Bridget (Delia) Fitzgerald Bowman

Third Great-Grandmother & Immigrant from Ireland

1. Bridget (Delia) Fitzgerald
+ Edward Bowman
2. Michael Joseph Bowman
+ Mary Louise Connelly
3. Arthur Joseph Bowman
+ Frances Harriet Crogent
4. Florence Mary Bowman
+ John Emil Dahlquist, Jr
5. Debra Florence Dahlquist
+ Edward Deck Munson
6. Scott Edward Munson

In honor of St. Patrick's day, I thought I would explore one of our Irish ancestors, Bridget (Delia) Fitzgerald Bowman.  She was my Nana's Great-grandmother but I don't know a lot about her other than what I have been able to find in documents, some of which have been provided by my Uncle, James Buggie. 

We know that she was born December 24, 1847 in the county of Wexford in Ireland and that her parent's names were John Fitzgerald and Alice Murphy.  I know nothing of her parents other than their name and her birthplace, but if you remember them, I will explain why they are significant later on.  Her name was Bridget, but she probably went by Delia which was recorded in several census records.

Main Street in the town of Wexford, County of Wexford, Ireland.
(picture from Wikipedia)

She married my 3rd Great-Grandfather, Edward Bowman - a shoemaker from Waterford County, Ireland.  Their first child, James, was born in 1860 in Waterford County.  Their second child, Michael Joseph (my 2nd Great-Grandfather) was born in Dublin, Ireland in 1865.  Why the family were on the move, I do not know, but by 1870, when their 3rd child, Amelia, was born, they were living in Liverpool, England.

In 1875 the family sailed for America.  I have been unsuccessful in finding their arrival records, but in the 1880 US Census, they were living at 2 Ninth Avenue in New York City. Today, this is the very trendy area know as the Meat Packing District but back in the late 1800s, it was probably a very poor neighborhood.  Both Edward, age 42, and James, age 20, were listed as Boot & Shoe Makers. Michael, age 15, was working in a soda water factory! Remember, this was before child labor laws went into effect.

This square is where their apartment on Ninth Ave would have been. Notice the
smaller buildings in the background which probably date to the 1880s.
(picture taken in Jun 2010 by SEM)

These buildings are accross the street but were probably there when Edward
& Delia lived on Ninth Avenue.
(picture taken in Jun 2010 by SEM)

In the 1900 Census, Delia was living with James and Amelia at 423 West 18th Street. Today, this is where the Chelsea Projects are.  She was listed as a Widow, but we know that Edward did not die until 1904.  Whether they were divorced or he was institutionalized, we do not know.  The census tells us she was the mother of 10 children and only 3 were still living.  The other children probably died in infancy since James, Michael and Amelia were all still living and were the only children ever recorded with Bridget in any of the census records.

Delia was living in the same apartment on West 18th Street in both the 1910 and 1920 Census.  She was listed working as a Janitress, probably in the building she lived in.  In 1910, Amelia Morris was a widow living there with her two daughters, Edith and Mildred.  By 1920, James was back living with his mother and helping out as a Janitor to her Janitress.  Amelia was also living there with her second husband, Patrick McDonald.

Bridget died on December 3, 1922, less than a month before her 75th birthday and only eight months after the birth of her Great-Grandaughter, Florence Mary Bowman.  The picture below is possibly a picture of Bridget holding my Nana.  The caption on it reads, Florence Bowman with unknown Grandmother.  The picture doesn't look like either of her own grandmothers.  Both of her mother's Grandmothers were already dead before she was born, so this must be one of her Father's Grandmothers, Bridget Bowman or Anastasia Connelly. 

"Grandma unknown holding Florence Bowman"
I love the buildings in the background.
(picture provided by Jim Buggie)

Bridget is buried in Calvary Cemetery here in Queens with her husband Edward, her son James and several grandchildren.  There is no stone to mark the spot.

There is no stone, but this is the spot where Edward & Delia are buried.
(picture taken Aug 2010 by SEM)

Now, you'll remember I told you not to forget the names of Delia's parents and the location of her birth.  It just so happens that we may be connected to America's greatest son of Irish descent, President John FITZGERALD Kennedy.  It turns out that his family was also from Wexford County Ireland.  His Grandfather on his Mother's side was named John Fitzgerald and his Great-Grandmother on his Father's side was named Bridget Murphy - and they were all from Wexford County. I haven't made a direct connection yet, but it is very probable that we are related. 

