John H. Golden Stops Thieves

A recent subscription to Newspapers.com has provided lots of entertainment as of late.  I will probably be posting lots of clipped articles, with commentary, in the coming months.  This article was printed in The Anaconda Standard (Anaconda, Montana) on 15 May 1896.  The subject of the article is John Henry Golden, my great-grandfather (my mother's father's father). He was 23 years old at the time, single, and living with his sister, Winnie Dolan and her family at 511 Cherry St., Anaconda.
(Here is another post about the house.) He worked as a clerk for "Joseph Peters, clothing, boots, shoes, gents' furnished goods, hats, caps, gloves, underwear, etc. 24 Main".  I have interpreted "vag" as being short for "vagrant".  Enjoy!

The Goldens in San Francisco

I wanted to try and determine what originally brought the Goldens to San Francisco as it is quite important to our family history.  My grandparents, Bob and Betty, met in San Francisco, so really, the connection to the city is key to my existence!  I also wonder how Mame Towey figures in all of this, as she ended up in San Francisco as well, and the question is, did the Goldens already know her, or did they meet there.
So, let's meet all the players and develop a timeline.
We are talking about the family of John Henry Golden, Sr.(1873-1949) and Anna Honora Murphy Golden (1883-1958).  These are my great-grandparents.  John Henry was born in Ireland and came to the U.S. in 1889, first to Helena, Montana and then to Anaconda and eventually Butte, where he and Anna were married in 1904.  Mary Agnes "Mame" "Yonovera" Towey was a cousin/family friend/patient whose connection to the family hasn't been quite determined, but her family, the Toweys and the Goldens came from the same area of Ireland-Ballaghadereen, County Mayo (now Roscommon).

The first record I have of any of the family connection to San Francisco is actually not Mame or any Golden, it is a Murphy.  Margaret Murphy (Aunt Marg) was Anna's younger sister and in the 1920 census, she is living with John Henry and Anna in Butte at 1101 W. Broadway.  From the stories I have heard, she was a great baker.  She made the family Christmas fruitcake (a tradition still on-going) and my Mom and her cousins and siblings have memories of amazing Parker House Rolls.  Anna and Marg's sister Ellen died in 1919 at the age of 28, and their father, Michael Murphy died in April 1920.  The 1918 Butte City Directory lists Murphy, Margaret clk Heilbronner r 1101 W Bway and the 1923 directory has her there still.  But, in 1926, we find her in the San Francisco City Directory, the listing being "Murphy, Mrgt clk Mack Internatl Motor Truck Corp r46 Bush". How do we know this is the same person? Aunt Marg's obituary has details:

That just ties all the details together, doesn't it?  Her last San Francisco directory listing is in 1929, and in the 1930 census record she is back in Butte.  There is more to this story that needs uncovering though.  Family lore tells of a suitor she was not allowed to marry, and there are whisperings of a romance in San Francisco and certainly the Stock Market Crash of October 24, 1929 must have had a part in her return to Butte.  But sadly, no verifiable facts. Now, Anna and Marg's sister Christine died in Yakima, Washington in September 1929, but that doesn't seem like a reason she would return to Butte.  I also have questions on why she went to San Francisco in the first place.  It seems so far away, and I wondered what travelling there was like in 1926.
So, besides being the sister of Anna Golden, what does Aunt Marg's excursion to San Francisco have to do with the Goldens' connection to that city? Stay tuned for The Goldens in San Francisco, Part 2, coming soon!

Not everything in my mailbox is a bill!

Look what I got in the mail:

This is John Henry Golden's (1873-1949) death certificate from the county of Silver Bow in the state of Montana (Click to enlarge).  Of course, it didn't just arrive in my mailbox on it's own; I did have to send for this record.  The information on death records is only as good as what the informant knows.  In this case, the informant was Paul D. Golden, son of the deceased.  The year of birth given is 1872.  I have been using 1873, as that is what John Henry wrote on his naturalization papers.  Since I haven't been able to locate his Irish birth or baptism record, I don't know that I can verify which is the correct year.
John Henry's parents' names are also given; Tom Golden and Mary Coleman, more confirmation of that information.
The cause of death listed is apoplexy due to arteriosclerosis.
Other information includes his burial at Holy Cross Cemetery in Butte on 23 June 1949.

Margaret Murphy

Here is a picture of Cornelius "Con" Murphy, Margaret "Aunt Marg" Murphy, Bob Golden, Anna Golden and Dan Murphy. Anna Golden and the Murphys are siblings.

Here is Aunt Marg's obituary from the Montana Standard-Post dated Monday, March 11, 1963.

Found this yesterday. Published in The Independent Record, Helena, Montana, Thursday July 21, 1949.

John P. Murphy (1878-1950)

John P. Murphy was the older brother of my great-grandmother Anna (Murphy) Golden. This obituary was published in the Montana Standard on November 24, 1950.

