More Articles from the Mannion Family

This is Mary Killen Mannion, wife of William H. Mannion. William was the son of Patrick Mannion and Catherine Ratican. From the Dixon Evening Telegraph 26 Dec 1946.

This is Mary Mannion Kenney, wife of Patrick Kenny. She was the daughter of Michael Mannion and Catherine Mitchell.  From the Sterling Standard 19 Jun 1900.

An article of Remembrance for Michael E Miannion, son of Michael Mannion and Catherine Mitchell. From the Sterling Standard 30 Sep 1897

Bernard Mannion, son of Michael Mannion and Catherine Mitchell. From the Sterling Standard 13 Nov 1906.

Minnie was the daughter of John Mannion and Margaret Igo. Her father was the brother of Patrick and Michael Mannion. From the Sterling Standard 18 Oct 1904.

Mitchells: From The Top and The Confusion of the Two Catherine Mannions

Continuing on with the Mitchell family, I guess I better start at the beginning - with the immigration to the U.S.
Now, normally, one would have an "immigrant ancestor" - this being a direct ancestor (grandfather/grandmother). And, maybe, a brother or sister , spouse and children, or some other relation would immigrate with the direct ancestor. In the case of the Mitchell family, the parents remained in Ireland, and the children (from what I can tell - all of them) moved to the United States, each coming at various times starting about the mid-1800s. 
The research into the Mitchell family began with a basic descendant chart passed on to me by my brother from one of his Mitchell cousin researchers. If I recall correctly, it was very basic - with few dates/places, and no source citations. So began the research for facts and provenance. 
It began with the Mitchell Patriarch and Matriarch - Bernard ( sometimes I found researchers who labeled him with the nickname of "Beck") Mitchell and Bridget/Jennie Mullranel. Now, I have a probelm with Bridget/Jennie as I have not been able to find anything on that name, but more about that later. 
Bernard and Bridget/Jennie had nine known children - all who immigrated to the United States although daughter, Bridget, is somewhat sketchy still. The children were: Catherine, Mary, Michael, Bartholomew, Bridget, James, Patrick, Margaret and Bernard.
I will start with Catherine (sometimes Katherine in the records), and this is where the confusion of the two Catherine's come in. 
Catherine Mitchell, daughter of Bernard and Bridget/Jennie, married a man named Mannion and settled in Whiteside County in Illinois. Okay, so many of the Mitchell children of Bernard and Bridget/Jennie settled in Whiteside, but, for now, I'm just talking about Catherine. 
A general search into the Federal Census records for Whiteside County would first reveal a Patrick Mannion with wife, Catherine, and their children. Most people would look at Catherine, her approximate birth year and place being correct, and say "I've found her". However, a little more research, particularly into the Illinois Death Records, reveal that this Catherine, married to Patrick Mannion, had the maiden name of Ratican....and records her father as Thomas Ratican. 
So, where is Catherine/Katherine Mitchell Mannion? And to whom was she married to?  
A little research into the Mannion family is in order here. And, on a side note, it is often beneficial in researching to delve into marriage-related branches. You'd be surprised at how often siblings from one family married siblings from another family. But what happened with the Mannion family is that two brothers - Patrick and Michael - immigrated to the U.S. and both brothers married women named Catherine. Patrick married Catherine Ratican and Michael married Catherine Mitchell. Be aware that there are still many online trees that have Catherine Mitchell married to Patrick and not Michael, and just a few that have the correction applied to them. I figure, eventually, everyone will be sorted out. 
So, we now have Catherine Mitchell married to Michael Mannion. and Catherine Ratican married to Michael's brother, Patrick. I'm now going to throw a wrench in the pile and add another Catherine - the mother of Patrick and Michael.  
The parents of Patrick and Michael were Edward Mannion and Catherine Mulrans (some have Mullranel or Mulrennen. Catherine's findagrave listing has it as Mulrans). Other siblings of Patrick and Michael are Margaret, Bridget and John. It has been said by other researchers that Patrick and Michael sent for their mother and siblings after arriving in the States. Either way, eventually, the whole family ended up in Illinois.
Catherine Mitchell Mannion died in 1897. She and Michael had 4 children - Mary, Margaret, Bernard and Michael. 
Whereas, CatherineRatican Mannion died in 1924. She and Patrick had 9 children - Catherine, John, Edward, Mary Ann, Michael, William, Ella, Winifred, and Bridget. 
Now, even more confusing, is the fact that Catherine Mulrans Mannion (mother of Patrick, Michael, Margaret, Bridget, and John, died in 1897. So, a mental note must be made not to confuse the deaths of Catherine Mitchell Mannion and her mother-in-law, Catherine Mulrans Mannion.
So, began my research into the Mitchell clan, which, by the way, with every generation, had confusing family connections such as with the Mannions!
Also, I did find the marriage record for Michael and Catherine in Nashua, New Hampshire. Catherine records her parents names as Bernard and Jane Mitchell.