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Our Curious Connections to Nicholas Holt

I ran across this interesting little tid-bit concerning the family of Ada (Rockwell) Hotchkiss (see July 2010 post) and thought it was worth sharing. 

I first encountered the name Nicholas Holt when I was searching for grave stones in Norfolk, CT.  The stone for my Sixth Great-Grandmother, Ada's father's Great-Grandmother, reads: "Lydia, wife first of Jedediah Phelps then of Nicholas Holt..."

(picture taken Jul 2010 by SEM)


I didn't think much of it at the time, but I took the picture and made a note of it.  Every once in a while I would be doing research and would run across "she later married Nicholas Holt" or something to that effect, and I would think, "Oh, yeah.  I remember her grave stone. Nicholas Holt." 

Last week, I was reading part of a book on the history of Norfolk when I ran across that very phrase:  "she later married Nicholas Holt" and I thought, "Oh, yeah, she's..." I went to her profile on ancestry.com but there was no grave picture, so I decided I would upload the one I had taken (even though I thought I had already done that). I soon discovered that I had already uploaded it, but to a different person. I was talking about two different grandmothers, both of whom married Nicholas Holt as their second husband!  The one I was reading about in this book was not Lydia but Sarah (Phelps) Bingham, my Fifth Great-Grandmother and Ada's mother's Grandmother.

So, who was this Nicholas Holt?  He was born in 1755 in East Haven, CT but moved to Norfolk with his parents when he was a child.  He enlisted in the revolutionary army as a teenager and was soon on the Campaign to Quebec.  It was at Lake George that he fell sick with smallpox. To avoid death, he jumped into the freezing waters of Lake George which quelled the smallpox but led to a severe cold.  Swelling in his hip caused him to be disabled for the rest of his life.


(picture from http://www.familysearch.org/)

He returned to Norfolk after serving in the Revolution and married his first wife, Keturah Pratt.  They had ten children together and she died in February 1798.  With five children under the age of fifteen, he married his second wife, Sarah (Phelps) Bingham in February 1799.  She had been married to Ozias Bingham, my Sixth Great-Grandfather with whom she had five children.  Some records indicate Ozias and Sarah were divorced and other records say he abandoned his CT family.  Either way, Ozias ended up in Wysox, Pennsylvania where by all accounts he lived a respectable life with his second family, living to the age of 90. 

While Sarah and Nicholas had no children together, Sarah raised the youngest of Nicholas & Keturah's children.  Her children with Ozias were probably all near adulthood by the time she married Nicholas.  They remained married until 1821 when she died at the age of 67.

Nicholas next married Lydia (Gaylord) Phelps, his third wife, in 1824.  She was the widow of Jedediah Phelps, my Fifth Great-Grandfather and brother of Sarah (Phelps) Bingham Holt, the second wife of Nicholas.  Are you confused yet?  Maybe this will help:

Brilliant Chart created by SEM

I think this makes him my Step Fifth Great-Grandfather and Step Sixth Great-Grandfather - or maybe it's Fifth Great-Stepgrandfather and Sixth Great-Stepgrandfather.  I'm not sure which is the correct termininology to use!

Either way, Nicholas was a respected member of the Congregational Church in Norfolk and served two terms representing his town in the Connectictut Legislature. He died in 1832 at the age of 77. He wasn't our direct ancestor but we can still honor him and remember his multiple connections to our family.

Reverend Thomas Hooker

The First American Democrat

Tenth Great-Grandfather
Immigrant Ancestor

1. Reverend Thomas Hooker
+ Suzanna
2. Reverend Samuel Hooker
+ Mary Willet
3. John Hooker
+ Abigail Standley
4. Hezekiah Hooker
+ Abigail Curtis
5. James Hooker
+ Dorothy Parmalee
6. Thomas Hooker
+ Ruth Parmalee
7. Dr. Thomas Gould Hooker
+ Esther Sweet
8. Thomas Edwin Hooker
+ Lucy Hyde
9. Marus Edwin Hooker
+ Elizabeth Rosenburg
10. Jennie Estella Hooker
+ John Emil Dahlquist, Sr.
11. John Emil Dahlquist, Jr.
+ Florence Mary Bowman
12. Debra Florence Dahlquist
+ Edward (Ned) Deck Munson
13. Scott Edward Munson

In my first post for this blog, I alluded to the fact that I grew up knowing that I was a direct descendant of the Reverend Thomas Hooker, one of the most prominent of the New England puritan ministers and a leader in the founding of Hartford, Connecticut.  I decided that before posting about some additional ancestors who are closely connected to him, that I ought to at least give a brief account of his life and the lasting impact of his ministry. If you do a Google search you will discover a great deal more about his life and legacy.

