A genealogy blog about the migration generation of my McKee Family line, including bios, transcribed obituaries, photographs, and research notes.



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Thursday, August 22, 2013

Missing in Action...Anderson and Roberge

I haven't posted in a good long while. I've had several life events that haven't been fun and I had to drop my genealogy habit. I'm just getting back into it.

One of the more frustrating aspects of genealogy is finding out that someone was just a hop away from you and you never got to talk to them. While doing some general information trolling on Ancestry.com, I found out that Ann Marilyn Roberge died on 24 May 2013 in Largo, Florida...right across the bay from me and I didn't even know she was there!

Ann (b. 11 Nov 1930 Palmer, Hampden, Massachusetts) was the wife of Edward Michael G. Anderson (b. 7 Jan 1927 Springfield Hampden, Massachusetts d. Worcester, Worcester, Massachusetts). Ann and Edward, who were married 22 Jun 1949 in East Brookfield, Worcester, Massachusetts, eventually divorce but they have four children before that event in their lives.

Michael Doran Anderson (b. 21 Jan 1950 Palmer, Hampden, Massachusetts d. 26 May 2001 Idaho)

Kevin Paul Anderson (b. 17 Jul 1951 Palmer, Hampden, Massachusetts d. 16 Oct 1995 Hollywood, Boward, Florida)

Dale Edward Anderson (b. 12 Nov 1953 Palmer, Hampden, Massachusetts d. 17 Jul 2012 Spencer, Worcester, Massachusetts).

In addition, Ann and Edward had a daughter, who is currently living in Massachusetts. I've contacted a person who is perhaps this daughter using Facebook. We'll see if she is the right person and if she or anyone in the family is interested in this project.

Sunday, July 28, 2013

Henry "Harry" Dodd

I haven't been posting of late. I've been too busy trying to hold my life together...too much to go into and more info than you might want to hear. Anyway, I've started pecking away again at my family history. No guarantees on how consistent I might be over the next few months. But I came across something that any Dodd/Anderson researchers on this list will be interested in.

Henry "Harry" Dodd
s/o Frederick William Dodd + Esther Middleton
grandson of Joseph Dodd + Agnes Anderson
b. 21 Dec 1896 Ashton Under Lyne, Lancashire, England
d. 13 Aug 1917 France & Flanders World War I

Click here to see entry in list of honor.
Henry Dodd M.M.
Lance Corporal, 49482. 11 th Battalion, Cheshire Regiment. Killed in action 13 August 1917, aged 20. Born: Ashton under Lyne. Enlisted: Stockport. Son of Frederick & Esther, 173 Curzon Road, Ashton under Lyne. Commemorated on the Menin Gate Memorial, Ieper, Belgium.
Award of the Military Medal published in the London Gazette, 14 August 1917. Announcements are normally made approximately three months after the particular act for which the medal is given.

Click here to get a copy of a certificate...a lovely certificate with pictures of the Menin Gate Memorial in Ypres, Belgium. The site includes a picture of the inside walls...filled with so many names. A soldier's name was added to the wall when his resting place was unknown. It's worth a look.

A cousin had told me about the fact that Henry appeared on the gate. I was googling when I found these two entries, which provide more detail than the cousin had told me. Lesson learned? Google it every single time!


Sunday, April 28, 2013

Edna Leta (Leary) Deppe...a mystery

I've been picking at this line and that line and making bits of progress here and there. It hasn't been enough that I've felt compelled to write anything...until today. I've had two distant cousins contact me on two different lines. One of the cousins has provided information on a Deppe line that has been a puzzlement for a long time. Here's what I know.

Everett Deppe
b. 17 Dec 1895 Willisville, Perry County, Illinois
d. Where? When?
m. 8 Dec 1915 Perry County, Illinois
Edna Leta Leary
b. 24 Oct 1899 Little Rock, Pulaski County, Arkansas
d. Where? When?

Everett and Edna had the following children.

Child 1:
Wayne Logan Deppe
b. 27 Jan 1919 Cutler, Perry County, Illinois
d. 4 Apr 1930 Joplin, Jasper County, Missouri (FAG 68156113)

Child 2:
Arliene Rosalee Deppe
b. 18 Oct 1921 Cutler, Perry County, Illinois
d. Where? When?

