Wednesday's Child - Alma Mary Speck

Alma Mary Speck was the daughter of Frank Speck and Elisabeth Linneman Speck and would have been the younger sister of my grandmother, Agnes Speck. Alma was born in Monessen, Pennsylvania and died just one day later. The cause of death was "premature infant" and she was buried that same day at Grandview Cemetery in Monessen.

I never knew of Alma until the Pennsylvania death certificates from 1906-1963 were made available on Ancestry.com. As most of us did when these records were released, I searched for my surnames that had lived in Pennsylvania to see if I could find death certificates for collateral relatives or ancestors whose date of death was unknown. Through these searches I have found several children that died young between census years, and had no other records of their short lives.

I asked my father about Alma and he was not aware that Frank and Elizabeth had another child. We visited Grandview Cemetery in 2007 and found the tombstone for Alma's father, Frank Speck, but did not see anything for Alma. She many have been buried in another location or did not have a headstone.

Besides finding another ancestor, I was able to learn a few more things about the Speck family from this record. They were living at 223 Alliquipa Street at the time of her death. In addition, the name Alma Mary may provide some clues for family names. Their other children seem to have been named after family members ... Agnes (Frank's mother) Elizabeth (Elizabeth and her mother Elizabeth Barbara) and Frank (Frank) Rudolph (Elizabeth's two brothers who died as children). I know the names of Elizabeth's siblings and parents, so Mary may be from her side (Maria was Elizabeth's middle name and her grandmother's name). Alma could possibly be from Frank's side of the family, as I do not know much about his family or where they were from in Germany. Maybe Alma was Frank's sister or grandmother??  Another possible clue to add to the mysterious Speck family.

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SOURCE:

Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania Death Certificates, 1906-1963, No. 73103, Alma Mary Speck, 1 July 1916; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 30 March 2015); citing Pennsylvania (state). Death certificates, 1906-1963. Series 11.90 (1,905 cartons). Records of the Pennsylvania Department of Health, Record Group 11. Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

Wednesday's Child - George Cubbage

Another blogging prompt used by genealogy bloggers is "Wednesday's Child" to post photos of gravestones of children. While sad, it can ensure they are remembered, and it can give life to the stories of these children (if they are known). Today's post is about George Cubbage.



George Cubbage was my grandfather's brother and the youngest of the eight children born to Charles and Maine (Swank) Cubbage. George was born in 1919 in Monessen, PA and died on December 25, 1921 at home in Monessen after having diphtheria and pneumonia. George's older sister, Leah Cubbage, had died just a year earlier in 1920. Next week I will post the heart-wrenching letter from his mother Maine to her sister about George's illness and death. George is buried in Braddock Cemetery in North Braddock, PA. It was also known as Old Braddock Cemetery and Russell Cemetery. He is buried alongside of his parents Charles and Maine, his sister Leah, his uncle William Arthur Speedy, and his first cousin once removed William H. Burd.

Wednesday's Child - Leah Cubbage

Another blogging prompt used by genealogy bloggers is "Wednesday's Child" to post photos of gravestones of children. While sad, it can ensure they are remembered, and it can give life to the stories of these children (if they are known). My first Wednesday's child is Leah Cubbage. Leah was my grandfather's older sister. She was the third child of Charles and Maine (Swank) Cubbage. Leah was born in 1906 in Swissvale, PA and died in 1920 in Monessen, PA. I don't have (yet) Leah's birth or death dates or cause of death. Family stories passed down are that she fell on the ice and hit her head and that her appendix ruptured. She was survived by her parents and seven siblings between ages 1 and 16. Leah is buried in Braddock Cemetery in North Braddock, PA. It was also known as Old Braddock Cemetery and Russell Cemetery. She is buried alongside of her parents Charles and Maine, her brother George, her uncle William Arthur Speedy, and her first cousin once removed William H. Burd.