Sunday, February 24, 2008

Lake Erie ship carpenter

As mentioned, in passing, in my inaugural blog post, John B. WATTS was one of my great-great-grandfathers.

John was born in France, in 1822. I do not know precisely when the family emigrated, but John’s younger brother, Joseph, was born in the USA in 1836. By the 1840 US Census, the family settled in Buffalo, NY.

John's wife was Louisa. She was also from France. I do not, yet, know Louisa’s maiden name. Their children and birth years were:
George, 1846;
Mary, 1848;
Emily, 1848;
Eugene, 1851;
Joseph C., 1854;
Louisa, 1857;
John W., 1859; and
Julia, 1864.

As he is my great-grandfather, their eighth child, “John W.,” is of particular interest to me. It is also interesting to see the name “Eugene Watts,” as my father was apparently the namesake of this great-uncle.

Professionally, John B. Watts was a carpenter—-over the years, variously documented in census records and city directories as ‘joiner,’ ‘carpenter,’ and ‘ship carpenter.’ No success yet, but I hope to discover for whom he worked.

Apparently, great-great-granddad was also a volunteer fireman. Thanks to HeritageQuest Online, via my local library, I discovered Matt Endres History of the Volunteer Fire Department of Buffalo, NY (published 1906). Endres lists John Watts as member of Rescue Hook and Ladder No. 2—located at Washington and Huron. The company’s motto was “where danger lurks, there you will find us.” Buffalo's volunteers had a colorful history. The plot becomes complicated. A subsequent blog will address some details about Watts family involvement with the Buffalo Volunteer Fire Department.

Ellicott Street and then Hickory Street were the principle neighborhoods of John B. Watts’ Buffalo years. [Map on sidebar of this blog.]

John B. passed, at a relatively early age, in 1878.

Sunday, February 17, 2008

Frank O'Laughlin--switchman, firefighter, doughboy, uncle

Frank O’LAUGHLIN is not one of my direct ancestors. To me, Frank is a great-uncle. He was my mother’s, mother’s brother. Regrettably, we never met.

Officially named Francis O’LAUGHLIN, he was born 26 December 1890. Frank was the second child, and first son, to Patrick O’LAUGHLIN and Mary Ann CALDEN. In 1890, according to the Buffalo City Directory, the O’LAUGHLINs lived at 129 Selkirk Street, and Patrick, Frank’s father (and my great-grandfather) was a Lehigh Valley Railroad fireman.

By 1910, the twenty-year-old Frank was apparently following his father’s footsteps—the census listed Frank as a railroad switchman. However, by 1917, a career change had occurred. Frank’s draft registration card (dated 5 June 1917) shows that he had become a City of Buffalo firefighter. He was attached to Engine 18, on Fillmore Avenue.

{On a side note, Engine 18 was disbanded in 2002. The facility, now know as “Annex 18,” lives on, though. It is currently used by the Buffalo Fire Department Training Bureau.}

Completing the above-mentioned Draft Card was a turning point. Frank was drafted, and became a Private, in Company D, 307th Infantry, 77th Infantry Division. The unit’s WWI history is chronicled in From Upton To The Meuse With The Three Hundred And Seventh Infantry A Brief History Of Its Life And Of The Part It Played In The Great War, by W. Kerr Rainsford.

Sadly, on page 288, Rainsford lists “O'Loughlin, Frank” [sic] among the “2,692 major casualties—or deaths from wounds, and wounds judged to be more or less permanently incapacitating for service.”

Page 576 of History of Buffalo and Erie County, 1914-1919 (which I found on Ancestry.com), lists Private Francis S. O’Laughlin was wounded in action (“WA”) on 6 September 1918. Under the heading of “Our Heroic Dead,” an entry on page 503 indicated that Private Francis S. O'loughlin [sic] of Company D., 307th Infantry, died of wounds, in France, 21 October 1918. I cannot explain the variation in surname spelling, but I assume both entries refer to my great-uncle, Frank O’LAUGHLIN.

I have not seen it, but if you are ever in New York City, you can find a Central Park grove dedicated to the 307th Infantry. The Memorial Grove was dedicated in 1921, to the WWI veterans of the 307th Infantry who perished in France. Off Fifth Avenue, near 67th Street, is a two-acre site with a stone monument and fourteen tree-based monuments. There, you should find a plaque for Company D, memorializing Frank O’LAUGHLIN, and his regimental brethren.

Friday, February 15, 2008

France to USA -- Havier and Catherine GUERRE

It seems reasonable to devote my first blog entry to my oldest, currently identified, ancestors. They are Havier and Catherine GUERRE—two of my fourth great-grandparents.

Specifically, though verbosely, Catherine and Havier were my father’s, father’s, father’s, father’s, mother’s parents. The Guerres had, at least, a daughter—Frances (b:1798). She married Joseph WATTS (b:1796), and one of Frances and Joseph’s sons was John B. WATTS (b:1822). I do not know what towns, or regions, but all of the above-mentioned folks were born in France. In the early-to-mid 1830’s, Joseph, Frances, and John WATTS moved to the United States, and settled in Buffalo, NY. John B.’s children included, John W. WATTS, (b:1859) who, in turn, fathered Ralph WATTS (b:1896). Ralph’s second son, Eugene (b: 1923), was my father.

But, getting back to the Guerre family…as mentioned Catherine and Havier were French. Unfortunately, I know nothing about their lives in France. I do not even know Catherine’s maiden name.

What I do know is that, following their daughter’s example, Havier and Catherine emigrated to the USA in 1844. Apparently, they traveled on the S.S. Iowa, arriving in New York City on 26 September 1844.

That means that at ages seventy-seven (72) and sixty-six (66), Havier and Catherine traveled, and eventually settled, over 3,500 miles from home.

I believe that the transatlantic voyage would have taken roughly one month—just to arrive in NYC. Then they were on their way upstate. It is hard to imagine now, but in the 1840’s Western New York was largely “frontier.” If they were wealthy, Havier and Catherine could have taken a train. Just a year earlier, in 1843, Wells-Fargo Express began operating—the first express railroad service between Albany and Buffalo. As an express, it only took twenty-five (25) hours. Of course, the $11.50 fare may have been a bit steep. Perhaps Catherine and Havier traveled via the Eire Canal. Instead of twenty-five hours, barge would have been six days from Albany to Buffalo—most likely a total of nine days travel from NYC to Buffalo. So, the Guerres apparently left France in late summer, and arrived at their daughters’ home in mid-October. They arrived just in time for winter in Buffalo.

The 1848 Commercial Advertiser Directory for the City of Buffalo shows “Xavier” GUERRE living at 144 Ellicott Street (the same address as Joseph WATTS). Interestingly, the then seventy-six year old Havier/Xavier is listed as a “laborer.” At 148 Ellicott St., twenty-six year old carpenter, John WATTS lives next door to his grandparents and parents.

At the age of eighty-one, Havier passed away on 10 September 1853. He was buried at St. Joseph’s cemetery, and later reburied in United German and French R.C. Cemetery.

Catherine thrived another dozen years. She lived long enough to see, among many other things, a grandson and great-grandson return from the US Civil War. At age eighty-eight, Catherine died 12 April 1866.

As you can see above, I do not know much about my great-great-great-great-grandparents. I know they came from a place foreign to me, and at advanced age moved to a land foreign to them.