Hmm, that definitely complicates what is already conjecture on our parts. If Michael was already in Ohio two years before John was born, it's unlikely that John would have been born in Germany. There are plenty of scenarios I can think of to explain how this could happen, but I feel we're looking at Occam's razor. Dang.

The number of Ochs families in Ohio in the mid-19th century couldn't have been that high. I wonder if your Michael & John may be related to my John...cousins perhaps. More research is needed. Thanks for the information.