Patrick M. Kelly's Bulletin Board

US Census – Kelly – 1880

Patrick Kelly — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 17:37:16 +0000

Finding this 1880 census document for the Kelly family was not a straightforward process. The online database I use to search these records apparently had the last name entered incorrectly — but understandably given the original document — as “Kelby” instead of “Kelly”. I succeeded in tracking this down by searching for Michael’s neighbors from the 1870 census. If you look at the census documents side-by-side, you can see that this is the same community documented as “Township 23 Range 7 East” in 1870. By 1880, this area was apparently called Logan Precinct.

June 1880 – Logan Precint, Cuming, Nebraska

Again, we note the fact that reported ages — even for many of the neighbors — do not necessarily resolve nicely with those reported in 1870. Michael Kelly (38) is listed along with his wife Johanna (22) and children Mary J. (5), Ellen (3), and Robert J. (1). Michael’s profession is listed as “Farmer” and Johanna’s is listed as “Keeping House”. Michael is listed as being born in Ireland, as were his parents. Johanna is listed as being born in Canada, with her parents being born in Ireland. All children are listed as being born in Nebraska.

Original Documents

The original source documents are provided below. Most browsers will let you “right-click” on these links and then “Save Link As” to save a copy of these documents to your computer.

Michael Kelly Obituary (1921)

Patrick Kelly — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 14:57:33 +0000

The following obituary appeared in the The Bancroft Blade On September 2, 1921. I have attempted to recreate the text here in its entirety, although some of the original text is difficult to properly recognize.

Michael Kelly, Nebraska pioneer who departed this life at the home of his daughter, Mrs. Alvin Browning in this city Monday evening, August 22nd, 1921, at eight o’clock, was born near Tralee, County Kerry, Ireland, November 1, 1849, and was thus 71 years, 9 months and 21 days old.

Orphaned at an early age by the death of both father and mother, he with his elder brother, Patrick Kelly, immigrated to America at the age of about ten years, landing in New York and going to the home of an uncle near London, Ontario, Canada, where they remained for some years. Learning of the great West in the United States, they decided to cast their fortunes there and, in 1867 Mr. Kelly in company with Joseph Henzy set out for Nebraska, planning to meet up with Captain Michael Evans, a pioneer settler near where Decatur, Nebraska, is located. Arriving in Omaha and finding their funds almost exhausted, they set out on foot for Decatur, then the metropolis of North Eastern Nebraska and vieing with Omaha as one of the first cities of the state. It was here he met up with and became acquainted with S.R. Fletcher, in charge of one of the relays of the stage line from Omaha to Decatur, the only transportation line of that part of the country of that time, an acquaintance that broadened into a friendship that was maintained through life.

His brother, Patrick Kelly, later joined him and they were employed on various construction projects that were then having their beginning in the great west. Later both acquired homesteads southwest of Bancroft. During the pioneer development of these places, the returns from which were meagre and wholly insufficient to sustain them, he in company with other pioneers of the district, found work through a period of years in railroad construction and bridge building of the pioneer transportation companies of Western Iowa and Eastern Nebraska, including the first bridge across the river at Omaha, the North Western Railway west from the river, railroad construction in and about Fort Dodge, Iowa. Through the long winter months with construction work at a standstill, he in company with two other Nebraska pioneers, John Conlin of Bancroft and a brother, the late James Conlin, contracted the cutting of timber along the Missouri river near Decatur, much of which was used in the construction of the pioneer buildings of that time, with quantities shipped from that point on boats that then plied the Missouri with the regularity of our train service of the present.

Among his employers and associates were the late Count John A. Creighton and John L. Blair, both pioneer builders of the west.

For years prior to the construction of the present M. & O. railway, Fremont, Decatur, and West Point were his trading places and the pioneers residing between his neighbors.

Pioneer neighbors have told and re-told incidents to show of his wonderful endurance, his strategy and ability to meet with the obstacles of a then unsettled country and its elements and quoteing, in the words of one of these, “The night was never too dark or the road too long for Mike Kelly to go on the way of [???] to a [???] neighbor.”

