William N. Cosgrove - Faribault Journal 29/Jan/1919
W. N. Cosgrove, a prominent citizen of Faribault, died Sunday morning, January 26, at two o'clock at his home on West Sixth Street, death being caused from an injury received Friday evening. Mr. Cosgrove was seriously injured at his home Friday evening, when he fell while going up the steps at his residence. In his fall he struck his head, causing a serious fracture of the base of the skull. He
was found unconscious shortly after the accident and medical aid was summoned. He never regained consciousness after his injury. His condition from the first was considered seriousness, with but little hope of recovery.
Mr. Cosgrove was born in Louisville, Kentucky, May 8, 1845. He came to Faribault when he was 21 years of age, and made this city his home from that time until his death, though
his interests were varied, and he for a time spent much time in other parts of the state in the interests of his business. He did a great deal for the upbuilding of the business section of the city, and was the owner of
considerable downtown property. He was a man of great mechanical ability, and an early occupation was that of a millwright. He was the inventor of the roller process of making flour, the patents of which he sold. For many years he was a supervising architect, having supervision of the construction of many buildings here and elsewhere. For several years he was connected with the Milwaukee railroad, having charge of the building of many of the early grain elevators along their lines. He was overseer of the construction of one of the large buildings of the Minnesota Soldiers' Home and of the grand theater of this city.
Mr. Cosgrove was married July 4, 1876, to Miss Nina Dickerson, who died January 14, 1915, in Faribault. There were born to them four children, the eldest daughter dying in 1882. The others, all of whom survive, are Oak Cosgrove, of Chicago; Mrs. Sam Andrews, of New York City, and Mrs. A. K. Woods, of Faribault. He is survived also by a sister, Mrs. James Hart, of Waubun, Minn., and a half brother, Edward Wansley, also of this state.
Funeral services were held from the residence on Tuesday afternoon. The services were conducted with full masonic rites, Mr. Cosgrove having been a mason and one of the charter members of the Faribault commandery, Knights Templar. Dean Zoubek of the Cathedral of Our Merciful Saviour officiated. Burial was at Maple Lawn cemetery. The pallbearers were H. E. Whitney, P. H. White, Clarence Carver, N. A. Cadwallader, F. E. Jenkins, and H. F. Kester.
---------------------------------------
Added information from William Cosgrove's great grandson FORREST DEE HOWELL...
"William N. Cosgrove was my great grandfather. He was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland, in May, 1845, at the very height of the Great Hunger (what we call the Potato Famine). His mother's maiden name was Dickerson. When he was about 20 he crossed the Atlantic in steerage, making landfall at Boston. To some, steerage might imply poverty. To others, it meant reluctance on the part of this young man to squander his money.
William lived in the Irish ghetto of Boston for approximately one year. His youngest daughter, Mattie Choate Cosgrove Woods (My maternal grandmother) once euphemistically stated that her father was once faced with a "problem" in Boston. During the process of solving or eliminating that "problem" a man's life was lost. William immediately traveled north to Quebec Province where he stayed for three years. At age 24, wearing A full beard in order to disguise his face, he re-entered the United States at Minnesota via Ontario Province. At each U.S. Census, he declared and avowed that he was born in Louisville, Jefferson County, Kentucky. That was his strategy to keep the law off his tail. It worked. In the 1880 and 1890 censuses, William N. Cosgrove is shown as being a machinist. They indicate that he as well as his mother and father were born in Kentucky. This was a smokescreen. In the 1900 and 1910 census, he is listed as a landlord. After his death in 1919, the 1920 census tells a different story. His daughter Mattie C. Woods is declared as having been born in Minnesota, her mother in Wisconsin, and her father in Ireland.
By the way, at the end of every month, William Nelson Cosgrove made his rounds collecting rents that were paid in cash. That blow to his head did not come from falling down the steps of his home. He was bludgeoned to death. He was murdered for the large sum of cash he was carrying. When the police were called to the scene of his death, there was no money found on his person. None. Did a cop kill him with his night stick? Did a son of that victim in Boston find him and kill him in revenge? We will never know. What we do know is that his death was no accident.
