Deedy.com Blog

I found this curious story in the New York Times archives this evening - I wonder what my Great-Uncle Jack Barry thought of it at the time?

"Jack Barry" Gets Night's Lodging
New York Times
Feb 22, 1914

CHICAGO, Feb. 21. - By telling physicians at the West Side Hospital that he was Jack Barry, shortstop of the Philadelphia Athletics, a shabbily attired man last night enjoyed a good night's sleep in a clean bed. The man asked for free remedial attention and after declaring he was Barry, was given special attention in a private ward. Charles Kuhn, ground keeper for the Cubs baseball park, was called in by the physicians and identified the man as Barry. Later, however, the man admitted he was not Barry when he was confronted with photographs of the baseball player.

Labels: Jack_Barry

I recently came across this May 27, 1929 article: Patrolman Dies In Strength Test. It appears a group of older Boston police officers were surprised on civil service test day with a new strength test section. One of the older officers exerted himself so much that he died while others ended up injured and hospitalized.

Among the injured was a Sergent Maurice Sullivan who strained something while jumping with heavy weights. If this is my great-grandfather, he was 67 years old at the time of the test.

Labels: Sullivan

A new McDonough image has arrived for me to share. Pictured is Mary M. McDonough Dowd with three of her four children - son John Dowd and twin daughters Marie and Anna Dowd. Mary is buried with her parents, Bartholomew McDonough and Margaret Fay McDonough in St. John's Cemetery in Worcester (see cemetery tour here). This photo was provided by Dianne Dowd - Thank you Dianne! She dates the photo to 1911 and I will assume it was taken in Worcester, MA.

Mary Margaret McDonough Dowd was born on July 11, 1882 which makes her about 1 month older than her cousin Katherine McDonough Kennedy (middle row seated last on the left) who is the third of Thomas' ten children.

This photo likely dates to about the same time (give or take a few years) of Thomas McDonough's family in Worcester, MA. Thomas was Mary's uncle and all of his children were Mary's first cousins. It is interesting to click on each photo (to see larger) and compare the faces of the cousins.

Another interesting thing to note that Mary and her uncle Thomas had in common - both had twins! Two of Thomas McDonough's daughters are fraternal twins. Could twins run in the McDonough family?

Labels: McDonough

A bit ago my cousin Shaun was kind enough to send along some photos he took in 2001 of Deedy Square in Worcester. I posted about the dedicated of the square here: Deedy Square in Worcester. The square is still there, be sure to visit if in Worcester, MA.

DEEDY SQUARE
Montrose & Euclid Streets
in Memory of LT John J. Deedy
Born: September 22, 1914
Wounded in battle – St. Lo, France
Died in England July 28, 1944

Another marker to remember John J. Deedy can be found in the nearby St. John's Cemetery. Photos of that memorial can be found in the 2008 Cemetery Tour.

Labels: Deedy

Among the slew of Christmas cards I received, one from Dianne Dowd arrived containing a copy of Bartholomew McDonough's 1926 Obituary. After a considerable hunt, I managed to unearth that important piece of paper, scan it and now it is attached to this post (link above).

Reading this obituary, I see that between 1913 (Thomas McDonough's obituary) and 1926, brother Bartholomew's obituary, the remaining McDonough siblings remain alive and I assume in their same locations. At least sister Catherine (or Katherine as was the spelling in Thomas' obit) Murphy is still in Ireland.

I would still love to be able to find photos of the siblings, if they exist. Pinpointing their village in Ireland is still another research goal...

Labels: McDonough

It is amazing what can be learned from one document! My Great-Great Grandfather's 1876 Naturalization record has been uncovered. This record provides the answer to a long asked question. Just where in England was he from? The answer: County Kent, England. The record also provides his birth date - December 2, 1819. Those two clues may help me trace back one more generation to my Great-Great-Great Grandparents. If I can find a record of William's birth in 1819, that record should list his parents...

Another interesting find in the document came about when I took a closer look at William's witnesses. Generally the people who vouched for you in Naturalization documents are close friends or family. One of the men listed is Richard Fraser. A search of the Massachusetts vital records reveals that in 1875 (a year before this document was executed) one Richard Fraser married Margaret Austin. Margaret was William's daughter, so one of his witnesses was his son-in-law.

Labels: Austin

The family history search continues. Finding the time to analyze the finds and then post about them is the hard part for me lately. Life is very busy! Enough excuses from me, here is the latest:

You may recall that Thomas McDonough (my great-grandfather) obituary revealed that he had siblings. One of whom was named Bartholomew. I was able to locate Bartholomew's grave in Worcester.

Unfortunately I was stopped at that point. You would think a name like Bartholomew McDonough would be fairly unique. I had hoped that uniqueness would help me locate a Naturalization record for him.

I did find paperwork for the Naturalization in Worcester in 1918 of a
Bartholomew Joseph McDonough born 1887 in Sligo, Ireland. Now this Bartholomew can't possibly be the brother of Thomas - he is far too young. But could he be a nephew?

Labels: McDonough