06 July 2012

So Crazy It Just Might Be True

Just as you shouldn't accept a profile without looking at the records,
you shouldn't dismiss a profile without looking at the records.
At first glance a timeline may seem unlikely
but if there are records to back it up...
(Comments after the jump.)

 ELLA MAY GILLESPIE
 Birth
 14 May 1894 in Franklin, Warren, Ohio
 Marriage #1
 29 Nov 1909 in Butler, Ohio to Edward Chamberlain
 Residence
 1910 Middletown, Butler, Ohio
 Marriage #2
 12 Feb 1914 in Butler, Ohio to Edward Chamberlain
 Marriage #3
 24 Sep 1917 in Butler, Ohio to Alfred Charles Walker
 Residence
 1920 Middletown, Butler, Ohio
 Marriage #4
 23 Jan 1922 in Butler, Ohio to Bradley Robinson
 Residence
 1930 Middletown, Butler, Ohio

Four marriages for a woman early in the 20th century automatically raises red flags. Can this be true or is this a case of two, or more, women with the same name?
There is a record of each marriage AND, luckily, each of the records includes the names of Ella's parents. All of these links go to pages on FamilySearch.org.

Marriage #1
Marriage #2
Marriage #3
Marriage #4

If the records did not include her parents' names I would be hesitant to accept that all the records were for the same Ella Gillespie.
Despite all the posts on this blog about crazy trees, don't ignore any leads before looking at the records.

NOTE: This is a distant relation of mine. If you find any mistakes or have additional information, especially after 1930, please let me know. Thanks!


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2 comments:

  1. Nice post! Sometimes things can seem unlikely, but the records show us the truth of the matter.

    I was curious: The marriage records for the first two weddings had Jacob Chamberlain as the father, and one had Dena Decker for the mother, and the other had Christina Decker for the mother. I could see Dena being possible as a nickname for Christina. So I'm guessing that she married the same man twice in a row. Have you found record of a divorce/annulment between the two marriage dates?

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    Replies
    1. Thanks AIA! I have not found a divorce or annulment. In the 1910 Census, April 15th, she's living with her parents. At the end of July 1910 she gave birth but the baby died a day later. The OH divorce records don't start until 1962 and there's nothing in probate records on FS. Haven't gone offline yet. She's very distant (2nd cousin 3 times removed) but it looks like an interesting story.

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