Missouri Phillips and her husband, John Sparks were second cousins.

Dora, Delbert, their daughter Sarah and her husband Delbert, are allburied in the Linwood Cemetery, in Boone, Iowa.

.
!NOTES:
SQ pg 2618: On April 5, 1927, she was married to Perry M. Moore a tJoliet, Illinois. They have one child: Carol Ann Moore.

.
!NOTES:
SQ pg 2616: He married Ann W. Pauge on april 16, 1932. They liv e inMt. Olive, Illinois. They had no children.

.
!NOTES:
SQ pg 2517: He married Gladys Lafferty in 1925 and they had one child, Robert Pierce.

SQ p. 2617:

"Edgar C. Pierce was born on October 21, 1893, at Colfax, Iowa. Heserved in England during World War I. On October 15, 1925, he marriedMabel Evelyn Reynolds at Abingdon, Illinois. He died on September 1,1954, at Colorado Springs, Colorado. Mabel died on May 5, 1982. They hadno children."

SQ pg 2616:

"Edgar Charles ("Ed") Pierce, son of David and Sarah (Sparks) Pierce,was born on February 22,
1854, in Knoxville, Illinois. He was a talented musician and also acapable photographer. He played the
clarinet and violin as well as other instruments. He taught his brother,Harry, a great deal about music
and photography. In his later years, he became a druggist. He was amember of the Pickett Masonic
Lodge in Bushnell. He married Ada Crowl on March 28, 1888. She was bornin 1865 and was a
daughter of George and Jennie (Welch) Crowl. Ed died on September l,1913, and was buried in the
Bushnell Cemetery. Ada died on June 5, 1949, and was buried at Mt. Olive,Illinois. They were the
parents of one child."

SQ p2616-17:

"Harry Clyde Pierce, son of David and Sarah (Sparks) Pierce, was bornon November 23, 1862, in Bushnell, Illinois. He was an excellent musicianand learned much about music and photography from his brother, Ed. He wasa band director in many towns throughout the Midwest, spending most ofhis life as a musician. He played the clarinet. He, like his brother, wasalso a capable photographer, and, according to a descendant, he met hiswife when she came to him to have her picture made. In later years, hebecame an interior decorator.

"Harry Pierce married Emma Caroline Spurgeon on November 3, 1888, atPalmyra, Missouri. She was
born on February 2, 1868, at Butler, Missouri, and was a daughter ofJeremiah and Julia Catherine
(Houston) Spurgeon. Harry died at Canton, Illinois, on October 17, 1828,and was buried in the Bushnell
Cemetery. Emma died on August 27, 1943, at Bloomington, Illinois, and wasburied at El Paso, Illinois.
She and Harry had nine children.

.
!NOTES:
SQ pg 2617: On October 20, 1928, she was married to R. Wayne Nort onat El Paso, Illinois, and they had two children: Jerry Norton an d LindaSue Norton. Wayne was a native of Bloomington, Illinois.

SQ p. 2617:

" Max S. Pierce was born on December 14, 1890, at Bushnell, Illinois.He died on February 22, 1919, aboard the ship The Mercury as he wasreturning from France after the close of World War I. He was buried inthe Bushnell Cemetery."

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, June 1993, Whole No. 162, p. 4104:
A UNION SOLDIER RECALLS THE SIEGE OF VICKSBURG
"A number of years ago, Minnie Mae (Pierce) Huffer, who died in 1984,(see the QUARTERLY of September, 1984, Whole No. 127, p. 2673, for herobituary (see below) shared with us a letter that had been written by hergrand-uncle, William M. Sparks (1838-1922) on January 14, 1914. It isapparent from the contents of this letter, that William M. Sparks hadlearned that his brother, Thomas J. Sparks (1843-1936), a lawyer and aresident of Champaign, Illinois, was planning a trip to New Orleans,Louisiana, and also to Vicksburg, Mississippi. William wrote a hurriedletter to his brother, urging him to visit the sites in both cities thathe remembered from his service fifty years earlier in the Union Armyduring the Civil War. He also drew a map to guide his brother in findingthe area where his regiment had camped and fought at Vicksburg.Although, after half a century, William Sparks's memory of the landscapewas probably a bit inaccurate, we believe that the reproduction of hisdrawing makes an interesting cover design for this issue of theQUARTERLY."
(The remainder of this article is copied under notes for William M.Sparks.)

***************

See the above cited article on p. 2673:

DEATH TAKES MINNIE MAE (PIERCE) HUFFER

"It is with deep regret that we report the death on August 28, 1984,of Minnie Mae (Pierce) Huffer (Mrs. Enos G.) in Manitowoc, Wisconsin.Mrs. Huffer joined our association in 1953, the very year in which it wasfounded. A record of her branch of the Sparks family, for which she andher sister, Rita M. Pierce, contributed much of the information, appearedin the March and June, 1984, issues of the QUARTERLY.

"Mrs. Huffer was born on March 10, 1896, at Two Rivers, Wisconsin.She was a daughter of Harry Clyde and Emma Caroline (Spurgeon) Pierce.Her paternal grandmother, Sarah (Sparks) Pierce (1834-1883) was adaughter of Joseph and Sarah (DeFord) Sparks; she was a descendant ofJoseph Sparks who died in Frederick County, Maryland, in 1749.

"Mrs. Huffer was a graduate of Illinois State (Normal) University and,prior to her marriage in 1930, she taught school in Illinois and Ohio.She was a member of a number of patriotic and historical societies,including the D.A.R. Her husband, Enos G. Huffer, had been an invalidfor a number of years; his care had occupied most of Mrs. Huffer's timefor the past seven years. He died on September 5, 1984, just one weekfollowing Mrs. Huffer's passing. Mrs. and Mrs. Huffer were the parentsof two children, the Rev. Bruce P. Huffer and Nancy (Huffer) Macomber."

See the SPARKS QUARTERLY for September, 1988, Whole No. 143, p. 3285, forthe following article:

DEATH TAKES RITA M. PIERCE

by Paul E. Sparks

It is with a great deal of personal sadness that we record the death of alongtime member, Rita M. Pierce, who passed away on May 10, 1988, at herhome in El Paso, Illinois. We exchanged many letters with her over theyears which dealt with her branch of the Sparks family, and we frequentlyreminded each other that we had a common Sparks ancestor who died inFrederick County, Maryland, in 1749--thus we were "cousins."

Rita Maxine Pierce was born on February 26, 1909, in El Paso and was adaughter of Harry and Emma
(Spurgeon) Pierce and a granddaughter of David and Sarah (Sparks) Pierce.Her branch of the family left
Frederick County, Maryland, about 1773 and settled in Washington County,Pennsylvania. From there they went to Indiana and then to Fulton County,Illinois, about 1844. An obituary for Rita's sister, Minnie Mae (Pierce)Huffer, appeared on page 2673 of the QUARTERLY for September 1984, WholeNo. 127.

Rita taught junior high school history in the Springfield, Illinois, areaand had a special interest in American history. She was a capablegenealogist. She was a member of the First Baptist Church of El Paso, theDaughters of the American Revolution, and the Eastern Star. She issurvived by a sister, Besse (Pierce) Moore of Chicago.

We extend our sympathy to her sister and her other relatives. (Forfurther details of this branch of the Sparks family, see the March 1984and June 1984 issues of the QUARTERLY, Whole Nos. 125 and 126,respectively.)

