Chasing the Elusive: Marcus Fielding

I recently have been digging into my Fielding family tree.  My grandpap's mother was Birdie Boggs Fielding, the daughter of James Fielding and Sarah Virginia MacDonald.  James Fielding filed for a Civil War pension file, which I recently received, and boy are there a bunch of neat things in it that I will hopefully get into when I finish processing it (there are over 156 images all told in the file.... so I am working on it).

Upon receiving the file and starting the processing of all of the documents, I realized that my Fielding branch isn't as fleshed out as the three other branches of my tree are.... I have a vast collection of information on the rest of my first great-grandparents' families (Woods, Waldspurgers, and Vautiers) but not so much on the Fieldings.... I am setting out to rectify this now.

That being said, I hit my first brick wall in my great-grandmother's slightly elder brother, Marcus MacDonald Fielding....  I know where he was born and even where he died, but so much of his life seems to be missing, so I figured he's be my first Fielding piece to appear on this blog.  And of course, he's a Chasing the Elusive!

Marcus MacDonald "Mark" Fielding was born 2 December 1878 in what was then Allegheny City, Pennsylvania (now Pittsburgh's North Side).  He was the youngest son born to James Fielding and Sarah Virginia MacDonald and the second youngest of their seven children.  His year of birth is one of the first points that is confusing, as the 1880 census and 1900 census, as well as the voucher circular questions found in James Fielding's pension file that were filled out by James himself all list Marcus' year of birth as being 1878, but any document that Marcus had a chance to fill out in later life has his year of birth as 1879.  Perhaps he thought he was a year younger than he actually was?

Marcus lived with his family, mostly in Allegheny City (although James seems to have moved around a bit himself, as I am working those details out at the moment), until about 21 years of age, according to census records, as he's enumerated with the family in both the 1880 and 1900 US Federal Censuses.

After the 1900 census, he disappears until 1918, when he filled out a draft card in Chicago, Illinois for World War One.   On 12 September 1918, he gave his place of residence as 2358 Indiana Avenue, Flat 608 in Chicago.  This same document lists his place of employment as the Ordnance Department of the Standard Steel Car Company in Hammond, Indiana, where he worked as a machinist. On the 1920 census enumeration, he's listed as living as a roomer at 1570 Van Buren Street and employed as a machinist, but out of work.

He then disappears again until 1930.  On 19 April 1930, he's enumerated on the 1930 Federal census as living at 143 West 14th Street in Los Angeles, California, and working as a tile setter.  What's interesting is he's also listed as divorced, but no marriage can be found for him previous to 1930 (nor do I know where to look for one).

There is one marriage for him I was able to find.  On 25 November 1939, at the age of 60 (or 59, depending on what year is correct on his birth record) he married a sixty-three-year-old widow by the name of Lillie Bea Millheisler Alderson in Los Angeles, California.  The couple was married by Harold E. Carlson, a Methodist minister, and the witnesses were Hilda Sherman of 1565 West 14th Street and Signa Carlson of 1575 West 14th Street, both in Los Angeles.   This marriage was short-lived though, as local newspapers reported on 6 January 1940, just over a full month after marrying, that Lillie had filed for divorce.  By 8 February 1940, the divorce was granted.  It is not known why the couple divorced, as the records have not yet been located.

Three months later, Mark, as he was known, was working at the Tanbark Flats Forest Experiment Station Dry Lake Branch Camp in San Jose Township, Los Angeles County, California as a tile cutter and stonemason, as enumerated in the 1940 Census.

The next and final document I have on him is his death record, which indicates he died at Rancho Los Amigos Hospital in Hondo, Los Angeles County, California on 11 June 1952 and was cremated at the Los Angles County Crematory fifteen days later.  No cause of death is noted on the certificate, which is interesting.

Here is what I can't find for him:

Any record of him on the 1910 Federal Censuses... and I have tried searching different census sites - because I don't know WHERE he lived, I can't eliminate anything at this point.

A record for his first marriage (which had to have happened after 1920).

His World War Two draft card registration... he would have been old enough for the "Old Man's Draft", but no record can be found as of yet on Ancestry or Fold 3.

Any indication as to why he moved across the country, although I have a hunch he went to California to look for work during the Depression, or right before it... perhaps he was running from a bad marriage too?

Right now, he's just there.  I am hoping as I flesh out information on his siblings I will find a breadcrumb that will lead me back to him, but at the moment that's all I have...... So he's an Elusive I need to chase!