Just before his marriage to my great grandmother (her name was Nina, but everyone called her Bessie), he sold enough patents to fund their six month European honeymoon. They eventually had four children. First came Oak Laurance, born June 4, 1877. His WWI Registration Card date September 12, 1918, indicated that he was tall, of medium build, had brown eyes and gray hair. He was 41. He was living at 320 Dyckman St., New York, NY. His wife's name was Maude Florence Cosgrove. He was a ship builder. Next was born little Ivy Cosgrove, but she only lived two years. Her early death left a pall over the family that never went away. The rebel of the bunch was Nina T. Cosgrove but everyone called her Tot. She was the first licensed female lifeguard in this country. She had to take her swimming tests in Atlantic City. Later in life she became an actress of some renown working on stages in NYC, London, and Paris. She drove a Duesenberg. She died an alcoholic in Faribault. Years later came little Mattie Choate Cosgrove, my maternal grandmother. Mattie was born August 13, 1894. She was 11 years younger than her sister Tot.
After her marriage to Alfred Woods, she referred to herself as Mattie Cosgrove Woods. There are several good things to say about Alfred Woods. He was the youngest cadet to ever graduate from Shattuck Military Academy. He was well liked and seemed to have a brilliant future, but he also had a fault. A very large one. He could not control his penchant for gambling. He wound up in federal prison twice for passing bad checks to cover his gambling losses. He squandered all my grandmother's real estate holdings, both farms in Minnesota and South Dakota as well as commercial properties in Faribault, Minneapolis, and St. Paul.
Mattie had three children, Richard Cosgrove Woods, Nancy Penina Woods Howell, and Derith Ann Woods Roberds. Nancy was my mother. I was my grandmother's oldest grandchild by six years. She passed on much family lore to me. I know I was her favorite.
I could write stories at great length about William, Mattie, and the family's connection to the 1910 Mexican Revolution.
Here are two items about William. He loved to read his National Geographic journals. In his back yard, he built an octagonal gazebo. This was no ordinary gazebo. It was built on a great circular track that carried massive ball bearings. Five of the walls were heavily insulated and contained a curved built-in couch. In the center of the room was a large truck steering wheel. The other three walls were glass, the center one being a doorway. The steering wheel was used to rotate the gazebo to face the sun which was used to heat the room as if it were a greenhouse. The other item is the design and construction of the Glass Block in downtown Faribault. At three stories, it was the town's tallest building, but what distinguishes it is the fact that it was the first building built in the United Stated with twin glazed windows. There is now a nice restaurant in Duluth, also with large dual paned windows, and also called the Glass Block.
My great grandfather was a Mason. He was a 33rd degree Mason. That is their highest honor. He had to travel back to Scotland for the ceremony and received a ceremonial sword that was inherited by my Uncle Dick. He also had a relationship with the native people. After his death according to grandmother, 300 Oglala Sioux braves rode into town and camped in the city park. The chief is buried up the hill from William's grave. He is the only Red man buried there. He loved to race sailing canoes with William and gave him two birchbark canoes which my grandmother later used on the Cannon River connecting Faribault and Northfield as well as on the lake where the family had a summer cottage."
--------------------------------------
Note from Shirley Hemingway:
The year of William Cosgrove's birth has been reported as both 1845 & 1847. Census records & some family stories say 1847. The gravestone & the newspaper obit say 1845.
W. N. Cosgrove, a prominent citizen of Faribault, died Sunday morning, January 26, at two o'clock at his home on West Sixth Street, death being caused from an injury received Friday evening. Mr. Cosgrove was seriously injured at his home Friday evening, when he fell while going up the steps at his residence. In his fall he struck his head, causing a serious fracture of the base of the skull. He
was found unconscious shortly after the accident and medical aid was summoned. He never regained consciousness after his injury. His condition from the first was considered seriousness, with but little hope of recovery.
Mr. Cosgrove was born in Louisville, Kentucky, May 8, 1845. He came to Faribault when he was 21 years of age, and made this city his home from that time until his death, though
his interests were varied, and he for a time spent much time in other parts of the state in the interests of his business. He did a great deal for the upbuilding of the business section of the city, and was the owner of
considerable downtown property. He was a man of great mechanical ability, and an early occupation was that of a millwright. He was the inventor of the roller process of making flour, the patents of which he sold. For many years he was a supervising architect, having supervision of the construction of many buildings here and elsewhere. For several years he was connected with the Milwaukee railroad, having charge of the building of many of the early grain elevators along their lines. He was overseer of the construction of one of the large buildings of the Minnesota Soldiers' Home and of the grand theater of this city.