Child 3:
Melba June Deppe
b. 26 Feb 1923 Cutler, Perry County, Illinois
d. 16 Jan 1924 Illinois

Child 4:
Lorrain Winifred "Winnie" Deppe
b. 22 Dec 1925 Cutler, Perry County, Illinois
d. Where? When?

Child 5:
Kenneth Burnell Deppe
b. 27 Aug 1927 Cutler, Perry County, Illinois
d. Where? When?

As you can see, I've been able to track only limited information. I have my great-grandmother to thank for the dates of birth. In the back of a circa 1930's bank book, she wrote out each of the children's full names and their dates of birth. She did this for both of her nieces...the daughters of her younger sister, Margaret Susanna (Leemon) Shavers, Leary, Appel. Margaret's daughters were Hazel Cliff (Leary) Deppe and Edna Leta (Leary) Deppe.

Edna married early at age 16. You can find her in two locations Cutler and Joplin.

  • 1915 married Perry County, Illinois
  • 1920 living Cutler Perry County, Illinois, where the children were born
  • 1930 living Joplin, Jasper County, Missouri 
  • 1930 Everett is arrested for currency counterfeiting
According to newspaper accounts, Everett was arrested 5 March 1930 after failing to post $4,000 bond when he was arrested on charges of using the mails to defraud.

In June of 1931, a newspaper reports that six individual were involved in a counterfeiting scheme with the object to make a profit of $100,000 and buy a Joplin Hotel. The newspaper notes that a Joplin printer named Everett Deppe was one of the leaders of the ring. It also noted that Deppe was still at large, having absconded with most of the spurious currency.

Later in June of 1931, a newspaper reports that Everett Deppe was under arrest in Charleston, West Virginia and that a total of eight people had been sentenced to penitentiary and jail terms. They were seeking extradition of Everett back to Joplin.

The next time I can pick up Everett is in a Sept 1931 newspaper article noting his arrest for passing counterfeit bills throughout middle western cities over the summer of 1931. In addition the article notes that Everett escaped from jail in Charleston, West Virginia about mid August 1931. A subsequent Joplin Globe article notes that Everett was still not apprehended in June of 1935.

Past these newspaper articles, I've made no progress on tracing this family. And then I heard from a distant Deppe cousin (cousin-in-law?) with the rest of this tale.

After Everett escaped (the Charleston, West Virginia jail?), he turned up in the middle of the night at his mother's home. He hugged his mother and told her he would never see her again. Everett left with Edna and the children (Arliene, age 10; Winnie, age 6; and Kenneth age 4). They left the area and nobody in the Deppe family has heard from them to this day.

The reason that the Deppe cousin knows the story is that his grandfather was Everett's nephew and as a child he played with Arliene and Winnie. This wing of the Deppe family has stayed in the area and it would have been easy for Arliene or Winnie (who would have been old enough to remember) to find their first cousin again. To the disappointment of family members left behind, it seems that the girls have made no effort to contact anyone in their family.

The Deppe cousin who provided these details speculates that the family may have escaped to Mexico or somewhere else. I'm guessing that Everett and Edna may have managed to change their names. The children were most likely encouraged not to remember and not to return to the area.

The last bits of info I have about this family is that when Edna's mother died in 1942, Edna is listed as the only surviving child. In addition, the obit notes that Margaret Susanna had 11 grandchildren, which would have included Edna's living children. Did Edna have contact with her mother? Did she attend the funeral in 1942? I'd love to be able to answer these questions.

Interestingly, the Deppe cousin who contacted me makes no mention of Edna's nephews and nieces by her sister Hazel Cliff (Leary) Deppe. I haven't contacted anyone in that line of the Deppe family. They perhaps have information on their cousins too. So it would seem that the next logical step is to contact Hazel's descendants and see if they have a family tale and more info they are willing to share. I'll post an update if and when I get more info.

Friday, January 11, 2013

Anderson...GenealogyBank...Obituaries

I gave myself a small present--a subscription to GenealogyBank, which is a newspaper site. Using the new subscription, I've found lots of extra detail and a few obits. Here are the obits.

