The Remarriage of Frank ODonnell in 1940

Francis "Frank" Patrick ODonnell (1888-1959) was one of my great grandfathers. In the prior article, I wrote about the death of his first wife, my great grandmother, Anna Preston, in 1921.

On August 7, 1940, Frank remarried to Gertrude Farman, the widow of James Paradine, in Bayonne, Hudson County, New Jersey. This marriage certificate is below.

The prior week, Frank had arrived in New York City from Bombat, India.

I did not know what Frank may have been doing so far away from Bayonne until I saw this story published at Ancestry:

Eddie O’Donnell told Kelly on 5/4/09

Posted 04 May 2009 by Joy Peck

Frances O’donnell (Frank) first wife died when the kids were young. The kids were raised by Aunt “Kate” Catherine.
Then Frances re married Getrude Last name unsure but thinks Paradine
Frances worked in the oil fields in Saudi Arabia when they first discovered oil there.

[Links to tree: ancestry.com/family-tree/tree/11067954/

Frank died October 31, 1959 in Bayonne. He was 69 years old. Gertrude was listed as his wife. 

Frank was buried at Holy Name Cemetery in Jersey City. Nobody is in this plot with him.

Gertrude was the daughter of Miles Farman and Mary Doyle. Her first marriage was to James Paradine in Bayonne on July 19, 1925. She was 21 years old; he was 27. Their marriage certificate is below.

Four and a half months after marrying, James died. An article appeared in the Jersey Journal about an accident at James' job with the Petroleum Terminal Corporation in Bayonne on December 2, 1925.

Gasoline Fumes From Tank Car Kill Workman

Overcome by gasoline fumes in a tank car which he was cleaning at the plant of the Petroleum Terminal Corporation, First Street and Avenue A, Bayonne, at 9 a.m. today [December 2, 1925]. James Paradine, 26, of 11 Cottage Street, Bayonne, died an hour later in Bayonne Hospital, despite the efforts of two physicians, who had labored over him constantly.

Two men working near Paradine saw him topple over. They summoned the company physician, Dr Duffy, and a Bayonne Hospital ambulance. Dr A E Solomon came from the hospital. Paradine died shortly afterwards, at 10 o’clock. His body was taken to Nugent’s morgue.

---The Jersey Journal, Jersey City, Hudson County, New Jersey. Wednesday, December 2, 1925, page 1.

James' death certificate gives the cause of death as "accidental inhalation of gasoline fumes while cleaning tank car." He was 27 years old. Burial was at Holy Name Cemetery in Jersey City in the Farman plot.

The following month, Gertrude was awarded money for James' death, with a provision to increase the award pending birth of their child.

$3,675 Award for Widow of Gas Victim

Compensation Given Widow of Oil Company Worker  - Other Awards

James Paradine of 11 Cottage Street, Bayonne, employed as a pipe fitter by the Petroleum Terminal Corporation of Bayonne was asphyxiated by gas fumes while repairing a car on December 2, 1925. Referee John J Stahl of the Compensation Bureau, State Department of Labor, in his court at 571 Jersey Avenue yesterday afternoon handed down a decision awarding $3,675 and an allowance for funeral expenses of $150. The compensation may be increased for the benefit of a dependent child yet unborn.

---The Jersey Journal, Jersey City, Hudson County, New Jersey. Friday, January 22, 1926, page 2.

As of this writing, birth records are not publicly available in New Jersey past 1923, but an index of births was recently made public. James Paradine was born January 29, 1926 in Bayonne.

archive.org/details/njgeographicbirthindex

In the 1930 census, Gertrude, age 26, was living with her son, James, age 4, and her mother and brother at 297 Avenue C in Bayonne.

James, the son of James and Gertrude, died in 1982. He was buried at Holy Cross Cemetery in North Arlington, Bergen County, New Jersey. His mother was buried with him, though she is not on the stone and her obituary lists her place of burial as Holy Name.

Gertrude died June 28, 1987. Her obituary is below.

Paradine-O’Donnell

Gertrude Paradine-O’Donnell, 84, a lifelong Bayonne resident, died Sunday at the Jersey City Medical Center after a long illness.

She worked for General Cable Company, formerly of Bayonne.

