First let me congratulate Archives.com for partnering with NARA in presenting the 1940 Census.
http://www.archives.com/1940census
The above link will be worn out by 10am on April 2, 2012. I hope that I am able to get online and use the new Census to fill some holes in my current research.
I have been researching daily since 2003 when my father passed away. I have found information in census records, land records, wills, bibles, obituaries, newspaper articles, court records, etc., but have been patiently waiting for the 1940 census. I have ideas of where family members were, but need the verification to confirm my suspicions. Suspicions, yes it appears that my family is no different then any other. We had brothers marrying sisters, brothers divorcing one sister and marrying another, adopted children, lots of relocations, I have found half siblings I never knew about, marriages that were surpises and people in prison.
The census records help me build a timeline of where people were and are and possibly lead me to where they were inbetween.
Who do I need to find? Well there is Rudolph Schubnell my maternal grandfather who was married three different times and had a couple of families. Would like to know what happened to the middle wife. My father Donald Hilb while he will only be 13 in the 1940 census, I want to see the neighbors around him then. (He provided two of my half siblings I discovered after his death) I want to be able to track the neighbors as they story I was provided was dad and G were neighbors for a few years. My mother as there is confusion who she was actually residing with around this time. My list goes on like a roll of toilet paper.
Thanks to GeneaBloggers Thomas MacEntee for posting the information about the census and always keeping us informed.
P.S. Is it April yet?
Four Generations
Loretta, Don, Vicki with Andy, Grace and Clarence Hilb
Sunday, November 20, 2011
Friday, July 1, 2011
Rudolph marries Edith
1937 found Rudolph once again marrying. He married the grandmother I grew up knowing, Edith Gertrude Tryon.
Edith and Rudy had 4 kids; Richard in 1938, Noreen in 1942, Sharon in 1946 and Michael in 1957. In 1949 Edith, Rudy and all 5 kids moved to Phoenix. The story is Rudy was transferred for works purposes. He was an electrician with the union and jobs were more plentiful in Phoenix. This story was believed until
about 18 months ago. Now I have more questions and information to find.
October of 2009 I received an email from a gentleman looking for his birth parents. He had found his birth fathers family and unfortunately his father had passed away in 1984. He knew his mothers first name was Grace, born in Wacounda, Illinois September 12, 1928 and her family moved to Phoenix in early 1949. Well, imagine my surprise as this guy just described everything about my mother. The next morning we met as he resides 10 minutes from where I have lived for the past 14 years. There was no doubt in my mind when I walked into that restaurant that he was family. It was like my grandfather Rudy was looking at me. Of course being the genealogy researcher I am, I did confirm everything via several documents. Also my mothers reluctance to meet him really sealed the deal.
Tip #9: Be very open to finding almost everything and anything when your doing your research. Remember, our parents had a life before us and while we never want to think they had secrets, they certainly did! Okay, well my parents definitely did.
Where do we go from here? Come back soon...
Edith and Rudy had 4 kids; Richard in 1938, Noreen in 1942, Sharon in 1946 and Michael in 1957. In 1949 Edith, Rudy and all 5 kids moved to Phoenix. The story is Rudy was transferred for works purposes. He was an electrician with the union and jobs were more plentiful in Phoenix. This story was believed until
about 18 months ago. Now I have more questions and information to find.
October of 2009 I received an email from a gentleman looking for his birth parents. He had found his birth fathers family and unfortunately his father had passed away in 1984. He knew his mothers first name was Grace, born in Wacounda, Illinois September 12, 1928 and her family moved to Phoenix in early 1949. Well, imagine my surprise as this guy just described everything about my mother. The next morning we met as he resides 10 minutes from where I have lived for the past 14 years. There was no doubt in my mind when I walked into that restaurant that he was family. It was like my grandfather Rudy was looking at me. Of course being the genealogy researcher I am, I did confirm everything via several documents. Also my mothers reluctance to meet him really sealed the deal.
Tip #9: Be very open to finding almost everything and anything when your doing your research. Remember, our parents had a life before us and while we never want to think they had secrets, they certainly did! Okay, well my parents definitely did.