Mr. Cosgrove was married July 4, 1876, to Miss Nina Dickerson, who died January 14, 1915, in Faribault. There were born to them four children, the eldest daughter dying in 1882. The others, all of whom survive, are Oak Cosgrove, of Chicago; Mrs. Sam Andrews, of New York City, and Mrs. A. K. Woods, of Faribault. He is survived also by a sister, Mrs. James Hart, of Waubun, Minn., and a half brother, Edward Wansley, also of this state.
Funeral services were held from the residence on Tuesday afternoon. The services were conducted with full masonic rites, Mr. Cosgrove having been a mason and one of the charter members of the Faribault commandery, Knights Templar. Dean Zoubek of the Cathedral of Our Merciful Saviour officiated. Burial was at Maple Lawn cemetery. The pallbearers were H. E. Whitney, P. H. White, Clarence Carver, N. A. Cadwallader, F. E. Jenkins, and H. F. Kester.
---------------------------------------
Added information from William Cosgrove's great grandson FORREST DEE HOWELL...
"William N. Cosgrove was my great grandfather. He was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland, in May, 1845, at the very height of the Great Hunger (what we call the Potato Famine). His mother's maiden name was Dickerson. When he was about 20 he crossed the Atlantic in steerage, making landfall at Boston. To some, steerage might imply poverty. To others, it meant reluctance on the part of this young man to squander his money.
William lived in the Irish ghetto of Boston for approximately one year. His youngest daughter, Mattie Choate Cosgrove Woods (My maternal grandmother) once euphemistically stated that her father was once faced with a "problem" in Boston. During the process of solving or eliminating that "problem" a man's life was lost. William immediately traveled north to Quebec Province where he stayed for three years. At age 24, wearing A full beard in order to disguise his face, he re-entered the United States at Minnesota via Ontario Province. At each U.S. Census, he declared and avowed that he was born in Louisville, Jefferson County, Kentucky. That was his strategy to keep the law off his tail. It worked. In the 1880 and 1890 censuses, William N. Cosgrove is shown as being a machinist. They indicate that he as well as his mother and father were born in Kentucky. This was a smokescreen. In the 1900 and 1910 census, he is listed as a landlord. After his death in 1919, the 1920 census tells a different story. His daughter Mattie C. Woods is declared as having been born in Minnesota, her mother in Wisconsin, and her father in Ireland.
By the way, at the end of every month, William Nelson Cosgrove made his rounds collecting rents that were paid in cash. That blow to his head did not come from falling down the steps of his home. He was bludgeoned to death. He was murdered for the large sum of cash he was carrying. When the police were called to the scene of his death, there was no money found on his person. None. Did a cop kill him with his night stick? Did a son of that victim in Boston find him and kill him in revenge? We will never know. What we do know is that his death was no accident.
Just before his marriage to my great grandmother (her name was Nina, but everyone called her Bessie), he sold enough patents to fund their six month European honeymoon. They eventually had four children. First came Oak Laurance, born June 4, 1877. His WWI Registration Card date September 12, 1918, indicated that he was tall, of medium build, had brown eyes and gray hair. He was 41. He was living at 320 Dyckman St., New York, NY. His wife's name was Maude Florence Cosgrove. He was a ship builder. Next was born little Ivy Cosgrove, but she only lived two years. Her early death left a pall over the family that never went away. The rebel of the bunch was Nina T. Cosgrove but everyone called her Tot. She was the first licensed female lifeguard in this country. She had to take her swimming tests in Atlantic City. Later in life she became an actress of some renown working on stages in NYC, London, and Paris. She drove a Duesenberg. She died an alcoholic in Faribault. Years later came little Mattie Choate Cosgrove, my maternal grandmother. Mattie was born August 13, 1894. She was 11 years younger than her sister Tot.
After her marriage to Alfred Woods, she referred to herself as Mattie Cosgrove Woods. There are several good things to say about Alfred Woods. He was the youngest cadet to ever graduate from Shattuck Military Academy. He was well liked and seemed to have a brilliant future, but he also had a fault. A very large one. He could not control his penchant for gambling. He wound up in federal prison twice for passing bad checks to cover his gambling losses. He squandered all my grandmother's real estate holdings, both farms in Minnesota and South Dakota as well as commercial properties in Faribault, Minneapolis, and St. Paul.
