Descendants of William Fazakerley or Fazakerly

Descendants of William Fazakerley or Fazakerly

Generation No. 1

1. WILLIAM FAZAKERLEY OR² FAZAKERLY (WILLIAM¹ FAZAKERLEY)¹ was born Abt. 1815 in Probably Halsall, near Liverpool, Lancashire Co., England², and died Aft. 07 Jun 1860 in Possibly Chicago, Illinois but Probably Memphis, Tennessee³. He married MARGARET SULLIVAN⁴ Bet. 1853 - 1854 in Possibly New York⁵, daughter of MR. SULLIVAN and MRS. SULLIVAN. She was born Abt. 1836 in Ireland⁶, and died 10 Sep 1900 in Memphis, Shelby Co., Tennessee^7,8,9.

Notes for WILLIAM FAZAKERLEY OR FAZAKERLY:

MY TINY TWIG OF THIS ANCIENT FAMILY TREE:

William Fazakerley or Fazakerly was born sometime between the years of 1814 to 1819 in England.

(He is quite possibly William Fazakerley, b. May 08, 1815, Halsall, Lancashire Co., England, son of William & Catherine Sumner Fazakerley of Halsall)

William's son, Bryan, was born in New York, so it is likely William lived in New York for a while.

William died sometime after June 07, 1860 probably in Chicago or Memphis.

(Note: August 2006, Margaret Fazakerly (Faskerly) was listed under the Register of deaths in Memphis. She died July 28, 1861, age 2 of enteritis. She was the daughter of William & Margaret b. 1859 in Chicago. So that places Margaret, Bryan, and little Margaret in Memphis July 1861. William was more than likely with them when they came, so he probably died in Memphis sometime in the early 1860's.

William's name was found spelled "Fazakerley" and "Fazakerly" in the Chicago city directories. On my greart grandfather's burial record, Bryan's father's name was spelled William "Fazakerly". That is also the way my great grandfather, Bryan, spelled his name So it looks like the last "e" in our name may have been dropped. This may have happened somewhere between New York and Chicago. We have only one record showing an age on William Fazakerly, age 41, found in the 1860 Chicago Census, but the age may not be correct. His wife's age certainly wasn't correct.

William was possibly the first of our "direct line" to come to America. As far as the family stories go, it is believed that our ancestors came from or were connected to Liverpool, England. So far, I haven't been able to find William's parents (see above). There are many Williams in our family line.

There seems to be a great deal of sadness that tends to run through William Fazakerly's line at times. We believe that he died while he was in his forties. William's son, Bryan, age 49, William's grandson, George, age 47, and William's great grandson, Bill, age 49, all died in their forties as well. His great, great, grandson, my dear brother, Tommy, died at age 51.

Research June 20, 1995:

The Chicago Fire of 1871 with it's loss of so many records has created an almost unsurmountable wall blocking my research for William and his family. I am fortunate to have the following information.

William Fazakerly was found in the 1860 census in Chicago, Cook County, Illinois (2nd ward, on page or line # 322). Residence: # 266 ----. It stated that he was a carpenter, was from ENGLAND and that he had a personal estate (not real estate or property) worth about $500.00. It stated that Margaret was from IRELAND. The ages of William and Margaret were listed as 41 and 40. However, I believe that at least Margaret's age was wrong--she was probably about 24. Other records back this up. So William would have been born about 1819---depending on the accuracy of the census. [The census records can be full of mistakes. The accuracy depended on the census taker and those that gave the information to the census taker. Sometimes neighbors, boarders, or other relatives answered these questions.] Bryan Fazakerly was listed as age 6, which was correct, and it stated that he was born in NEW YORK, but it didn't say where in New York. William had a daughter, also named Margaret. She was about eleven months old at the time of the census and was born in ILLINOIS. I haven't found her in any other records so far, so she may have died at a young age.

After finding Wm. in the 1860 Chicago census, I then found him in the city directories. The earliest record we have of the Fazakerlys being in Chicago is in the June 1856-7 Gager's Chicago City Directory. It stated that he had been a resident for about a tenth of a year--the first time I have seen the entries done this way. "Fazakerly, Wm., Hotel, Clark nr Twelfth, .1y". I believe strongly that this is an error, possibly a stray ink mark on the page or typographical error and that the notation should read 1 yr. All the the other entries had whole numbers or were stated in weeks or months: 3 yrs. or 6 mos. or 5 wks. If he had been there one year he would have been in Chicago about May or June of 1855 (or 1856). His name was found under a separate section of "Names too late for regular insertion--". The directory was already prepared for print and I guess these were last minute entries before publishing. Bryan Fazakerly would have been about a year and a half old.

The next entry was in the Hall's Business Directory, November 1856. His name was listed twice, the first time misspelled: "Faykerley William, New England House, 505 Clark" and "Fazakerly, William, saloon, 505 Clark". I'm not sure why there would be two entries, unless it was an error or he was working two jobs--as a hotel keeper and worked at, operated, or owned a saloon. The 'New England House' was located at 482 State street, not Clark, so 505 Clark must have been his home address.

The Chicago city directories of 1859-1860 showed that William Fazakerly now lived at 521 S. Clark street (south of the river) and worked at a saloon. In the lists of businesses there were several types of saloons: dining saloons, oyster saloons, bowling saloons, and music hall saloons listed. (In England, their pubs have been and still are social gathering places for families and travelers, and were considered respectable places. Today we have such places as "Applebees, "Bennigans"", etc.)

Later we found in the 1860-1861 city directory that he was still living at 521 S. Clark street and was listed again as a hotel keeper. Wm. was a busy man if he was a carpenter, hotel keeper, and worked in a saloon. I couldn't find him anymore after 1861. We don't know if he moved or died. My guess is that William Fazakerly must have died sometime between June 07, 1860--when the census was taken--and December 22, 1864 when Margaret applied for a marriage license to be remarried in Memphis Tennessee.

Did William die in Chicago? Probably. Did he move to Memphis with his family? Unknown. If so, this brings up the question: Why in the world would William and Margaret (or especially Margaret if she were a widow) move to the South during the civil war? Did William Fazakerly fight in the Civil War? (He would have been in his 40's but it's possible.) Was he stationed in Memphis? Was Margaret a widow traveling on a hardship pass to get through the Union lines to stay with friends or relatives in the South? How and why did she get to Memphis? Did she meet William Thane, her next husband, in Chicago or Memphis? Will we ever find out the answers?

