My mom, Margaret "Peggy" Kilgariff McLaughlin, was an only child. Her parents, Margaret "Pearl" McCann and John Kilgariff, were older. She grew up in a 4-floor three-family home in Brooklyn, NY. She and her parents lived on one floor, her mother's parents, Joseph McCann and Catherine "Kate" Sherlock, lived on another floor, and her mother's sister, Mary "Mamie" McCann Holzmann, her husband, George, and five children lived on the two other floors.
Her mother's younger brother, Charles McCann and family lived a block away. So, even though my mom was an only child, she had playmates: her cousins.
The grandparents who lived in the same building as my mom, also had a summer house out in Lindenhurst, on Long Island. My mom's parents both worked when my mom was little, so she would stay with them a lot at that summer house. A lot of the photos of my mom and her cousins are at that summer house.
My mom is in the front, her first cousin Geraldine "Gerry" Holzmann Cassidy is behind her. Gerry is the daughter of my mom's Aunt Mamie who with her husband and family lived in the same building as my mom, is behind her. I don't know who the other girl is. It may be one of Geraldine's sisters. This photo was taken out on Long Island at one of the beaches near the summer house.
My mom with cousin Gerry again. Gerry was her babysitter. She was eight years older than my mom. Photo taken in the back yard of the summer house.
My mom is on the very right, holding on to the back of the 'rumble' seat. I don't know whose car this is. It might have been her Uncle Charlie's, the father of most of these kids. It might have been her Grandfather Joseph's. The rest of the girls and one of the boys are her first cousins, the McCann kids, children of Uncle Charlie. One of the boys is unknown. These same kids are in the photo below where I have ID-ed them. Photo taken at the summer house.
Standing: my mom, McCann cousins: Catherine, Mary, Charles, Jr., Josephine. Seated: unknown boy, Helen. Photo taken in the front of the summer house.
My mom and her first cousin Josephine McCann. Photo taken at the summer house.
This picture was taken in Brooklyn. I assume in the backyard of the house my mom lived in. I believe this may be one of her Holzmann cousins, who lived in the same building, but I could be wrong.
Taken in Montreal, Canada. My Grandma Pearl, my mom's friend, my mom, and her cousin (1st cousin, once removed) Kathleen O'Rourke Weiner.
My mom with her cousin. I'm not sure if it's a McCann or a Holzmann...or an O'Rourke!
This is my mom with her doggy and one of her male cousins--a Holzmann, or McCann? O'Rourke? This may be the same cousin in uniform, above. I wish I knew...It was taken in front of her house on Fourth Avenue in Brooklyn.
My mom is the dark-haired woman in the blue, her first cousin Virginia McCann Allaire is next to her. Their husbands are 'switched'--Virginia's husband Doug is on the left next to my mom, my dad John McLaughlin is on the right next to Virginia.
My mom's first cousins: Josephine McCann, my mom, Eileen Allaire (Sister Mary Isaac Jogues), Geraldine Holzmann Cassidy, Mary McCann Katan, Helen McCann. These ladies were all in the photos above as children, except for cousin Eileen.
This was probably the last time my mom saw Eileen and Mary. When I would visit my mom we would visit Helen and Josephine in Brooklyn, and Geraldine on Long Island.
These are wonderful photos! I love the history they show. I would venture to guess that, in the eight picture, the sailor is most likely Bill Holzmann. I make this guess because I inherited a Blujacket's Manual once belonging to Holzman! The book is the Navy's bible for enlisted sailors. I proudly displayed in on my desk during a my 25 year Navy career as a Judge Advocate. I often referred to it for my work, even though it was published in the 40's. Like these photos, its a wonderful piece of family history. P.s. This is Ken O'Rourke, Junior.
ReplyDeleteSo glad to hear from you. I was thinking it was Bill Holzmann in uniform as well. I think he might be the one in the snow fort as well.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your service. I’m an 11 year military veteran as well: Army Reserve, active U.S. Navy, then Navy Reserve.
I have a big tree on Ancestry if you’re interested. Your dad has that information.