Statue of Thomas Hooker in Hartford
(picture from http://www.foundersofhartford.org/)

Thomas Hooker was born in England about 1586. He attended Emmauel College in Cambridge, England where he studied for the ministry. He was a gifted preacher and soon held a position at the St. Mary's Church in Chelmsford, England.  It was there that Arch-Bishop William Laud objected to some of his puritan teachings which were considered contrary to the established Church of England.  Though 50 of his fellow clergy signed a petition in support of his ministry and character, Thomas Hooker found himself in more and more trouble with the Arch-Bishop. In 1630, he was to be put on trial before an Ecclesiastical Court, but instead fled to Holland.



Plaque found in St. Mary's Church
(picture from http://www.tigergrowl.wordpress.com/)


He returned to England in 1633, but before being arrested, he fled once more with his family and a group of friends. This time, his destination was not Holland, but the New World.  He arrived at Plymouth, Massachusetts in the ship Griffin on September 3, 1633, just 13 short years after the Mayflower had landed there with the Pilgrims. 

Plaque located in Cambridge, MA
(picture from Wikipedia)

Thomas Hooker and his followers settled in Newtowne, Massachusetts where he was chosen to be the Pastor.  (Newtowne was later renamed Cambridge and is currently the sight of Harvard Square.)  There are several reasons Thomas Hooker and his followers decided to seek a new home only a couple years after arriving there.  First, it was getting crowded.  More and more people were arriving in Massachusetts every year.  Arch-Bishop Laud was on a rampage, and many Puritan ministers and their followers were fleeing the persecution in England. Secondly, Thomas Hooker had some theological disagreements with the church leaders in Hartford.  Reverend John Cotton was the most prominant minister in Boston at  the time, and there was friction between the two.  The third, and I believe, primary reason for his move is best described by Walter Seth Logan, a fellow Hooker Descendant, in a paper he wrote in 1905:

"He moved from Massachusetts to Connecticut for the same reason that he had moved from England to Holland and from Holland to America, to find a place not so much where he could worship God as he chose as to work out his own destiny for himself and to found a real democracy for himself and for his devoted followers.  He moved from the valley of Charles to the valley of Connecticut to escape from government theocratic in its origin and inevitably aristocratic in its nature, to a place where a real democratic government could be established - where the people could rule... Well may we claim for Thomas Hooker the title - to my mind the noblest title ever borne by the son of woman - the First American Democrat"



Statue commemorating the Puritan journey to Hartford
(picture taken in July 2010 by SEM)



Plaque which accompanies statue
(picture taken in July 2010 by SEM)

In 1636, Thomas Hooker led about 100 of his followers: men, women and children, on a 100 mile journey through the wilderness of Massachusetts and Connecticut to the site of a small Dutch trading post on the Connecticut River.  There they settled, and Hartford was born.

Center Church in Hartford - Thomas Hooker was the first Pastor
(picture taken in July 2010 by SEM)

By 1638, the settlements at Hartford, Windsor and Wethersfield had created a General Court (legislature) together and established the Connecticut Colony. On May 31, 1638, Thomas Hooker preached the opening serman at a  meeting of that court convened to frame a set of laws to govern the colony.  The themes of that sermon were used in establishing the new written constitution.  Among them: the choice of leaders belongs to the people, public service is a trust to be used for the good of the people and the public has the right to limit the power of their leaders.  He ends his sermon with the statement, "As God has given us liberty let us take it." These were some radical ideas at the time, but they became the foundation for the new Connecticut Constitution and later for the Constitution of the United States.

Thomas Hooker's name appears on the Founder's Monument in Hartford
(picture taken in July 2010 by SEM)

Thomas Hooker lived another eight years under the government that he helped establish.  Connecticut thrived as a Colony and today Thomas Hooker can be remembered for his part in History.

