Box 7. There are copies of news clippings about Cal’s fifteenth mission, the opening of Sportsmen’s Airfield, Cal rescuing ice fishermen from an ice float, photographs of Carstens veterans, a photograph of Cal Carstens, his siblings, and classmates at Rhodes School, and Al Hoffman, a Michigan pilot and good friend of Cal. The series also includes several other bibliographic materials for several people. These include a copy of Cal’s Baptismal record, two church records for Wilhelm Johann Carstens in German, Edwin “Jack” John Carstens’ obituary and a church bulletin from the funeral, and Michael “Mike” Robert Carstens’ obituary and a police report about his death. There is also correspondence to Cal and Dottie, including letters from the Carstens’ old family friends from Rhodes, giving recollections of the 1920s and 1930s to help Cal with his research and from a Norwegian friend who visited Pinconning in 1965, recalling her visit with the Carstens. This series also contains two CD audio recordings of conversations between Cal and his parents. There are also many family photographs, primarily 1980s-1990s. Additional photographs are on the VHS tape.

The 1989 VHS videotape of 1950-1989 Carstens family slides includes color slides of Dottie, Cal, Ken (Casey), and Mike from San Antonio, Texas, the base, planes, family activities, swimming, parades, hunting, fishing, canoeing, archery, caverns, parties, picnics, holidays, local events, and the birth of their sister, Diane, who is then documented in the rest of the slides. The rest of the slides are mostly in Pinconning with lots of snow scenes and winter activities, with extended family, family and local events, including church, Christmas, birthdays, First Communion, high school graduation, CMU Commencement and images inside CMU Museum, Ken’s archaeology presentation display, family trips to Mackinaw, Tahquamenon Falls, Niagara Falls, Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox, Hartwick Pines in Grayling, and Detroit Tigers games. The video ends with the boys’ dates, engagements, weddings, and grandbabies. Additionally, there is a 2-volume CD set recording of the VHS tape.

The June 2024 addition to the collection includes wedding CDs, Kenneth “Casey” Carstens’ sister, Diane, and his son, Jason. Diane’s CD is an audio recording and Jason’s CD is still photographs.

William John Carstens, Jr. papers:

Materials in this series are mostly related to William John Carstens, Jr. and some to Ken and David Carstens. There are several handmade and printed school graduation bulletins from William’s middle and high schools. His World War II service is documented by a photograph album and honorable discharge card, several individual photographs, and many items in the oversized scrapbook. His Flight Record and Log Book are a record of his flight dates and locations as a private pilot and contains a photograph of a biplane. Materials documenting his time playing baseball as a pitcher in the NEML, include several photographs, a newspaper clipping, and many items in the scrapbook. In 1964, William was temporarily stranded on an ice float in Saginaw Bay. There are a few newspaper clippings about the event and it is retold in his Magline employee of the month article. There is a photograph of William’s son, David Carstens, while in military service. There is a newspaper clipping about Ken Carstens, nephew of William, and his involvement in the creation of an archaeology program at CMU. A letter from Casey [Ken Carstens] to Uncle Bill [William] from July 19, 1992, contains two stone projectile points.

Ranney and Bloch families materials:

This series contains materials related to the Ranney and Bloch families. Many of the materials were found and compiled by Ken Carstens, who was researching genealogy for his mother, Dorothy “Dottie” (Bloch) Carstens. Her mother was Maria (Ranney) Bloch. Some of the materials in this series are print offs from genealogical research websites such as Ancestry.com and Find A Grave.

For Dottie’s 90th birthday, Ken and his siblings gifted her a Ranney Family History. It covers 11 generations back to Thomas Ranney (1578-1650). The History contains an opening letter from Ken, a history of English Puritans and their relocation to North America, a chronology and genealogy of the Ranney line, a history of several American Revolutionary War battles (Bunker Hill, White Plains, and Saratoga) that a Ranney ancestor may have fought in, a history of the ship Oliver Cromwell on which Amos Ranney served as the assistant carpenter, a history of the 23rd Michigan Infantry in which William E. Ranney (Dottie’s grandfather) served, newspaper clippings about Clyde E. Ranney (Dottie's father) being in trouble for illegal gambling in 1940, and annotated family photographs, which may be copies from Cal’s compiled family history books.

