Decades

Photo of the Day – January 6, 2015

joelowry1982 1980s, Maternal, Porubsky, POTD
My great grandmother Caroline Porubsky Wolford had the gift of the gab, a traditionally Irish phrase, but one that applies nonetheless to this Volga German lady. From her home in Topeka, she made regular phone calls back east to her daughter Barb and granddaughters Julie, Marie and Becky in Youngstown. I’m guessing this snapshot was taken sometime in the 1980’s while great grandma made one of those calls.

Serendipity in Genealogy – 94 Years and No Longer Waiting…

joelowry1982 1920s, Crawford, DNA, Lowry, Paternal

Genealogy isn’t always about searching for the dead. Often, it’s about finding the living to help solve the mysteries of the dead. This is a case of a random Google search for a great grand-uncle, a pair of DNA tests and, after 94 years, being able to confirm that the man whom we could only ever suspect as the father of William Thomas Crawford is in fact the right guy.

For me, this story begins on August 30, 2014. It was late in the evening; Brendan had already been put to bed. As usual, I was sitting in front of my computer searching away to find the next family gem or lost record. I don’t remember my exact search terms, but I in the process I found this request written on a genealogy forum:

I am looking for the birth father of a William Crawford born in Leetonia in 1920 ,family oral history says that a Ed Lowry was the father,only want information,,about the Lowry family from that area,,1 

I looked at the date it was posted: January 20, 2006. It had been almost nine years since Linda Tritt Crawford wrote looking for information about Edward Lowry from Leetonia. Until I stumbled upon it, this request had gone unanswered.

I promptly sent Linda an email stating that my great grand uncle was Edward Martin Lowry, born in 1896 in Leetonia. Still, I didn’t hold out much hope that I would receive a response. Nine years is a long time without someone changing their email address, losing interest in a hobby or dying. Fortunately for me, Linda was still very much on the search.

Linda’s response the next day reemphasized that family history held that the father of William Thomas Crawford, her husband Bill’s father, was Edward Lowry. Edward and Margaret Crawford, William’s mother, had dated but never married. Since 1920, there has been no reliable confirmation that Edward Lowry was the father.

Linda and I exchanged a few emails and I sent her a link to my website and family photos so she could search through my published material herself. Since I held a possible key to this mystery, I wanted to do what I could to help solve this problem. I had the wild idea that maybe her husband and my dad could take DNA tests to attempt to confirm this relationship. I recently have gained an interest in genetic genealogy and although I want to take a DNA test myself, I knew that my dad would be a closer relative and thus more likely to be a match. If the Crawford family story was true, my dad and her husband would be second cousins. They would share a great-grandfather in Michael Lowry (1868-1949).

I proposed the idea to my dad as well as Linda, who passed it along to Bill. Fortunately, both agreed. I suggested an autosomal DNA test through Family Tree DNA. There are basically three different types of DNA tests for genetic genealogy. Y-DNA tests trace paternal lines from father to paternal grandfather to paternal great grandfather, etc. Mt-DNA tests trace maternal lines from a mother to grandmother to great grandmother. Each of these tests looks at the specific parts of chromosome 23 that get passed from parent to child. An autosomal DNA test, on the other hand, looks at shared genetic material on chromosomes 1 through 22. The more shared material, the more likely you are to be related. This is the perfect test for identifying a cousin relationship.

I bought my dad’s test and had it shipped to the house. All that is required is a cheek swab on a glorified Q-tip. Linda and Bill ordered their test as well. Both tests were returned and then we waited. And waited. And waited. These tests aren’t especially fast. This isn’t like we were just waiting for Jerry Springer to announce, “YOU ARE THE FATHER!” DNA tests can take 4-6 weeks for results so we each expected something returned by Thanksgiving.

Even though it was my dad’s test, I was particularly antsy, checking my account almost every day looking for an update. Finally, on December 6, a little more than 3 months since I first reached out to Linda, we had both tests results. Right there at the top of my results, which identify hundreds of very distant cousins who have also tested, was the name William David Crawford – 2nd or 3rd Cousin. A MATCH!

The result’s page. Click to enlarge.

Naturally, we again exchanged emails and shared our excitement over the match. In doing so, I also learned a little more about Linda and Bill. Today they live outside Cleveland, Tennesee, although Bill grew up in Leetonia and they still have family in the area. One of those family members in the Leetonia area is Bill’s niece Debra Moore, who I’ve also started to exchange family information with. Sadly, Bill’s mother Elsie Crawford passed away on December 7, just one day after we solved the mystery of her late husband’s father.

A portion of the results showing a strong genetic link (the orange part) between my dad and Bill Crawford on chromosome 5. Not every chromosome shows a match, but enough do to indicate a close relative.

Of all of my genealogical discoveries, this has been by far the most important. While it’s great to be able to identify new generations of grandparents back in history, it’s more important to be able to connect with those newly found cousins who share small and large branches of your family tree. In this case, we were able to solve a mystery that had existed for almost a century and finally confirm the long-held suspicion that the father of William Thomas Crawford was my great grand uncle Edward Lowry.

