Ice Skates for Christmas

"There were two boys, Stephen (named for Anne's brother) and John born between 1860 and 1865. They had been given ice skates for Christmas and John fell in the pond while trying them out for the first time. Stephen tried to rescue him and when they were pulled out, they were tightly wrapped in each others arms ."

I have tried to find more detail on this accident and death  - I found an entry in Manhattan Bodies in Transit -- for a John Nolan -  who was reported drowned on March 8, 1869.  His death was reported by John Nolan.  According to this coroner's report, John is buried in Calvary Cemetery.      My grandmother's story notes that a baby who died - Thomas  - is also buried in Calvary.

Stephen's body was not registered; I am wondering if this means that they did not find his body after all?

I found an entry in the March 11 1869 Daily Item (Port Chester's newspaper) mentioning the death of John Nolan;  John drowned on Ben Holloday’s farm (Ophir) now the site of Manhattanville College. 

George Hughes

On October 10, 1938, George E. Hughes, of 36 Lafayette Drive, Port Chester, New York, died in a tragic car accident on Bowman Avenue; Mr Hughes' sedan hit a telephone pole. It appeared to those on the scene that Mr. Hughes lost control of the car and made no effort to slow his car down prior to striking the pole. He may well have been on his way home -- he had promised his wife the three girls he had a surprise for them - tickets for a winter cruise.

Hughes was the son of Mr. and Mrs. Charles Hughes - he was born in Rhode Island (Pawtucket)His obituaries describe him as a a product of Port Chester schools and began caddying at 9 years of age (1894) for Apawamis Club in Rye. When he was 21 years old, he was promoted to caddy master.

At Apawmais, Mr Hughes taught Gene Sarazen to golf, along with Tony Manero, John Farrell, Paul Runyan, and Morton Dutra.

During his career, other clubs to employ Hughes included Green Meadows County Club, in Harrison, New York (1916-1936) and Tamarack County Club (1936-1938).

While at Green Meadowns, Hughes taught Babe Ruth to golf; Mr. Ruth brought his team mate, Lou Gehrig for lessons as well. He also provided golf instruction to the treasurer of Singer Sewing Machine Company. (A.K. Bourne.)

Some suggested Mr. Gehrig's adoption of golf affected his swing; see Lank Leanard's commentary on that topic.  Hughes merits a mention on this web page by the USGA Musuem (research credit, Meghan Anne McLane Mathis - great great granddaughter of George Hughes)

Hughes married Mary Ellen Gagan in 1912. They had three daughters - Anne Theresa Hughes (McCarthy);Mary Hughes (Stone); and Rita Hughes (Beluk). Both Anne and Mary were known to be solid golfers and were each champions in their own stead. At the time of Mr. Hughes' death, Anne and Mary were graduates of the College of New Rochelle and all three girls attended Ursuline Academy, also in New Rochelle.

Mr. Hughes worshiped at Our Lady of Mercy in Port Chester and was buried from that church on October 13, 1838. Local and State leaders attended is funeral mass; both Ruth and Gehrig sent flowers. He is buried at St. Mary's Cemetery on Ridge Street.

Family folklore says a bit more than the obituaries -- many in Port Chester knew of the accident -- and a few of them saw my grandmother (Anne) and her mother (Mary Ellen) at a store -- none of them mentioned the tragedy -- as they knew Anne and Mary did not know yet. When Anne and Mary arrived home, their family priest gave them the sad news.

Supposedly, George's widow took to her room for a year after his death. When she emerged, she wrote a letter to A.K. Bourne, Treasurer  of the Singer Sewing Machine company (and son of the founder), seeking employment. He wrote back and gave her a job as a seamstress demonstrator in New York City. I have made it one of my many goals with this project to pursue that line of the story -- could that letter still exist? Stay tuned.

George Hughes cast a long shadow in the family -- I don't think his daughters ever got over his passing. His widow, my great grandmother, never remarried and when I once asked my mom why -- she gazed at me in near horror -- I don't think the thought had ever occurred to her.

I have an interview he gave "30 Minutes with George Hughes" , talking about golf and how to best teach someone to play -- his speech patterns and word choices demonstrate a respect or awe for golf -- he focused a great deal of the time in this interview detailing hand placement -- "ask a golfer which hand they hit the ball with..." he prompts -- and he explains most would not know.

