Margaret (Davis) and James WADDEN/WADDING’s third daughter was Rachel Jane (b.2 August 1889). [1]
Rachel was initially a dressmaker, as recorded in the 1901 Irish census.
She emigrated to the US in 1906, sailing third class from Liverpool, to join her sister Maria. Like Maria, Rachel went into service.
In April 1910 Rachel was working as a maid for a lawyer, Marcus Acheson and his wife and three children under five years on Pembroke Place. Marcus was the son of District Court, Circuit Court and Court of Appeals judge Marcus Wilson Acheson.
Rachel returned to Wexford via Liverpool in June that year with her sister Maria, and they sailed back to the US in October.
Rachel died on November 12th 1918 from pneumonia caused by influenza in 1918. She was just 29 years old. Philadelphia was especially ill prepared for the “Spanish flu” pandemic and it was hit hard, suffering one of the highest US death rates. Despite being aware of the impending pandemic, Philadelphia was business as usual. Nine days after the first known cases of the flu, on the 28th of September, Philadelphia went ahead with a parade to launch the Fourth Liberty Loan, the bonds that were used to finance the American involvement in WW1. Organisers anticipated a crowd of 10,000 but over 200, 000 attended.
Rachel died 44 days after the parade. Hers was one of 675,000 deaths to the Spanish flu in the US alone.
It is through Rachel’s death that we can see the significance of John CLEARY for the Wadding siblings who had moved to Pennsylvania. John was the informant of Rachel’s death. We can see from the death notice that Rachel’s funeral set out from John Cleary’s home.
John was also the executor of Rachel’s will.
Rachel was memorialised on a Cleary gravestone, bottom right.
[1] Margaret (Davis) WADDEN/WADDING’s brother George had a Rachel Atkins as a baptismal sponsor. This Rachel may therefore have been named after her mother’s aunt.
[2] Pennsylvania Historic and Museum Commission; Harrisburg, Pennsylvania; Pennsylvania (State). Death certificates, 1906–1967; Certificate Number Range: 174001-177000. Ancestry.com. Pennsylvania, Death Certificates, 1906-1967
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