rank A., Frank B., Frank C. — three generations of Frank Catanachs. A-B-C. Easy as a 1-2-3.
But something did not add up.
At first, everything checked out. In the 1940 census, Frank A., 43, lived with his wife and four children. Frank B. — nicknamed “Benny” — was 9.
But, when I went back to 1930, something strange happened. Frank B., or Benny, who was born on June 14th, 1930, would have missed the 1930 census by two months. But a Frank Jr., 13 years old, lived in the house.
At first, I thought I had two different families. But, no! The ages lined up and the location was the same. Frank’s daughter Anna appeared in both censuses, and he had the same occupation. It was the same family. So, why were there two Franks?
With more digging, I unearthed an unexpected answer.
Frank A. Catanach married twice. He and his first wife had four children together, the first being Frank A. Catanach, Jr., born in 1916.
I took to the newspaper archives to see if I could find out what happened to Frank’s first wife. Melinda A. “May” Catanach died after a surgical operation. She was 32 and left Frank with four young children. The obituary says that 107 cars worth of people attended the service.
But that did not explain Frank Jr.’s disappearance after 1930 or why there were two Franks. I assumed Frank Jr. died between April 8th, 1930, — when they recorded the census — and June 14th, 1930, Frank B.’s birthday.
I combed the databases for a death record and the newspapers for an obituary but found nothing. I could not find Frank A. Catanach Jr. in the 1940 or 1950 censuses, either. We may never know for certain. But there might be one more clue. Albeit, a peculiar one.
While looking for an obituary, I found a newspaper article from Santa Fe. The Catanachs lived there when the Santa Fe New Mexican published it on September 9th, 1931.
What does this mean? Who knows! Frank Jr., if still alive, would have been 16 in 1931. If this article is about Frank Jr., that means there was a time where Frank A. had two sons named Frank living in the house. Maybe that is why they called Frank B. “Benny”?
It does not explain much for sure, but leaves us with lots to wonder about.
Tip: Do not panic when people and dates are not lining up. When I started noticing something was fishy with the Franks, I got a little nervous. Keep sifting through records. It helps to grab a piece of paper and write all the facts to stay organized!
Jack Palmer has done genealogy research since he was ten years old and loves writing about it for family, friends, and anybody else who might enjoy research stories and advice. He graduated from Duke University in May 2023, majoring in History and Psychology, and is the author of Helen & Frank: A Biography, a biography about his great-grandparents.