Saturday, December 15, 2018

The Family Genealogy of Virginia O'Hanlon To the Most Famous Question IS THERE A SANTA CLAUSE?




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The  Family  of Genealogy of Laura Virginia O'Hanlon


Macy’s Presents: Yes, Virginia
Virginia O’Hanlon loves Christmas so much that when a bully challenges her belief in Santa Claus, she sets out to prove him wrong.

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Name:  Philip Francis. O'Hanlon
Born: 13 Sep 1862 New York City, New York, USA
Died: 10 Jun 1937  121 West 95 St. Manhattan, New York, New York, USA
Spouse: Laura Lincoln Plumb
Parents: Philip F. O’Hanlon, Mary Ann Doherty
Occupation: Corner /Doctor Police Surgeon 
Cause of Death: Heart Attack
Date of Burial: 14 Jun 1937
Age at Death: YRS: 74 MOS: 8 DYS: 28 
New York, New York City Municipal Deaths, 1795-1949 cn 14214
Residence:  121 West 95th Street, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA
Find A Grave Memorial 180226657
Funeral: R.C. Church of Holy Name, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA
Mortuary:
Religion: Roman Catholic
Political Party: Democrat
Interment:  Holy Cross Cemetery Flatbush, Brooklyn, New York, USA





Philip Francis O'Hanlon  New York, New York City Municipal Deaths, 1795-1949
Name: Philip Francis O'Hanlon Event Type: Death Event Date: 10 Jun 1937 Event Place: Manhattan, New York, New York, United States Address: 121 West 95 St. Gender: Male Age: 74 Marital Status: Married Race: White Occupation: Physician Birth Date: 13 Sep 1862 Birthplace: New York N.Y. Burial Date: 14 Jun 1937 Cemetery: Holy Cross Father's Name: Philip O'Hanlon Father's Birthplace: Ireland Mother's Name: Mary Ann Doherty Mother's Birthplace: Newark, N.J. Spouse's Name: Laura O'Hanlon


New York, New York City Municipal Deaths, 1795-1949
Document Information:
Reference ID cn 14214
GS Film Number 2080180

Citing this Record
"New York, New York City Municipal Deaths, 1795-1949," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:2W2M-WGW : 11 February 2018), Philip Francis O'Hanlon, 10 Jun 1937; citing Death, Manhattan, New York, New York, United States, New York Municipal Archives, New York; FHL microfilm 2,080,180.


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Dr. Philip F. O’Hanlon
Ex-Corner’s Physician
Dr. Philip F. O’Hanlon, 74 corner’s physicians in New York City from 1894 to 1911 and police surgeon from 1911 until 1926, died last night of heart disease at his home, 121 W. 95th St.




Daily News New York June 11, 1937 Fri Page 46 Dr. Philip F. O’Hanlon
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The Brooklyn Daily Eagle Brooklyn New York June 15, 1937 Tue Page 4  Dr. Philip O’Hanlon 
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Dr. Philip O’Hanlon Burin in Holy Cross
 A Requiem Mass was celebrated yesterday in the R.C. Church of Holy Name, Manhattan, for Dr. Philip F. O’Hanlon, retired police surgeon, who died in his home, 121 W. 85th St. Burial Followed in Holy Cross Cemetery.

The Police Band and 100 patrolmen provided an escort.  He is survived by his daughter, Mrs. L.V. Douglas, who as Virginia O’Hanlon inspired the famous editorial in “The New York Sun,” “There is a Santa Claus.”

 
Who's who in New York (city and State), Issue 7  Philip Francis O’ Hanlon Page 810 1914
edited by John William Leonard, William Frederick Mohr, Herman Warren Knox, Frank R. Holmes, 0infield Scott Downs

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O’Hanlon, Philip Francis:

