Questions, Questions, and still more unanswered Questions!!
My previous efforts to obtain information from living relatives
proved fruitless. Everyone I wrote or spoke with knew that she
had existed, but that was the extent of their knowledge.
The thought crossed my mind, would I need to abandon this
voyage? NO! of course not, I was determined
to continue on this Journey of Discovery...I simply had to plot
a new "course."
A course that would ultimately sail me into calm waters and to
Grandma Julia.
This new course began by collecting my thoughts, searching my memory for clues. Recalling what my Mother had told me. Clues that would shead some light on the unknown. As a clue surfaced, I jotted it down. I knew that her name was Julia, a name that I also shared. She was married to Antonio da Silva Se, they, along with two of their children, had migrated from the Island of Madeira, to Lowell, Massachusetts in 1906. More memories were coming to me now. She was not alive when my parents married in 1915; Grandpa Antonio was left with four young children to raise when Grandma died; Grandma was only 30 when she died of complications arising from childbirth.
Before long, I realized I had a full page of clues, and much to my surprise, I knew a great deal about Grandma Julia. But still one very important question remained unanswered, how would these memories help find Grandma Julia?
I needed official records. Her birth certificate would help answer my questions regarding her parents, but how could I send for a copy of her birth certificate when I didn't know her full name or the date of her birth? I thought, since my parents were married in the United States, their marriage certificate would list the names of their parents. I was right...[Parents of the Bride] Antonio da Silva Se and Julia Augusta de Freitas. I now had a full name, but I still needed a date of birth. I would have to set this information aside for now, and go on to another clue.
Grandma Julia died in Lowell prior to 1915, the year of my parent's marriage at St. Anthony's Catholic Church. Most likely Grandma Julia had been buried from that church.
I decided to request a search of burial records from 1912 to June, 1915. My letter of inquiry was answered by the church's secretary, Alice Silva. "Unable to locate a church record." She went on to say that she had taken it upon herself to send for a copy of the Record of Death from the Lowell City Hall. With her request, she had enclosed her own personal check to cover the required fee.
I could hardly believe my eyes when I read what she had done. What a wonderful gesture by someone, I didn't even know, "at the time." Two years later, we would establish that Alice's husband, Joe, was my 2nd cousin.
Within days I received the Certificate of Record of Death. This very informative document listed Julia Silva, age 30; date of death, as February 28, 1914. It also confimed my memory of her cause of death. From this one document I now had the names of her parents, her residence, occupation, her birthplace and the birthplace of her parents.
I had not only sailed into calm waters, I could actually see land as I fixed my eyes on [Place of Burial]...St. Patrick's Cemetery, Lowell, Ma.,
I could hardly wait to write the next letter of inquiry. You guess it!!! St. Patrick's Cemetery. I was nearing the completion of this "voyage." The days seemed like months, waiting for a reply from St. Patrick's. At last, it arrived. I can still remember the emotions that ran through me as I read..."The records of Saint Patrick's Cemetery indicate that Julia Silva was buried on February 28, 1914, at the age of 30 years, in an area referred to as a "free lot." The area used for free lots in 1914 was designated end of yard 3, but the exact location of the grave is unknown."
"UNKNOWN" I had come this far, only to be told the exact location of the grave was "unknown." I kept re-reading the letter in hopes that I had mis-read it.
This Journey of Discovery had ended with "bitter-sweet" results. Once again my journey had taken me from the unknown to the known and to Grandma Julia.
Watch for the "pit falls" of researching ones ancestry. It is a known fact that our ancestors spoke very little if any English. As a result many of the English official government documents contain errors.
As an example, on Grandma Julia's Record of Death, the question, [Name of Father]...(asking for the name of HER father) was filled in with Antonio Silva. Antonio Silva was her husband, likewise, the area requesting [Maiden Name of Mother]...reflected Julia da Camara. One can only assume that one of Grandma's children, all at the time under the age of 12, helped to supply the vital information for this document. It is clear that they misunderstood what was being asked of them.
It was only after receiving a copy of Grandma's baptismal record, that I learned the true names of her parents, and of her date of birth. "Julia, que nasceo as vinte e quarto dias do mes de Novembro de mil oitocentos e oitenta e tres, filha, legitima, da Antonio da Camara e de Antonia Rosa de Freitas." This document also mentioned her "avos maternal" e "avos paternal." What a wonderful "find."...
Adeus Grandma Julia...