He was privileged to live [???] this community and to see the frail attempt of development of his own hands broaded and multiply into a picture of prosperous homes and farm lands and enjoyed no more pleasing time than when in the later years of life he stood or walked about the grounds of his home, which, on a high elevation, overlooked the Logan Valley and neighboring towns which once he knew as an endless prairie and over which he hunted the wild game for his sustenance, marveling at the progress made, and content that the dreams of the pioneer had come true.

Friends will long remember and picture to themselves again and again this rugged kindly man whose life was interwoven into and a part of every step of progress of this community, and who walked through it so that to know him was to call him friend.

He was wedded to Hannah Evans in the early days of his settlement here and for a number of years resided on their farm southwest of this city. To this union was born two daughters and two sons, Mary Browning of Bancroft, Ellen Flock of Regina, Canada, J. R. Kelly of Angora, and Edward Kelly, who died in infancy at the time of the death of the mother in 1881. After this time, Mr. Kelly removed to Bancroft and has been actively engaged in the business and community life of this district ever since. In later years he was united in marriage to Mary Cronin and to this union were born Mildred Monaghan of Dalton, Neb., Lucille Carey of Bancroft and B.M. Kelly of Strong City, Kansas, all of the children being with him during his last sickness and burial.

The funeral service was held at the Holy Cross church in this city on Thursday, August 25th, at ten o’clock, Rev. Father O’Donoghue of Kansas City, Mo., and Rev. Father Quinn officiating. People of the entire town and countryside, as well as large numbers from other towns, filling the church yard, gathered to pay their love and respect to this geodly man.

The honorary pall bearers selected were:

John G. Gannon, Rosalie, Neb.
F. C. Nielsen, Omaha, Neb.
J. E. L. Carer, Denver, Colo.
F. D. Hunker, West Point, Neb.
Guy T. Graves, Pender, Neb.
Oliver Waite, Lyons, Neb.

The active pall beares were J. O. Copple, J. H. Stream, R. E. Cates, A. G. Zuhlke, John Ronk and Terrence McKeegan.

His body was laid to rest in that long, peaceful sleep in the cemetery overlooking the valley and the land he loved so well.

(The following was apparently a note to the community included after the obituary.)

We wish to express our sincere thanks and appreciation to the many friends for their kindness, help and affection, and the many beautiful flowers during the illness and burial of our beloved Father.

The Family of M. Kelly

Original Documents

The original source documents are provided below. Most browsers will let you “right-click” on these links and then “Save Link As” to save a copy of these documents to your computer.

Kelly-Evans Marriage (1873)

Patrick Kelly — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 04:03:37 +0000

This is the marriage certificate for Michael Kelly and Joanna Evans. The license was signed on 19 May 1873, and the ceremony performed on 26 May 1873, in Oakland, Burt County, Nebraska. Michael was 26 years old at the time, and Joanna was 16 years old (verbal consent of her father is indicated on the license). The document itself contains several pieces of key genealogical information, but the handwriting is difficult to read.

Michael’s age is given to be 26 years of age in May 1873. This would imply that he was born in late 1846 or early 1847, which again complicates the question of his actual date of birth. His place of birth is listed as being in Ireland, although I am unable to decipher the name of the town. Joanna’s age is given to be 16 years of age in May 1873. This would imply that she was born in late 1856 or early 1857. Her birth place is listed as being in Canada.

Their parents’ names are also listed on the license. Unfortunately, deciphering their mothers’ maiden names is quite a challenge.

Original Documents

The original source documents are provided below. Most browsers will let you “right-click” on these links and then “Save Link As” to save a copy of these documents to your computer.

Kelly Marriage (1873)

Michael Kelly’s Birth Year?

Patrick Kelly — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 18:50:45 +0000

Here is another question related to Michael Kelly. Was he born in 1848 or 1849? I have several documents that contain conflicting information about this, and it is not obvious to me which one should be considered accurate. I will describe the documents in chronological order, since one assumption we can make is that errors will be more common as time progresses (this is just one assumption we can make). Any thoughts? Can you see anything I have overlooked or misinterpreted?