Mattie had three children, Richard Cosgrove Woods, Nancy Penina Woods Howell, and Derith Ann Woods Roberds. Nancy was my mother. I was my grandmother's oldest grandchild by six years. She passed on much family lore to me. I know I was her favorite.
I could write stories at great length about William, Mattie, and the family's connection to the 1910 Mexican Revolution.
Here are two items about William. He loved to read his National Geographic journals. In his back yard, he built an octagonal gazebo. This was no ordinary gazebo. It was built on a great circular track that carried massive ball bearings. Five of the walls were heavily insulated and contained a curved built-in couch. In the center of the room was a large truck steering wheel. The other three walls were glass, the center one being a doorway. The steering wheel was used to rotate the gazebo to face the sun which was used to heat the room as if it were a greenhouse. The other item is the design and construction of the Glass Block in downtown Faribault. At three stories, it was the town's tallest building, but what distinguishes it is the fact that it was the first building built in the United Stated with twin glazed windows. There is now a nice restaurant in Duluth, also with large dual paned windows, and also called the Glass Block.
My great grandfather was a Mason. He was a 33rd degree Mason. That is their highest honor. He had to travel back to Scotland for the ceremony and received a ceremonial sword that was inherited by my Uncle Dick. He also had a relationship with the native people. After his death according to grandmother, 300 Oglala Sioux braves rode into town and camped in the city park. The chief is buried up the hill from William's grave. He is the only Red man buried there. He loved to race sailing canoes with William and gave him two birchbark canoes which my grandmother later used on the Cannon River connecting Faribault and Northfield as well as on the lake where the family had a summer cottage."
--------------------------------------
Note from Shirley Hemingway:
The year of William Cosgrove's birth has been reported as both 1845 & 1847. Census records & some family stories say 1847. The gravestone & the newspaper obit say 1845.
William N. Cosgrove - Faribault Journal 29/Jan/1919
W. N. Cosgrove, a prominent citizen of Faribault, died Sunday morning, January 26, at two o'clock at his home on West Sixth Street, death being caused from an injury received Friday evening. Mr. Cosgrove was seriously injured at his home Friday evening, when he fell while going up the steps at his residence. In his fall he struck his head, causing a serious fracture of the base of the skull. He
was found unconscious shortly after the accident and medical aid was summoned. He never regained consciousness after his injury. His condition from the first was considered seriousness, with but little hope of recovery.
Mr. Cosgrove was born in Louisville, Kentucky, May 8, 1845. He came to Faribault when he was 21 years of age, and made this city his home from that time until his death, though
his interests were varied, and he for a time spent much time in other parts of the state in the interests of his business. He did a great deal for the upbuilding of the business section of the city, and was the owner of
considerable downtown property. He was a man of great mechanical ability, and an early occupation was that of a millwright. He was the inventor of the roller process of making flour, the patents of which he sold. For many years he was a supervising architect, having supervision of the construction of many buildings here and elsewhere. For several years he was connected with the Milwaukee railroad, having charge of the building of many of the early grain elevators along their lines. He was overseer of the construction of one of the large buildings of the Minnesota Soldiers' Home and of the grand theater of this city.
Mr. Cosgrove was married July 4, 1876, to Miss Nina Dickerson, who died January 14, 1915, in Faribault. There were born to them four children, the eldest daughter dying in 1882. The others, all of whom survive, are Oak Cosgrove, of Chicago; Mrs. Sam Andrews, of New York City, and Mrs. A. K. Woods, of Faribault. He is survived also by a sister, Mrs. James Hart, of Waubun, Minn., and a half brother, Edward Wansley, also of this state.
Funeral services were held from the residence on Tuesday afternoon. The services were conducted with full masonic rites, Mr. Cosgrove having been a mason and one of the charter members of the Faribault commandery, Knights Templar. Dean Zoubek of the Cathedral of Our Merciful Saviour officiated. Burial was at Maple Lawn cemetery. The pallbearers were H. E. Whitney, P. H. White, Clarence Carver, N. A. Cadwallader, F. E. Jenkins, and H. F. Kester.