SQ pg 2617:

"...He was married three times. His first marriage was t o Alice G.Woodruff on June 18, 1918. They had three children: rit a A. Pierce,Evelyn L. Pierce, and Ryland H. Pierce, Jr. After the d eath of hisfirst wife in 1926, Ryland married (2nd) Mary Anderson o n June 21,1928. They had two children: Phyllis J. Pierce and Albert a Pierce.Ryland married (3rd) Mrs. Olive Grey Swenson."

.

!NOTES:
According to Robert S. Pigott, Sr. letter 3 Mar 1991, Agnes is liv ingat the
present time. No address given nor details of marriage to Mr. Joines.

!VITAL RECORD:
Birth Record, Cherokee Co. IA., FHL #1O3529O: Birth Index, Boo k 2ofRecords, page 31O shows birth of Agnes Bernice Pigott on 1 Feb , 19O9.

.

!NOTES:
BIRTH: FHL 1,035,290 Book 2 Page 310, Cherokee County, Sherida n T/S
25 December, 1907.
Also listed in 1910 census of Sheridan T/S, FHL #1374409. For copy
see MRIN 9, Cornelius and Annie Pigott.

.

!MARRIAGE:
See Cherokee County, Iowa, INDEX TO REGISTER OF MARRIAGES 1889-189 6,
Vol. 3, REGISTER OF MARRIAGES Book 3, p 448 which provides the follow ing:
License No.: 2041; License date: 4/12/93; Affidavit supplied by: Jame sDunn.
Groom: Name of Groom: John Everhart; Residence: Sheridan T/S; Occupation:
Farmer; Age: 32; Race: White; Citizenship: American; Marriage: 1st; B orn:
Maryland; Name of Father: Henry Everhart; Name of Mother: Elizabeth B aker
Bride: Name of Bride: Annie Pigott; Residence: Sheridan; Age: 21 ;Race:
White; Citizenship: American; Marriage: 1st; Name of Father, Corneliu sPig-
ott; Name of Mother: Annie Eagan; Date of Marriage: April 12, 1893; Witness:
James Dunn, Julia McCullagh. Performing ceremony: Father James T. Saunders.

!NOTES:
In a letter to James J. Sparks from Ardyth Dunn (Mrs. James Dunn of
Cherokee, Iowa) dated December 11, 1993, she states: "Also have the address
for Annie Pigott and John H. Everhart's granddaughter. Her father was
Henry Everhart and her sister was Mame----, married to Rudolph Bernat.
Vera Mae Curtis and husband Norbert (or Bert) Curtis; live at:
1816 Cherry, Caldwell, Idaho 83605 Tel: 1 (208) 454-2332. This is
Henry's daughter. They are retired and he has heart problems.
Rudolph and Mame Bernat's daughter is Bonetta Bernat, 2111 Colby # 1,
Everett, Washington 98202. Tel 1 (206) 252-7722."

!NOTES:
Letter of 3 March, 1991 from Robert S. Pigott, Sr. advises that Bernard is
living in poor health in LaPuente, California.

.

!MARRIAGE:
Cherokee County, Marriage Records, Register of Marriages 1889-1911 ,:
License No.: 2952; Date of License: 29 Jan 1900; Name of Groom: Timot hy
O'Connell; Residence: Meriden, Cherokee County, Iowa; Occupation: Far mer;
Age: 33; Race: White; Citizenship: Ireland; Marriage: 1st; Born: Irel and;
Name of Father: Jeffrey O'Connell; Name of Mother: Honora Buckley;
Bride: Name: Katie Pigott; Residence: Cherokee, Iowa; Age: 20; Race :White;
Citizenship: American; Marriage: 1st; Born: Cherokee, Iowa; Name of Father:
Cornelius Pigott; Name of Mother: Anna (sic) Edgarr (sic); Place an d date
of Marriage: Immaculate Conception Catholic Church, Cherokee, Iowa, 2 9Jan
1900; Witnesses: Jeffrey O'Connell, Mary Pigott. Wedding performed b y Fr.
James T. Saunders.

.

!NOTES:
Apparently "Eddie" and Pearly Pigott named their fourth child after
two of the children of his brother John J. Pigott, namely, Cecelia Es ther
and Loretta May. See FHL 1508628 for 1/8/83 for obituary notice for Ed
Pigott, husband of Cecelia May Pigott.

BIRTH: Cecelia Esther Pigott was born on May 3, 1906 in CherokeeTownship, Cherokee County, Iowa. See Iowa Birth Certificate #189, StateBoard of Health, County of Cherokee Sheridan Township. (In possession ofJames J. Sparks, San Carlos, CA)

BAPTISM: Cecelia Pigott was baptized on May 4, 1906 in Cherokee ,Iowa by Father W. P. Desmond. Witnesses were Edward Joseph Pigott, heruncle, and Margaret Noonan, a family friend.

MARRIAGE: Cecelia was married to Joseph John Sparks on June 14, 1925,at St. Anthony's Catholic Church, Long Beach, California. See CaliforniaDept. of Health Services, Cert. of Marriage No. 25-0 15598; State IndexNo. 1236, local registered no. 6813 (In possession of James J. Sparks,San Carlos, CA)

DEATH: Cecelia Esther (Pigott) Sparks died in Long Beach, Los AngelesCounty, California, on March 16, 1974. See California Death Cert. Dept.of Public Health (In possession of James J. Sparks, San Carlos, CA)

The following article appeared in the Long Beach Sun Newspaper ca. June 17, 1925: "Miss Cecilia (sic) Pigott And Joseph Sparks Married atChurch"

"One of the pretty weddings of the week was that at which MissCecilia (sic) Catherine (sic) Pigott, daughter of Mr. and Mrs . J. J.Pigott, 227 Daisy Avenue, became the bride of Joseph Sparks of LongBeach Monday morning at 6:30 o'clock in St. Anthony's Church .Father William O'Donnell officiated in the presence of a group offriends and relatives and a large number of parishioners who wereassembling for the 8 o'clock mass. The bride was attired in whiteas was also her sister, Mrs. Loretta Bass, who was matron of honor .The bridal bouquet was of loveliest roses. The best man was EdwinTyo, brother-in-law of the bride. After the ceremony a weddingbreakfast was served at the Pigott home for the bridal party, therelatives and a few intimate friends. The rooms were decked with avariety of June blossoms. A delicious looking nuptial cake was placed before the bride. Mr. and Mrs. Sparks are spending theirhoneymoon in Portland, Seattle and Glacier National Park. They willreturn in two weeks to live in Long Beach where Mr. Sparks isproprietor of a tailoring establishment. Mrs. Sparks hasattended the California College of Commerce for the past twoyears."

For additional information concerning Cecelia (Pigott) Sparks andher parents and family, see the Notes for Joseph J. Sparks.

.

CENSUS:
1880 U.S. Census, Cherokee Co. IA; Sheridan T/S, SD4, ED50, Shee t 27
(FHL #1254332)
1885 IA Census, Cherokee Co. IA; Sheridan T/S, Pg 389, Line 11 (FHL
#1021451);
1895 IA Census, Cherokee Co. IA; Sheridan T/S, Pg 20, Line 10 (FH L #
1020342);
1900 U.S. Census, Cherokee Co. IA; Sheridan T/S, SD11, ED22, Shee t 11
Line 19

BOOKS:
Thomas McCulla, HISTORY OF CHEROKEE COUNTY, Chicago, The S. J. ClarkePub-
lishing Co., (1914), 977.717 H2m; see pgs 276-277 for reference to Mr . &Mrs.
C. Pigott Sr.; see page 404 for reference to Dennis Henry Pigott.