Dottie Carstens material in the series are her high school yearbook, a copy of her diploma, a booklet from her fiftieth-year high school reunion, and materials related to her Daughters of the American Revolution application and membership. The Carstens had spent several years applying for membership for Dottie using Amos Ranney (Sr.) as her ancestral link to the war. A letter from Ken to Dottie showed excitement at the prospect of the application being accepted soon and noted that they were the first from Amos’ lineage to apply (in other words, Amos Ranney was new to the D.A.R.’s records). Ultimately, Dottie gained membership through her ancestor Moses Hawley. There are also family photographs of Dottie, Marie, Emil Bloch, and their families.

Marie (Ranney) Bloch materials include a letter from Arnie and Marion to Dottie and Cal about how Marie’s U.S. citizenship was obtained and the family’s connection to Germany and Kurland, a brief history of Marie written by Dottie, a CD and Cassette recordings of Marie playing the piano, her death certificate, obituary, and a funeral card. The CD recording can be accessed with Windows Media Player Legacy.

Bloch family genealogical materials are a copy of a ship manifest from the vessel Emil Bloch traveled to the United States on and a couple CDs containing Bloch family photographs and the emails they were sent with from Micheal Field to Cal and Ken Carstens. The files on these CDs are Outlook files and can be accessed with Outlook.

Ranney family genealogical materials include family print outs from the Find A Grave website about Thomas Ranney I, Thomas Ranney II, John Ranney I, and Amos Ranney (Jr.); a copy of the obituary for George E. Ranney who was a prominent doctor in Lansing, MI, three records from Ancestry.com about Nathaniel Ranney, records from Ancestry.com on Amos Ranney (Sr.) including basic genealogical information from family histories, birth records, and federal census data, several Revolutionary War service records of his involvement with Connecticut’s first battalion state regiment and the fifth company in the ninth Connecticut battalion, a death record for his wife listed as “Mrs. Ranney,” copies from Ancestry.com of correspondence between Charles Adams and The Bureau of Pensions concerning Amos’ war pension, and genealogical information about Andrew Ranney, the son of famous painter Willaim Ranney, from Ancestry.com and the 1880 federal census. The series also contains parts A and B of ‘Middletown Upper Houses’ by Charles Collard Adams which contains genealogical information on the Ranneys which was used by Ken during his research.

Five books about the artworks of famous painter William Ranney (1813-1857) and a CD of Lisa playing Christmas Carols on a piano in 1983 and 1985 complete this series. The CD can be accessed using Windows Media Player Legacy.

William and Anna Carstens and their family papers:

This series contains materials related to William and Anna Carstens and their family. Biographical information about them comes from their funeral cards, William’s obituary, Anna’s written recollections of her youth from birth to young adulthood, and a 1914 postcard she wrote to her mother in German. There are newspaper clippings about William and Anna’s 50th wedding anniversary and William’s bowling association. There are several photographs of the pair, William’s General Store, his World War I medals, his baseball team, and Anna’s childhood home. There is a genealogy of their family, compiled by their grandson Ken Carstens, with materials he gathered in creating it. Among these materials are: a plat map of William’s father’s 80-acre farm, genealogical information about William and Anna’s son, Jonathan “Zeno” Carstens, family history forms that relatives mailed to Ken, a letter to Ken from a German researcher about the Carstens family’s history in Germany, a family tree and several photographs of the Bloch family that were emailed to Ken’s mother from her cousin, a Wicke family tree, Fred Rohr’s obituary, family wedding invitations and baby announcements, newspaper articles about William’s brother Otto and William’s grandson Mike, and family photographs with people in them identified. There is also correspondence to Ken from relatives about family history and creating a bench memorial for William and Anna Carstens in Pinconning.

Anna Wicke Carstens papers:

This series documents Anna Wicke Carstens and her husband, William (Bill) Carstens Sr. Photographs of Anna, William, Marie Ranna, Grandfather William with Grandmother Ida, daughter Ida, and the old Rhodes schoolhouse are included. Personal correspondence to Anna are written in German. Additional correspondence concerns a park bench memorial for both Anna and William Carstens in their native town of Pinconning, planned by their grandson, Ken Carstens. Anna’s obituary and memorial guestbook, William Carsten’s obituary, and selected pages from Bentley Township Centennial 1892-1992 about the Carstens family home, Carstens store, Rhodes schoolhouse, and registered Carsten voters in the 1892-1919 period complete the series. A CD of the full Bentley Township Centennial 1892-1992 is in Box 7.

