- Born: August 20, year uncertain, Kane, McKean County, Pennsylvania
- Died: November 28, 1950, Okmulgee, Okmulgee County, Oklahoma
- Relationship: My great-grandfather
Frederick Wegley was my great-grandfather and the son of John Wesley Wegley and Helen Elizabeth “Bessie” Swanson. He was born on August 20 in Kane, McKean County, Pennsylvania, although one of the most persistent mysteries in my family research is the exact year of his birth.
Frederick grew up in an era very different from that of his earlier Pennsylvania ancestors. By his generation, the Wegley family was no longer centered on the farms of Brothersvalley. Frederick’s world was one of lumber, oil, natural gas, manufacturing, railroads, and eventually the glass industry that would become closely associated with several generations of my family.
When Was Frederick Actually Born?
Frederick’s exact birth year remains unresolved. The surviving records agree remarkably well on August 20, but they disagree repeatedly about the year.
The evidence currently includes:
- 1900 census: August 1887
- World War I draft registration: August 20, 1887
- 1910 census: approximately 1889
- 1920 census: approximately 1890
- 1930 census: approximately 1890 or 1891 based on his reported age
- 1940 census: approximately 1890
- World War II Fourth Registration: August 20, 1889
- Gravestone: August 20, 1889
This is not simply a case of one census taker getting an age wrong. Two records on which Frederick himself apparently supplied information give exact dates two years apart: August 20, 1887 in 1917 and August 20, 1889 in 1942. His gravestone agrees with the later 1889 date, while the 1900 census supports 1887.
Until a birth, baptismal, church, family Bible, or another contemporary record resolves the conflict, I do not think it is responsible to pretend that we know the year with certainty. The safest statement is that Frederick was born on August 20, with surviving records placing the year between 1887 and about 1890.
Growing Up in Kane
Frederick grew up in Kane, Pennsylvania, where his parents John and Bessie raised their family. By this generation, the Wegleys were firmly established in Kane, and the family’s longtime association with 507 Biddle Street appears repeatedly in surviving records.
Frederick’s 1917 draft registration gives 507 Biddle Street, Kane, Pennsylvania, as his home address. This directly connects him to the same family residence documented for his parents and siblings.
Frederick in 1917
On June 5, 1917, Frederick registered for the World War I draft. He gave his age as twenty-nine and his birth date as August 20, 1887.
The card records him as:
| Field | Information |
|---|---|
| Name | Frederick Wegley |
| Age | 29 |
| Birth date given | August 20, 1887 |
| Birthplace | Kane, Pennsylvania |
| Residence | 507 Biddle Street, Kane, Pennsylvania |
| Citizenship | Natural-born citizen |
| Occupation | Laborer, woodworking plant |
| Employer | Kane Manufacturing Company |
| Marital status | Single |
| Race | Caucasian |
| Dependents | None |
| Previous military service | Private, infantry |
| Length of previous service | About 1 year |
| Organization | Pennsylvania National Guard |
| Height | Medium |
| Build | Slender |
| Eyes | Light gray |
| Hair | Light brown |
| Bald | No |
| Physical disability | None reported |
The card is particularly valuable because it shows that Frederick already had about one year of Pennsylvania National Guard infantry experience before registering for the World War I draft.
That does not, however, establish that he subsequently served in the United States Army during World War I. Unless an enlistment record, service record, veterans’ file, discharge document, or military roster is located, I would describe him as a World War I draft registrant with prior Pennsylvania National Guard service, rather than as a confirmed World War I veteran.
Working in Manufacturing
Frederick’s occupational records show a long connection with manufacturing. In 1917, he worked as a laborer in a woodworking plant for the Kane Manufacturing Company.
By 1920, census records placed him in the glass industry as a box maker associated with a window-glass operation. This occupational connection would continue through his family, with his sons John and Raymond later working in glass-related industries as well.
The glass industry eventually became one of the strongest occupational threads running through this branch of the Wegley family.
Marriage to Tillie Blanch Edwards
Frederick married Tillie Blanch Edwards on February 4, 1920, in Huntington, West Virginia. Tillie was born on August 20, 1899.
Their marriage has an unusually interesting story. A surviving newspaper clipping reports that Frederick and Tillie had originally considered an extraordinarily long-distance telephone wedding, with one of them in Pennsylvania and the other in West Virginia.
Officials apparently would not issue the necessary permits for such an arrangement, forcing the couple to abandon the telephone-wedding plan. Tillie traveled to Huntington, West Virginia, where the couple married in person.