STAY TUNED FOR THE NEXT EXCITING EPISODE OF THE FAZAKERLY SAGA!

Research January 16, 1996:

So far no luck in finding Wm. Fazakerly in any of the cemetery records in Memphis or Chicago. One possibility remaining is to go to Chicago to check the Calvary Catholic Cemetery records prior to 1890. (Margaret was Catholic and her young daughter might have been buried there.) These records are on microfilm but are listed by date of death--not by name and the clerk there won't go through four years of records to look to see if a Fazakerly is mentioned--which is understandable. Young Margaret may have been buried in Memphis, but St. Peter's Catholic Church records prior to 1889 were partially burned, so we will probably never know if she was listed there. William may have been a member of the Church of England or Episcopalian. So I need to check the Episcopalian church and burial records also.

Another possibility--a long shot and I don't believe this will be the case--but I hope to be able to check some of the military records in Chicago. [I do not mean to harp on the civil war so much but it was during this time period that we lost track of William.] The National Cemetery in Memphis did not have a listing for Wm. Fazakerly. However, we were told that they have 10,000 unknown soldiers buried there (a staggering number). We were also told that this was the cemetery where the Union soldiers were buried and that most of the Confederate soldiers were buried at Elmwood.

(Elmwood was not just a military cemetery. William's son, Bryan Fazakerly, was buried at Elmwood then his wife had him moved to Forest Hill Cemetery. Was it a coincidence that Bryan was buried at Elmwood? Probably.)

Research June 1996:

Mr. John Dougan from the Archives Division of the Memphis Public Library has been so very helpful in finding information for me--such as Margaret's death certificate; Bryan's Guardianship Bond papers from probate records when he became guardian to Henry Weik/Weick, his nephew; deed indexes for family property; and so many other items. Even though he could find no probate, deed, death or cemetery records for William Fazakerly, or dowry or probate records for Margaret Fazakerly, he sent deed records (index only) on Wm. and Margaret Thane (Wm. Thane was Margaret Sullivan Fazakerly's second husband.) I told Mr. Dougan that I was the only one in my family that felt that there was a possibility that Wm. Fazakerly may have come to Memphis with Margaret during the Civil War. This is what he had to say:

"Here is an idea on what might have brought William and Margaret to Memphis. After the fall of Memphis on June 6, 1862, the city was flooded with northern merchants and speculators. His occupation may have brought him to Memphis in the rush for the millions of dollars worth of goods being imported and exported solely through Memphis during the Civil War."

I don't know if William came to Memphis or not or for what reasons, if he did. However, I expect that the above statement may have been the case for William Thane, Margaret's second husband. It isn't clear when William Thane came to Memphis. There were no city directories printed during the war.

The Chicago Fire of 1871 with it's enormous loss of records has been the greatest obstacle in researching my ancestor. Another obstacle included the lack of city directories for Memphis being kept during the civil war. Also, information or clues to the Fazakerlys may have been lost in the partial burning of records of St. Peter's Catholic Church in Memphis in 1889. How I would love to find you, William Fazakerly, but fate is making it very difficult!

Billie Lynn Fazakerly Harrison

Great, Great, Granddaughter

January 1996

Addendum: 2003

We have four pieces of information to go by:

1860 Chicago census stated he was from England

1860 Chicago census stated his son Bryan was born in New York (Oct. 1854)

1856 Chicago city directory stated he had been in Chicago 1 year; (abt June 1855)

(Name spelled Fazakerley & Fazakerly)

So the trail leads from England to New York to Chicago--and later to Memphis.

Other Information to consider:

There was a large family of Fazakerleys in Albany New York that came from England and they can all be traced back to Liverpool and the surrounding areas of Lancashire County, England.

The first of this group to come was William & Hannah Fazakerley of Liverpool, England in 1846.

Wiliam was born between 1814-1815 (Probably May 08, 1815, Halsall, Lancashire, England). He worked in Liverpool. His occupation: Wheelwright & Beer Shop. He & his wife, Hannah, were married in Liverpool. When they were in Albany, NY they operated a Grocery Store. They owned several pieces of property. William sold some property in January 1855. Then William Fazakerley of Albany "disappeared" sometime in 1855. He was not listed in the June 5, 1855 Albany census, but his wife was. We do not have a death date or place of burial. He was not buried with Hannah.

Comparing the two Williams:

The latest information we have on William of Albany NY is January 1855

The earliest information we have on William of Chicago ILL is abt. June 1855

IS IT POSSIBLE THAT THIS WILLIAM AND THE WILLIAM OF CHICAGO ARE THE SAME MAN?

I haven't been able to prove this yet, but if they are the same man, then it's possible that William's parents were William & Catherine Sumner Fazakerley who had connections with Liverpool & Halsall in Lancashire County, England (occupation: Cowkeeper and Innkeeper). Their son, William was born May 08, 1815 Halsall.

More About WILLIAM FAZAKERLEY OR FAZAKERLY:

Cause of Death: Unknown. Place of death, unknown. Place of burial not yet located.

Fact 1 (2) 1: William was found in the Chicago city directories and the 1860 Chicago census, he was from England, and listed as age 41.

Fact 1 (2) 2: William Fazakerly and Margaret Sullivan were the names listed as parents on their son's (Bryan) burial permit

Fact 3 (2): The ages stated in the 1860 Chicago census may have been in error, esp. Margarets' age which stated 40; she should have been abt. 24.¹⁰

Fact 4 (2): The value of Wm. Fazakerly's "personal estate" was listed on the census as $500. The value of any Real Estate was not listed.

Fact 5 (2): Unsure of his religion. His wife, Margaret, was a Catholic.

Fact 6 (2): It is unknown when Wm. and his daughter, young Margaret, died or where they were buried.

Fact 7 (2): His wife, Margaret, was in Memphis, TN. in 1864 and remarried in 1865; It is unknown if William Fazakerly ever came to Memphis.

