I am looking for connections and further information on the Leis / Lies family. The principle family members, who lived in Beaver Co., PA, were Seraphine Leis who married Lawrence Thornton Boyd and Seraphine’s brother, Andrew Leis who married Rosalie Gless. They came from Alsace-Lorraine to America separately in the 1890’s.

There is a family story, but no evidence yet, that the family changed the name from Lies to Leis.

Based on marriage records (shown) below, the parents of Seraphine and Andrew are believed to be Michael and Theresa.

Pennsylvania County Marriages, 1885 - 1950
Name: Andrew Leis
Event: Marriage
Event Date: 20 Oct 1902
Event Place: Beaver, Pennsylvania
Age: 32
Estimated Birth Year: 1870
Father: Mike Leis
Mother: Theresa
Spouse: Rosa Gles
Spouse's Age: 30
Spouse's Estimated Birth Year: 1872
Spouse's Father: Charlie
Reference Number: v 13 p 7157
Film Number: 1289904
Digital Folder Number: 4811653
Image Number: 434

Pennsylvania County Marriages, 1885 - 1950
Name: Lawrence Thornton Boyd
Event: Marriage
Event Date: 16 May 1894
Event Place: Beaver, Pennsylvania
Age: 21
Estimated Birth Year: 1873
Father: Jennings Boyd
Mother: Samantha
Spouse: Seraphinia Leis
Spouse's Age: 21
Spouse's Estimated Birth Year: 1873
Spouse's Father: Michael Leis
Reference Number: 3382
Film Number: 1289900
Digital Folder Number: 4811649
Image Number: 1113

Seraphine and Andrew were certainly siblings based on census data, were Andrew is livings with the Boyds and listed as brother-in-law.

1900 United States Federal Census
Name: Seraphine Boyd
Age: 26
Birth Date: Jul 1873
Birthplace: Germany
Home in 1900: Beaver, Beaver, Pennsylvania
Race: White
Gender: Female
Immigration Year: 1891
[1889]
Relation to Head of House: Wife
Marital Status: Married
Spouse's Name: Lawrence T Boyd
Marriage Year: 1894
Years Married: 6
Father's Birthplace: Germany
Mother's Birthplace: Germany
Mother: number of living children: 3
Mother: How many children: 3
Household Members: Name Age
Lawrence T Boyd 27
Seraphine Boyd 26
Mary A Boyd 5
Harry J Boyd 3
Andrew L Boyd 1
Andrew Lies 29

Seraphine had children: Mary, Harry, Andrew

Andrew had children: Lawrence, Charles, Helen, Andrew

I am wishing I took French in HS instead of Spanish as I think that might help understand how Leis or Lies would be pronounced in French how that would influence changing the name.

Please contact me at paxpooh@aol.com if you have any information or even guesses about this family.

Mitch Trier
Downers Grove, IL

Salut !

Regarding your family name, the spelling is uncommon so it is an easy name to research. Both variations are found in Lorraine and Alsace, with LEIS mostly in Alsace & Lorraine and LIES mostly in Médoc area of Aquitaine (Bordeaux region) as well as Lorraine.

The spelling LEIS is German origin, and somewhat common in Bayern (Bavaria) and Rheinland-Pfalz (Rhineland-Palitinate), which shares the border with Alsace. In German, it would be pronounced like English « LICE » (and French pronunciation I would say like English « LEE » or « LEASE », but maybe German way is preferred by family.)

The spelling LIES (properly with accent grave LIÈS) is a French variation of LIESSE, which, according to my French Larousse book of Etymology of Family Names, means "happy man." It would be pronounced lee-ESS.

Here also are two name maps you will find interesting from Geopatronyme that shows the distribution of both names in France:

LEIS :
http://www.geopatronyme.com/cgi-bin/carte/nomcarte.cgi?nom=L...

LIES:
http://www.geopatronyme.com/cgi-bin/carte/nomcarte.cgi?nom=L...

(Note: The source information is excellent for the maps generally, but it is weak for Alsace and Lorraine regions because from 1871 to 1918, they were part of GERMANY not France.)

... and here are links to various German GeoGen name distribution maps for LEIS:
http://christoph.stoepel.net/geogen/en/Default.aspx

I checked a French database of Optants - I think it is at Ancestry.com, too, but I did not look at it. I found 8 people named LIÈS who left Alsace and Lorraine after the German annexation (and none for LEIS) which possibly gives a clue that LIÈS is you original name - but this is only a best guess.

Since your name is uncommon, and they left France in the 1890s, there is an excellent chance you will be able to find your family in France. ----- Before you look at French records, be sure to look closely at all of the lines of your ship passenger lists. Ellis Island opened in 1892 and the ship lists from this time forward often (but of course, not always) state the passengers city of origin in France. Also look for naturalization papers in the courthouses of the counties where your family lived. Since they arrived in the 1890s, there was a three step process to become a US citizen. The final naturalization papers seven years after they filed the first papers likely state their town of origin. Also look for will and probates, and family correspondence that your distant family in America might have - you will be surprised.

If you have NO luck, I would begin by searching the Ten-Year Indexes (« Tables décennales ») of cities at the excellent departmental archives in France. (All of the places you need are free and online now except Moselle.) I would start with the cities of LIÈS familes on the Optants list. These French cities are: SELTZ, ROESCHWOOG, DRUSENHEIM, UCKANGE, GAMBSHEIM, and LA WANTZENAU. (Check you Wikipedia for departments.) Also check the Optants list at Ancesty.com for city names. If no luck, then go to the Geopatronyme links I gave you above, and click on the links of department names in the table on the right side of the screen to see the names of the cities, and start checking the 10-Year indexes for each of these cities.

This will be a little bit of work and take several evenings, but it is not unmanageable. (I have done much more difficult research than this and had success locating home cities.)

I wish you good luck !

Bonne quête !