A Silvan Marriage LOST & FOUND ~

NOTE: If anyone who reads this blog has problems finding my most recent post (a friend just told me he had the problem) --- Once you open the home page of my blog, scroll down and you will see Blog Archives on the left with dates below it. Just click on the most recent to catch up and go down from there --- or start old and end new. :)

Imagine my frustration and anxiety while writing Manuela's Petals as I (and Vicki) research every avenue in Hawaii trying to find out WHEN her grandparents (Theodora Silvan and John Souza) married so it will fit into my timeline when grandma was in Hawaii, ready to sail to San Francisco. Museums, Historical Societies, Vital Statistics, Census Lists, Church records -- several churches and so many people to no avail... Until finally, a wonderful lady named Carmen in Kapa'a called last night in response to me "you are my last resort letter" to tell me she was Faxing me all she had on record at St. Catherine's for the old St. Sylvester's Church...

Six baptismal records came through and I was only a little disappointed to see they were children of John Souza's brothers (Manuel and Jose). The good news was each baptismal card listed mother, father and Godparents. So, I began to input all the information into my www.ancestry.com records. Carmen told me they may have had a civil ceremony if they couldn't show their own baptismal records... so no wonder I couldn't find records in a church!

That was the good news. The REALLY GOOD news came when I got to the last one. It was different because it listed John Souza as Godfather but unlike the previous five cards that listed husband and wife Godparents, this one listed the Godmother as one of the sisters in law. I sat there, knowing I was seeing something but not seeing it until the lightning bolt slapped me silly. John Souza wasn't married yet on March 15, 1919. I scrambled into my genealogical file and found his first daughter (Josephine) was born February 4, 1920 --- so I counted backward (I am positive babies took nine months even then :)) I was able to narrow down their marriage date to the 3rd week of March up to the end of April 1919. OMG, I felt light as a feather and shot off an email to Vicki, who has agonized over this information along with me...and will be thrilled! Oh, my investigative expertise amazes me and it's such fun. Like my cousin, Tess, the excitement is in the FINDING...

So, now back to Manuela's Petals and write, write, write...