INVENTORY OF THE COUNTY ARCHIVES OF IOWA, Historical Records Survey,
W.P.A., May 1939. Contains history of Cherokee, Iowa and Bibliography.

COURT RECORDS:
NATURALIZATION:
DECLARATION OF INTENTION to become a United States Citizen filed inthe
Circuit Court of the Upper Peninsula for the County of Marquette, Stateof Michigan, dated June 12, 1869; Book 2 of Records, page 692 (near end),FHL 1845795.
ORDER OF ADMISSION TO CITIZENSHIP, signed in the District Court forthe
County of Cherokee, State of Iowa, dated October 5, 1891, Naturalization
Record, Book 2, Cherokee County, page 59, FHL 1428556, item 5.

PROBATE RECORDS:
Probate Index No. 1 for Cherokee Co., IA Pg 216, #1500 (FHL1415960) lists Probate Records for Cornelius Pigott: Will Dated 5 Oct1915 (FHL #1428542 pg 486, will record Cherokee Co, IA); Petition ForProbate of Will filed 29 Oct 1915 (FHL #1428547, Book 22, pg 65); OrderAdmitting Will to Probate filed 31 Jan 1917 (FHL # 1428548, Book 20, pg76) miscellaneous orders relating to sale of property, distribution andfees (FHL # 142855 1 & 2) (Photocopies of records in possession of JamesJ. Sparks, San Carlos, CA)

PUBLIC RECORDS:
Deed Register, Cherokee County, IA, Book D, Pg 353, Apr 30, 1873 ,Cornelius Pigott, S 1/2 of NE 1/4 & SE 1/4 of NW 1/4, Sec 25, T 92 , R 41(120 acres) FHL #1415904 (Index of Deeds No. 2, Pg 210, FHL 14 15901)
Deed Register, Cherokee County, IA, Book P, Pg 513, Jun 7, 1888,Cornelius Pigott, W 1/2 of NE 1/4 and E 1/2 of NW Quar, Sec 23, T 92 , R41 (Index of Deeds, Bk 5, pg 212, FHL #1415902)

VITAL RECORDS:
Death Register, Cherokee County, IA, Bk 2, page 155, Cornelius Pigott,24 Oct., 1915; Item 62; Cause of death: arteriosclerosis; 76y 10m 20d.(FHL #1428671 Item 3)

CHURCH RECORD:
BIRTH: St. Martin's Roman Catholic Church, Diocese of Cloyne, Parishof Kilworth, County Cork, Ireland; Baptismal Certificate. (Certified copyin possession of James J. Sparks, San Carlos, California.)

MARRIAGE: 28th day of March, 187O, Saint Joseph Church, 221 West MarketStreet, Newark, Essex County, New Jersey, Reverend James F. Dalton,officiating. Witnesses were John Walsh and Birdgth (Bridget?) Eagan.Copy of certificate in possession of James J. Sparks, San Carlos, CA.Name of father: James Eagan; Name of mother: Margaret Walsh; Name ofsister: Bridget. (She would be 15 years of age) FHL 1378022 Item 6, pg257.

Marriage record states: "Mar 28 (1870) Pigott Cornelius, 28, farmer,of William and Mary Bryan to Eagan Annie 18, of James and Margaret Walsh.Witnesses: John Walsh and Bridget Eagan. By James F. Dalton."

NOTE:
Cornelius Pigott is buried in the family plot of Mt. Calvary Cemetery,on North 11th St., Cherokee, Iowa. The plot is located about 50 feetsouth of the gate at the 11th street entrance approximately 10 feet eastof the road. To mark the Pigott burial area, there is a tall stoneoblisk topped by a cross. The sides of the oblisk bear inscriptions onthree sides which mention Annie (Eagan) Pigott, Ella C. (Ragan) Pigott,Edward Pigott (d.1881) and Joseph Pigott (d.1882). As of 1993 there wasno mention of Cornelius Sr. or Cornelius Jr. but the records of theImmaculate Conception Church show the burials to be as shown below. Twostones bear the word "Mother" and nothing else and other stones areunmarked.
___________________________________________________
|MOTHER | |Infant| | |MOTHER|
| Ella | |Female|_______|Corn. |Annie |
11th St. | C. |______|______| | Pigott | Eagan |
<----Gate |Ragan |Dennis| Cor. Sr. | MONUMENT | |Pigott| <--- -North
|Pigott |Pigott| Pigott | | | |
| | | Jr . |_________|_________| |
| | | | |Joseph|Edward| |
|_______|______|______|_____|______|______|_______|

See HISTORY OF CHEROKEE COUNTY (1914 op.cit.) for article stating thatMr. & Mrs. Cornelius Piggot (sic) each contributed a large stained glasswindow to St. Mary's Church, now the Church of the Immaculate Conception,721 West Cedar, Cherokee, Iowa. As seen in 1993 the windows were infront on the left or east side, nearest the pulpit. They catch themorning light and they bear the inscription "Gift of C. Pigott, Sr." and"Gift of Mrs. C. Pigott Sr."

SUMMARY:
The first Pigott that we believe emigrated from Ireland to the UnitedStates was Cornelius Pigott's older brother, John Pigott (b. 1831 ), whostated on his citizenship declaration that he had emigrated i n 1860 fromthe port of Queenstown (Cobh), the port near Cork City in County Cork,Ireland. It is likely that Cornelius Pigott followed his brother usingthe same route.

In completing his citizenship application on May 22, 1869, JohnPigott, in addition to swearing that he had come from Ireland in 1860,swore that he had lived in the United States, specifically MarquetteCounty, Michigan , for at least five years immediately before 1869. Thuswe know that John was already in Michigan when Cornelius arrived theresometime before 1869.

On June 12, 1869, Cornelius Pigott, some 20 days after his brotherreceived his United States citizenship, had signed his Declaration ofIntent to become a citizen. He had been in America for 3 years prior tothis time, arriving in 1866. The bride-to-be of Cornelius, Annie Eagan,lived in New Jersey, so he must have spent some time in that area. Heprobably landed in the New York area and met Annie before going toMarquette County, Michigan, to be with his brother or brothers.

On March 28, 1870, about ten months after signing his citizenshippapers in Marquette County, Michigan, Cornelius and Annie Eagan weremarried in Saint Joseph's Catholic Church, Newark, New Jersey by theReverend James F. Dalton. She was the daughter of James and Margaret(Walsh) Eagan. Her age was given as 18. Witnesses were John Walsh andBridget Eagan. Bridget was Annie's 15 year old sister and John wasprobably her uncle. The couple apparently proceeded immediately toNauganee, Marquette County, Michigan, for it was on July 20, 1870 thattheir first child, William, undoubtedly named after the father ofCornelius, was born. The occupation of Cornelius is shown on the birthrecord as a mine supervisor.

Cornelius and Annie (Eagan) Sparks had five children in Nauganee.After William came John James Pigott, born October 17, 1871; Annie Pigott, born in 1872; Cornelius Pigott, Jr., born January 13, 1875; and DennisHenry Pigott born May 2, 1876. All of the boys were named afterCornelius or his brothers and the girl was named after her mother.

After the birth of his third child, Cornelius Pigott travelled toCherokee County, Iowa where, in April, 1873, he homesteaded 120 acres inSheridan Township just west of the town of Cherokee, Iowa. The plot waspurchased from the Iowa Falls and Sioux City Railroad Company inconsideration of the sum of Eight Hundred Sixty-four Dollars. It was theSouth half of the Northeast quarter and the Southeast quarter of theNorthwest quarter of Section 25, Township 92, Range 41. Reference can befound to the deed in the General Index to Deeds, No. 2, Cherokee CountyRecords, p 210. It was dated April 15, 1873, and was recorded April 30,1873.

