Tombstone Tuesday: Berberick

This is the large gravestone in the Berberick family plot in Cedarville Cemetery in Cedarville, New York. Smaller individual stones are in the plot for John Joseph Berberick, Margaret Tarkington Berberick, Kathryn Berberick Brewer, and Ray C. Brewer.

Tombstone Tuesday: Josephine (Berberich) Wilkinson

Josephine Berberich was born in New York on 29 January 1892. She was the sister of John Joseph Berberick, who married my great-grandmother's sister Margaret Tarkington and Margaret's daughter Louise Margaret Gray. Josephine married Lee Clark Wilkinson in Herkimer County, New York on 4 December 1912. They had two daughters and a son. Josephine died on 22 March 1956 and was buried in Cedarville Cemetery in Cedarville, New York.

Tombstone Tuesday: Kathryn (Berberick) Brewer

Kathryn Berberick was born in 1894 in New York. She was the sister of John Joseph Berberick, who married my great-grandmother's sister Margaret Tarkington and Margaret's daughter Louise Margaret Gray. Kathryn married Ray Brewer on 20 January 1917 in Otsego County, New York. They had three daughters and a son. Kathryn died in 1929 and was buried in Cedarville Cemetery in Cedarville, New York.

52 Ancestors: #49 Anna Gertrude Tarkington

My great-grandmother Anna Gertrude Tarkington was born on 16 April 1889 in Nashville, Tennessee. She was the fourth of five children, and youngest daughter, of James William Tarkington and Anna Malvina Binkley. When she was five years old, her father died. In 1900, she lived with her mother, her maternal grandmother Angeline (Mayo) Binkley, her sister Viola Maydell, and her brother Robert. Her oldest sister Laura Belle had married Patrick Henry Leech and lived nearby. When the 1900 United States census was taken, her sister Margaret was enumerated in the household of their paternal grandparents. By 1905, Gertrude was working as a telephone operator for the East Tennessee Telephone Company.

Nashville City Directory, 1905. Nashville, TN: Marshall-Bruce-Polk Co. Available from Ancestry.com. U.S. City Directories, 1821-1989 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011.

On 12 June 1907, Gertrude gave birth to a son, Robert Leland Taylor. He died on  4 July 1907 and was buried in the family cemetery in Vaughn's Gap, Tennessee. Gertrude's sister Margaret "Maggie" was the informant on the death certificate; she stated that the father was unknown. But since her child had a different surname, Gertrude must have known who his father was. I suspect that Maggie also knew, but did not wish to reveal his name.

On 19 November 1909, Gertrude married Henry Brown Gatlin in Nashville. She probably did not know it, but he had not yet divorced his first wife Rose Kuenninger. Shortly after their marriage, Henry and Gertrude moved to Chicago, Illinois. Their first child, my paternal grandfather Henry Cornelius Gatlin, was born in Chicago on 14 April 1910. My grandfather should have been enumerated in the 1910 United States census; it was supposed to include everyone who was in the household on 15 April 1910. However, he was not enumerated. Henry and Gertrude were incorrectly enumerated under the surname Galter. They were lodgers in the household of N. King, and several other lodgers also resided in the household. Gertrude and Henry were probably not the ones who provided the information to the census taker. Henry divorced his first wife Rose in 1916, probably without telling Gertrude.

On 26 June 1923, Gertrude gave birth to a stillborn son, Eugene Joseph Gatlin. The stillbirth was caused by placenta previa. Eugene Joseph was buried in Oak Forest Cemetery, Oak Forest, Cook County, Illinois.

On 29 November 1929, Gertrude filed for divorce. On 26 August 1929, while he was drunk, her husband Henry had threatened her life and thrown her out of their home. He later tried to break into her new residence with the intention of hurting her. She obtained a restraining order against him. Because no one appeared to prosecute the case, it was dismissed. She and her husband remained separated. In the 1930 United States census, Gertrude and her son (my grandfather) were living in the household of Walter E. Davis. They were listed as lodgers. Like Gertrude, Walter had been born in Tennessee. They later married. I suspect that they were already in a relationship at the time that the 1930 U.S. Census was taken. Gertrude was listed as widowed, but her husband was still alive.

On 24 January 1935, Gertrude's mother passed away in Memphis, Tennessee. She had been visiting her granddaughter (Gertrude's niece) Nina (Leech) Clark. Gertrude was the informant on her mother's death certificate; she may have been visiting prior to her mother's death, or may have traveled to Memphis immediately after hearing the news.

