Entry #33
Last week I had occasion to finally meet Nancy Schanes, who is a Sigmund cousin of my mother-in-law, Evelyn Hartley. Nancy and I have communicated off and on for at least 20 years about the Sigmund family. I have been staying in Southeastern Pennsylvania for about a week and decided it was time that I should look Nancy up, since she lives nearby in Delaware. Nancy was surprised to learn that her cousin Evelyn has lived so near to her for such a long time.
Nancy did her research in B.C., as she says – before computers. Indeed, Nancy’s meticulous family group sheets showed me early on the importance of documenting your sources for your family tree. She and I had a lovely afternoon talking about genealogy. I found her to be a true kindred spirit.
One of the interesting pieces of information that I gleaned from Nancy during our discussion was about the name Evelyn in the Sigmund family. There were several and at times it has been confusing. Nancy said, “It is quite possible that your mother-in-law doesn’t even know why she was named Evelyn.”
It seems that Ida Sigmund, a daughter of William Robert Sigmund and Martha Margaret Wilson, married Harry Pierce Mulloy in 1899. This is the passport photo of Harry:
The first child born to the couple was a daughter named Evelyn, who was born on 15 December 1900. A son, Harry Merle Mulloy, followed in 1903.
Unfortunately, Evelyn met a sad fate. I located the newspaper article that described her death before she reached the age of nine. On 1 November 1909, little Evelyn was sent outside with some waste paper to give to the boys to burn. As she handed it over, her dress caught fire. She was engulfed in flames and died the following day from her burns.
Here is the newspaper account:
Subsequently, there were several Evelyns in the family in the next two decades. There is just one problem with the theory that these Evelyns were named for Evelyn Mulloy. Evelyn M. Sigmund, daughter of Walter Morris Sigmund and Mary Ella Evans, was born 21 August 1908, one year before Evelyn Mulloy died in the bonfire. I am not sure about the original origin of the name Evelyn in the Sigmund family, so my research will be ongoing.