Children of John Lutter and Rhoda Gant

John F. E. Luther (1854-1915) and Rhoda A Gant (1858-1923) married March 1, 1876 in Newark, Essex County New Jersey. He was 22 years old. She was 18. His occupation was carpenter.

John F E Luther and Rhoda A Gant
married March 1, 1876 in Newark, Essex County, New Jersey.
Volume BP, Marriages, Atlantic through Hudson Counties, 1875-1876, viewable at Ancestry

John's parents were Ernst Lutter and Margaret Alfke. They married in 1851 in Newark. Ernst was likely the earliest Lutter to arrive in Newark.

Johann Christian Ernss Lutter and Anna Margaretha Alfken married March 23, 1851
in Newark, Essex County, New Jersey.
This marriage was recorded at the county level, not state.
New Jersey, County Marriages, 1682-1956, viewable at FamilySearch.org.

John died May 30, 1915 in Secaucus, Hudson County New Jersey at the Hudson County Hospital for the Insane. Cause of death was cerebral apoplexy. Parents "unknown." Burial was at New York Bay Cemetery in Jersey City.

Rhoda died December 16, 1923 in Bayonne, Hudson County. Cause of death was chronic endocarditis. Burial was also at New York Bay Cemetery.

John and Rhoda had at least nine children. Five lived into adulthood.

NAME	DATE OF BIRTH	DATE OF DEATH
Lucy	Feb 15, 1877	June 11, 1939
Rhoda Ann	Feb 1879	Sep 10, 1941
Catherine Perkins	Mar 3, 1880	Nov 23, 1880
Antoinette	Sep 1881	Mar 10, 1886
John Ernest	Apr 1884	Dec 6, 1944
Margaret	May 1885	Jan 20, 1959
Charlotte Nathanie	1888	Dec 23, 1934
Ruth	Nov 24, 1890	Aug 24, 1894
Winefred	Sep 8, 1893	Sep 8, 1893

The links are to their pages on Find A Grave.

I located birth records for three of these nine children. Only Ruth was named at birth.

Child Number 1

Lucy was the first child of John and Rhoda. She was born February 15, 1877 in Newark. Births at this time were recorded in ledger books. Lucy's entry does not name her and mislabeled her as male.

Male child born to John and Rose Luther
February 15, 18777 in Newark.
Volume CM, Births Atlantic through Hudson Counties, 1866-1877, viewable at Ancestry

In 1912, Lucy married Martin Lang (1848-1933), widower of Anna Petrany. His children were from this earlier marriage and not from Lucy. Lucy died in 1939 and was buried in Woodland Cemetery in Newark.

Child Number 2

Rhoda Ann was born in February of 1879. No record of birth was found.

She was married twice. In 1899 she married Frank Clarkson in Bayonne, Hudson County, New Jersey. After Frank's death, Rhoda remarried to Alexander J Cross in 1909 in Bayonne. Her children were delineated in a previous article.

Child Number 3

Catherine Perkins was born March 3, 1880 in Newark at 65 Fairview Avenue. She has a birth certificate, but was not named on this document. The midwife was Mary Staehle of 20 Belmont Avenue. She was the third child according to this birth certificate. 

Female Lutter born to John Lutter and Rodi Gerndt
March 3, 1880 in Newark.
Copied from microfilm at New Jersey State Archives.

We know Catherine's full name from her death certificate. On November 23, 1880 Catherine Perkins Lutter died from croup at 63 Fairview Avenue. She was buried in Woodland Cemetery, Newark.

Catherine Perkins Lutter
died November 23, 1880 in Newark.
Death certificate copied from microfilm at New Jersey State Archives.

When Catherine died, John and Rhoda were left with two children.

Child Number 4

Antoinette was born around September of 1881. No birth certificate was located.

She died March 10, 1886 in Newark at the age of four years and six months from acute bronchial pulmonary edema. She was buried in Woodland Cemetery, Newark.

Antoinette Lutter died March 10, 1886 in Newark.
Age four years, six months.
Copied from microfilm at New Jersey State Archives.

Child Number 5

John Ernest was born around April 1884. No birth certificate was located.

In 1905 in Bayonne John married Annie Mary Emma Otto (1885-1964). They had four children.

John died in 1944 in Staten Island, Richmond County, New York.

Child Number 6

Margaret was born around May 1885. No birth certificate was located.

In 1911 in Bayonne Margaret married Frank Schreiner. They had one son, Raymond.

Margaret died in 1959 in Jersey City.

Child Number 7

Charlotte Nathanie was born around 1888. No birth certificate was located.

In 1907 in Bayonne Charlotte married William Gerhard Kontje. They had at least six children.

Charlotte died in 1934 in Bayonne. 

Child Number 8

Ruth was born November 24, 1890 in Newark at 664 South 12th Street. She received a birth certificate. On this document, she was child number 8 with 6 still living. This tracks with what I found up to 1890. The midwife was Wilhelmine Belz of 122 Morton Street.

Ruth Lutter born November 24, 1890 in Newark.
Copied from microfilm at New Jersey State Archives.

Ruth died August 24, 1894 at 454 Bergen Street in Newark. She was aged three years, nine months, and 26 days. The cause of death was convulsions. She was buried in Woodland Cemetery.

Ruth Lutter died August 24, 1894 in Newark.
Age three years, zero months, and 26 days.
Copied from microfilm at New Jersey State Archives.

Child Number 9

Winefred was the final child found for John and Rhoda. She has no birth certificate; instead, she received only a death certificate for September 8, 1893- age fourteen hours. The cause of death was atelectasis pulm; probably premature birth with insufficient lung functioning. She was buried at Woodland Cemetery.

Winefred Lutter died September 8, 1893 in Newark.
Age fourteen hours.
Copied from microfilm at New Jersey State Archives.

How does one find these birth records in New Jersey?

There are indexes.

Where are these indexes? They are in the Archives and online at FamilySearch and Ancestry. (Currently not on the website of the New Jersey State Archives.)

Physically there are books in the Archives in Trenton, New Jersey.

Books of indexes at New Jersey State Archives

There are three sets of books to cover three different periods:

1848-1878

1878-1890

1890-1900

(There are additional indexes for 1901, 1902, 1903, and 1901-1929. These Lutter children were born before that time, so I will not delve in to those years here.)

These bound books are copies of typed indexes. I do not know who created them, when, or how. Maybe someone could chime in with a helpful comment.

Copy of paper index of births 1848-1878
available at the New Jersey State Archives.
This entry is actually for a female child who became known as Lucy.

Entries in the index for 1848-1878 refer to ledger books. No individual certificates exist. The first child, Lucy, a female, was born February 15, 1877 in Newark. An official record of her birth was made with the City of Newark. This record eventually made its way into a ledger book stored at the state level.

Entry at FamilySearch for male child born to John Luther and Rose Luther
in Newark on February 15, 1877

This same entry at FamilySearch lists the full date of birth and names of parents, but the image is not viewable at home. I had to travel to a Family History Center to look at the image. It was the image that I copied from the book in the Archives. Again, this is not the birth ledger, but rather the index.

Underlying image linked to the index at FamilySearch for male child born to John Luther and Rose Luther in 1877 in Newark

Note that this index lists the father's first initial, J, and does not list the mother. Yet the entry at FamilySearch spells out John's full first name and gives the first name of the mother.

Ancestry's entry is a bit different. The full date is missing; however, the image is viewable. The image is not the index, as on FamilySearch, but rather the actual birth ledger.

Search result at Ancestry for male child born to John Luther and Rose Luther in 1877 in Newark.

The underlying image is viewable.
This is the actual birth ledger book, same as the microfilm in the New Jersey State Archives.

Microfilm at the New Jersey State Archives

In 1878, New Jersey shifted from entries in a ledger book to individual certificates. Below is the entry in the index for Catherine Lutter, not named at birth, born March 3, 1880.

Copy of paper index of births 1878-1890
available at the New Jersey State Archives

The index at Ancestry has issues. I suspect that this index was not derived from the books in the Archives nor from the actual certificates. A film number is provided.

Entry at Ancestry for Lutter birth 1880 in Newark.
A film number is provided. FamilySearch describes this film as births 1879-1880.

This film is not viewable at home, but is viewable through the FamilySearch website at a Family History Center. This film does NOT contain birth certificates; rather, it is a handwritten index of births.

Image linked to index at Ancestry for Lutter birth March 3, 1879

At the top of this page is "Index Register of Births in Newark, Essex County, 1879-1880." Pages must be flipped to find the start of births in the middle of 1879. Thus the dates on this page are for the year 1880, not 1879.

