Christian Bear

Brief Life History of Christian

When Christian Bear was born on 29 April 1825, in Trub, Bern, Switzerland, his father, Johannes Beer, was 27 and his mother, Barbara Burkhalter, was 29. He married Elizabeth L Letherman on 31 March 1853, in Wayne, Ohio, United States. They were the parents of at least 2 sons and 4 daughters. He died on 7 September 1897, in Cedar Rapids, Linn, Iowa, United States, at the age of 72, and was buried in Linwood Cemetery, Cedar Rapids, Linn, Iowa, United States.

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Family Time Line

Christian Bear
1825–1897
Elizabeth L Letherman
1825–1865
Marriage: 31 March 1853
George L Bear
1855–1931
Seth Washington Bear
1856–1942
Sophia E Bear
1857–1933
Harriet Ann Bear
1859–1953
Aglena Jane Bear
1861–1895
Rosa B. Bear
1862–1918

Sources (36)

  • Christian Bear, "Ohio, County Marriages, 1789-2013"
  • Christian Bear, "BillionGraves Index"
  • Christian Bear in entry for Sophia E Bear, "Ohio Deaths, 1908-1953"

World Events (8)

1830 · The Second Great Awakening

Being a second spiritual and religious awakening, like the First Great Awakening, many Churches began to spring up from other denominations. Many people began to rapidly join the Baptist and Methodist congregations. Many converts to these religions believed that the Awakening was the precursor of a new millennial age.

1838

Historical Boundaries: 1838: Linn, Iowa Territory, United States 1846: Linn, Iowa, United States

1846

U.S. acquires vast tracts of Mexican territory in wake of Mexican War including California and New Mexico.

Name Meaning

English: variant of Beer 1.

English: from the Middle English nickname Bere meaning ‘bear’ (Old English bera, which is also found as a byname), or from a personal name derived from a short form of the various ancient Germanic compound names with this as the first element (compare e.g. Bernhard ). The bear has generally been regarded with a mixture of fear and amusement because of its strength and unpredictable temper on the one hand and its clumsy gait on the other, and in the medieval period it was also thought to typify the sins of sloth and gluttony. All these characteristics are no doubt reflected in the nickname. Throughout the Middle Ages the bear was a familiar figure in popular entertainments such as bear baiting and dancing bears. Compare Beer 2.

Native American: translation into English (and shortening) of a personal name based on a word, such as Lakota and Dakota Sioux mato and Meskwaki (Fox) makwa, meaning ‘bear’. The great cultural significance of the bear to Native Americans is reflected in their traditional personal names, many of which were adopted as surnames (translated into English), e.g. Black Bear (see Blackbear ), Little Bear (see Littlebear ), Standing Bear (see Standingbear ), and Young Bear (see Youngbear ).

Dictionary of American Family Names © Patrick Hanks 2003, 2006.

Possible Related Names

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