99 Years Ago Today…

Today is my grandpa John Regan’s 99th birthday. He was born in Tara Township on July 23, 1913, the only child of Neil and Annie Regan. He was baptized John William at St. Malachy Catholic Church on August 10th.

John William Regan

John lived the first eight years of his life in Tara with his mom and dad.

Neil, Annie, and John – 1915

John must have had fun helping his dad on the farm.

John and Neil on the farm in Tara

John also kept Annie company.

Annie and John on the farm in Tara

In 1921 the family of three moved into Clontarf, and age eight-years-old John finally started school.

John – about 1921

In Clontarf my grandpa was known as “Red” Regan for his hair.  John’s life-long love for cars and driving began at a young age.

Beginning with the 1932-33 school year, upperclassmen from Clontarf went to Benson High School. Grandpa drove a car full of Clontarf students to and from class in Benson every day. Gerald Regan, Bob Mikkelson, Florence and Gertrude Reardon were his regular passengers.

1933 High School Graduation

After graduation, Grandpa worked at Bruno Perrizo’s. Here he is in his apron with childhood pal and fellow Clontarf resident Leo Molony.

Leo Molony and John Regan 1935

My grandpa moved to Minneapolis in the late 1930s.

It is strange to think of my grandpa’s 99th birthday because he didn’t even live to see his 58th. Since I never knew my grandpa, I am thankful to the relatives and old friends we have met in Clontarf who have generously shared their memories of Red.

Happy Birthday, Grandpa.

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Anne Says: An April Round-Up

I want to make certain everyone sees Anne’s great comments, so from time to time I will compile her thoughts in a new feature…”Anne Says”.

On April 8th, Anne checked in with some local news. I bet the cake was wonderful:

Beth with one of her fabulous creations - visit http://www.beth'scakes.biz

Mary (Reardon) Langan ordered a cake from Beth for her coffee party Tues. March 13, 2012, and Beth made it that morning and delivered it to Mary in Benson at noon, and it was cut and served by 3 pm. Red velvet cake with white frosting and a shamrock in green on it! Mary’s guests were Mary (Manney) Chamberlain, Geneva (Ascheman) Cameron, Donna (Ascheman) Chevalier, Gert (Collins) Bouta, Donna (Fennell) Gode, Cele (Becker) Kent, Clara (Bouta) Brandt, Bonnie (Benham) Smith, and “yours truely”…. Thanks Mary L. We all enjoyed the afternoon. See Pg 3 of the Swift County Monitor this week! (April 4, 2012)
P.S. Bonnie & Ray have a new grandson from their son Justin and wife Lindsay. Nolan Thomas Smith was born Sat. March 24 at RIce Hospital in Willmar. (Justin has an older brother, Thomas). Bonnie’s mother, Bernice (Fennell) Benham lives in Benson. Ray’s mother, Laverne Bouta Smith, passed away just a few years ago.

Also on April 8th, Anne shared a bit about the priests of Clontarf and promises more in the future:

Fr. King was priest at St. Malachy in Clontarf for 33 years. I’ll find his obit and photo for June, okay? Fr. Cooney had grandparents buried at Clontarf so when he was assigned here, he got into the genealogy aspect of things and started planning our 90th celebration (1968) and then the 100th anniversary celebration (1978). Both priests are buried here at Clontarf.

In response to my post on the Reardon family (click here for original entry):

Great idea! More people/families should have their photo taken with the church in the background! I love it! Even after a baptism!….Speaking of babies, Ryan James Beyer was born recently and his mommie’s dad is the son of Marge (Reardon) Klucas.

And lastly, Anne’s reply to a question as to the age of the Clontarf depot. (View the original post here):

Clontarf Depot

Good question! You will see a shadow of a tall structure cast onto the depot…that was another elevator just to the south of the depot! Wayne Klucas answered my question about the two elevators when he said Peavey Elevator (the shadow caster) bought out the other (Cargill or Northwestern by name) and had it moved closer and attached to the Peavey. When the Elevator had spontaneous combustion occur, and the Elevator burned to the ground Sept. 28, 1948, it was a huge fire since it was actually two structures on fire. It was never rebuilt… Marge (Reardon) Klucas, Mel’s wife, told me there was a third smaller elevator to the north of the crossing at Clontarf and it was called the Monarch Elevator. I’m hoping to come across some documentation somewhere sometime that validates this.. Wayne didn’t give me a year when the two elevators were joined, but he remembered watching it, I believe. Wayne just passed away 3 yrs. ago or so. I’ll ask around to see if someone can answer your question. When we were gathering pictures for the 125th celebration here in 2003, we found a picture of the two elevators from the opposite angle(!) in Anna Shinnick’s collection (loaned to us by Tom Connolly’s family).We also have an aerial shot of the town of Clontarf from an airplane(!) and we can see the cattle pen where cattle were held till the train came to take them to market.. May I ask who were your relatives?

Thanks Anne!

