Genealogy Jottings

THE genealogist at the Denver Public Library, James Jeffrey, advises one to die in a small town to get a good obituary. Small town newspapers usually provide detailed write-ups when a resident passes away.

My mystery aunt in Biwabik, MN died in that small town in 1917. I thought that if I could find an obituary for her, I might be able to verify that she was indeed a member of my Mattila family and perhaps learn the names of family members who remained in Finland.

The first thing I learned is that Biwabik is too small to have a public library. Surrounding towns belong to a library consortium, so I contacted them to learn about possible old newspapers from Biwabik. Their librarians have been extremely helpful, but they have been unable to uncover any useful information about Ida Parks. The Biwabik newspaper did not carry an obituary for her. According to the librarian, Finns were looked down on at that place and time, so it was not unusual for them to be excluded from the obituary page.

They did suggest some other sources for me to try, and I will pursue those. But dying in a small town did not get my aunt a good obituary.