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Readers Add More Tips for Using Church Records

Grace Church, New York, 1850. (Smithsonian Open Access) Several readers commented on last week's post on finding church records , adding tips and insights that are too good not to share. My friend Barbara from Pennsylvania wrote, "Baptismal records often reveal children that were not known. I know this to be true from all the research I've done here in Pennsylvania in Catholic sacramental registers of parishes that existed long before civil records were in place. Those unknown children often died young and were 'forgotten'  because families didn't discuss losing small children, no one recorded the death, cemetery records were not diligently kept, or nothing appeared in the local newspaper. If it weren't for those baptismal records, they truly would be unknown or forgotten."  I was reminded by Barbara's comment that I had found the baptisms of three children I was not aware of previously in my Becker family in Catholic church records from St. ...
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Chas. Cassidy is Stricken

This blog post is part of the "52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks" writing challenge by genealogist, blogger and podcast host Amy Johnson Crow. Week 4 prompt: "At the Library"


Libraries hold many riveting books, popular DVDs, and and are infinite sources of knowledge, where one can step out into a wider world or delve deep into the past. Or both. Family history could be tucked away in a library waiting to be discovered.

Even though I live in Texas, I was able to search in faraway St. Catharines, Ontario to find an obituary for one of my great, great grandfathers: Charles Francis Cassidy, the grandfather of Mary Josephine Baker, my paternal grandmother. The St. Catharines Public Library in Ontario offers a archive search on its website, where I located the issue, and the friendly staff there provided a copy of the item for a small fee.

CHAS. CASSIDY IS STRICKEN the headline shouts from the page of the St. Catharines Standard, on 5 Apr 1926. It painted a very vivid picture of his life and his death.1

Charles Francis Cassidy was "the well known blacksmith" who owned his own shop. The obituary tells about how hard-working he was: He had helped "shoe 11 horses" on the day he died. It talks about his "wide circle of friends," and his affiliation with St. Catharines Roman Catholic Church, the Knights of Columbus and the Holy Name Society, among others. All small details of his life, which helped me understand him more.

The obituary goes on to give a sensational accounting of his death on the street - how he was "suddenly stricken," in front of an armory, and "died instantly, falling to the ground with his hands still at his sides." It names the two doctors who came to his aid, "endeavoring to stimulate life," but who were unsuccessful. 

Importantly for any family historian, it also details his surviving family, including "Mrs. Edward Baker of Cleveland," one of my paternal great grandmothers. I also learned for the first time the names of of his brothers: Matthew, Phillip and a "Rev. Bro. Mondolf," who I assume was a Christian Brother--all subjects for future research.

The attention shown to Charles Cassidy through this detailed article, shows he held a position of some prominence in his community, and he merited more than a simple obituary or death notice. I hope to flesh out more of his life more in future blog posts.

NOTES

1 "Charles Cassidy is Stricken," St. Catharines Standard, St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada, 5 Apr 1926, p. 1; image supplied by St. Catharines Public Library, Ontario, 2017.
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