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.

The Hangman's Ropemaker: The Haymarket Riots

"Pittsburg: Jacob Bupp, of Woods Run, in this city, has written to Sheriff Matson, of Chicago, for the contract for making the ropes with which to hang the condemned Anarchists. Mr. Bupp had made the ropes used in every execution in this county since 1840 and nearly every one used in the State. He lives on Shady avenue, Allegheny, and is about 67 years old."

~ "Ready to Make Ropes," Daily Evening Bulletin (Maysville, Kentucky), 29 September 1887, page 4.  This was the syndicated news article that ran in newspapers across the country.

*This blog post is one in a series of blogs on my famous ancestor, Jacob Bupp, the Hangman's Ropemaker- click the page tab above labeled "The Hangman's Ropemaker" for more information and the blog series*

It was an era of budding unions and anarchy, of Nativism and cultures hating one another, of striking workers and riots.  This was the culture of the late nineteenth century.

Chicago was one of the fastest growing industrial centers of America, and many immigrants (including my husband's maternal ancestors) flocked to the city for jobs.  However, there was also a growing dissatisfaction between workers, as they worked very long hours for little pay and had nearly nothing to show for it.  As a result, many joined the fledgling labor movements and embraced the idea of anarchy, which unsettled many of those in power.

In Chicago in 1886, the Noble Order of the Knights of Labor, one of the first powerful unions in the United States, were involved in a strike at the McCormick Reaper Company that was organized in hopes of forcing the company to adopt an eight hour work day.  The strike began in March and looked to be a long one. On 3 May 1886, strikebreakers trying to get to work were attacked by a mob of striking workers, and the police and Pinkerton guards assigned to protect the strikebreakers answered the violence by opening fire, killing six people and injuring many more.

The next day, a rally was organized at Haymarket Square in Chicago, Illinois that protested the brutal actions taken by the police. Several thousand people showed up.  A bomb was thrown at police while they were arriving to disperse the crowd and killed 8 people, seven officers and one civilian.  One of the policemen killed was a man by the name of Matthias J. Degan

Headline from the first page of the New-York Tribune, New York, on 5 May 1886 
Source:Library of Congress, via Chronicling America

In the days after the riots, the government and the press, WASPs in particular, were looking for someone to blame.  Scores of foreign-born radicals and labor organizers were rounded up in the aftermath of the Riot and bombing, the result of a national wave of xenophobia.

Eight men ultimately were charged with the murder of Matthias J. Degan on 27 May 1886; Albert Parsons, August Spies, Michael Schwab, Oscar Neebe, Samuel Fielden, Adolph Fischer, George Engle and Louis Lingg.  These were the heads of the anarchy and labor movements in the Chicago area.

The trial opened 21 June 1886 and Judge Joseph E. Gary presided over the case.  Illinois state's attorney Julius S. Grinell was the prosecutor.  The men charged had a team of lawyers; Moses Salomon, Sigismund Zeisler, William P. Black and William A. Foster.  Jury selection took over three weeks, went through 981 potential jurors, and the final twelve were chose amidst accusations that the judge used his influence to make sure none of the jurors worked in a factory.

The state's evidence was that the men had conspired to commit anarchy and conspired to attack the police at the Haymarket riot, but had poor witnesses that testified to this conspiracy.  The defense argued that the bomb thrower was never identified, and that the men had the right to freedom of speech and assembly, as granted by the First Amendment.

However, Judge Gary's ruling in the case was the final blow.  He ruled that if the jury found the men guilty beyond all reasonable doubt of conspiracy to attack police officers and overthrow the government, that the jury could also find the men guilty beyond all reasonable dobt of murder, despite any evidence to the contrary.  On 20 August 1886 the jury did just that, having been extremely biased towards the men.  All men were found guilty of murder, and seven were sentenced to death by hanging.  Oscar Neebe was sentenced to 15 years.

Engraving from Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper of the seven anarchists sentenced to die. An eighth defendant, Oscar Neebe, not shown here, was sentenced to 15 years in prison.  Created 1886.  Photo in the public domain, found on Wikipedia.

