Since I started this blog in 2008, I've been contacted by many people exploring and sharing their connections to my family tree. People have been very generous with the information and pictures they've provided. It has inspired me to keep the research going. This post tries to piece much of it together. It reflects a lot the research I've compiled thus far, but the story isn't done. This is a living document and it will grow with the help of anyone willing to share.
Russ Dath
dathfamily2@verizon.net
Updated: July 21, 2012
Latest:
- Feb 2012: Added content on a tale associated with the third family trip from BE.
- Mar 2012: Updated information about mill connections in BE and the death of Marie Louise Dath.
- Mar 2012: Added death record information for Emmanuel Dath. It raises some new questions.
- Nov 2012: Added information about efforts to market "Dath Wool Oil" and "Dath Wool Soap."
- Nov 2012: Added information about where Jeanne Vandeweerden lived in BE.
- July 2013: Added information about Emile Dath moving to Clifton Heights, PA.
About Emmanuel Dath
Until about 2008, I had never heard of my great great grandfather, Emmanuel Victor Dath. I'm placing him at the center of this story because it turns out that Emmanuel is a common ancestor for many branches of the Dath family (and other families!) in the United States. Without Emmanuel, his wife Marie Louise, and their children, many families in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Massachusetts, California, Oregon, Florida, Texas, Colorado, Arizona, Virginia, and elsewhere, wouldn't be possible. If you know a bit about their story, you might learn a little bit about your own.
Russ Dath
dathfamily2@verizon.net
Updated: July 21, 2012
Latest:
- Feb 2012: Added content on a tale associated with the third family trip from BE.
- Mar 2012: Updated information about mill connections in BE and the death of Marie Louise Dath.
- Mar 2012: Added death record information for Emmanuel Dath. It raises some new questions.
- Nov 2012: Added information about efforts to market "Dath Wool Oil" and "Dath Wool Soap."
- Nov 2012: Added information about where Jeanne Vandeweerden lived in BE.
- July 2013: Added information about Emile Dath moving to Clifton Heights, PA.
Until about 2008, I had never heard of my great great grandfather, Emmanuel Victor Dath. I'm placing him at the center of this story because it turns out that Emmanuel is a common ancestor for many branches of the Dath family (and other families!) in the United States. Without Emmanuel, his wife Marie Louise, and their children, many families in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Massachusetts, California, Oregon, Florida, Texas, Colorado, Arizona, Virginia, and elsewhere, wouldn't be possible. If you know a bit about their story, you might learn a little bit about your own.
Emmanuel’s Belgian Roots
Emmanuel Victor Dath was born October 10, 1866 in Waasmunster, Belgium, a Flemish-speaking province in East Flanders. His original Belgian birth record and his United States Petition for Naturalization document confirm this.
He was the son of Melania Dath and a father to be named. With the help from volunteers from Belgium, his birth record has been translated to read, "In the year
1866, October 11, at 3 hours in the afternoon in front of mr ....
employee of the town of Dendermonde, province of Oost Vlaanderen,
Blondina van vynck, midwife 75 years old, living in the city, has
presented a male child, born the day before at 10 o'clock in the
morning to Melania Dath, 19 years old, living in the city, unmarried daughter
of Michel Dath, carpenter, and Maria Carolina De Maere, at home of his
parents, in the municipality, Shooting street, and wanted to give the full
name of Emanuel Dath." The circumstances surrounding his birth impacted every generation thereafter. The Dath surname clearly runs through Emmanuel's mother, not father.
Melania was born June 4, 1847. Melania’s parents, Emmanuel’s grandparents, were Michel Dath and Maria Carolina De Maer. The “Maer” references might pertain to a town outside Antwerp near the northern Belgian border with the Netherlands. This suggests that she at least descended from people rooted in this Flemish region. In contrast, the Dath surname usually pertains to people from the town of Ath, a municipality located in the southern French-speaking Walloon province of Hainaut. Dath or d’Ath means “from Ath.”
