Sounds like
a law office doesn’t it?
My
great-grandfather, Philip Smith has long been a brick-wall for me. I know that
he was the father of my grandmother, Rita Jacqueline Smith and the husband of
my great-grandmother, Astrid Solem. I have a marriage record and they all
appear together on the 1930 US. Federal Census.[i]
I also show
Philip in 1925, with his parents Philip & Elizabeth Smith on the NY State
Census, but where are they before that??[ii]
The records indicate that they are all U.S. born, NY to be exact so why is this
so hard, even with such common name?
I believe that
the name, like many we find in our trees from time to time, evolved over time.
Is Philip
Smith actually Philip Messerschmidt?
BUILDING A
CASE FOR PHILIP
The marriage
record for Philip and Astrid mentioned above, list his parents as Philip and
Elizabeth Devine.[iii]
In researching Elizabeth Devine, I came across a 1901 New York City marriage record
for an Elizabeth Devine and Philip Messerschmidt.[iv]
On 27 Oct
1902 a baby named Veronica Messersmith is born to parents, Philip and
Elisabeth Develyn Messersmith.[v]
Two years
later another baby is born in Manhattan, Phillip Messerschmidt, on 25 Jul 1904
to Phillip and Elizabeth Devine Messerschmidt.[vi]
A 1905 NY
State Census, records a Messersmith family in Manhattan consisting of:
· Philip (age 41)
· Elizabeth (age 29)
· Veronica (age 2)
· Philip (age 1)
A family
composition consistent with the records listed above.[vii]
By 1910,
this family is seemingly suffering an identity crisis as they are now listed as
“Messer”.[viii]
Household of Philip Messer, 1910 U.S.
Federal Census for Brooklyn, NY
Elizabeth has only aged one year(!) and a new baby is listed
as Raymond G.
Several name
combination searches have yielded no results for birth or death records for
Raymond, as he has disappeared by the 1920 Census, where the family is listed
as Masserschmidt.[ix]
They are listed as:
· Philip, Sr. (age 56)
· Elizabeth (age 43)
· “Viola” (age 17)
· Phillip, Jr. (age 15)
VIOLA
VERONICA KILKENNY
On 10 Aug
1924, Veronica “Smith” marries John Thos. A. Kilkenny in Manhattan, NY.[x]
Her parents are Philip and Elizabeth Devine.
In 1940, the US
Census for Queens, NY shows the Kilkenny’s with their three children, John,
Maureen and Betty Ann, along with widowed father-in-law, Phillip Messerschmidt.[xi]
The Social
Security Applications and Claims Index, reveals that Viola Veronica Kilkenny
died on 5 Sep 1990, her parents are listed as Philip Smith and Elizabeth
Devine.[xii]
CONCLUSION/LOOSE
ENDS
It is my
feeling that for young people like Veronica and Philip who were coming of age
in “roaring” twenties New York, shortening their name to the Americanized “Smith”
was simply easier and would perhaps present more opportunities.
A brick wall
has crumbled, but as always presents more sets of questions, and avenues for
further research.
Philip died on
14 Dec 1939, his death record lists his parents as Philip and Elizabeth Devine,
however his birth date is listed as 26 Jul 1908, one day and 4 years off from
the Philip Messerschmidt birth record.[xiii]
As this information would have been given second hand, perhaps the grieving informant
simply gave the wrong date. I am awaiting a copy of the death record from New York,
to further pursue this discrepancy.
And of
course, I have Philip, Sr. and Elizabeth Devine to now pursue and study. Stay tuned!
- End Notes -
[i] "United States Census, 1930," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:X4N YCC : accessed 25 June 2019), Household of Phillip Smith, New York State Archives; Albany, New York; State Population Census Schedules, 1925; Election District: 45; Assembly District: 23; City: New York; County: New York; Page: 15
[ii] "New York, State Census, 1925," database with images, Ancestry.com (https://ancestry.com : accessed 25 June 2019), Household of Phillip Smith, Brooklyn (Districts 1001-1250), Kings, New York, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) ED 1122, sheet 6A, line 19, family 110, NARA microfilm publication T626 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 2002), roll 1508; FHL microfilm 2,341,243.
[iii] "New York, New York City Marriage Records, 1829-1940," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:24CB-CR9 : 10 February 2018), Philip Smith and Astrid Solem, 31 Jul 1928; citing Marriage, Manhattan, New York, New York, United States, New York City Municipal Archives, New York; FHL microfilm 1,653,546.
[vii] "New York State Census, 1905," database with images, FamilySearch : 22 September 2016), New York > Manhattan > A.D. 18, E.D. 8 > image 7 of 22; citing various county clerk offices, New York.
[iv] "New York, New York City Marriage Records, 1829-1940," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:24SV-39H : 10 February 2018), Philip Messerschmidt and Elizabeth Devine, 10 Aug 1901; citing Marriage, Manhattan, New York, New York, United States, New York City Municipal Archives, New York; FHL microfilm 1,570,515.
[v] "New York, New York City Births, 1846-1909," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:2WZJ-MJN : 11 February 2018), Veronica Messersmith, 27 Oct 1902; citing Manhattan, New York, New York, United States, reference item 3 cn 47424 New York Municipal Archives, New York; FHL microfilm 1,983,784.
[vi] "New York, New York City Births, 1846-1909," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:2W44-5VT : 11 February 2018), Elizabeth Divine Messerschmidt in entry for Phillip Messerschmidt, 25 Jul 1904; citing Manhattan, New York, New York, United States, reference cn 34809 New York Municipal Archives, New York; FHL microfilm 1,984,242.
[viii] "United States Census, 1910," database with images, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com : accessed 25 June 2019), Household of Phillip Messer, Census Place: Brooklyn Ward 14, Kings, New York; Roll: T624_962; Page: 13B; Enumeration District: 0295; FHL microfilm: 1374975
[ix] "United States Census, 1920," database with images, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com : accessed 25 June 2019), Household of Phillip Messerschmidt, Census Place: Manhattan Assembly District 21, New York, New York; Roll: T625_1224; Page: 13B; Enumeration District: 1432
[x] "New York, New York City Marriage Records, 1829-1940," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:2468-L4X : 10 February 2018), John Thos. A. Kilkenny and Veronica Smith, 10 Aug 1924; citing Marriage, Manhattan, New York, New York, United States, New York City Municipal Archives, New York; FHL microfilm 1,643,215.
[xi] “United States Census, 1940”, database and images, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com: accessed 25 June 2019), Household of John Kilkenny, Year: 1940; Census Place: New York, Queens, New York; Roll: m-t0627-02719; Page: 8B; Enumeration District: 41-8
[xii] “U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007”, database, Ancestry.com (https://ancestry.com: accessed 25 June 2019), entry for Viola Veronica Kilkenny
[xiii] New York, New York City Municipal Deaths, 1795-1949," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:2W24-VYT : 10 February 2018), Philip Smith, 14 Dec 1939; citing Death, New York City, Queens, New York, United States, New York Municipal Archives, New York; FHL microfilm 2,155,093.