Return to the Reardon Family

Jim from Minneapolis, a reader of the blog with a connection to the Reardon family, sent me a copy of a typed history of the Henry Reardon family. The history was written by Ada E. Johnson. At the end of the five-page document is this note:

Written by Ada E. Johnson, I am now 90 years old and wrote this history at the request of my Grandchildren and great Grandchildren and I have at this time 28 Great Grand Children, Eleven Grandchildren and Two Great great grandchildren and two more in a couple of months.

Ada’s history is valuable, especially for its details of Henry and Bridget Reardon’s early story prior to arriving in Tara Township. We have touched on their story in previous posts on the blog. Jim’s grandfather had a  sister who married into the Reardon family. This branch of the family is addressed in a later addition to the history made by E.B.:

John, born in 1856, was married to Catherine Hogan and they had a son James born in Tara township in 1883. James married Catherine McDonough in 1912 at St. Marys Catholic Church in St. Paul. They had 6 children. Their first, a son Raymond died of diphtheria at 15 mo. Five daughters followed: Gertrude, Florence, Rose, Marjorie, and Eleanor. All were born and raised in Clontarf.

John died in 1934–James died in 1963. Both are buried in the family plot in St. Malachy’s cemetery, Clontarf, Mn. John’s brother Robert and James’ son Raymond are buried beside them.

Catherine “Kate” McDonough Reardon doesn’t get much attention in those paragraphs, but that’s OK…Jim sent some pictures!

Catherine McDonough and James Reardon wedding - 1912

K

Kate and James were married at St. Mary’s Catholic Church in St. Paul, Minnesota on September 3, 1912. The couple is seated in the center with the bride’s brother George McDonough on the left and Irene Reardon on the right.

Raymond Reardon - 1914

The couple’s first-born and only son, Raymond died of diphtheria at fifteen months. According to Jim, the family’s home was quarantined during the illness and James’ aunt Mary Donovan came to prepare the baby’s body for burial. Only Mary, Kate, and James were present at the burial.  Diphtheria was highly contagious, so people must have kept their distance until the incubation period was over.

Kate and James lived at the Jack Kent (also known as “Lockwood”, in Tara?) place before moving to the Hurley place (in Clontarf?). Apparently, James’ father John Reardon lived with the couple for a time – click here to read John Reardon’s obituary. I wonder where in Clontarf this photo of Kate was taken?

Kate Reardon - 1937 - Clontarf

When I get to the Swift County Museum in April, I will look up a few more Reardon obits, so I can find out some details on James and Kate’s lives.

A Photograph from Clontarf – 1920

We have two winners for the latest drawing here at www.clontarfhistory.com.  They have been notified by email and will receive their t-shirts soon.  The remaining Prairie Pub t-shirts are going fast…any ideas for a new Clontarf t-shirt design?  Does anyone out there do screen printing?  Please leave a comment and let me know…I would love to have new Clontarf shirts printed!

Jim from Minneapolis sent in a photograph of his grandfather’s sister, Kate McDonough Reardon taken in Clontarf in 1920.  Here’s the photo:

Kate McDonough Reardon - Clontarf - 1920

Here’s what Jim wrote:

Hi Clontarf Historians,

In my grandpa’s photo collection was this picture of his sister, Kate/Catherine Reardon (nee McDonough) who lived for a time in Clontarf along with her brother George McDonough I believe.  They worked for some local family there.

Here’s an excerpt from a family history about her:

“She acquired a job as a hired girl for Kate Tuske.  It was at this job she met James Reardon. They were married 9-3-12.”

The photo is yours to keep for your archive.  If you happen to know the location in the background, feel free to let me know.  If you happen to spot any other photos regarding these folks, I’d love to hear from you.

Best wishes,

Jim

Minneapolis

Can we help Jim out?  I know there are lots of Reardons out there, but does anyone know who Kate Tuske was?  I don’t recognize that name.  Does the location of this picture look familiar to anyone?

Are James and Kate Reardon the ones who lived in the old jail building right after they were married?

Have a great weekend!

 

Altar Boys: Corrections & Additions

I heard from several readers about the identity of the altar boys pictured below (you may also want to check out the earlier post here.)

 

Altar Boys, 1920

This is how the individuals were previously identified:

Father Patrick Kenney at very back

Back row: Melvin Klucas, unknown, Howard Regan, Robert Reardon (between two rows)

Middle row: Lewis Fennell, Clarence Hargreaves

Front row: ? Flynn, Donald Reynolds, Richard McMahon

Right off the bat, a few of you commented that Melvin Klucas was incorrect as he didn’t become Catholic until he married, and besides was only about five-years-old in 1920 (per Bob Klucas and others.)  Now that altar boy is unknown…could it be Melvin Daniel?

A Clontarf insider, who prefers to remain anonymous, thought the next boy in the back was a McCarthy (Joseph, Emmet, or John perhaps?), and agreed with Howard Regan and Robert “Bud” Reardon.

