Hi Henry,
I Know, it were hard days back then. Nothing romantic.
I have found a person in another branch of my tree who has been married 7
days after his wife died.
They had 9 children so I suppose the second wife was just a baby sit for
him.
Kind regards,
Linda
Henry & Linda,
It is hard to know the exact circumstances when you discover a death and
a marriage closely following. I found one in a branch of my family,
here in Baltimore, Maryland, US in 1899. The wife died July 31, 1899
and the husband remarried on September 14, 1899. I was a little shocked
at first, but analyzing the situation conjured up a much different
situation. The widow had 3 children with the oldest being 12 and no
means of support. The widower had five children with the oldest being
12 and a job. From comments made by the grandchildren of the widower,
there was no great love between the two families. I believe it was a
marriage of convenience. She was the housewife and he was the wage
earner.
As Linda noted, life was hard. My grandfather died with 6 young
children, the oldest being only nine, with one being born 9 months after
his death. The family was supported by my maternal great-grandfather
who lived with the family. He worked until he died at age 72. At that
time the children were taken out of school and went to work to support
the family. My dad was 11 at the time.
I wonder if they even had time to grieve for their spouse.
Bernie Punte