In late 1939, Gertrude's niece Louise (her sister Margaret's daughter) came to stay with her and Walter (called "Bill") at their residence, 4710 No. Wolcott Av., Chicago, Illinois. Louise's husband and former stepfather John Joseph Berberick had recently passed away. They had been living in Cedarville, New York. Margaret had passed away in 1929.

In the 1940 United States census, Gertrude and Walter were listed as married. However, they may not have actually been married at that time. According to my father's baby book, for his first birthday in 1942, he received a birthday gift from Grandma Gatlin and Bill Davis. For his second birthday in 1943, he received a gift from Grandma Davis. There is a section about trips in my father's baby book, and it says that on August 1, 1943 he took a train to Utica, New York to see his Grandma Davis. Gertrude and Bill moved to New York sometime in the early 1940s. They must have been in New York by 1943.They lived on Orangeport Road in Brewerton, Onondaga County, New York. I am not sure if their home on Orangeport Road was their only New York residence. or just their last one. My father remembers that they had wild strawberries in their backyard. Gertrude was a member of the Brewerton Methodist Church and its Women's Society of Christian Service (now United Methodist Women).

There were many "black sheep" on my grandfather's father's side of the family, but my grandfather was a good man. He must have taken after his mother's side of the family. Gertrude must have been a good mother, and raised him well. Looking at the photo below, I definitely see a resemblance between my grandfather and his mother. As a cat lover, I am glad to see that Gertrude appears to have liked cats.

Gertrude died in St. Joseph's Hospital in Syracuse, New York on 9 July 1959, as a result of ovarian cancer. She was buried in Cedarville Cemetery in Cedarville, New York, near her sister Margaret.

 Mexico Independent, 17 May 1959, page 13

Certificate of death, Gertrude Davis. 9 July 1959. New York State Department of Health, Office of Vital Statistics.

Syracuse Post Standard, 10 July 1959, page 9.

Tombstone Tuesday: Margaret (Tarkington) Berberick

Margaret Tarkington was born in Nashville, Tennessee on 15 February 1884. She was the daughter of my great-great-grandparents James William Tarkington and Anna Malvina Binkley. Margaret worked as a telephone operator. Her daughter Louise Margaret Gray was born on 6 December 1906. Margaret married John Joseph Berberick. They lived in Buffalo, New York, and then moved to Cedarville, Herkimer County, New York. Margaret died on 12 January 1929 and was buried in Cedarville Cemetery on 16 January 1929.

Tombstone Tuesday: John Joseph Berberick

John Joseph Berberick was born in New York on 18 November 1890. He enlisted in the United States Navy in 1908, and served for twenty years. He was a Pharmacist's Mate, and saw action in World War I. He married my great-grandmother's sister Margaret Tarkington. They lived in Buffalo, New York at first, and then moved to Cedarville, Herkimer County, New York after he retired from the Navy. He was fire chief of the Litchfield-Columbia Fire District. Margaret died in 1929, and in 1936 he married her daughter Louise Margaret (Gray) Plaumann. He died on 2 October 1939 in Cedarville and was buried in Cedarville Cemetery.

52 Ancestors: #40 Louise Margaret Gray

Louise Margaret Gray was born on 6 December 1906 in Nashville, Tennessee. She was the daughter of Margaret Tarkington, my great-grandmother's sister. According to her Social Security account application, her father was Frank Gray. I suspect that Louise's parents never married. Margaret Tarkington appears in Nashville, Tennessee city directories in 1906 and 1908 under her maiden name. She was not listed in 1907, but she was probably home taking care of her baby daughter, not working as a telephone operator. I cannot find Louise in the 1910 United States census. She is not listed in her mother's household.which also included Margaret's mother, brother, and one of her sisters. she may have been living in her mother's home, but not mentioned because she was illegitimate.

In 1920, Louise and her mother Margaret lived in Chicago, Illinois, where my great-grandmother Gertrude (Tarkington) Gatlin (her sister) was living with her husband and son (my great-grandfather and my paternal grandfather). Margaret was using the surname Gray, and was widowed according to the 1920 United States census. However, in Nashville she had been Margaret Tarkington. Margaret worked as a maid, and she and Louise lived with Laurence and Mildred Moore.

By 1924, Louise's mother Margaret had married John Joseph Berberick, a pharmacist's mate in the United States Navy, and the family was living in Buffalo, New York. In 1925, she was working as a saleslady. On 24 July 1926 in Buffalo, Louise married Fredrick Plaumann. In 1930, she lived with her husband and his parents and siblings in Buffalo.