Physician, surgeon of N.Y. City Police Dept. [Manhattan Borough]; b. N.Y. City, September 13, 1863; s. Philip and Mary Adams Dougherty] O’Hanlon; ed.  Public schs. of N.Y. Jesuit Coll. of St. Fran is Xavier, N.Y. City, Jesuit Coll. of St. Mary’s at Montreal, and., Med Dep’t of Univ. of the City of NY grad. 1886, M.D.; m.  N.Y. City Aug 13, 1888, Laura Lincoln Plumb;  one d.: Laura Virginia, b.  July 20, 1889.  Author: Is There a Santa Claus [Letter published and republished in the N.Y. Sun, 1897].  Corner’s Physician.  N.Y. City, Jan 3, 1895-JJune 6, 1912;  ppt’d surgeon N.Y. City [Borough of Manhattan], Police Dep’t by Police Comm’r Rhinelander Waldo, June 5, 1912. House surgeon of Gouverneur Hosp., branch of Bellevue Hosp.,  1887-89. Seven years attending Physician to Bellevue Hosp.  Out-Door Dispensary, in the Dept. of Diseases of the Mind of the Nervous System.  Sp’l med. Examiner Ins.  Dept. of the State, 1896, to examine the N.Y. Life Ins. Co.  Appt’d 1st lieut.  A Med Reserve Corps U.S> Army, by Pres, William H. Taft, June 16, 1910. Democrat; Roman Catholic.  Men. N.Y. Lodge of Elks, No. 1. Recreations: Field Sport, Particularly Horseback Riding. Club:  Democratic.  Address: 121 W. 95th St. N.Y. City




Dr. Philip  O’Hanlon with His Daughter Virginia  Subject of the Most Famous Letter?

In 1897, Dr. Philip O'Hanlon, a coroner's assistant on Manhattan's Upper West Side, was asked by his then eight-year-old daughter, Virginia O'Hanlon (1889–1971), whether Santa Claus really existed. O'Hanlon suggested she write to The Sun, a prominent New York City newspaper at the time, assuring her that "If you see it in The Sun, it's so."[3] In so doing, Dr. O'Hanlon had unwittingly given one of the paper's editors, Francis Pharcellus Church, an opportunity to rise above the simple question and address the philosophical issues behind it.

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Name: Laura Lincoln Plumb
Born: October 1863 New York City New York, USA
Died: March 29, 1954 Manhattan, New York, New York, USA
Residence: 121 West 95th Street, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA
Spouse: Philip Francis O’Hanlon
Parents:  Andrew Jackson Plumb, Sarah E. Conever
Occupation:  Housewife
Cause of Death: Death Record Pending
Date of Burial: March 31, 1954
Age at Death: YRS: 90 MOS: 5
Funeral: The Abbey 66th St. and Lexington Ave Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA
Requiem Mass: Saint Joseph’s Church Washington Place and Waverly Place.
New York, New York, Death Index, 1949-1965 Certificate Number: 6840
Find A Grave Memorial 180225964
Mortuary:
Religion: Roman Catholic
Interment: Holy Cross Cemetery   Flatbush Brooklyn, Kings County (Brooklyn), New York, USA
Plot Section: Mark; Row A; Plot 15

 
Laura Ohanlon  in the New York, New York, Death Index, 1949-1965
Name: Laura Ohanlon Age: 90 Birth Date: abt 1864 Death Date: 29 Mar 1954 Death Place: Manhattan, New York, New York, USA Certificate Number: 6840

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Web Source Image:

All Historical Newspapers, Birth, Marriage, & Death Announcements, 1851-2003 results for O'Hanlon
Newspaper Title
Location
Date of Publication
Event
New York Times (1857-Current File)
New York, New York
30 Mar 1954
Obituary
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O’Hanlon-Laura L., on March 29, 1954. Beloved wife of the late Dr. Philip F., loving mother of Mrs. Laura V. Douglas and grandmother of Mrs. Robert H. Temple.  Funeral from the “ The Abbey”  [66th St. and Lexington Ave.], Wednesday, 9:15 A.M. Requiem Mass, St. Joseph’s Church [Washington Place and Waverly Place], 10 A.M. Interment Holy Cross Cemetery.




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Married: August 13, 1988 Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Philip F. O'Hanlon New York Marriages, 1686-1980
Name: Philip F. O'Hanlon Spouse's Name: Laura Lincoln Plume Event Date: 13 Aug 1888 Event Place: Manhattan, New York, New York Father's Name: Philip O'Hanlon Mother's Name: Mary Dougherty Spouse's Father's Name: Andrew Jackson Plume Spouse's Mother's Name: Sarah E. Conever


Record Collection:
New York Marriages, 1686-1980
Document Information:

Indexing Project (Batch) Number M00571-4
System Origin New_York-ODM
GS Film number 1558392

Citing this Record
"New York Marriages, 1686-1980," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:F6QX-CXF : 10 February 2018), Philip F. O'Hanlon and Laura Lincoln Plume, 13 Aug 1888; citing reference ; FHL microfilm 1,558,392.