Emmanuel’s mother, Melania, had several siblings. Between 1844 and 1858 all the Dath’s found in the birth records for the town of Waasmunster belong to her family. Known siblings at this time include: Emile Dath, born June 1844; Gustave Dath, born December 22, 1845; Sidonie Dath, born May 1, 1849; Marie Dath, born October 24, 1850; Octavianus Dath, born April 1852; Sophie Dath, born January 1854; Albertus Dath, born August 1856; Sidonie Sophie Dath, born May 1858. Not much is known of Melania's siblings. Only Guatave Dath has been found in later records thus far. Gustave Dath married Marie Elisabeth Rombauts and died in Meechlen, Belgium in 1872.
Emmanuel also had siblings. He appears to have been Melania’s oldest child as he is the first and only child of her's to be found in Waasmunster records. Melania would have been 19 when she had Emmanuel. No siblings appear in Waasmunster records, but a brother named Jan Frans Dath appears in Brussels records. Jan Frans Dath, was born on February 2, 1879. A Belgian marriage record confirms all of this for Jan. When Jan Dath married Barbara Van Stigel on December 29, 1902 in Brussels, his birth date was recorded. Also, the record identifies Melania as the mother of Jan and Emmanuel as his brother. No father is recorded in the transcribed document.
Other known siblings of Emmanuel are half brothers and sisters. Melania Dath married Jacobus (Jaak) Campens on July 2, 1881 in Brussels. This was at least the second marriage for Jacobus, and possibly for Melania too. From her marriage with Jacobus it appears Melania had three children: Celestina Hendrika Campens (born 1884); August Campens (born 1887); Juliana Campens (born 1890). Melania was listed as the mother of the bride when Celestina Campens married Jan Frans Boterdael on April 10, 1906. Melania is identified as the mother of the groom when August Campens married Anna Maria Spruyt on May 27, 1909 in Belgium. Jacobus was deceased at the times of these weddings. It appears he died in 1891.
There are no known pictures of Emmanuel in his younger years. Fortunately, there are documents which describe him later in life that give us a clue to his youthful look. At age 45 he was described as being 5' 7" and 160 pounds with blue eyes and brown hair. Those blue eyes would surface again and again in later generations.
There are no known pictures of Emmanuel in his younger years. Fortunately, there are documents which describe him later in life that give us a clue to his youthful look. At age 45 he was described as being 5' 7" and 160 pounds with blue eyes and brown hair. Those blue eyes would surface again and again in later generations.
Emmanuel gets married and has a family in Belgium
Emmanuel Dath married Marie (later “Mary”) Louise Vanderweerde around 1887. More research is needed to find the exact date and location. He would have been about 21 and she would have been about 17. His wife, Marie Louise, was born January 24, 1871 in Belgium to August Vanderweerde and Marie Jeanne (Van something….last name unclear). There are varying spellings of her surname in the records (e.g., Van de Weerde). There is ample evidence that a spelling often repeated on the Internet and Ancestry.com, Vanmulyda, is completely erroneous. Both her official death record and various marriage records for her children support this position. Vanmuldya is a misnomer most likely rooted in poor spelling and/or faulty interpretations of notations found in ship manifests and/or census records. Marie Louise had at least two siblings, brothers Charles and Louis.
Emmanuel and Marie L. had at least five children in Belgium. Knowing their family history, it is easy to see where some of their names came from. Emile Jacques (Jake) Dath was born July 20, 1888; August Dath, was born September 6, 1892; Jeanne (later “Jane”) Dath, was born November 1, 1895; Marie Dath, was born January 20, 1898; Gerard Henry Dath, was born June 9, 1900.
While I don’t have a complete picture of how Emmanuel and Marie L. supported their family in Belgium, there are some clues in various Brussels almanacs. The almanacs are essentially the phone books of their day, except most people didn’t have a phone yet and the books recorded occupations.