Her mother and stepfather had moved to Cedarville, Columbia, Herkimer County, New York. Louise's mother Margaret died there on 12 January 1929. After 1930, Louise moved to Cedarville. Her maternal grandmother Anna Malvina "Annie" (Binkley) Tarkington had lived there part-time with her son-in-law John Joseph Berberick. Louise probably lived with them too. Annie died on 24 January 1935 in Memphis, Tennessee while staying with another of her granddaughters, Nina (Leech) Clark. In 1936, Louise married her stepfather John Joseph Berberick in Boston, Massachusetts. They continued to live in Cedarville until John Joseph Berberick died on 2 October 1939. Two months later, Louise filled out an application for a Social Security account. She was living at 4710 No. Wolcott Av., Chicago, Illinois. That was my great-grandmother's address. Louise had gone to stay with her aunt after the death of her husband.

By the time of the 1940 United States census, Louise had returned to Cedarville. Her occupation was "new worker." By 1947, Louise had moved to Little Falls, Herkimer County, New York.

Louise married Leonard D. Smith, and they ran the Lakeport Grocrery Store in Lakeport, Madison County, New York. Leonard died on 17 March 1964. Louise's last husband was Maurice O. Fox. She probably met him through Leonard's sister, Elsie (Smith) Fox. She continued to run the grocery store with her new husband. Maurice Fox died on 9 February 1975. Louise died on 28 July 1979 in Utica, New York. She was buried in Cedarville Cemetery, West Winfield, New York, next to her husband Leonard D. Smith.

When I started researching the Tarkington family, I did not know that Margaret Tarkington had a daughter. When I found her husband John Joseph Berberick's obituary, it mentioned that his second wife (and his widow) was Louise Plaumann. I remembered seeing the name Louise Berberick in my father's baby book; she, my great-grandmother, and the man that became my great-grandmother's second husband had given my father a gift for his first birthday. I wondered why my great-grandmother was so close to her sister's widower's second wife, and did more research on her. I came across a newspaper item which mentioned that Louise Plaumann had learned of the death of her great-grandmother, Mrs. Annie Tarkington. WHAT? I searched for more information and found an "in memoriam" notice placed for Margaret Tarkington Berberick by Joe Berberick and Louise Plaumann, husband and daughter. That's when I realized that Margaret had had a daughter, and that Louise had married her stepfather.

Since I could not find Louise in the 1910 United States census, I assumed that she had been born after 1910. I took a to Cedarville Cemetery to see the graves of my great-grandmother and her sister Margaret. While I was there, I noticed that the stone next to the gravestone for my great-grandmother and her second husband was of a similar style. It was on the grave of Louise G. Smith, born 1906, and Leonard D. Smith, born 1907. Although I thought that Louise had probably been born after 1910, I took a picture of the stone anyway. I am so glad that I did! When the 1940 United States census became available, I searched for Louise Berberick and found her. She had been born about 1907.

I searched for the obituary of Leonard D. Smith, and it mentioned that he was survived by his wife Louise. When I obtained the obituary of Laura (Tarkington) Leech, another of my great-grandmother's sisters, it mentioned many surviving family members, including nieces. One was Mrs. Maurice Fox of New York. She was the only person listed that I could not identify, and she was in the same state that Louise had lived in. I wondered if Louise had married again. I found a Louise Fox, born 1906, in the Social Security Death Index. I searched for an obituary for her; when I found one, it stated that she was a native of Nashville, Tennessee. I ordered her Social Security application. On the application, she stated that her parents were Frank Gray and Margaret Tarkington. I had found Louise.

 

The entry in my father's baby book that made me wonder about the relationship between my great-grandmother and Louise 

Utica Observer-Dispatch, 27 January 1935, page 7. When I found this item, I learned that Louise was my relative.

Utica Daily Press, 12 January 1931. When I found this item, I learned that Louise was Margaret's daughter. Margaret had actually passed away two years before the notice was published, not six.

Steber's Little Falls and Dolgeville (Herkimer County, N.Y.) City Directory, 1947

Madison County Times, Chittenango, Madison County, NY, 1 July 1960, page 6

Daily Sentinel, Rome, NY, 11 August 1971

Chittenango-Bridgeport Times, 1 August 1979

Louise G. and Leonard D. Smith gravestone, Cedarville Cemetery