Medical Information: Medical history unknown. Age at death unknown. If he died between 1860 (census) and1864 (wife's remarriage), his age would have been in the 40's

Occupation: Bet. 1856 - 1860, Carpenter; Saloon; Hotelkeeper for the New England House on State street, Chicago

Notes for MARGARET SULLIVAN:

Margaret Sullivan Fazakerly Thane: 1836-1900

There were no Memphis city directories available 1861-1864--the time of the civil war--which might have told us if Wm. Fazakerly had been there. We do not know how Margaret came to be in Memphis in 1864 or how long she had been there before she remarried. We do not have information yet on when or where her first husband, Wm. Fazakerly and her daughter, little Margaret Fazakerly, died. We do not know when or how Margaret met Mr. William H. Thane. Perhaps tax records might help give us a clue to when they came to Memphis.

The oldest record of Margaret's name can be found in the 1860 Chicago census (which gave her age incorrectly as 40). The 1870 Memphis census is the only record I have, thus far, that comes close to what I believe is her correct birth date. The census records could be loaded with errors. The 1870 Memphis census stated that she was from Ireland (same as the 1860 Chicago census), and that her husband, William H. Thane, was from Prussia. Margaret was a housewife and Mr. Thane's occupation was "ice dealer". It also stated that they were both 34 years old (born about 1836). Three children at that time were listed. The first name was difficult to read but the general consensus is that it looked like "Dennis" Thane, age 15. We believe this was Bryan Fazakerly. We do not know if this was an error or if Bryan had another name as well. The census stated that he was born in New York. The other two children were William Thane, Jr., age three and Mary (Molly) Thane, age one. Both were born in Tennessee. There was no mention of little Margaret Fazakerly or Agnes Thane, so they may have died by this time. The 1880 Memphis census stated that Margaret was 44 years old and that Wm. Thane was 42. The census stated that she was from Ireland and that he was from Germany. This census listed Wm., Jr., 13; Mollie, 11; Emma, 8; & Frank, 5. Bryan wasn't listed and would have been about 26.

The 1900 census is the first census to show year of immigration. Unfortunately, whoever gave the information at the time did not know when she immigrated to America. This date could have told us so much. Her age was listed as 49 (she was probably about 64). It also said they had been married 29 years instead of about 35 years, which would have been correct. So many errors!

We learned that Margaret was Bryan's mother from a newspaper clipping found in Bryan's & Sophia's family album. The article (obituary notice) stated that Margaret's son, William H. Thane, Jr., a policeman, died in 1899 of pneumonia; he was 32 years old and single. It listed him as the brother of Frank, Mollie, & Emma Thane and Bryan Fazakerly. Bryan was obviously half brother to the Thane children. There was a picture of Margaret and Wm. Thane also in Sophia's and Bryan's family album, but we do not know if one of Wm. Fazakerly exists or not. There were a few unidentified pictures of people in the album; and, in particular, there were two men posing by themselves, but we do not know who they were. They could be family members or friends. One had a definite "Fazakerly" look with his thin face and "Fazakerly like nose". The picture had San Francisco on the border, but had New York on the back. The other one, after seeing it only once, reminded me of a very handsome, clean shaven, "Charles Schwab" type. It had Salt Lake City on the border. No information was on the back of the picture.

Margaret's name was connected again to Bryan in her obituary notice when she died in 1900--listing the Thane family members and her son, Bryan "Tazakerly". Bryan Fazakerly's burial permit is the first time we saw a reference to her maiden name, Margaret Sullivan.

While visiting Calvary Cemetery in Memphis, August 09, 1995, we were told that they had a card that listed William, Margaret, and Emma Thane. (Believe this William is the son.) We were told that the Thanes were buried in Section A, Square or block 13. No markers exist now, which we were warned about, and we could only see the general area where they were buried.

DEATH, AND BURIAL DATES: In order of death dates; all are in Memphis, TN.

AGNES THANE: Date of death unknown; Place of burial unknown, possibly at St. Peter's Cemetery or Calvary Cemetery in Memphis, TN.; Age at death unknown, though probably young, if not in infancy. No burial records from St. Peter's Catholic Church are available before 1889. [They had a fire that partially destroyed their records.] Church records from St. Peter's Catholic Church in Memphis show that she was born March 23, 1866 and was baptized by M. D. Lilly, priest, on April 08, 1866.

WILLIAM H. THANE, JR. (WILL THANE): Date of death, March 29, 1899; Buried March 31, 1899 at Calvary Cemetery. He died at home on Gates Ave. Will was 32. The services were at St. Brigid's Catholic Church. He was born in 1867.

MARGARET SULLIVAN FAZAKERLY THANE: Date of death, September 10, 1900; Buried September 12, 1900 at Calvary Cemetery. She died at home on Gates Ave. Age given was 56 but believe she was about 64. The services were at St. Mary's Catholic Church. She was born about 1836.

BRYAN FAZAKERLY: Date of death, March 21, 1904; Buried at Elmwood Cemetery. He was later moved to Forest Hill Cemetery, March 31, 1909. He died at the Home For Aged Men. He was 49. He was born October 27, 1854.

MARY THANE (MOLLIE M. THANE): Date of death, May, 1906; Buried May 28, 1906 at Calvary Cemetery. Place of death unknown. She was about 37. She was born July 1869.

WILLIAM H. THANE, SR.: Date of death, March 17, 1908; Place of burial: according to the burial permit he was buried at Elmwood Cemetery March 18, 1908, not at Calvary Cemetery. He died at home on Leath Ave. (The name of the street had been changed from Gates to Leath by then.) He was about 72. He was born about 1836. The services were at home and conducted by Rev. M. Brueggemann. [According to the Memphis city directory of 1908, Rev. Martin J. Brueggemann was the pastor of the Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church. The church was located on "Ns Washington Ave. 5 e of N 3rd". It offered services in German at 10:30 A.M.)

EMMA C. THANE: Date of death end of June or early July 1956; Buried July 2, 1956 at Calvary Cemetery. She died in a nursing home. She was about 80. "Communicant of St. Mary's Catholic Church". She was born about June 1874.

FRANK T. THANE: Date of death, unknown; Buried 1963 at Forest Hill Cemetery. Cause and place of death unknown. He was about 84. He was born about September 1877.