On 14 September 1887, the Illinois Supreme Court upheld the sentence handed down by the Superior Court of Cook County, cutting off any jurisdictional reprieve for the seven from their execution, as the United States Supreme Court refused to intervene, citing that no principle of federal law was involved.

In late September of 1887, Jacob Bupp was named in an article that ran in syndication as having written the sheriff in regards to the ropes needed for the hangings, as the quote at the beginning of this blog stated.  No less than 30 newspapers across the country ran with that news article, although that number could be even higher, since not every newspaper has been digitized for reference.  However, according to an interview given in later years, Jacob stated:

"I had the contract to make the ropes to hang the Chicago Anarchists, but I was too afraid to do so and threw up the job.  It was stated that some old seaman did the work.  His name was never given.  I suppose it will never be known, and I guess it will be healthier for the man if it is not." ("Ropes for the Hangmen: The Art of Making Them Explained by an Expert," Passaic Daily Herald (Passaic, New Jersey), 4 February 1892, page 1)

It can be inferred that Jacob received death threats from some of the Anarchists' followers.  Given the volatile nature of the atmosphere in Chicago in that day and age, and the fact that the syndicated news article with his name and address in it ran throughout the county, it is not surprising that Jacob Bupp could have been receiving more than his fair share of threats.  However, a few newspaper accounts later in his life erroneously stated he did make the ropes.

On 10 November 1887, on the eve of the hangings, Louis Lingg committed suicide in his jail cell by putting a detonator cap in his mouth and lighting the fuse.   It had been smuggled in to him.  The commotion that followed resulted in Fielden and Schwa having their executions commuted to life sentences that evening by Illinois governor Richard J. Oglesby. 

On 11 November 1887,  the four men still condemned, Spies, Parsons, Fischer and Engle, were hanged at the Cook County Jail yard on a scaffold that was recently enlarged to hang the four men.  A gaggle of the press were admitted the night before the hanging to report on the night proceedings.  The jail and surrounding Chicago streets and businesses were heavily armed by police and military companies, for fear of a last minute storming by labor groups to free the men.

The Times (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) reported the next day that:

"The Anarchists never quavered.  They breathed anarchy to the last.  Death apparently had no terrors for them."

Albert Parsons' wife, Lucy, made a stir by getting herself arrested as her husband was hanged by trying to break into the jail to witness his execution.

In June 1893, Illinois Governor John Peter Altgeld pardoned Neebe, Fielden and Schwab, committing political suicide, as while sentiment of the common people was that the Anarchists did not get a fair shake at their trial, most of the political machine of Illinois saw it as a strike against them.

Sources Used and Referenced
"The Anarchists' Case," The Saint Paul Globe (Saint Paul, Minnesota), 29 September 1887, page 1; online images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 17 September 2017).

"Anarchists Hanged," The Times (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania), 12 November 1887, pages 1-2; online images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 2 July 2019).

Bienen, Leigh. "The Haymarket Affair (1886)," Homicide in Chicago 1870-1930, 2012 (http://homicide.northwestern.edu/ : accessed 3 July 2019).

Christianson, Stephen G. "Haymarket Trial: 1886," Great American Trials (Canton, Michigan: Visible Ink Press, 2003), 194-198.

Davis, Kenneth C.  "What happened at Haymarket Square?", Don't Know Much About History: Everything You Need to Know About American History But Never Learned (New York: HarperCollins, 2003), 274-275.

"Expert in Nooses," The Cincinnati Enquirer (Cincinnati, Ohio), 10 April 1890, page 1; online images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 25 September 2017).

"Fabricant De Cordes Pour Pendaison," Le Petit Parisien (Paris, France), 17 October 1887, page 2; online images, Gallica (http://gallica.bnf.fr/accueil/ : accessed 21 September 2017), Presses et revues; citing National Library of France.

"Fated Seven: Appeal of the Chicago Anarchists Denied," The San Francisco Examiner (San Francisco, California), 15 September 1887, page 1; online images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 3 July 2019).

Green, James. Death in the Haymarket: A Story of Chicago, the Labor Movement, and the Bombing That Divided Gilded Age America (New York: Anchor Books, 2006).