The 1902 Almanac for Brussels finds people likely to be Emmanuel and Marie L. living at 988 Chausee de Mons., Brussels. You can visit this address on Google Maps today. This address is in Anderlecht, which is a municipality within the capital of Brussels. There are other records in which the Dath family indicates they are from Anderlecht. Nobody else with the name of Dath is found in the almanac. At the time, his occupation was listed as "poissons fumes et a la daube," which Google Translate interprets as "smoked fish and beef stew." I can’t vouch for the accuracy of the translation. A second occupation for Emmanuel that same year is found in the wedding records for his brother Jan Frans. There his occupation is listed as “metsersgast,” which Google translates as “mason’s guest” (mason’s apprentice?).
The 1904 City of Brussels' Almanac finds people most likely to be Emmanuel and Marie Louise living at 1054 Chausee de Mons., Brussels. At this time his occupation is identified as a
"Aunages" is a reference to a measurement of cloth. Combined and with "merceries" this suggests that she had a shop
The last early 1900 Brussels almanac to reference a Dath was the 1904 edition. Why? Emmanuel and Marie Louise would leave for the United States.
"Aunages" is a reference to a measurement of cloth. Combined and with "merceries" this suggests that she had a shop
The last early 1900 Brussels almanac to reference a Dath was the 1904 edition. Why? Emmanuel and Marie Louise would leave for the United States.
Emmanuel and family emigrate to the United States
On September 22, 1906, at age 39, Emmanuel Dath arrived on board the Lucania at Ellis Island, New York. That year an estimated 5,099 Belgian immigrants passed through Ellis Island (out of 1.1 million immigrants). His wife Marie Louise, age 36, and son August, age 14, were with him when they disembarked after an 8-day journey from Liverpool, England (plus whatever time it took to get to Liverpool from Belgium). They had $120 with them to start a new life in the United States. Adjusted for inflation, that is about $3,000 in 2011.
Emmanuel indicated that they were headed to the household of a friend, D. Bogaert, who lived at 650 W. 158th Street in New York City. (Note: Belgian marriage records indicate that someone with the last name Bogaert attended the wedding of Emmanuel’s brother Jan Frans in 1902.) The ship’s manifest identifies Emmanuel’s occupation as “weaver.”
Emmanuel indicated that they were headed to the household of a friend, D. Bogaert, who lived at 650 W. 158th Street in New York City. (Note: Belgian marriage records indicate that someone with the last name Bogaert attended the wedding of Emmanuel’s brother Jan Frans in 1902.) The ship’s manifest identifies Emmanuel’s occupation as “weaver.”
Emmanuel’s oldest known son, Emile Jacques (Jake) Dath, arrived April 3, 1907 at age 18 on the Kroonland. He arrived under the name Jaques Dath with $20 and plans to visit his father in Newton, Massachusetts.
Eight months later, on Christmas Eve 1907, Marie Louise Dath arrived at Ellis Island again. This time she traveled on the Zeeland, which set out from Antwerp, Belgium on December 14. On this occasion she arrived with three of her children: Jeanne Dath (Age 11); Marie Dath (Age 9); Gerard Henry Dath (Age 7). Her mother, Jeanne Vanderweerde (Age 56) arrived with her too. Marie Louise indicated that her brother Louis was still back in Belgium. She also indicated that she was headed to 36 Gray St, Newton, Massachusetts, to be with her husband Emmanuel. She was carrying $50.
Getting to work
It wasn't long after arriving in the US that Emmanuel got to work supporting his family. Building on his experience working with D'Aoust Brothers in the wool industry in Brussels, he marketed "Dath Wool Oil" and "Dath Wool Soap" in trade publications like the American Textile Reporter in 1907 while living in Newton, Massachusetts. The soap was marketed as the "The Best Soap for the Cleaning and Scouring of Wools Ever Made" and used in the "Great Woolen Mills of Europe for over 30 Years".
In what appears to be an advertorial for these products it also becomes clear that Emmanuel spent time working in textile mills in Woonsocket, Rhode Island before he and his family set up residence in Newtown, Massachusetts. This couldn't have been more than a few months. Woonsocket was a large textile center known with a large number of "French mills" that included a number of Belgian immigrants.