A good bit of information was obtained about the Thanes. Frank, Margaret's youngest child and Bryan's half brother, stayed in touch with the Fazakerlys through the years even after Bryan died. Frank Thane was addressed as " Uncle Frank" by Aunt Frances and her cousin, William, when they were young. Cousin William remembers visiting "Uncle Frank" at Goldsmith's department store where he was a manager. Aunt Frances remembered that Frank Thane's wife, Nell (Lanelle), visited her mother, Louise Fazakerly [Zack], after Sophia Fazakerly's death.

January 16, 1995: Sister Bernadeta Finnegan from St. Patrick's Church in Chicago, IL. replied to my letter and gave a list of some of the oldest Catholic churches still in existence that might possibly have some information on the Fazakerlys. Sister Finnegan stated that St. Patrick's does not have records "of the deaths that happened in the early days". (No explanation about why the records didn't exist. Perhaps the Chicago fire had something to do with this, but that's speculation on my part.)

No baptism record of little Margaret, b. 1859, was found there.

Old St. Mary's: 21 E. Van Burens, established 1833.

St. Michael: 1633 N. Cleveland, established 1852.

St. Peter: 110 W. Madison, established 1846.

Sister Finnegan also recommended that I write to The Archives and Records Center in Chicago (connected with the Archdiocese of Chicago). She stated that they have been "very helpful in finding the church a person was located if they had the address". After calling this number, the Archives and Records Center will do an "abstract" with no fee required. Further research requires a donation, the check to be made out to the Archdiocese of Chicago. Hopefully the outcome will be a positive one. I believe this is going to be my best bet of finding anything on the Fazakerlys, short of going to Chicago myself and combing through records. We don't know if William Fazakerly was catholic; but, perhaps Margaret was an active member of her church at that time and that records, such as her daughter's baptism, still possibly exist.

March 1996: No records were found.

March 1996: Death and Burial records show that Margaret was a resident of Memphis for 30 years. (It would have had to to be 36 or more) and that Wm. Thane had been a resident there for 50 years. This would place him in Memphis about 1858. If the records are anything close to being correct, then this would mean that Wm. Thane was in Memphis before Margaret came there instead of coming with him from Chicago. This is still a mystery as to why Margaret would come to Memphis during the war years.

May 1996: There were no probate records of estate found in the Shelby County Probate Courts in Memphis for Margaret. There was also no record of a will from Margaret. In a probate record of guardianship where her son, Bryan, became guardian to Sophia's brother, Henry, in 1887, Wm. Thane signed the bond that was required and stated that he owned three lots on Gates Ave. (No. 65) "worth over and above all exemptions, including dower and homestead--Five Hundred dollars". One place stated $800.00 but was crossed out. The "dower" must have been the dowry from Margaret. We do not know what this consisted of. Perhaps it was property given to Margaret from her second husband, William Thane.

(I wonder if it could possibly be part of what was left of William Fazakerly's personal property?)

June 1996: There was no mention of any deeds in Margaret Fazakerly's name in the deed list (index only) from 1821 to 1933 that I received from the Archives Division of the Memphis Public Library. However, there were two in her married name of Margaret Thane. The earliest one was in 1878 and the other one was in 1893. There were also several deeds under Wm. Thane's name, the earliest starting in 1866. Getting copies of these numerous deeds for the Thanes (15 plus) and Fazakerlys (14 plus) will take time. Hopefully I can learn what the codes mean describing the type of each deed that is listed from the County Register's office in Memphis. There were no clues about William Fazakerly in these early deeds.

I obtained copies of four of the deeds on the on the real estate listings. One was property Wm. Thane bought in Gates Subdivision, lot 27, in 1866 for $666.00. Another deed in 1878, stated that Wm. Thane gave Margaret Thane 14 plus acres in the Gates Subdivision as a gift for her to do with as she wished. The property connected to their existing property and went to Raleigh Rd. Another deed in 1893 concerned a loan that Margaret made against her property for some reason. It talked about the shares of stock she owned and using these for insurance and fire coverage to protect buildings, etc. She must not have been able to write since she signed the papers with an X. However, the deed stated that she was a member & stockholder of the American Building Loan and Fortune Association.

Makes me wonder how she got that position. Her successful husband, Wm. Thane, may have had some influence. Or did she have money or property of her own from her last marriage to Wm. Fazakerly that helped influence this position? There is no record of this being the case.

Margaret Fazakerly Thane died in 1900; Margaret's son, William Thane, Jr., died in 1899; Margaret's son, Bryan Fazakerly, died in 1904. In the last deed that I have a copy of, Bryan Fazakerly's wife, Sophia, (Margaret's daughter in law) bought an additional 6 acres from the Browns for $500.00 in 1901 (she had already bought the house and 6 acres from them the same year). In this deed Sophia somehow got them to agree to cap her two chimneys and was able to lease 34 acres of land from W. S. Rosebrough (the trustee) for one year with the privilege of five years for a rental fee of $55.00 per yr. All this in 1901 and all in her own name. It isn't clear why this was in Sophia's name instead of Bryan's name or how she obtained the money; perhaps it was a gift from Bryan or part of Bryan's inheritance from his mother--though there is no record of this.

Ages found for Margaret Sullivan Fazakerly Thane: (Probably born abt. 1836)

1860 June 07; census: 40 (!) (should have been about 24)

1870 August 06; census: 34

1880 June 09; census: 44

1890 census: not available

1900 June 15; census: 49 (!) (should have been abt. 64)

1900 September 10; Burial: age 56 (!) age probably abt. 64

Billie Lynn Fazakerly Harrison

Great, Great, Granddaughter

January 1996

August 02, 2002: Side note.

The 1860 Chicago Census had Bryan's name listed as "Dennis", which may or may not have been correct.

The 1840 NY census:

Isn't of any help; just has how many males/females by a certain age in the family. It just gives the names of head of household.

1850 NY census;

Some areas indexed; There are so many Sullivans that this is hardly worth speculating about but for the first time I've run across some possibilities for Dennis, Bryan and Margaret. (Hopefully, Margaret, age 15, which would be correct for our Margaret's age. But do you have any idea just how many Margaret Sullivans there are in the world? the US? New York? A gazillion.

