Ida Barbara Haefling

On October 6, 1875, Ida Barbara Haefling was born into the family of Adam and Agnes Barbara [Kuhn] Haefling. Out of her eight siblings, she was the youngest. Ida was born and raised in Tiffin, Seneca County, Ohio. Agnes, Ida's mother, was born in the Bas-Rhin region of France in 1830. Adam, her father, was born in January 10, 1823, in Bavaria. Before relocating to Tiffin in 1839, they initially made their home in Pennsylvania. Adam was a prosperous miner during the California gold rush, according to her father's obituary. He possessed 160 acres in the township of Hopewell.

As an adult, Ida lived with her brothers, Francis "Frank" and Jacob Alphorus, and handled domestic chores. In addition to farming, Frank worked as a machinist for Hanson Clutch & Machine Co., a company that manufactured excavators, and Jacob was a butcher. Despite never getting married, the three siblings played a crucial role in raising their nieces and nephews.

After their oldest sister Clara [Haefling] Lonsway passed away, Ida and her brothers took in Everett and Louis Lonsway, their nephews, into their home. Sylvester Bertram Lonsway, their brother-in-law, remarried and relocated to Colorado in the interim.

Ruth and Marian Lonsway, their adolescent grand-nieces, were welcomed into their house following the passing of their parents, Louis Lonsway and his wife Lowessa.