September 10, 2015Chevy Chase, Maryland As of today, I booked my second research trip to Pensacola. It’s time: I’m at the point in his story that I have to know what kind of lawyer he was, and how his political background was developing. What papers I can see online are […]
September 29, 2019Chevy Chase, Maryland Two things concern me about this stage in Emmett’s story, three years before he ran for office as U.S. Congressman. First, in 1908, Emmett was drinking alcoholically. I believe he knew (and his family/friends knew) he either drank more and/or could not handle alcohol as […]
About two weeks after following up with Mike Burke with the proper Wilson ancestor information, and approval from Sacred Heart Hospital’s general counsel, I received this email message: Well, there it was: An official hospital record indicating Emmett was an alcoholic. But was that enough? In research, one has to […]
Emmett’s funeral was, apparently, a big deal for Pensacola, particularly since folks were ‘surprised’ and ‘shocked’ that he was in failing health. But I wonder about that — I mean, his family and friends were able to put together a large funeral at a big church within 36 hours of […]
Before I contacted the Pensacola Historical Society to find out more about Emmett Wilson, I made copious pots of coffee and immediately dissected the three articles sent to me from Peg Vignolo of the West Florida Genealogical Society. Newspaper articles are rich with information — it’s not only the details IN […]
It was a tough time to be Roman Catholic in Florida during the early 1900s. Heck, it was tough to be Catholic anywhere in the U.S. at that time. When Emmett moved back to Pensacola in 1906, to rebuild his career after his embarrassing tenure in Illinois, image was important. […]
This last week I’ve been tracking down an elusive document in Emmett Wilson’s research; specifically, a copy of a eulogy given for him at the annual Elk’s Lodge memorial service, held on December 2, 1918. It’s obscure, folks. So what else is new? LOL! All these obscure leads I’ve been […]
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