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You may post comments here on this article, or you may email me at wjhonson@aol.com
Also see my version of this article, Ancestry of Lee DeWyze, American Idol winner at Examiner.com
The numbers below in front of each name refer to their placement in his Ahnentafel (Ancestor Table).
1 Lee DeWyze
Leon James "Lee" DeWyze, Jr was born 2 April 1986 in Mount Prospect, Cook County, Illinois as the eldest son of Leon "Lee" DeWyze Sr and his wife Kathleen Donahue. His father worked as a postal carrier in Elk Grove Village, Illinois. He has two older sisters, Shannon and Sarah, and a younger brother, Michael born 26 Jul 1990.
He is an American singer-songwriter. On May 26, 2010, he won the ninth season of the television program "American Idol". He had released two albums on the little-known label WuLi, but post-Idol he signed with and released a new album on RCA Records.
Secondary Sources for 1
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2 Leon DeWyze Sr
Leon D "Lee" DeWyze was born 10 Feb 1958. As "Leon DeWyze", he is mentioned in the Daily Herald (Chicago, IL) In 1970 he was elected as treasurer of the "Guys and Dolls 4-H Club of Arlington Heights". In 1971, he won third place with his dog Dixie in the tricks category at a dog show.
Sometime before 1985 he married Kathleen Donahue. They apparently lived in Cook County, Illinois. They had four children: Shannon, Sarah born Sep 1983, Leon Jr, and Michael born 26 Jul 1990. They were living in Arlington Heights the year Sarah was born per her birth announcement. He was a postal carrier in Arlington Heights, Illinois in 1989 when he received a three-year award from that post office. As "Lee D Dewyze", he was living in Arlington Heights, Illinois in 1990, but a few years later moved to Mount Prospect. (Source: US Public Records Index, Volume 1) He also worked as a postal carrier in Elk Grove Village, Illinois.
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3 Kathleen Donahue
Sometime before 1985 she married Leon DeWyze. They apparently lived in Cook County, Illinois. They had four children: Shannon, Sarah born Sep 1983, Leon Jr, and Michael born 26 Jul 1990. They were living in Arlington Heights the year Sarah was born per her birth announcement. At the birth of their youngest son Michael, his grandparents are listed in the newspaper mention as "Mr and Mrs John Donahue of Carpentersville; Mrs Eileen DeWyze of Arlington Heights."
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4 Donald DeWyze
Donald D De Wyze was born 1 Sep 1930, perhaps in Illinois, which is from where his SSN was issued sometime before 1951. He married Eileen. I do not yet know her maiden name.
He is named as "Mr and Mrs Donald DeWyze of Arlington Heights" in the birth announcement of their granddaughter Sarah DeWyze Sep 1983. As "Donald De Wyze" he died Jun 1986, having last been a resident of Arlington Heights, Cook County, Illinois.
Primary Sources for 4
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5 Eileen
She was born 5 Sep 1924, possibly in Indiana which is where her SSN was issued sometime before 1951. She married Donald DeWyze. They were the parents of Leon DeWyze born Feb 1958. She is named as "Mr and Mrs Donald DeWyze of Arlington Heights" in the birth announcement of their granddaughter Sarah DeWyze Sep 1983. Her husband Donald died Jun 1986. She appears as "Mrs Eileen DeWyze of Arlington Heights" in the newspaper mention of the birth of one of her grandsons Joseph Brian DeWyze in 1987. She appears as "Mrs Eileen DeWyze of Arlington Heights", in the newspaper mention of the birth of her grandson Michael DeWyze in 1990. At the age of eighty, she was murdered with a knife, by her son John DeWyze (who was age 43 in 2006) on 27 Oct 2004 in the Arlington Heights home they shared, during a psychotic episode of his. A few days later on 29 Oct, the Daily Herald reports on the murder, including that she had "lived in the house more than 30 years", and that John had had "a history of mental problems". The following day they report that John had brought his family to live with her "after her husband died more than 15 years ago." Since Donald died in 1986, the "more than 15 years ago" must refer to when John and his family moved in with her. John they report, had worked as a postal letter carried from 1985 to 2002. John, was found not guilty by reason of insanity.
Primary Sources for 5
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6 John M Donahue
John M Donahue was born 23 Jun 1920 in Chicago, Illinois. He played baseball for the Philadelphia Phillies in the 1944 season, but was then traded to the Indianapolis Indians of the American League. Because he was a friend of her brothers, he met his future wife Mary T Bejrowski, also a native of Chicago. They married 14 Oct 1944 at St Hyacinth Catholic Church in Chicago.