"The early settlement of Cherokee County was considerably retarded byreason of intermittent Indian scares which were centered principally inDickinson County, located in the second tier of counties to the northabou thirty miles from the north boundary line of Cherokee County.Though, through treaties made with the Sioux Indians in 1851, theirinterest in the area was purchased for $3,000,000, some of the Indianswere reluctant to leave the region around Spirit Lake, in DickinsonCounty, which had been their favorite hunting and camping ground, andsome of them continued to live in the neighborhood.

"In 1857, a band of braves came through Cherokee County taking fromthe settlers guns and food. No serious damage was done until theyreached Spirit Lake where they killed 41 settlers and captured 4 women.The news of this massacre and of continued threats of hostilities did notencourage settlement of Cherokee County. By 1859 only 85 persons hadsettled there. This number dwindled to 58 the next year and to 20 in1862 according to the state census. After the New Ulm, Minnesota,massacre, in the summer of 1862, it is recorded that there were only 6people left in the entire county.

"However, the trouble with the Indians was eventually adjusted, in oneway or another and settlers began to flock into Cherokee County. Thepopulation increased from sixty-four in 1865 to 1,916 in 1870. In thenext five years it increased to 4,245 and to more than 8,245 by 1880."INVENTORY OF THE COUNTY ARCHIVES OF IOWA, No. 18, CHEROKEE COUNTY,Genealogical Society of Utah, No. 22427.

Cornelius Pigott would qualify as a pioneer settler of CherokeeCounty. It is more striking to note that his original homestead of 120acres, plus an additional forty acres, has remained in the Pigott familyfor over 125 years and is owned by a grandson of Cornelius, William J.Pigott, son of Joseph Edward Pigott, and was being actively farmed byWilliam and his sons and grandsons in 1999.

Perhaps Cornelius was in the process of building housing for hisfamily and preparing the soil for planting or perhaps he was concernedabout the safety of his family. Whatever the reason, the family did notmove to Cherokee County, Iowa, to live on the homestead until sometimebetween May of 1876 (the birth of Dennis in Michigan) and April, 1878(the birth of Edward in Cherokee). We can only speculate that CorneliusPigott traveled back and forth between Michigan and Iowa during thatperiod of time.

The family continued to grow with the addition of Edward Pigott, bornApril 23, 1878; Catherine Pigott, born 1880; Joseph Pigott, born April 6,1881, Joseph Edward Pigott, born January 8, 1883; Maggie Pigott, bornApril 14, 1884; and Mary Josephine Pigott, born May 16, 1886. Edwarddied at the age of 3 on May 1, 1881, and Joseph died at age 1 on May 2,1881. The remaining 9 children survived into adulthood.

We do not have many details concerning the lives of Cornelius andAnnie (Eagan) Pigott. We do know that on May 28, 1887, Corneliuspurchased a farm 160 acres in size located in Section 23, which sectionwas immediately northwest of Section 25 where the family homestead waslocated. Cornelius paid Twenty-two hundred dollars to the widow MargaretClarey and her children for this farm. The deed was recorded in Book Pof the Cherokee County Deed Register at page 513 on June 7, 1888.

Just prior to recordation, on March 16, 1888, Annie died. This wasless than 2 years after the birth of their last child, Mary JosephinePigott, in May, 1886. Annie was buried in the family plot at Mt. CalvaryCemetary, Cherokee, Iowa. Without a census for 1890 we do not know howmany children remained at home with Cornelius but his oldest sons,William and John were 17 and 16 at the time of their mother's death.

In 1894, Cornelius was married to Ella (Ellen) C. Ragan. The 1895Iowa Census for Cherokee County, showed Cornelius at age 54, Ella 40,Cornelius Jr., 20, Dennis 18, Kate 15, Edward 14, Maggie 10, and Mary 8. Ella was shown as having been born in Jackson County, Iowa with herparents of foreign birth and with her as a catholic. A subsequent censusindicated that they were married in 1894 but a record of the marriage hasnot been found. A son, Leo Francis Pigott was born to the couple on June26, 1896. In the U. S. Census for 1900, remaining at home with Corneliusand Ella were Cornelius Jr., 25, Edward, 17, Maggie, 16, Mary 14, andLeo, 4. The census shows Ella's parent's place of birth as Ireland andshows her place of birth as Iowa. It incorrectly shows Leo's mother'splace of birth as Ireland. It states that Cornelius and Ella (Regan)Pigott had been married for six years and that Cornelius immigrated in1866.

An interesting deed dated July 17, 1897 has been found. The deed isfor a forty-acre parcel having a common boundary line with the 320 acreparcel in section 23 purchased by Cornelius Pigott on May 28, 1877.However, this deed is from the Administrator of the Estate of J. B.Ingels to Ella C. Pigott and Leo Francis Pigott, the latter being 11months old. The purchase price was Ten Hundred and Sixty Dollars. It isnot known if this acreage was paid for by Cornelius or by Ella C. (Ragan)Pigott or was inherited by Ella from the estate of her possible formerspouse, J. B. Ingels.

A sad episode involving Dennis Pigott occurred in November, 1909 . Itis apparent that Dennis was suffering from a mental illness in view ofthe events which occurred at that time. He was involved in the death ofa seventy-five year old man from suspicious causes. Dennis, 33 , wasfound responsible for the mans death and was ordered into the statemental hospital at Cherokee where he spent the remainder of his life. Hedied on April 2, 1927 in the hospital. See HISTORY OF CHEROKEE COUNTYIOWA by Thomas McCulla, 1914; p. 404.

Cornelius and Ella (Ragan) Pigott are mentioned in the History ofCherokee County for having donated two large stained glass windows to theImmaculate Conception Catholic Church in Cherokee, which windows beartheir names and were in place in 1993. HISTORY OF CHEROKEE COUNTY IOWA,op.cit., p p 276-7. On October 5, 1891, an order was entered in theUnited States District Court, Cherokee County, Iowa, granting U. S.Citizenship to Cornelius Pigott . He had lived in the U.S. fortwenty-five years.

On July 18, 1910, Ella (Ragan) Pigott died and was buried in thePigott Family Plot in the Mt. Calvary Cemetary in Cherokee. On October27 , 1915 she was joined in death by Cornelius Pigott who was also buriedin the family plot. The members of the family which were ultimatelyburied in the Pigott Family Plot were Cornelius Pigott, Annie (Eagan)Pigott, Ella C. (Ragan) Pigott, Cornelius Pigott, Jr., Joseph Pigott,Edward Pigott and an unidentified female infant. This may have beenRosella Pigott, daughter of John J. Pigott and twin sister of survivingCecelia E. Pigott.

According to the records which survive, the probate of the Last Willand Testament of Cornelius Pigott took several years. A copy of his willdated October 5, 1915, can be found in Will Record 4, Cherokee County, p.486. The will makes the following bequests: 1. To William Pigott, twothousand dollars; 2. To John Pigott, three thousand dollars; 3. To Annie(Pigott) Everhart, three thousand dollars; 4. To Maggie (Pigott) Myers,three thousand dollars; 5. To Kathryn (Pigott) O'Connell, two thousanddollars; 6. To Joseph Edward Pigott, six thousand dollars; 7. ToCornelius Pigott (Jr.), one thousand dollars; 8. To Mary Josephine(Pigott) Dunn, eight thousand dollars. 9. "Having heretofore madesuitable provisions for my beloved son Leo Francis Pigott out of myestate, it is therefore my will that he shall share no further in my saidestate." It is assumed that Cornelius Pigott is referring to the 40 acreparcel purchased in the name of Ella Pigott and Leo Francis Pigott in1897. 10. To William, John, Maggie, Annie, Kathryn, Joseph Edward,Cornelius and Mary Josephine, a remainder interest in the northeastern1/4 of the quarter section he had purchased in 1887, subject to alife-estate for the benefit of Dennis Pigott.