(Not So) Wordless Wednesday – 1st Sunday at Work?

joelowry1982 1920s, Paternal, Pepperney, Wordless Wednesday
Was April 1 the first day my great uncle James Pepperney went off to work? Was it the first Sunday he worked? I’m not 100% sure the meaning of the caption, however April 1, 1923 was a Sunday. James was 16 years old, assuming this photo was taken on that date. I’m equally not as certain where he would have worked at age 16. If you have any insights, leave a comment!

Source:
James Albert Pepperney Sr. (1906-1999), Photograph, taken in unknown location, probably on 1 Apr 1923; digital image, photocopy of original, scanned in 2013 by Joseph Lowry; privately held by Mary McCaffrey, [address for private use], Canton, Ohio. Man wearing dark pants and vest, lighter colored jacket and cap. Provenance is Charles Lowry family to Mary McCaffrey.

The Tragic Deaths of William Pepperney and William Groucutt

joelowry1982 1920s, Death Certificate, Groucutt, Paternal, Pepperney
Two little boys who lived just 50 miles apart. The same age and sadly, the same cause of death. These two death certificates tell of the very sad deaths of William A Pepperney and William Groucutt Jr. 
William Groucutt and William Pepperney were born a few months apart. They were both no doubt the apple of their parents eyes. They were the first son in each family, expected to carry on the family name. Sadly, it was not meant to be. After a brief illness, both died from what is today a very manageable disease – pneumonia.
William A Pepperney was born on 26 December 1919 to Andrew and Magdalena Pepperney. He is my first cousin, three times removed. The Pepperneys lived, ironically, on Lowrie Street, in the Troy Hill neighborhood of Pittsburgh. Andrew was a pipe fitter and Lena kept the house. William was their second child, following a daughter Savilla three years prior.
At just 15 months, Andrew contracted pneumonia. It probably started as bronchitis or influenza however this was before antibiotics could have provided any relief. Antivirals and vaccines to treat or prevent the flu did not yet exist either. According to the death certificate, Wiliam Pepperney was attended to by Doctor J.F. Thomas from 29 March until his death on 31 March. He had probably been ill for days prior but it finally reached a severity where his parents felt the need to contact a doctor. At 2:30 p.m. in 31 March, 1921, little William died of complications from pneumonia. This no doubt was devastating to his family. He is buried in Most Holy Name Cemetery in Troy Hill.
Just 50 miles away in New Castle, Pennsylvania lived the Groucutts. William and Tillie Groucutt had two daughters before William Jr was born on 29 February 1919. William Jr is my first cousin, twice removed. William Sr. worked in the steel mills while Tillie was a homemaker. Tragically, William Groucutt would not live to see his first birthday. Sometime in late January he probably contracted influenza or bronchitis. By 2 February, his symptoms were so severe as to warrant a doctor’s attention and Doctor Davis was called. Sadly, on 3 February he too would die of pneumonia.
William was buried at Saint Mary’s Cemetery in New Castle on 5 February 1920. He was only 11 months old.

Source:
Pennsylvania Department of Health, “Pennsylvania, Death Certificates, 1906-1944,” database, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com: accessed 19 Oct 2014), entry for William A Groucutt, record 20022 (3 Feb 1920).

Pennsylvania Department of Health, “Pennsylvania, Death Certificates, 1906-1944,” database, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com: accessed 19 Oct 2014), entry for William Pepperney Jr, record 23020 (31 Mar 1921).

Treasure Chest Thursday – Death Certificate of Bridget Foy Groucutt

joelowry1982 1920s, Death Certificate, Foy, Groucutt, Paternal, Treasure Chest Thursday
Sometimes you need to search long and hard for a great record, and sometimes you just need to click on a Shaky Leaf. Ancestry.com uses ‘shaky leaves’ to indicate that someone in your tree has a hint, or possible match to a record in their vast collection of databases. I had basically exhausted all of the hints in my direct ancestors so I was very excited to see a new shaky leaf appear on Bridget Foy Groucutt.
Bridget Foy Groucutt is my 2nd great grandmother and this shaky leaf hint indicated that a death certificate match may have been automatically made. Of course I review all of these hints meticulously. There are often useless record hints for a person you know isn’t your ancestor. On more than one occasion, Ancestry.com has suggested a possible match of a record for someone who lived or died 100 years from when the record was created.
This death certificate was a legitimate hint however. It told me quite a bit about Bridget and her life. At the end of her life, Bridget was at living at 1026 Huey Street in New Castle, Lawrence, PA with her husband George and daughter Sara, who was the informant on her death. She died of carcinoma of the large bowel after being sick for 6 months. An infection one month before her death and surgery just two weeks prior no doubt made for a difficult last stage of life for both her and her family.
Her death certificate tells us that she was born on 2 February 1862 in England, the daughter of John Foy and Sarah Coyne, likewise born in England. She was a house wife who tended to her home and large family. At the time of her death on 14 October 1925, she was 62 years old. She is buried in Saint Mary’s Cemetery in New Castle.

Source:
Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission, “Pennsylvania, Death Certificates, 1906-1944,” database, Ancestory.com (http://goo.gl/jTgDq4%5D: accessed 8 Oct 2014), entry for Bridget Groucutt, File 101333 (16 Oct 1925).