Catherine "Cassie" Reed (née Johns, Daniels)

[danny94]

My family has been plagued by this question for 80 years. What happened to Cassie Daniels (b. 1892)?

In 1898, my great-great-grandfather's mother and sister emigrated to the United States after the death of my great-great-great-grandfather. While my 2nd great-grandfather was left behind to remain with his own grandfather, he seemingly completely lost contact with his mother and sister.

My family's only document relating to them was a 1931 letter from The Druid in reply to a letter from my great-great-grandfather, David Daniels attempt to track her down. According to the letter she had become a Cassie Johns, taking her stepfather's name, and was then using the name Reec(e), later discovered to be presumably a typo for Reed. At this time, she was living at 2449 Highland Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio. The problem is, I cannot, having tried for a great deal of time, find her in the 1930 Census.

Part of the problem is her semi-regular name changes, Catherine Ann Daniels to Cassia Johns to Cassie Johns to Catherine A Reed. However, none of them seem to appear in Cincinnati at the time. It's made even more problematic by the fact her husband, a Bertram S Reed also seems to re-marry, and is living with another woman and eventually has a child with her across the 1930 and 1940 censuses. But Cassie is still alive and well as she appears on both her parents' death records in 1922 and 1931. I've tried looking for a record of a divorce (even their marriage doesn't appear) with no luck.

All I have found are references to her in the New Castle News, from Lawrence, Pennsylvania which corroborate the image of her as a seemingly popular musician as well as her marriage to Bert which is amazingly described in detail. It also refers to her later in life as Miss Cassie Johns of Cincinnati (same as her father's death record).

My 2nd great grandfather, we presume, never received a reply, and we believe died not knowing what happened to his mother and his sister. However, many of my living relatives remember him and would like to find out what happened to her. We would love to try and track down some living descendants but this seems highly unlikely as it appears she had no children with Bert.

The question is, what happens to her in the 1930s? Where does she go? Where else can I possibly look? I've tried looking for obituaries, records of deaths, divorces, everything, but with no luck.

If anybody has any ideas, it would be a great help!
Thank you.

[AMBLY]

Hi Danny94

Welcome to Rootschat!

Right off the bat, the answers to the following questions would probably be asked by  anyone searching for mother &  daughter and may help in identifying possible leads:

*  Was Cassie b 1892,  the daughter? David's sister? I guess if mother & daughter immigrated 1898, she must be 

* What was her birth maiden name (Daniels?)  and full names of both her birth parents?
* Where was she born? Emigrate from?
* What was the full name of her stepfather?
* When you say, she appeared on the death records of her parents in 1922 and 1931, what do you mean? Was she mentioned in an Obituary for them - or in some other way?  The father who died, do you mean her birth father or stepfather?
* You said David received a reply from the Druid. What is that?  (then you mentioned that he 'presumably never received a reply', so was that from a different enquiry that he had made?).
* Have you got Cassie or her mother in the US Census 1900, 1910, 1920 - if so, details?

You have an intriguing mystery to solve, I hope we are able to help    In working through your post, is it correct you now know what happened to David's mother (she remarried JOHNS, died in the US) but it's Catherine/Cassie you've lost?

Cheers
AMBLY

[AMBLY]

Mother and daughter arrive in the US, 1898:


SS MAJESTIC, departed Liverpool 31 Aug 1898, Arrived 8 Sep 1898 New York
Sarah A DANIELS 29, widow, Housekeeper,
Catherine DANIELS 6, Child
Last living in Welsh, in  Swansea and both born Wales.
Landing in: New York
Destination: Newcastle
Paid for their own passage, but do not have tickets to their final Destination
Have £5 apiece.
Never before in US
Going to: Abraham JONES, 5558? Jefferson St, Newcastle

Cheers
AMBLY

[AMBLY]

So Catherine was using the name "Cassie JOHNS" right from the get go:

1900: 557 Jefferson St, Newcastle, Lawrence County, Pennsylvania
Head: Abb JOHNS 34, b Wales (no date stated), imm 1892, Nat., married 2 yrs to:
Wife: Sarah JOHNS  29, b Nov 1870 Wales, imm 1894, 1 child born.
Daughter: Cassie JOHNS 6, b Nov 1893 Wales, imm 1894

I realise you have this information  [ and that I'm answering my own initial questions  ]but knowing the background helps to ground further searching.

Cheers
AMBLY

[AMBLY]

1917: WW1 Draft Registration: 6 May --- (Draft Card R - which was 1917)
Bertram Scardale REED age 28, b Newcastle, Phil. PA,
Machinist, Penna. Engineering Co,  Jefferson Street. Married, dependants: Wife.