Dennis was to receive the benefits from that 40 acre parcel for theremainder of his life. Cornelius named William Dunn, husband of hisdaughter Mary Josephine (Pigott) Dunn, as trustee for Dennis Pigott .William was authorized to "lease out" the property and to lease it tohimself at an annual rental of four dollars per acre, not to exceed tenyears. Thereafter, if Dennis was still alive, the current going rate wasto be used. Total compensation to William Dunn was the reduced rentoffered to him. The residue of the estate was to be divided equallybetween the eight children named above (excluding Dennis Pigott and LeoFrancis Pigott).

Cornelius named his friend, Con Sullivan of Cherokee, Iowa, asexecutor of the will. The will was witnessed by John Scott and B. O.Cobb. The Petition for Probate of Will was filed October 29, 1915 butthe will was not admitted to probate until an order was filed January 31,1917, some fifteen months later. In the meantime, on October 16, 1915,Con Sullivan was appointed Special Administrator at the request of MaryJosephine Dunn who stated that there was a family dispute. On October11, 1917, the Executor filed a "List of Heirs and Real Estate" providingthe names and residences of the ten children of Cornelius Pigott. All ofthe children were in Cherokee, Iowa excepting John who was in Alexandria,South Dakota, Maggie Meyers who was in Seattle, Washington, and LeoFrancis Pigott who was in Wilmer, Minnesota. The real property consistedof 160 acres being the original homestead plus 40 additional acrespurchased subsequently, an additional 40 acres of the 160 in section 25and a residential lot in "New Cherokee, Iowa."

In the October, 1917 term of the District Court of Cherokee, Iowa ,the Executor filed a petition for an order to sell real estate describedas the 160 acres above referred to together with the residential lot.The petition alleges that there is insufficient cash to pay the specificbequests totaling $28,000 and that it is necessary to sell the referencedproperty in order to pay the bequests. No permission is requested tosell the 40 acre parcel in Section 25, left in trust for the benefit ofDennis Pigott for his life. A copy of the notice of filing the petitionwas served on George Donohoe, Superintendent of the Cherokee StateHospital on behalf of a patient , Dennis Pigott. Mr. Donohoe stated thathe accepted service of the notice for the reason "that personal serviceof the said notice upon the said Dennis Pigott would, in my opinion,injuriously affect such patient, and that personal service shall not bemade upon him." On May 6, 1918, an Order For Sale of Real Estate wasfiled with the clerk of the court. The appraisers appointed to appraisethe property filed their appraisal on June 10, 1918 and found the 160acre parcel to be worth $32,000 and the city lot to be worth $2,500.

In July, 1918, the Executor filed his Report of Sale of Real Estatestating that he had sold the 160 acre parcel to Joseph E. Pigott for thesum of $37,920 of which $3,000 was paid in cash and the balance of$34,920 was due on March 1, 1919. The Executor further advised the courtthat he had sold the city lot to John McTasney for $2,800 of which $500was paid down and the balance of $2,300 was due on receipt of a deed andan abstract of title.

On September 24, 1918, just three weeks prior to the end of World WarI, an Order Approving Sale of Real Estate was filed with the clerk of thecourt. On March 25, 1919, the court made an order awarding $1,000statutory and extraordinary fees to Cornelius Sullivan and $3,000 to hisattorneys . It is assumed that the Joseph E. Pigott had made payment ofthe balance of his purchase price which was due on March 1, 1919 and thatthe estate was ready for distribution. Since the real property sold for$40,720 and the fees totaled $4,000, there was $36,720 remaining, lesscosts, for the payment of bequests. It is assumed that there was somecash and some other assets so that the executor was able to pay thespecific bequests in full.

Since Dennis Pigott did not die until 1927, the heirs were forced towait until that time for the balance of their inheritance. The Dunnfamily and several descendants of Joseph E. Pigott remained in CherokeeCounty in 1993. Descendants of Cornelius Pigott, Jr., settled in theSioux City, Iowa area. Descendants of John Pigott live in California andin South Dakota and descentants of Maggie Meyers live in the State ofWashington. We have no information on descendants of the other childrenof Cornelius Pigott at this time.

MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION
The address of the Catholic Church in Meriden is Marryhill CatholicChurch, R.R. 3, Cherokee, IA.
The Cherokee County Genealogical Society is located care of PrairieManor, Cleghorn, IA 51014. Attn: Pat Behrens (712) 443-8343.
The telephone number of the Cherokee Historical Society is (712) 4362624.
Information on the age of Cornelius varies somewhat. His deathcertificate dated 24 October, 1915 gives his age as 76 years, 10 months,20 days which indicates a birth date of 4 December 1838. According tohis baptismal certificate he was baptised on July 7, 1839. This indicates that his parents waited 7 months after his birth to have him baptised.The 1851 census shows him as 14 years of age which is accurate if thecensus was taken after Dec 1851. His marriage record indicates his birthin 1838 . In the 1900 US Census he is shown as having been born inDecember 1838.

An interesting fact was discovered while browsing the SocialSecurity records. A Cornelius Pigott was born April 15, 1898, possiblyin New York, and died in October, 1983, in New Jersey. His last addresswas in zip code area 07834 which is for Denville, Morris County, NewJersey. This is immediately west of Essex County, where our Corneliuswas married years earlier. Under the theory that one of Corneliusbrothers had been an early settler in New Jersey and had introducedCornelius to Annie Eagan, this Cornelius could be a grandson of thatbrother and named after an uncle, or our Cornelius himself. It might beinteresting to check this fellow out. His SS# is 106-38-3646.

.

!VITAL RECORD:
Birth Records, Nauganee, Marquette Co., MI., 187O-8O, Index of Records at
FHL #1OO753O, Birth Records at FHL #1OO7531, Vol II, page 112, line 9,
Cornelius Pickett (sic) born January 13, 1875. Record Number 783.
For source see also library book 977.496V22i and microfische 6049161.

!MARRIAGE:
Cherokee County, Iowa, INDEX TO MARRIAGE RECORDS, 1896-1939, p 31 7 re-
fers to MARRIAGE RECORDS, Book 6, p 78 which provides the following:
License No.: 3853; Date of License: 7 May 1906; Name of Groom: Cor-
nelius Pigott; Residence: Cherokee, Iowa; Occupation: Farmer: Age: 3 0;
Race: White; Marriage: 1st; Born: Michigan; Name of Father: Cornelius
Pigott; Name of Mother: Annie Eagan.
Bride: Name: Mary Elsie Scurlock; Residence: Cherokee, Iowa; Age : 20;
Race: White; Born: Sheridan T/S, Cherokee County, Iowa; Name of Fathe r:
Scott Scurlock; Name of Mother: Elizabeth Head; Date and Place of Marriage:
May 8, 1906, Immaculate Conception Catholic Church, Cherokee, Iowa;
Witnesses: Edward Pigott, Mary Pigott. Performed by: Fr. William P. Desmond.

!NOTES:
Letter from Robert S. Pigott Sr. dated March 3, 1991, grandson of
Cornelius Pigott (1875) provides dates of birth and death of grandparents,
names of children of Cornelius including Cornelius III, father of Rob ert.