He and his wife Mary had seven children, of whom a daughter Kathleen "Kathy", apparently their fifth child, married Leon DeWyze, sometime before 1985, and became the parents of the Lee DeWyze who won the ninth season of "American Idol". As "Mr and Mrs John Donahue of Carpentersville" they appear in the birth announcement of their grandson Michael DeWyze in 1990.
He is living as John M Donahue born 23 Jun 1920, in 1974 at 415 N Belmont Avenue in Arlington Heights ("U.S. Public Records Index, Volume 1"). In 1993 he is living at 812 Salem Lane in Carpentersville. As "John and Mary Donahue of Carpentersville, formerly of Arlington Heights" a newspaper article in the Daily Herald, details their 50th wedding anniversary. It mentions among other things their [living] "seven children", that John played "professional baseball with the Philadelphia Phillies", that he had been, before they met "a friend of Mary's brothers". They were married 14 Oct 1944 at St Hyacinth Catholic Church in Chicago. They have "seven children: Joan, Tom, Jerry, Patrick, Cary, Kathy, Sue, Bridget" (Yes I know it's eight.) "Mary, 65, was born in Chicago.... John, 74, was born in Chicago...."
His obituary appears in the Daily Herald where it states that he was born 23 Jun 1920 in Chicago, and died 6 Mar 2008 at Glenbrook Hospital in Glenview. That he had played for the Philadelphia Phillies in 1943-44 under the nickname "Deacon Donahue". That his wife of 64 years was born Mary T Bejrowski. Their children are there listed as : "Joan, Thomas, Jerome, Patrick, Kathleen, Suzanne and Bridget." It also lists his siblings as : "Margaret, Mary, Roseann, Roger, Eugene".
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7 Mary T Bejrowski
She was born 3 Jun 1926 in Cook County, Illinois, the daughter of Stanley Bejrowski and his wife Helen. Her mother who died in 1961, has an obituary in the Chicago Tribune in which it names, among others, her daughter "Mary Donahue". She is living as "Mary M Donahue" born 3 Jun 1926, in 1981 at 415 N Belmont Avenue in Arlington Heights ("U.S. Public Records Index, Volume 1"). In 1993 she is living at 812 Salem Lane in Carpentersville as "Mary T Donahue". She was living in 1994/95 and possibly still living at John's death in 2008. I don't find one matching this birthdate in the SSDI.
Primary Sources for 7
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8 Leon "Lee" DeWyze
Leon "Lee DeWyze" was born in 1900/01 in Illinois, the son of Octave DeWyze an immigrant from Flemish Belgium. He married Edna in 1920/21 possibly in or near Chicago. In the 1930 census, Leon and Edna lived at 5141 North Kildare Avenue, Chicago, Illinois, and was a proprietor of a dairy.
Primary Sources for 8
Secondary Sources for 8
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9 Edna
Edna was born 21 Jun 1900 in Illinois. She married Leon "Lee" DeWyze in 1920/21 possibly in or near Chicago, Illinois. They lived in Chicago in 1930 where he was the proprietor of a dairy. She died Oct 1970 having last resided in Chicago, Illinois.
Primary Sources for 9
Secondary Sources for 9
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14 Stanley Bejrowski
In 1930 he lived with his wife Helen on St Louis Avenue in Chicago.
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15 Helen
In 1930 she lived with her husband Stanley Bejrowski on St Louis Avenue in Chicago.
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16 Octave DeWyze
Octave DeWyze was born in 1877. He immigrated to the United States in 1900, evidently from Flanders. He was a butcher. He died in 1980, probably in Illinois, possibly in or near Chicago.
Secondary Sources for 16
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| Lee DeWyze in Denver in 2010 Credit: Wikipedia |
Also see my version of this article, Ancestry of Lee DeWyze, American Idol winner at Examiner.com
The numbers below in front of each name refer to their placement in his Ahnentafel (Ancestor Table).
1 Lee DeWyze
Leon James "Lee" DeWyze, Jr was born 2 April 1986 in Mount Prospect, Cook County, Illinois as the eldest son of Leon "Lee" DeWyze Sr and his wife Kathleen Donahue. His father worked as a postal carrier in Elk Grove Village, Illinois. He has two older sisters, Shannon and Sarah, and a younger brother, Michael born 26 Jul 1990.
He is an American singer-songwriter. On May 26, 2010, he won the ninth season of the television program "American Idol". He had released two albums on the little-known label WuLi, but post-Idol he signed with and released a new album on RCA Records.
Secondary Sources for 1
- "Lee DeWyze", Wikipedia
- "The Flemish American: Lee DeWyze",Copyright 2010 by David Baeckelandt, flemishamerican.blogspot.com
- "Lee DeWyze", his official blog at blogspot.com
- "Lee DeWyze", on Facebook
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2 Leon DeWyze Sr
Leon D "Lee" DeWyze was born 10 Feb 1958. As "Leon DeWyze", he is mentioned in the Daily Herald (Chicago, IL) In 1970 he was elected as treasurer of the "Guys and Dolls 4-H Club of Arlington Heights". In 1971, he won third place with his dog Dixie in the tricks category at a dog show.
