Prompt - Prosperity
Denis Cronin- great grandfather
Nancy
Simmons to Josephine Martin to Mary Catherine Cronin to Denis Cronin - my great
grandfather
I
thought of my great grandfather, Denis Cronin, when the prompt Prosperity
was assigned. Prosperity usually means the type of success that
comes from having a lot of money. But "a lot of money" is relative to
how much you had to start with in life.
Denis left Ireland a poor 17-year-old boy and followed his siblings to
Detroit with a dream of prosperity.
I
used Denis’ death certificate to start researching him. Denis died in Sunland,
Los Angeles, California Dec 21, 1925[1]
at the home of his brother, Daniel Cronin. His death certificate stated he was 66 years old, born in Ireland and
his parents were John Cronin and Johanna O'Connor.
Denis
was born in Ireland to parents that had survived the great famine. They had ten
children and Denis was the 3rd child born in County Cork where years of
political and religious dissention were prevalent. In the mid-1870s widespread unemployment,
poverty and appalling housing conditions existed.[2]
In
1877,[3]
Denis decided to leave Ireland and move to Detroit, Michigan where he found
work in a thriving industrial city. He married and raised a family of six
children. He went from a poor Irish boy from Coolinarna, County Cork, Ireland[4]
to a successful streetcar engineer and a leader among his peers. He came to a country where he started working
in a dangerous entry level job, was able to move up the ladder of prosperity
due to his involvement in unionizing the streetcar employees and could practice
his faith without conflict.
His
baptismal record had his name is recorded as Dionysius Cronin. He was baptized 16 Oct 1859 in the Catholic
Parish of Cullen in Millstreet, County Cork, Ireland[5].
Dionysius is the Latin derivative of Denis used in the Catholic church records.
Cullen is a small village located north west of Millstreet town in County Cork[6].
Denis'
passport application states he immigrated in 1877. Many poor Irish immigrants
could find work in Detroit in high risk occupations. He found work as a molder
at the Peninsular Stove Company by 1882.[7] This risky job earned between $18 and $21 per
week[8].
(Footnote
has website about Detroit as global capital of stove manufacturing). A molder was a strong young male who worked in
a dark, hellish environment with enormous cupola furnaces filled with hot blue
smoke and pounds of glowing cherry-red molten iron. The molder would be covered with black grime
and soot and poor hot molten iron into molds.[9]
Life as a molder was dangerous and harmful and over time molders often suffered
from lung and heart problems.
In
April 1891, Denis is working for the Detroit Urban Railway and is now a driver.
He probably was caught up in the political aspect of labor unrest as the
streetcar employees decided to strike.[12]
Even though we have no record of Denis' direct involvement in this conflict, one
wonders if he reported to work and drove his streetcar, or did he withhold his
services and joined the strikers?
A
month later in May of 1891, Denis profits from an agreement between owners and
the workers. The agreement gives
conductors and drivers an 18 cent per hour wage with a 10-hour workday and one
day off every 14 days.[13]
This gives Denis a $46.00 a month paycheck or about $600 annual income.
In
the 1900 federal census, Denis is listed as a motorman with the street
railroad, he can read and write, and he owns his home.[14]
This illustrates that Denis is doing quite well working for the street rail
system. Denis and Bridget also have five
children by 1900; Johanna is 13, Dennis is nine, Margaret is seven, my
grandmother Mary Catherine is four, and William is two. They lost a two-year-old
son in 1891.[15]
In
1906 Denis Cronin was very active in the street railway employee union since he
runs for president of the streetcar employee’s union.[16] Over 1100 workers voted but unfortunately
Denis comes in second by 210 votes. [17]
Another
event that occurs in 1909 that affirms Denis' growing prosperity was his
ability to take a trip with his wife and young daughter to Ireland to visit his
family. Denis applies for a passport and provides us with lots of personal
information. In 1910 we find that Denis bought a second home at 719 Campbell
street by auction for $3,300[18]
and he moves from 211 Nineteenth Street to his new home.