The only photo that I have found for the Mannion family is Bridget Mannion, sister of Patrick and Michael, daughter of Edward Mannion and Catherine Mulrans. Photo courtesty of the Kealaiki Family Tree on Ancestry.com.

These two articles on the death of Catherine/Katherine Mannion is Catherine Mulran Mannion, widow of Edward Mannion and mother to Patrick (married to Catherine Ratican), Michael (married to Catherine Mitchell), Margaret (married to James Gaffey), Bridget (married to Cornelius aka Con Regan), and John Mannion (married to Margaret aka Madge Igo). 

The marriage record of Michael Mannion and Catherine Mitchell in Nashua, New Hampshire. Notice the names of Catherine's parents.

We Interrupt The Mitchells for a Word from the Norgren Branch

I will get back to the Mitchell branch soon (I am doing a little research before continuing), but I just wanted to file a report on an update for the Norgren Branch (Specifically - Maria Eriksdotter Norgren):
"This is Carol reporting from the Nav Station on s/v Moonlight Sue. 
Yesterday afternoon - at approximately 4:10 pm (or so) - I decided to check out the new databases on Ancestry.com that were shared by familysearch.com in a new agreement between the two websites. Within these new databases was one for Norway Burials. Oooooo....I love this. 
See, the two websites have two totally different criteria for searching when entering ancestor information. So, I entered various surnames for my Norwegian branch - really not expecting anything new as I "thought" I had covered the database extensively on familysearch. 
When I previewed the hits for Norgren, to my surprise, there was the name - Maria Norgren. 
Here is the transcribed record that I found:

Name: Maria Norgren

Gender: Female

Marital status: Widowed
Death Place: Oslo, Norway
Burial Date: 20 jun 1896
Burial Place: Sagene/Uranienborg/etc./, Oslo, Norway
FHL Film Number: 1283270
Reference ID: bk 5 p 147 n 36

Could this actually be our Maria? The Maria we 

(myself, my cousin in Norway and my cousin in Utah)

spent so many months searching for a death record? 

The Maria who sent a letter to her daughter in Utah so

many years ago, than no one heard from her again?

I contacted my cousin in Norway via FB and sent the 

above info to get her opinion on it. Unfortunately, I 

disturbed her dinner, but she was so excited that my 

imagination ran wild and I could picture her eating her

dinner at record pace so that she could rush to her 

computer and begin her search for the actual records.

I did a little searching, but the time came for my late 

afternoon sundowners on deck and dinner 

preparations right afterwards, so I had to wait for 

later in the evening to catch up with the search.

By the time I got back, she had found the death 

record - and it was our Maria!

I believe we may have caused the Earth's axis to go 

awry as we bounced up and down in glee over the 

discovery, because she not only found her death

record, but she also found her in the 1875 and 1885

Norway Census records.

A snip from the record. Maria passed away 16 Jun 1896 in Fredrikstad. This record has her maiden name and her birth year - two facts that confirm she is our Maria!