.

!NOTES:
Cornelius is the father of Robert S. Pigott, Sr. who wrote to me o n 3Feb
1991 with information on the Pigott family. Bob's brother is James F .Pigott.
In that letter he said his father was born on 21 Oct 191O. He wrot eagain on
3 March and told me his father was born on 21 Oct 1912. He said tha tCorne-
lius had a twin, Joseph E. born on 21, Oct 1912 so I'll use that dat e.

!SOCIAL SECURITY RECORDS
Cornelius Pigott was #48-07-5937 and, according to government records, he
was born on October 21, 1912 and died in December, 1983. His card wa sissued
in Iowa and the zip code of his last known residence was 50588 whic h isfor
Juniata or Lakeside, Buena Vista County, Ia.

!NOTES:
Letter from Robert S. Pigott advises that his brother, Cornelius Phillip
Pigott, born 10/17/42 lives in Fresno, California.

.

!BIRTH:
Birth Records, Nauganee, Marquette Co. MI., 187O-8O, Index of Reco rdsFHL
#1OO753O, Birth Records FHL #1OO7531, Volume II, page 175, line 9; Dennis H.
Pickett (sic) born 2 May 1876. Record Number 575. Book 977.496V22i i nFamily
History Library, Salt Lake City, Utah. Microfische 6049161.

!DEATH:
DEATH REGISTER OF CHEROKEE COUNTY, IOWA, p 228: Dennis H. Pigott ,April
2, 1927, Age, 49, Laboror; Cause of death: Exhaustion, Dementia Preco x.
FHL 1428671.

!COURT RECORD:
CHEROKEE COUNTY PROBATE INDEX, pg 154, Item 2403, Docket Book 11 , pg275;
Probate Book 24 @@ pg 234, Book 1 @@ pg 61, Book 28 @@ pgs 153, 159.
!NOTE:
The following appeared in "History of Cherokee County" Iowa by Tho masMc
Culla, Chicago (1914) pg 404: "The next murder was that of Thoma sRaftery
who was found in a comatose condition verging on death on the morn ingof Nov.
19, 1909, at his farm in Sheridan Township. Mr. Raftery was a ma nseventy-
five years of age and lived alone in a hut on his farm. The nigh tprevious
to the poisoning, a young man by the name of Dennis Piggot staye dwith him,
but claimed that he had left early in the morning and that Rafter ywas all-
right at that time. Early in the morning Jack Shea had occasion t ovisit the
Raftery house and on entering found Mr. Raftery lying on the floo r ina dying
condition. The dishes had been thrown from the table and there we re
evidences of the shack having been ransacked. He gave the alarm a nd a
corners inquest was held and the contents of the stomach sent to t hestate
chemist for analysis and chloral hydrate was found in considerabl equan-
taties in the stomach. The inquest had been adjourned to await th is
report when Pigott confessed that he had administered the chloral
hydrate. He was later indicted and tried for this murder. The ju ry
found him guilty of the act as charged but that he was insane at
the time he committed the act.
The judge ordered him confined to a private institution at Coun cil
Bluffs, where he remained for a year or two and then returned to t his
city, when, on motion of the county attorney, W. P. McCulla, the c ourt
ordered him to be confined at the state hospital in this city, whe re
he has been ever since."
(Sidenote: During our trip to Ireland in 1991, on my birthday , 3OAug,
we were on an Insight Tour and our tour director, John Dempsey, arran geda
cake and bought me a drink of fine Irish whiskey. The locatation: Galway.
The name of the pub: Raftery's!

.

!BURIAL:
Edward Pigott died just after reaching 3 years of age. He is buri ed
in the Pigott family plot in the Mt. Calvary Cemetary in Cherokee, Io wa,
next to his parents and some siblings. The large monument bears th e in-
scription "EDWARD Died May 1, 1881 Age 3yrs 8 days."

.

!NOTES:
This child of Joseph Edward and Pearl Pigott died in infancy accor ding
to her brother, Paul Edward Pigott.

BAPTISM:
Hazel Agatha Pigott was baptised on December 13, 1896 in Cherokee ,Iowa by Father J. T. Saunders. Witnesses were Cornelius Pigott and LizSmith.

NOTES:
Information as to dates of death was taken from the Coyne Family Biblein the possession of Loretta Ann Pigott Sullivan, 320 East Third St.,Mitchell, S.D.

BIRTH:
Social Security records show that Ila Tyo was born on September 12,1897.

BAPTISM:
Ila Catherine Pigott was baptised September 13, 1897 in Cherokee ,Iowa by Father J. T. Saunders. Witnesses were Pat Donovan and Ann aDonovan.

DEATH:
Social Security records for Ila indicate that she died on November 21,1991. No place is given in the records but she is believed to have been aresident of San Raphel, California..

NOTES:
Notified of Ila's death by Loretta Ann Sullivan, daughter of Ila' ssister Hazel Pigott Coyne. Details of birth date, christening date anddate of death were taken from the William Coyne Family Bible in thepossession of Loretta Coyne Sullivan 320 Third Street, Mitchell , SD.

.
!NOTES:
His father advises that James had two children Mona and Mike. We
have no further information on them nor on their mother.

!NOTES:
Letter from Robert S. Pigott advises that his brother, James F. Pigott lives
in Storm Lake, Iowa.

.

!COURT DOCUMENTS:
Index to Declaration of Intention to become citizen, (845796) Marquette
Co., Michigan, Liber 3 Page 99.
Naturalization Documents of John Pigott dated May 22, 1869, Circui tCourt
of the Upper Peninsula for the County of Marquette, State of Michigan ,Volume
A, page 52; FHL 1845797; photocopy in possession of James J. Sparks , San
Carlos, California.

!NOTES:
On June 12, 1869, Cornelius Pigott, John's younger brother, signe dunder
oath, in the Circuit Court of the Upper Peninsula for the County of Marquette,
State of Michigan, his Declaration of Intention to become a citizen o fthe US
and he renounced his British citizenship. The clerk of the court wro tein the
name Cornelius Pickett but the signature below was clearly "Corneliu sPigott."
Three weeks earlier, on May 22, 1869, a John Picket executed the following
documents:
State of Michigan ) Circuit Court of the Upper Peninsula for sai dCounty,
County of Marquette,)
John Picket, an alien, being of the age of about twenty
five years, desirous of becoming a citizen of the United States of America,
in conformity to the Laws of the United States, relative to the Naturalization
of Aliens, comes into the Court aforesaid, now in session and makes t hefollow-
ing declaration, viz:
That he was born in the County of Cork in Ireland in allegiance t o the
Queen of Great Brittian and Ireland that he emigrated from Ireland sailing
from the port of Queenstown in the year a.d. 1860 and arrived in th eUnited
States in the same year; and that he arrived in the State of Michiga n inthe
year a.d. 1860 and that he intends to settle and remain in the Count y ofMar-
quette in said State of Michigan.
Done at Marquette, this twenty second day of May A.D. 1869.
I, John Pickett above named, do solemnly swear that the facts se tforth in
the above declaration are true, and that it is bona fide my intentio n tobe-
come a citizen of the United States, and to renounce forever all allegiance
and fidelity to each and every foreign Prince, Potentate, State, or Sovereignty
whatever, and particularly the Queen of Great Brittan and Ireland o fwhom I
am a subject.
Sworn to and subscribed before me this 22d day of May, 1869.
Ariel N. Beressey, Deputy Clerk his
John X Picket
mark
.
STATE OF MICHIGAN ) Circuit Court of said County
COUNTY OF MARQUETTE, ) Of the May Term, 1869
WE, Timothy Curran and Daniel Laughlin, of Marquette County and St ateof
Michigan, do swear that the Petitioner John Picket has resided withi n the
limits and under the jurisdiction of the United States of America fiv eyears
and within the State of Michigan one year; that is to say, he, the sa idJohn
Picket, has resided in the County of Marquette, State of Michigan.....
all of which places are within and under the Constitution of the Unit edStates;
and that during his residence within the United States, he had behave das a
man of good moral character, attached to the Constitution of the Unit edStates,
and well disposed to good order and happiness of the same.
Sworn and subscribed in open Court this 22nd day
of May A.D. 1869 Timothy Curran
Ariel N. Beressey, Daniel Laughlin
Deputy Clerk
I, John Pickett do swear that I will support the Constitution of t heUnited
States, and that I do absolutely and entirely renounce and abjure forever all
allegiance and fidelity to any foreign Prince, Potentate, State, and
Sovereignty whatever, and particularly do absolutely and entirely renounce and
abjure all allegiance and fidelity to Queen of Great Britian and Irel and
whereof I was a subject.
Sworn and subscribed in open Court this 22nd Day his
of May A.D. 1869 John X Pic ket
Ariel N. Beressey, Deputy Clerk mark

