In the ongoing drama over who is related to my 3rd great uncle, Patrick Dolan, I have a new puzzle piece. You may remember from my previous posts that Patrick’s will was filed in 1906, but lost in the San Francisco earthquake. It was refiled after the dust settled. I originally thought that because of…
Tag: Boston
I am so tired of you, Margaret Dolan Coyne!
Do you have that one ancestor or relative who drives you nuts? I don’t mean those who are still living. You know, the one who no matter how many databases you search, microfilms you roll through, and indexes you go through, they managed to slip through the cracks. It appears they went through life and…
Getting Closer to the Dolan’s of Massachusetts
About 10 years ago, I got the surprise of my life when I read Patrick Dolan’s reinstated probate file. Patrick Dolan died in 1905, but his estate was not settled before the 1906 earthquake. In 1907, the administratix, Mary (Kelly) Meincke, reopened the probate–and a can of worms. Cousins from Boston came forward to claim…
Mary Collis, Take Three
There are times when I am more efficient than I thought I was. I was beating myself up for misplacing Patrick Dolan’s probate file when it hit me. I took copious notes from the massive file! I pulled down the Kelly/Dolan binder, flipped to Patrick Dolan’s section, and began reading. After going through the notes,…
Martin Kelly, My Family’s First Business Owner?
Much of what my Grandma Shellabarger told me about her family turned out to be myth or exaggeration. She got one thing right. One of her ancestors owned boarding houses in San Francisco. That ancestor was my Great Great Great Grandfather, Martin Kelly. Martin was born sometime around 1820 in County Roscommon, Ireland. I’m not…