---------------------------------------
Added information from William Cosgrove's great grandson FORREST DEE HOWELL...
"William N. Cosgrove was my great grandfather. He was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland, in May, 1845, at the very height of the Great Hunger (what we call the Potato Famine). His mother's maiden name was Dickerson. When he was about 20 he crossed the Atlantic in steerage, making landfall at Boston. To some, steerage might imply poverty. To others, it meant reluctance on the part of this young man to squander his money.
William lived in the Irish ghetto of Boston for approximately one year. His youngest daughter, Mattie Choate Cosgrove Woods (My maternal grandmother) once euphemistically stated that her father was once faced with a "problem" in Boston. During the process of solving or eliminating that "problem" a man's life was lost. William immediately traveled north to Quebec Province where he stayed for three years. At age 24, wearing A full beard in order to disguise his face, he re-entered the United States at Minnesota via Ontario Province. At each U.S. Census, he declared and avowed that he was born in Louisville, Jefferson County, Kentucky. That was his strategy to keep the law off his tail. It worked. In the 1880 and 1890 censuses, William N. Cosgrove is shown as being a machinist. They indicate that he as well as his mother and father were born in Kentucky. This was a smokescreen. In the 1900 and 1910 census, he is listed as a landlord. After his death in 1919, the 1920 census tells a different story. His daughter Mattie C. Woods is declared as having been born in Minnesota, her mother in Wisconsin, and her father in Ireland.
By the way, at the end of every month, William Nelson Cosgrove made his rounds collecting rents that were paid in cash. That blow to his head did not come from falling down the steps of his home. He was bludgeoned to death. He was murdered for the large sum of cash he was carrying. When the police were called to the scene of his death, there was no money found on his person. None. Did a cop kill him with his night stick? Did a son of that victim in Boston find him and kill him in revenge? We will never know. What we do know is that his death was no accident.
Just before his marriage to my great grandmother (her name was Nina, but everyone called her Bessie), he sold enough patents to fund their six month European honeymoon. They eventually had four children. First came Oak Laurance, born June 4, 1877. His WWI Registration Card date September 12, 1918, indicated that he was tall, of medium build, had brown eyes and gray hair. He was 41. He was living at 320 Dyckman St., New York, NY. His wife's name was Maude Florence Cosgrove. He was a ship builder. Next was born little Ivy Cosgrove, but she only lived two years. Her early death left a pall over the family that never went away. The rebel of the bunch was Nina T. Cosgrove but everyone called her Tot. She was the first licensed female lifeguard in this country. She had to take her swimming tests in Atlantic City. Later in life she became an actress of some renown working on stages in NYC, London, and Paris. She drove a Duesenberg. She died an alcoholic in Faribault. Years later came little Mattie Choate Cosgrove, my maternal grandmother. Mattie was born August 13, 1894. She was 11 years younger than her sister Tot.
After her marriage to Alfred Woods, she referred to herself as Mattie Cosgrove Woods. There are several good things to say about Alfred Woods. He was the youngest cadet to ever graduate from Shattuck Military Academy. He was well liked and seemed to have a brilliant future, but he also had a fault. A very large one. He could not control his penchant for gambling. He wound up in federal prison twice for passing bad checks to cover his gambling losses. He squandered all my grandmother's real estate holdings, both farms in Minnesota and South Dakota as well as commercial properties in Faribault, Minneapolis, and St. Paul.
Mattie had three children, Richard Cosgrove Woods, Nancy Penina Woods Howell, and Derith Ann Woods Roberds. Nancy was my mother. I was my grandmother's oldest grandchild by six years. She passed on much family lore to me. I know I was her favorite.
I could write stories at great length about William, Mattie, and the family's connection to the 1910 Mexican Revolution.
Here are two items about William. He loved to read his National Geographic journals. In his back yard, he built an octagonal gazebo. This was no ordinary gazebo. It was built on a great circular track that carried massive ball bearings. Five of the walls were heavily insulated and contained a curved built-in couch. In the center of the room was a large truck steering wheel. The other three walls were glass, the center one being a doorway. The steering wheel was used to rotate the gazebo to face the sun which was used to heat the room as if it were a greenhouse. The other item is the design and construction of the Glass Block in downtown Faribault. At three stories, it was the town's tallest building, but what distinguishes it is the fact that it was the first building built in the United Stated with twin glazed windows. There is now a nice restaurant in Duluth, also with large dual paned windows, and also called the Glass Block.