Anne Ellen (Doran) Anderson
The Springfield Union, Springfield, Massachusetts, Monday, 28 Jul 1947, Page 8
MRS. ANNE ANDERSON
Monson, July 27--Mrs. Anne E. (Doran) Anderson, 77, died Saturday in her home in Stebbins Rd. She was born in London, Eng. Jul 8, 1870, daughter of Patrick and Mary (May) Doran and came to the United States in 1904. She first resided in Maine, later going to Springfield where she made her home until last year.
Mrs. Anderson was the widow of John J. Anderson who died in 1925. She leaves two sons, Edward M., and Norman J. Anderson, both of this town; a sister, Miss Susan Doran of Chicopee Falls, and three grandchildren.
The funeral will be held from the Lombard Funeral home in Bridge St., Monday at 8:30 with requiem high mass in St. Patrick's Church at 9. Burial will be Tuesday at 10 in St. Mary's Cemetery, Biddeford, Me.

Edward Michael G. Anderson
The Springfield Union, Springfield, Massachusetts, Monday, 14 Dec 1964, Page 10
DIED
ANDERSON--At Wing Memorial Hospital Palmer, December 12, Edward M. Anderson of Stebbins Rd., Monson. Funeral from the Palmer Funeral Service Tuesday at 8:15, followed by a high mass of requiem at the Church of St. Thomas the Apostle at 9. Burial in St. Thomas Cemetery. Calling hours Sunday and Monday 2 to 4 and 7 to 9 p.m.

Elsie M. (Beane) Anderson
The Springfield Union, Wednesday, 7 May 1969, Page 5
Mrs. Elsie M. Anderson
PALMER -- Mrs. Elsie M. (Bean) Anderson, 62, of Stebbins Road, Monson, died Tuesday in Wesson Memorial Hospital, Springfield. She was born in Biddeford, MD., and was a resident of Palmer and Monson many years. Mrs. Anderson leaves two sons, Edward and Paul of Monson; a daughter, Mrs. Patricia Fontaine of Palmer; two sisters, Mrs. Dorothy Soucy in New Jersey, and Mrs. Alice Ball of Daytona Beach, Fla.; and two stepbrothers, Max Brandt of Palmer and Carl Brandt of Saco, Me. Palmer Funeral Service is in charge. Burial will be in St. Thomas Cemetery, Palmer.

Norman J. Anderson
The Springfield Union, Springfield, Massachusetts, Monday, 26 Aug 1968, Page 3
SUBURBAN DEATHS 
NORMAN J. ANDERSON
ENFIELD--Norman J. Anderson, 63, 0f 25 Sword Ave., Thompsonville, died Saturday in a local nursing home. He was born in Biddlefort, Me., June 24, 1905, he had been a resident of this town since 1951, and of Springfield since his childhood. Mr. Anderson had been employed in the Package Machinery Corp., East Longmeadow as a layout worker until retiring in 1967. He is survived by his wife, the former Ruth V. Nooney. Byron funeral home, Springfield, is in charge. Burial will be in Oak Grove Cemetery.

Ruth V. (Nooney) Anderson
The Springfield Union, Springfield, Massachusetts, Wednesday, 12 Jun 1985, Page 6
Ruth V. Anderson
Ruth V. (Nooney) Anderson, 80, of 70 Harrison Ave., Springfield, retired secretary for Hallihan Lumber Co. and formerly of Fred Weake Plastering Co., died Monday in Western Massachusetts Hospital, Westfield. Born in Springfield, she graduated from the High School of Commerce, was a member of First Church, Court Square and also served on many of the church's committees. Her husband, Norman Anderson, died in 1968. She leaves a brother, Walter G. Nooney of Brickerville, Pa.; and a sister, Florence E. Progulski of Agawam. The funeral will be Thursday afternoon at Dickinson-Streeter Funeral Home with burial in Oak Grove Cemetery.

GenealogyBank
Seems that GenealogyBank has a different set of newspapers than the ones I've searched before. It also seems that an individual subscription gives you access to more than the library subscriptions I've used in the past. I'm pleased with the purchase.

Thursday, December 20, 2012

Elvis Treme R.I.P. March 1999 to 19 Dec 2012

Garry and I lost a beloved member of our family, our cat, Elvis. Since this website is devoted to my family, I've decided to mark the passing of my very sweet old swashbuckler of a cat.

Elvis came into our lives late one night in May 1999. We were living in an apartment, which was filled with abandoned strays that I had been feeding. For no reason at all, I peeked out of the curtains and saw the loveliest fuzzy gray and white kitten licking the concrete where the food had been. It broke my heart and it was love at first sight.