Table marking the burial location of Thomas Hooker reads:
IN MEMORY OF THE REV THOMAS HOOKER
WHO IN 1636 WITH HIS ASSISTANT MR STONE REMOVED
TO HARTFORD WITH ABOUT 100 PERSONS WHERE HE
PLANTED Y FIRST CHURCH IN CONNECTICUT
AN ELOQUENT ABLE & FAITHFUL MINISTER OF CHRIST
HE DIED JULY 7TH 1647  AE LVI
(picture taken July 2010 by SEM)

As a side note: sorry guys, but there is no connection between the man Thomas Hooker and the Connecticut brewing company that carries his name. As a Puritan Minister, he would probably be horrified to know that his name was being used to promote alcoholic beverages.  When he arrived in Chelmsford, England, it was a town known for it's wild ale houses and pubs.  His public teachings there were credited with helping transform it to a more "respectable" community.

I on the other hand love the Hooker Brewing Company and love the idea that I am imbibing in a beverage that brings me great joy and is named for my tenth great-grandfather :)

Thomas Hooker Brewing Company
(picture from http://www.hookerbeer.com/)

Crogent Brothers Photo

Another one of my favorite photos is this one of the Crogent brothers from some time in the early 1900s.
 

Crogent Brothers


Unfortunately the only one I can identify is my great great-grandfather, William Joseph Crogent (see my October 2010 post) who is in the middle of the front row.  He is the oldest. The others are Martin, Walter, Benjamin, Thomas & Albert - I'm just not sure which is which.

All of the brothers were born in Liverpool, England and emmigrated to America.  Thomas moved to Ohio but the other brothers stayed in the Northeast.  They had four sisters, Mary Ellen, Anne, Elizabeth & Louisa.  Both Anne & Louisa came to America.  Elizabeth stayed in England. Mary Ellen stayed in England but I am not sure if she came to the United States. 

Their parents, William and Mary (Curly) Crogent also came to America. As far as I can tell, they are the only family to have the last name Crogent.  William's original last name was Kroger.  Why it was changed, I do not know, but every Crogent I have found a record for is a descendant of William and Mary. They are buried in Calvary Cemetery here in Queens, just a mile from my house.

If you are able to identify the other brothers please comment or email me.  If you have other pictures of these brothers or sisters you would like to share, please email them to me.

Thanks :)

George W. Munson

Great Great-Grandfather

1. George W. Munson (1859-1943)
+ Eleanor A. Parsons (1853-1923)
2. Joseph Willard Munson (1885-1961)
+ Ida E. Hotchkiss (1885-1861)
3. George Willard Munson (1915-1993)
+ Ruth Marie Koerner (1917-2003)
5. Edward (Ned) Deck Munson
+ Debra Florence Dahlquist
6. Scott Edward Munson


This is a picture of George W. Munson, the grandfather of my Grampa, George Willard Munson, sitting in a rocking chair.  On his lap is my aunt, Barbara (Munson) Herrick, his great-grandchild.

George W. Munson was born on November 10, 1859 to John and Mary J (Warner) Munson in Sheffield, Massachusetts, a town which borders Litchfield County Connecticut. His birth is registered in the town record of Sheffield as George Munson - no middle name. His father, John, was a farmer in Sheffield and George grew up there with his parents and three sisters: Julia, Nellie and Minnie. 

1939 Print from Sheffield, MA

In the 1880 Census, George was living with his parents and sister, Nellie, in Sheffield,  He was a young man of twenty and working as a farm laborer, probably on his father's farm.

Sometime before 1885, George moved to Norfolk, Connecticut and was married to Eleanor A. Parsons, the daughter of a shoemaker in Norfolk.  Their first child, Joseph Willard, my great-grandfather, was born on May 13, 1885 in Norfolk.  They later had a son, Frank Warner, who died shortly after birth.  Ruth Warner, Aunt Ruth as she was known to my grandfather and father, was born a year later in 1892. 

In the 1900 Census, George and Eleanor and their two children were still living in Norfolk.  George's occupation was listed as Teamster.  This occupation was listed again in the 1910 Census. Since the Internation Brotherhood of Teamsters union was not founded until 1904, this probably means that he drove a team of horses.  Remember, automobiles were still very rare at this time so products and people would be transported from town to town by train or wagon.  He would have been the modern truck driver of his day!

Eleanor Passed away in 1923 and some time after that George moved in with is son and daughter-in-law, Joseph and Ida (Hotchkiss).  George was living with them in Winsted, CT during the 1930 Census.  The household included a 14 year old George Willard Munson and his younger sisters, Ada and Eleanor. 

George W Munson died in 1943 and is buried at the Center Cemetery with his wife Eleanor and all of his children. George, Eleanor, Frank and Ruth's names are all listed on one side of the stone.  Joseph and Ida's names are on the other side.