Family connections to the homeland
In January 1912, just a few months before the Titanic would sink on its transatlantic voyage, Marie Louise’s brother Charles Vanderweerden (or Van der Weerde) traveled from Antwerp on the Manatou with his wife Rosalie. Charles was born in Anderlecht, the same area where the Dath's resided in Belgium before departing. Rosalie was born in a different town, possibly Houffalize (the handwriting on the ship manifest is difficult to read). Charles indicated that his mother (Marie Louise’s mother) was back in Belgium living at 2 du Drapeau in Anderclecht. So, maybe Jeanne Vanderweerde, whom we know visited Emmanuel and Marie Louise earlier, never stayed in the US. Charles and Rosalie headed to Newtown, Massachusetts to be with Emmanuel and Louise. No records have been found to confirm that they decided to permanetly stay in the United States.
Getting to work
It wasn't long after arriving in the US that Emmanuel got to work supporting his family. Building on his experience working with D'Aoust Brothers in the wool industry in Brussels, he marketed "Dath Wool Oil" and "Dath Wool Soap" in trade publications like the American Textile Reporter in 1907 while living in Newton, Massachusetts. The soap was marketed as the "The Best Soap for the Cleaning and Scouring of Wools Ever Made" and used in the "Great Woolen Mills of Europe for over 30 Years".
In what appears to be an advertorial for these products it also becomes clear that Emmanuel spent time working in textile mills in Woonsocket, Rhode Island before he and his family set up residence in Newtown, Massachusetts. This couldn't have been more than a few months. Woonsocket was a large textile center known with a large number of "French mills" that included a number of Belgian immigrants.
Family connections to the homeland
In January 1912, just a few months before the Titanic would sink on its transatlantic voyage, Marie Louise’s brother Charles Vanderweerden (or Van der Weerde) traveled from Antwerp on the Manatou with his wife Rosalie. Charles was born in Anderlecht, the same area where the Dath's resided in Belgium before departing. Rosalie was born in a different town, possibly Houffalize (the handwriting on the ship manifest is difficult to read). Charles indicated that his mother (Marie Louise’s mother) was back in Belgium living at 2 du Drapeau in Anderclecht. So, maybe Jeanne Vanderweerde, whom we know visited Emmanuel and Marie Louise earlier, never stayed in the US. Charles and Rosalie headed to Newtown, Massachusetts to be with Emmanuel and Louise. No records have been found to confirm that they decided to permanetly stay in the United States.
On March 15, 1915 Marie Louise Dath arrived at Ellis Island for a third time. Traveling on the Orduna from Liverpool, England, she arrived with three of her children: Jeanne (Jane) Dath (Age 19); Marie Dath (Age 17); Henry Dath (Age 14). They indicate that they were headed to 185 Chapel Street, Newton, Massachusetts to be with Emmanuel.
Exactly why Louise and members of the Dath family returned to Belgium twice in nine years is not known, but close family bonds were a part of it. The second trip involved bringing the rest of the immediate family over to the US. There is a family story, that suggests the third trip was the result of a death in the family and an inheritance. The family then became trapped by the war hey got stuck there when World War I broke out and Germany invaded Belgium in August 1914. The story is that they were interned in a concentration camp. However, the commandant was educated in the US and loved baseball. Henry, who was 14 at the time also loved baseball. With his knowledge of the details of baseball, the commandant believed them that they were just there visiting. He released them and told them they had 24 hour to get out. They caught a fishing boat to England and left from Liverpool to return to the US. There is no way substantiate the details, but the story but it is an interesting tale.
Regardless, of the reasons behind the three trips, the expense of three trips seems to suggest that they were doing well enough financially after arriving in the US.
There is nothing to suggest that Emmanuel ever returned to Belgium or that his mother, Melania, ever came to the United States. There are credible sources on the Internet, including a well-researched family tree for the Campens, that indicate that Melania died on August 2, 1916 in Belgium. What became of Emmanuel's siblings and half-siblings is unknown.
Regardless, of the reasons behind the three trips, the expense of three trips seems to suggest that they were doing well enough financially after arriving in the US.
There is nothing to suggest that Emmanuel ever returned to Belgium or that his mother, Melania, ever came to the United States. There are credible sources on the Internet, including a well-researched family tree for the Campens, that indicate that Melania died on August 2, 1916 in Belgium. What became of Emmanuel's siblings and half-siblings is unknown.
