A Family Reunited by Chance
A Spokane woman, raised as an orphan in the Kennewick valley, discovers her long-lost siblings through a series of coincidences.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
Twenty-seven years ago, a tiny six-month-old baby girl was placed in an orphanage at Lincoln, Nebraska. The girl grew to womanhood as Miss Cassie Finley, adopted daughter of Mr. and Mrs. G. E. Finley of this valley, and knew nothing of her blood relatives until a few weeks ago. An older sister, through years of search, succeeded in locating the father, two brothers, and three sisters, none of whom had known of the existence of the others for more than a quarter of a century. The family of Cam Shockey was broken up when the mother died at Falls City, Nebraska, 27 years ago. One sister, Mrs. Bessie Nicholson, eventually tracked the family down after a cousin in Montana lived next to her foster brother. Through a series of long-distance calls and chance encounters with telephone operators who happened to be related to the family, the sisters were reunited. The 'baby,' now Mrs. H. R. McCoskrie of Spokane, is currently hosting Mrs. Nicholson, and a full family reunion is planned for this fall.
“None of whom had known of the existence of the others for more than a quarter of a century.”
This story highlights the fragility of family ties during the migration era of the early 20th century. Before digital records, losing track of siblings meant decades of silence, a stark contrast to the instant connectivity of modern genealogical tools.
From readers
No comments yet. If you know something about this story — a correction, a family memory, a source — it belongs here.