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ISSUE: Laura Virginia O’Hanlon
Author of Letter Title:  Is there A Santa Claus  September 1897

CHILDREN
VIRGINIA O'HANLON 1897



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NAME: Laura Virginia O’Hanlon
AKA Virginia
Author of a Famous Letter:  September 1897 Is there a Santa Clause
Born: July 20, 1889, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA
Died: May 13, 1971 Valatie, Columbia, New York, USA
Spouse: Edward Malcolm Douglas
Parents:  Philip Francis O’Hanlon, Laura Lincoln Plumb
Occupation: Public School Teacher and Assistant Principal 
Cause of Death:
Date of Burial: May 17, 1971
Social Security #: Number: 082-32-7473; Issue State: New York; Issue Date: 1957-1958 
Age at Death:  81 years, 9 months,  17 days 
Find A Grave Memorial 10184308 
Funeral: 
Mortuary: 
Interment: Chatham Rural Cemetery, Chatham, Columbia, New York, USA

Photo’s Laura Virginia O’Hanlon [nee’ Douglas]

O’Hanlon’s letter and Church’s wise, generous reply first appeared on the editorial page of the Sun on September 21, 1897

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Daily News New York, New York May 14, 1971 Fri  Page: 4 Laura Virginia O’Hanlon Douglas
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Old Sun’s ‘Yes, Virginia’ Dies

Valatie, N.Y., May 13 [AP]-Virginia O’Hanlon Douglas, 81, the woman who as a child was told “Yes Virginia, there is a Santa Claus,” died today.

In ill health for several years, the woman who kept her faith in Santa passed away at a nursing home in the Small village south of Albany.

She was 8 years old when she wrote in the Old New York Sun, asking whether Santa Claus really existed.  “Some of my little friends say there is no Santa Claus,” the letter said, “Please tell me the truth, is there a Santa Claus?”

A Classic Editorial

Adhering to the Policy that all letters must be answered, Francis Church gave a reply in the form of an editorial September 21, 1897.  His word which became a Yuletide Classic, said in part:

 “Yes Virginia, there is a Santa Claus.  He exists as certainly as love and generosity  and devotion exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy.

“Alas: How dreary would be the world if there were no Santa Claus!”

The important thing, Mrs. Douglas observed in recent years.  Was that no one gets to old to believe in Santa Claus.  Last Hospitalized in nearby Hudson, the frail woman was visited by a hospital employee dressed in a red Suite  and a white beard.

“Santa Claus isn’t it wonder-full to see you again,” she exclaimed.

In Most of her Public Liber, Mrs. Douglas was a schoolteacher and principal in Brooklyn.  After retirement she moved to North Chatham to reside with her daughter and son-in-law.


Daily News New York New York May 15, 1971 Sat Page 12  Virginia O’Hanlon Douglas
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Virginia Dies;  Wrote Letter on Santa Clause



Valatie, N.Y., May 14 [UPI]-Mrs. Laura Virginia O’Hanlon Douglas, the woman who received the “Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus”  a Santa Claus’  letter 74 years ago, died last night in a nursing home.  She was 81.

Virginia O’Hanlon was 8 when she wrote to the New York Sun:

“Some of My Little Friends” say there is no Santa Claus.

“Papa says, ‘If you see it in The Sun it’s so.’

“Please tell me the truth, is there a Santa Claus?”

“In an editorial written by  Francis Pharcellus Church
on Sept. 21, 1897, The Sun said, in part:

“Yes, Virginia, here is a Santa Claus.  He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest and beauty and joy.  Alas, how dreary would be the world if there were no Santa Claus.  It would as dreary as if there were no Virginia’s .”

Mrs. Douglas lived most of her life in New York City where she was a teacher and principal and retired about 15 years ago.  She lived in North Chatham, near Albany, with relatives.

She is survived by a daughter, seven grandchildren, and one great-grandchild.  The Funeral is scheduled for Monday.