Taking root in the United States: 1910 - 1920
Emmanuel and Marie Louise
The 1910 US Census found Emmanuel and his entire family, plus his mother-in-law, living with him at 190 Chapel Street in Newton, Massachusetts. Emmanuel was a listed as a machinist in the woolen mills industry. It is worth noting that at this time a book, "Chemical abstracts, Volume 4, Part 1" makes reference to a "composition for dressing textile stocks" that is attributed to Emmanuel Dath. In 1912 he was issued a patent for a "Cleaning device for roving," which also related to textile production. By the time of the 1920 US Census, Emmanuel was 53 and Marie Louise was 49. It appears that that Emmanuel was working as an "overseer" in a worsted (wool) mill. Marie was not working at that time.
The 1910 US Census found Emmanuel and his entire family, plus his mother-in-law, living with him at 190 Chapel Street in Newton, Massachusetts. Emmanuel was a listed as a machinist in the woolen mills industry. It is worth noting that at this time a book, "Chemical abstracts, Volume 4, Part 1" makes reference to a "composition for dressing textile stocks" that is attributed to Emmanuel Dath. In 1912 he was issued a patent for a "Cleaning device for roving," which also related to textile production. By the time of the 1920 US Census, Emmanuel was 53 and Marie Louise was 49. It appears that that Emmanuel was working as an "overseer" in a worsted (wool) mill. Marie was not working at that time.
Emile Jake Dath
On September 23, 1911 Emile Jake Dath, at age 25, became the first of Emmanuel’s children to get married. Emile married Helene Vendermeeren, age 22, daughter of Pierre Vendermeeren and Amelie Loquet. Helene, who was born in France, was a mill operator and Emile was an “overseer.” The marriage took place in Haverhill, Massachusetts. For unknown reasons, they were married for less than 5 years.
Just a few years after his marriage to Helene, around 1915, Emile Jake Dath married Zoe Sarah Poublon. Zoe was a Belgian immigrant too. Born in Wevleghem, Belgium (about an hour West of Brussels) on May 5, 1895. Zoe was seven years younger than Emile. She arrived on the Finland at age 20 on September 28, 1912. She intended to visit her sister, Martha Gyspeert (married to Victor Gyspeert) at 156 President Street, Passaic, New Jersey. Her American born niece, Alice Gyspeert, age 3, traveled with her on this trip. No other family member appears to have joined them.
Zoe was the daughter of Isadore Polidor Poublon from Menen, Belgium (Born: 1852, Died: 1920) and Maria Louise Seys Dussasoix (Born: 1858, Died: 1940). Zoe had many siblings, most of whom appear to have immigrated to the United States. They included several brothers and sisters from (Note this includes information that is sourced and unsourced): Florimond Poublon, Jules Poublon, Emil Poublon, George Maurice Poublon, Maurice Poublon, Madeline Poublon, Martha (Poublon) Gryspeert, Mathilda (Poublon) Pille, Pauline (Poublon) Von Gompel, Emma Poublon, Leona Poublon and Zeele Poublon.
Zoe (Dath) Wells, provided this detail in a 1996 letter to a relative: "I'll start with my mom. She was born in Flanders, Belgium. And she spoke Flemish. She went to school until she was 13 then she had to work as a house maid. My mom came to the states when she was 18, where she went to work in a woolen mill in Paterson, N.J. Mom met Dad while she was working there and they married two years later. There were 14 children in her family. Many came to the states. One of my Mom's sisters married a man (naturally) who owned a leather factory."
Zoe was the daughter of Isadore Polidor Poublon from Menen, Belgium (Born: 1852, Died: 1920) and Maria Louise Seys Dussasoix (Born: 1858, Died: 1940). Zoe had many siblings, most of whom appear to have immigrated to the United States. They included several brothers and sisters from (Note this includes information that is sourced and unsourced): Florimond Poublon, Jules Poublon, Emil Poublon, George Maurice Poublon, Maurice Poublon, Madeline Poublon, Martha (Poublon) Gryspeert, Mathilda (Poublon) Pille, Pauline (Poublon) Von Gompel, Emma Poublon, Leona Poublon and Zeele Poublon.
