Jack Burke was born in 1865 and baptised on June 15th 1865. Jack, like his siblings took a very casual attitude to his age with his birth year being listed as either 1867 or 1868 on the various US Census returns and 1870 on his marriage record. Obviously, there was a little white lie to his new bride there! Bill, his brother used to recall to his daughter, Catherine, going to point-to-point races in Kilfinny near Kilmacow with him. He had a reputation for liking a drink. One evening he was going for a drink but as his mother didn’t like him drinking he went across the fields to avoid her but she spotted him and followed him knowing his destination. He saw her and sat down in the field innocently. She sat down beside him and said nothing. Jack eventually went home. Another evening on his way home from the pub and a bit drunk he lost his way and wondered into the farmyard of a man called Jim Houlihan. Jim gave him directions – "Turn left here, right there etc.” Jack’s reply was– “Left or right Jack Burke will get home”.
He emigrated to America in either 1893 or 1894. His first wife was called Winnie Melette and they married on June 20th, 1896. Winnie died on February 20th 1931. He visited Ireland in 1932 with his sister, Margaret, for the Eucharistic Congress in Dublin. My father (his brother Mike’s son) remembers that himself and his brothers and sisters all got one pound from him, a princely sum in those days. He stayed at his sister Annie’s place in Limerick city. One morning he received a letter. Having read it he announced “Here’s a letter from a lassie and my wife not cold in the grave”. On his return to the states he married Mary Finnerty who was a sister-in-law of his brother Tom.
He worked on the railroads in Chicago all his life being described in various Census returns as a Railroad Clerk (1900), a Railroad Shipper (1910) and a Railroad Employee (1920). He is described as retired in the 1930 US Census.
From the census returns we can follow where the couple lived in Chicago over the early years of the twentieth century:
(1900) 390, 25th St. Chicago - Ward 5 - they rented this house.
(1910) 4617, Evans Avenus Chicago - Ward 6 - Jack and Winnie owned this house and had three lodgers all Scottish and working as carpenters.
(1920) 7915, Sangamon St. Chicago - Ward 32 - Jack and Winnie owned this house which was mortaged.
(1930) 8625, South Thirty Street - Ward 19 - they owned this house which was valued at $7,000
Jack died in 1933 at the age of 68 in Chicago. He was buried in Mount Olivet Cemetery, Chicago with his first wife Winnie.
From the census returns we can follow where the couple lived in Chicago over the early years of the twentieth century:
(1900) 390, 25th St. Chicago - Ward 5 - they rented this house.
(1910) 4617, Evans Avenus Chicago - Ward 6 - Jack and Winnie owned this house and had three lodgers all Scottish and working as carpenters.
(1920) 7915, Sangamon St. Chicago - Ward 32 - Jack and Winnie owned this house which was mortaged.
(1930) 8625, South Thirty Street - Ward 19 - they owned this house which was valued at $7,000
Jack died in 1933 at the age of 68 in Chicago. He was buried in Mount Olivet Cemetery, Chicago with his first wife Winnie.