Sources Used
"1900 United States Federal Census," database with images, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : accessed 27 July 2016), Year: 1900, Census Place: Allegheny Ward 10 Allegheny, Pennsylvania, Roll: 1357, Page: 3A, Enumeration District: 0081, and FHL microfilm: 1241357; citing United States of America, Bureau of the Census. Twelfth Census of the United States, 1900. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1900. T623, 1854 rolls.

"1920 United States Federal Census," database with images, Ancestry.com Operations, Inc, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : accessed 26 February 2020), Entry for Mark Fielding, Year: 1920, Census Place: Chicago Ward 18 Cook (Chicago), Illinois, Roll: T625_329, Page: 24B, and Enumeration District: 1054; citing Fourteenth Census of the United States, 1920. (NARA microfilm publication T625, 2076 rolls). Records of the Bureau of the Census, Record Group 29. National Archives, Washington, D.C.

"1940 United States Federal Census," database with images, Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : accessed 26 February 2020), Entry for Mark Fielding (indexed as Ficlding), Year: 1940, Census Place: San Jose Los Angeles, California, Roll: m-t0627-00255, Page: 3A, and Enumeration District: 19-748; citing United States of America, Bureau of the Census. Sixteenth Census of the United States, 1940. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1940. T627, 4,643 rolls.

Ancestry.com and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, "1880 United States Federal Census," database online with images, Ancestry.com Operation, Inc., Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : accessed 27 July 2016), Year: 1880, Census Place: Allegheny Allegheny, Pennsylvania, Roll: 1086, Family History Film: 1255086, Page: 132B, Enumeration District: 006, and Image: 0269; citing Tenth Census of the United States, 1880. (NARA microfilm publication T9, 1,454 rolls). Records of the Bureau of the Census, Record Group 29. National Archives, Washington, D.C.

"California, County Birth and Death Records, 1800-1994," database online with images, FamilySearch (www.familysearch.org : accessed 26 February 2020), Entry for Mark Fielding, d. 11 June 1952, cn 12141; referencing Death certificates, Los Angeles County, California, nos. 10950-12576, 1952; citing California State Archives, Sacramento.

"California, County Marriages, 1850-1952," database online with images, FamilySearch (www.familysearch.org : accessed 26 February 2020), Entry for mark Fielding and Lillie Bea Alderson, 25 Nov 1939, cn 17086, book 1633, page 290, Los Angeles County (California); FHL microfilm 2,114,343; citing county courthouses, California.

"California, Death Index, 1940-1997," index online, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : accessed 25 February 2020), Entry for Mark Fielding, born 2 Dec 1879, died 11 Jun 1952, Los Angeles County; citing State of California. California Death Index, 1940-1997. Sacramento, CA, USA: State of California Department of Health Services, Center for Health Statistics.

"Divorces Filed," The Los Angeles Times (Los Angeles, California), 6 January 1940, page 15; online images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 26 February 2020).

"Divorces Granted," The Los Angeles Times (Los Angeles, California), 8 February 1940, page 37; online images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 26 February 2020).

"Intention to Marry," The Los Angeles Times (Los Angeles, California), 21 November 1939, page 15; online images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 26 February 2020).

Voucher circular questions for James Fielding, certificate number 11390, dated 5 July 1898; Scanned copy provided in the pension file for James Fielding sent via electronic file to Kelley Wood-Davis 29 Jan 2020 by Deidre Erin Denton, genealogist; citing Pension application files based upon service in the Civil War and Spanish-American War ("Civil War and Later"); Records Relating to Pension and Bounty-Land Claims 1773-1942, Records of the Department of Veterans Affairs, RG 15; 2,807 rolls, National Archives, Washington, D.C.

"U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007," database, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : accessed 25 February 2020), Entry for Mark Fielding, born 2 Dec 1879; SSN 568186575; Parents James Fielding and Sarah V. MacDonald; citing Social Security Applications and Claims, 1936-2007.

"U.S., World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918," database with images, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : accessed 26 February 2020), Entry for Marcus Fielding, born 2 Dec 1879; Registration State: Illinois; Registration County: Cook; Roll: 1452382; Draft Board: 02; citing United States, Selective Service System. "World War I Selective Service System Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918". Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration. M1509, 4,582 rolls. Imaged from Family History Library microfilm.