Thursday, December 7, 2017

Too Much Death on the Same Day

We family historians know about death.  We want to -- really, we need to -- find and document death dates and other information surrounding an ancestor's death.  And we know it's an inevitable part of life.

But today... today was a hard day in the death department.  Of the four U.K. GRO death certificates I requested only three turned out to be for family members, but all three of those people died too early and of unnatural causes.  It breaks my heart to know that a father and daughter died 15 days apart due to very different causes of death, leaving behind a wife and mother and several other children.  It breaks my heart that a mother in a different family died leaving behind a husband and two little girls. 

Learning of these three deaths on the same day... there's been too much death in my family today. 

--Nancy.

Copyright ©2017 Nancy Messier. All Rights Reserved.
.

4 comments:

  1. I've found circumstances like the one you describe, a mother who lost 3 children in a matter of weeks and my 3rd great-grandfather lost his mother and daughter within a day also of very different causes. I agree it does make one sad even a century later.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. We feel sad for our ancestors but it's hard to imagine how difficult it must have been for them!

      Delete
  2. Nancy, those names and dates we collect are more than just data. They smiled and laughed, had dreams and worries. When we uncover those tragic times the data becomes very human, very real.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I wholeheartedly agree, Colleen. I've never been one to see a name and a date without knowing that there was a living person associated with it. My ancestors are too real to me.

      Delete

I appreciate your comments and look forward to reading what you have to say. Thanks for stopping by.