Margaret Mary Vahey
Married 1stly c. 1908 in St. Agnes Church in Springfield, Illinois.
Married 2ndly c. 1923.

When I wrote the first draft of this chapter in 1978, I could still recall her general appearance and the sound of her voice even though our only meeting was at a funeral circa 1935. By 1999, those memories were about gone. I remember now only that she had excellent diction and an accent that made her stand out among other members of our extended family. In 1935 (at about age nine), I thought it was an eastern accent such as I had heard in movies. Today, I think she must have gotten her accent from her family, which had come from the southeast of Ireland. It was definitely not a rural Indiana accent. Despite her excellent diction, Margaret’s formal education ended with the third or fourth grade.

As a child, I was also alerted when I heard Margaret [DS.4.5S₂] give instructions to my mother, politely but with authority. When my mother mentioned her, she never said "my mother" or "my step mother". She always said, "Mrs. Curran".

Margaret was the daughter of _____ and Mary Vahey, both of whom were born in Co. Cork, Ireland.  Margaret was one of eight or nine children.  One of Margaret’s brothers, named Pat, was crippled.  Another brother, named James, taught deaf and dumb children in Cincinnati, Ohio.  Most of her other siblings also moved to Cincinnati.

The parents of Margaret [DS.4.5S₂] both died by the time she was 10 or 11 years old.  After that, she [DS.4.5S₂] was raised by her brother, Pat.  Margaret later returned his kindness and helped Pat in his old age.

Margaret [DS.4.5S₂] married firstly Benjamin Silva, a hotel worker, in Springfield, Illinois. Benjamin was the son of Emmanuel and Minnie Silva. Emmanuel, who was born in Portugal, worked as a stone cutter in Springfield, Illinois. His granddaughter [DS.4.5.13] said that he did beautiful work. His stones stand as monuments in all the cemeteries around Springfield. Emmanuel died circa 1918 during the flue epidemic.

Emmanuel had three siblings.  Two were brothers named Clarence and Arthur. One was a sister who died in Springfield during a terrible epidemic of diphtheria. Health regulations prohibited visitors from entering her home for the wake. Instead, the casket [open?] was displayed in the window.

Benjamin Silva died early in 1909, three or four months before the birth of his only child, Margaret [DS.4.5.13], who was born 2 May 1909.  Benjamin, a non-Catholic, was buried in Oak Ridge Cemetery in Springfield, Illinois.

After the death of Benjamin, Margaret [DS.4.5S₂] and her daughter [DS.4.5.13] lived with friends, Mr. and Mrs. James F. Murphy, in Springfield.  In Feb 1980, the younger Margaret [DS.4.5.13] still maintained a friendship with the two sons of the Murphy family.

For several years, Margaret Mary Vahey (Silva) [DS.4.5S₂] earned a living by cleaning houses.  Eventually, she opened a boarding house (with no name) on Fifth St. at Jefferson in Springfield, Illinois.  According to her daughter [DS.4.5.13], Margaret [DS.4.5S₂] never had any connection with either the Lincoln Hotel or the St. Nicholas Hotel, the two most popular hotels in Springfield at that time (and the two hotels at which Tom Curran [DS.4.5] usually stayed when in Springfield).

Margaret [DS.4.5S₂] met Thomas Curran [DS.4.5] at a party at the Murphys’ house. She married him circa 1923 and then moved to Chicago.  What I have learned of their married life has already been stated.

I have little information about her 21 years of life after Tom’s death. Following is an excerpt from a newspaper dated 20 Jul 1933.

"Mrs. Margaret Curran, 1847 South Ashland avenue, widow of former Republican State Representative Thomas Curran, and her sister-in-law, Mrs. William H. Curran, 2011 South Ashland avenue, widow of a former chief state factory inspector, were severely injured yesterday when their automobile collided with a farmer’s truck near Bloomington, Illinois. ... Mrs. Raymond Curran, daughter-in-law of Mrs. Margaret Curran, was slightly injured.  The women were taken to St. Joseph’s hospital in Bloomington."

Another story from my sister Loretta: "I was very fond of her because I learned to be very close to her in my early years.  When I was an adult, I walked through the neighborhood with her. I was probably 19 then (circa 1941).  And when I walked through the neighborhood with her.  Oh, I mean she was queen.  All the neighbors, I mean everybody for blocks around.  We were walking around for two or three blocks around the house there.  And you knew she still was at that position."

Margaret [DS.4.5S₂] probably spent a lot of time at the Wooster Lake cottage since her daughter lived at Wooster Lake with her husband from 1930 until 1945.