1920:  At 1810, M Park Ave, Philadelphia City Ward 32, Philadelphia,  Pennsylvania
Head: Bertram S REED 31, b PA, machinist in Machine Shop
Wife: Catherine REED 27, b Wales,  Imm 1910, Nat 1918

1928: Marriage, Philadelphia
Bertram S REED & Norma SPRENKEL

1942: WW2 Draft Registration: Potter County, PA
Bertram Scardale REED, b Newcastle, PA of Philadelphia, age 53 (b abt 1888)
Wife: Norma S REED.

http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/read/SPRINKLE/2009-08/1250435023
A post abt Bertram & Norma

As you say, Miss Cassie JOHNS, of Reynolds Street, Newcastle, was mentioned often in the Newcastle News in regards to her music, playing, singing and I see the article of July 1914, which says Miss Cassie JOHNS, daughter of Mr & Mrs Abraham JOHNS,  will marry  Bertram Scardale REED on Wednesday, 19th August 1914.

The 1914 Marriage record from Family Search:
https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/VF4N-1J8
Cassie D JOHNS & Bertram S REED

So that's the background.....no further ahead, though:

Divorce from Bertram between 1920 and 1928
Was living in Cincinnati Ohio when stepfather died 1931
Location in 1930 Census

Do you have her full date of birth (was she registered as Catherine Ann DANIEL in Dec Qtr 1892, Swansea?)

Cheers
AMBLY

[danny94]

I am sorry, I should have posted all this!

We did discover what happened to her mother Sarah Ann, she dies of tuberculosis in Pennsylvania in about 1922.

Thank you for finding that marriage record!

Unfortunately, we don't have her full date of birth. My grandmother and I are going to see if its possible to get her birth certificate (the family still lives in Swansea) to find out.

Concerning The Druid, it was apparently a periodical about Welsh news and affairs for Welsh immigrants in the US. My great-great-grandfather wrote to them presumably to track down his sister. The letter just says "your letter to your sister has been delivered at can be reached at 2449 Highland Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio".

While searching last night, I did find a newspaper article about a 'Mrs' Catherine JOHNS who is returning to the United States to meet her extended family. She notes that she hadn't seen Swansea since she was a young girl 51 years ago, which does tally with Catherine and Sarah Ann's emigration. But, there is another Catherine JOHNS (emigrating from Briton Ferry around the same time, which is very near Swansea). Though, she notes she is visiting the REES family who are cousins. I seem to remember a census record from the DANIELS in Swansea where there is a niece called REES living with them. It's very tenuous but a possibly line of inquiry. I'll look up the details now.

Thanks again,
Dan

[Genealiza]

Don't know if this will help, but I've located the Cassie Reed, from Cincinnati on their city directories:

1924:  Cassie Reed, phone operator 1324 Main, rms 124 Allison
1925:  Cassie Reed, phone operator, 1324 Main, rms 124 Allison
1926-27:  Cassie Reed, phone operator, 1324 Main, rms 124 E 14th
1927-28:  Cassie Reed, phone operator, 1324 Main, rms 124 E 14th
1928-29:  Cassie Reed, phone operator, 1324 Main, rms 124 E 14th
1929-30:  Cassie Reed, saleslady, 17 E 6th, rms 124 E 14th
1930-31:  Cassie Reed, saleslady, 17 E 6th, rms 2449 Highland AV
1931-32:  Cassie Reed, rms 3352 Burnet Ave
1932-33:  Cassie Reed, rms 3352 Burnet Ave

I didn't see her either before the 1924 or after the 32/33 directories, with either the name Johns or Reed.

[AMBLY]

Hi Dan

Just to note....While I was searching, I came across a Mrs Catherine JOHNS, from South Wales of the right age, who in 1950 travelled back to UK with another couple Griffith & Margaret THOMAS on the same boat.  When they all arrived back in the US, the manifest gave their address in US as 109 and 107 Park Ave in Newcastle, PA.  I thought for a moment I was onto something - one of those records I had found earlier was 1810 M Park Ave  Philadelphia   for Bertram & Cassie.   However this doppelganger Catherine is the one who is found in PA in 1930 Census at that 109 Park Ave Newcastle, with a husband named Robert JOHNS . The THOMAS  family were neighbours at 107.  A search of earlier Census finds this Catherine JOHNS & her husband Robert and a number of children (one is called Merwyn) in Census in 1920, when your Cassie is with Bertram in Philadelphia....

Cheers
AMBLY

[AMBLY]

Obtaining her Birth certificate and dob  may help, if it can be matched to a death  on the Social Security Index.

Cheers
AMBLY