Albany Co., West Troy, Ward 7, pg. 290. There was a Dennis, 30 & Catherine 28 with two children: Michael 3 & Catherine 5, father's occ. Moulder, from Ireland.

Rensselaer Co., Troy, Ward 4, pg. 154. There was also a Margaret, 41, Michael, 21 (laborer), George 9, Thomas 6, Ellen 18, Margaret 15, Ann 12, all from Ireland. It's this Margaret, age 15 that I'm curious about.

NY City Ward 6, page 172 There was also a Bryan Sullivan living in New York City with other laborers mostly in their 30's; the census didn't ask if married or single; age looked like 26, but it was hard to read (could also have been 36 or 56). This is a little far away from Albany, but there might have been a connection.

1860 cenus; Not indexed yet. Margaret Sullivan Fazakerly Thane: 1836-1900

The oldest record of Margaret's name can be found in the 1860 Chicago census. The 1870 Memphis census is the only record I have, thus far, that comes close, I believe, to her correct birth date. The census records could be loaded with errors. The 1870 Memphis census stated that she was from Ireland (same as the 1860 Chicago census), and that her husband, William H. Thane, was from Prussia. Margaret was a housewife and Mr. Thane's occupation was "ice dealer". It also stated that they were both 34 years old (born about 1836). Three children at that time were listed. The first name was difficult to read but the general consensus is that it looked like "Dennis", age 15. We believe this was Bryan Fazakerly and that he later decided to go by his other name, Bryan. The census stated that he was born in New York. The other two children were William Thane, Jr., age three and Mary (Molly) Thane, age one. Both were born in Tennessee. There was no mention of little Margaret Fazakerly or Agnes Thane, so they may have died by this time. The 1880 Memphis census stated that she was 44 years old and that Wm. Thane was 42, about two years younger than Margaret. The census stated that she was from Ireland and that he was from Germany. This census listed Wm., Jr., 13; Mollie, 11; Emma, 8; & Frank, 5. Bryan wasn't listed and would have been about 26.

The 1900 census is the first census to show year of immigration. Unfortunately, whoever gave the information at the time did not know when she immigrated to America. This date could have told us so much. Her age was listed at 49 (she about 64). It also said they had been married 29 years instead of about 35 years, which would have been correct. So many errors!

1900 Census, June 06, 15th Dist., 9th ward; res. # 65 Gates; William Thane, 62 (correct), b. Jan. 1838, b. Germany parents b. Germany, immigrated: "unknown", Naturalized, married 29 years (35yrs), Occ., Porter Warehouse Dry Goods; Margaret, 49 (incorrect), b. Aug. 1850 (incorrect), b. Ireland, parents b. Ireland, married 29 years (35 years), 5 children, 3 living; Frank, 22, b. Oct. 1877 (1875), TN, Salesman

Dry Goods; Mollie, 27, b. July 1872; Emma, 25, b. June 1874

We had learned that Margaret was Bryan's mother from a newspaper clipping found in Sophia Fazakerly's family album. The article (obituary notice) stated that her son, William H. Thane, Jr., a policeman, died in 1899 of pneumonia; he was 32 years old and single. It listed the Thane children and Bryan Fazakerly. He was obviously half brother to the Thane children. There was a picture of Margaret and Wm. Thane in Sophia's and Bryan's family album, but we do not know if one of Wm. Fazakerly exists or not. There were a few unidentified pictures of people in the album; and, in particular, there were two men posing by themselves, but we do not know who they were. They could be family members or friends. One had a definite "Fazakerly" look with his thin face and "Fazakerly like nose". The other one, after seeing it only once, reminded me of a very handsome, clean shaven, "Charles Schwab" type.

Her name was connected again to Bryan in her obituary notice when she died in 1900--listing the Thane family members and her son, Bryan "Tazakerly". Bryan Fazakerly's burial permit is the first time we saw a reference to her maiden name, Margaret Sullivan.

DEATH, AND BURIAL DATES: In order of death dates and all are in Memphis, Tn.

AGNES THANE: Date of death unknown; Place of burial unknown, possibly at St. Peter's Cemetery or Calvary Cemetery in Memphis, Tn.; Age at death unknown, though probably young, if not in infancy. No burial records from St. Peter's are available before 1889. [They had a fire that partially destroyed their records.] Church records from St. Peter's Catholic Church in Memphis show that she was born March 23, 1866 and was baptized by M. D. Lilly, priest, on April 08, 1866.

MARGARET SULLIVAN FAZAKERLY THANE: Date of death, September 10, 1900; Buried September 12, 1900 at Calvary Cemetery. She died at home on Gates Ave. She was about 64. The services were at St. Mary's Catholic Church. She was born about 1836.

MARY THANE (MOLLIE M. THANE): Date of death, May, 1906; Buried May 28, 1906 at Calvary Cemetery. Place of death unknown. She was about 37. She was born July 1869.

WILLIAM H. THANE, SR.: Date of death, March 17, 1908; Place of burial, according to the burial permit he was buried at Elmwood Cemetery March 18, 1908, not at Calvary Cemetery. He died at home on Leath Ave. (The name had been changed from Gates to Leath by then.) He was about 72. He was born about 1836. The services were at home and conducted by Rev. M. Brueggemann. [According to the Memphis city directory of 1908, Rev. Martin J. Brueggemann was the pastor of the Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church. The church was located on "Ns Washington Ave. 5 e of N 3rd". It offered services in German at 10:30 A.M.)

FRANK T. THANE: Date of death, unknown; Buried 1963 at Forest Hill Cemetery. Cause and place of death unknown. He was about 84. He was born about September 1877.

January 16, 1995: Sister Bernadeta Finnegan from St. Patrick's Church in Chicago, IL. replied to my letter and gave a list of some of the oldest Catholic churches still in existence that might possibly have some information on the Fazakerlys. Sister Finnegan stated that St. Patrick's does not have records "of the deaths that happened in the early days". No baptism record of little Margaret was found there.

Old St. Mary's: 21 E. Van Burens, established 1833. St. Michael: 1633 N. Cleveland, established 1852.