My great grandfather was a Mason. He was a 33rd degree Mason. That is their highest honor. He had to travel back to Scotland for the ceremony and received a ceremonial sword that was inherited by my Uncle Dick. He also had a relationship with the native people. After his death according to grandmother, 300 Oglala Sioux braves rode into town and camped in the city park. The chief is buried up the hill from William's grave. He is the only Red man buried there. He loved to race sailing canoes with William and gave him two birchbark canoes which my grandmother later used on the Cannon River connecting Faribault and Northfield as well as on the lake where the family had a summer cottage."
--------------------------------------
Note from Shirley Hemingway:
The year of William Cosgrove's birth has been reported as both 1845 & 1847. Census records & some family stories say 1847. The gravestone & the newspaper obit say 1845.
W. N. Cosgrove, a prominent citizen of Faribault, died Sunday morning, January 26, at two o'clock at his home on West Sixth Street, death being caused from an injury received Friday evening. Mr. Cosgrove was seriously injured at his home Friday evening, when he fell while going up the steps at his residence. In his fall he struck his head, causing a serious fracture of the base of the skull. He
was found unconscious shortly after the accident and medical aid was summoned. He never regained consciousness after his injury. His condition from the first was considered seriousness, with but little hope of recovery.
Mr. Cosgrove was born in Louisville, Kentucky, May 8, 1845. He came to Faribault when he was 21 years of age, and made this city his home from that time until his death, though
his interests were varied, and he for a time spent much time in other parts of the state in the interests of his business. He did a great deal for the upbuilding of the business section of the city, and was the owner of
considerable downtown property. He was a man of great mechanical ability, and an early occupation was that of a millwright. He was the inventor of the roller process of making flour, the patents of which he sold. For many years he was a supervising architect, having supervision of the construction of many buildings here and elsewhere. For several years he was connected with the Milwaukee railroad, having charge of the building of many of the early grain elevators along their lines. He was overseer of the construction of one of the large buildings of the Minnesota Soldiers' Home and of the grand theater of this city.
Mr. Cosgrove was married July 4, 1876, to Miss Nina Dickerson, who died January 14, 1915, in Faribault. There were born to them four children, the eldest daughter dying in 1882. The others, all of whom survive, are Oak Cosgrove, of Chicago; Mrs. Sam Andrews, of New York City, and Mrs. A. K. Woods, of Faribault. He is survived also by a sister, Mrs. James Hart, of Waubun, Minn., and a half brother, Edward Wansley, also of this state.
Funeral services were held from the residence on Tuesday afternoon. The services were conducted with full masonic rites, Mr. Cosgrove having been a mason and one of the charter members of the Faribault commandery, Knights Templar. Dean Zoubek of the Cathedral of Our Merciful Saviour officiated. Burial was at Maple Lawn cemetery. The pallbearers were H. E. Whitney, P. H. White, Clarence Carver, N. A. Cadwallader, F. E. Jenkins, and H. F. Kester.
---------------------------------------
Added information from William Cosgrove's great grandson FORREST DEE HOWELL...
"William N. Cosgrove was my great grandfather. He was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland, in May, 1845, at the very height of the Great Hunger (what we call the Potato Famine). His mother's maiden name was Dickerson. When he was about 20 he crossed the Atlantic in steerage, making landfall at Boston. To some, steerage might imply poverty. To others, it meant reluctance on the part of this young man to squander his money.
William lived in the Irish ghetto of Boston for approximately one year. His youngest daughter, Mattie Choate Cosgrove Woods (My maternal grandmother) once euphemistically stated that her father was once faced with a "problem" in Boston. During the process of solving or eliminating that "problem" a man's life was lost. William immediately traveled north to Quebec Province where he stayed for three years. At age 24, wearing A full beard in order to disguise his face, he re-entered the United States at Minnesota via Ontario Province. At each U.S. Census, he declared and avowed that he was born in Louisville, Jefferson County, Kentucky. That was his strategy to keep the law off his tail. It worked. In the 1880 and 1890 censuses, William N. Cosgrove is shown as being a machinist. They indicate that he as well as his mother and father were born in Kentucky. This was a smokescreen. In the 1900 and 1910 census, he is listed as a landlord. After his death in 1919, the 1920 census tells a different story. His daughter Mattie C. Woods is declared as having been born in Minnesota, her mother in Wisconsin, and her father in Ireland.