Now, back to our regularly scheduled Mitchell blog post - which will arrive as soon as I get the info ready.

I ben

Update and Correction from Previous Mitchell Post

I decided to look for that article of Bart Mitchell giving blood for his ill sister. I have a sub for Newspaper.com and did a general search -actually finding the article 15 minutes into the search. The sister in question was not Jennie, but Winifred who had married William Baumer (more on them in a future post). 
So, here is the article from the Sioux County Index dated 03 Feb 1922. 

A quick note here: The daughter mentioned at the end of the article was not Winifred and William's only child. I will talk more on the family in an upcoming post.

The Mitchell Branch

I have 4 older brothers whose father was Welch James Mitchell, also known as Rocky.

Rocky was born in Iowa to Bartholomew James Mitchell and Ellen Regina Welch. He had 4 siblings - Mary, Bart, Rita and Betty Lou. I have never met any of them. Even though Mom never thought to much of Rocky, his brother, or his father (and I don't ever recall her making mention of any of Rocky's sisters), she did remember Rocky's mother and spoke fondly of her. 

I don't know much about Rocky. I know he re-married, but I do not know to whom. My younger Mitchell brother was working in real estate with Rocky and his brother years ago, so he may know the name of his father's wife and if Rocky had any more children, but I never asked him, so I do not know.

Rocky's brother, Bart,  had married and had at least one child. His sister, Mary Helen, married and had at least 5 children. His sister, Rita Ann, also was married, but I do not have any children listed for her.  His younger sister, Betty Lou, was married and had at least one child.

His father, Bartholomew James Mitchell, had been born in Iowa to Bartholomew Mitchell and Mary Gaffey. His mother, Ellen, was also born in Iowa to James Welch and Mary Anne Carroll.

The elder Bartholomew had eight siblings - Jennie, Kate, Mary Ann, Bernard, Margaret, Elizabeth, Winifred, and Agnes. Ellen, on the other hand, only had four siblings - Bridget, James, Marie and Katherine.

Bartholomew (who was known as Bartley) and Mary both immigrated from Ireland. Bartley arriving in 1864, and Mary arriving either in 1863 or 1864. They married in Sterling, Illinois, residing in Whiteside County before moving to Crawford County in Iowa. 
There is some dispute on Bartley's sister, Jennie. I recall reading an article online about Jennie and her husband, Emil Krueger, moving to Nebraska with their children. The article stated that Jennie fell ill and doctor's believed a blood transfusion would save her life, but no one was compatible, including a nephew who was present at the time and whose last name was Hickey.  Jennie's brother, Bart, was on his way to the hospital to give his blood to help his sister, but she had died before he could arrive to save her. 
Now, the dispute on Jennie stems from an obituary article from Vail in 1893 of a young married woman whose name was given as Mrs. Emil Kruger. I don't believe that this was Jennie Mitchell doe to the article I had read several years ago. So, I will post what I have and what I believe is truthful until other facts become available to disprove it.
Jennie married Emil Krueger  and they had  at least 5 children - Louie, John, Ella, Bartley, and Emily.  The family appears in the 1900 Federal Census in Denison, Iowa. Jennie must have been "fragile" even at that time as they have a 20 year old German female servant living with them.  There is evidence from this Census that Emil could have been previously married and that some of the children reported in this census were from that marriage. Saint Anne Cemetery listings on findagrave.com  does have Emil, Jennie and a Johanna, reported to be the first wife of Emil. Johanna died in 1893 (the same year for the woman from the obituary article).  The listings for Emil and Jennie report that Emil died in 1906, and Jennie in 1952. I would surmise that Louis, John and Ella were from Emil's marriage to Johanna. Bartley and Emily were Jennie's natural children with Emil. There is also a possiblity of a third child - Carl. He appears as a son in the 1910 Federal Census with Jennie in Omaha. By this time she is widowed with her children Bart, Emily and Carl living with her along with step-children Lin (Louis), John and Ella. 
Jennie is still in Omaha in the 1920 Census. Living with her are her children, Bart, Emily and Charles F (who was recorded as Carl in the 1910 Census). Also livng in her home are 4 boarders - Eva Tibbets, Laveena Keenan, Maria Mitchell and Josephine Green. It is unknown whether Maria is a relation of Jennie.
Jennie still resides in Omaha in the 1930 Census, but now she has only boarders living with her. Besides Josephine (who still lives in the residence with her), Jennie now has Gladys Sipe, Roy Mitchell, Cliffton Hegglund, Arthur Hendricks, and Robert Erlich as lodgers. Again, as it was with Maria, it is unknown if Roy was any relation to Jennie.
The 1940 Census has Jennie in Omaha once again with her son, Bart, residing with her. Ancestry.com has transcribed her name in error with that being Janice instead of Jennie. 
I believe Jennie died in Omaha (per that article I had read) and her remains were transported back to Vail to be buried in the Saint Anne Cemetery.
I will continue more on the siblings of Bartley in my next post.