In
1920 the census states Denis is still working as a motorman, lives at 719
Campbell street.[19] Sometime after 1920 Denis retires and then on
November 30, 1924 Denis' wife, Bridget, died.[20] A year later, Denis decided to travel to Los
Angeles to visit his brother, Daniel. It
is while he is in California that he died on December 21, 1925.[21] His body is shipped back to Detroit and he is
buried in Mt Elliott Cemetery next to his wife. According to my mother, when
Denis died, he left a house for each of his children.
Denis’
prosperity was measured by his ability to find work to earn a good wage, and his
participation in a union to advocate for safe working conditions and a fair
wage for all. By working hard and
investing he was able to purchase several homes to help his children. And during his 48 years in Detroit, Denis and
his family were able to practice their faith without conflict. He was an
example of how an immigrant can attain prosperity!
[1]Denis Cronin, death certificate
Local Registered No. 194 (died 21 Dec 1925), Department of Public Health, San Francisco
City and County, California.
[2] Cork City Council, Cork City Libraries, Grand Parade, Cork,
Ireland, Cork, Past and Present, accessed: 19 Feb 2020, http://www.corkpastandpresent.ie/history/historyofcorkcity/1700-1900/corkinthe19thcentury/
[4] Ancestry.com,
Ireland, Catholic Parish
Registers, 1655-1915, Dionysius Cronin, residence: Coolnarna.
[5] Ibid.
[7] Ancestry.com,
U.S. City
Directories, 1821-1989 accessed:
20 Feb 2020, page 317, Dennis Cronin; citing "Detroit, Michigan, City
Directory, 1882.
[8] Department
of Labor, Nineteenth Annual Report of the Commissioner of Labor 1905 Labor
and Wages, page 711, Bureau of Labor, Google Books, https://books.google.com/books?id=p_ZKAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA710&dq=1890s+Annual+Income+molder+Detroit&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjUy9XC-u3nAhVIRKwKHYZ9AUQQ6AEwAnoECAIQAg#v=onepage&q=1890s%20Annual%20Income%20molder%20Detroit&f=false
[9] “When
stoves were the hot new thing”, The Detroit News, 24 Jan 2015, accessed:
20 Feb 2020, <https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/michigan-history/2015/01/24/stove-capital-detroit-history/22234051/>
[11] Ancestry.com,
U.S. City Directories,
1821-1989",
accessed: 20 Feb 2020, page 429, Dennis Cronin; citing "Detroit,
Michigan, City Directory, 1886.
[12]
Detroit Transit History.info, The Pre-D.S.R.
Years- Part II, Labor Unrest. http://www.detroittransithistory.info/TheEarlyYears.html
[13]
Ibid
[14] Ancestry.com, 1900
United States Federal Census, Detroit Ward 10, Wayne, Michigan, page:
10B; ED 107, Dennis Cronin, accessed: 13 May 2010.
[16] 'Street Car Men
Elect', The Detroit Free Press, 5 Dec 1906, Wed, p. 8; image copy, Newspapers.com
(https://www.newspapers.com/clip/3482663/denis-cronin-runs-for-president-of/)
[17] Ibid
[18] Denis Cronin house purchase, The Detroit Free Press, 18 Sep
1910, Sun, p.44; image copy, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/clip/45178589/dennis-cronin-house-purchase-719/)
[19] Ancestry.com,
1920 United States Federal Census, Detroit, Ward 16, Wayne, Michigan, page 5A,
ED 495, Dennis Cronin, accessed: 13 May 2010.
[20] Ancestry.com, Michigan,
Death Records, 1867-1952, Bridget Enzian (misspelled Cronin), accessed
20 Feb 2020.
[21] Denis Cronin, death certificate
Local Registered No. 194 (died 21 Dec 1925), Department of Public Health, San Francisco
City and County, California.