Where do we go from here? Come back soon...
Sunday, June 5, 2011
So what happened to Grace and Rudolph after Patsy's Death?
Rudolph had full custody of Grace at the time of Patsy's death. They resided in an apartment in Chicago and had a housekeeper Theresa.
Rudolph married Mary Kern of Joliet Illinois on July 2, 1932(per their marriage certificate). Rudolph was 26 and Mary was 18. The marriage took place in Chicago Illinois.
It is not clear of how they met or where they resided during the marriage. It could have been Chicago or it could have been Hammond Indiana where Rudolph filed for divorce.
There is an article in The Hammond Times March 22, 1937:
R. SCHUBNELL ASKS FOR DIVORCE FROM 2ND WIFE:
Rudolph Schubnell, 2855 Truman Avenue Hammond today filed divorce proceedings in Hammond Superior court against his wife Mary whom he married on July 21, 1932.
The couple separated on November 16, 1936, when according to the complaint Mrs. Schubnell left home. She was his second wife and is alleged in the bill to have scolded her husband because of an 8 year old child by the first marriage.
TIP #8: Watch those dates. The marriage certificate shows the date of marriage as July 2, 1932 and the newspaper shows July 21, 1932.
I have attempted to locate a copy of the divorce proceedings with no luck to date. Probably have to make a trip to Hammond and do the research myself.
I want to know a little bit more about the scolding Rudolph got about the 8 year old (my mother Grace). There are stories that my mother resided with Aunt Dorothea and Uncle Bud for several years while growing up. Could this have been during the time frame Rudolph was married to Mary and the scolding was because she found out about Grace? More research to go....
Note: Aunt Dorothea and Uncle Bud aka Dorothea and Bud Schwartzentraub. Bud was Rudolph's business partner for several years. We always considered them family.
Rudolph married Mary Kern of Joliet Illinois on July 2, 1932(per their marriage certificate). Rudolph was 26 and Mary was 18. The marriage took place in Chicago Illinois.
It is not clear of how they met or where they resided during the marriage. It could have been Chicago or it could have been Hammond Indiana where Rudolph filed for divorce.
There is an article in The Hammond Times March 22, 1937:
R. SCHUBNELL ASKS FOR DIVORCE FROM 2ND WIFE:
Rudolph Schubnell, 2855 Truman Avenue Hammond today filed divorce proceedings in Hammond Superior court against his wife Mary whom he married on July 21, 1932.
The couple separated on November 16, 1936, when according to the complaint Mrs. Schubnell left home. She was his second wife and is alleged in the bill to have scolded her husband because of an 8 year old child by the first marriage.
TIP #8: Watch those dates. The marriage certificate shows the date of marriage as July 2, 1932 and the newspaper shows July 21, 1932.
I have attempted to locate a copy of the divorce proceedings with no luck to date. Probably have to make a trip to Hammond and do the research myself.
I want to know a little bit more about the scolding Rudolph got about the 8 year old (my mother Grace). There are stories that my mother resided with Aunt Dorothea and Uncle Bud for several years while growing up. Could this have been during the time frame Rudolph was married to Mary and the scolding was because she found out about Grace? More research to go....
Note: Aunt Dorothea and Uncle Bud aka Dorothea and Bud Schwartzentraub. Bud was Rudolph's business partner for several years. We always considered them family.
Saturday, April 30, 2011
Arthur Rigney What happened to him?
So, I have to have as many of the pieces to a puzzle as I can get. I wrote to the archived records section of the state of Illinois and requested everything and anything they could tell me about Arthur and how he served his prison sentence.
Per the records I received:
Arthur was received into Joliet Prison on April 8,1933 with a sentence of 35 years for murder. He is described as:
Race: white
Age: 48
Hair: dark grey hair
Eyes: grey green
Height: 5'8 3/4"
Build: medium
Weight: 165
Education: 8th grade
Religion: Methodist
Released from prison: January 7, 1952.
So Arthur served 19 years of his 35 year sentence. Records show that January 7, 1952 would have been the earliest he could have been released.