"History of the Week," The Western Appeal (Saint Paul, Minnesota), 8 October 1887, page 3; online images, Chronicling America (http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/ : accessed 21 September 2017), Historic American Newspapers; citing Minnesota Historical Society, Saint Paul, Minnesota.

History.com Staff, "Haymarket Square Riot," History, 2009; A+E Networks, History.com (http://www.history.com/topics/haymarket-riot : accessed 11 October 2017).

"To Make Rope for the Anarchists," Harrisburg Daily Independent (Harrisburg, Pennsylvania), 28 September 1887, page 1; online images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 18 September 2017).

"Only a Few Hours Away," The Boston Globe (Boston, Massachusetts), 2 April 1891, page 1; online images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 3 July 2019).

"Policemen Killed By Bombs," New-York Tribune (New York, New York), 5 May 1886, page 1; online images, Chronicling America (https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov : accessed 3 July 2019), Historic American Newspapers.

"Quartet Hanged Today: Bopp, the Expert Choker-Maker, Provides the Hemp," The Boston Globe (Boston, Massachusetts), 9 April 1890, page 7; online images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 3 July 2019).

"Ready to Make Ropes," Daily Evening Bulletin (Maysville, Kentucky), 29 September 1887, page 4; online images, Chronicling America (http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/ : accessed 21 September 2017), Historic American Newspapers; citing University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY.

"Rope for Anarchists," Carlisle Weekly Herald (Carlisle, Pennsylvania), 29 September 1887, page 1; online images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 19 September 2017).

"Rope to Hang the Anarchists," Buffalo Evening News (Buffalo, New York), 28 September 1887, page 5; online images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 18 September 2017).

"Ropes for the Hangmen: The Art of Making Them Explained by an Expert," Passaic Daily Herald (Passaic, New Jersey), 4 February 1892, page 1; online images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 8 June 2019).

"Wants to Make the Ropes," The Repository (Canton, Ohio), 29 September 1887, page 7; online images, Genealogy Bank (www.genealogybank.com : accessed 21 September 2017).

"Una industria original," La Crónica (Huesca, Spain), 2 November 1887, p 4; online images, Bilioteca Nacional De Espana (http://www.bne.es/es/Inicio/ : accessed 21 September 2017), Hemeroteca Digital.

A Year Down Yonder: 2001 Newbery Award Winner

The beginning of March 2014 I started a new undertaking: reading every single Newbery Medal Winner book. A number of them I have read in the past, but I am reading them with fresh eyes,and reviewing them for others. I am not reading them in order, as some will require some effort on my part to find them all.  Want to keep track of which books I read?  Check them out at Confessions of a Wannabe Reader!

Cover of the book - Used for illustration purposes only under the fair use clause

Sometimes I binge read and then remember to write up reviews on several books at once, or I write up reviews on sheets of paper and then have to find time to type them into the computer, so forgive the multiple posts today.

Mary Alice Dowdel: The City Gal

Mary Alice Dowdel used to spend just her summers at her grandmother's house in southern Illinois, but the year is 1937 and the Great Depression has hit her family hard.  Her parents are boarding in a single room, her brother is working out West, and the fifteen-year-old is sent to live with her grandmother for the entire year.  She is not happy with the prospect, as her grandmother lives in a very rural area that is very hick to the Chicago girl.  Her grandmother is tough as nails and very no nonsense, and Mary Alice dreads the prospect of living with her.  But that changes as Mary Alice gets to know her grandmother and warms up to some of the townsfolk.   She learns that maybe the year spent "down yonder" wasn't so bad.

I had read this story before and thoroughly enjoyed it when I read it.  A Year Down Yonder is the middle book of a trilogy by Richard Peck, who also wrote the book Strays Like Us (another book I really enjoyed reading).  It is the heartwarming tale of a teen who learns that her seemingly backwards grandmother isn't as backwards as she seems.  It is also a tale about coming home.  This book, which seems to be written for teenagers instead of children, is an awesome story of remembering a stage in childhood for a young woman.  Some of it reminded me of elements of the book Belle Prater's Boy, particularly the revealing of some of the townsfolk's secrets and the way that some of the hoity-toity elite of the town try to stay away from the country bumpkins.  It is a very good read.