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Brick wall

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  • 08-06-2020 1:26pm
    #1
    mindhorn
    Registered Users Posts: 275 ✭✭


    Hi all.

    I've hit a brick wall with this search.

    I can't find anything else about Mary O'Keefe except for her baptism details https://registers.nli.ie/registers/vtls000634912#page/214/mode/1up - bottom right) and death cert https://imgur.com/2SunwR3 and https://imgur.com/deAjzXm.

    What am I looking for? Census details (Ireland/US) and marriage cert/details.

    I'm presuming Mary O'Keefe was living at 2230 Valentine Avenue in 1940. She died on 16th November 1940, so after the census was taken.

    Valentine Avenue 1930 Census - https://imgur.com/P79r4QL
    Valentine Avenue 1940 Census - https://imgur.com/SCpVwkk

    The census for 1940 doesn't list her as living at that address, however. It lists three people living there at the time - Anna Fitzgerald, John Seery and Anna McCauley. The first two I know who they are but not sure who Anna McCauley is (possibly a typo).

    According to her death cert, she married a James Donnelly. States that she was a widow at the time and I couldn't find any death cert for a James Donnelly that fits. It also mentions that she's been living in the US/NY for 15 years at that point, so she would have left Ireland (presumably) in her 60s. Looked at the Ellis Island records but no joy (searched using both Donnelly and O'Keefe).

    I'm guessing again that she married in Ireland but not finding anything that matches.

    Her cousin is named on the back page of the death cert. This cousin also made a trip to the US in 1936 and stated that her destination was 2230 Valentine Avenue, which leads me to think that Mary Donnelly was living there at that point https://imgur.com/mO8uzhM.

    And as a side note, was not able to find any death cert for her parents.

    Appreciate any help at all, thanks.


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    #2
    crossman47
    Registered Users Posts: 1,497 ✭✭✭crossman47


    This may help. I found a Mary Donnelly aged 81 living with her son (Thos?) aged 48 and grandson at West 93rd St in the 1940 Census. She was widowed and was born in Ireland. If you know where she lived in Ireland, you may be able to find the son's birth. His christian name is not clear - it may be James rather than Thomas.


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    #3
    mindhorn
    Registered Users Posts: 275 ✭✭mindhorn


    Thanks for taking a look. Do you have a link to that? I have a FMP account but still unable to find that record.


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    #4
    crossman47
    Registered Users Posts: 1,497 ✭✭✭crossman47


    https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KQT8-QB9 is link from family search. Hope this works.


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    #5
    mindhorn
    Registered Users Posts: 275 ✭✭mindhorn


    Thanks. I think I came across this record before and dismissed it as it states that her son was born in New York, and that would have been around 1892, however Mary had only been in New York since around 1925 according to her death certificate.

    Tried to find the family in the 1930 census to see if that would provide any additional info but don't see them anywhere.


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    #6
    pinkypinky
    Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 6,622 Mod ✭✭✭✭pinkypinky


    While the above person doesn't sound like a match, be careful not to dismiss information because it doesn't match exactly. Remember that information on a death cert is secondhand & might not be right.

    Genealogy Forum Mod



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    #7
    crossman47
    Registered Users Posts: 1,497 ✭✭✭crossman47


    pinkypinky wrote: »
    While the above person doesn't sound like a match, be careful not to dismiss information because it doesn't match exactly. Remember that information on a death cert is secondhand & might not be right.

    Agreed. I struggled with a similar supposed anomaly until I discovered the mother came back to Ireland while pregnant and had a child here. Her other children were born in New York so the puzzle took time to unravel.


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    #8
    mindhorn
    Registered Users Posts: 275 ✭✭mindhorn


    True.

    Going back to the family crossman47 linked to, I still can't find them in any 1930 census. Struggling to find West 93rd Street as well. And I tried looking at other residents close by and I must have gone through 20-30 of them (picking out the older individuals) and every person I checked out lived elsewhere in 1930.

    Looked for the birth of John Donnally/Donnelly too between the years 1921 and 1923.

    Head is fried from looking for them at this point!


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    #9
    crossman47
    Registered Users Posts: 1,497 ✭✭✭crossman47


    I can empathise. You probably need to go a bit wider than 21-23 as Census ages are notoriously unreliable.


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    #10
    pinkypinky
    Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 6,622 Mod ✭✭✭✭pinkypinky


    Yes, 5 years each side.

    Genealogy Forum Mod



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    #11
    mindhorn
    Registered Users Posts: 275 ✭✭mindhorn


    Went 5 years and still nothing. I guess I just find it strange that there's a good bit of information there for me to work with but I can't find anything to connect it with.

    I know you said that the information on the death certificate is secondhand and may not be accurate but could they have gotten so much wrong? Husband's name, address, time in US/New York, mother/father. Lots to work with there, even if some of it is not entirely accurate.


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