I spent the summer using food to tame him. He was big and loud, and he had sharp claws. But he was always just out of reach of humans, seemingly wanting to be closer. In September, we had a storm coming through Tampa and I didn't want him out in the weather. So I scooped him up and brought him in. My older cat Ziggie was not pleased. But they quickly settled into a working truce.

Over the next few months, the kitten came in and out of the apartment as I was able to lure him in. We hadn't given him a name until Garry came home one day and asked, "So, is Elvis in the building?" I don't know who I was fooling by not giving him a name. He was always going to be my cat. Thus began my time with Elvis.

Elvis was stubborn. Everything was his way or no way. When we moved into the house in 2001, I kept him inside for a month. It was a long, noisy month as we listen to non stop yowling about how much this cat wanted to be outside. We hadn't built the screened patios (lanai in Florida) yet but we noticed that everyone in the neighborhood let their cats out without any problems. When we let him out, Elvis quickly established domain over our yard and several others around us. He became the scourge of Lake Saxon Drive.

He loved to hunt. We've had our share of dead birds, squirrels, and snakes. He cleared up a long standing mouse problem for a neighbor, who was most grateful for the service. I couldn't argue with him much because he ate everything he killed. As he got older, he no longer killed anything. He'd just bring his catches home and let them go in the back lanai. I've released an assortment of panicked birds and squirrels and one terrified rabbit.

As Elvis got older, we realized he had dyspepsia in his hips and that arthritis would be a problem for him. Otherwise, as the vet noted, Elvis was in perfect health. He remained that way for many years until recently, when we found him in the garden, unable to walk. He had developed an abscess (cause unknown) and we took him back and forth to the vet for treatment.

We ended up keeping Elvis in the house again for two weeks because we had to give him antibiotics. Garry and I discussed keeping him in permanently. The question became who would we be doing it for? Us? Elvis? In his usual fashion, Elvis let us know his feelings on the topic. He wanted out!

So we let him back out and everything seemed fine. Last Saturday, while trying to get Elvis to eat, I flipped the kitty door closed. Garry went out later and opened it for him. He went trotting across the yard like he always does and plopped down in the garden in a favorite spot. That was the last either of us saw of him. We knew that he was coming in and eating because his food, treats, and crunches were disappearing. We kept calling and looking and hoping but no Elvis.

Then, this morning, when I went out to put feed in the bird feeders (we have a fenced area for them), I spotted his body on the side of the house. We're not sure what happen to him. The vet said it could have been any number of things. We didn't have him autopsied. We didn't see the point. Sometime over the next few days, he will be cremated. Believe it or not, it's legal in Florida to be buried with cremated pets. I plan on going off to the great beyond with Ziggie and Elvis tucked on the right side of my feet...where they both wanted to be at night.

I'm going to miss my handsome boy Elvis, just like I still miss my sweet girl Ziggie. If you've read this post to this point, thank you for indulging me in honoring the life of Elvis Treme, a four footed friend, a hell of a character, a cat who lived his life on his own terms. I loved him dearly.

Elvis Treme
R.I.P.
March 1999 to 19 Dec 2012

Monday, November 26, 2012

Dodd Cousin

For the past few days, I've been exchanging emails with a distant Dodd cousin named Julia. Julia and her brother Raymond are interested in pursuing research on the Dodd line. I'm not even sure how Julia found me. Her email just popped up. But then, it isn't as if I'm not posting and fishing for information.

I've armed Julia and Raymond with everything I have on the Dodd line so that they are not starting from scratch. I've also contacted Vivian, another cousin from the same line. Perhaps they might be interested in working together. If anything further develops, I'll be sure to blog about it.

I think I received the following certificates from Vivian.

Marriage Certificate Joseph Dodd and Agnes Anderson

Birth Certificate Albert Dodd

Tuesday, October 16, 2012

Alexander McKee 1827-1886 Northern Ireland-Illinois

Well, my luck didn't hold. The researcher looked for every McKee in the Mount/Port Norris area that was born in the 1820s. He found a few but none are my Alexander or any other of the McKee family members I'm looking for. Here are results from the researcher.


I've sent a follow up question to the researcher. Based on church history for the Mount/Port Norris area, Presbyterians were going to church at Markethill. Since a record of Alexander's older brother Robert shows a place of birth as County Armagh, I've asked the researcher if looking at Markethill is a reasonable next step. I've also asked the researcher to suggest an alternative search if he has a suggestion.

I'll keep posting as long as I have questions, options, the attention of the researcher, and disposable cash.