I was browsing old Vermont newspapers, mostly articles I’ve already looked at, trying to find something new that I haven’t seen before.
That’s when I came across this small bit of information in the Argus and Patriot from April 11, 1883:
Of course, this refers to the birth of my great-grandfather Eugene, and his twin brother, George, who were born on March 28, 1883. There are two things in that sentence, however, that make me scratch my head. The first is that the oldest boy would have been 17 at this time, that being Patrick Grace born in 1866. The second is that the twins were the 10th and 11th sons born to Edward and Catherine, and that’s counting baby Michael, who was born and died in Canada in 1870.
My first theory is that the source of the information was most likely Edward or a family friend. It is quite likely that after that many kids, you might start slipping and saying 12. I also find it completely believable that the source of this information was a little unsure about the age of the oldest Grace boy.
The other possibility is that there is another child that we don’t know about, that didn’t live very long. Someday soon I’ll make a trip to the records in Waterbury and try to find out for sure. However, I do strongly lean toward the conclusion that it was an error in counting on the part of the source of this information.
That being said, I was pretty excited about finding this little sentence about my grandfather’s dad. It’s almost like finding a needle in a haystack.
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May 19, 2011 at 3:27 am
Heather LeBlanc
Hello, I’m sure that we are cousins. My name is Heather Duval LeBlanc. My mother is Kathleen Grace Duval. Her parents are Walter and Marian Grace I was so happy to find your blog!
~Heather
May 23, 2011 at 7:04 pm
Sandra Grace
Hi-
I’ve been looking for information about my great-great- grandfather, George Grace, and from what I’ve been able to find it looks like he might be the twin brother of your great grandfather, Eugene? Officially all I have is that his name was George, and his son, my great grandfather, was also named George, and that George was born in 1883 in Moretown, VT, and was married to Anna card, whom I have as being born in Easport, ME 1891. George and Anna had George Grace Jr (my grandfather) in 1914 in St Johnsbury, VT, along with 5 other children that I know of, Glen, Alice, Lawrence, John and Phylis. My grandfather then married Laurette Duval and had my father, Joseph Richard Jr (my grandfather had by then changed his first name) in 1957, as well as three other sons, one of whom died in infancy (also Joseph Richard Jr), the other two being Michael and Patrick.
I didn’t know about Eugene (if my great-great grandfather Geroge is in fact the twin of your great-grandfather Eugene). I’m assuming this is a match because the year and birth location match up, and I haven’t found any other record. We know very little about this side of the family, so if you could help me confirm whether or not this is the same George Grace, I would be incredibly appreciative- any info you have on Eugene’s twin and people surrounding him would be great so I can know for sure. Thanks!
Sandy