It strikes me, reading this interview, how much time he must have spent playing golf. And that to me, seems like solitary time -- walking, thinking, hitting, walking again. How many rounds of golf would a pro play in a week? Was it lonely -- or did he love the game that deeply? Was every round unique - most golfers are likely nodding yes -- but I can say, with complete confidence, I don't think I have anything in my life I want to do that often -- or frequently.

What kind of person has that level of interest in one thing? What was George Hughes like? Was he interesting to talk to - or was he interesting only if you were talking about golf?

As always, I jump in, do some research, and end up with more questions. I read once, in a book that inspired me by Amanda Foreman, about Georgiana, the Duchess of Devonshire - that one night, Georgiana came to the author in a dream -- who among the many I am pondering will visit me?

Amelia Earhart - how were her apples?

My grandmother once told me she lived next door to Amelia Earhart. She explained that Amelia was not very lady like AND that neighborhood kids used to eat apples from her apple tree.

I decided to put these pieces of a story together with what I am learning, and see if they add up.

In Fifty Years of Rye: 1904-1954, the author, Maria Dalphin, talks about a Harrsion town celebration for Mrs. George P. Putnam - known to most as Amelia Earhart.

I did a wikipedia search on George Putnam and got his birth dates and name of his first wife; I found him in the 1920 Census, on Purchase Street, in Rye, New York. I also know from this article that he divorced his first wife in 1929 and had married Amelia by 1931. So, she is not listed on the 1930 census with him.

My grandmother lived on North Street in 1920 and 1930. I was curious how far they were - I used Google Maps to see. The answer is not far indeed. Certainly close enough if the apples were good -- which Nan said they were.


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Keeping house.. where?

Anne's entries in various Federal Census have her either "keeping house" or "work" - and the question in my mind is -- where? I think we can safely bet that Anne did not have the luxury of connecting to a VPN and working at her kitchen table, so where exactly did she work and where did she keep house?

In 1850, I find an Ann Hoy listed amongst a range of people -- in Hell's Kitchen -- this fits with the family story -- that Anne found work in a boarding house in Hell's Kitchen. If this is Anne, she lived with a Rufus Davenport, age 74, and his son, George, a Harriet Cable (46) and Harriet and Caroline Webb (60 and 36 respectively). Davenport is listed as a merchant; if this is Anne, Anne, her living arrangement may have been very similar to the communal living she came from in Kilcumnin. I assume her days were spent cleaning, and maybe cooking.

This entry is the only Ann Hoy or Anne Hoey If find in 1850 -- at least of one born in Ireland. There is another Ann Hoy - but born in New York. The Davenport entry is in Ward 5 -- the West side of New York (in Hell's Kitchen).

In 1860, I find John and Anne, with a young Maurice and a 5 month old baby, Thomas. I think this is the baby that we read about in the story - who died with no name. I can "feel" my family in this part of the story -- we just don't talk about sad things and Thomas name would certainly have been a sad one to bring up. -- [a tuck was taken]. You can see this entry in the Census in the Anne Hoey timeline. By this time, the Nolan's are in the 18th Ward -- I believe on East 25th Street; I find a John Nolan (laborer) listed in the New York City Directory for 1859-- and that is the only John Nolan in the 18th Ward.

It is highly unlikely that Anne was working at all at this point; Irish mothers were the least likely to work after motherhood -- interestingly, they were MORE likely to work than other immigrant women before marriage and even after marriage, until children arrived.

1870 -- CONFUSION exists. I am sorry to say I am not certain I have found them yet - so stay tuned! Thus far, I've paged through 1870 Census thinking of alternate spellings of Nolan - but no luck. I found an Ann and John - but no kids listed and that is not a strong hit - as by 1870, they would have had Maurice or Morris, Mary A, and Ellen.

By 1880, as our family story details, we find the Nolan's in White Plains; no street address on this page of the Census return so I am not certain where in White Plains - once I find a city directory I will have some more information to share!

In 1900, Anne is listed at 57 Pearl Street in a Port Chester Directory. By this time, she is living with her son John (listed as unemployed) and her daughter Margaret, whose work is noted as "W". Maurice, Mary, and Ellen have established families at this point and are listed elsewhere -- mainly in Greenwich.

In 1910, Anne is listed living with John Nolan - at 119 Pearl Street, in Port Chester.

In 1910 - 1930, we find the Nolan's children around Greenwich - many with careers (Maurice is an inspector and John a policeman). They all have fewer children than their parents; and all of them are listed as being able to read and write. Clearly, the American dream had taken hold.

(i will keep adding to this spreadsheet as I find information)