Ernestine Wick papers:

This series contains the drawings and poetry collections of Ernestine Wicke, her Im Kreise der Kinder book, and writings. Also included are Wicke family, Merle family, and Keller family photographs and a marriage license for Gustav Keller and Anna Martha Wicke Keller.

Rev. Heinrich Wicke papers:

This series documents the Reverend and his family via Bibles, journals, letters, poems, and assorted writings. Materials that are in German are so noted on the folders. The series is organized alphabetically and chronologically. The books, Die Bibel and Die heilige Schrift, both contain family history. His Writings and Muses was translated from the original German into an English booklet by his great-grandson Ken Carstens, as a gift to Ken’s father, Cal Carstens. A CD of Wicke/Merle family history provides more insight into the family. Some of the Bible Passages booklet pages are covered in tape and very acidic.

Marie Wicke papers:

Materials in this series mainly relate to Marie Wicke, with some folders documenting her daughters, Elizabeth and Ernestine, as well as more general family information. This series includes Marie’s Obituary and Memorial Guestbook, a Carsten’s family Forget-Me-Not book (in German, and a German Hymn book given to the family by a friend. The majority of her papers are in the form of letters written in German by her brother, Fritz Merle. Also included in this series are other Wicke family letters, photographs, books, obituaries, memory cards, and memory books.

Elizabeth Vandevoord papers:

This series contains Elizabeth (Wicke) Vandevoord’s correspondence with her mother, other scattered correspondence, a photograph, handwritten prayers, obituaries, memory cards, and a family photograph.

Processing Notes:

During processing approximately 3 cubic feet of peripheral and miscellaneous material, duplicate photographs, and objects were withdrawn from the collection and transferred to the CMU Museum. Nine titles were separately cataloged. Books which related to non-Michigan family history were retained within the boxes of the collection.

Biographical / Historical:

Biography:

Calvin "Cal" Zeno Carstens:

Calvin (“Cal”) Zeno Carstens (April 17, 1920 – June 22, 2021) was born to William and Anna Carstens in Rhodes, Michigan. As a boy he helped at the family general store and developed a life-long love for the outdoors. He was a disciplined journal writer; his journals span 1938 to 2016. Later in life, he turned these journals into a multi-volume family history full of family photographs. He enjoyed playing baseball and was a fantastic pitcher like his father. Cal was scouted by several professional teams like the Detroit Tigers, but he ended up signing a minor league contract with the Cincinnati Reds. However, he cut his baseball career short when he enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Corps the summer before the Pearl Harbor attack. He became a first lieutenant and B-17 pilot with the 97th Bomb Group of the 414th Bomb Squadron and is credited with 51 missions during his overseas duty, 1943-1944. After the war ended, Cal settled in Pinconning, Michigan with his wife Dottie. The couple had married on November 23, 1943, before Cal’s deployment. Cal and his family created Pinconning’s first airport, Sportsmen’s Field, in Saginaw Bay. Cal worked many jobs, including as a private pilot, as a crop duster, a professional photographer, and a school bus driver. He returned to the military as a flight instructor at Randolph Field/Lackland AFB in San Antonio, Texas, during the Korean War. After the war, he worked for Magline, Inc. After retiring in 1985, he spent time with family, traveling, and caring for f his fruit trees. He worshiped with Dottie at St. John’s Lutheran Church for most of his adult life. Later, he moved to Midland, but continued to be ministered by his Pinconning pastor. He was preceded in death by his wife of 77 years, Dorothy (Dottie); his parents, his elder son, Michael Robert Carstens; and his siblings. Cal died in 2021 and was survived by his children Kenneth, Diane (Robert) Tomczak, and his grandchildren.

Ken "Casey" Carstens:

Kenneth Charles “Casey” Carstens (February 12, 1949-) grew up in Pinconning, Michigan. He began playing as a baseball pitcher in his teens. From 1963 to 1969, Ken, like his grandfather, father, and uncle, played in the Northeastern Michigan Baseball League (NEML). The NEML existed between 1916 and 1986 and consisted of advanced sandlot, college ball, and professional baseball players from around northeastern Michigan. Ken attended Central Michigan University (CMU) on a baseball scholarship. However, during his sophomore year he injured his throwing arm and had to give up pitching. Ken had an interest in anthropology and archaeology since he was ten when his father gave him a cigar box full of arrowheads found at the family airport. By 1963, Ken began collaborating with teams of archaeologists from the University of Michigan. In 1969 CMU only had two anthropology courses and neither were about archaeology. Ken sought assistance from CMU President William Boyd who eventually hired archaeologist Karen Chavez (A.B.D., Penn). Ken also worked with Dr. Hal Mahan, the first Director of the CMU Center for Cultural and Natural History, as Mahan built the museum and had the first archaeological field school at the Lalone site in Arenac County. At the Michigan Academy of Sciences, Ken was the first CMU undergraduate to present a paper and published the paper in The Michigan Archaeologist. Also, as an undergraduate, he published a report on the Museum’s second archaeological field school at the Tobico Site in Bay County. In 1971 Ken graduated from CMU. He next earned his M.A. and Ph.D. under Professor Patty Jo Watson at Washington University-St. Louis. The pair co-developed the first floatation recovery machine for archaeological research and published results of their work in the book Of Caves and Shell Mounds (UA Press/Tuscaloosa, 1996). Copies of this book and two others authored or co-authored by Ken are available in the Clarke Historical Library. Ken took his first academic position at Northern Kentucky University in 1976 and two years later took the directorship of the anthropology and archaeology programs at Murray State University. He retired from Murray State University in 2007 with Professor Emeritus status, but continued to teach web-based anthropology and world history courses at the university until 2016. In 2016, he took a per course faculty position at Missouri State University in Springfield. Between 1971 and 1976, while on active duty with the U.S. Air Force, he played as a catcher for an Air Force fast-pitch softball team during the spring of 1972. In 2022, Ken was inducted into NEML’s Hall of Fame. In 2024 Ken visited the Clarke. Besides being a highly respected archaeologist and a thorough genealogist, he is a charming and kind person, the type of person you wish you had as a friend. (This information is from the CMU Museum’s blog https://ls2.cmich.edu:444/list/fk2xetyk/180809C/jtti1j.vib?id=0tzu5fk2xetyk8i and a news release on the Michigan Baseball Hall of Fame in 2022 https://www.murrayledger.com/sports/carstens-joins-michigan-baseball-hall-of-fame/article_4aa49578-2274-11ed-9695-03831d1e0114.html, both accessed in April 2024.)

William “Bill” John Carstens, Jr.:

William “Bill” John Carstens, Jr. (July 24, 1926 – December 8, 2016), the son of William and Anna Carstens, attended Michigan schools in Rhodes and later graduated from Pinconning High School in 1944. He served in the U.S. Army Airforce from January 5, 1945, until he was honorably discharged on December 1, 1946. He was stationed in Germany for part of his service. He acquired a private pilot license and continued to fly after the war. William also played baseball in the summer as a pitcher in the NEML. He was an outdoors man and while ice fishing in January 1964, he was stranded on an ice float in the Saginaw Bay for three hours. He worked at Magline for 38 years and was “This Month’s Magline Man” in May 1964. He married Bernice Winiarski on May 8, 1954. He passed away on December 8, 2016 at the age of 90 and was buried from St. John’s Lutheran Church. He was survived by his five children, sixteen grandchildren, nine great-children, four brothers Calvin (Dottie), Robert, Aldor, Jack (Jean), and his sister, June Bulock. (This information is from his obituary, and his collection).

William “Bill” John Carstens, Sr.:

William “Bill” John Carstens, Sr. (May 5, 1895 – October 3, 1984), the son of William and Ida Carstens, was born in Napoleon, Ohio. In 1906 he moved to Rhodes and to Pinconning in 1941. He married Anna Wicke on July 28, 1917. William held several jobs, working for “The Michigan Farmer,” owned a general store, served as Postmaster in Rhodes, and retired from Dr. Salsbury’s Laboratory Company in 1960. In his free time, he was an outdoorsman, bowler, and baseball pitcher. As a member of the Headquarters 10th Reconnaissance Group, he served in the U.S. Army during World War I and earned several medals. On October 3, 1984 William died at the age of 89. He was buried from St. John’s Lutheran Church and survived by his seven children, many grandchildren, and his three brothers Frederick, Otto (Evelyn) and Aldore.

Ranney and Bloch families:

The Ranney and Bloch families are related to the Carstens through Dorothy “Dottie” (Bloch) Carstens and her mother, Marie (Ranney) Bloch.

William Ranney (May 9, 1813 – November 18, 1857) was an ancestor of Dorothy “Dottie” (Bloch) Carstens through her mother’s family. He was considered one of the most important pre-Civil War painters in America and was a self-taught oil painter of portraits and other paintings. He served in the Texas War of Independence, which influenced the subject matter of his later works. (This information is sourced from William Ranney’s Wikipedia article).