No one knows for sure what happened to Arthur after his release. We do have his death certificate showing his date of death as February 27,1961 at the Maple Lawn Rest Home in Palmyra Missouri. Arthur's brother W C Rigney (who was a witness at trial) was the informant.
Am I done with research on Patsy and Arthur? No! I have a photo taken at a family reunion of Arthur's family and we believe it contains my grandmother Patsy and mother Grace as well. I just have to find a picture of Patsy to prove it.
So who do we work on next...
Per the records I received:
Arthur was received into Joliet Prison on April 8,1933 with a sentence of 35 years for murder. He is described as:
Race: white
Age: 48
Hair: dark grey hair
Eyes: grey green
Height: 5'8 3/4"
Build: medium
Weight: 165
Education: 8th grade
Religion: Methodist
Released from prison: January 7, 1952.
So Arthur served 19 years of his 35 year sentence. Records show that January 7, 1952 would have been the earliest he could have been released.
No one knows for sure what happened to Arthur after his release. We do have his death certificate showing his date of death as February 27,1961 at the Maple Lawn Rest Home in Palmyra Missouri. Arthur's brother W C Rigney (who was a witness at trial) was the informant.
Am I done with research on Patsy and Arthur? No! I have a photo taken at a family reunion of Arthur's family and we believe it contains my grandmother Patsy and mother Grace as well. I just have to find a picture of Patsy to prove it.
So who do we work on next...
Sunday, April 24, 2011
Rigney Gets 35 Years on Charge of Murder
Arthur's attorney sought to withdraw the guilty plea to murder and enter a plea of manslaughter. the judge denied the motion.
The state attorney did not seek the death penalty but requested a heavy sentence. The plaintiff attorney plead for a light sentence asking for the minimum term.
Judge Eldredge advised: "There are two things which excuses a person from killing another. One is in defense of his own life, family or property and the other insanity. There is nothing else which gives any person the right to take the life of a human being. Voluntary intoxication is no excuse for crime. That is the law the world over." He was sentenced to 35 years in the State Prison at Joliet Illinois. He started the sentence on April 5, 1933.
Palmer Byrne the attorney appointed to defend Arthur was then awarded $150 for his defense of Arthur.
WOW! Lots of information on what happened to Patsy! What happened to Arthur? See ya...
The state attorney did not seek the death penalty but requested a heavy sentence. The plaintiff attorney plead for a light sentence asking for the minimum term.
Judge Eldredge advised: "There are two things which excuses a person from killing another. One is in defense of his own life, family or property and the other insanity. There is nothing else which gives any person the right to take the life of a human being. Voluntary intoxication is no excuse for crime. That is the law the world over." He was sentenced to 35 years in the State Prison at Joliet Illinois. He started the sentence on April 5, 1933.
Palmer Byrne the attorney appointed to defend Arthur was then awarded $150 for his defense of Arthur.
WOW! Lots of information on what happened to Patsy! What happened to Arthur? See ya...
Thursday, April 21, 2011
Judge Hears Testimony to Fix Penalty
Arthur Rigney took the stand at 11:10 am on March 31, 1933. Through questions from his attorney he told the story of his life. He told of giving Patsy money and of alleged illicit relations with her. He testified about his wife and daughter in New York. He told of proposing marriage to Patsy.
He was born on a farm in Palmyra Missouri a part of a family of four boys and three girls. He spoke of residing in Hannibal with his wife, daughter and in laws and their move to Cicero New York. He left New York because his mother in law mistreated him.
He told he met Patsy a year ago January via an introduction by Earl Smith in Naplate. Patsy was residing at the same house but with the Webb family. Arthur saw her regularly. He told of taking Patsy to shows and dances and that after he broke his leg he recuperated at the Webb home with Patsy. He was in love with her when he started his three week stay there and more in love when he left.
He said on one or two occasions he talked with Patsy about marriage and once asked her if she would like to be his wife. She laughed and asked if he was married and he said yes and she told him he needed to get a divorce. He said he was giving Patsy money and she only asked for money on two occasions. Once was for $10 to buy a coat and another to loan Mrs. Webb $10. He said Patsy never bought a coat but bought someone else a present. He said Patsy was not running around with any man but him.
