Immigrant Ancestors Part 2: Edward J. Fenlon, Sr.

Memories of 123 Woodland Ave: Part 2, Aunt Janet

Janet Fenlon ca. 1951

This post is by Aunt Janet. 

Grandma and Grandpa Treacy's Victorian house at 123 Woodland, Syracuse will always be special in our hearts and memories. When we arrived at their house, we would all sit around the kitchen table and chat. Everyone asked about what we were learning in school and took delight in our accomplishments. We were welcomed and we were surrounded by loving kindness. Aunt Maidie has molasses cookies with frosting or other treats. Grandma's cat would be hiding in the cabinet under the sink or in the nearby pantry to get away from our invasion. We remember sliding down the banister of the winding front staircase. How kind they were to let us do that, with the only caveat being, remove the belt from our jeans before sliding down! The front parlor of the house had the sliding oak paneled doors which closed the room off. Next to that was the study with its fireplace where Grandpa Treacy used to sit and read after dinner. I remember that he smoked a pipe on occasion and he always spoke kindly with us. Uncle Frank showed us his special short wave radio in the same room. 

Janet, Emmett John, Francis Hugh Kelly at 123 Woodland in 1944

During World War II, children's toys were apparently difficult to find. Mother told us later that Grandpa Treacy went all over Syracuse looking for toys. He bought Emmett John farm animals. I remember the pink cows which felt so smooth in my hand, and I loved just holding them. 

The neighborhood homes were large (see end of this post) and at each house there were almost always some steps between the street and the sidewalk, as well as steps going up into each house. Perhaps the lower steps were just to facilitate getting out of a car, but we had never seen steps like that. We used to go around the block playing postman, at each house going down those lower steps and then going back up to the sidewalk and "delivering" the mail at the sidewalk level (never disturbing the occupants of the house). We loved seeing the milkman deliver the milk to Grandma's back porch (Netherland Dairy) and we watched the street washers and garbage pickup trucks on their rounds. 

Netherland Dairy delivery (top) and milk bottle (bottom) [photos from pinterest.com and eBay] 

Once when Emmett John and I were visiting as kids, a photographer with a Shetland pony came to the house, offering (for a fee) a ride around the block on the Shetland. We each had a ride and it was like magic! The photographer took a photo of each of us on the pony and we were so proud.

I slept in Grandma Janet Treacy's room when I stayed overnight. She would sit in her chair saying the rosary and keeping me company until I fell asleep. There must have been a lot  of extra pillows in the house, because Aunt Maidie always had some next to the beds, in case we fell out during the night. Grandma Treacy was an excellent seamstress and she had in her bedroom a black Singer treadle sewing machine which she used a great deal. When I was little she made me beautiful dresses of organdy and dotted swiss and taffeta. I still remember the colors and fabrics and how I could swish along when I wore them. 

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Aunt Maidie graduate from high school at a young age and she couldn't start classes at Syracuse University because she was too young. While she was waiting for the university, she went to the local business school and learned shorthand, typing, business skills, and she got a job. 

Maidie Treacy Degnan

When we knew her as kids she still made her grocery lists in shorthand. She was an English teacher and she  was always interested in our programs of study. We always thought of her as our second Mom. Uncle Frank was always entertaining us, taking us to the wonderful Marble Farms Dairy for their homemade ice cream on hot summer nights. His family had some land on Onondaga Hill, and he and Aunt Maidie took us there for picnics. We enjoyed family outings with them and our parents in state parks like Selkirk Shores and Fair Haven on Lake Ontario. 

An example of Gregg shorthand (gregg.angelfishy.net)

One of my dearest memories is all the "summer vacations" Mark and I spent together when Mom and Dad sent us to visit Grandpa and Grandma Treacy and Aunt Maidie and Uncle Frank at Woodland Avenue and Aunt Marcella, Aunt Clara, Uncle Eddie, and Grandpa Fenlon at the family home in Marcellus. How we looked forward to these special weeks when we had our time with our grandparents, aunts, and uncles! We always had happy adventures and lots of laughter. How gracious they were and how lucky were we. 

Janet, Edward Fenlon Sr., and Mark at Falls Road, Marcellus in early 1950s

Note from Ed:  The Treacy house on Woodland Avenue was torn down a long time ago.  As shown below, as recently as 2007 there were not many houses on that section of Woodland, by 2011 there were more, and very recently a home  was built on the same site as the Treacy home.  The final photo below shows the house across Baker street from the Treacy home in the 1950s and today.  You can tell it is the same house by the roof line and porches. Some of the windows have been covered whereas others remain. Photos from Google, X marks the location of the Treacy house.