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Research in Other Countries => United States of America => Topic started by: Ghostwheel on Tuesday 14 January 20 18:29 GMT (UK)
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I was wondering if anyone could help me find the date of a specific event.
The information I know about it mostly comes from oral tradition. I'm told it was a scaffolding collapse at Downtown Crossing in Boston, at Jordan Marsh, which was an old Boston department store.
What I definitely know is the name of a man who died (I am not sure how many died), and the date of his death. His name was Thomas O'Connor, and he died May 2, 1909. His death certificate gives the information that he died of septicemia and a compound fracture, resulting from an accidental fall. I'm not sure how long he may have lived after the accident.
I'm told that it definitely appeared in newspapers, but in my previous efforts, I haven't been able to find it. One problem is that if you do a text search for "Jordan Marsh" there are a lot of ads. I've also tried to browse for it on microfiche, but I think I must have skipped over it or something, or else I don't have the right searching technique.
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My first thought is don't google for "Downtown Crossing" because the area wasn't called that back then. Figure out Jordan Marsh's address and try for that. some number on Washington St. The name of the section of town changed in my Boston lifetime, 1965 - 1993, if that helps.
edited to add:
He died May 2, but he was admitted to the hospital April 18, if you start looking by date.
also edited to add
Jordan Marsh was at 450 Washington Street according to wikipedia, which also has a picture of the place in 1910.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jordan_Marsh
and it isn't/wasn't the same as Jordan's Furniture in Mass., which is still in business under that name.
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someone else was looking in 2017, unless this is you:
http://www.rootschat.com/links/01ov7/
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You can apparently set up a free account to search the Boston Globe archives here:
https://bostonglobe.newspapers.com/choose-a-plan/?iid=619
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Some excellent Boston disasters here but unfortunately not the one you're looking for:
http://www.celebrateboston.com/disasters.htm
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Afraid the 2017 chap was me. I think that was a little after I tried the microfiche angle of attack.
Embarrassingly, I didn't realize that Downtown Crossing wasn't an old name.
How did you figure out he was admitted April 18? Is there a second page to the death cert, or a second death cert for his home address of Somerville ? It is not on what I have for Boston.
Big thanks! That date might be the key to what I'm looking for.
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Okay, I found it. I never saw that image before, but it looks like a double page. Afraid the April 18 is a different guy.
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-99QR-LS8X?i=162&cc=2061550&personaUrl=%2Fark%3A%2F61903%2F1%3A1%3AQ2QK-X38H (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-99QR-LS8X?i=162&cc=2061550&personaUrl=%2Fark%3A%2F61903%2F1%3A1%3AQ2QK-X38H)
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Okay, I found it. I never saw that image before, but it looks like a double page. Afraid the April 18 is a different guy.
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-99QR-LS8X?i=162&cc=2061550&personaUrl=%2Fark%3A%2F61903%2F1%3A1%3AQ2QK-X38H (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-99QR-LS8X?i=162&cc=2061550&personaUrl=%2Fark%3A%2F61903%2F1%3A1%3AQ2QK-X38H)
Glad you caught the overlapping records, I missed that.
I don't think there would be a record in Somerville.
You've been through the microfilm rolls at the Boston Public Library already?
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Yes, I made the trip to the library back a few years ago. Maybe, I should have asked the staff to help me, but funnily enough, they were having some meeting on missing items, so nobody was really around.
I think I only tried to look through the Boston Post. That might have been my mistake. Not trying to look through several papers near the date of death, rather than using one to go further and further back.
Another big problem that I had is that I wasn't sure where to look. You know, how many pages in. I don't know what would be a good number for something like that. Whether it would definitely be on the main page or not.
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I think I only tried to look through the Boston Post. ...
Another big problem that I had is that I wasn't sure where to look. You know, how many pages in. I don't know what would be a good number for something like that. Whether it would definitely be on the main page or not.
It would probably depend on how many people died, when you think about it.
And I was just going to reply to be sure you knew there were a lot of papers in Boston back then. I don't know if Somerville ever had a paper of its own.
Maybe another trip to the BPL would do it. Have you found a death notice or obituary for him?
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I'm pretty sure there was no obituary. I've heard he could read Irish but not English. On the census he was illiterate.
One of his brothers died of heatstroke, when he was in his early 20s, and I could find no mention of it, other than that it was a very hot day, and a well-known very old fellow died of the heat.
I guess that is another problem. It might not have been reported in every paper. I chose the Post because I knew that the Globe wasn't as big back then. But maybe one would want the paper that didn't carry their advertising or something.
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I'm pretty sure there was no obituary. I've heard he could read Irish but not English. On the census he was illiterate.
The Boston Globe
Boston, Massachusetts
03 May 1909, Mon - Page 14
Death Notice: https://www.newspapers.com/clip/42319522/thomas_j_oconnordeath_notice/
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RJ137,
Well, I'll be darned! Thanks, for finding that!