This is a transcription of the obituary that some researchers mistake for Jennie, but is actually Emil's first wife, Johanna:


  Kruger, Mrs. Emil 1893
Denison Review 12-13-1893 - Vail Observer

Mrs. Emil Kruger, Tuesday morning, Dec. 5, 1893, at her 

residence in Vail, of lung fever. Mrs. Kruger had been sick 

only about two weeks and on Saturday last seemed so 

much better that it was though there was no doubt of 

her speedy recovery. But the terrible disease had fastened 

its fangs with too sure a grip and on Tuesday morning at 

about 6 o'clock she passed away sincerely lamented by all 

who knew her.

Three children, the eldest but seven years 

of age, the youngest one and a half years,

 are left motherless by this most distressing 

blow. The light of a happy household has 

been suddenly extinguished. The 

enjoyment 

of the presence and the brighter prospects 

of the future have been alike destroyed and 

in their stead reigns the gloom of 

bereavement, the darkness of grief. The 

sorrowing husband, loved, honored and 

respected by his fellow men has, in this 

hour of greatest trial, the heartfelt sympathy 

of all

This is Ellen Welch Mitchell (mother of Rocky) with some of her grandchildren.(I do not know which grandchildren).

Rocky with one of my brothers. I only have a few photo's with Rocky in them.

