New Discoveries

You may remember that I blogged about this story in 2014. To my mind it was a lesson about not taking the family legends too seriously. A story had made its way through the family about a child born out of wedlock. One of those skeletons in the family closet. But it wasn't at all. Henry James "Harry" Tapply had an early marriage to Gertrude Haskins. He then went off to World War I. Gertrude had the baby and died five weeks later. The death cert. we finally located said "anemia and nephritis", but I felt there had to be more to the story.

Lately, I've been trolling the pages of Chronicling America (a free site) and newspapers.com for family obituaries. And sure enough, I found this short obituary for Gertrude. The interesting part to me was "after an illness of five weeks" and "leaves an infant daughter five weeks old". This means that Gertrude's death WAS a result of some trauma around the birth of baby Amy Eunice. (who became June Walley after her adoption by Bess Tapply and Sam Walley)

I've made a few other discoveries too. There was a nice obituary covering the life and career of Richard "Wink" Tapply and his wife Ruth. He went to art school at the Copley School in Boston. He also was loved and admired for his work in recreation services in New Hampshire.

There was another interesting obit for Kathleen Gabel, Donaldson Tapply's daughter. She served in the Navy, worked as a paralegal, managed a restaurant. And this is a whole branch of the family I knew nothing about.

I really enjoyed reading the obit for Sharon Tapply Foster, Philip's daughter and Kevin's sister. She was apparently a bit of a horse whisperer. She rode and trained horses after her retirement. I wish we had gotten to know one another.

Then there is the remembrance that was in the Globe for William G Tapply. He came from the Thomas J Tapply branch of the family. (Charles's older brother) You may have read one of his mystery books from the Brady Coyne series. They are some of my favorites. I still wonder why the branches of the original Tapply family didn't stay in touch. We have so many Tapply cousins out there.

On the English side there is the obit for another Richard Tapply. This Richard lived in Kent, England, where the Tapplys hale from. He spent 54 years running the Wateringbury Brewery. He got quite a remembrance in the Kent and Sussex Courier.

On the other side of my family, an obit dated 1917 put to rest a long mystery and "brick wall" in my research on my father's family. My grandfather's sister Honora or "Nora" Fitzgerald died at only 43. She was a question mark on my tree for a long time. It appears she had heart

trouble.

Another question mark was the exact death date for Lotta Smith from the Rogers side of my family. A friendly person with access to Newsbank helped me find her obit in the 1966 Worcester Telegram. With a little math I was able to get the date from the article and read a nice review of her career as a singer and soloist. 

The other benefit of searching the newspaper archives is that if you do an open search, you get the occasional family story.

This is a Christmas story from 1947 in the  Rochester, New York paper featuring Deborah Levin and her mother Helen Tapply Flaherty Levin. Helen was Roberta's sister and Nell Tapply's daughter.

This story is from the 1939 Fitchburg Sentinel. Apparently Roberta Flaherty (Also Nell's daughter) was working there as a clerk. I wouldn't be surprised to learn that Roberta herself had a hand in composing the article. She was very witty and quite the writer in high school. A cute article.

If you are looking for good or interesting family stories, old newspaper article are the ticket.

Some require a subscription, but others are available through your public library.  Certainly, it's worth giving it a try.

School Days

Edgerly School Second Grade- 1931

My mom came from a mid-sized factory town in central Massachusetts. Fitchburg was almost past its best days even when she was a girl. But a university was established there: Fitchburg Normal School, later Fitchburg Teachers College and now Fitchburg State College. The schools around the university became "lab" schools for the trainees. This is where my mom and her cousins went to school in the lower grades.

From my mom's house on Garfield Street it wouldn't have been a terrible walk, but very cold and treacherous in the winter. My mom recalls wearing layers of clothes against the cold winds whipping down North Street.  Brrr...

The second grade picture above shows my mom- second row far right grinning at the camera. That might be her friend Pauline Morency (Punky) right next to her. On the first row with the very straight bangs and shiny dark hair is Jane Tapply. We think the little girl with the white collar to Jane's left would be Ferne Tapply. The three cousins were in school together all 12 grades.

Edgerly School Grade 6- abt 1935

Here's some of the same group again in 6th grade. This time, my mom is the one at the end of the arrow. Second row, second from right. I can't be sure, but I think Jane is right in front of her. Jane was always very dark-haired and petite. We believe Ferne is to the far left on the front row with her hands clasped.

School is back in session. It's picture day this month in a lot of schools. It made me dig out these pictures and take another look.

Women Who Paved the Way

Cora Elizabeth

This is Cora Elizabeth Rogers, née Smith. She was my great-grandmother. I am reminded of how the women in our past still shape our lives. By the 1920's she would be married to my great-grandfather Edward. Her son Harry and daughter Dorothy are adults. She was to be a force in my mother's life. In my mother's young life, Edward and Cora lived right next door to my grandparents on Garfield St.. But in the 1920's they lived on Charles St..

146 Charles St.

Edward is listed at the Superintendent of the City Sewer Dept. in the 1920 census. He would rise to become Superintendent of Streets. 

I was browsing the newspaper archives for the Fitchburg Sentinel and I found this story. It is the registration roll for the 1922 elections. The vote for women had been ratified in August of 1920. Interestingly, there are no Tapply women on the list. But there is my great-grandmother.

Voting was important enough to Cora for her to be on the first list of voters in Fitchburg. She is an example to us all.

Then and Now

 This is the famous Quincy Market in Boston. On the left in 1904 and a current photo from Mr. Google. Long ago the street was closed off and made a walking street, but I remember going inside as a child and seeing whole sides of beef, fresh fish and vegetables for sale.

A butcher at Quincy-Boston Public Library

According to Boston Magazine, in 1823 Josiah Quincy, then mayor, didn't like the view from his office. He hired an architect, and the Greek Revival temple of food was born.  It opened in 1826.

A parade through Quincy Market- 1876

It became a center of interest in the city, as this parade picture show. And here is the earliest image I was able to find. A lantern slide from some time before 1868. Mostly what you see here is Faneuil Hall. (The correct name for the whole area is Faneuil Hall Marketplace)

Does this have any direct connection to my family? No. But this was a favorite spot to go as a child, even before it became the land of  Urban Outfitters, Coach and Starbucks. I guess I wasn't the only one. This made me laugh and it's appropriate to the season.

A lady picking out her Thanksgiving turkey- 1952