Biggest Genealogy Accomplishment - 52 Weeks of Abundant Genealogy

Week 42: Biggest Genealogy Accomplishment. What do you feel is your biggest genealogy accomplishment? What were the steps you took to get there, and what was the end result?

I fell hopelessly behind on these prompts, but wanted to get this one in before the end of the year!

My biggest accomplishment so far has to be finally finding some information on my elusive Irish great-great-grandfather Timothy Creeden. Finding information for Timothy took a lot of persistence, some help from researchers in Ohio where Timothy lived, researching nearby Creeden families and some incredible luck. I had searched and gathered what records I could find for several years as I described in one of my first posts about my Irish Brick Wall.

Over the years I made some wonderful contacts and one of them asked about possible records for Timothy when she was researching another family in Mercer County, Ohio. Another researcher there mentioned that there were two probate records for Timothy: one for his will which I already had and another for his guardianship of Roseanna Creeden. This was the first I had heard about the guardian's records.

I knew that Patrick Creeden of Clinton County had a daughter Roseanna and a son Timothy, but I hadn't been able to find anything about them. Patrick's will proved to be key and I was very fortunate that many of the Ohio probate records I was searching for were available on FamilySearch. The will gave me enough clues to pursue other information, including Guardian's Bonds naming Timothy as guardian of Roseanna in Clinton and Mercer counties. Information on Patrick's daughter Julia from the Sisters of Charity gave me enough information to find her death certificate. The certificate named her parents as Patrick Creeden and Mary Coakley. Having both parents' names and a date of birth led to Julia's baptismal certificate which showed that she was baptized in Clondrohid Parish in County Cork, Ireland.

There is still much to investigate, but the end result is that I now have a probable family and place of origin for Timothy!

52 Weeks of Abundant Genealogy by Amy Coffin is a series of weekly blogging prompts (one for each week of 2012) that invite genealogists and others to discuss resources in the genealogy community including websites, applications, libraries, archives, genealogical societies and more.

Merry Christmas!

Wishing everyone a very Merry Christmas and best wishes for a happy, healthy New Year with lots of new genealogy discoveries!

Witnesses and Neighbors - Mappy Monday

I posted earlier about the trail of probate records and Guardian's Bonds that helped to link my great-great-grandfather Timothy Creeden to Patrick Creedan's family in Clinton County, Ohio. The bonds showed that Timothy was named guardian of his half-sister Roseanna shortly after their father Patrick's death in Clinton County in 1883. The guardian's bonds were filed in Clinton County until 1887 when the probate case was moved to Mercer County, Ohio. I still had a nagging doubt that there could be a second Timothy Creeden that made the move from Clinton to Mercer, so was looking for some additional proof that this was my Timothy.

The witnesses on the Mercer County bond were Henry Beathler and John H. Siebert. I had a copy of the 1888 atlas showing Timothy Creeden's section of land in Hopewell Township in Mercer County, so I decided to see where the witnesses lived. The witnesses were close neighbors to my Timothy! I am still looking for that ultimate record that shows Timothy's birth date, location, and/or parents, but I think I can be reasonably sure that Timothy was the son of Patrick Creedan.

Daniel Creedon - Sunday's Obituary

This obituary was published in Irish World on July 22, 1899. Daniel Creedon was born around 1819 and died at the age of 80 on June 16, 1899. The obituary mentions that his remains were taken to Clondrohid (in County Cork, Ireland), so it is possible that he is a relation to my Creeden families. The Patrick Creedan I have been researching was born in 1814 and his children were baptized in Clondrohid.

   By the death of Mr. Daniel Creedon, which took place at Gurteenroe street, Macroom, June 16, another of the links which connect the missionary labors of the Apostle of Temperance with the present time, has been removed.  Mr. Creedon was aged 80 years. He received the Father Mathew Temperance Pledge in 1840, and was a faithful advocate and strict adherent to its principles to the last.  He was connected with the movement for Irish libery in '48, and was prominently identified with the later movement of '67, his house during the latter period having been the recognized rendezvous of the members of the Brotherhood.  He was a well-known and respected member of the community, and the large cortege that accompanied his remains to Clondrohid testified to the esteem in which he was held by the people of the town and district. The meeting of Macroom Board of Guardians and Rural District Council were adjourned as a mark of respect to his memory.  His son is master of the Workhouse.

In the Irish 1901 census, a Timothy Creedon lived on Gurteenroe Street in Macroom and his occupation is given as Master of the Workhouse. In Guy's Postal Directory of 1914, Timothy is still listed as Master of the Workhouse and Daniel Creedon is working there as a clerk.

Sister Mary Felix/Creeden Death Certificate - Amanuensis Monday

Julia Creeden was born in County Cork, Ireland in 1842 and lived in Clinton County, Ohio with her family by 1860. She entered the Sisters of Charity convent in Cincinnati, Ohio in 1870 and took her vows in 1872 when she received the name of Sister Mary Felix. She died in 1918 and is buried at the Sisters of Charity cemetery in Mount St. Joseph, Ohio. The death certificate pictured below was listed on the FamilySearch site under "Mary Creedon or Felix".

