One Million Stories

The Michigan Genealogical Council and the Archives of Michigan are pleased to present a special Family History Month workshop – Saturday, October 29, 2011, at the Michigan Historical Center in Lansing. For more information click Family History Month Workshop.

During October, Look! articles will focus on family history. This week, Kris Rzepcynski of the Library of Michigan looks at the Michigan death records collection.

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“Every record has a story…”

The Library of Michigan collection of Michigan death certificates features nearly one million records. With this many records, researchers are bound to find dozens of interesting or poignant examples. In fact, every record has a story, and although some are more compelling than others, they all contribute equally to Michigan’s story. Several records I’ve worked with recently really stand out for me, so I thought I’d share them as examples of the one million stories – tragic or otherwise – here at Seeking Michigan.

Death certificate of Detroit policeman Frederick Holwedel, 1913 (Click on image for larger view.)

Frederick Holwedel

A patrolman for the Detroit Police Department for only two months, Frederick Holwedel was killed in the line of duty on August 22 1913, leaving a wife and two young children. Holwedel’s widow was not eligible to collect his pension, since he was on the force for less than six months. The Detroit Free Press covered the murder for weeks, with the storyline changing daily, running the arc from a burglary gone awry, a “half-crazed inventor,” even an Italian from Chicago boasting of a policeman’s murder.^[1] Further research is needed, but Holwedel’s death certainly makes for a fascinating story in the Motor City, set amidst the city’s phenomenal growth in population, manufacturing and crime on the eve of World War I.

Death certificate of Abram Niemala, 1913 (Click on image for larger view)

Abram Niemela

At first glance, the certificate for Abram Niemela is nothing out of the ordinary. His date of death (December 24, 1913), birthplace (Finland), occupation (copper miner) and place of burial (Lake View Cemetery) are all clearly identified. But after looking more closely at the cause of death, the harrowing narrative of the Italian Hall disaster emerges: “Killed on December 24th, at Calumet Mich. in a panic caused by a false alarm of fire by some person at present unknown.” Seventy-three people died in the confusion, many of them children. For a more detailed history of the tragedy, researchers should take a look at Steve Lehto’s outstanding book Death’s Door: The Truth Behind Michigan’s Largest Mass Murder. As researchers, many of us are laser-focused on the ancestor of interest and the key information on the records, yet fail to take a step back and think about the larger story. Abram Niemela is perhaps of interest as an ancestor, but when taken into context, his story becomes much more powerful and even more tragic.

Death certificate of Joseph Brylo, 1913 (Click on image for larger view)

Joseph Brylo

I have long championed Guy Robinson (see “Million Record March,” March 16, 2009) as my “all-time favorite” death certificate in this collection. Guy, however, may now be supplanted by Joseph Brylo. Several things jump out from this record, Joseph’s birthplace, in particular. In most cases, this field is marked as “Michigan,” “New York,” “Ireland,” or the dreaded “Unknown.” With these records, the level of detail for birthplace is usually only the state or country, making Guy’s certificate so exceptional, but here with Joseph, we find the exact birthplace and village in Italy – Balestrate, located in Sicily, about thirty miles west of Palermo. Balestrate is also identified as the birthplace of Joseph’s mother; Joseph’s father was born in Terrasini, located only about twelve miles away. So, to sum up, we now have Joseph’s exact birthplace overseas in Italy, both his parents’ exact Italian birthplaces, his father’s name, his mother’s maiden name, and Joseph’s cemetery in Detroit (Mt. Olivet). I wish all of my ancestors’ death certificates were as thorough!

Michigan Death Records Update

Work still continues with the death records project. Index corrections are made regularly, and there are still instances of missing counties, which we are aware of and currently working on. As always, researchers are encouraged to contact the Library of Michigan at librarian@michigan.gov with any comments or suggested corrections. Thank you for your support as we work to make this collection the best it can be. Happy searching!

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For more on the Library of Michigan Michigan death records collection, see these earlier articles by Kris Rzepcynski:

Million Record March

Onward! The Million Record March Continues!

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[1]Detroit Free Press articles: “Detroit Patrolman is Strangely Slain in Alley After Quarrel,” August 22, 1913, p. 1; “Expect Important Arrest in Murder Case Before Noon,” August 23, 1913, p. 8; “Police Without Clue to Slayer,” August 25, 1913, p. 5; “Mad Inventor Arrested in Case,” August 26, 1913, p. 1; “Italian Held in Indiana for Murder Here,” August 29, 1913, p. 1.