E

R

Hilmar Eugen Bjerkmann

Hilmar Eugen Bjerkmann (my grandfather) was the 5th son, and the 9th and last child of Andreas and Gustava.
We know he worked at Spigerverk, for a time, along with his father and brother. 
In 1912, he accompanied his sister, Nora, and her children to the U.S. Nora's husband, Harald, had arrived in 1909 and settled in Waukegan, Illinois. Harald sponsored and paid for passage for all of them.
Some facts gleaned from the passenger list of the Franconia - Hilmar arrived with $2.00 in his pocket (Nora reported no money, but her daughter, Esther, had $5.00). Hilmar reported his occupation as painter and his next-of-kin contact was his mother, Gustava (Nora reported her sister-in-law, Davida, as her next-of-kin).  Hilmar's physical description was 5'6" with brown hair and gray eyes (Nora reported herself as brown hair and blue eyes and her children were all blonde hair and blue eyes). All reported their health and physical condition as good; and all reported their destination as Harald's residence in Waukegan (naturally). 
Hilmar's finacee, Ragnhild, would arrive seven months later, her passage being paid for by Harald, mistakenly recorded as her Uncle rather than her (future) brother-in-law. She recorded her next-of-kin as her father, Herman, and listed her physical description as brown hair and brown eyes; in good health, and with $25.00 in her possession. Her destination also being Harald's residence in Waukegan.
Hilmar and Ragnhild (now known as Gene and Emily) married a month after Emily's arrival in the U.S. The following year, the first of their four children was born - Rollie. Ivan would follow two years later; and two years after Ivan, Earl was born. Ester, their only daughter, would arrive about 2 years and 4 months after Earl.
Gene and Emily would raise their family in Waukegan and Lake Forest, suburbs in the Chicago area. Gene would also build a house there. He joined the Swedish Glee Club, traveling around with the club and performing at various functions. Gene was a painter by trade, but there was another occupation that very few knew about at the time  - an agent in the Secret Service.
The extent of his duties in the Secret Service are not fully known, but Mom used to tell the story of vacations with other families at Turtle Lake in Wisconsin. She talked about how wonderful those vacations were, only to discover years later that the purpose of them was actually part of Grandpa's job in the Secret Service. You see, while families of the Secret Service vacationed on one side of the lake, Organized Crime families vacationed on the other side of the lake. 
I have seen Grandpa's Secret Service I.D. badge, but I'm not sure where it is now. While Mom told me she gave it to my brother, my brother said he doesn't have it. It's one item that I'd really like to find and scan. It was such a cool badge.
Tragedy did strike the family when their son, Earl, died in a car crash in Kenosha, Wisconsin. I will blog about Earl next.
Shortly after Earl's passing, Gene and Emily moved to Southern California. Their daughter, Ester, was living there at the time, so I imagine this played a role in the move.
Their son, Rollie, stayed in Illinois. He was married with children of his own. Ivan, also married and also living in Illinois, would later move his family to Southern California, too. Emily's sister, Judith, and her family would move to Southern California after their arrival from Norway.
Nora and her family would move to Florida.
Gene passed away in 1953. Emily passed away in 1974. They are buried together at Mt. Hope Cemetery in San Diego.

This is Eva. Mom said she arrived from Sweden and lived with Grandpa and Grandma to help take care of their children. She also said that Eve was like a sister to her and that she thought she was a member of the family from the "old country". I am still trying to find out who she was, what her full name was, and what happened to her.

The Bjrokman family. Grandma (holding Mom), Rollie, Grandpa, Ivan, and Eva (holding Earl).

Mom kept this photograph of her father on her dresser for as long as I can remember.

Gene Bjorkman. This photograph was in his Memorial Card. 

The Hilmar Bjorkman Family

Gene, Emily, Rollie, Irene, Beverly, Ivan, Millie, Earl, Esther, and Welch (Rocky)

Ge

The Swedish Glee Club. Grandpa is in the middle row, second from the right.

The house Grandpa built on N. Butrick. It is still there.

The Bjorkman Children at Turtle Lake.

Peder Hilmar Bjerkmann

Peder was the 4th son and 8th child of Andreas and Gustava. Even though Grandma's scrapbook had no photographs of him, I had known about him for some years, having come across him in the transcribed records of Norway on familysearch.  I only knew his name and birth date - and my brother had told me he died when he was in his teens.
When I connected with my cousin in Norway, she had told me that Peder died of tuberculosis when he was 16 years old - and she sent a photograph of him. I was in awe of this photograph. It was the most haunting photograph I had ever seen - and brought such a sadness to me. 
The photograph was taken shortly before Uncle Peder died; and looking at the picture right now - Gr. Grandpa Andreas looking stoic with a clenched fist; Gr. Grandma Gustava in her attempt to be brave, but the blank stare in her face speaks volumes of her sadness; and Peder, looking frail and weak, with the hopelessness reflecting in his eyes - the sorrow just emanates from this photograph.

I often wondered why there were no photo's of Peder in Grandma's scrapbook. I can understand - and, maybe, surmise - the reason for none of Karl and Olga. They were so much older than Grandpa that he may not have known them all that well (and Karl supposedly left for the U.S. in the year before Grandpa was born). I can understand why the two baby Bredine's were not in the scrapbook. They died so young and photography was probably almost non-existent for most people. There were pictures of Ivan, Hjalmar and Nora - but no Peder. Was it such a painful memory to Grandpa to even have a photograph of his brother?