Lewis MOORE (1889-?), Western New York - 2 men or one?

Question

I have Moore-58015 (Lewis B. MOORE) in my tree. Born in Orleans County, NY (10 March 1889), I have him in multiple censuses from 1892 to 1920. By 1920, still in Orleans County, he was living with his wife (Laura A. BURKE, confirmed via marriage records) and three sons.

In 1923, Laura remarried, this time to Wellman Joseph ARMSTRONG, a neighbor in Kendall, NY. She and her sons took the ARMSTRONG name. Subsequent censuses in 1930 and 1940 confirm this.

But my conundrum is with Lewis. I have found a Lewis B. MOORE in the 1940 census with an entirely new family -- wife Mae C. (possibly nee DICKINSON), two sons, and two daughters, all born after 1920. But this MOORE family is living in Wellsville, in Allegany County, NY.

This Lewis MOORE has a headstone (seen here) showing he was also born in 1889, though it doesn't list the date. Interestingly, their graves are back in Orleans County.

Before finding this second Lewis, I had assumed he'd died around 1921. But the obvious conclusion is that Lewis divorced Laura and married Mae, either before or after their daughter was born in December 1921. But I can't verify a connection. I can't confirm that these are the same Lewis B. MOORE.

A definitive birthdate for the latter MOORE would be strong evidence that they are, but I can't find one. Finding a MOORE-DICKINSON marriage record that listed their parents' names would be even better. Coming up empty on that, too.

Any advice or help is welcome.

Answer 1

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/152665082/lewis-b.-moore

And another 

Name: Lewis B Moore

Gender: Male

Race: White

Marital status: Married

Age: 33

Birth Date: 17 Feb 1886

Birth Place: New York

Years in US: Life

Death Date: 3 Feb 1920

Death Street Address: 480 Broadway Flushing St

Death Place: New York City, Queens, New York, USA

Cause of Death: Acute Lobar Pneumonia, Influenza

Burial Date: 8 Feb 1920

Burial Place: Flushing Cemetery

Occupation: Salesman Automobiles

Father's Birth Place: USA

Mother's Birth Place: USA

Father: Harrison S Moore

Mother: Maria Moore

Executor: Mrs Lewis B Moore

Executor Relationship: Widow

Certificate Number: 828

Comments

Interesting! But the birthdate is three years off, and this one died 12 days before Laura BURKE was divorced from the Lewis MOORE I'm interested in.

This one seems to be just a coincidental similarity.

Answer 2

I suggest you create profiles for the parents of Lewis.

Lewis B Moore

 in the New York, County Marriage Records, 1847-1849, 1907-1936

Name:	Lewis B Moore
Gender:	Male
Age:	24
Birth Date:	abt 1889
Marriage Date:	11 Dec 1913
Marriage Place:	Orleans, New York, USA
Father:	George M Moore
Mother:	Clara Bartlett
Spouse:	Laura R Burke
Film Number:	000594448

Source Information

Ancestry.com. New York, County Marriage Records, 1847-1849, 1907-1936 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2016.

Comments

Yep! I intend to do that soon; just haven't gotten to it yet.

Out of curiosity, though, how do you think it will help to verify if the records I've identified refer to the same Lewis Moore?

Edit: I've added the parents.

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Hi Matthew, I try to expand the tree outward also.  So if you research the parents of Lewis you may find siblings of his and keep expanding from there.  We can often pick up hints from other family members. Census records or the marriage of one of his siblings.  You've done very well so far but I think you should broaden your horizons, don't get bogged down on one specific person, especially with a common name like Lewis Moore.  Have fun.  I will try to help some.

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Hi Matthew,  I think they are the same person but I can find no way to prove it.  I even researched Luther and Everett back in time but was unable to find anything more than you already know. No divorce record from Laura and no marriage record with Mae. You may have to write to the court house (or wherever) to access more documents.  You have a tough one so good luck with it!

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Thanks for looking into it!

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Patricia, I wanted to update you on what I found over this past weekend when Newspapers.com offered free access.

I found the obituary for the Lewis Moore who was married to Mae.Dickinson. It states he has two surviving sisters, Myrna and Mary. That matches the Lewis Moore in my tree, who had four sisters (at least one of whom died before Lewis), including Myrna and Mary.

The obituary also confirms that this Lewis Moore was from the same town as the other. I'm now confident they are the same person.

Interestingly, the obituary has no mention of Moore's sons (or grandchildren) from his first marriage, all of whom were still alive in 1962. The split seems to have been quite thorough.

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Thank you Matthew for the interesting update and congrats on your discovery.  Now for more discoveries!