marriage - Frederick Skeels and Laura Elmendorf

[Erato]

I am looking for the marriage of Frederick J. Skeels and Laura A? Elmendorf, about 1880 to 1884, probably in New York, Pennsylvania or Illinois.  And also the death of Frederick which probably occurred before 1893.

[Lisa in California]

A bit early, but

Laura Elmendorf married Frederick J Sheels on 20 August 1876, Scranton PA.  St. Luke's Episcopal Church.
Looking at the image (on a pay site), it could be Skeels.

[Lisa in California]

It may not be the same man, but

1900 Harford, PA census
Frederick J Skeels, married 12 years to Julia
https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HT-631Q-6HH?mode=g&i=13&cc=1325221

[RJ137]

Frederick's parent born in  Connecticut (consistent in all censuses)

Frederick & Laura 1880 Census:  https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MWVP-F1Z

Daughter Zana : https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:243D-3DM

Laura & Zana 1900: https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MS7D-HPP

Laura & Zana 1905: https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:SPFW-PD7

=====

Frederick remarried in 1888.

1900 Census: https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M346-RHJ

1910 Census ( census notes 2nd marriage for Frederick) : https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MG7V-L3B

1920 Census: https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MNMB-Q51

Frederick dies in 1922 : https://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=44141705

[Erato]

That's them.  In 1900, Laura called herself a widow but that seems to have been a lie.  She also said she had had only one child.  I am getting the impression that Laura may have been a bit of a scammer. 

[Erato]

Is there any sign of Laura in Milwaukee from around 1884ish to 1888ish?  I can't find an online directory for those years.

[usaPetticrew]

Publication Title:    Chicago, Illinois, City Directory, 1884
Laura E Skeels wid. Frederick,  house 955 W. Lake

Publication Title:    Chicago, Illinois, City Directory, 1885
Laura E Skeels wid. Frederick J. house 801 W. Madison

Also saw this, but not sure if it's the same woman:
Name:    Miss Laura H Skeels
Residence Year:    1888
Street address:    bds 435 Washington boul
Residence Place:    Chicago, Illinois, USA
Publication Title:    Chicago, Illinois, City Directory, 1888

The database had Milwaukee directories, but no hits on her name.


In case you haven't seen this already:
https://books.google.com/books?id=e543AQAAIAAJ&pg=RA1-PA213
United States Congressional serial set, Issue 2915

[Erato]

Thanks.  I had seen that pension document.  It looks like Laura was just scraping by.  I think she was a grifter who hit the jackpot with C.H. Ware - $15,000 dollars was good money in 1893.  Just think, I'd be a millionaire today if gg-grandpa hadn't turned to drink, women and phony mining schemes [just kidding].

Thanks for checking Laura's whereabouts.  Since the Milwaukee Journal article I originally attached said, "he left his property to a woman formerly a resident of this city," I thought that Laura might have spent some time in Milwaukee but maybe she met Cyrus in Chicago.  I am guessing that Cyrus moved to Chicago after May 1886 which is when the woman who had figured in his contentious 1882 divorce died back in Hortonville, Wisconsin.  He didn't have much reason to stick around in Wisconsin since he had fallen out with all of his children during the prolonged and very acrimonious divorce proceedings.

At any rate, after he went to Chicago, it seems he started his misguided plunge into gold mining.  And I think that probably his children settled the contested will with Laura by accepting the mining stock because, not long after Cyrus's death, his son J.F. Ware [a lawyer and state politician] picked up and moved to Galveston and started trying to push a gold mining venture in Llano, Texas.  This ultimately proved to be unsuccessful, as far as I can tell.