Now, you may have noticed that I have only identified George's middle initial throughout this post.  We know that Joseph was named Joseph Willard and my grandfather was George Willard but I have not found a record of Joseph's father's middle name - only the initial W.  I suspect that it is NOT Willard.  I believe the name Willard came from Eleanor's side of the family and will explain this further in a future post.  My best guess for George W's middle name is that it was Warner - his mothers maiden name.  This is reinforced by the fact that he gave both a son and a daughter that for a middle name. Two other possibilities are William or Wells since his mother's father was William Wells Warner.  If you know the answer to this mystery, please comment otherwise I will continue to search for the answer.

Photo of Sarah Cartmel Crogent

Sorry it's been such a long time since I have posted anything.  Between, school, work, the holidays and the little bit of research I've been able to squeeze in, I just haven't had time to sit down and write over the past few months.

Since school is going to be crazy for at least another couple of weeks, I thought I could at least post a few pictures. I received quite a bit of information from my uncle, Jim Buggie, who has done some great research on the family over the past few years.  He provided me with quite a few documents and pictures he has collected. 

This first picture is my favorite.  It is of my Great great-grandmother, Sarah Cartmel Crogent, who I wrote about recently. She was Nana's Grandmother who came to the U.S. from England. The picture reminds me of a Dorothea Lang photo from the depression era.

I'm not sure who the two girls at the table are, but they may be Sarah's daughters Fannie (Nana's mother) and Nellie. 

Immigrant Adam Koerner's grave

The first profile which I put on this blog back on June 3rd was for Adam and Maria Koerner, who came to the United States from Germany about 1850.  When I wrote that, I did not know when or where this immigrant couple died.  Their son Adam had moved to Greenwich some time in the late 1880s but I was not sure about his parents. 

A couple months ago, I found Maria in the 1900 Census.  Remember that her daughter Lena married Phillip Eberhardt who was brother to Adam Jr.'s wife.  Well, I found Maria living with her daughter Lena and her other daughter Maria Berle.  Both Lena and Maria Koerner are listed as widows living with Louis and Maria Berle and their children: Adam, Lena, Louis, Emily and Maria.  They were still living in New York City on First Avenue near 24th Street.

A couple weeks later I found information on a Maria Koerner who died in 1907 at the age of 95.  A person online had seen the Death Certificate and knew she was buried in the Lutheran Cemetery. I wasn't sure this would be the right Maria Koerner, but since the cemetery is only a couple miles from my house, I decided to ride my bike over there and check it out.

Sure enough, I stopped by the office, and they confirmed that Maria Koerner was buried in the cemetery along with Adam and Philip. A very helpful woman in the office gave me the location but didn't know whether there would be a stone or not.  I was doubtful since many immigrants would not be able to afford the expense of a stone back at the turn of the century. 

I rode my bike to the section of the cemetery where the woman had indicated the Koerners were located.  It was far to the back in what was obviously an older part of the cemetery which received few visitors.   The grass had not been mowed in a couple of weeks and was several inches high. It really had the feeling of being out in a field in the country only with scattered gravestones sticking up above the top of the blades of grass.  There was no sence that the largest city in the United States was only a few miles away. 

As I approached the area where the stone would be, I became very skeptical that I would find anything.  The stones were spread out with lots of space between them - space where people were buried but no markers had been laid.

I read each stone, looking for the name and the location marking to help guide my way.  Then I saw it, in the back, at the end of the row. A short, fat stone which read "In Memory of Adam Koerner." I had fulfilled my quest.

You'll notice that Maria's name name does not appear on the stone. It is probable that she died after Philip and the family either did not have money for a stone, or did not have room to add her name on the stone that was already there. Either way, she died in 1907 at the ripe old age of 95 and is buried here with her husband and second oldest son.

As a side note, I returned this morning to take some more pictures and was surprised at the state of the cemetery. You may remember hearing on the news several weeks ago that a tornado touched down in New York City, specifically in Queens and Brooklyn. Apparently the tornado went right through the middled of the cemetery, because there were trees down all over the place.  The path of the storm must have been toward the front of the cemetery, because in the back, where Adam and Maria are buried, the damage was minimal.  These were some pictures I took of trees still not cleaned up three weeks after the tornado hit:



The top of this huge tree was just twisted off the trunk
and thrown on ground under it!