St. Peter: 110 W. Madison, established 1846. Sister Finnegan also recommended that I write to The Archives and Records Center in Chicago (connected with the Archdiocese of Chicago). She stated that they have been "very helpful in finding the church a person was located if they had the address". After calling this number, the Archives and Records Center will do an "abstract" with no fee required. Further research requires a donation, the check to be made out to the Archdiocese of Chicago. Hopefully the outcome will be a positive one. I believe this is going to be my best bet of finding anything on the Fazakerlys, short of going to Chicago myself and combing through records. We don't know if William Fazakerly was catholic; but, perhaps Margaret was an active member of her church at that time and that records, such as her daughter's baptism, still possibly exist. March 1996: No records were found.

May 1996: There were no probate records of estate in the Shelby County Probate Courts in Memphis for Margaret. There was also no record of a will from Margaret. In a probate record of guardianship where her son, Bryan, became guardian to Sophia's brother, Henry, in 1887, Wm. Thane singed the bond required and stated that he owned three lots on Gates Ave. (No. 65) "worth over and above all exemptions, including dower and homestead--Five Hundred dollars". One place stated $800.00 but was crossed out. The "dower" must have been the dowery from Margaret when they married. Was this part of the $500.00 listed as the value of personal property (not real estate) listed by Wm. Fazakerly in the 1860 Chicago census or was the above property in any part Margaret's? How I would love to find out!

June 1996: In the deed list (index only) from 1821 to 1933 that I received from the Archives Division of the Memphis Public Library there was no mention of any deeds in Margaret Fazakerly's name but there were two in her married name--but they were in 1878 and 1893. There were also several deeds under Wm. Thane's name, the earliest starting in 1866. Getting copies of these numerous deeds for the Thanes (15 plus) and Fazakerlys (14 plus) will take time. Hopefully I can learn what the codes mean describing the type of each deed that is listed from the County Register's office in Memphis. Maybe there are a few clues about Margaret and her dowery in these early deeds. I hope so.

(See enclosed print out of real estate listings. I obtained copies of four of the deeds on the list. One was property Wm. Thane bought in Gates Subdivision, lot 27, in 1866 for $666.00. Another deed in 1878, stated that Wm. Thane gave Margaret Thane 14 plus acres in the Gates Subdivision as a gift for her to do with as she wished. The property connected to their existing property and went to Raleigh Rd. Another deed in 1893 concerned a loan that that Margaret made against her property for some reason. It talked about the shares of stock she owned and using these for insurance and fire coverage to protect buildings, etc. She must not have been able to write since she signed the papers with an X. However, the deed stated that she was a member & stockholder of the American Building Loan and Fortune Association. Makes me wonder how she got that position--money from Wm. Thane who appeared to be very successful or possibly money from her previous husband, Wm. Fazakerly?

Margaret died in 1900.

The last deed that I have a copy of was dated in 1901. Sophia bought an additional 6 acres from the Browns for $500.00 (already bought the house and 6 acres from them also in 1901). In this deed she somehow gets them to agree to cap her two chimneys and is able to lease 34 acres of land from W. S. Rosebrough (the trustee) for one year with the privilege of five years for a rental fee of $55.00/yr. All this in 1901 and all in her own name.

Billie Lynn Fazakerly Harrison

Great, Great, Granddaughter

January 1996

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SPECULATION:

Margaret date of birth is not certain, but she may have been born about 1836. Margaret could have had her son, Bryan Fazakerly, anywhere in New York, 1854.

In trying to locate Margaret in New York in the 1840's & 1850's, there are a few POSSIBILITIES to consider.

1) This search may prove to be difficult since the name "Margaret Sullivan" is quite common.

From the Internet there were 4 entries with the name and only one from New York:

1840 Census Albany, Albany County, Ward 1

This was the old type census with only the range of ages given.

Margaret Sullivan, (only Sullivan on the page), listed in the 30 to 40 year range.

2) From the Internet there were 36 entries:

1850 census New York, Rensselaer County, September 24

Margaret Sullivan, 41, F, Ireland

Michael, 21, M., Laborer, Ireland

George, 9, M. Ireland

Thomas, 6, M, Ireland

Ellen, 18, F, Ireland

MARGARET, 15, Ireland (she would have been born about 1835 which is close to my Margaret's birth)

Ann, 12, F, Ireland

(No other information was available on this census so I don't know if Margaret's mother was a widow or not.)

There was no Bryan in this group.

3) There was another Margaret Sullivan listed in the 1850 census in West Troy, Albany County, New York (also close to the town of Albany), but there was no image available on the Internet.

4) There were only two entries for the name "Bryan Sullivan" in New York in 1850 (none listed for 1840):

one from New York, New York & one from Granville, Washington Co., New York

1850 census New York, New York, Ward 6

Bryan Sullivan, 21 or 26, M, Laborer, b. Ireland ( born about 1829 or 1824)

He was living with Thomas & Bridget Foley and others listed in the household. (There was also an Ellen Sullivan, 33, F, b. Ireland and a Timothy Sullivan, age 1, b. New York also listed in this household, but it's hard to tell if the Sullivans in this household are related.)

5) 1850 census Granville, Washington County, New York

"Irish Boarding House"

Bryan Sullivan, 34, Laborer, b. Ireland (born about 1816.

There was also a Lawrence Sullivan, 26, on this list of names.

6) In one of the census records Bryan was listed as "Dennis" or "Darius" ; this may have been an error.

The name "Dennis Sullivan" is fairly common. The 1840 census listed 28 names, 11 from New York.

One 1840 census had the following for Wilna, Jefferson County, New York:

2 males under 5; 1 male between 5 to 10; 1 male between 30 to 40; 1 male between 50 to 60;

1 female between 5 to 10; 1 female between 30 to 40.

7) American Civil War Soldiers

Darius Sullivan; Residence: Newark, Illinois; Enlisted: 18 September 1861; Served: Illinois; Side served: Union; Distinguished Service; unit numbers: 252 252

More About MARGARET SULLIVAN:

Burial: 12 Sep 1900, Memphis, Shelby Co., Tennessee¹¹

Cause of Death: "Gastrobrosis" (possibly some type of abdominal condition.) Age about 64.

