Sunday's Obituary: Catherine Sullivan O'Keefe 1837-1928

Mrs. Catherine O'Keefe

Former Resident of Lowville Dies in New York—Funeral at St. Peter's Church Today.

Mrs. Catherine Sullivan O'Keefe, 91, a former resident of Lowville died Saturday night at the home of her daughter, Mrs. W.D. Austin, New York. The remains were brought to the undertaking rooms of Graves & Virkler, Lowville, Wednesday, and funeral services will be held from St. Peter's church at 9:30 this morning. Burial will be in Rural cemetery.

Mrs. O'Keefe was born in Albany in April, 1837, but came as a child to Lowville with her parents. Practically all her long life was spent in this village, until ten years ago, when she sold her home here and went to love with her daughters. Her husband, David O'Keefe, died in 1870.

Surviving are a sister, Mrs. Margaret O'Neil, of this village; four daughters, Mrs. Austin and Miss Ella O'Keefe of New York; Mrs. David Barry, of Dedham, Mass., and Mrs. James Downey, Birmingham, Ala, and two sons, Frank D. O'Keefe, Carthage, and Maurice O'Keefe, of Staten Island. A sister, Mrs. Elizabeth Conway, 83, died in this village about a month ago.

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Note: Catherine Sullivan was my 3rd great-grandmother (Thomas MacEntee > Jacqueline Austin > Alfred Austin > John Ralph Austin > William Dence Austin > Catherine O'Keefe > Catherine Sullivan) and I have her wedding silver from the late 1850s.

Source: Mrs. Catherine O'Keefe, digital image, NYS Historic Newspapers (http://nyshistoricnewspapers.org/, accessed 13 July 2014), Lowville Journal Republic, published 16 February 1928, Volume 69, Number 17, p. 5, col. 3.

© 2014, copyright Thomas MacEntee. All rights reserved.

Catherine Sullivan Located In 1910 Census

If you remember my complaint of madness in this past Monday's post, I had been unable to locate Catherine O'Keefe (nee Sullivan), my 2nd great grandmother, in the 1910 US Census. This all came about after participating in Randy Seaver's SNFG challenge on Saturday when he asked which ancestors were living in 1909 and which of them could be located in the 1910 US Census.


As you can see in the image above, Catherine is listed as KIEF not O'KEEFE. While searching on Ancestry last night, I had to employ all my searching super powers and wildcard tricks in order to locate her. Here's how the sleuthing worked:


- I knew that in 1920, Catherine Sullivan was living in Birmingham, Alabama with her daughter Mary O'Keefe and husband James Downey. So I did an exhaustive search in the Jefferson County, Alabama census rolls for any Catherine born in New York abt 1837 after failing with the surname O'KEEFE and OKEEFE.


- Catherine Sullivan had lived most of her life in Lowville, New York and this is where she had appeared in the 1900 US Census. So searching through the Lewis County, New York census rolls using the surnames O'KEEFE and OKEEFE resulted in bupkus.


- I then decided to search for all Catherines born abt 1837 in New York within Lewis County and Lowville township. Bingo! It appears that even the enumerator got the last name wrong, writing it as KIEF.


Catherine Sullivan had been widowed since 1870 and in 1910 was living with her daughter Ellen (often called Ella). Ella was a milliner and hair dresser who moved back home to take care of her mother who was now 72. The 1920 US Census shows Ella living in the Bronx, New York with the family of William Dence Austin who married Catherine Sullivan's daughter, Catherine O'Keefe. Catherine Sullivan would also moved into the family home at 2482 Elm Place in the Bronx before she passed away on February 12, 1928.

What Would I Take In A Disaster?

Julie Cahill Tarr over at GenBlog has posed an interesting topic which makes for a good blogging or journaling prompt:

Because my mom lives in constant fear of forest fires, she has an evacuation plan in place. Instead of fretting over what to take during a stressful evacuation, she grabs the list and starts packing. Even though I don't live in constant threat of forest fires, there are several other disasters that could occur.

I'm willing to bet that all of us family historians have files upon files of research used to construct our trees. I'm sure there are some of us who have some sort of "plan" to back up data on our computers or store hard-copies in fire-proof safes or in another location (if you don't, I suggest you have a plan in place). While some of these items could be replaced, such a death certificates, census data, etc.) there are some things that absolutely cannot be replaced. I'm talking about family heirlooms.

Many of us are so concerned with all of the records we've accumulated because of the blood, sweat, and tears that went into finding them, they we may overlook these precious heirlooms. So, following in the footsteps of my mom, I'm going to think long and hard and develop my own disaster plan.