FamilySearch indexed the correct year.

Entry for Lutter birth March 3, 1880 at FamilySearch. This is the correct year.

Users can request a correction to the date of birth in Ancestry's index, but please do not do this until the date is confirmed on the actual record (not another index).

Katherine ODonnell and Her Family

Seven years ago I asked for additional information on Kathryn ODonnell (1858-1939). She was a sister of my great great grandfather, Patrick Francis ODonnell (1856-1931).

Kathryn was born in Killybegs, County Donegal, Ireland. By her first husband, Charles Mason, she had two children, Margaret and John. She then remarried to Patrick Kennedy. She died in California in 1939. I had been able to track Margaret's moves, marriage, and child.

Finally fuller stories for Kathryn's son, John Mason, and her second husband, Patrick Kennedy, have come to light!

Spoiler alert: I have not found additional information on Charles Mason, the first husband. His first and only appearance is in the 1885 state census in New Jersey. 

New Jersey State Census, 1885. Bayonne, Hudson County.
Charles Mason, Irish male, age 20-60.
Kate Mason, Irish female, age 20-60.

In the 1900 census, Kathryn was in Brooklyn with her two children but no husband. A missing husband and widowhood either meant that he died or left the family.

1900 United States Federal Census
Brooklyn, Kings County, New York
Katie Mason and her two children, Margarite and John. She worked as a nurse.

Since writing the original article in 2018, indexes of deaths have come online for the State of New Jersey and Kings County, New York. I have not found a good match for Charles Mason. Indexes for deaths in the State of Connecticut do not start until 1897. If Charles died after Kathryn appeared as a widow in the 1900 census, this record could be anywhere.

Using the newspapers now available for searching online, I set out to discover when Kathryn acquired her second husband.

Newspaper article in Bridgeport, Connecticut.
November 27, 1914.
Widow of Patrick Kennedy to inherit his estate.

Patrick Kennedy was born about 1841 in Ireland. He married Ellen Callahan and they had one son, John, born around 1872. Patrick worked as a police officer in New York City. By 1900 he was retired and worked on his land in Connecticut as a farmer.

In 1911, Ellen died. In 1912, John shot his father, Patrick. John was unable to see or hear because of typhoid fever, an infection suffered when he was a child. Yet somehow he was able to purposely carry out this action.

Newspaper article. John Kennedy held in jail after shooting his father,
Patrick Kennedy, in Stratford, Connecticut. 1914.

Patrick was not expected to live. Enter Kathryn. She nursed him from the brink of death.

John Kennedy was sent to the Connecticut State Hospital for the Insane in Middletown, Middlesex County. He died there in 1930.

Patrick and Kathryn married in April of 1914. Patrick Kennedy died on November 22, 1914. Kathryn inherited one-third of his estate.

In 1920, Kathryn was still in Connecticut. She was living in Bridgeport with her son, John Mason. By 1930 she was living in California with her daughter and son-in-law, Margaret and James Joyce.

What became of John Daniel Mason, the son of Kathryn ODonnell and Charles Mason?

Searching newspapers led to the answers- probably. (The last death certificate I ordered from the State of Connecticut took one year to fulfill. Two years and counting for fulfillment by the City of Bridgeport.) John D Mason was buried in Saint Michael's Cemetery in Stratford - the same cemetery as Patrick Kennedy. He died July 31, 1932, age 43 years. "World War . . . Co. C. 319th Inf." is carved on the stone.

An obituary appeared in a few newspapers in Connecticut and Brooklyn. A mother and sister were mentioned but not by name.

Newspaper article 1932
Johnny Mason, dancer, died in alley in Bridgeport, Connecticut.

Johnny Mason danced with Lew Dockstader (1856-1924) and George Primrose (1852-1919). Is this the same John Daniel Mason? Throughout his records he listed his occupation as a laborer.

Library of Congress
Primrose & Dockstader's Great American Minstrels

I also found advertisements for a boxer or fighter by the same name.

Ad in newspaper about a boxing fight.
Johnny Mason versus Eddie Mack.
October 30, 1922 in Bridgeport, Connecticut.

I was hoping to find pictures of John Mason. He performed with some well-known personalities. Perhaps he was an unnamed background actor in the vaudeville acts.

