An eBay Photograph Leads Me (Incorrectly) To Minehan DNA Matches

The Scene: It's Monday morning and I'm clearing my email inbox and I come across an eBay alert for Minahan's Wendell Inn at Crooked Lake, N.Y." dated 1914.

eBay Item: Antique Postcard: Minahan's Wendell Inn, Sand Lake,  New York, (note the Model T Car) ( $29.99 USD)

So naturally, I looked at all of the  Minahans in my family tree and ran some newspaper searches for the "Wendell Inn".

One thing led to another and, fast forward five hours later, this lovely 1914 photo had led me from New York to Massachusetts to Michigan to Texas and to several Ancestry DNA matches! I immediately created and posted a blog post in all of the excitement only to confirm hours later that the DNA match family tree had several significant errors

Below is the chronological description of my discovery, excitement and the reality check that all was NOT what it appeared.

First Step: Newspapers

I always begin on newspaper.com and I started by typing "Minahan + Wendell Inn" and several newspaper articles appeared right away:

• The first article stated that management at the Wendell was to be changed and that the new proprietor would be Luke J. Minahan. It also stated that Luke had been previously associated with the Yates Hotel in Syracuse, New York (Source: The Berkshire Eagle Pittsfield, Massachusetts 26 May 1905, Fri  •  Page 2 )
• The second article (below) stated John Minahan (brother of Charles W. Minahan) sold the Wendell Inn in 1914 (same date as the postcard) and planned to "spend the winter in the south".
  
• I then searched and found an article (below) about Charles W. Minahan who was also associated in some way with the Wendell. 
• I learned that Luke J. Minahan had died sometime in 1913 because I read (see below) that "Prayers were offered in St. Patrick's church Sunday for the repose of the soul of Luke J. Minahan.". The date was not mentioned nor the city that he had died in.
  

 

Source: The Berkshire County Eagle Pittsfield, Massachusetts Wed, Nov 11, 1914 · Page 2

Mowhawk Trail Day; President Charles W Minahan pictured in car. Source:The Berkshire Eagle Pittsfield, Massachusetts Sat, Mar 06, 1915 · Page 17

Source: Clipped from Norwich Bulletin Norwich, Connecticut 21 Apr 1913, Mon  •  Page 5

I had learned so far that there was more than one "Wendell" (one in Pittsfield, Massachusetts which closed in 1965, and was demolished soon after)  and one at Sandy Lake, New York (aka Crooked Lake) and that there were three brothers: Luke J., Charles W. and John Minahan. Beyond that, I knew very little and my curiosity had not been satisfied. I wanted to know more.

Next Step: Family Search

I always say, "When you're stuck researching an ancestor, try the FREE and ALWAYS (in my opinion) useful/helpful Family Search" 

I entered the only information that I had on Luke J Minahan: his name and the year he died based on the newspaper article.

Based on only two pieces of information, the Family Search yielded 36,621 Results for Name: Luke J Minahan Death Year (Range): 1913 - 1913. Not all of these were useful results but the Massachusetts Death certificate certainly was!

 

From the death certificate, I learned

• Luke died April 17, 1913 from a perforated appendics. He was only 43 years old.
  
• Luke was born the 23 March 1870 in Troy, New York
  
• Luke lived at the Wendell Hotel in Pittsfield, Massachusetts
• Luke was married
  
• Luke's parents were John and Mary (Conway) Minahan both born in Ireland.
• He is buried at St Agnes Cemetery in Troy, N.Y.
  

Next Step: Ancestry: Build A Family Tree 

With just the few facts above, it was now time to build Luke J. Minahan's tree on ancestry.com. 

Just by adding Luke's details, his parents, and his three known brothers, suddenly (just like the commercial says) green leaves started shaking everywhere meaning that the ancestry database had possible matches like marriage records, census records, etc.

This tree is obviously a work in progress, however, the next amazing part of today's story involves the John and Mary's eldest child Margaret ("Maggie") Minehan who I learned right away was born in 1855 in Wayne, Michigan!

The Michigan connection is an important one. My Moynahan ancestors came from Kerry, Ireland and settled in Essex, Ontario, Canada and Wayne, Michigan USA and then spread far and wide throughout North America.

I now focused my attention on Maggie Minehan.

Next Step: Michigan - Texas Research

I learned that Maggie Minehan married Alonzo R. Banister in Michigan in 1876 and they then moved to Texas with Alonzo's family.

Banister Headstone. Source: Find A Grave: Crowell Cemetery Crowell, Foard County, Texas, USA

Margaret (Minehan) Banister (1855-1912) had a large family and it was in researching them that I discovered her daughter Grace (pictured below.) Her grandson (name withheld for privacy reasons) shared her picture on ancestry.

Grace Banister (Source: RMG; Ancestry)

It turns out that I am a DNA match to Grace's grandson RMG as well as several shared matches that include some of my Tilbury Moynahan DNA matches.

That is what has made my research of the photo of "Minahan's Wendell Inn at Crooked Lake N.Y." such an incredible adventure. I really believed that it had led me to more Michigan distant cousins!

Why Fact Checking is SO Important

After creating the original blog post in all of my excitement, I continued to research all of the members of  John Minahan and Mary Conways family and it became increasingly obvious that Maggie's parents were indeed John and Mary Minehan, however NOT the same Minahans of New York and Wendell Inn fame!

Source: Texas Department of State Health Services; Austin Texas, USA; Texas, Death Certificates, 1903-1982

John Minehan's obituary from 1903 does not mention a daughter who married a Bannister, nor does Mary (Conway) Minehan's 1915 obituary. It was time to start a new tree for Margaret (Minehan) Bannister!

CLIPPED FROM The Post-Star Glens Falls, New York 30 Sep 1903, Wed • Page 4

CLIPPED FROM  The Berkshire Eagle   Pittsfield, Massachusetts  29 Mar 1915, Mon  •  Page 2

The Connection To Michigan Minehans

There is NO connection between the Wendell Hotel Minahans and the DNA descendants of Margaret (Minehan) Banister (1855-1912, however the connection to Michigan Minehans is still very significant!

Through continued research on this family, I hope that it might help me solve another Michigan Minehan/Moynahan mystery that is always in the back of my mind. 

Capt. James Minnehan (1840-1899) (pictured below) was reported to be a cousin of James Moynahan (1842-1919) of Colorado

I have never been able to establish how James Minnehan was related to James Moynahan. Maybe Maggie (Minehan) Banister will help me solve the mystery.

Lessons Learned

As the story of Minahan's Wendell Inn and the discovery of the Michigan DNA descendants unfolded, I wanted the two stories to be interconnected and relied on the DNA trees to fill in the blanks.

Thankfully, I continued to research both families relying upon newspapers when other records were not available. The lesson for me was to curb my enthusiasm and continue to search for documentation .

Epilogue: Minahan's Wendell Hotel 

Source: Google's Art and Culture: Postcards

 

I was surprised to learn from the Sand Lake Historical Society that the Wendell Inn at Crooked Lake, N.Y. is still there and used primarily as a banquet hall.

Screenshot taken of RootsWeb entry: http://homepages.rootsweb.com/~shirleyb/schools/crookedlakehouse2.html

The other Wendell Hotel in Pittsfield, Massachusetts was located at the corner of South and West Streets in Pittsfield, around 1906 and was closed in 1965, and demolished shortly thereafter.

Image courtesy of the Library of Congress, Detroit Publishing Company Collection.