I'm also interested to see what family heirloom(s) you would risk saving in the event of a disaster. Write a post on your blog explaining what you would save and why (include a picture if you like). If you'd like to participate, please send me an email with the link to your post by September 13.

And with Hurricane Gustav gone, Ike here and who knows which tropical visitor will appear next, this is a good time for me to think about a) what possessions are most meaningful to me, b) where those items are right now, and c) which would I take with me in the event of an emergency.

1. The Sullivan-O'Keefe Wedding Silver

This is a very simple, handmade sterling silver set that I described here for the 55th Edition of the Carnival of Genealogy.   Consisting of twelve forks with very long tines, twelve knives and three serving spoons hand-engraved with the name "O'Keefe," I know that the set was treasured by my 3 times great-grandmother Catherine Sullivan O'Keefe.  I know where the set is but I really want to get a better storage mechanism for it - either a tarnish proof bag or a small chest.

2. My Great-Grandmother's Floradora Doll

I wrote about this doll which belonged to my great-grandmother Therese McGinnis Austin as she grew up at the turn of the 20th century.  In A Man With Dolls, I described the doll which came from Germany and is in desparate need of repair.  I really need to restore this doll to its former glory by taking it over to the doll hospital in Lincoln Park here in Chicago.  Then I can hold on to it for a few more years before I give it to my niece Rosie in Virginia Beach who I know will cherish it as have many of the women in my family.

3. The External Hard Drive

The keys to the kingdom as far as I'm concerned.  If I ever needed to startup my computer-based ventures (blogging, employment, etc.) after a disaster, I will need my data which is faithfully backed up each month.  The drive is small (7 inches x 5 inches) and can be grabbed in seconds and placed in a box or carried by hand.  All my genealogy research and scanned photos are here as well.

4. My Painting

I will probably go more into depth on this item in a future Cabinet of Curiosities carnival, but this 8" x 12" painting was executed by me during my art studies in college.  A copy of "Girl and Her Duena" by Murillo, you can barely see the numbers underneath the paint (lol) but I did make it from scratch (meaning I primed the Belgian linen, stretched it, ground my own pigments, etc.) and it means quite a bit to me.

5. The Family Jewels

No, not those - I never have to worry as to where they are.  I have two items that mean more from a sentimental value perspective than their financial value.

My diamond stud earrings that I wear in each ear mean quite a bit to me.  After I survived the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake in San Francisco (squeezing under my desk on the 38th floor of Embarcadero Center), I decided to mark such an event by getting my ears pierced.  And shortly after my 40th birthday I treated myself to a pair of 1/4 carat D color, IF clarity, Asscher cut diamonds.  They are unique and the cut/style is not one you see everyday.  Each time I see them I think back to how I survived that day in October, 1989.

The rings I had made from several items of family jewelry including old wedding bands and diamonds.  I designed these and worked with a jeweler back in San Francisco.  Each time I wear them, I am taking many generations in my hand and they travel with me on every journey.

My Ancestors In 1908

Lisa over at 100 Years In America poses a "family history challenge" as it were: Where Was Your Family in 1908? Since Lisa has asked me to "thrown down," here's what I can relate about my ancestors and that year:

John Ralph Austin - my great-grandfather would start the year off turning 12 in late January downstate in the Bronx, New York. While he grew up in Lowville, Lewis County, New York, he and the rest of the family closed the butcher shop they owned off of State Street to resettle in New York City. The Lowville Journal-Republican has several articles mentioning Ralph visiting his grandmother, Catherine Sullivan O'Keefe during the summer of 1908. He probably arrived and departed via the New York Central & Hudson railroad which went on to Ottawa, Canada as its final destination.

Therese Rose McGinnes- my great-grandmother and wife of John Ralph was about to turn 14 years old in Manhattan, New York where she had lived all her life. Her father had already left their mother, Bridget Farren, and the six girls to fend for themselves.

My great-grandparents Richard Henneberg and Frances Pressner had met in Germany and were married right around 1908 in the Bronx, New York. Over the next 15 years they would welcome six children into the fold.

My great-grandparents Elmer A. MacEntee and Margaret DeGroodt were living about 90 miles north of New York City, in the Ulster County region, mostly Ellenvile and Shawangunk. By 1908 four of their 11 children would have been born.

My great-grandparents John Vincent Slattery and Loretta Margarete Dorothea Krom were located one county over, in Orange County, New York but had not yet even met. They would be married within the next five years.

Up Early - Cleaning Up My Database

Well I've taken a break from actually expanding my family tree looking for more grandparents etc. There are times when you just need to do some housekeeping and clean up the database.