Next row, I believe everyone was OK with Lewis Fennell, but it was believed that Clarence Hargreaves was too young in 1920, but it could be an older brother (Leonard?).

Regarding the Flynn boy in the front row, I heard from Linda who is researching her husband’s Flynn roots, and she said that possibly it is Jeremiah Flynn.  There was some disagreement with Donald Reynolds (too young), and it was suggested that the middle boy in the front could be either Fred or Walter “Frenchie” Chevalier.  There was universal approval on the identity of Richard McMahon.

There you have it.  Any thoughts in light of the new information? We’ve never heard from any McCarthy or Hargreaves descendants with roots in Clontarf…

 

Altar Boys Identified and Shopping in Clontarf

Altar Boys

No one had anything to say about the altar boy photo from last time, so here it is again, this time with most of the boys identified…

St. Malachy Altar Boys 1920

Father Patrick Kenney at very back

Back row: Melvin Klucas, unknown, Howard Regan, Robert Reardon (between two rows)

Middle row: Lewis Fennell, Clarence Hargreaves

Front row: ? Flynn, Donald Reynolds, Richard McMahon

We are only missing the identity of the boy second from the left in the back row, and the first name of the Flynn boy in the front.  Any ideas?

From what I have heard, Father Kenney was a popular priest in Clontarf.  Any stories about him?  Please share by leaving a comment/reply.

McDermott General Store: November 1883

Just have a couple of pages from the November 1883 store ledger.  Let’s see what who was shopping…

November 5th

• Priest Safleur: $2.15 for coffee, tea, sugar, and two stove pipes (.40)
• John Gallagher: stocked up on some staples, including tea, coffee, matches, soap, nails, tobacco and then came back a bit later for 5 yards of denim (.60) and 4 skein of yarn (.48)
• John Regan:  sold Mr. McDermott $4.05 worth of butter and received cash back
• Mrs. James McGeary: lantern globe (.20), 2 yards blue denim (.40), 2 yards shirting (.28), 3 yards sheeting (.27), and thread (.05)
• James Kent: sugar (1.00) and can of tea (.65)
• William Duggan: 8 yards sheeting (.80), 3-1/2 yards flannel (.63), thread (.05), pins (.05), and elastic (.05)

November 8th

• Mrs. John Casey: sugar (.50), 2# currants (.20), matches (.10), salt (.10), and nails (.10)
• Industrial School: 4 dozen eggs (.80)
• John Regan: sugar (1.00), kerosene oil (.30), Japanese tea (.45), 5# nails (.25), 4# prunes (.40)
• John Regan, put on James Kent’s account: 2# nails (.10)

McDermott paid out about 12-1/2 cents per dozen eggs (see earlier post) and it looks like he charged the folks at the Industrial School 20-cents per dozen.

A fair amount of sewing would be done by Mrs. McGeary and Mrs. Duggan.  I didn’t realize elastic had been invented by 1883.  What do you suppose Mrs. Duggan was making with all that sheeting?

Anything stand out to you about these purchases?

 

I will get back to the family histories in upcoming posts.  Let me know if you have any suggestions for information you would like featured on the blog.

 

Remember to add your memories of the Clontarf Club
by clicking here and leaving a comment/reply!

First Communion 1929 – or is it?

August 4, 1929 First Communion Clontarf, MN (click to enlarge)

The 1929 First Communion at St. Malachy’s in Clontarf took place less than three months before Black Tuesday, the day the stock market crashed and the Great Depression began.  The 1920s had already been a tough decade for farmers and farming communities throughout the Midwest, but things were about to become even more difficult.

This photo is dated 1929, but I am not convinced that is the correct year.  There are too many children in the photo when compared to the  list of those receiving their First Communion at St. Malachy’s in 1929.  Perhaps children from other area churches came to Clontarf to receive their First Communion, but it was recorded in their respective church record books…just an idea.

Here is the list as it appears in the St. Malachy Sacramental record book:

First Communion

August 4, 1929

Patrick McMahon

Patrick Foley

Bernard Fennell

Charles Kent

Gabriel Burns

Patrick Reynolds

Howard Cameron

Harold Duresky

Genevieve Bouta

Dorothy Aschmann

Marjorie Reardon

Eleanor Goulet

Margaret Sullivan

Laverne Bouta

Catherine Molony

Theresa Burns

Bernice Fennell

Eileen Sullivan

Dorothy Cameron

recorded by Lawrence Lynch (page 104)

If you recognize anyone in the photo, that could help us identify it correctly.  I have the listings for all the First Communions, so we could match it up.  You can enlarge the photo by clicking on it.  You can get a really good look at it if you click again to magnify.  Let me know if you see someone you know!

Do you have a First Communion story you would like to share from Clontarf?

 

 

P.S.

I dropped the ball for the September drawing, so I will combine September and October into one contest, with two winners.  So…comment away and build your entries!