Edward M. Keating--Philatelist

 

 

With my Dad's 92nd birthday approaching (Dec. 14) I thought I'd write a blog entry about his namesake and our family patriarch, Edward Michael Keating.  I've been able to piece together a story of his life from papers and recollections from my Dad, photos from Petra and a great genealogist named Tammy Eledge who can search a database in most amazing ways.  Here is her contact information: Genealogist

Edward Michael Keating was born on July 25, 1864 in Davenport, Iowa.  He was the first child of two Irish immigrants, Michael Keating (DOB 1834) and Bridget Creagh (DOB 1838), both of whom had immigrated from Kilrush, County Clare, Ireland sometime in the early 1860s.  We have little factual information about Keating and Creagh. I assume they knew each other from County Clare and traveled together to Iowa, maybe through Canada, but that is all speculation. We do know that they married in Davenport, Iowa in November 1863.  

We have no information about how or why Michael and Bridget immigrated to the United States. But, we do know the Great Irish Famine began in 1845 when they were both children living in County Clare and we know that far Western County Clare was particularly devastated by the famine. There are no written accounts of their experience during the famine, but there is no doubt that they had family members die and they both knew hunger and saw great suffering. For more information about the famine, see this link: Irish Famine

Michael and Bridget had two more children, a daughter named Ellen (Ellen is sometimes called Ella and Nell) in 1865 and another daughter named Mary in 1866.  Sadly, in August of 1867, Michael died, leaving Bridget a widow with three young children.  I have no idea how or why Michael died and I have no idea how Bridget survived and raised her children, but somehow she did.  I think we can safely assume she received help from her local parish in Davenport and she may have taken in laundry or sewing work to help make ends meet.  When Bridget eventually dies in 1921, she is buried back in Davenport with her husband Michael.

Sometime around 1890, the Keating family (Bridget and three children) moved to Chicago.  The 1890 Census was destroyed in a fire, but you can find Edward M. Keating in voting records from 1892 and it says he has lived in Illinois for two years at that time.  See below:

Edward can also be found in a city directory from 1891 and he is living with his mother and sister, Mary (she is abbreviated as M), at the address 5428 Atlantic.  I am assuming Ellen was also living with them, but she is not mentioned.  In this directory, Edward is listed as a pressman and his sister Mary is a store clerk.

 

 

1893 was a big year for Chicago when it made a splash on the national and international stage by hosting the Columbian Exposition, designed to celebrate 400 years since Columbus arrived in the New World.  Volumes and volumes have been written about the Chicago's World Fair, but a few to check out include, Robert Rydell's "All the World's a Fair" for a lighter history, Eric Larson's "Devil in the White City" is enjoyable. If you want a very cool simulation of the fair, check out this sight from UCLA: Fair simulation

The Columbian Exposition meant a lot of work for Chicago and Chicagoans and, indeed, the Columbian Exposition may have been what drew Edward Michael and his family to relocate here from Iowa.  Although he'd already had some training as a pressman, Edward M. Keating got a job at the World's Fair as an inspector.  The Fair ran from May 1 to October 31, 1893.  See below here is the worker's pass that he had. I'm not sure what type of inspector he was at the fair, my guess is he worked in the agriculture building, but that is just a guess. 

 

 

On May 10, 1893, Edward M. married another fellow Davenporter turned Chicagoan, Eleanor "Lillie" Motier.  Here is a photo taken around their wedding or engagement. At the time of their wedding, Edward was almost 29 and Lillie was 24. I assume that Edward and Eleanor knew each other in Davenport first, but I don't know that for sure.  Eleanor probably moved here with her mother (I will blog about her another time). Edward and Eleanor seemed to view themselves proudly as Iowans and news of their wedding was printed in local Iowa papers. Interestingly, Edward's sister, Mary, married George Motier, Eleanor's older brother.  So, brother and sister married brother and sister. (Take time to think it through, it's actually okay!)

Edward and Eleanor had a fruitful union with nine children.  Their children were:

Edward Michael born June 12, 1894

Louis Joseph born February 24, 1896 (my grandfather)

Mary Felicite born November 5, 1898 (dies in 1918 pandemic)

Elizabeth Creagh born June 29, 1900

Geoffrey Thomas born August 28, 1902

Charles Basil born November 23, 1904

Laurence Henry born August 10, 1907

Irma Antoinette born January 8, 1910 (Petra's mother)

John Richard born September 6, 1912

If there is a photo with all of the children, I do not have it, but I like this photo taken

with him and Irma and Laurence somewhere around 1918 (it's labeled, but undated, I'm guessing the date based upon Irma and Laurence's appearances).  Edward M. looks like most fathers on a family outing--exhausted!

Edward's career focused in the printing field, specifically involving linotype.  Linotype was an innovative printing form invented in Germany in the 1880s.  For its time, it was quite cutting edge.  For more, read this: Britannica linotype entry

Edward M seemed to have had a successful career as a linotype operator, then supervisor, then trainer.  In 1934, he edited a book called "The Mechanism of the Linotype", here is the title page with his name.  This book is quite technical, reading like an engineering text, but it shows how technical and precise this field was for him.  Linotype became a family business of sorts with most of his sons going into the same or related field, including Louis, Geoff, Basil and John.

Outside of his professional life Edward M. Keating was a collector.  He collected stamps, signatures and cacti.  My dad has memories of his grandparents' house.  He remembers the house being filled with books and elaborately decorated for Chistmas time.  It was a different time with relationships between children and grandparents.  Children were to be seen and not heard, so my dad doesn't remember talking to his grandfather much, but he remembers the books and the cacti around the house. 

In short, Edward M. Keating was an interesting person who led a full life.  He was definitely proud of his large family and took pride in his own career in the linotype field.  Next, I hope to dig into Eleanor to find out more about her.

December 2022