Sometime before 1985 he married Kathleen Donahue. They apparently lived in Cook County, Illinois. They had four children: Shannon, Sarah born Sep 1983, Leon Jr, and Michael born 26 Jul 1990. They were living in Arlington Heights the year Sarah was born per her birth announcement. He was a postal carrier in Arlington Heights, Illinois in 1989 when he received a three-year award from that post office. As "Lee D Dewyze", he was living in Arlington Heights, Illinois in 1990, but a few years later moved to Mount Prospect. (Source: US Public Records Index, Volume 1) He also worked as a postal carrier in Elk Grove Village, Illinois.
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3 Kathleen Donahue
Sometime before 1985 she married Leon DeWyze. They apparently lived in Cook County, Illinois. They had four children: Shannon, Sarah born Sep 1983, Leon Jr, and Michael born 26 Jul 1990. They were living in Arlington Heights the year Sarah was born per her birth announcement. At the birth of their youngest son Michael, his grandparents are listed in the newspaper mention as "Mr and Mrs John Donahue of Carpentersville; Mrs Eileen DeWyze of Arlington Heights."
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4 Donald DeWyze
Donald D De Wyze was born 1 Sep 1930, perhaps in Illinois, which is from where his SSN was issued sometime before 1951. He married Eileen. I do not yet know her maiden name.
He is named as "Mr and Mrs Donald DeWyze of Arlington Heights" in the birth announcement of their granddaughter Sarah DeWyze Sep 1983. As "Donald De Wyze" he died Jun 1986, having last been a resident of Arlington Heights, Cook County, Illinois.
Primary Sources for 4
- "Donald De Wyze", Cook County, Illinois Birth Index 1916-1935, born 1 Sep 1930
- Daily Herald newspaper, various dates, on newspaperarchive
- "Donald De Wyze", Social Security Death Index (you must include the space to find it)
- "Donald D De Wyze", Cook County, Illinois Death Index 1908-1988, died 8 Jun 1986
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5 Eileen
She was born 5 Sep 1924, possibly in Indiana which is where her SSN was issued sometime before 1951. She married Donald DeWyze. They were the parents of Leon DeWyze born Feb 1958. She is named as "Mr and Mrs Donald DeWyze of Arlington Heights" in the birth announcement of their granddaughter Sarah DeWyze Sep 1983. Her husband Donald died Jun 1986. She appears as "Mrs Eileen DeWyze of Arlington Heights" in the newspaper mention of the birth of one of her grandsons Joseph Brian DeWyze in 1987. She appears as "Mrs Eileen DeWyze of Arlington Heights", in the newspaper mention of the birth of her grandson Michael DeWyze in 1990. At the age of eighty, she was murdered with a knife, by her son John DeWyze (who was age 43 in 2006) on 27 Oct 2004 in the Arlington Heights home they shared, during a psychotic episode of his. A few days later on 29 Oct, the Daily Herald reports on the murder, including that she had "lived in the house more than 30 years", and that John had had "a history of mental problems". The following day they report that John had brought his family to live with her "after her husband died more than 15 years ago." Since Donald died in 1986, the "more than 15 years ago" must refer to when John and his family moved in with her. John they report, had worked as a postal letter carried from 1985 to 2002. John, was found not guilty by reason of insanity.
Primary Sources for 5
- Daily Herald newspaper, various dates, on newspaperarchive
- "Eileen DeWyze", Social Security Death Index
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6 John M Donahue
John M Donahue was born 23 Jun 1920 in Chicago, Illinois. He played baseball for the Philadelphia Phillies in the 1944 season, but was then traded to the Indianapolis Indians of the American League. Because he was a friend of her brothers, he met his future wife Mary T Bejrowski, also a native of Chicago. They married 14 Oct 1944 at St Hyacinth Catholic Church in Chicago.
He and his wife Mary had seven children, of whom a daughter Kathleen "Kathy", apparently their fifth child, married Leon DeWyze, sometime before 1985, and became the parents of the Lee DeWyze who won the ninth season of "American Idol". As "Mr and Mrs John Donahue of Carpentersville" they appear in the birth announcement of their grandson Michael DeWyze in 1990.
