52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks – Week 50: Naughty

I am working on this year-long prompt, hosted by Amy Johnson Crow. I will write each week in one of my two blogs, either Mam-ma’s Southern Family or at My Trails Into the Past. I’m looking forward to writing about my children’s ancestors in new and exciting ways.

This week we are to write about the theme “naughty.” I had a hard time thinking of someone who had broken the law or done something wrong. I then thought about Frederick Henry Davey, my husband’s great-great-grandfather. He was married three times. His first marriage to Matilda “Tillie” Wollenweber produced four children in five years, and then Tillie died in 1885 of malarial fever.[1]

He married a second time to Tillie’s sister, Julia Wollenweber probably soon after Matilda’s death.[2] He was not found in any records with Julia, however, their son, George T. Davey, named them as his parents in 1920 on his marriage application. By 1892, she married Jacob Ettel.[3] George was the only child named Davey in the 1900 household.[4]

Fred married a third time to Angeline McDonald on 16 Mar 1898.[5]  However, he was not living with the family in 1900. Angeline was living with her children from a previous marriage and Edward Davey, her step-son. Angeline stated she was married.

No other records of Fred have been found until his death in 1915 in Los Angeles, California. He is buried at the Odd Fellows Cemetery in an unmarked grave.[6]

He was a good pattern-maker, but also liked the drink too much to hold a job and keep a marriage. Few online records have been found for him after 1880. It might be possible to search in newspapers for any reference, or if actually localities are known, court or police records.

His daughter, Pearl, was very active in the Women’s Temperance Union (WTU) probably because of her father’s drinking problem. She and her brothers had unhappy childhoods, being shuttle from family member to family member, and also spending time in a children’s home.

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[1] Evening News, Nov 4, 1885, p.4, c.3.

[2] The marriage record has not been found. They had one son, George T., born 14 July 1889. He named his parents Fred Davey and Julia Willemweber.

[3] Clark County, Indiana, Marriages, Bk P, p. 415, Julia Davey to Jacob Ettle, 1892.

[4] 1900 U.S. Census, Indiana, Clark Co, ED 8, sht 16, line 20, Jacob Ettel, digital images, Ancestry (http://www.ancestry.com), NARA T623.

[5] Jasper County, Missouri, Marriage License, Jefferson City, MO, USA, p. 267, Davey-Grace, 1898, Ancestry (http://www.ancestry.com : 27 Apr 2012).

[6] State of California, Dept. of Health Services, Death Certificate, Frederick Henry Davey, 15-001219. Also 2009 letter from the Odd Fellows Cemetery stating there was no tombstone, but he was buried in Grave Number 12, Lot 4, Avenue 17.

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