I will order the death certificate to see if the names of the parents are Kathryn ODonnell and Charles Mason. This could take a year for Connecticut to do.

So that is the story of Kathryn ODonnell's son, John Mason, and her second husband, Patrick Kennedy. Still missing is what became of her first husband, Charles Mason.

Deadly Boating Accident 1909

John ODonnell was a paternal uncle of my grandmother. He resided in Bayonne, Hudson County, New Jersey.

From his gravestone, I had his date of death- September 3, 1909. He was nineteen when he died.

John O'Donnell
born July 9, 1890
Died September 3, 1909
Gravestone at Holy Name Cemetery in Jersey City, New Jersey

I found no death certificate in the New Jersey State Archives and no obituary in newspapers from Jersey City. The Bayonne Times newspaper for this time period was destroyed.

I expanded the search to include newspapers from all over. Newspapers in New York City and even Alabama carried articles about John's death.

John was employed as a deckhand on the tug boat R B Little. He was sleeping after working the night shift when his boat collided with another, bursting steam pipes. John awoke and attempted to escape the room in which he was sleeping. John was crushed and scalded. Accounts differ as to the timing of his death in relation to these traumas. The other man in the room, John Lavin, lived. I have not determined when he died.

Newspaper article from The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, describing John's death as instant

Newspaper article from The Sun detailing John's attempt at escape before being scalded to death

Vital records for New York City are online, but not all years are available yet. 1909 is among the ranges of unavailable years for death certificates. Online indexes list a death for John ODonnell for September 3, 1909.

New York City index of deaths
entry for John ODonnell, 1909.
Son of Patrick [ODonnell] and Delia [Joyce].

DNA Identifies Siblings Two Hundred Years Later

The family of origin is a mystery for Catherine Donnelly, born around 1833 in Ireland.

DNA connections may provide leads.

By 1860 Catherine was married to Michael Preston (1813-1904), also of Ireland, and lived in Pine Plains, Dutchess County, New York.

Catherine Donnelly and Michael Preston had at least six children:

- John (1857-1928) (my great great grandfather) married Bridget Sheehy

- Anna (1858-1892) married Charles Ultcht

- Bartholemew (born 1864) only seen in the 1865 New York state census in North East

- Mary Elizabeth (1866-1890) married Jeremiah Welch

- Hannah (1870-1947)

- Catherine Agnes (1872-1954)

A clue about Catherine Donnelly's origins appears through her daughter, Hannah, who never married. Hannah lived in Newark, Essex County, New Jersey with her "cousin," Anna Donnelly. Anna was born around 1887 in Pennsylvania to Anthony Mang and Rose Stuginwald, both of Germany. So Anna could not have been a cousin of Hannah Preston, whose parents were Irish. Anna's absent husband, George Donnelly, was more likely to be Hannah's cousin.

1930 federal census
Newark, Essex County, New Jersey
Hannah Preston, head; rents for $100; owns a radio; age 60; single; born in New York.
Anna Donnelly, cousin; age 47; [illegible marital status]; born in Pennsylvania.
Frank Donnelly, son of cousin; age 23; single; born in New Jersey.
Raymond Donnelly, son of cousin; age 22; single; born in New Jersey.

George Donnelly and Anna Mang were married in Newark in Newark in 1905. His parents were John Donnelly and Ellen Brady. He was 32 years old (born about 1873).

Marriage record George F Donnelly and Anna Mang.
Married March 6, 1905 in Newark, Essex County, New Jersey.

George Donnelly was last seen in the 1905 New Jersey State census in Newark. With Anna Mang (1887-1963) he had three children:

- Mary Donnelly (11 December 1905 - 21 April 1909)

- George Francis Donnelly "Frank George" (31 December 1906 - 12 February 1974)

- Raymond Anthony Donnelly (26 March 1908 - 18 March 1953)

Three-year old Mary was buried at Saint Mary's Cemetery in East Orange. She died of Scarlet Fever at the Essex County Isolation Hospital in Belleville. 

Raymond never married. He was buried at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery in East Orange.

George Donnelly Junior married Imelda Heery in 1938 and had four children.

George's descendants share DNA with descendants of my Catherine Donnelly; everyone also matches descendants of George's sisters, Annie and Jennie. 

In the 1880 census, George, age 8, was enumerated with his parents, John and Ellen "Donley," in Bridgewater, Plymouth County. Ten of George's siblings were also listed.