!NOTE (cont.)
John Pigott was born in 1831 and, in 1869, would have been 38 year sold,
not 25 as stated in the application. It seems probable that this Joh nis in
fact the brother of Cornelius Pigott since the latter executed his in tent
to become a U.S. Citizen just 20 days after John's declaration and before the
same clerk in Marquette, Michigan. It is just a probable that John misunder-
stood the question of his age and assumed it asked for his age at th etime
he entered the United States in 1860. At that time he was 28 or 29 years of
age. He may not have known his precise age but this is unlikely.

.

!DEATH:
DEATH REGISTER OF CHEROKEE COUNTY, IOWA, pg 156 (?): John Howard
Pigott, October 24, 1919, age unknown, Acute Indigestion. FHL 1428671.

COURT RECORDS:
BIRTH: Birth Records, Nauganee, Marquette Co., MI., 187O-8O, Index ofRecords FHL #1OO753O, Birth Records FHL #1OO7531, Vol I, page 121, line8: John James Pigott, born 17 Oct 1871. Record number 306; Book977.496V22i. Certificate of Birth #0012568, Michigan Dept. of Health(Certified copy in possession of James J. Sparks, San Carlos, CA.)

RECORDER'S RECORD:
Agreement for the Sale of Real Estate for the purchase of 227 DaisyAvenue, Long Beach, CA., made on May 1, 1920, John James Pigott andCatherine Pigott purchasers, and Laura E. Thorton, seller, executed May8, 1920 and recorded in Volume 7227 of Records at Pages 11 and 12 on May10, 1920. (Photocopy in possession of James J. Sparks, San Carlos, CA.)

MARRIAGE
FHL #1035292 INDEX TO REGISTER OF MARRIAGES, Cherokee Co., Iowa 1889-1896 V3, p 129, REGISTER OF MARRIAGES, Book 3, p556: #2257 District CourtClerk, Cherokee County, dated 23 Feb, 1895 returned 30 April 1895,Registered May 1, 1895. (Cert. copy in possession of James J . Sparks,San Carlos, CA) Information on the register is as follows: MarriedFebruary 23, 1895; affidavit made by Mr. Hugh Dogherty; groom: John J.Piggott (sic); place of residence: Cherokee County, Iowa; occupation:farmer; age: 24; color: white; groom's place of birth : Michigan; groom'sfather's name: Cornelius Piggott (sic); groom's m other's maiden name:Annie Eagan; bride: Katie Smith; place of residence: Cherokee County,Iowa; age: 18; color: white; 1st marriage; bride's place of birth,Cherokee County, Iowa; bride's father's name: Christopher Smith; bride'smother's full maiden name: Esther Brennan; when and where married:Cherokee, Iowa February 25, 1895; witnesses, Hugh Dougherty, Agnes Smith;by whom married: James T. Saunders, Catholic Priest; date of return:April 30, 1895; when registered: May 1, 1895; signed: D. M. McNeal,Clerk, District Court.

DEATH:
State of California, Dept. of Health Services; death cert. 48-059921, Dist. 1903, Registrar's No. 1485 issued 13 Sep 1990 (Certified copyin possession of James J. Sparks, San Carlos, CA) Information on theDeath Certificate is as follows: Died August 31, 1948; Place of death:Long Beach, Los Angeles County, California; time in state : 29 years;age: 76 years, 10 months, 14 days; born: Negaunee, Michigan; usualoccupation: Longshoreman (retired); (includes names and birthplaces ofparents) informant: Cecelia E. Sparks, 834 Obispo Avenue , Long Beach,California; entombment: 2 September, 1948 at Calvary Mausoleum, LosAngeles, California; usual residence: 227 Daisy Avenue , Long Beach, LosAngeles County, California. Cause of death: cerebral hemorrage.

CENSUS:
1900 U.S. Census, Sheridan T/S, Cherokee Co., IA; Nat'l Arch., SanBruno, T ???, Roll 423; See form in file.
1910 U.S. Census, Sheridan T/S, Cherokee Co., IA; SD #11, ED #25 ,Sheet 7, Nat'l Arch., San Bruno, CA T ???, Roll ???; See form in file.
1920 U. S. Census, Alexandria, Hanson Co., SD; Enum. D. 86, Sheet 10,line 87. National Archives, San Bruno, Soundex for P230, Reel 3 3 SD;Census Reel 1719, Cherokee Co, Sheridan T/S; Jan, 1920. See form infile. Census records show that six lodgers were enumerated with thefamily; John Pigott worked on his "own account" in his "Pool Hall".According to Cecelia (Pigott) Sparks, this Pool Hall contained a bowlingalley with two lanes.

RESEARCH NOTES:
BIRTH: Birth of children, checked FHL #1035290, birth records forCherokee County, IA 1880-1907, found Celia, no others.

SUMMARY:
John James Pigott was born the second of eleven children on October17, 1871. His father Cornelius was born in Kilworth, a small villagenear Fermoy in the northern part of County Cork, Ireland. He migrated toAmerica in 1866. It is believed that Cornelius' older brother, John,after whom we believe John James Pigott was named, had arrived in Americain 1860. That same year he was living in Nauganee, Marquette County,Michigan, and had applied for U.S. citizenship. He was joined there byCornelius before 1869 and before hismarriage to Annie Eagan in 1870. Itis not known how Cornelius and Annie met. She was born in the UnitedStates about 1852 or 1853. Her parents, James Egan and Margaret WalshEagan were born in Ireland and, it is assumed, came to America during thefamine, and settled in New Jersey. It was there, on March 28, 1870, thatCornelius and Annie were married.

Cornelius immediately returned to Nauganee, Michigan where their firstchild, William, was born on July 20, 1870. It is assumed that Williamwas named after Cornelius' father. John James Pigott was born inNauganee, on October 17, 1871 as were his next four siblings. Forreasons yet unknown, Cornelius travelled to Cherokee County, Iowa, where,on April 30, 1873, he purchased 120 acres of farmland. From the deathrecord of Edward, who was the sixth child of Cornelius and Annie, and whodied May 1, 1881, we learn that the entire family of eight moved toCherokee County in June, 1878 when John was almost seven years of age.Five more children were born to Cornelius and Annie in Cherokee, Iowa.Cornelius prospered and, by June, 1888, he purchased another farmcomprising 320 acres.

