Every dated event on this site, oldest first. Dates come from the records shown on each linked page; “very probably” marks a link the records point to but do not prove.
Holstein
- 1774, August 29. Jochim Peters, very probably Joseph I’s maternal grandfather, born at Klostersande, Elmshorn, son of the night watchman Jacob Peters and Catharina Wehrmann.
- 1777, March 11. Jacob Peters dies the morning after serving as host at a neighbour’s christening, leaving a widow and six children (the story).
- 1798, April 8. Anna Peters, Joseph I’s mother, born on the Wehdenkamp near Elmshorn.
- 1823. Johann Scharmer, son of Jochim Scharmer of Glindesmoor in Hohenfelde, marries Magdalena Peters, very probably Anna’s first cousin. She dies in 1825.
- 1829, February 8. Johann Scharmer, now a widower, marries Anna Peters in Elmshorn.
- 1829, May 25. Joseph Sharmer (Joseph I) born Jochim Scharmer in Elmshorn, Holstein, son of Johann Scharmer and Anna Peters; baptized 31 May (his story).
- 1847. An Elmshorn ship sinks in a storm on the Watt off the Elbe; the ship’s hand Joh. Scharmer of the Sandberg, very likely Jochim’s father, is lost. Jochim, eighteen, goes to sea.
- 1865, February 19. Anna Scharmer, widow, dies in Elmshorn, aged 76.
The American West
- 1853. Joseph comes ashore in California and goes to the gold country.
- 1863, November 20. Catherine “Katie” Conner (O’Connor) born in Quincy, Massachusetts (her story). Her mother dies on 1 November 1864.
- 1869–1874. Joseph raises stock in Nevada, then at Brookville, Kansas.
- 1874. Joseph brings his cattle to Sidney, Nebraska.
- 1880. Katie is living in Sidney, Nebraska.
- 1881. Joseph opens the Sidney Exchange Bank with James Sutherland.
- 1884, November 10. Joseph and Katie marry in Sidney; Katie’s half-sister Lizzie and Joseph’s best friend Jacob Heintz are the witnesses.
- 1885, December. Laura (“Aunt Larry”) born.
- 1887, September 26. Kathryn born.
- 1889, June 27. Chat Morgan, cashier of the State Bank of Sidney, kills himself; Joseph, “the old reliable clerk in the bank,” is caught unaware of its losses (Joseph Sharmer I).
- 1889, November 22. Josephine “Dodie” born.
- 1893, March 28. Joseph and Katie sign a note for $150.
- 1897, November 10. Joseph (Joseph II) born in Sidney, thirteen years to the day after his parents’ wedding.
- 1898, June 14. Joseph I dies in Sidney (obituaries; his will).
- 1907, April 11. Katie dies of pneumonia and heart failure after a few days’ illness; the children are left “without father or mother.”
Joe and Ruby
- 1909, February 1. Ruby E. Wilson born in Visalia, California, daughter of James W. Wilson and Nettie A. Holt.
- 1910. Joe, twelve, is living in Denver with his eldest sister Laura and her husband, Myron Sager. Family memory says Laura and Myron married and took the younger children there by night train, to keep them out of a convent home (A Night Train to Denver).
- 1910, October 4. Dodie marries Clair Van Slyke in Denver; they make their home in Fort Collins, Colorado.
- 1911–1917. Joe grows up in Reedley with Laura and Myron Sager; his sister Kathryn is the town librarian, 1913–17. He graduates from Reedley High School in 1917 (Growing up in Reedley).
- 1918, September 12. Joe registers for the draft in Reedley as “Joseph None Sharmer,” a clerk for the California Associated Raisin Co.
- 1919–1924. Joe works for the California Packers’ Association, opens a real-estate and insurance firm, runs the Reedley Beach concession, leads Sharmer’s Orchestra and joins Union Oil.
- 1930. Ruby graduates from Cal and goes to teach in Tombstone, Arizona; later she becomes postmaster at Planada.
- 1937, December – 1938, January. Joe’s eastern sales trip and the letters.
- 1938, July 5. Joe and Ruby marry in Kingman, Arizona (from their marriage license).
- 1939, September. Their first child, a daughter, is stillborn (The Little Granddaughter).
- 1940, July 19. Joe and Ruby borrow $1,500 at 7% from First National Bank in Merced, secured by a deed of trust and repaid at $20 a month (the note).
- 1941, April 30. Joseph Sharmer III born in Fresno, California (“My Sweethearts”).
- 1942, January. Joe, 44, is issued a wartime ration certificate in Planada (Joe’s Papers).
- 1943, March 10. Dodie dies in Washington, D.C.
- 1943, July 7. Jay Myron Sharmer born in Fresno, California.
- 1943, August 6. Joe is appointed Chairman of the Planada War Finance Committee for the Third War Loan.
- 1945, January 25. Dodie’s son Jacy is killed in action over the Philippines.
- 1945, December 31. The Treasury awards Joe a citation for distinguished service to the War Finance Program.
- 1947–48. Joe serves as the 26th president of the Merced Rotary Club.
- 1948, May 22. Joe writes to voters asking for their support for Supervisor in the June 1 election (the letter).
- 1948. Joe is elected Merced County Supervisor for District No. 2; he serves 1949–1952.
- 1949, March 25. As chairman of the hospital committee, Joe asks architect Charles Buckner to meet about a new 75-bed hospital.
- 1951, May 29. The supervisors, Joe among them, dedicate the new Merced County Courts Building.
- 1952. Joe loses his bid for re-election (You Put Up a Good Fight).
- 1952. Ruby takes the children and Monty the Airedale to Santa Cruz; Joe stays behind in Planada. The Planada house is later advertised for sale, with replies to Joe at Box 1035, Santa Cruz (the advertisement).
- 1954, February 26. Joe dies in Santa Cruz. The Merced County court adjourns in his memory and the California Assembly passes House Resolution No. 22.
- 1981, May 18. Ruby dies; she is buried in Merced Cemetery.
The family today
- 1941, January 12. Hannelore Auguste Ahrens born in Delmenhorst, Germany, daughter of Henrich and Alma Ahrens (her page).
- 2006, November 13. Jay Myron Sharmer dies.
- 2017, November 30. Joseph Sharmer III dies in Dayton, Nevada, aged 76.
- 2023, August 21. Hannelore Sharmer dies in Loveland, Colorado.
- [More dates for Joseph III, Jay, Laurel and the next generations, as the family chooses to add them.]