He is living as John M Donahue born 23 Jun 1920, in 1974 at 415 N Belmont Avenue in Arlington Heights ("U.S. Public Records Index, Volume 1"). In 1993 he is living at 812 Salem Lane in Carpentersville. As "John and Mary Donahue of Carpentersville, formerly of Arlington Heights" a newspaper article in the Daily Herald, details their 50th wedding anniversary. It mentions among other things their [living] "seven children", that John played "professional baseball with the Philadelphia Phillies", that he had been, before they met "a friend of Mary's brothers". They were married 14 Oct 1944 at St Hyacinth Catholic Church in Chicago. They have "seven children: Joan, Tom, Jerry, Patrick, Cary, Kathy, Sue, Bridget" (Yes I know it's eight.) "Mary, 65, was born in Chicago.... John, 74, was born in Chicago...."
His obituary appears in the Daily Herald where it states that he was born 23 Jun 1920 in Chicago, and died 6 Mar 2008 at Glenbrook Hospital in Glenview. That he had played for the Philadelphia Phillies in 1943-44 under the nickname "Deacon Donahue". That his wife of 64 years was born Mary T Bejrowski. Their children are there listed as : "Joan, Thomas, Jerome, Patrick, Kathleen, Suzanne and Bridget." It also lists his siblings as : "Margaret, Mary, Roseann, Roger, Eugene".
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7 Mary T Bejrowski
She was born 3 Jun 1926 in Cook County, Illinois, the daughter of Stanley Bejrowski and his wife Helen. Her mother who died in 1961, has an obituary in the Chicago Tribune in which it names, among others, her daughter "Mary Donahue". She is living as "Mary M Donahue" born 3 Jun 1926, in 1981 at 415 N Belmont Avenue in Arlington Heights ("U.S. Public Records Index, Volume 1"). In 1993 she is living at 812 Salem Lane in Carpentersville as "Mary T Donahue". She was living in 1994/95 and possibly still living at John's death in 2008. I don't find one matching this birthdate in the SSDI.
Primary Sources for 7
- "Mary Bejrowski", Cook County, Illinois Birth Index 1916-1935
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8 Leon "Lee" DeWyze
Leon "Lee DeWyze" was born in 1900/01 in Illinois, the son of Octave DeWyze an immigrant from Flemish Belgium. He married Edna in 1920/21 possibly in or near Chicago. In the 1930 census, Leon and Edna lived at 5141 North Kildare Avenue, Chicago, Illinois, and was a proprietor of a dairy.
Primary Sources for 8
- 1930 Census of Chicago, Cook County, Illinois : "5141 N Kildare Ave, Leon DeWyze, Head, owns home worth $6000, age 29, married at 20, born Illinois/Belgium/Belgium, proprietor, dairy; Edna, wife, age 29, married at 20, born Illinois/Illinois/Michigan; Elaine B, daughter, age 9, born Illinois; Robert Lee, son, age 4 4/12, born Illinois"
Secondary Sources for 8
- "The Flemish American: Lee DeWyze",Copyright 2010 by David Baeckelandt, flemishamerican.blogspot.com
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9 Edna
Edna was born 21 Jun 1900 in Illinois. She married Leon "Lee" DeWyze in 1920/21 possibly in or near Chicago, Illinois. They lived in Chicago in 1930 where he was the proprietor of a dairy. She died Oct 1970 having last resided in Chicago, Illinois.
Primary Sources for 9
- 1930 Census of Chicago, Cook County, Illinois : "5141 N Kildare Ave, Leon DeWyze, Head, owns home worth $6000, age 29, married at 20, born Illinois/Belgium/Belgium, proprietor, dairy; Edna, wife, age 29, married at 20, born Illinois/Illinois/Michigan; Elaine B, daughter, age 9, born Illinois; Robert Lee, son, age 4 4/12, born Illinois"
- "Edna DeWyze", SSDI, born 21 Jun 1900, died Oct 1970, SSN Issued by Illinois before 1951
Secondary Sources for 9
- "The Flemish American: Lee DeWyze",Copyright 2010 by David Baeckelandt, flemishamerican.blogspot.com
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14 Stanley Bejrowski
In 1930 he lived with his wife Helen on St Louis Avenue in Chicago.
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15 Helen
In 1930 she lived with her husband Stanley Bejrowski on St Louis Avenue in Chicago.
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16 Octave DeWyze
Octave DeWyze was born in 1877. He immigrated to the United States in 1900, evidently from Flanders. He was a butcher. He died in 1980, probably in Illinois, possibly in or near Chicago.
Secondary Sources for 16
- "The Flemish American: Lee DeWyze",Copyright 2010 by David Baeckelandt, flemishamerican.blogspot.com
Nice work!
Will, great work! I enjoyed following the difficult threads that you tracked down and connected so nicely. Thanks also for citing me. I appreciate it. Best regards, Dave Baeckelandt
David Baeckelandt - 30 Jul 2011