Red Headed Stepchild
(The Barrett family memoir of Navy Life)
by Sophie Ruth Meranski with photos
|
p 49 Mollie Sophie Nov 1936 |
|
November 1936 P-H-I-L-A-D-E-L-P-H-I-A |
|
Especial thanks are due to Creative Commincations of Bloomington MN - Jim ullyot Harvard l962 and his assistant Chris Teigen for rescuing this l931 photo of memoir author Sophie Barrett from fragile photocopy and theft of original 1993. The copy I sent them was underexposed, but they managed to capture adequate light for facial detail. Four photos of Sophie in rickshaws from 1931 seem extant - two in Chefoo in August - one in Peking with Jack's old friend Nemo, who recognized him from a previous visit to Sophie's amazement November 1931 -Jack told her "Nemop will recognize me." and that is exactly what happened and this third photo in a ricksha on a busy Chinese shopping area route that might be Tientsin, Peking, or Shanghai.If any old China hand recognizes landmarks in this photo, comment will be appreciated.-John Barrett |
|
p 49 #1025 Herman Ingalls commanded lighthouse tender ZIZANIA on which Jack Barrett served in Maine September-December 1912. Sophie Meranski Barrett's l923 Mount Holyoke class president Mrs. Marion Lewis Smart used to summer in Bucks Harboard and eventually lived there year round when her husband Vin retired from New Jersey law practice. Marion visited Mrs. Ingalls, who wrote Sophie and sent this letter l970. Lighthouse tenders were named for grasses.Although unrelated to true Asian rice, ZIZANIA is called "wild rice" in northeast United States and is important as food for birds and wildlife and formerly for native Americans.Mrs. Haskell Todd of Belfast Maine wife of TRINITY officer also furnsihed recollections of family experiences in Lighthouse Service. |
|
John Barrett junior made eight visits top Ireland l971-1978 and stayed at sixty acre dairy farm of Loretto Buckley born 1907.The property was occupied by Jack Barrett's great-grandparents John Buckley and Catherine Murphy when censuses were conducted for tax purposes in 1827 and l832. Loretto's brother Ricahrd heard this couple had a family of "seven men and four women." There has be no success in learing of marriages of any of the four women, but Daniel,John and Thomas Buckley came to Massachusetts - Dan to South Boston before 1852- Thomas a l855 and John later to Milford, while their brothers Michael and Jerry had large families in Cork. Michael Buckley Loretto's grandfather appears in 1834 in Templemartin parish records- he lived until l918 and corresponded with Jack Barrett's aunt Minnie Buckley who raised him after the death of his mother 1889. Michael Buckley also had a photo of his second cousin General Michael Lenihan, originally from Hopkinton,Massachusetts, who commanded an Irish batallion from New York in France l9l8. O Mahonys the Lake Castle Lack and Buckleys of Ilford Essex and Buffalso-Blasdell New York were also descendants of Loretto's grandfather Michael of Moskeigh. Another brother Jerry Buckely had eight children, - several went to Middle West USA and lost touch, but a daughter became Mrs. Sheehy and had sons Maurice and Jack of Moskeigh and their brother Jerry whose family are in Wethersfield,Connecticut and California. The aNCESTOR CATHERINE MURPHY WAS BELIEVED A MEMBER of a clan known as "Quarry" Murphys, including James Hallahan of Moskeigh and Kate O Halloran who married her distant cousin Maurice Sheehy of Moskeigh and had six in family. |
|
p 49 Jack Barrett's stepmother was Mary Lane born 1858 probably Portsmouth New Hampshire - family came to MelroseMassachusetts 1886, where she became second wife November 1894 of widower John Robert Barrett. Their children were William Joseph October 24, l895, Mary Frances Feb 11, l898, and Kate probably 1889 (1900?). "Ma's" signature appears faintly in this copy with that of her sister Mrs. Kate Kernan and several of their brothers in these l929 probate papers. Several of the Lane brothers were in the plastering business and were wokring on the Barrett home at 640- East Seventh Street when Sophie Meranski Barrett first visited her in-laws there April 1932 on her return with Jack from China. |
|
From Middlesex Probate East Cambridge: Mary Ann O Farrell Buckley Jack's mother's mother was born 1831 in area six miles north of Bandon probably in Kilbarry,about eighteen miles west of Cork city. She married neighbor Daniel A. Buckley of Moskeigh and came to Boston before birth of their first child John J. Buckley, who became patternmaker at Charlestown navy Yard. The Buckleys appear at Boston Wharf in 1855 state census and moved frequently in St. Augustine Parish South Boston until 1878 they bought a house at 469 East Eight Street, where they remained until they moved to Melrose l884. When Jack's mother diedJune 1889, his father moved to board with the Buckleys at Park and Baxter Streets Melrose, where grandmother encouraged Jack to play her piano. She intended to give him her piano in her 1896 will, but her son's lawyer drafted the will and named John Berchmans Buckley as the recipient. ÉÊe did not correct the mistake, and the piano went to Jack's cousin john Buckley junior though his middle name was not Berchmans.Jack Barrett found and studied theser records with great interest in l960s whenhe did much title search and probate work. |
|
a printer with boston Herald, Robert Joseph Mehegan was son of John Mehegan from Ballyheedy, Ballinhassig Cork and Ellen Barrett, aunt of Jack Barrett's father John Robert Barrett. The printer wrote out bassic early fmily history for his son who visited San Francisco relations in l911 and then married Elvira LaRiviere of Evanston Wyoming, whose father worked on railroad and was descendant of Lafayette's mother.This signature is on probate of Ellen Barett in Cambridge Ma |
[Main|