THE MOST FAMOUS LETTER TO THE 
The Sun, a prominent New York City newspaper at the time, assuring her that "If you see it in The Sun, it's so."[

September 1897
I am eight years old, some of my little friends say there is no Santa Claus.  Papa Says "If I see it In The Sun it's So."  Please tell me the truth, is there a Santa Claus?
Virginia O' Hanlon
115 W. 95th Street.

Letter Source

VIRGINIA RECALLS LETTER TO NEWSPAPER IN 1897; STILL BELIEVES IN SANTA CLAUS 
BY DICK REMMES
UNITED PRESS INTERNATIONAL 
NORTH CHATHAM N.Y. [UPI] Yes, Virginia still believes in Santa Claus.

“My first doubt about Santa Claus 64 years ago was my last.”  Mrs. Laura Virginia Doulas said.
 She was recalling a letter she wrote to a newspaper back in 1897 when she was 8-year-old Virginia O’Hanlon.  Her letter evoked the classic Christmas editorial:
 “Yes, Virginia there is a Santa Claus.”
 Mrs. Douglas, 72, a widow, lives with her daughter and seven grandchildren in this Columbia County Village, 25 miles from Albany.
 “The spirit of Christmas still lives in and I was fortunate enough through the years to have been with children every Christmas,”  she said she taught and supervised schools in New York’s lower East side for 43 years before retiring in 1959.

“I think the answer to my letter was  a wonderful thing and I think it achieved immortality for its write”  Mrs. Douglas said of the editorial written by Frank P. Church in the Old New York Sun.

“You can’t deny that commercialism has entered Christmas but even that is nice to some extent,” she said.  The warmth of carols in department stores.  She said, and friendly greetings on Christmas Cards “mean a great deal to people.”  
A Cold has forced Mrs. Douglas to cancer an address to foreign students at Columbia University on “What Meant in America.”
 I would really have loved to go because I could tell them she said.
 Mrs. Douglas, said her daughter, Mrs. Robert Temple whose children range 8 to 22 stops believing because of Airplanes. 

She couldn’t Conceive that Santa would come in a Sleigh when Airplanes are much faster, she said

The Commercial-Mail Columbia City, Indiana December 20, 1961, Wed Page 4  Santa Claus Virginia O’Hanlon
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Married: June 9, 1913 Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA
EOM:  desertion by Edwin MalcoLm Douglas
Issues:  Laura Virginia Douglas.


Laura Virginia O'Hanlon New York, New York City Marriage Records, 1829-1940
Name: Edwin Malcolm Douglas Event Type: Marriage Event Date: 09 Jun 1913 Event Place: Manhattan, New York, New York, United States Event Place: Manhattan, New York Gender: Male Age: 26 Marital Status: Single Race: White Birth Year (Estimated): 1887 Birthplace: East Orange, N.J. Father's Name: Henry Clay Douglas Mother's Name: Martha Virginia Smith Spouse's Name: Laura Virginia O'Hanlon Spouse's Gender: Female Spouse's Age: 23 Spouse's Marital Status: Single Spouse's Race: White Spouse's Birth Year (Estimated): 1890 Spouse's Birthplace:  New York City Spouse's Father's Name: Philip Francis O'Hanlon Spouse's Mother's Name: Laura Lincoln Plumb


New York, New York City Marriage Records, 1829-1940
Document Information:
Reference ID cn 13756
GS Film Number 1613792

Citing this Record
"New York, New York City Marriage Records, 1829-1940," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:243R-4LL : 10 February 2018), Edwin Malcolm Douglas and Laura Virginia O'Hanlon, 09 Jun 1913; citing Marriage, Manhattan, New York, New York, United States, New York City Municipal Archives, New York; FHL microfilm 1,613,792.

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NOTES
Ancestry.com
FamilySearch.org
New York Times
Wikipedia
Genealogybank.com 
Archives.com

New York, New York City Marriage Records, 1829-1940
All Historical Newspapers, Birth, Marriage, & Death Announcements, 1851-2003 results for O'Hanlon
Newspapers.com
Findagrave.com 
Macy’s Presents: Yes, Virginia
YouTube.com
Amazon.com Yes, Virginia, There Is A Santa Claus: The Classic Edition

Parallel

“Love is like the wind, you can't see it but you can feel it.”
Nicholas Sparks, A Walk to Remember

A Walk to Remember
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