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Ireland (Historical Counties) => Ireland => Roscommon => Topic started by: gava44 on Monday 27 February 12 23:03 GMT (UK)
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My Grandfather Thomas Richard was adopted at age 12 or 13 from an orphanage in Chicago (St Josephs, 35th street) Illinois in 1895, he kept his birth name of Hopkins. He believed that he may have had a sister who visited him in the orphanage. He was a half orphan, father living mother dead. His father was thought to be a streetcar operator who at some point died on the job. His mother was thought to have died during his childbirth. He didn't get dropped off at the orphanage until he was six years old. Recent DNA testing places our Hopkins line from Roscommon.
My Grandfather believed he was Irish, now we know he was and that we are. We believe that he was born in 1883 in Illinois. My profile picture is Thomas.
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Welcome to Rootschat. In order to find out details of your Irish ancestors/relatives you need to find the family in U.S. records to get information such as father's name, mother's name, etc.
Have you tried searching the Hopkins in Chicago yet?
Any way to see if there are records from where Thomas was placed in care?
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The family research has gone on for many years, no records exist, or we have not found them yet. It is difficult as we do not even know his birth date for certain. We are calculating his birth month and year from the 1900 census (the first census that we find him in with his new adoptive family. That census list him as 12 years old born in Illinois in May, his parents both born in Ireland. We have a letter and a copy of the hand written log book from the orphanage, that and the census makes us believe that he was born in May of 1883. We are unable to find earlier records that match the information that we have. I am currently researching a Hopkins family in the LaSalle County Illinois area from Galway that lived near my Grandfather during this time. We are researching the Irish Catholic of Lasalle County Illinois. There are Whites, Egans, Flanagans, Finnigans, Moores, Hogans, Healys........and Hopkins. When you find one of these Irish families, you will find another. One day I will find a connection, however just found your site and thought I would post my mystery.
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... and one never knows where the next lead will turn up. This picutre is a good example of our Hopkins family traits as well.
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Hello,
There is a probable mistake in your information- you say Thomas is 12 yrs in 1900 census but born in 1883 :-\ Presumably he is 17 yrs or so in 1900?
It's sad that the orphanage record doesn't list his parents' names.
I don't know much about US records but maybe there is a death record around the time of Thomas' birth which could be investigated?
Are there any baptisms - perhaps siblings? Was he born in Chicago?
Family Search has various records with Hopkins families in Illinois who were Irish. Scrutiny of those may help.
regards
heywood
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Thomas was born in 1883.
He was orphaned in 1889.
He was removed from the orphanage in 1895.
The 1900 Illinois Federal Census has him born in Illinois.
Both his parents are born in Ireland.
My DNA matches are near Castlebar/Crossmolina and Swineford in Co Mayo
and
Baghadreen and Boyle in Co Roscommon.
All four matches are Hopkins.
Each varies in mutation distance.
The 2 in Co Mayo and I have done further testing to conclusively prove a common father in the distant past. We have markers that may well prove to be private to our family.
We hope more Hopkins will get on board with DNA testing.
One Hopkins of Glamorgan Wales matched a Hopkins from Co Wicklow in Ireland and a Hopkins near Glasgow. They are all R1a and match each other perfectly. Further testing is underway.
I'm R1b.
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Was Thomas alive as of 1917/1918 and 1942? If he was and he wasn't already in the military, then he would likely have been required to complete WWI and WWII draft registration cards. They are available on www.familysearch.org and often give a date and place of birth. I don't see a Thomas Hopkins with a May 1883 birth date, but it's not uncomon for birth dates to be off by a year or so. If he was still around then, it might be worth looking under his adoptive parents' names.
If there's any information on him beyond the 1900 census, it may help to find some additional clues.
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Hello,
Is your Thomas the one who is an adopted son with Peter White in 1900. That one is 13 yrs and born 1887 so perhaps not. :-\
Who removed him from the orphanage - do you have any records?
regards
heywood
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Yes, you have the right family.
He was in the family of Mike and Pete White.
He's in the 1900 Illinois Federal Census.
If you look at the original and not the typed version of the census, they read differently.
There are 4 Thomas Hopkins born in Illinois around 1900.
3 after 1900, 1 born 1882.
