Dorchester Illustration World War One Service Member biography: James Arthur O’Neill
At the Dorchester Historical Society, we are in the process of a year-long project to commemorate the 100th anniversary of World War I. Using a collection of photographs we have of WWI Dorchester residents, we will be featuring servicemen in a number of short biographies throughout the year. At the culmination of the project, we hope to produce an online exhibit that highlights these men and their service to our country.
Our next biography features: James Arthur O’Neill.
Written by Camille Arbogast.
James Arthur O’Neill, known during his life by either his first or middle name, was born in Boston on August 16, 1894, at 2 Franklin Street. His father, James Arthur Senior, was born in Brooklyn, New York, and was a machinist. His mother, Margaret Louisa (Darrell), born in Boston, worked as a governess before her marriage. James Senior and Margaret were married in Boston in 1893; theirounger sons Roy and Ralph were born in 1898 and 1902.
In 1900, the family lived in Dorchester on at 28 Fuller Street; by 1910 they had moved up the block to number 25. In June 1917, they were living at 1943 Dorchester Avenue. At that time, James Arthur was a stenographer in the Boston office of the B.F. Goodrich Rubber Company. On his World War I draft registration he claimed an exemption from the draft on the grounds that he “expects Civil Service from Washington.” In his notecard for J. Arthur O’Neill, Dr. Perkins noted that James Arthur was a Commissioned Staff Officer in the Coast Artillery Corps, or CAC, with a rank of Sergeant Major, whose service began in December 1917. James Arthur served overseas, sailing from Hoboken, New Jersey, to France with a Detachment of the CAC. In April 1919, he returned to the United States on the USS Princess Matoika, sailing from St. Nazaire, France.
By January 1920, he had married Catherine M. O’Donnell. They lived at 205 Faneuil Street in Brighton and he worked as a field clerk at Army Headquarters. It is possible he was the James A. O’Neill who, according to a Boston Globe article, in November 1919, took the physical and mental examinations for a permanent field clerk position. According to the article, “The test is for stenographers, typists and men with clerical experience” who had been serving as field clerks at the Northeastern Department. Catherine was also a stenographer, working in the insurance industry.
Their first child, Joan Audrey, was born in 1922. In 1924, they moved to Springfield, Massachusetts, where their daughter Elizabeth was born. By this time, James Arthur was a salesman, his occupation through the end of the 1930s. The family lived in Springfield for only a year, then moved to Leicester, Massachusetts. They returned to Dorchester by 1927, when their son Paul was born. The twins, Marion and Marilyn, were born in 1929.
James Arthur’s father died in May 1929. The next year, James Arthur and his family were living with his widowed mother, Margaret, in the home she owned at 8 Fuller Street. Also living at 8 Fuller Street was James’s youngest brother Ralph. His middle brother, Roy, had died in September 1920, of chronic nephritis.
By 1932, James Arthur, his wife, and his children lived in Quincy. They moved around the city during the 1930s, residing first at 60 Newbury Avenue, then in 1935 moving to 94 Edwin in Norfolk Downs, and finally, in 1937, to Hovey Street in North Quincy.
In 1940, they lived at 981 Morton Street in Mattapan. James was again an Army clerk, now a quartermaster clerk, making $1,600 a year. By 1942, they had moved to Nantasket Beach inHull, and were living at 32 Roosevelt Avenue. On his World War II draft registration, James reported that he worked at the U.S. Engineers Army Base in Boston. His son, Paul, served in the Navy during World War II. His daughter Joan was an early stewardess for Northeast Airlines before her marriage in 1943. A notice of her engagement stated the family was “Of Dorchester and Nantasket.”
By 1962, he and his wife again lived in the family home at 8 Fuller Street. James Arthur died on July 5, 1963, in Dorchester. A High Mass of Requiem was held for him at St. Gregory’s Church in Lower Mills. He was survived by his wife and children.
Sources
Birth record, Massachusetts Vital Records, 1840–1911. New England Historic Genealogical Society, Boston, Massachusetts; Ancestry.com
Family Trees, Ancestry.com
1900, 1910, 1920, 1930, 1940 Federal Census; Ancestry.com
Boston, Springfield, Quincy directories, various years; Ancestry.com
World War I Selective Service System Draft Registration Cards, National Archive and Records Administration; Ancestry.com
Lists of Outgoing & Incoming Passengers, 1917-1938. Records of the Office of the Quartermaster General, 1774-1985, The National Archives at College Park, Maryland; Ancestry.com
“Take Examination for Permanent Positions,” Boston Globe, 24 Nov 1919, 8; Newspapers.com
“Wedding Announced,” Boston Globe, 29 August 1943, 43; Newspapers.com
Deaths, Boston Globe, 6 July 1963, 2; Newspapers.com