Start with What You Know

Mom began collecting all the old papers and photos that she had around her house, and that she had received from family. There were lots of newspaper clippings of obituaries and death notices, which were a treasure trove of information. She had the obituary for her father (my grandfather), Fenwick Bowen Small (1918-2003).  He was born in Providence, a son of the late Woodrow and Lola (Brown) Small. He had been an electrician and refrigeration specialist in the maintenance department of Bostitch Corp for 25 years. Besides his wife, he was survived by 3 daughters, eight grandchildren and 6 great-grandchildren. He was the father of the late William A. Small and the brother of the late Albert and Alberta Small.

Mom also had the obituary for her mother (my grandmother), Marion Drucilla Whichelo (1922-2006). Born in Providence, she was a daughter of the late Florence F. (Whichelo) Winsor. No father listed—more on this later. She was a machine operator for Leviton Manufacturing Co. for more than 30 years. Besides her 3 daughters, she was survived by 3 brothers, Thomas, Phillip and Ernest Winsor; two sisters, Alice Wheeler and Mary Perry; eight grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren. She was the mother of the late William A. Small and the sister of the late Irving Winsor and Anna MacLaughlen (correction: O’Loughlin). Both of my grandparents are buried in Quidnessett Memorial Cemetery in North Kingstown, RI.

Next was the obituary for my great-grandmother, Mrs. Florence D. (Whichelo) Winsor. She was born in North Kingstown Dec. 19, 1902, the daughter of the late Alfred P. and Drucilla F. (Worville) Whichelo. In addition to her husband, Irving L. Winsor, she is survived by 4 daughters, Mrs. Fenwick Small, Mrs. Louis Wheeler, Mrs. Richard O’Loughlin and Mrs. Robert Perry; 4 sons, Irving L. Winsor Jr., Phillip A., Thomas A. and Ernest R.; 4 sisters, Mrs. Russell Bunn, Mrs. Robert Snow, Mrs. Arthur N. Tucker and Mrs. Melvin A. Barbour; and a brother, David A. Whichelo. She is also buried in Quidnessett Memorial Cemetery in North Kingstown, RI.

On the obituary for my great-great grandmother, Mrs. Drusilla F. (Worville) Whichelo, someone had written in the date: Sept. 10, 1939. She was the widow of the late Alfred P. Whichelo and a native of England. The couple had moved to the United States after their marriage. She was a member of Loyal Prosperity Lodge of East Greenwich. She was survived by 8 children: Mrs. Florence Windsor, Mrs. Ethel Bunn, Mrs. Bertha Snow, Mrs. Gladys Tucker, Mrs. Lillian Barber, Ernest Whichelo, Charles Whichelo, and David Whichelo; and 20 grandchildren. We used the information in the obituaries to add names, dates and places to our pedigree chart. Everything will need to be verified with other sources, but we have lots of clues to help with our search.

Our first mystery… One glaring blank on the pedigree chart was my grandmother’s father. My mom only had some vague details about her mother’s paternity. Born out of wedlock in the 1920’s, my grandmother Marion never knew her father. For the few years of her life, her grandparents pretended to be her parents and she thought her mother, Florence, was her sister. Eventually the truth came out, and everyone learned that Florence was Marion’s mother. But who is the father? The first step is checking Marion’s birth certificate to see if a father is listed. Unfortunately, my mom does not have this document so we will have to research how to get a copy. To be continued…