Without a doubt, Jay WYRE is my most frustrating brick wall. He was a proud but seemingly unscrupulous man who claimed descent from a duke! According to his death certificate, Jay was born 22 Mar 1851 in Wisconsin (birth records of two children list his birthplace as Milwaukee) and died 7 Aug 1925 in Limestone Township, Peoria County, Illinois. The document contains no information about his parents. He was buried in the County Farm (Poor Farm) Cemetery in Peoria.
There was a contemporary WYRE family living in early Milwaukee: William and Eliza (SOVY) WYRE, with children Sarah Elizabeth, William R., George T., Rosetta, and Daniel D. However, any connection to them is unknown. I have been unable to identify him in any Wisconsin census records.
Jay’s first marriage to Melvina “Minnie” LUSSIER is the earliest mention of him I have found. One record, dated 18 Dec 1877, is from LeSueur County, Minnesota. Another marriage record from neighboring Waseca County is dated 22 Dec 1877. This puzzles me, as well.
Minnie was the daughter of Raymond Antoine LUSSIER and Emily YATTAW/GUERTIN, a family with French-Canadian roots.
By 1880, the couple are living in Minneapolis, where Jay’s occupation is listed as a lather. Minnie’s father was a cabinet maker. Perhaps the two men met while building houses.
Sadly, on 21 Sep 1881, Minnie WYRE passed away. Her death notice, from the Star Tribune, 22 Sep 1881, calls her Mrs. John WYRE, and stated that the cause was typhoid. However, the Minnesota County Death Register lists the cause of death as a miscarriage.
On 15 Jan 1882, Jay married nineteen-year-old Nellie R. WING (daughter of Thomas WING, baker and Eliza GIBBENS) in Minneapolis. They would have six children:
1) Roy WYRE, b about Feb 1883, Minneapolis; d from diphtheria 21 Sep 1885, Minneapolis. Buried with no marker at the Minneapolis Pioneers and Soldiers Memorial Cemetery.
2) Charles Jay WYRE, b 20 Mar 1884, Minneapolis; d 21 Sep 1956, Bartonville, Peoria Co., IL. Worked as a lather, like his father. Unmarried.
3) Clyde S. WYRE, b about Aug 1887, Minneapolis; d 1 Nov 1905, Shasta, Redding Co., CA. Nicknamed the “Boy Traveler,” Clyde was a young hobo who enjoyed traveling across the country. He was found dead near the railroad tracks in Shasta. Identification was made possible thanks to a note from his mother, found in his pocket. Unmarried.
4) Hazel May WYRE (my great grandmother), b 30 Aug 1889, Minneapolis; d 6 Apr 1988, Pekin, Tazewell Co., IL. Married Enos M. KAHLER in Peoria, IL and had 4 children.
5) Roy Clarence WYRE, b 21 Dec 1892, Peoria, Peoria Co., IL; d 24 Aug 1969, Brainerd, Crow Wing Co., MN. Married Alice JOHNSON. No children.
6) Cora Alice WYRE, b 6 Nov 1894, Pekin, Tazewell Co., IL; d 22 Oct 1974, Pekin, Tazewell Co., IL.
Married Lee FRYMAN and had 12 children, 11 surviving to adulthood.
Jay and Nellie had a tumultuous marriage. After years of misery, Nellie at last filed for divorce, which was granted 16 Sep 1899 in Pekin, Tazewell Co., IL (Jay didn’t bother to appear). She married second, Earl William SIMONS, 17 May 1903 in Peoria. One stillborn son.
Census research has been inconclusive; the first appearance of a Jay WYRE is found in the 1880 Federal Census for Minneapolis (p 39, SD 2, ED 244, family no 277). His parents’ birthplace is listed as “unknown.” In subsequent census records and various city directories for Pekin and Peoria, he appears as Jay, James, Jacob, and John. The 1900 Federal Census mangles his name as “Jacob WYL,” with a Dec 1854 birth, listing him and his parents as born in Wisconsin. Son Charles J. appears in the next row.
Noting the absence of “Jay” in census records pre-1880, I wonder if Jay was a nickname, or possibly a middle name that was adopted at some point.
Whether or not Jay had any siblings is unknown.
I know this is the longest of shots, but if you have any suggestions, I would love to hear them. Thank you!