Here is the text of the above article: John P. Murphy Dies Suddenly. John P. Murphy, 71, operator in the electrical department of the Anaconda Copper Mining company in Great Falls, died suddenly Thursday afternoon while at work. Cause of his death was attributed to a heart attack. Mr. Murphy was a former resident of Anaconda. Surviving relatives include four brothers, Henry, Tom and Con Murphy of Anaconda and Will Murphy of Seattle, Wash; two daughters, Mrs. John Bogdden of Great Falls and Mrs. Ray Campbell of Anaconda; three sisters, Mrs. John Golden and Miss Margaret Murphy of Butte, and Mrs. Mary Weist of Anaconda, and nine grandchildren. Funeral services and burial will be Monday in Great Falls.

Now you can read it!

Here is the text of the article in the previous post:

Published in the Anaconda Standard, Sunday morning, April 6, 1902.

RECEIVES FATAL INJURY

MICHAEL BONES CRUSHED AT THE
WASHOE SMELTER

CORONER TO HOLD INQUEST

Caught Between Engine and Iron Post – Still Alive When Removed From Terrible Position.
Dies at the Hospital.

While endeavoring to get out of the way of the small compressed air locomotives at the new Washoe smelter yesterday afternoon Michael Bones was caught between the engine and an iron post and was fatally crushed.
When extricated from his terrible position Bones was still alive. He was taken to St. Ann’s hospital, and though everything possible was done to prolong his life, he died shortly after arriving at the hospital.
Bones was employed at the works as a smelterman. He had been in Anaconda for about a year. He resided at No. 804 East Third Street. He was 23 years of age. John Golden and Mrs. F. B. Dolan of this city were his cousins and a sister, Mrs. J. F. O’Donnell, resides in Helena.
Soon after Bones’ death Coroner Hughes was notified and took possession of the body. An inquest will be held today. Coroner Hughes has investigated the matter, and eye witnesses of the affair will testify at the inquest today.
The accident is said to have occurred just as Bones was about to leave one of the smelter buildings. It is thought that in his haste to get out of the way of the approaching engine Bones did not see where he was stepping until it was too late to move. His injuries were internal.
Despite his short residence in Anaconda Mr. Bones had a wide circle of friends here, and the news of his sudden death was a great shock to them. He was known as a young man of industrious habits. It is probable that no arrangements for the funeral will be made until after the coroner’s inquest.

Ever heard of Michael Bones?

No? Me neither. At least not until this evening. I was looking through old Montana newspaper images and discovered this article about our cousin Michael. It was published in the Anaconda Standard on April 6, 1902. You can read about his accidental death in the Washoe smelter at age 23. He resided at 804 E. 3rd St., Anaconda. Sound familiar? John Golden and Mrs. F. B. Dolan (Winnie) are listed as his cousins. He also had a sister, Mrs. J. F. O'Donnell of Helena.
Now, if you have heard of Michael Bones, I'd like to hear from you!

A Golden Discovery

I've got this piece of paper with information about the family of my great grandfather, John Henry Golden. It was in a packet of information that was put together when Sharon Bullene was doing a school project. But, I don't know who typed up this page or where the information came from. This is what it looks like:

I started with tracing John Henry and Bridget in the U.S. Census records and was surprised to discover that Winnie and Margaret had also come to the United States.

The 1900 census record shows Winnie and husband Frank (Francis P.) Dolan and their 3 daughters, Mary, Winnifred and Margaret living in Anaconda, Montana at 804 E. Third St. John Henry and Margaret are living with them. Bridget and Frank O'Connell lived in Helena, Montana for the 1900, 1910 and 1920 censuses. In 1930, the family had moved to Portland, Oregon. Bee and Frank had 8 children. I cannot find any records of Margaret, or of Winnie and her family after the 1900 census.

I hadn't found any arrival records for the Goldens, or anyone in my mother's family. The problem is that the older arrival records have less information, which makes it harder to identify a specific person. But, Margaret Golden, sister of John Henry, arrived last of all her siblings, and I found her arrival record!

She arrived in New York on September 21, 1899 aboard The S.S. Majestic, which had sailed from Queenstown (Cobh), Ireland 7 days earlier. She was travelling with a cousin, John H. Finn, (age 20), and she is 20 years old at the time. It lists their last residence as Ballymote, Ireland, which is in County Galway, sort of halfway between Ballaghadereen (the Goldens' birthplace) and the city of Galway. (Hooray for Google Maps!) Other passengers on the ship have Ballaghdereen listed as their last residence. Their final destination is Anaconda, Montana, to join brother and cousin J.H. Golden, living at 804 E. Third St. !!

Here is the 1900 census record:

If you know anything else to add to this story, let me know!