It is amazing the detail you can find in newspaper accounts. See ya soon....
He was born on a farm in Palmyra Missouri a part of a family of four boys and three girls. He spoke of residing in Hannibal with his wife, daughter and in laws and their move to Cicero New York. He left New York because his mother in law mistreated him.
He told he met Patsy a year ago January via an introduction by Earl Smith in Naplate. Patsy was residing at the same house but with the Webb family. Arthur saw her regularly. He told of taking Patsy to shows and dances and that after he broke his leg he recuperated at the Webb home with Patsy. He was in love with her when he started his three week stay there and more in love when he left.
He said on one or two occasions he talked with Patsy about marriage and once asked her if she would like to be his wife. She laughed and asked if he was married and he said yes and she told him he needed to get a divorce. He said he was giving Patsy money and she only asked for money on two occasions. Once was for $10 to buy a coat and another to loan Mrs. Webb $10. He said Patsy never bought a coat but bought someone else a present. He said Patsy was not running around with any man but him.
It is amazing the detail you can find in newspaper accounts. See ya soon....
Sunday, April 17, 2011
Rigney Pleads Guilty to Charge of Murder
TIP #7: By reading these older articles you will notice and learn about the justice system then and the major differences between then and now.
Arthur Rigney plead guilty to a murder charge before Judge Edgar Eldridge in the circuit court on March 27, 1933. The judge did not immediately sentence him but scheduled the next morning to hear evidence in the case.
Before accepting Arthur's plea the judge appointed Palmer Byrne as Arthur's attorney. The judge reminded Arthur that if he plead guilty the court was mandated to sentence him to a minimum of 14 years and possibly life imprisonment or the death penalty. Arthur confirmed knowledge and plead guilty.
Palmer Byrne advised that Arthur was going to take the stand and it would take 2 days to present evidence in this case.
Harley Patterson a co-worker testified that Arthur was drunk the night of the shooting. W O Rigney brother of Arthur testified about Arthur's unhappy married life. He alleged that the parents of Arthur's wife interfered in their life. He advised Arthur was a good provider. He said that shortly before the marriage Arthur advised his father he did not love the girl and did not want to marry. The girls mother and step-father owned allot of land around Hannibal Missouri and the girl insisted on going with Arthur. Shortly after they married Arthur started to build them their own house. Once the foundation was completed his mother in law told Arthur her daughter would never be allowed to reside there. The wife and mother often went out to shows together and Arthur would have to go out alone. When the family all moved to Syracuse New York, Arthur and his wife separated and Arthur returned to Hannibal and then to Ottawa. Many character witnesses were called and they advised Arthur never had been seen drunk before that night.
Come back for more...
Arthur Rigney plead guilty to a murder charge before Judge Edgar Eldridge in the circuit court on March 27, 1933. The judge did not immediately sentence him but scheduled the next morning to hear evidence in the case.
Before accepting Arthur's plea the judge appointed Palmer Byrne as Arthur's attorney. The judge reminded Arthur that if he plead guilty the court was mandated to sentence him to a minimum of 14 years and possibly life imprisonment or the death penalty. Arthur confirmed knowledge and plead guilty.
Palmer Byrne advised that Arthur was going to take the stand and it would take 2 days to present evidence in this case.
Harley Patterson a co-worker testified that Arthur was drunk the night of the shooting. W O Rigney brother of Arthur testified about Arthur's unhappy married life. He alleged that the parents of Arthur's wife interfered in their life. He advised Arthur was a good provider. He said that shortly before the marriage Arthur advised his father he did not love the girl and did not want to marry. The girls mother and step-father owned allot of land around Hannibal Missouri and the girl insisted on going with Arthur. Shortly after they married Arthur started to build them their own house. Once the foundation was completed his mother in law told Arthur her daughter would never be allowed to reside there. The wife and mother often went out to shows together and Arthur would have to go out alone. When the family all moved to Syracuse New York, Arthur and his wife separated and Arthur returned to Hannibal and then to Ottawa. Many character witnesses were called and they advised Arthur never had been seen drunk before that night.
Come back for more...
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