I thought since St. Patrick's Day is coming, I would submit the following story of our Great, Grandparent's passage to the United States from Ireland. James and Bridget McLaughlin emigrated from Ireland in 1889, with their children Michael and Anna. They were transported aboard the RMS Teutonic (pictured here). The Teutonic was known as the first modern liner because of the modifications to passenger accommodation. Whereas all of White Star Line's previous liners had only carried two classes of passengers—Cabin and Steerage -- the Teutonic introduced changes to that paradigm. The White Star Line later built the Titanic. The Teutonic was built with the three-class accommodation system, consisting of First, Second, and Third Classes. First Class, originally known as Cabin Class, was renamed as Saloon Class on specific terms, being meant for upper class travelers. The Teutonic had accommodations for 300 First Class passengers in spacious cabins situated on her uppermost three decks, and had many interesting features. Many of the cabins were inter-connecting for family travel. A new class began appearing in ships after this time in shipbuilding, and Teutonic was among the first to see it. Second Class, also known as Cabin Class, was meant for travelers of the middle class. Teutonic was built to carry 190 Second Class passengers in comfortable rooms on the second highest deck, further aft towards the stern. Third Class, commonly known as steerage, was primarily for immigrants. Teutonic was built to carry 1,000 Third Class passengers in two areas of accommodation aboard the ship. As was the case aboard all White Star vessels, Third Class spaces were segregated with single men berthed forward, and single women, married couples and families with children berthed aft. steerage passengers were quartered in nine separate compartments on the two lowest decks, with five forward and four aft. All five forward sections and three of the four aft sections consisted of large twenty-berth cabins lining the ship's hull, with interior spaces left open to be used for dining and other purposes. The fourth section in the stern, designated for married couples and families with children, consisted of small but comfortable and private two and four-berth cabins. The photos attached are of the RMS Teutonic, the main staircase and the accommodations technical drawing.

I didn't realize until today, this tintype is a picture of my Great, Grandparents, Joseph and Ellen (Francis) Hillanbrand, with Catherine Francis. This is probably the earliest I have of both of them together.

This is part two of a story that I started yesterday. Much thanks to Rachel LePera for forwarding information to me. I received an email from a woman named Peggy, claiming that her son may be a part of the Hillanbrand family. Could I assist in this determination. I won't go into a long dissertation of our emails back and forth. Suffice to say, the story, in a synopsis, went like this: A young girl was born in Philadelphia, on December 23, 1916 by the name of Irene Clara Rittersbach. At the age of 4, she was given up for adoption, with the assistance of the church, to a couple in Pottsville, by the names of Christopher and Margaret (nee Hartman) Donnelly. They renamed her Agnes Donnelly. Agnes apparently had some difficulties throughout her life. She had married three times. In her first marriage, she left her husband and two young boys, aged 7 and 5. In her second marriage, she left her husband and daughter. Agnes later died on March 4, 1983 in Hawaii. Even to her death, she never spoke of her early years, especially before she was adopted. Her daughter found a birth certificate with her original name, but no parents listed. This is where it gets interesting. Since Agnes left her marriages, her children never knew their real grandparents. One of her sons, Richard Schutz, didn't know his maternal grandparents. His son, Ronald Schutz, decided to find out by DNA testing through Ancestry DNA. The result - Joseph Peter Hillanbrand is his Great, Grandfather. If anyone has taken the same test, like I did, I found that we share 19 centimorgans of DNA, as half-second cousins. Oh boy! Somehow, our Great, Grandfather had an affair, with a yet to be determined daughter of George Rittersbach (we've narrowed it down to one of four daughters, Marion, Aubrey, Ruth or Alice). So our family expanded, without even knowing it. Just what we needed. More Hillanbrand genes being transferred around. Well, I'm taking this news in good stride. I'm welcoming our new cousins into our crazy family, whether they like it or not! And we can thank our Great, Grandfather for it.

