The Hare, Preston, Fuller & Decker Families, Long Time Residences Of America is an extensive history of William Henry Decker's genealogy. The Hare, Preston, Fuller and Decker Families have deep roots in American history. The Book contains pictures and documents with captions, and covers numerous families across numerous generations, and their journey West. The links below take you on a fascinating journey through the families' history. Theirs is an incredible story that hopefully, will be of interest to family members, genealogists and historians alike.

Backstory

My name is Lawrence Reinhold. While we were growing up, we heard very little about the Decker family (Dad’s mother’s side of the family). What we did hear mostly had to do with how Carl Oscar Reinhold (Dad’s father) moved his family from Iowa to Wisconsin to get away from the Deckers. We heard there was supposed to be American Indian mixed in our blood that came from the Decker side, but not who, how, where or why. Usually the commentary revolved around the Decker side’s drinking and their shiftless ways.

I and my siblings (all twelve of us) grew up on a dairy farm in central Wisconsin. When I worked with Dad in the barn, (from age 10-18) he told me many times that we had ¼ Indian blood in us, so I always thought that made me ⅛ Indian. Later, I found the math could never be as Dad said. When talking to Carrie Lucille (Reinhold) Kerns (Dad’s sister), she also told me that we had Indian blood, and that Great Grandpa William Henry Decker [Grandma Nora (Decker) Reinhold's father] called his kids little Indians. Dad, Mom and Dad's sisters, Hazel and Carrie Lucille, all said they were told as children, and as adults, that William Henry Decker was part Indian. According to Mom, Nora (Decker) Reinhold told her that Nora’s father's father (William Decker, Sr.) was married to a Sioux, although Mom doubted there are any records which substantiates the Indian lineage. Still, Mom said she always heard that Nora (Decker) Reinhold was 9/10 of everything, plus 1/10 Sioux.

According to Carrie Lucille (Reinhold) Kerns, she always heard that her grandfather, William Henry Decker, had Indian blood in him, possibly Sioux, but she never heard any more information about where the Indian blood came from. In addition, according to Carrie Lucille, her mother, Nora (Decker) Reinhold, said William Decker did not tell his wife, Eliza Jane, about the Indian blood until after they were married. As a result, Eliza Jane would not let her children meet William Decker’s other relatives who lived around the Independence area. Carrie Lucille said she never found out who those relatives where.

Anyway, it was my understanding that Grandma Nora (Decker) Reinhold was supposed to be ¼ Indian. I was interested in finding the Indian. I had my DNA run. It came back with nothing because running my DNA follows Maternal (Mother’s DNA). So I ask my female cousin if I could run her DNA because it followed Hazel (Reinhold) Moore, her Mother's DNA, that would be Grandma Nora (Decker) Reinhold—came back nothing. So I asked the DNA company how to find the Indian. They said I should find a Decker male and run his DNA in order to find the Indian markers on the father’s side of the DNA. Well, that never happened.

Undeterred, I and a number of other people, primarily Hares and Deckers, worked for years researching the Hare and Decker family lines. The Hares are Grandma Nora (Decker) Reinhold’s maternal line and the Deckers are her paternal line. We accounted for all the women on Grandma Nora (Decker) Reinhold’s side going back to almost the Nina, the Pinta, the Santa Marie. All those women were on good behavior as we did not find any stray kids. It was different on the Decker side. In all the research into William and Margarete (Preston) Decker’s background, we did not find any reference to any Indian heritage in either William Decker or Margarete (Preston) Decker’s background.

In addition to Ms. Foster’s research, I and Lylia Hare did extensive research on William and Margarete (Preston) Decker’s families backgrounds. There are no records of William Henry Decker’s birth, or at least none have been found, but that does not mean that William and Margarete Decker were not his parents. There is no marriage record for William Henry Decker’s parents, William and Margarete (Preston) Decker, or at least it has not been found; and there are no records regarding William Henry Decker’s father, William Henry Decker, or they have not been found. Since no records of William Henry Decker’s birth exist, or at least none have been found; no marriage record for William Henry Decker’s parents, William and Margarete (Preston) Decker, exist or have not been found; and no records regarding his father, William Henry Decker, exist or have not been found, there is always the possibility that William Henry Decker could have Indian heritage derived from either William Henry Decker’s involvement with an Indian women or Margarete (Preston) Decker’s involvement with an Indian man. There is such a lack of information regarding William Henry Decker and Margarette (Preston) Decker’s family histories that anything is possible. I think my Aunt Lucille said it best. She told me that if anyone was playing with the Indians, they were not advertising it. Carrie Lucille (Reinhold) Kerns said, "There were a lot of Indians around at the time." If William Henry Decker was part Indian, he most likely was not broadcasting the information to the World, especially given the times.

The primary focus of The Hare, Preston, Fuller & Decker Families, Long Time Residences Of America  was to follow the direct line of decedents from William Hare down through Carl Reinhold as follows:

Before proceeding with a discussion of the Hare, Preston, Decker and Fuller families, it is necessary to give a brief introduction into how the research was conducted and the general outcome of that research. I commissioned Linnea B. Foster, CGRS to research the Hare, Preston and Decker families’ genealogical history in New Jersey. Ms. Foster conducted an exhaustive search for family members including related families which culminated in a series of reports and photo-copied documents pertaining to the various families. Despite Ms. Foster’s best efforts, there is little or no information on key family members. In some cases, there is very little evidence supporting, or only evidence suggesting that family members are related or married. Just as important as the information which Ms. Foster found is the information that she didn't find. In many cases, Ms. Foster checked various records, but didn't  find family members. Knowing that Ms. Foster check various records, but didn't find family members suggests that the family members may have left the county or the state. It also suggests that the records do not exist, or that the event did not occur. In any case, as you read The Hare, Preston, Fuller & Decker Families, Long Time Residences Of America, please keep in mind how much or how little evidence supports the family relationships discussed in this Book.

Various operating theories were developed to help in researching the families and individuals discussed in this Book. As you read, you will see these theories discussed either in the body of the text or in the footnotes. The theories are just that—theories. They were devised as a research tool to help find families and individuals due to the lack of evidence supporting certain family relationships; the lack of information regarding certain individuals; and evidence which only suggests certain relationships or outcomes. Inmost cases, there is no evidence, or limited evidence to support the theories. Still, the various theories helped guide the research and may be proven valid or invalid in the future.

The research on the Decker families has been severally hampered by the number of Deckers in the United States. There are literally thousands of Deckers and thousands of William Deckers, both of which span an enormous period of time and probably all of the United States. As a result, you will see references to Deckers which are not related to Carl Oliver Reinhold. They are mentioned in order to provide clarity by indicating they were checked and found not to be related to Carl Oliver Reinhold.