Catharine Fazenbaker was presumably born about the late 1790s, daughter of the Hessian soldier George Fazenbaker.

Catharine may have been known as "Katie" because that is how her name was recorded in a public record made long after her death. At the time of the 1810 census, she was apparently living in the household headed by her widowed mother Elizabeth. Catharine married William Warnick; their license was dated 2/3/1817. William was born 2/22/1798. William was a brother of Joseph Warnick who married Elizabeth Fazenbaker.

On 2/16/1833, Catharine's brother Godfrey Fazenbaker had a deed recorded which described Catharine's sale of the share of Military Lots 3858 and 3859 which she inherited from her father. The deed is unclear whether Catharine received $100 from Godfrey, or whether she split that amount with her sister Elizabeth.

Catharine's father George Fazenbaker was a settler on Military Lot 3869 when Francis Deakins conducted his survey in 1787. The Fazenbaker farm was about two miles north of land owned by Joseph Warnick, father of William. By 1798, George came to own two other Military Lots, 3858 and 3859, which were less than 1/2 mile northeast of some of Joseph Warnick's property. In those days before the automobile, paved roads, or trains, the usual circumstance was for spouses to come from the same neighborhood.

In 1844, a deposition concerning the estate of William's father, the pioneer Joseph Warnick, stated that William possessed the "Onion Patch," part of Joseph's estate. The "Onion Patch" contained about 150 acres three miles from Lonaconing. It had formerly been the home of William's sister Jane Robinson. Subsequently, the "Onion Patch" would come to be owned by his brother John Warnick.

In 1860, five of William and Catharine Warnick's grandchildren were living with them: "Susan" and Jane Warnick, children of Joseph; and John, Jefferson, and Holland, children of Elizabeth who also resided in the household. The surname of Elizabeth and her children was given as Warnick, but it was listed as Keyes in later census records, and it appears that the census taker recorded incorrect data.

At the time of the 1870 census, William and Catharine were the only two members of their household. This is the last record of Catharine.

In 1880, 83-year-old William was living with his daughter Elizabeth Keyes in Barton. Catharine was not listed and may have died by that time. It was recorded that William's father was born in Ireland. This is the earliest assertion found by this writer that the pioneer Joseph Warnick came from Ireland.

Scharf's History of Western Maryland reported in 1882 that William was the oldest resident of Barton. He would have been about 85 at that time. Ceph Moore wrote in the 1880s that William Warnick died on Friday 1/1/1886, age 87 years, 10 months and 9 days. Ceph recalled that William was an old acquaintance of his father, Levi Moore (11/15/1807-2/28/1883), and mother, Nancy Broadwater (11/10/1813-1/19/1892). An old Bible record in the family of William's sister Elizabeth (Warnick) Ross noted that William died 1/15/1886, thus differing by two weeks from the date given by Ceph Moore.

Children of William and Catharine: Joseph W. "Elbow Joe" Warnick (born in February 1827), James Warnick (born about 1828 or 1829), Elizabeth Warnick (born 12/18/1832), Mary Jane Warnick (born about 1834), and William Warnick (born 11/21/1837).

I have compiled a huge amount of information about thousands of descendants of George and Elizabeth Fazenbaker. My book, The Fazenbaker Family of Western Maryland was issued in May 1999. It has 500 pages of text, plus detailed references, an every name index, a number of photos and maps, being in all 853 pages. The book is available for sale. Interested parties should contact me by e-mail for ordering information. Soon, the Fazenbaker book will be available for reference at the Ruth Enlow Library in Grantsville, Maryland and the Library of Congress. Inquiries about western Maryland Fazenbaker families are welcome.

This page was revised November 26, 1999. For more information about western Maryland family history, visit Walt Warnick's Western Maryland Family History Home Pages.