By the way, at the end of every month, William Nelson Cosgrove made his rounds collecting rents that were paid in cash. That blow to his head did not come from falling down the steps of his home. He was bludgeoned to death. He was murdered for the large sum of cash he was carrying. When the police were called to the scene of his death, there was no money found on his person. None. Did a cop kill him with his night stick? Did a son of that victim in Boston find him and kill him in revenge? We will never know. What we do know is that his death was no accident.
Just before his marriage to my great grandmother (her name was Nina, but everyone called her Bessie), he sold enough patents to fund their six month European honeymoon. They eventually had four children. First came Oak Laurance, born June 4, 1877. His WWI Registration Card date September 12, 1918, indicated that he was tall, of medium build, had brown eyes and gray hair. He was 41. He was living at 320 Dyckman St., New York, NY. His wife's name was Maude Florence Cosgrove. He was a ship builder. Next was born little Ivy Cosgrove, but she only lived two years. Her early death left a pall over the family that never went away. The rebel of the bunch was Nina T. Cosgrove but everyone called her Tot. She was the first licensed female lifeguard in this country. She had to take her swimming tests in Atlantic City. Later in life she became an actress of some renown working on stages in NYC, London, and Paris. She drove a Duesenberg. She died an alcoholic in Faribault. Years later came little Mattie Choate Cosgrove, my maternal grandmother. Mattie was born August 13, 1894. She was 11 years younger than her sister Tot.
After her marriage to Alfred Woods, she referred to herself as Mattie Cosgrove Woods. There are several good things to say about Alfred Woods. He was the youngest cadet to ever graduate from Shattuck Military Academy. He was well liked and seemed to have a brilliant future, but he also had a fault. A very large one. He could not control his penchant for gambling. He wound up in federal prison twice for passing bad checks to cover his gambling losses. He squandered all my grandmother's real estate holdings, both farms in Minnesota and South Dakota as well as commercial properties in Faribault, Minneapolis, and St. Paul.
Mattie had three children, Richard Cosgrove Woods, Nancy Penina Woods Howell, and Derith Ann Woods Roberds. Nancy was my mother. I was my grandmother's oldest grandchild by six years. She passed on much family lore to me. I know I was her favorite.
I could write stories at great length about William, Mattie, and the family's connection to the 1910 Mexican Revolution.
Here are two items about William. He loved to read his National Geographic journals. In his back yard, he built an octagonal gazebo. This was no ordinary gazebo. It was built on a great circular track that carried massive ball bearings. Five of the walls were heavily insulated and contained a curved built-in couch. In the center of the room was a large truck steering wheel. The other three walls were glass, the center one being a doorway. The steering wheel was used to rotate the gazebo to face the sun which was used to heat the room as if it were a greenhouse. The other item is the design and construction of the Glass Block in downtown Faribault. At three stories, it was the town's tallest building, but what distinguishes it is the fact that it was the first building built in the United Stated with twin glazed windows. There is now a nice restaurant in Duluth, also with large dual paned windows, and also called the Glass Block.
My great grandfather was a Mason. He was a 33rd degree Mason. That is their highest honor. He had to travel back to Scotland for the ceremony and received a ceremonial sword that was inherited by my Uncle Dick. He also had a relationship with the native people. After his death according to grandmother, 300 Oglala Sioux braves rode into town and camped in the city park. The chief is buried up the hill from William's grave. He is the only Red man buried there. He loved to race sailing canoes with William and gave him two birchbark canoes which my grandmother later used on the Cannon River connecting Faribault and Northfield as well as on the lake where the family had a summer cottage."
--------------------------------------
Note from Shirley Hemingway:
The year of William Cosgrove's birth has been reported as both 1845 & 1847. Census records & some family stories say 1847. The gravestone & the newspaper obit say 1845.
Family Members
Siblings
Sponsored by Ancestry
Advertisement
Records on Ancestry
Sponsored by Ancestry
Advertisement
