Mostly for my Blake fans: Creepy Jennie Strikes AGAIN

Ok people.

I'm up late with the genealogy. I am frustrated by Bridget Kidney-Dwyer-etc and her husband Edward Blake and their niece Mollie Touhey. Is she Edward's niece or Bridget's? It would make things a lot easier if she were Edward's. Or not. I don't know. I find things and give them a try and then I put them aside again.

But anyway, this is about their son, one of the sons they left behind in Kansas City so they could go run a saloon in East St. Louis, where Edward would eventually shoot a man? His name is Edward D. Blake. If I knew what the D. stood for I'd probably be in better shape than I am now. Daniel? Seems likely. Anyway, he's the one who's married to the spooky great-great-grandmother of mine, Jennie Dawes. Jennie Freakin Dawes. Jennie Dawes who is about as elusive as Bridget of the Many Surnames.

Jennie was married to Leonhard Etter before she was married to Edward. Leonhard was a drunk and a swindler. They had a mess of kids, most of which died before they were one. They did live in the hole that was the near north side at the time. But Leonhard kicks the bucket and Jennie marries Edward.

I never found a marriage record in Missouri, which was super frustrating because Missouri is diligent about their marriage and death records of a certain age. They are free online to view and cheap to order if you want them. So not finding it was annoying. I extrapolated and triangulated a year of marriage--1896--based on a census record and their son, my great-grandfather, also an Edward, his date of birth.

Well, google is always a good second place to look for things and I found a summary of information on some site. It had Edward marrying (Mrs.) Jennie Etter in 1896 in Illinois. Which made me feel sheepish because, while they are stingier about getting copies, Illinois is awesome at marriage records. And death records after 1900 or so. I could have found it myself, but why? Why would I have tried to find it, when I knew they lived in St. Louis? For that matter, I felt even more justified in my ignorance because they didn't get married in East St. Louis, but in Chicago.

Another mystery for another day.

But here's the creepy part. They did indeed get married in 1896. In July 1896. ON JULY 6, 1896, to be exact.

You know what my anniversary is?

July 6, 1996.

I got married a hundred years to the day after Edward married the scariest person in my whole family tree.

I can't stop giggling.