Name: Sister Mary Felix (Creedon)
County of: Hamilton
Township: Delphi
Ward: Sisters of Charity Mother House
Event date: 22 Feb 1918
Event place: Delhi, Hamilton, Ohio
Residence: Delhi, Hamilton, Ohio
Gender: Female
Death age: 75y
Marital status: Single
Race: White
Occupation: Nurse
Birth date: 01 Jul 1842
Birthplace: Ireland
Burial date: 25 Feb 1918
Burial place: Mt. St. Joseph, O.
Father: Patrick Creedon
Father's birthplace: Ireland
Mother: Mary Coakley
Mother's birthplace: Ireland
Informant: Sister Ernestine(?)
Cause of death: Lobar pneumonia
Undertaker: Geo. Engles, Mt. St. Joseph, O.

The source given on FamilySearch is: "Ohio, Deaths, 1908-1953," index and images, Mary Creedon Or Felix, 22 Feb 1918; citing Delhi, Hamilton, Ohio, reference fn 10432; FHL microfilm 1984229.

Sisters of Charity Archives - Church Record Sunday

I posted earlier about the will of Patrick Creedan of Clinton County, Ohio and my hopes that it would provide enough information to determine if he was the father of my great-great-grandfather Timothy Creeden. The will was probated after Patrick's death in 1883.

There was some unexpected information about his daughter Julia Creeden in this provision from Patrick's will: "Two portions shall be paid to my son Timothy. One of which is his own legal right, and the other being the legal right of my daughter Julia, (who is now a religious in the Convent of the Sisters of Charity) but if my said daughter Julia should demure to this transfer of her right in favor of her full brother Timothy, then she shall have full control over her legal portion." 

Julia was in Clinton County, Ohio in the 1860 census, so Cincinnati would have been the closest place for her to join the Sisters of Charity. I contacted the Sisters of Charity Archives and received some interesting information about Julia's life. She came to the Sisters of Charity of Cincinnati in 1870 and took her vows in 1872 when she received the name of Sister Mary Felix. The Sisters told me that she worked at St. Mary's Hospital in Pueblo, CO from 1888-1902 and St. Vincent's Hospital in Santa Fe, NM starting in 1905. She returned to the Motherhouse in Cincinnati at some point and she died on February 22, 1918. She is buried in the Sisters of Charity Cemetery in Mount St. Joseph, Ohio.

In addition to the information, the Sisters sent a picture of Julia! I wasn't expecting that and hadn't even thought to ask for one. With the information on the name she took and her date and place of death, I found Julia's death certificate listed under "Sister Mary Felix or Creedon". It said she was born in Ireland on July 1, 1842 and her parents were Patrick Creedon and Mary Coakley. This information was a match for a baptism record on the RootsIreland site. According to the baptism record, Julia was baptized as a Roman Catholic on July 3, 1842 in Carricapooka in the parish of Clondrohid, Ireland. Parents were Patrick Creeden and Mary Cokley and sponsors were Daniel Cokley and Honora Creeden.

I'll follow up with some additional posts on Patrick's will and the probate records in Ohio that lead me to believe that my Timothy is Julia's brother. Thanks so much  to the Sisters that work in the Sisters of Charity Archives for providing the information on Julia! With this information, I finally have some good leads on the origins of my Creeden family.

The Sisters of Charity of Cincinnati have a very interesting history including their work as nurses during the Civil War. Additional resources are available here, including a list of publications about the Sisters.

Guardian's Bond - Amanuensis Monday

This record is a Guardian's Bond from the Mercer County Ohio Probate records. It is an important record to me since it helps to confirm a link between my great-great-grandfather Timothy Creeden and the Creeden family headed by Patrick Creeden in Clinton County, OH. In the record, Timothy is named guardian of Patrick's daughter Rosannah.

Rosannah's father is stated here to be Patrick Creeden of Clinton County and in Patrick's will he names Timothy as his son. Timothy was appointed as guardian of Rosannah in Clinton County shortly after Patrick's death in 1883. Timothy bought land in Mercer County in 1884 and was living there by the time of this record in 1887. The two men that witnessed the bond were living near Timothy in Hopewell Township in Mercer County and they were all listed as farmers in the census. A bonus is that the Probate Judge H. H. Pulskamp is also one of my ancestors!

GUARDIAN'S BOND

Know all Men by these Presents, That we, Timothy Creeden, John H. Siebert, Henry Beathler, are held and firmly bound unto the state of Ohio, in the sum of five hundred Dollars, for the payment of which we do hereby jointly and severally bind ourselves, our heirs, executors, and administrators.
   Sealed with our seals, and dated at Celina this 5th day of October A.D. 1887.
   The condition of the above obligation is such, that, whereas, the above bound Timothy Creeden has been appointed by the Probate Court of Mercer County, Ohio, guardian of the person and estate of Rosannah Creeden, an imbecile, aged about 32 years June 1887.
   Child of Patrick Creeden deceased late of Clinton Co. O. which appointment the said Timothy Creeden has accepted.
   Now if the said Timothy Creeden will faithfully discharge all his duties as such guardian, as is required by law, then the above obligation to be void, otherwise to remain in full force.

This bond approved in open Court, this 5th day of October A.D. 1887.

The document is signed by Timothy Creeden, John H. Siebert, Henry Beathler, and H.H. Pulskamp, Probate Judge.

========================================================================

THE STATE OF OHIO, Mercer County,
I, Timothy Creeden Guardian of Rosannah Creeden an imbecile do solemnly swear and affirm that I will faithfully and honestly discharge the duties upon me as such guardian, as I will answer to God.

Signed Timothy Creeden
Sworn to and subscribed before me this 4th day of October A.D. 1887.
Signed H.H. Pulskamp
Probate Judge

Amanuensis Monday is a daily blogging theme which encourages the family historian to transcribe family letters, journals, audiotapes, and other historical artifacts.