Fact 1 (2) 1: Margaret's second marriage was found on a list of marriage records from Shelby Co., book # 3, 1864-1865; license application was Dec. 22, 1864; married 2 weeks later, Jan. 05, 1865, William (another William!) H. Thane a Prussian. Both were about 28.

Fact 1 (2) 2: Her first husband William Fazakerly was English, she was Irish. Unknown when & where she & William Fazakerly married.

Fact 3 (2): Bryan Fazakerly was age 10 when she remarried. He was not adopted by Mr. Thane.

Fact 4 (2): Margaret was Catholic; her husband, Mr. Thane, was possibly Lutheran. They were buried in different cemeteries.

Fact 5 (2): Margaret had seven children that we know about, Bryan Fazakerly & Margaret Fazakerly; then, Agnes, William Jr., Mary, Emma, & Frank Thane.

Fact 6 (2): We do not know why Margaret came to Memphis or what happened to her first husband or how long she was in Memphis before she remarried in 1865. Memphis did not keep city directories during the civil war, which may have given us a clue.

Fact 7 (2): There was a picture of the Thanes in Bryan & Sophia Fazakerly's family album.

Medical Information: Died at her residence, 65 Gates Avenue, in Memphis on Monday September 10, 1900, 2:30pm; Services: St. Mary's Catholic Church; Buried At Calvary Catholic Cemetery Sept. 12,1900, Section A Division 1.

Occupation: Housewife

More About WILLIAM FAZAKERLY and MARGARET SULLIVAN:

Marriage date: Probably married in the early 1850's. Unsure of how or where they met. Bryan, their son, was born in 1854, NY.

Fact 2: We do not know if Margaret Sullivan Fazakerly had a dowry while married to William Fazakerly. No records of this have been found.

Fact 3: However, probate records showed that Margaret Fazakerly Thane had a dowry. It was mentioned by Wm. Thane when he listed his assets when he signed as a sureity in a Guardianship Bond for Bryan Fazakerly when Bryan became guardian to his nephew in 1887.

Marriage: Bet. 1853 - 1854, Possibly New York¹²

Children of WILLIAM FAZAKERLY and MARGARET SULLIVAN are:

2. i. BRYAN³ FAZAKERLY, b. 27 Oct 1854, New York; d. 21 Mar 1904, Memphis, Shelby Co., Tennessee.

ii. MARGARET FAZAKERLY¹³, b. Abt. Jul 1859, Probably Chicago, Illinois¹⁴; d. 28 Jul 1861, Memphis, Shelby Co., Tennessee¹⁵.

Notes for MARGARET FAZAKERLY:

July 25, 2006

Eureka!!!!

I believe I have found little Margaret's death date.

On the Internet: register.shelby.tn.us/deathSearchResults.php

Fazakerly, Margaret, date of death: 07-28-1861 age 2

also listed as

Faskerly, Margaret, date of death: 07-28-1861 age 2

Gender F

Race W

File Number 7997

Notes: Fazakerly? see Faskerly

Image: None

So now I have to try to find a copy of the death certificate or death record.

Unbelievable!!!

Now if I could only find her father's information!

At least this proves the family (or at least Margaret, Bryan & little Margaret) were in Memphis in 1861.

Billie Fazakerly Harrison

Great Niece of Margaret Fazakerly

July 25, 2006

Our trip at the end of July and early August to Memphis gave me a chance to read the original record on film. It was the Register of Deaths in the City of Memphis for July, 1861. About the only other information added was cause of death: enteritis and the doctor's name: H. R. Hopson and sexton's name: Flaherty. The parents names and cemetery were not listed.

I was able to find from the 1860 Memphis city directory that Howell R. Hopson was a physician (with John Pittman); h. ws Wellington b. Beal & Linden; (I am assuming that this means h. (house) ws (west side) Wellington b. (business) Beal & Linden.

The Flahertys appeard to be undertakers.

Jas. Flaherty of J. & M. Flaherty, ss Union & Wellington (1859 they were listed at Union & Main)

It is unknown where little Margaret was buried. Even though it could have just about been anywhere, I'm guessing that it was just possibly at the St. Peter's Catholic Cemetery. Margaret Sullivan Fazakerly, little Margaret's mother was Catholic so that would be a logical place. So far I have not found a record of this. I was told years ago that some of the burial records of St. Peter's burned and that the records were being worked on. We were unable to visit St. Peter's Church on this trip. The lady we needed to talk to wasn't in at the time.

A bit of history of the cemetery: After the development of St. Peter's Parish, St. Peter's Cemetery was established in 1849.

St. Peter's Cemetery was closed in 1896 "AND THOSE REMAINS THAT COULD BE FOUND WERE TRANSFERRED TO CALVARY CEMETERY".

Finding little Margaret is going to be next to impossible.

This is why.

The first hospital in Memphis was the old public Memphis Hospital established in 1829, mostly for travellers going up & down the Mississippi. The old public hospital became a "military hospital" during the civil war then later it was named the Memphis City Hospital (abt. 1897) and later became known as the Memphis General Hospital and became a part of the UT Medical Center in 1926.

John Gaston Hospital was built in 1936 to replace this old hospital and it was built on the old St. Peter's Cemetery property. The bodies were to be transferred to the Calvary Cemetery. Sadly not all the bodies got moved; a few bodies showed up during construction of the hospital.

Hopefully little Margaret wasn't among these.

The Memphis public library had a transfer list of bodies that were transferred, but this might not have been complete. We were told by other souces about this story.

Also a lady at Elmwood Cemetery said that not all the bodies were indentified. She told of a lead lined casket that was found empty. (Winchester Cemetery also transferred their bodies to various other cemeteries and records weren't complete.)

So, we may never know if little Margaret was buried at St. Peter's or not.

Calvary Catholic Cemetery was established in 1867 and is where Margaret Sullivan Fazakerly Thane--little Margaret's mother--is buried along with her other daughters and one son.

More About MARGARET FAZAKERLY:

Fact 1 (2) 1: Little Margaret was not listed on the 1870 Tennessee census.

Fact 1 (2) 2: Little Margaret was found on the 1860 Chicago census, not quite a year old; possibly born in Chicago.