Zoe (Dath) Wells, provided this detail in a 1996 letter to a relative: "I'll start with my mom. She was born in Flanders, Belgium. And she spoke Flemish. She went to school until she was 13 then she had to work as a house maid. My mom came to the states when she was 18, where she went to work in a woolen mill in Paterson, N.J. Mom met Dad while she was working there and they married two years later. There were 14 children in her family. Many came to the states. One of my Mom's sisters married a man (naturally) who owned a leather factory."
With his Marriage to Zoe, Emile Jake Dath's family began to grow and he began to move about the country. His first child was Louise Dath (Later: Gormely), born July 11, 1915 in Nebrask. His second child, Robert Jake Dath was born September 10, 1917 in Montanna. Emile's World War I draft registration card (1917 - 1918) shows him living in Laurel, Montana, working for the Northern Pacific Railroad Company as a mechanic. For some reason the card identifies Mulhausen, Alsace Lorraine as his birth place. That is the only time I found such a reference.
So, the question becomes why did Emile and Zoe move to Nebraska and Montanna? Different people in the family have offered offered up reasons based on family rumors. One of the more scandalous reasons offered was that Emile may have secured a family inheritance that was not entirely his from family in Belgium and fled West. A less scandalous suggestion (but one that could be related) is that Emile went westward to get involved in raising sheep for the wool industry he knew so well. It is also possible that they weren't entirely alone on this western adventure. People with the Poublon family name (Zoe's maiden name) were present in Nebraska when Emile and Zoe lived out west. Maybe they had personal connections. If raising sheep seems like a stretch idea for someone who appears to have had zero experience with farm life, consider that Emile and Zoe tried raising sheep years later when he "retired" to a farm in Pennsylvania. The exact location of that venture is unknown and did not meet with financial success.
Research on Emile's military service record is incomplete, but records indicate that he served from March 28, 1918 - May 20, 1919. Upon returning, Emile rejoined his family in Newton, Massachusetts, living at 6 Silver Lake Ave. He began working in woolen mills according to the 1920 Census. Zoe worked in a woolen mill as well. Their family would grow by one in Massachusetts, with the arrival of Edward Emile on August 20, 1920.
Around 1921 Emile took a position with Kent Mills Manufacturing. The following is taken from a 1921 publication of America's Textile Reporter: "Emile J. Dath, formerly associated with the Forstmann & Hoffmann Company, Passaic, N.J., and Thoma Wolstenholme Sons & Company, Philadelphia, is now with the Runnymede Worsted Mills of the Kent Manufacturing Company, at Clifton Heights, Pa." His father Emmanuel also moved to Clifton Heights to work for Kent Manufacturing. Records indicate that Emmanuel was in Newton Massachusetts through at least 1923.
Emile and Zoe's other children would be born in Upper Darby Pennsylvania in an area adjacent to the mills and Clifton Heights. Today that neighborhood is known as Drexel Hill, but back then is was likely called Oakview or even Kellyville. Russell George Dath was born May 7, 1922; Roy Alfred was born July 12, 1923; Emile Jake Jr., was born October 18, 1924; Muriel Zoe (Dath) Martin (and later Funk) was born about 1925; Zoe Sarah Dath (Later: Wells) was born about 1926; Irene Jane Dath (Later: Post) was born about 1927. The 1920s mark the beginning of an era in which the Emile and Emmanuel Dath became heavily involved, and were apparently very successful, working for Kent Manufacturing. (Note: Kent Manufacturing operates today as Kentwool based out of Pickens, South Carolina).
