Daniel Finn, Catherine Creedon & Family

Daniel Finn (1818-1887) Laborer and Immigrant to USA in 1873 (b. December 1818, Millstreet and Cullen, Cork, County Cork, Munster Province, Ireland – d. October 14, 1887, 276 1st Street, Jersey City, Hudson County, New Jersey, 07302-2713, USA)

Birth:
Daniel was born in Millstreet, Cork, Ireland to Mary and Patrick Finn (c1790-?).

Marriage:
He married Catherine Creedon (1834-1914) around 1855-1860.

Children:
Together they had the following children: Mary A. Finn (1860-1885) who was born in Ireland or Wales; Nora M. Finn (1866-1898) who was born in Wales and married John Joseph Burke I (1868-1939); and Catherine (Kate) Elizabeth Finn (1873-1918) who was born in Cardiff in Wales. There were two more children that died at birth and they are probably buried in Wales or Ireland.

Emigration:
Around 1860 Daniel and Catherine moved from Ireland to Cardiff, Wales. In 1873 the family moved from Wales to the United States and lived in Jersey City, New Jersey.

Jersey City, New Jersey:
In 1880 Daniel and Catherine were living at 270 First Street in Jersey City with their daughter Nora. Their other daughter, Mary A. Finn appears to be working as a housekeeper for James B. Hance, a produce store owner in Jersey City. Daniel’s other daughter, Catherine Finn, is working as a servant at the home of L.S. Williard in Jersey City. L.S. Willard was a dry goods salesman. Daniel appears in the 1881 Jersey City Directory living at 270 First Street and working as a laborer.

Death:
Daniel died in 1887 of “phthisis pulmonalis” while living at 276 1st Street in Jersey City.

Obituary:
His obituary appeared in the Evening Journal on Saturday, October 15, 1887 and reads as follows: “Finn – On Friday, October 14, 1887, Daniel Finn, aged 69 years. Relatives and friends of the family are respectfully invited to attend the funeral from his late residence, 270 First Street, on Sunday at 3 o’clock p.m.”

Widow:
Daniel’s widow lived until January 01, 1914. She was living with her daughter, Catherine Finn and her granddaughter, Mary (May) Margaret Burke (1890-1949) at 41 Hopkins Avenue in Jersey City, New Jersey.

Catherine Elizabeth Finn (1868-1918) aka Kate Finn; Immigrant from Wales in 1873-1874; Spinster; Servant; Private Secretary at American Lead Pencil Company (now Faber-Castell) in Hoboken, New Jersey (b. June 1868, Cardiff, Gamorgan County, Wales, United Kingdom – d. July 20, 1918, Jersey City, Hudson County, New Jersey, USA)

Birth:
Kate was born in June of 1868 according to the 1900 US Census. Her parents were Daniel Finn (1818-1887) and Catherine Creedon (1834-1914).

Siblings:
Her siblings were: Mary A. Finn (1860-1885) who was born in Ireland or Wales; and Nora M. Finn (1866-1898) who was born in Cardiff in Wales and married John Joseph Burke I (1868-1939).

Emigration:
Daniel Finn and Catherine Creedon along with their children, emigrated to Wales around 1860 and in 1873 emigrated to the US. Catherine Creedon’s sister, Nora Creedon (1829-1904) also emigrated with the family. The family was Irish and from Millstreet and Cullen in County Cork, but had left Ireland for Wales probably looking for work.

Jersey City, New Jersey:
In 1880 Catherine Finn was working as a servant at the home of L.S. Williard, a drygoods salesman from New Hampshire. Her sister, Mary, may have been working as a servant for James B. Hance, a grocer in Jersey City.

Death of Father:
In 1887 Catherine’s father died. In 1895 Catherine and her mother were living at 16 Elliot Place in Jersey City and Catherine was working as a “typewriter”, probably at the American Lead Pencil Company on Willow Avenue and Fifth Street in Hoboken.

Death of Sister:
In 1898, Nora Finn, her sister, died of pneumonia and Catherine and her mother raised Mary Margaret Burke, Nora’s daughter.

Jersey City, New Jersey:
In 1900 She was living with her widowed mother at 16 Ellicott Place in Jersey City. Also living there was her neice: Mary Margaret Burke. Katherine’s age was listed as “31” and her birth date as “June 1868”. She listed her immigration as “1874” and was working as a “stenographer”.

American Lead Pencil Company:
In 1910 Catherine was living with her mother at 41 Hopkins Avenue in Jersey City working as a private secretary at the American Lead Pencil Company in Hoboken.

Death of Mother:
On January 01, 1914, Catherine’s mother died and she raised Mary Burke on her own. The house was filled with crystal vases, bronzes, a sterling silver tea set and oil paintings. They also had a piano. Some of the furnishings still exist and are with Vincent Gerard Norton (1923-2005) and James Norton. James and Vincent are Mary Burke’s children. Catherine Finn and Mary Burke would listen to classical music and attend operas.

Dowager’s Hump:
As Catherine aged she developed a dowager’s hump that left her bent over.

Last Will and Testament:
Catherine’s will was written on August 15, 1916, and named Mary Margaret Burke as her executrix.

Death:
Catherine Finn, who never married, died on Saturday, July 20, 1918 in Jersey City, New Jersey. The cause of death was “cerebral apoplexy with uracemia”.

Burial:
She is buried in Holy Name Cemetery in Jersey City with her parents and siblings.

Nora M. Finn (1866-1898) Housewife (b. 1866, Cardiff, South Glamorgan County, Wales, United Kingdom – d. June 24, 1898, 16 Elliot Place, Jersey City, Hudson County, New Jersey, 07307, USA)

Birth:
Nora was born in 1866 to Daniel Finn (1818-1887) and Catherine Creedon (1834-1914) of Millstreet and Cullen, Cork, Munster Province, Ireland.

Siblings:
Nora had two sisters: Mary A. Finn (1860-1885); and Catherine (Kate) Elizabeth Finn (1873-1918). Both sisters remained unmarried. Her sister, Catherine, worked as a executive secretary at the American Lead Pencil Company in Hoboken, New Jersey.

Emigration:
Nora’s parents, Daniel Finn and Catherine Creedon were born in Ireland but moved to Wales around 1860 and then the United States in 1873.

Marriage:
Nora married John Joseph Burke I (1868-1939) around 1899 and had a child: Mary Margaret Burke (1891-1949).

Death:
Nora may have died in childbirth with a subsequent child on June 24, 1898 at 16 Elliot Place in Jersey City, New Jersey.

Burial:
Nora is buried with her parents, siblings, her child and two grandchildren in Holy Name Cemetery on West End Avenue in Jersey City, New Jersey.

Daughter Raised by Sister:
After her death, her child was raised by her sister, Catherine.

Image:
An unlabeled and undated photograph of Nora was found in the collection of Josephine (May) Veronica Burke (1907-1995). Thomas Patrick Norton (1920- ) identified Mary Ellen Burke in the photograph which led to the tentative identification of the others in the photograph.

resources from:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/richard_arthur_norton/with/2446942043/

http://www.flickr.com/search/?w=54904823%40N00&q=finn&m=text