Fact 3 (2): The 1871 Chicago Fire and the fire at St. Peter's Church, Memphis, destroying partial records prior to 1889 may be why we can't find burial informaiton on young Margaret.

Fact 4 (2): Died at age 2 of enteritis, July 28, 1861; Physician: H. R. Hopson; Sexton: Flaherty; listed on the Register of Deaths in the City of Memphis

Generation No. 2

2. BRYAN³ FAZAKERLY (WILLIAM FAZAKERLEY OR², WILLIAM¹ FAZAKERLEY)¹⁶ was born 27 Oct 1854 in New York¹⁷, and died 21 Mar 1904 in Memphis, Shelby Co., Tennessee¹⁸. He married SOPHIA WIKE OR WEICK¹⁹ 10 May 1882 in Memphis, Shelby Co., Tennessee²⁰, daughter of CHRISTIAN WEICK and FRANZISCA. She was born Apr 1865 in Possibly Baden or Rath, Germany²¹, and died 08 Sep 1937 in Memphis, Shelby Co., Tennessee²².

Notes for BRYAN FAZAKERLY:

Bryan Fazakerly 1854-1904

INTRODUCTION:

I am not sure just when I was told our name was English. People have a hard time believing this. My mother-in-law "assumed" I was a Russian Jew when she first heard my name. She told me this the first time I met her. She was a little surprised to meet this Methodist girl that had been reared in the South with English roots. Guess she was expecting something more exotic. Who knows where the first Fazakerly tribe originally descended from before the Celts; Romans; Angles, Jutes, Saxons; then Vikings went to Britian. (Perhaps "Fazakerly" is Austro-Hungarian in origin and we come from a long line of dark haired gypsies or even from Transylvania! Wouldn't surprise me a bit.)

While growing up I had never heard of anyone else with our name until a doctor in an elevator at the Baptist Memorial Hospital in Memphis, where I trained as a nurse, asked me if I was related to the Fazakerlys in Mississippi. He said he thought they spelled their name Fisackerly or Fisakerly. I was surprised. I thought our family members were the only ones on the planet--or at least in America. Later as an adult I ran across the name in a detective novel. A lieutenant Fazakerly was mentioned as one of the characters in the book. (In real life my father was a lieutenant on the Memphis police force, but there was no connection.) Later, I heard the name mentioned on the Benny Hill Show during one of his comedy skits.

Since then I have found that there are indeed other Fazakerlys here with different spellings: Fazakerley, Fazackerley, Fazackerly, Fisakerly, etc.

William Bryan Fazakerly, Jr., my second cousin (first cousin to Aunt Frances, Uncle George, and my Daddy, Bill) lived in London, England from 1971-1974 and he states that he "passed through British Immigration Authority about a 100 times. Often, an immigration official would look at my passport and immediately call my name, pronouncing it just the way we do. In the U.S.A. we have to Spell it and Sound it, and Re-sound it, before a new acquaintance will pronounce it the way we do." We Fazakerlys certainly know "exactly" what he's talking about! I would love to go to England some day and visit the area great grandfather Fazakerly's family is from. According to some maps in a Liverpool Street Atlas, there are several places listed with the Fazakerley name. There is a Fazakerley brook, Fazakerley school, Fazakerley hospital, Fazakerley street, Fazakerley lane, and Fazakerley sidings (railroad yard). According to my aunt, there was also a Fazakerley summer resort at one time.

Frances Fazakerly McDaniel, Bryan Fazakerly's granddaughter and my aunt, sent me a picture of Bryan Fazakerly and others of his family. He was described as being tall and was an attractive man when he was young. The pictures of his sons, William Bryan Fazakerly, Sr. and George Mitchell Fazakerly, Sr. show that they were very attractive men. William, Sr. was a little more heavy set than his brother George, Sr., who was tall, slim, and thin faced, but both were very well built, strong looking, handsome men. Bryan Fazakerly's grandsons, Wm. B., Jr., Wm. Thomason, and Geo. M., Jr. were tall, handsome men also. (There are many Williams, Georges, and Marys in this family and it's a little hard to keep straight at times.) Bryan's daughter, Lilly May, was also attractive with her thick dark hair, slender build, and pretty face; but, unfortunately she inherited the large "Fazakerly nose" instead of her mother's small features--but she was still pretty. On the men that inherited it, like Daddy, I thought it added character.

====================================================================================

BRYAN FAZAKERLY

(William Bryan? Dennis Bryan? or just Bryan?)

The 1860, 1870, and 1900 Memphis, TN census records state that Bryan was born in New York. His burial permit also stated that he was from New York. It had been believed prior to this that he was from England, but it was his father, William, that was from England.

Even though the 1870 Memphis, TN census had that he was born in New York, it also had his name listed as what appeared to be "Dennis" or "Darius" Thane, age 15. Perhaps he later decided to go by the name Bryan which may have been a first or middle name--or maybe the name was entered by mistake. The 1900 census states that he was born in 1853, but this must be an error. Other records show he was born in 1854. Census records are often full of errors.

Another source for information, as listed above, are burial permits, which include the death certificates. Often this information comes from friends of the family or from other members of the family, other than the spouse or parent, or from acquaintances trying to help out at the time, therefore allowing for a few errors. (Example: Lilly May's permit stated that her father, Bryan, was from Germany and that she was buried at Calvary Cemetery--both very incorrect statements. The name of the person giving the information was not listed.) So much for accurate reporting! Hence, having more than one documented source can be helpful in finding the "accurate" truth.

1870, Memphis, Shelby Co., TN Census; June; Ward 9; Post Office: Memphis; entry # 344/394

1st time we find Bryan after Chicago when he was with Margaret & William Fazakerly. Now his name was listed oddly enough as Dennis or Darius Thane (index on Internet stated Tham), age 15, b. NY, area marked: "parents of foreign birth" & was with: William Thane (Tham?, Thann?), 34 (b. abt. 1836), b. Prussia, Occ., Ice Dealer, area was marked: "male citizen of US"; Margaret, wife, 34, Keeping House, b. Ireland; William, son, 3, b. Tennessee; Mary,1, b. Tennessee

This is Bryan's correct family, but the name Dennis or Darius must be a