August Dath
The second oldest of Emmanuel and Marie Lousie married on July 1, 1912. August Dath was 20 and his bride, Annie Josephine Post (B: 2/23/1893, Cambridge, MA > D: 6/27/1984, Medina, OH), was 19. They married in Newton, MA. Annie's parents were Albert Post and Anna Joyce. Her parents were French Canadians. It appears August and Anna had only one child, Anna Louise Dath, born July 6, 1913. Sadly, Anna only lived a few months, dying October 19, 1913 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Based on the 1910 census we know that August Dath was an machinist in a woolen mill in Newton, Massachusetts at the start of the decade. His 1914 Petition for Naturalization identifies his occupation as "Overseer in drawing.” By 1917-1918 he was in the military. A 1920 census record might shed more light on his whereabouts and activities, but it has not been discovered yet.
Jeanne (Jane) Dath
Jeanne Dath is listed as a sewer in blanket factory in the 1910 US Census. She was about 15 at the time. At the end of the decade the 1920 US Census found her engaged in a sewing job in a worsted (woolen) mill and living with her parents and her sister Marie. Before the decade was out she married Harry E. Butler (B: 10/25/1896, Newton, MA; D: 12/14/1987, Paris, Oxford, ME). Jane and Harry were married February 22, 1920 by Robert L. Rae, a clergyman from Newton, Massachusetts. In the decade ahead they had seven children.
Marie Dath
The 1920 US Census indicates that Marie Dath was living with her parents. Sometime shortly thereafter she married William Fenton Hunnefield (B: 1/5/1899, Dedham, MA > D: 8/28/1976, Nantucket, MA). In the 1920s and William Hunnefield would become a professional baseball player. He was an infielder who played for the Chicago White Sox (see baseball card) and Cleveland Indians of the American League and the Boston Braves and New York Giants of the National League in a six-season career from 1926 to 1931. In the next decade they would have two children, Marcia (B: Sept 10, 1920, MA) and Joyce (B: 7/16/1928, IL > D: 11/28/1992, Richmond, VA).
Gerard Henry Dath
The youngest of Emmanuel's kids, Gerard Henry Dath was still a child in 1910. By the time World War I emerged he was able to enlist, possibly in the Marines. At the time he was living at 254 Pearl Street, Newton, Massachusetts, just blocks from the previous addresses he had lived at with his parents. Like his older siblings, Gerard Henry Dath married just before the decade was out. In 1919 Gerard Henry married Ardella Porter (B: 11/7/1899, ME > D: 2/6/1997). Henry was 18 and Ardella was 19. Ardella's mother's maiden name was Davis and was from Maine. Her father was from Canada. Over the next two decades they would have three children: Lola M. McHugh (B: 5/1920); Dorothy (Dorrie) (B: Abt. 1929) and Gerard Henry Jr. (B: 5/1932).
End of an era: The passing of Emmanuel and Louise Dath
Emmanuel and Marie Louise
The 1930 US Census found Emmanuel and Louise living at 48 W. Berkley Ave., Clifton Heights, PA. He was a "superintendent" at a local woolen mill, Kent Mills. Unfortunately, tragedy would befall them in the 1930s. On September 9, 1931 Marie Louise died at age 60 and 7 months. To make things more difficult, the cause of death was ruled "strangulation by suicide" brought on by "temporary derangement." Family tradition indicates that she fought a painful battle with cancer leading her to this desperate act. Here is the funeral notice posted in The Chester Times, Chester, PA, September 11, 1931:
From the Chester Times, Chester, PA, November 17, 1932:
From the Chester Times, Chester, PA, April 7, 1933:
Emmanuel's official death registration document recorded for Wayland, MA, does provide a bit of intrigue. The record clearly lists "Jacob Dath" of Belgium as his father. We know from his birth record that he was born to an unwed Meliania Dath. So, who is Jacob? Was Jacob a reference to his stepfather, Jacobus Campens? To add to the confusion, the mother in his birth records is listed as Jane. I can't read the last name (It appears to start with a "Wa..."). Was Melania also known as Jane? What is to be made of her last name not being Dath then? Hopefully future research will yield some answers.
A new generation: 1930 - 1950
The descendents of Emmanuel and Marie Louise Dath are spread all over the country today. Family have been found in South Carolina, North Carolina, Utah, California, South Dakota, Texas, Florida, Colorado, Arizona, New Hampshire, Maine, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Oregon, and Massachusetts, The story of how they got there and where they came from is still to come....
