Boudreau, Deneau & Senesac families

Yesterday I found I actually had about four hours of FREE time and I didn't need to think twice about how to use those four hours! I packed up the notebook on my Sommer family and headed out to the Kankakee Public Library which is about forty miles from my home. I have read that this library has a pretty nice genealogy section with some city directories and church records. Was I lucky!
I wanted to find out if my GG grandmother Katharine Sommer Ball lived in Kankakee between 1917 and 1923. I can find her in the Chicago City Directories before 1917 and after that I couldn't find her. Her death certificate indicates she died at the Kankakee State Hospital in 1923. My thinking was that she worked at the hospital because she was a nurse. It now seems that perhaps she was a patient. Her sister Julia Sommer paid for Katharine's funeral and burial in Oakwoods Cemetery in Chicago, IL. So, I went to work searching for Katharine in the city directories, and no luck. I searched church records again no luck but, as long as I was searching church records I thought I would look up some of my French Canadian relatives and BINGO!
The library has two books of birth, death, marriage, and parish census records for St. Rose of Lima Catholic Church in Kankakee, IL. I knew that some of my Senesac and Boudreau ancestors are buried in St. Rose Cemetery so I thought I would search the church records.
I found pages of the Boudreau's, Senesac's and Deneau's in these records from 1855 though 1916! The collection is actually a transcription of church records. My GGG grandfather and grandmother Luc and Aurelie (Landry) Boudreau are listed as godparents of numerous children. The church records verified that my GG grandmother Marie Balsamine (Belle) Boudreau was born in 1860. I have run across two different years of birth for Belle, so it's nice to have verification. The record even includes the names of her godparents; Cyprian Boudreau and Mary Landry.
Imagine my surprise when I discovered that on October 12, 1872, Theophile Denaud (Deneau) and Odile Paulin (Palin) had a baby boy named Napoleon Henry Denaud (Deneau). Unfortunately, Napoleon died in June of 1873. Theophile and Odile are my GGG grandparents! Their son Theopolis married Belle Boudreau in January of 1881! I had believed that the Deneau's lived in Indiana and here they are in Illinois. Theophile and Aurelie are both buried in Sacred Heart Cemetery in Fowler, Indiana.
There is even a record of Belle's second marriage in 1889 to Isaac Senesac at St. Rose's Church!
So, thanks to the Kankakee Valley Genealogical Society for publishing such terrific books! The best part is that the two volumes I searched through the most are available for purchase; St. Rose of Lima, Catholic Church, Births, Marriages, Deaths, and Census Records, Vol. 1 covers the years 1855-1885 and Vol. 2 covers the years 1886-1914. Both volumes were compiled by Norma Meier. I know what I want for Christmas!

Charles Ball and Theophillus Denno

Well, after waiting for quite some time, I received a letter from the Cook County Clerk's Office, indicating that they searched the years 1899 through 1907 and were unable to locate a death certificate for my GG Grandfather Charles Ball. So my search will have to go elsewhere. I am not sure where to look now, but will keep on trying. Of course, I still have no idea when my GG Grandmother Katharine Ball died either. Just another brickwall.
Now, onto another GG Grandfather- Theophillus (Theopolis) Deneau (Denno, Deno). I did receive a copy of my GG Grandparents Belle and Theopolis' marriage certificate, dated January 18, 1881! They were married in Newton County, Indiana as I have mentioned before. It is such an awesome feeling to actually have a copy of the original document. There really is nothing like a vital record to keep an amateur genealogist happy!

Theopolis Deneau

Well, because I continue to hit brickwall after brickwall with my GG Grandparents Charles and Katherine Ball, I have decided to change course for a short while. Believe me, I am not giving up on researching Charles and Katherine, just taking a short break from their branch of my family tree.
Theopolis Deneau or Theophile Deno (Denno) is another one of my maternal GG Grandfathers. Theopolis married Belle Boudreau in January of 1881 in Newton County, Indiana. Unfortunately he died in June of that same year. At this point in time it seems that there is no death certificate for Theopolis. His death is not listed on the Newton County death index. I have been in contact with Newton County, Indiana GenWeb Coordinator Beth Bassett who has been an absolute gem! I asked Beth if there may have been a death notice published in the local Kentland, Indiana newspaper. The reason I was focusing on the Kentland area was because Theopolis and Belle Deneau's daughter Eva Belle was born in Kentland, Indiana in December of 1881. Despite researching the Kentland Gazette for the entire year of 1881, Beth was unable to locate any information on my GG Grandfather. Beth informed me that newspapers "very seldom printed obits for people unless they were business people, or church people." I cannot thank Beth enough for all the time and effort she put into to helping me with my family research. Theopolis may have died in a different town or even a different county in Indiana. I really don't know. I believe that he is buried in the Dehner Cemetery (AKA, St. Anthony's Cemetery) in Benton County, Indiana. Without a death certificate or a published death notice I might not get too far, so my next area to research will be the Dehner Cemetery. Cemeteries should keep burial records, I might just get lucky. A burial record may also give me the town Theopolis resided in at the time of his death. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I may learn more about another GG Grandfather! A road trip may be in my future!