That is exactly the kind of family detail that deserves to survive because it turns a simple marriage date into an actual story.
Frederick and Tillie’s Children
Frederick and Tillie had at least six known children:
- John Wesley Wegley, 1923-1982
- Betty Ann Wegley, 1924-2010
- Raymond Edward Wegley, 1925-1992
- Ruth Minerva Wegley, born 1928
- Dora Mae Wegley, 1930-1970
- Gretta Laura Wegley, born 1935
By the mid-1920s, Frederick and Tillie already had three young children. Three more children followed over the next decade, creating a household whose early years coincided with the economic turmoil of the Great Depression.
From Pennsylvania to Arkansas
Frederick and Tillie’s family did not remain entirely in Pennsylvania. By December 1925, they were living in Fort Smith, Arkansas, where their son Raymond Edward was born.
Raymond’s original birth certificate gives Frederick’s occupation as a glassblower. It also records Frederick as born in Kane, Pennsylvania, and places the family at 1106 North 33rd Street in Fort Smith.
The Arkansas record therefore provides especially useful evidence for both Frederick’s birthplace and his continuing connection to glass manufacturing.
Why Frederick and Tillie moved temporarily to Arkansas has not yet been established. Employment may have played a role, particularly given Frederick’s work as a glass blower, but until a directory, employment record, newspaper item, or family account is found, the reason should remain an open question.
The Fourth Registration of 1942
Frederick registered again with the Selective Service system on April 27, 1942, during World War II. He was living at 210 Wood Street in Belle Vernon, Pennsylvania, with Tillie listed as the person who would always know his address.
His employer was:
American Window Glass Company
Belle Vernon, Fayette County, Pennsylvania
The registration therefore provides another direct connection between Frederick and the glass industry.
This was not an ordinary draft registration for young combat-age men. Frederick was part of the Fourth Registration, which covered older men born between April 28, 1877, and February 16, 1897. Its primary purpose was to identify the skills, occupations, and manpower resources of older American men rather than to prepare them for routine military induction.
| Field | Information |
|---|---|
| Document type | World War II Selective Service Registration Card, Fourth Registration |
| Full name | Frederick Wegley |
| Serial number | U-1251 |
| Residence | 210 Wood Street, Belle Vernon, Fayette County, Pennsylvania |
| Mailing address | Same as residence |
| Telephone | None listed |
| Age reported | 52 |
| Date of birth reported | August 20, 1889 |
| Place of birth | Kane, Pennsylvania |
| Person who would always know his address | Mrs. Tillie Wegley |
| Tillie’s address | 210 Wood Street, Belle Vernon, Pennsylvania |
| Employer | American Window Glass Co. |
| Place of employment | Belle Vernon, Fayette County, Pennsylvania |
| Race | White |
| Height | 5 feet 7½ inches |
| Weight | 138 pounds |
| Eye color | Gray |
| Hair color | Brown |
| Complexion | Ruddy |
| Other obvious physical characteristics | None |
| Physical disability/other identifying condition | Registrar wrote “none to my knowledge” |
| Registration date | April 27, 1942 |
| Local Board | Local Board No. 6 |
| Board county shown on stamp | Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania |
| Registrant’s signature | Frederick Wegley |
| Order number | Not entered on this copy |
What Frederick Looked Like
The reverse of the 1942 registration card gives us an unusually detailed physical description:
| Field | Information |
|---|---|
| Height | 5 feet 7½ inches |
| Weight | 138 pounds |
| Race | White |
| Eyes | Gray |
| Hair | Brown |
| Complexion | Ruddy |
| Other identifying characteristics | None |
These details agree surprisingly well with his 1917 description. Twenty-five years earlier, Frederick had been described as having light-gray eyes and light-brown hair, so the two records provide a remarkably consistent picture of him across much of his adult life.
Why Does the 1942 Card Say 1889?
The 1942 card gives Frederick’s birth date as August 20, 1889, making him fifty-two according to the information written on the card. If the 1887 date from his earlier records was correct, he was actually fifty-four.
An older version of this family history interpreted this as Frederick deliberately making himself younger so he could fight in World War II. The registration system itself makes that explanation less certain.
Frederick did not need to be fifty-two rather than fifty-four to complete the card. Both ages placed him squarely within the group legally required to register.