The oldest Kelly document currently in my collection is a US Census form from 1870. Michael Kelly’s “age at last birthday” is listed as being 22 years old. The census form was apparently filled out on 3 Nov 1870. Assuming his birthday was indeed on November 1st, and assuming all participants filling out the census were knowledgeable and accurate, this implies a birthdate of 1 Nov 1848. The second question we need to ask ourselves would be related to what kinds of errors could have occurred. For example, if we assume nobody realized that Michael had just celebrated a birthday, then an age of 22 would imply an earlier birthdate (say, in 1847).

US Census – Kelly – 1870

The next documents we encounter are US Census forms for 1900, 1910, and 1920. The 1900 census very clearly claims that Michael was born in November 1849. The age listed on the 1910 census implies a birth year of 1849 as well. In 1920, however, the age listed on the census form (71) implies a birth year of 1848.

US Census – Kelly – 1900, 1910, 1920

The next document we have access to is a newspaper article after his death in 1921. The article does not provide a birthdate, but does claim that his age at time of his death was 72 years, 9 months, and 21 days. This would imply a birthdate of 1 Nov 1848.

Michael Kelly (Newspaper Clippings)

The next document we come across contains family-tree information compiled in the early 1960s. This document claims his birthdate was 1 Nov 1849, and his age at death was 71 years, 9 2/3 months.

Kelly Family Tree Information (1962)

And finally, we have a newspaper article apparently printed in the early 1980s that claims he was born 1 Nov 1849.

Michael Kelly (Newspaper Clippings)

My original conclusion was to accept a birthdate of 1 Nov 1848 based on the assumption that the information would be most reliable (A) when he was young; or (B) near the time of his death when everyone’s attention was directed that way. Another assumption would be that information available in recent documents has been compiled from older documents… which causes errors to propagate.

Then again, I am posing this question openly because I do not have a definitive answer. Any thoughts?

SOLVED – Michael Kelly’s Parents?

Patrick Kelly — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 15:39:13 +0000

Here is a family-tree question that I need help with. I have conflicting information about Michael Kelly [b. 1849 d. 1921]. What were his parents’ names? I have two documents that appear reasonably authoritative, but contradict one another.

The first document is a newspaper clipping, apparently published around 1984. The first sentence in that article claims that Michael’s parents were “John and Ellen Kelly”.

Michael Kelly – Newspaper Clippings

The second document is a family tree that was apparently compiled in the early 1960’s. It appears that his parents are listed in this document as “Michael Kelly” and “Mary”.

Kelly Family Tree Information (1962)

To date, these are the only two documents I have examined that name Michael’s parents. Here’s your chance to chime in… any thoughts?

UPDATE (06 May 2010)

With the new information available in the Kelly-Evans marriage license, I believe we can safely conclude Michael’s parents were indeed named John and Ellen:

Kelly-Evans Marriage (1873)

Kelly Family Tree Information (1962)

Patrick Kelly — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 03:35:07 +0000

My parents were given these family-tree documents around 1962 by the Kelly family. Nobody knows exactly when the data was compiled, but it was apparently very close to that time since the documents include data from 1958. Three pages are included, with the first page apparently discussing my grandfather’s sister Margaret, and the remaining information is organized from that starting point. No specific “source information” is available with this data, but since it was compiled shortly after J.R. (Robert) Kelly’s death, and since it was compiled by the family, I accept the information to be “generally accurate”.

The first page includes information about Margaret Beryl Kelly, born at home 14 Nov 1905 in Bancroft, Cuming County, Nebraska. Her social security number is provided on the form. She married Lee Updegraff on 17 Jan 1959 in California. Information about the marriage license and ceremony are included. Lee Updegraff died 25 May 1963. This page includes birth, death, and burial information about Margaret’s parents (my great grandparents) as well. Information about her siblings is also included, such as the fact that her brother John Robert Kelly, Jr. died 10 Jan 1961 in Madrid, Spain. Birth dates for her siblings are handwritten on the document (I do not know when that information was added).

The second page of this document provides information about Margaret’s paternal grandparents (Michael Kelly and Johanna Evans). The names of the previous-generation family members are also included. The name of Micahel Kelly’s parents is listed on this page as being Michael and Mary. This differs from the names for his parents mentioned in a newspaper clipping stored elsewhere on this website. When reviewing this document, I learned that Michael and Johanna actually had four children together, including one that apparently died at birth (Edward Kelly in 1882).

