Ada Marie Meehan was my great grandmother. I knew her and know a lot about her but there is also a lot about her I don't know. She and her husband Tom Morris, Grandpop, lived with us on Greene Street for many years. She would sit on the couch and tell us stories about when she was a young girl while we sat on the floor in front of her. I wish I could remember all of those stories. I previously wrote about Nana and Grandpop in our house in an earlier post.
She was born in Illinois August 17, 1878 with some indication it may have been Chicago. Her parents were Patrick Meehan who was born in Ireland and Bridget Culley. I'm not sure yet where she was born but I think Ireland. I also don't know their birth or death dates yet and how many other children they had. I'm still working on getting that information.
I don't know at this point when she came to Philadelphia or why. She married Thomas Morris on April 16th 1902. She was 24 years old. He was 26 and a plumbing inspector for the Reading Railroad. According to the 1910 Census they lived Bouvier Street in Philadelphia and had two children.
By the 1920 Census Nana and Grandpop were living at 231 Zeralda Street near Wayne Junction in the Germantown section of Philadelphia. They lived there until they moved in with us on Greene Street.
Nana tragically lost both of her children. Her daughter Helen C. Morris was born on January 23rd 1903 and died from rheumatic fever on April 30th 1912 at the age of nine. Their son Thomas Morris Jr. was born on January 2nd 1905 and passed away from pneumonia January 17th 1931. He was 26 and my grandfather.
Nana had a very sad streak to her from losing her daughter as a young child and then her son as a young man. Fortunately she did have a granddaughter from her son's marriage... my mother. She stayed close by her for the rest of her life.
Nana passed away on November 23rd 1964. She was 86. I wrote another entry for Tom Morris our Grandpop who passed away on February 11th 1962. He was 85.
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