Two George Washington Cook Pullman Employees

Research note by Wesley Johnston, begun 6 Jul 2018, last updated 6 Jul 2018

https://www.ancestry.com/mediaui-viewer/collection/1030/tree/12001386/person/422019933010/media/f9c7883b-3d7c-465b-8d7d-ecaca4419103

Overview

Two different men, one born 1841 and one born 1876, named George Washington COOK worked as Pullman Employees and lived near each other on Stephension Street (now Champlain Avenue). This research note addresses the question of whether or not they were related.

George Washington COOK(1841 Ontario, Canada -1904 Chicago)

The older GWC was the son of John COOK and Jane BEACH. (Their names are on GWC's 1863 marriage record, and his mother's maiden name is on GWC's brother Clinton COOK's 1916 death record.) He was born in Canada, probably in Reach Township, Ontario County, Ontario. He married Mary Ellen GIBSON (half-sister of John JOHNSTON, my 2nd great grandfather) 24 Dec 1863 at Pickering Township in Ontario County. The 1900 US Census for GWC shows his father was born in Canada and his mother in Vermont. I have no information on their parents. In the 1900 census of Chicago, this GWC is living at 103 Stephenson Street.

George Washington COOK(1876 Quebec, Canada -1952 Indianapolis)

The younger GWC was the son of Charles Henry COOK and Lorettie Leonah PICKLE. This GWC was born 10 Aug 1876 at Sutton, Quebec. He married German-born Catherine "Lena" SCHULTZ 31 Oct 1899 at St, Joseph, Michigan, although both were then residing in the Chicago area. His father was born in Vermont and his mother in Quebec. His mother's parents lived with them in Muskegon, Michigan, in the 1880 census. In the 1900 census of Chicago, this GWC is living at 502 Stephenson Street -- very near the other GWC.

Were they related?

Clearly they were not father and son. But just as clearly, they both came from Vermont-Canada origins to end up living on the same street and working for the same company in Chicago. So were their parents related?

Vermont Common Origins

The older GWC's mother Jane BEACH and the younger GWC's father Charles Henry COOK were both born in Vermont, according to census information. Unfortunately, I know nothing about where they lived in Vermont or anything about their families there.

Canada Common Origins

The Canada common origins are misleading, since the older GWC's family was in Ontario, well to the west of the younger GWC's family in Quebec. So there does not appear to be a connection in Canada.

Multiple Charles and George Washington COOKs

Ultimately the name Cook is so common in these places, that research cannot easily trace the right families. What is clear is that the names Charles COOK and George Washington COOK appear often and sometimes together. In particular, the older GWC had a brother Charles COOK, born about 1838 in Whitby Township, Ontario, Canada. This Charles COOK married Jane KAY 24 Dec 1863 in Reach Township (same day as the older GWC - Pickering Township is adjacent to Reach, so that the marriages could have just been a short distance apart). And their oldest known son was yet another GWC, born about 1865 in Reach Township.

Bottom Line For Now

At this point, the fact that the two families had the same given names and lived on the same street in 1900 and both had Vermont origins seems to indicate a good possibility that they were related. But there is no evidence yet to verify or refute that.