This is a two part story that I will relay to you all today and tomorrow. Our Great Grandparents, Joseph Peter Hillanbrand and Ellen Francis (pictured with some of their children, including our grandfather) were married on June 29, 1898. Their marriage, apparently, was a tumultuous one. In my possession, I have a letter dated October 9, 1901, that Joseph had sent to Ellen in Girardville, Schuylkill County from Philadelphia. Ellen had left their home in Philadelphia, to be with her parents and took our grandfather, who was one year old, with her. Joseph asks for forgiveness from some indiscretion and asks her to come back home. He says, "...when you come home we will try to get along better than before without fighting..." What the original problems were, I did not know, for it did not manifest itself in the letter. What was the indiscretion? Well, I found out this past week. You will want to tune in tomorrow.

Meet George Hildenbrandt. He is the older brother of our Great, Great, Great Grandfather Franz Hillenbrand. He had left Hosenfeld, Germany, 10 years prior to Franz in 1837. Born in 1810, he left Germany and became a butcher in Minersville, Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania. Our Great, Great, Great, Great Grandmother, Margarita Hillenbrand, born in 1788, had later emigrated and stayed with George and his wife Catharine in Minersville. He lived and worked near Third and Sunbury Streets in Minersville. He died of heart disease and dropsy, in 1880, and is buried in Mount Peace Cemetery in Minersville. As far as I know, this is the earliest photograph of a Hillanbrand relative. I will see if I can get a better copy to share with you all.

So Dad, left the Army after serving in the Korean War and decided to re-enlist with the Air Force. They have better billets anyway, right? No! He got stationed in Iceland, thanks to Uncle Sam.

Hillanbrand and Huth families from Frackville, PA. First Row: Barbara Keihm Hillanbrand, Magdalena Hillanbrand Huth, Agnes Huth Murphy, Mary Huth and Killian Huth, Jr.. Second Row: John Joseph Huth, Mary Hillanbrand Wagner, Louisa Hillanbrand Fennessy and Estelle Hillanbrand Monahan. Last Row: Bertha Huth Sands, Charles Hillanbrand, Killian Huth and Joseph Monahan.

Two of the last photographs of my Great Grandmother Ellen Francis Hillanbrand. Two other photographs are of her sisters or my Great, Great Aunts.

This is a series of late photographs of my Great, Grandmother, Ellen Francis Hillanbrand (1878-1951).

Some early photographs of my Great, Grandmother Ellen Francis Hillanbrand.

A series of photographs of Uncle Joe Hillanbrand during WW2. The contents of the letter he sent our Grandfather: Hospital _________France. Jan. 15, 1945

Dear Dad,

How are you and all the kids getting along? Fine I hope. Tell everybody that I was asking for them and hope that they are all doing well. I don't have much to write about, but I wanted to let you know that I am doing fine and kicking with one foot. Dad I asked everybody for Joe R. (That is his cousin Joe Rutledge) address but they never did send it to me, so will you send it to me please? See if you can get Helen or Dot to make me some homemade fudge? I sure do miss it. How are things doing around home, any news? Boy Dad, you sure do get home sick when you are on the front lines, you get to think of everything. The first time since I had been in the army that I had ever gotten home sick and boy I sure was home sick too, but I am ok now, thank God. Boy Dad, to think of the things you go through and still be alive. If I can find the story they wrote about our company on one of its attacks I will send it to you. I didn't think that I would ever come out of that alive, but I went through about 8 more of them and they sure aren't any fun. You can tell Vin that I got that German for him that he asked me to get for him, when he had the bad leg. Dad, now that I seen what I did and that was enough. I don't want you to let Jim go in the service because war is hell and I don't mean maybe either. Well I will close now wishing you all the best of luck & health & God bless all of you.

Your Loving Son,

Joe.

Another found photograph of my Grandfather's maternal Grandfather (or my Great, Great, Grandfather), Thomas Francis. This is the one to blame for the Hillanbrand eyebrows!

My Grandfather, Francis Joseph Hillanbrand, looking quite the dandy, circa 1920.

