Who Was W. P. Ellis?

William P. Ellis mara babu yangu kubwa. Kwa bahati mbaya, alipofariki wakati babu yangu, Gilbert P. Ellis, was only two years old. Bibi yangu kubwa hayajui mengi kuhusu familia William ya. The actual information Grandpa had on him was sparse, so William was the real mystery man in the family history up until 2006 au 2007.

Grandpa had a picture of William sitting on a fake moon. William was a giant of a man. Napenda kusema 6'4″ kwa 6'6″. My grandfather was 6’4″ mwenyewe. Shukrani kwa umri digital, I know more about my great grandfather than his own son did, but the journey was complex and illustrates the joys and challenges of the genealogical journey.

I started out knowing William died in St. Louis, Missouri kati ya Juni 22, 1917, na Juni 21, 1918. Babu yangu alikuwa ni mkweli zaidi, direct person I have ever known. I knew his information was as correct as his memory allowed. I limited my search to this period even with memory not being 100 asilimia sahihi.

The Missouri Secretary of State uploaded most Missouri death certificates from 1910 kwa 1955 to it’s website, wakati mimi alianza hii tafuta. The first few times I searched, Sikuweza kupata William P. Ellis. Hatimaye, I decided I would search for every death certificate from St. Louis mji katika wote wa mwaka wa 1917 na 1918 na jina la mwisho la Ellis.

Kwa bahati nzuri, Mimi kugonga kulipa uchafu katika 1917. You see my great grandfather’s death certificate listed his first name as “W.P.” na jina la mwisho “Ellis”, so I could have search William Ellis throughout the state until the cows came home and never found him. Finding William’s death certificate was like hitting the lottery.

William was born August 1, 1877, kwa William H. Ellis and an unknown mother in the state of Kentucky. He lived at 5311A Magnolia Avenue, where died of lung disease on December 4, 1917. The death certificate listed his occupation as a clay miner. St. Louis was home to a large amount of clay mines along S. Kingshighway Boulevard and the “Dogtown” neighborhood at the turn of the century.

These mines turned out the bricks that St. Louis bado ni maarufu kwa ajili ya. William’s death certificate proved that my great grandmother only had limited knowledge of William’s background because she did not know his mother’s name or where she was from. Ni changamoto ya wote nasaba na historia. Kama huna kumwambia mtu au si rekodi yake, habari ni waliopotea.

William moved to St. Charles, Missouri, wakati mwingine kabla ya 1900 because he mustered into one of the volunteer units going to fight the Spanish-American War on July 9, 1898, katika St. Charles, Missouri. He served in the 6th Volunteer Missouri Regiment, Mwanga Battery A. He served for two years and mustered out on May 10, 1899.

Bibi yangu kubwa, Caroline Ellis, lived in St. Charles also. Walikutana wakati mwingine kabla ya 1912, wakati wao ndoa. Mei 15, 1912, William P. Ellis ndoa Caroline Leah “Lee” Johan Peter katika St. Charles. Wao ingekuwa kuwakaribisha babu yangu, Gilbert P. Ellis, into the world on Tuesday, Juni 22, 1915, ambayo wakati, wao walikuwa wakiishi katika St. Louis mji. They moved to the city to be closer to his work. Clay mines were located within a couple of blocks of their flat on Magnolia Avenue.

Kama ni kutoka kazi katika migodi ya udongo, mambo ya mazingira, or some other cause, William was stricken with lung problems for six months prior to his premature death on December 4, 1917. Yeye alikuwa tu 40 umri wa miaka.

His obituary was printed in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch on December 5, 1917: Obit ya Wm P Ellis, St. Louis Baada Dispatch, 05 Desemba 1917 Ellis-Aliingia katika raha juu ya Jumanne, Desemba. 4, 1917, katika 11:20 ni katika makazi, 5811 Magnolia Avenue, William P. Ellis, mume mpendwa wa Lena Ellis (nee Johann Peter), mpendwa baba ya Gilbert, mwana wetu mpendwa, ndugu, na mwana-sheria katika umri wa miaka 40 miaka, 4 miezi na 3 siku. Mazishi Ijumaa saa 2:30 jioni kutoka Blederwieden-Dunkmann ya Chapel, 1934 St. Louis Avenue, kwa New Bethlehemu Cemetary. Motor.

Kwa miaka, I thought that William’s lineage traced back through Susan Mustain through to the Plantagenet Kings of Cowardly King John and King Edward III. I recently discovered that I may have traced our lineage through the wrong William H. Ellis. Kwa bahati mbaya, William Ellis is a quite common name in both Virginia and Kentucky. I don’t know if or when I will be able to verify this side of the family back past William P. Ellis and his father, William H. Ellis.

Sources: St. Louis baada ya Dispatch, Desemba 5, 1917, p. 17 and Missouri Death Certificate Database

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