1880 federal census
Brockton, Plymouth County, Massachusetts
Household of John Donley [Donnelly]

If George Donnelly and Hannah Preston were first cousins, then George's father, John Donnelly, was a sibling of Hannah's mother, Catherine Donnelly.

Tree explaining cousin relationship between
Hannah Preston and George F Donnelly.
Birthdates are approximate years.

John Donnelly died June 21, 1921 in Brockton. His parents were listed as Bartholomew Donnelly and Ellen E Brady. (John's wife was also named Ellen Brady. Did both women share a name, or was this an error?)

Death certificate of John J Donnelly.
Died June 21, 1910 in Brockton, Plymouth County, Massachusetts.
Father- Bartholomew Donnelly. Mother- Ellen E Brady.
Available on Ancestry.

Catherine Donnelly named a son Bartholomew. Was he named for his maternal grandfather?

Catherine Donnelly is a close relative, perhaps the sister, of John J Donnelly (1842-1910) of Brockton.

John Donnelly's daughter, Jennie (1868-1950), married John Joseph Reagan (1868-1944). Several of Jennie's descendants are also DNA connections.

Identifying the town of origin in Ireland and viewing records could help solidify Catherine Donnelly's connection to John Donnelly.

Shamrock crocheted by my grandmother
Jeannette ODonnell (1920-1993)

Earnings reported to Social Security

The Itemized Statement of Earnings for my grandmother, Jeannette ODonnell (1920-1993), arrived from the Social Security Administration. This information was requested in June of 2023 for a fee of $100. Proof of death and direct descent was required. (Form SSA-7050-F4.)

The point of requesting this information was to see when and where she worked and possibly ascertain when important life events happened.

The Social Security Act of 1935 created federal old age benefits. Not all workers and employers were required to participate.

One of many newspaper articles explaining the new Social Security Act of 1935.

Jeannette was born in Bayonne, Hudson County, New Jersey in 1920. She applied for a Social Security Number on December 2, 1941. 

Form SS-5 "Application for Social Security Account Number"
completed December 2, 1941.
The year of birth and name differ, but that's another story.
To locate a deceased individual's Social Security Number, search in the Social Security Death Index.
Then fill out form SSA-711 and submit $30.

Jeannette probably worked before December of 1941. The wages were not reported to Social Security.

Her first reported employer was W T Grant. She earned $39.55 in the last quarter of 1941 and $26.75 in the first quarter of 1942.

W T Grant was a bargain store that sold household items. In 1975, the national chain declared bankruptcy, hence the attorney name of Joseph Pardo and the address in New York City. Jeannette probably worked for the store located at 493 Broadway in Bayonne.

Advertisement of sale for W T Grant Co Store in Bayonne.

Help Wanted ad for W T Grant Co Store.
Maybe Jeannette saw this in her local paper.

In 1942 Jeannette began working at the telephone company. This was a national chain, so the current names and addresses do not reflect their names and addresses when Jeannette worked for them. Her last reported earnings from a telephone company were in 1957. Some quarters were little or no earnings. This is probably when she needed time off to have babies.

Jeannette's yearly earnings from what is now called AT&T and Verizon.

Jeannette is seated and third from the left, wearing the dark suit.
Supposedly the other people are her coworkers at the phone company.

Help wanted ad for New Jersey Bell Telephone Company, 1944.
"The telephone company needs more girls to handle war calls."

Jeannette needed a paycheck for personal reasons. The country was at war and women were called upon to work outside the home. This could have made Jeannette's jobs seem natural for the time period without indicating problems in her personal life.

Wages for operators and service assistants at Bell Telephone.
This was published in 1950 to address concerns over rate hikes.
We do not know Jeannette's hours, so we do not know her hourly rate.

After twenty years of no reported wages, Jeannette returned to work in 1978 at Freedman's Bakery in Belford, Monmouth County, New Jersey. She worked there until 1981. This was another national chain, so the current address of the employer is not where Jeannette physically worked.

Jeannette's earnings at Freedman's Bakery 1978-1981

Jeannette behind the counter at Freedman's Bakery

Ad for Freedman's Bakery, Monmouth County locations

The printout of earnings by quarter provides leads as to Jeannette's whereabouts and activities during her younger years. This was worth the fee and effort to obtain.