Tombstone Tuesday - James and Anne McCoy

McCoy.  It's a family name, but also a dead end.  I was also a very bad person when I photographed this tombstone and forgot to annotate whether it was from St. Gabriel's in Hazleton or St. Mary's in Beaver Meadows.  Either way it's a family cemetery and I will be retracing my steps the next time I go home and properly annotate the photo.

My McCoy ancestor was Nancy Brown nee McCoy.  I don't know much about her apart from being born around 1845 in Ireland and dying in 1926 in Hazleton, Pennsylvania.  Nancy (called "Annie"...obviously not this Anne) was my 2nd great grandmother.  I have found no immigration records for her and I don't know who her parents were.  I have to narrow down her death date and hopefully a death certificate and/or obituary may provide some healthy leads.

As it is each time I walk past a "McCoy" tombstone in Saint Gabriel's or Saint Mary's cemetery I wonder if they belong to me.  Was this my 3rd great uncle on this tombstone?  I may not know for a long time. I may never know.  You can be sure that I'll be tracking down information on James as well as my Annie the next time I'm home.

The research I was able to do on this James McCoy was that he came to America from Ireland around 1878 and he was born around 1860.  My Annie was born 15 years earlier and was already in America in April 1874 when she married her husband, Neil Brown.  Does this mean that this James isn't a relation of my Annie's?  No, but it's not a strong case.  Perhaps a cousin or nephew?  Sure, maybe.

It looks like, for now, I'll still be staring fondly after all those "McCoy" tombstones.  Perhaps the cemetery will at least be able to give me a month for the burials to help me with obituaries and death certificates.  It's certainly worth a try!

Tombstone Tuesday - Abraham and Mary Turnbach nee Blanchfield

Abraham and Mary Turnbach nee Blanchfield are my great great uncle and aunt.  Mary is my great grandmother's sister.

Abraham was the son of Milton and Bridget Turnbach nee Dugan.  He was born on February 25, 1877 in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania.  He died on December 9, 1918.

Mary was the oldest daughter of Martin and Anna Blanchfield nee Boyle.  She was born on November 11, 1879 in New York, NY and died in 1919.

Abraham and Mary had at least 8 children (Milton, William, Robert, Mary,  Elizabeth, Ann and 2 unknown children).  Both Abraham and Mary died so close to each other that the first thought that had jumped into my mind was "Flu".  This would have been during the height of the 1918 pandemic (at least for Abraham).  Sometimes guesses are wrong.

Abraham died in a mining accident.  He did repair work in the coal mines and was electrocuted.  It stated on his death certificate that his cause of death was "Electric shock - came in contact with hot wires."

I don't have Mary's death certificate.  The last time I requested it I received notice of a failed search.  I'll have to try again soon or see if one of my genealogy cousins was lucky enough to get a copy.  I suppose it's possible that she could have succumb to the epidemic, but not knowing when in 1919 she passed does put a bit of a damper on that.

What is sad aside from them dying so close to each other?  Their youngest was only about 4 years old.  Luckily (if there can be luck) their oldest was nearly 20 and the family stayed together.

Abraham and Mary are buried in St. Mary's cemetery, Beaver Meadows, Pennsylvania.

Amanuensis Monday - Rev. Robert Anthony

 "Rev. Robert Anthony (hand-dated Mar. 16-1956)

EDEN, Wis., March 16 - (Special) - The Rev. Robert Anthony, 45, who was to have been celebrant Saturday morning for the funeral mass of a second cousin, died early Friday of a heart attack in the rectory of St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church in this Fond du Lac County community.

Pastor of St. Mary's and nearby St. James Mission since January, 1950, Father Anthony was to have officiated at services in St. Columbkille's Church at Elba (Dodge County) for Nicholas Powers, 80, who helped found the Astico State Bank and the Elba Canning Co.

A native of Columbus, Wis., where he attended schools before graduation from St. Francis Minor and Major Seminary in Milwaukee. Father Anthony was ordained a priest May 22, 1937, in St. Ann's Church, Milwaukee.

Well known throughout the Milwaukee Archdiocese, Father Anthony was assistant pastor at St. Joseph's in Fond du Lac from 1937-40, at St. Monica's in Whitefish Bay the following year, at St. Sebastian's in Milwaukee from 1941-45 and at St. Gall's Church in Milwaukee from 1945 until he came here.

His accomplishments at St. Mary's included building a school, convent and shrine to the Blessed Virgin, and organizing the first Boy Scout troop here.  A member of the Knights of St. George, the Knights of Columbus and the Catholic Order of Foresters, Father Anthony was completing plans for remodeling of the church and rectory at the time of death.

His body will be at the Dugan Funeral home in Fond du Lac from 3 p.m. Saturday until 4 p.m. Sunday, when it will be moved to his church to lie in state until services on Tuesday.

Area clergy will chant the Office of the Dead at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, preceding a solemn Requiem high mass at 11 a.m. at which Msgr, Henry G. Riordan, pastor of St. Joseph's Church in Fond du Lac, will be celebrant, Archbishop Albert G. Meyer of Milwaukee will attend the funeral.

Burial for Father Anthony, an only child whom cousins survive, will be in St. Jerome's Cemetery at Columbus."

This and most of the other Wisconsin clippings I have were passed on to me from my husband's family.  This was from my mother-in-law, Dolores Cayemberg nee Kuehl.  I don't think the Rev Anthony was a relative.  I rather think that he was an ancestor's pastor and undoubtedly a cherished member of their church-family.  All that he accomplished as a priest before his early death at the age of 45 is amazing.  He was obviously a very dedicated man. 

I am a bit disappointed at the lack of information on his family.  The newspaper mentions the 2nd cousin who Rev Anthony was to preside over the funeral of, but it doesn't mention who his parents were.  There are nuggets of information in here that people can follow if they wanted to track down information on his lineage, to not mention someone's parents in an obituary is to do a great disservice to the deceased.  Just this genealogist's humble opinion.

Tombstone Tuesday - McGinnis, Monahan, Fay and Boyle all in one!

John and Alice McGinnis nee Monahan and John and Mary Fay nee Boyle

Normally I don't particularly like tombstones that don't give dates.  I'll have to admit that when I finally found this tombstone for my 3rd great grandmother (Alice Monahan) I was a bit disappointed.  However, what I do like about the tombstone is that it gives both ladies' maiden names.  I found that very unusual.

Alice McGinnis nee Monahan (as I mentioned) was my 3rd great grandmother.  John McGinnis was her 2nd husband.  Alice was the wife of Manus Maurice Boyle (of whom I've previously blogged) who died in the shipwreck of the Royal Charter in 1859.  May Fay nee Boyle was Manus and Alice's oldest daughter (my 3rd great aunt or 2nd great grand aunt...although I'm not as familiar with the second version of expressing it).  Mary's sister, Anna, is buried in Philipsburg, New Jersey.

Finding this tombstone wasn't difficult.  Finding St. Mary's Catholic Cemetery in Beaver Meadows, Pennsylvania was.  You blink and you miss it even though it's right off the side of the main road!  I had driven by it several times missing it until I was given specific directions!