There may have been another explanation. Frederick may have genuinely believed he was born in 1889, the earlier record may contain an error, or the discrepancy may simply reflect a birth year the family never consistently remembered.
| Field | Information |
|---|---|
| Full name | Frederick Wegley |
| Age | 29 |
| Date of birth | August 20, 1887 |
| Birthplace | Kane, Pennsylvania, U.S.A. |
| Home address | 507 Biddle Street, Kane, Pennsylvania |
| Citizenship | Natural-born citizen |
| Occupation | Laborer |
| Type of work | Woodworking plant |
| Employer | Kane Manufacturing Company |
| Place of employment | Kane, Pennsylvania |
| Dependents | None |
| Marital status | Single |
| Race | Caucasian |
| Previous military service | Yes |
| Previous military rank | Private |
| Previous military branch | Infantry |
| Length of previous military service | Approximately 1 year |
| Previous military organization | Appears to read N.G. Pa., meaning Pennsylvania National Guard |
| Claimed exemption from draft | No exemption stated |
| Height | Medium |
| Build | Slender |
| Eye color | Light gray |
| Hair color | Light brown |
| Bald | No |
| Physical disabilities | None recorded |
| Registration precinct | 2nd Ward, Kane, Wetmore Township |
| County | McKean County, Pennsylvania |
| State | Pennsylvania |
| Registration date | June 5, 1917 |
| Registrant’s signature | Fred Wegley |
| Registrar’s signature | Signature difficult to read confidently |
| Card number | Printed number appears to be 133 |
The Story Passed Down in My Family
A family story is still worth preserving. Frederick was remembered as wanting to serve his country during World War II and as making himself younger because he hoped there might be a way for him to serve again.
Government records cannot prove that motivation. At the same time, family history consists of more than government forms, and I do not want to erase a story remembered by the people who knew him.
The responsible approach is to preserve both pieces of evidence. The record tells us Frederick gave 1889 as his birth year in 1942. Family tradition says later generations believed he wanted to appear younger because he hoped to serve.
Two Sons Go to War
Whatever Frederick’s own hopes may have been, two of his sons soon entered active military service.
His son John Wesley Wegley entered the United States Army in February 1943. Later that year, his younger son Raymond Edward Wegley entered the United States Navy on November 29, 1943.
Raymond was still only seventeen years old, just sixteen days short of his eighteenth birthday.
By the end of 1943, Frederick and Tillie therefore had two sons serving during World War II. Frederick belonged to the older generation registered in the national manpower inventory, while his sons belonged to the generation sent into wartime service.
Oklahoma
During the final years of Frederick’s life, the family became increasingly connected with Oklahoma. By 1950, Frederick was in Okmulgee, Oklahoma, the state that would become particularly important to later generations of his descendants.
The surviving evidence does not yet establish exactly when Frederick moved to Oklahoma or why. His son Raymond was already developing his own connection with Oklahoma, and the family’s geographic center was shifting away from Pennsylvania.
This movement continued a pattern visible throughout Frederick’s life. His records connect him with Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Arkansas, and Oklahoma.
Death in 1950
Frederick Wegley died on November 28, 1950, in Okmulgee, Oklahoma. His gravestone records his birth as August 20, 1889, and his death as November 28, 1950.
The 1889 inscription is important evidence in the birth-year question because it matches the date on his 1942 registration exactly. It does not necessarily outweigh the 1900 census and 1917 draft card, but it means that 1889 cannot simply be dismissed as a one-time mistake.
Frederick was buried in Okmulgee. Tillie lived for more than three additional decades, dying on May 3, 1984, and was buried nearby.
A Birth-Year Mystery That Remains Unsolved
Frederick left behind far more documentation than most earlier family members, yet those records still cannot answer one of the simplest genealogical questions with certainty.
- Was he born in 1887, as the 1900 census and his 1917 draft registration indicate?
- Was he born in 1889, as his 1942 registration and gravestone state?
- Or was he born around 1890, as several census records suggest?
For now, I consider the year unresolved. August 20 appears secure, but the year should remain qualified until stronger evidence emerges. Your newest family research likewise treats the conflicting years as a genuine unresolved problem rather than forcing the records into agreement.
Frederick’s Place in My Family
Frederick’s life connects several major chapters of my family’s twentieth-century history. He grew up in Kane, worked in manufacturing and glass, served early in the Pennsylvania National Guard, registered during World War I, married Tillie in West Virginia, became the father of six known children, lived for a time in Arkansas, and later watched two sons enter military service during World War II.
His life also took the family farther geographically than many earlier generations had traveled. The Wegleys, once concentrated in Pennsylvania, became a family spread across several states.
Most importantly for me, Frederick was my great-grandfather. Through his son Raymond Edward Wegley, the family line continued into Oklahoma and ultimately into the generations that followed.