Aunt Lois March Hillanbrand, Aunt Reba H. Gray Hillanbrand, Aunt Helen Hillanbrand Churney, Aunt Nancy Frith Hillanbrand and Aunt Gloria Hillanbrand O'Brien.

This is the last of the recent photos that I have for you. This one is a rare one. As far as I know, this is only just the second picture known of our Grandmother, Helen Merial (McLaughlin) Hillanbrand (April 13, 1902 - June 21, 1942). If anyone knows different, please let me know. In this picture, she is standing in front of what appears to be a store front, possibly on Ridge Avenue, in the Falls. She is standing with a young Aunt Dot, circa 1925.

This is the third promised picture of my Great Grandmother, Bridget Agnes (nee McNulty) McLaughlin. She was born on March 3, 1861 in Callow, Killasser, Mayo, Ireland. In 1869, her parents , Thomas and Anne (nee Mulligan) McNulty, moved from their farm in Callow to Doonmaynor, Killasser. This was the next townsland, just west of the McLoughlins in Dromada. After James McLaughlin died in 1908, in Philadelphia, Bridget steadfastly raised her family, by herself. She died March 13, 1944, some 36 years after the death of her husband. In the picture below, Bridget is in the middle, date unknown.

Today's picture is not new, however, it is a better copy. It is of my Great, Grandfather James McLaughlin, born April 3, 1861 to Michael McLoughlin and Mary Meer in Dromada, Killasser, Mayo, Ireland. Dromada is the townsland that he was born, which equates to a set of lots in a block, much like a neighborhood in the states. Lots sometimes do not front a road. James married Bridget McNulty on September 13, 1884 in St. Patrick's Church, in Rochdale, Lancashire, England. I don't know why they chose this church to get married, but I believe that at the time, James was temporarily working in England, as often happens when work was scarce back home. James emigrated to the United States in 1889, with his wife, Bridget and two children, Michael and Anna. The rest of their eight other children were born in Philadelphia. James became a fireman, but succumbed to cancer of the stomach on June 21, 1908, at the age of 47.

Stay tuned for the next four days for some photographs of the McLaughlin family, including an unknown one of our grandmother. In this photograph, taken circa 1901, is my Great, Grandparents, James and Bridget (McNulty) McLaughlin with their children: Michael, Anna, Marie, Catherine, Elizabeth and James. Not pictured is Thomas (born 1889, died 1894), my Grandmother, Helen (born 1902), Agnes (born 1903) and Margaret (born 1907).

Stopped at the old cemetery to pay our respects to my Great, Great Grandparents in Killasser, Mayo, Ireland. Also stopped at Seamus and Sarah McLoughlin’s house to visit the old homestead. Beer, tea and hot scones. Then onto Foxford Whoollen Mills for some shopping.

A ride through the town of Hosenfeld, Germany, where my Great, Great, Great Grandfather, Franz Hillenbrand had emigrated. His house was located on the left side late in the video. It is a bucolic German version that is reminiscent of a rural Pennsylvania town.

My Great Grandfather's first cousin, Mark McLoughlin and his wife, Mary O'Connor back on the farm in Killasser, County Mayo, Ireland. My Great Grandfather, James McLoughlin left that farm to emigrate to the U.S.

After 119 years, my Great, Great Grandfather, now has a memorial. Unfortunately, the priest of the parish that owns the cemetery couldn't consecrate the grave. I called and the caretaker said, the priest had passed away and wasn't replaced. Good reason. Anyway, before I left, I placed a small stone on the memorial. Ruhe in Frieden.

Glad I got to meet my Grandmother's second cousin in Ireland last week. They met us with open arms and a warm home. Thanks Seamus and Sarah McLoughlin! It's nice to see they are still at the old homestead. Will have to visit again.

Glad I got to meet my Grandmother's second cousin in Ireland last week. They met us with open arms and a warm home. Thanks Seamus and Sarah McLoughlin! It's nice to see they are still at the old homestead. Will have to visit again.

Needed some help from family members in identifying the woman standing next to my Grandfather. Found out it is my Grandfather's sister, my Great Aunt Viola.