The third page provided here contain information about Margaret’s maternal grandparents, along with their parents’ names. Before coming across these documents, I do not believe I had any of that information.

Original Documents

The original source documents are provided below. Most browsers will let you “right-click” on these links and then “Save Link As” to save a copy of these documents to your computer.

US Census – Ackley – 1920, 1925

Patrick Kelly — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 02:16:32 +0000

These census documents provide information about the household in which my maternal grandmother was raised. The fist document is from the US Census in 1920. The second document is from the Iowa State Census in 1925.

April 1920 – Madison Township, Fremont, Iowa

The United States census from April 1920 shows Willis Ackley (60), his wife Mary A. (58), son A. Vern (19),
and daughter Elsie M. (17) living in Madison Township, Fremont, Iowa. The form indicates that they owned their home free of any mortgage. Willis was born in Iowa, Mary was born in Illinois, and both children were born in Iowa. Willis Ackley’s father was born in the United States, and his mother was born in Canada. Mary’s father was born in Kentucky and her mother was born in Pennsylvania. Willis was working as a farmer (working on his own account), and Vern’s occupation looks like it had been modified on the form, but also appears to be “farmer” (working as a wage earner).

1925 – Iowa State Census – Madison, Fremont, Iowa

The Iowa census from 1925 shows Willis E. Ackley (66), living with his wife Mary A. Ackley (63) and daughter Elsie M. Ackley (22). Page two of this census form provides information about Mary’s maiden name, along with the names of Willis’ and Mary’s parent. Willis’s father, Eli Ackley, was born in Ohio. His mother — whose name is difficult to read but appears to be “Susan Reeves” — was born in Canada. Mary’s father, Alfred Coppage, was born in Kentucky. Her mother — whose name is also difficult to read but appears to be “Emeline Liem” — was born in Pennsylvania. The form indicates that Willis and Mary were married in Watson Missouri(?). It also indicates that Alfred Coppage and Emeline Liem were married in Illinois.

Original Documents

The original source documents are provided below. Most browsers will let you “right-click” on these links and then “Save Link As” to save a copy of these documents to your computer.

Photo – Kelly – circa 1895

Patrick Kelly — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 16:13:40 +0000

This is a photograph of my great-great grandfather Michael Kelly with (I assume) his first three children. My best guess is that it was taken in the late 1890’s. Handwritten notes on the back of the photograph list four names: Grandfather Kelly “Mike”, Aunt Nell, Dad Kelly (J.R.), Aunt Jane (standing). From everything I have seen previously, I am guessing that “Aunt Nell” is a reference to the person identified as “Ellen” in other sources.

Michael Kelly (left), Mary Jane Kelly (top), Ellen Kelly (bottom), JR (Robert) Kelly (right)

Birth Certificate – Elsie Marie Ackley (1902)

Patrick Kelly — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 03:47:34 +0000

My grandmother’s birth certificate, documenting her birth on October 30, 1902 in Madison Township, Fremont County, Iowa. Her father is listed as Willis E. Ackley, and her mother is listed as Mary Coppage.

Document image courtesy of Virginia Hansen.

Original Documents

The original source documents are provided below. Most browsers will let you “right-click” on these links and then “Save Link As” to save a copy of these documents to your computer.

Birth Certificate – Elsie Marie Ackley (1902)

Birth Certificate – David Theodore Boese (1901)

Patrick Kelly — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 03:46:38 +0000

My grandfather’s “Certificate of Delayed Birth Registration”, apparently filed in June 1948 when he was about 46 years old. His birth is declared to be October 27, 1901, having taken place in South Omaha, Douglas County, Nebraska. His father’s name is listed as Henry Boese (known to have used the last name Base upon arrival in the US), born in Germany in 1872. His mother’s name is listed as Anna W. Duncan, born in Ohio in 1875.

It should be noted that the birth year listed for Henry Boese (1872) is significantly different from birth information listed in several other documents.

Document image courtesy of Virginia Hansen.

Original Documents

The original source documents are provided below. Most browsers will let you “right-click” on these links and then “Save Link As” to save a copy of these documents to your computer.

Birth Certificate – David Boese (1901)