There is another born 1886/87, but this would be a real stretch. He was 6 years old when he entered the orphanage in 1889.
There are two death certificates for women, 1 in 1883 and 1 in 1889.
The one in 1889 is a Cathrine Hopkins. She was born in Co. Roscommon.
If memory serves me correctly, they attended St. Jarleth's, in Chicago.
I have Thomas' draft card, marriage record, death certificate.
He died in 1955. He celebrated his birthday as January as that was when he was taken from the orphanage and his life began.
I have correspondence between the orphanage and my dad, regarding Thomas' records.
I called and wrote the orphanage many times before they closed.
I've been in contact with the archives of the records, since the institution officially closed.
He never took the name White, legally.
His name is all his parent's left him.
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I was looking here (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.3.1/TH-267-11768-173239-45?cc=1325221&wc=MMPJ-BW4:n1235213707).
It certainly looks like 13 yrs and born 1887 to me :-\
Could Thomas have been illegitimate? Did he ever have contact with a father or siblings later?
The Catharine Hopkins born Roscommon who died in 1889 was 55 yrs.
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Do you know if he ever had a Social Security number?
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Hello again Patrick,
It may prove a blind alley but have you eliminated the possibility of a relationship existing between Thomas and the White family prior to the adoption. Peter White appears to have arrived in the US in 1859 so there are possible references in subsequent census. Could Thomas mother be a sister of Peter and Michael.
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I had wondered that Padraig also.
Are there any further clues in the correspondence from the orphanage.
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Thomas was brought to the orphanage by his father, after his mother passed away.
This information was verified to two outside sources, namely from the orphanage.
His name is written in the official ledger as Thomas Hopkins.
My dad spoke to a nun who was present when Thomas was brought into the room by his father.
Thomas vaguely remembers visitors in the early days at the home.
If he were illegitimate, he would have borne his mother's name and not his father's name.
If he were an infant, he would have been in another place until he was older.
Yes, 49 is old to be having children, but it is possible. Unlikely, sure, but possible.
I think I have an aunt who gave birth at 52. Surprised everyone.
What struck me about the death certificate was, the way they spelled her name and where Cathrine's birthplace was, Co. Roscommon. Usually, they list Ireland, as birthplace.
I've also never heard of hand cancer being a cause of death.
When I ran my dna, not knowing if I would match any Hopkins, in any of the 32 counties in Ireland, or anywhere else in the world for that matter. (I closed no doors until evidence led in another direction). My closest YDNA matches are in Co Mayo and Roscommon.
I have common European markers, R1b, but don't come close to matching any European Hopkins, or anyone else by any other surname. I match 4 Hopkins in the galtech area of Ireland.
The one Hopkins match, with the greatest distance from me genetically, had done some extensive testing. I too, tested deeper and more precisely. We match. We share a common dad in the distant past, (500-5000 years ago). Yet, we are both Hopkins today !
This has people scratching their heads.
Hope this helps.
I've been researching this for more than a few days. :)
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Yes, Thomas had a social security number.
In regards to a prior connection with the White family, that is what I'm wondering about.
I can't find one, yet.
For whatever reason, he declined their offer of taking their name at 21 years of age.
The archivist at the Archdiocese of Chicago suspects there may have been a connection between the families, but none can be found.
I've looked at baptismal records in Co Mayo and Roscommon as well as Chicago.
I looked to see if there were clusters of names grouped together.
The Irish tended to move and live together.
The Whites were from Co. Armagh. Thus far, my DNA matches are in Connacht.
I sure appreciate you all looking.
I've been doing this for over 40 years.
DNA is my most recent tool in solving this dilemma.
The Hopkins in Co Wicklow and surrounding area R1a and match Hopkins from Glamorgan, Wales, Glasgow, Scotland and Upper Canada.
I did find one Hopkins in Canada with roots from Mayo and I match him genetically.
His roots are Swineford.
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If you have the Social Security number, his original application can be ordered for a fee. There's more information on what is on this application and how to order it here - http://genealogy.about.com/od/online_records/a/ss5_request.htm These days, you would need to show a birth certificate to get a Social Security number, but I don't know how meticulous they were about checking back in Thomas' day. I suppose he may have just put his adopted parents' names and his assumed birth date down, but it might be an avenue to consider checking.
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Thanks, Shelly.