It was brought to this country by my grandparents, John and Antje Simmering in 1867 from their native Hanover, Germany. As you can see, the pipe is decorated with a coat of arms, and since we know the Simmerings had some money when they came to America, that, as well as the evidence of this coat of arms, leads us to believe they were from a titled family. If we could identify the arms, we could, perhaps, develop an interesting genealogy on the Simmerings, about whom we know very little. She handed the pipe to Holmes, who immediately began to study it, turning it this way and that. They bought a farm in Riverton, Illinois, as soon as they arrived at that farming community.
Family tradition states that they had sold some precious jewels to raise the money.
She stretched her arm across the cocktail table, extending her hand to Holmes. On it was a beautiful ruby ring. The ruby had inlaid on it a gold rose, and it was a truly unusual and valuable ring. The setting was simple, hence did not detract from the stone. Holmes mused a moment, then asked Mrs. Giltmier to answer yet another question.