I was sitting on a bunch of images I had scanned back in April and some that I had scanned back in 1997 (yikes!). Some were of gravestones taken during a field trip with my mother back in 1999 in Fonda, NY. I have lots of interesting information about the Putmans who settled in Montgomery County after the Schenectady Massacre of 1689 - but that will have to wait for another posting.

The image above is of my 2nd Great Grandmother, Catherine O'Keefe Austin - the daughter of Catherine Sullivan O'Keefe (mentioned in yesterday's post). Catherine O'Keefe Austin was the mother of John Ralph Austin and grew up in Lowville, NY. Around 1905, the family of William Dence Austin (his wife Catherine and sons Maurice, Harry, Robert, John and William) all moved down to the Bronx. They are frequently mentioned in the Lowville Journal-Republican newspaper as making visits to their grandmother, Catherine Sullivan O'Keefe. Confused yet? Well imagine how I had to figure out that there were really two Catherine O'Keefes! So I use the maiden name in the middle when writing which makes it much easier.

The photo above was taken around 1941 and Catherine O'Keefe Austin died on November 8, 1946 at the age of 84.

The Weather Gets Colder - That Means Only One Thing . .

. . . more genealogy work! During the summer, who wants to be stuck inside going through websites or images? Well, given our weather here in Chicago this past summer, there were days when I relished being in my condo with the central A/C running!

But now that more reasonable temperatures prevail (highs in the mid 70s, lows in the low 50's at night), I've been spending more time on genealogy. Plus I think it is great to take breaks every now and then. Those of you who work on genealogy know what I'm talking about - you will bang your head against the wall trying to figure out a relationship or why your great-great-great grandfather married his wife's sister after his wife died (more common than you think). And don't you eventually put it aside and move on to another part of your family tree and come back to the vexing problem later? And often, I find that I have a different perspective and usually find what I am looking for.

I've made two great advances - both of which are not yet posted to the Austin database.

First, I have been able to locate information on my great-great-great grandmother Catherine Sullivan O'Keefe. The "Sullivan" is the important part - I never had her maiden name and had no information whatsover. All I had were some pictures of her from about 1917 (see above) taken at the family home on Elm Place in the Bronx.

Catherine Sullivan was born in Albany, New York in 1837 and died in the Bronx in 1928. That means she was about 90 or 91 when she died (longevity runs in my family but alas, mostly among the women). It is unknown when she married David O'Keefe but she spent most of her entire life in Lowville, NY. I was then able to trace her parents, Daniel Sullivan and Mary Griffin Sullivan who both immigrated from Ireland, probably during one of the early potato famines around 1830.

Second, and this one has me so psyched, I have been able to trace my 4th great-grandmother on my mother's side - her name is Margaret De Wandelaer. This one has perplexed me for well over a year - I was giving up hope and figured she was dropped down upon Fonda, NY by aliens or gypsies or alien gypsies. The problem was her last name.

The 1916 printed family genealogy listed the name as DE WANDERLEAR. I knew through my research that there were many DE WANDELAERs in upstate New York especially around Albany and Schenectady. And the Genalogical and Family History of Northern New York by William Richard Cutter published in 1910 said that she was the daughter of "one of the sons of Johannes De Wandelaer" born in 1756. So it could have been Pieter De Wandelaer or Herman[us] De Wandelaer. As luck would have it, I knew using early census records would be a challenge since most records only listed the head of household by name and didn't list the wife and children until 1850 or 1860 (see, again, women didn't count!).

First, I headed over to the Records of the Dutch Reformed Church of Albany, New York 1683 - 1809 and scoured through baptismal records looking for either a Pieter or Herman De Wandelaer who had a daughter Margaret. I was able to locate a Johannes De Wandelaer who had married Gerritje Gansevoort in 1777 in Albany, New York. From there I was able to locate Pieter and Herman De Wandelaer and get information on their births, baptisms and marriages. Herman De Wandelaer married Rachel Ten Eyck and they had a daughter Margaret born in 1809 which matched the age of my Margaret De Wandelaer.

Well it took me much of one weekend to work through early census records using the Ancestry website (for which I have a subscription and believe me it is well worth it) where I discovered this: the early census records showed the family last name as WANDLER. I've come to the conclusion that a) the early census takers probably had a limited education and their writing skills were not the best; and b) those being counted probably had a limited education as well. The census taker probably only heard the "wandler" part and by 1840 or so it was pronounced more as an English surname than a Dutch ("de van de lar") surname. Funny since the original name is acutally French as in DE FRONDELAC.

So, now I've added five or six more generations off of this one person. And the tree continues to grow.