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Saturday, March 9, 2019

BACHELOR UNCLE?




My Great Uncle, Thomas Coyle b circa 1904 NY City
Son of Michael Coyle & Mary Josephine Mullane
Was he a bachelor?


I'd like to know if Thomas Coyle was a BACHELOR UNCLE.
 I do'nt know if Thomas married or had children. I do'nt know what happened to him.  

Michael Coyle & Mary Josephine Mullane, my great grandparents, seven children: five girls and two boys. I know quite a bit about the girls but the boys are a different story. The first boy, Francis Patrick Coyle was born July 1898 and died 7 December 1899 New York City. It took some time to discover his death date and burial location & I'm happy to have those dates for him now. Thomas Coyle was born circa 1904. Michael Coyle was a baker. In 1920 the family was together in Manhattan. Thomas, 16, was a helper in an electric shop.


Soon, the family fell apart. Michael's bakery failed due to financial problems and Michale left his family. He was not seen again. I don't know what happened to him.  In 1927 Mary Jo died. The oldest daughter, Helen F. (Coyle) Gardner, [my maternal grandmother] was married. The other sisters lived together. But where was Thomas? 

Thomas, Bottom center

At some point he was in the Navy. 
The proof is in the photos I have of him, labeled by his sisters.


Thomas, center


I have not been able to find him in military records. I looked for him in World War I in New York State. He may have lied about his age to enlist. He may had gone to nearby New Jersey or over to Connecticut, where his grandparents lived, to enlist. I have found no military records as proof of his service.


There are also family stories about him "running with a bad crowd' and being in trouble with the law. No proof there either.


There is a 1930 US Census for Manhattan that gives Thomas Coyle, b c 1904 with a wife, Veronica and a baby, Helen [Helen was my grandmother's name. his oldest sister].  He was working at 'Machine Repair' in a 'Bake Shop.' He probably helped his father in the bake shop when he was a boy. I'd like to believe this happy, married Thomas Coyle is our Thomas Coyle. Are those coincidences proof? 

He gave a birthday card to his sister, Kathleen, in 1930. I have the card. That is the last he was seen by his sisters. 

Maybe he was a BACHELOR UNCLE but I am not certain.




Related Posts:

Amy Johnson Crow challenges us to remember our ancestors and their families through this task: 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks. I completed ’52 Ancestors’ in 2014 & here I go again. This post is in response to that challenge. The topic for this week is BACHELOR UNCLE.





2 comments:

  1. He surely was a cute kid. What did the sash on his sleeve represent?

    ReplyDelete
  2. Any possibility of finding him in NYC directories? A long shot, I know.

    ReplyDelete

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