Wicke family members:

Anna Marie Wicke Carstens (May 22, 1896 – June 5, 1992) was born in Flat Rock to Reverend Heinrich and Marie Wicke. In 1904 her family moved to Oberlin. Later, her family moved to Estey and met the Carstens. She was a member of St. John’s Lutheran Church, Pinconning, where she joined the Ladies Aide Society, and taught Sunday school for many years. Anna married William (Bill) Carstens, Sr. about 1917. Together William and Anna had seven children: Calvin, Robert, Aldor, William, Delores, Marjorie, and Edwin. She passed away on June 5, 1992 and was survived by her seven children, many grandchildren, and one of her sisters, Elizabeth. (This information is from the collection.)

Anna Martha Wicke Keller (December 23, 1868 – May 17, 1927) was the daughter of Eckhardt Wicke and Elizabeth (Lange) Wicke. She married Gustav Adolf Keller in 1893 and was the mother of Clara Keller Hartwig. (This information is from the collection.)

Ernestine Wicke: (1897 – 1953) was the daughter of the Reverend Heinrich Wicke and Marie (Merle) Wicke. She was an artist and writer and had a love of poetry. (This information is from the collection.)

Rev. Heinrich Wicke (February 26 or 29, 1865 – November 18, 1921) was born in Germany and emigrated into the United States before his marriage to Marie Merle. They married in Detroit in 1889 and had five children. As a practicing German Lutheran minister, he wrote on matters of religion and philosophy. (This information is from the collection)

Marie Wicke (October 29, - 1836-January 5, 1949) was born in Germany to the Merle family. She married Heinrich Wicke in Detroit, Michigan, in 1889 and they had five children together; Anna, Ernestine, Elizabeth, Martha, and August.

Elizabeth A. Vandervoord (1902-after 1992) was the daughter of the Reverend Heinrich Wicke and Marie (Merle) Wicke. She married Florent Engelbert Vandevoorde (1900-1979) on September 17, 1923 in Detroit. They divorced in October 1933. She visited Germany in 1951. (This information is from ancestry.com, accessed in April 2024.)

Acquisition Information:

Acc# 77720, 77924

Arrangement:

The collection is in original order, divided by series by the names of families, couples, or individuals and then by size, alphabetically, and chronologically.

Subjects

Click on terms below to find any related finding aids on this site.

Subjects:

Aerial reconnaissance, American--History--20th century.
World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American.
German Americans--Michigan.
Lutheran Church--Michigan--History.
Children's Art--Michigan.
Women artists--Michigan.
Drawing--Michigan.
Baseball--Michigan--History--20th century.
Air pilots--Michigan--Pinconning.
Air pilots--Biography.
Archaeologists--Michigan.
Scrapbooks.
Photograph alubms.
Video recordings.
CD-ROMs.

Names:

United States. Army Air Forces. Photo Reconnaissance Group, 10th.
United States. Army Air Forces. Bomb Squadron, 414th.
Central Michigan University. Museum of Cultural and Natural History.
Central Michigan University--Alumni and alumnae.
Washington University (Saint Louis, MO.)--Alumni and alumnae.
Cincinnati Reds (Baseball team)--History.
Northeastern Michigan League (Baseball team)--History.
Daughters of the American Revolution--History.
Saint John's Lutheran Church (Pinconning, Mich.)
Carstens family.
Bloch family.
Ranney family.
Wicke family.
Carstens, Kenneth Charles.
Carstens, Calvin "Cal" Zeno, 1920-2021.
Carstens, William "Bill" John, Jr., 1926-2016.
Carstens, William "Bill" John, Sr., 1895-1984.
Carstens, Anna Martha Wicke, 1896-1992.
Keller, Anna Martha Wicke, 1868-1927.
Ranney, William, 1813-1857.
Ranney, Amos, 1744-1820.
Wicke, Ernestine, 1897-1953.
Wicke, Heinrich, Rev., 1865-1921.
Wicke, Marie, 1836-1949.
Vandervoord, Elizabeth A., 1902-after 1992.

Places:

Pinconning (Mich.)--History.
Pinconning (Mich.)--Genealogy.
Rhodes (Mich)--History.
Bay County (Mich.)--History.
Gladwin County (Mich.)--History.
San Antonio (Tex.)--History.
Lackland Air Force Base (Tex.)--History.
Sportsmen's Field (Saginaw, Mich.)