Christopher Smith, the father of Catherine Smith and futurefather-in-law of John Pigott, was born in Ireland in 1819. He is firstfound in Iowa Township, Benton County, Iowa in the 1860 census, livingwith his wife Esther Brennan Smith. She was about 17 years of age andhad been born in Canada. The first Smith child, Bernard, was born inBenton County in 1861. Seven more children were born there prior to thefamily's move to Diamond Township, Cherokee County, in about 1875. Theypurchased a 120 acre farm there and, on April 16, 1878, Catherine, thefuture spouse
of John Pigott, was born.

According to his grave marker located in the Mt. Calvary Cemetary ,Cherokee, Iowa, Christopher Smith died 7 May, 1884 at the age of 65,leaving his wife and eight or nine children. Bernard, who was then about23 years of age, took over the management of the farm. By 1895, whenJohn was 23 years of age, he was found living on the Smith farm inDiamond Township, probably as a helper to Bernard, who was now 34, andhis brothers. He is shown on the Iowa State Census taken May 11 , 1895,as a single person as is Catherine, age 16. In fact, they had beenmarried
on February 25 of that year. Catherine was 17 on April 16th, 1895.

They had five children, all girls. The first one, Hazel, was born onJuly 12, 1896. Ila followed on September 13, 1897. In the 1900 censusof Sheridan Township, Cherokee County, Iowa, the family of four is foundwith John shown as a farmer. May Loretta, was born March 19, 1904 andthe twins, Cecelia and Rosella were born May 3, 1906, all in Cherokee,Iowa. Rosella did not survive and died the next day. She is belived tobe buried with her grandparents as the "Infant Female" shown on therecords of the Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Cherokee, Iowa,in the Pigott family plot at the Mt. Carmel Catholic Cemetary inCherokee, Iowa.

The 1910 census of Sheridan Township finds the family of sixaccompanied by Catherine 's mother, Esther, aged 65. Esther advised thatboth of her parents were born in Ireland and that she was born in Canada,probably Quebec.

The following year, a photograph which has survived bearing the date1911, shows the family in front of a new farmhouse in Ethan, Davison Co.,South Dakota. Three years later, on October 7, 1914, the oldestdaughter, Hazel, married William J. Coyne in Ethan and they later movedto Mitchell, South Dakota where they lived for the rest of their lives.Hazel Pigott Coyne died after May 1974 in Mitchell. The three youngerPigott girls lived on the farm with their parents for several years.John's father, Cornelius Pigott died in Cherokee County, Iowa, on October24, 1915. His estate was in probate for several years. We learned fromhis probate records that, by October 11, 1917, the John J. Pigott familyhad moved to Alexandria, Hanson County, South Dakota, John apparently hadbecome tired of farming and desired a change.

According to the 1920 census, John Pigott was operating a pool hallwhich he had purchased in Alexandria. Six lodgers were enumerated athome with the family. Cecelia (Pigott) Sparks revealed years later thatthe pool hall also contained a bowling alley with two lanes and that itwas the girls' responsibility to assist in maintaining the bowling lanesby removing the small stones which had become imbedded in the wood.During a trip to Alexandria by James and Ellen Sparks in 1993, an elderlygentleman remembered the town's only bowling alley. He revealed that thebuilding which had housed the pool hall and bowli ng alley had been torndown to make way for the Chamber of Commerce Building on the main streetof Alexandria.

The estate of Cornelius Pigott was closed in 1919 and John receivedthe sum of $3,000 as his share. On May 8, 1920, John and Catherine hadsigned a mortgage to purchase a two-story residence in Long Beach,California at 227 Daisy Street, west of the downtown area. The home hadseveral bedrooms and a storm cellar similar to the type with which theywere familiar in Iowa. The two younger girls, May and Cecelia, wereenrolled in school at St . Anthonys Roman Catholic High School in LongBeach. Within the year, Ila was married to Edmund Tyo, a butcher in LongBeach.

John found employment as a longshoreman in the busy port area of SanPedro-Wilmington nearby. At age 49, he was not too old to change careers. The reason that the family chose Long Beach as their destination isnot known. However, it is probable that friends of the family hadearlier come to Long Beach with the thousands of Iowans who did so in thenineteen-tens and twenties, and who had written to their former neighborsof the beauty and wonders to behold in Southern California, especially,as compared with Iowa and the Dakotas, the climate.

Loretta Mae, the next to youngest daughter married Newton T. Bass wholater purchased undeveloped land in the desert and established the townof Apple Valley, California. They were divorced in the early 1930s .Not long thereafter, Loretta contracted tuberculosis from which she diedin 1933 in the town of Azusa, California, where she had been taken in aneffort to effect a cure. She never had children.

Cecelia, the youngest, married Joseph J. Sparks, in Long Beach, in1925. John and Catherine had no use for the upstairs portion of theirlarge home, and, to supplement their income, they took in severalboarders whom they called "roomers", a practice which they had apparentlystarted during the few years they lived in Alexandria, South Dakota,before migrating to Southern California. John Pigott continued to workas a longshoreman during World II while in his seventies. He finallyretired at the war's end.

Both John and Catherine were devout Roman Catholics and theyregularly attended church services at St. Anthony's Church in Long Beach. John died of a cerebral hemorrage on August 21, 1948 at the age ofalmost 77 years. Catherine sold the home at 227 Daisy Avenue shortlythereafter. She moved into an apartment on Gladys Avenue near TempleStreet adjacent to St. Matthew's Catholic Church and near her daughterCecelia (Pigott) Sparks. Catherine died on May 29, 1957 at the age of 79years.

Both John and Catherine were interred at the Calvary CemetaryMausoleum, Los Angeles, California. Catherine held in her arms hergreat-grandson, James Terence Sparks, born November 10, 1956, prior toher death. He was the oldest grandchild of Catherine's youngestdaughter, Cecelia Pigott Sparks.

.
!NOTES:
There is a good deal of confusion concerning the date of the birt h ofJoseph Pigott because of many inconsistant records. There seem s to beno question that he died quite young on May 1, 1881.
In the US census of Cherokee County, Iowa, dated June 24, 1880 , aJoseph Pigott is enumerated in the Cornelius Pigott family as a c hild of2 years of age indicating birth in 1877 or 1878 in the stat e ofMichigan. Consistant with this is an entry in the Records of Ch erokeeCo., Register of Deaths, 1880-91, pg 4, entry 47 (FHL 1,035,29 4[2])which records his death as May 1, 1881 and his age as 3 years , 8 days(indicating a birth date of April 23, 1878). It further sta tes that helived in Iowa for 2 years, 11 months and that he was bor n in Michigan.
A mystery is created by a record in the Cherokee County birth reco rdsshowing a "male" Pigott born 6 April, 1881 in Sheridan Township . Thisis further complicated by the tombstone in the Pigott Famil y Plot in theMt. Calvary Cemetery which reads "JOSEPH, Died April 26 , 1882, Age 1year." My notes also refer to a birth record in Cherok ee County showinghis age at death as 1 year, 20 days. Though I di d not substantiate thisrecord, the dates are precisely accurate fo r the Joseph referred to inthis paragraph.
Is it possible that a child was born to the Pigotts on April 6, 18 81,and, before he was named, his older brother, Joseph, died three w eekslater on May 1, 1881; to alleviate their pain they named the new bornJoseph but, tragically, he died one year and twenty-one days lat er? Wedo know that their next son was born on January 1, 1883 and w as namedJoseph Edward Pigott. He was called Eddie rather than Josep h, howeveras I recall my m