Mass will be offered 9:30 a.m. Wednesday at St Andrew’s Church, Bayonne. Internment will be at Holy Name Cemetery in Jersey City.

Kohoot Funeral Home of Bayonne is handling the arrangements.

---The Jersey Journal, Jersey City, Hudson County, New Jersey. Monday, June 29, 1987, page 12.

www.rcancem.org/find-a-loved-one-search/

I don't know what relationship, if any, my grandmother had with her stepmother. She never told me about Gertrude.

Anna Preston 1890-1921

November 22, 1890 was the birthdate of my great grandmother, Anna Preston. She was the mother of my maternal grandmother. She died May 10, 1921 at the age of thirty. I remember my grandmother telling me stories about Anna's early death. My middle name is in honor of Anna.

I have no pictures of Anna, unfortunately. I have documents instead.

Anna's death certificate lists the cause of death as otitis media followed by mastoiditis. Meningitis was contributory. An operation was performed six days before her death. 

My grandmother's family was very good about putting full names of parents on records.

Transcription of obituary:

Mrs Anna ODonnell died yesterday at her home 162 Orient street, after a brief illness. She had been a resident of Bayonne for over 21 years and was very well known in the Point section.

Mrs ODonnell leaves her husband, Frank ODonnell, five children; a father, John Preston; four brothers, John, George, Walter and Henry of Newark; three sisters, Mrs Mary Late [Lake], Thomas Burns [Hannah Beirne], and Miss Catherine Preston.

Funeral services will be conducted Friday morning when a solemn high mass will be celebrated at St. Andrew’s R. C. Church at 10 o’clock. Interment in family plot in Holy Name Cemetery under directions of Thomas M O’Brien.

  

Anna's obituary states that she died at home, 162 Orient Street in Bayonne, New Jersey. Note that the death certificate states that she died at Bayonne Hospital. She was survived by seven siblings- two had predeceased her.

Anna was the eighth of ten children born to John Preston (1857-1928) and Bridget Sheehy (1857-1916). I did not find a birth certificate for her, but she was probably born in Independence, Warren County, New Jersey. The family relocated there around 1884 from Stanford, Dutchess County, New York.

The day before Anna turned 21, she married Francis Patrick ODonnell (1888-1959) at Saint Mary's Catholic Church in Bayonne, November 21, 1911.

Their first child, John Edward, was born in 1912. Four more children followed:

Rita Ann, 1914

Francis Leo, 1916

Claire Veronica, 1918

Jeannette Elizabeth, 1920 (my grandmother).

The 1920 census was the last in which Anna is enumerated. Frances and Anna were living at 140 Lord Avenue in Bayonne with four children. Their final child, Jeannette, had not yet arrived.

142 Orient Street was the address of Anna's father, John Preston. Perhaps the family moved in with him when she became ill?

Nine months after giving birth to Jeannette, Anna was dead. She was buried in the ODonnell plot at Holy Name Cemetery in Jersey City.

Baby Jeannette moved in with her paternal grandparents, Patrick ODonnell (1856-1931) and Delia Joyce (1862-1929). They were also buried in this plot.

I always wished for a picture of Anna. I wondered if Jeannette had a picture of the mother she lost so early, depriving her of a memory. A cousin sent me pictures of Anna's parents.

Just in Time to Appear in the Census

I photographed the gravestone of Lucie Skehan McCrea (1893-1920) for upload to Find A Grave.

Mount Hebron Cemetery
Montclair, New Jersey

I looked for Lucie on Ancestry.com to see if she could be linked to others in this cemetery.

Lucie died in Pelham, Westchester County, New York. These indexes are online. The actual death certificates, however, can only be ordered through the New York State Department of Health for $22.

Lucie was enumerated in the 1920 census in Pelham with her husband, Daniel McCrea (1883-1936).

Newspaper articles popped up, so I took a look.

Transcription of death notice:

McCrea. - At Pelham, N.Y., January 19, 1920, LUCIE SKEHAN, wife of Daniel W. McCrea. Funeral at St. Catherine's Church, Pelham, N.Y., Wednesday, January 21, ten A.M. Interment private.

Lucie died very early in the year- January 19, 1920. So I went back and looked at the date on the census.

These census entries were recorded the day Lucie died! Was she at home when the census taker arrived? Was she ill at the time?