Searching for John Dillon

 John Dillon is  my paternal great grandfather. He states in his marriage record to Sarah Montague that he was born in New Jersey in 1849. However, other later documents state that he was born in 1851 and 1853. We know from census reports that his parents were born in Ireland. We have no information about any siblings or whether he came on his own to Illinois or with is his family. I had previously understood that John's middle name was Francis but John Francis Dillon is actually the name of his son. John did not use a middle name on any census or other records. However, his obituary states his name as John Henry Dillon.

John Dillon was a blacksmith and carriage maker. An 1875 city census shows John Dillon, born in New Jersey, working at the Novelty Carriage Works. 

He married Sarah Montague, the daughter of Frank Montague (also a blacksmith), in Chicago in 1879. They had six children: Charlotte (born September 14, 1880), Kathryn (born December 24, 1882), George (born May 5, 1887), Sarah (born February 11, 1886), John Francis (born December 15, 1889) and Royal Andrew (born November 30, 1891). John worked at his own blacksmith shop during their marriage. They did not own their own home and, in fact, moved frequently.

The 1888 Chicago Voter Registration ledger shows John Dillon living at 2426 La Salle Street. The record indicates that he has lived in Illinois for 27 years, which would mean since 1861. The 1892 Voter Registration ledger shows 14 people with the name of John Dillon, but only one is born in New Jersey.

In the 1900 census, John is working as a blacksmith. Sarah is a homemaker. Charlotte is already working as a hairdresser, Kathryn and Sadie (listed as Lottie, Kittie and Sadie), George, John and Royal are at school. Charlotte married in 1908 and was living with her husband Ed Greene. In the 1910 census, John is working in a blacksmith shop, Sarah is a homemaker, Kathryn and Sadie are hairdressers, George is a machinist, John is a driver and Roy is a steamfitter helper.

In 1908, the Model T Ford becomes mass produced and most likely impacted the carriage maker and blacksmith trades.

In 1915, their first grandson, my father, is born and a family dinner is held to celebrate. The baby book for George indicates that John Dillon was not present.

 In the 1920 census Sarah is living at 7078 Chicago Avenue and listed as head of household with her sons George and John. The record states that she is married but husband John is not listed. No record has been found for John after 1910. The next and last record located is his death certificate, which erroneously states that he was widowed. John Dillon died alone at Chicago State Hospital on April 4, 1926. It was Easter Sunday and he was about 76 years old. His doctor had been treating him for three months and the cause of death was arteriosclerosis cerebral which indicates he may have suffered from some memory loss. (I can't help but wonder how prohibition affected this Irishman.)

The death certificate also notes his place of burial as "Central Plant", which means burial on the hospital grounds. Chicago State Hospital was a place for both the mentally ill and the destitute. People were buried there if they had no money. He died alone on Easter. Clearly his wife and children were unaware of his passing. The death notice below shows that he was finally buried nine days later on April 13, 1926. He and Sarah must have been separated but they are together now at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery.