CATHERINE DORAN GRAINEY

Catherine Doran, the 5th child, 3rd daughter, of David Daniel and Sarah Jane Pickard Doran was born on July 16, 1902 in Pittsburgh, PA. She was delivered by Dr. John G. Burke, at home on Clarissa St. near Camp. She was baptized August 8th - with godparents Peter Allen & Catherine Massey. On one birth/ baptismal certificate, her name is Catherine Elizabeth, on another, Catherine Adell. In the 1915? Doran family picture, Catherine is sixth from the left; in the 1917? Doran family photograph she is on the far left with a large bow in her hair.

Catherine began her schooling in DuBois, Pa (after the family's move there c.1906-7), and probably received her first Holy Communion at St. Catherine of Siena Church. At age 15, Catherine was taken out of school to help care for one of the Allen's who was ill. According to Catherine's oldest daughter, Betty Jane, Catherine 3impressed the doctor so much that he asked if she could go to nursing school.2 The DuBois years were probably Catherine's happiest. After the Dorans moved back to Pittsburgh (c.1917), her parents dismissed Catherine's dream of becoming a nurse. So (against everyone's wishes) young Catherine married Thomas Anthony Grainey, a good-looking, excellent dancer who swept her off her feet. Tom lived in nearby Swissvale and was a machinist. He worked in the steel mill, as did his dad and older brother and many other Italian immigrants in the Pittsburgh area. The wedding ceremony was conducted quietly on Feb. 23, 1924 by a Justice of the Peace in Braddock, PA.

When she & Tom lived at 700 Webster Ave., Catherine was a clerk at the May Drug Co. (Pgh 1925 City directory) later, a cleaner, at the Home for Working Girls (Pgh 1932 City directory). Tom Grainey later worked for McGraw-Edison, a local power company.

Unfortunately, Tom Grainey was not the faithful bread winner. He had a roving eye and the marriage soon floundered. Dave Doran brought Catherine, and her two toddlers, Betty Jane (1925) & Rosemary (1927), home to live at 5518 Howe Street with the rest of the Dorans. After Catherine obtained a job in sales and got on her feet again, the Graineys later moved to Shadyside apartments on Filbert Street, Kentucky Ave, & 5826 Elsworth Avenue (in 1941). She worked for the Gimbels Department Store off and on during the Depression.

Catherine had a fantastic talent for sewing. She was a whiz on the old Singer sewing machine, pumping the foot treadle with both efficiency and gusto. She was very short, under 5' and her tiny feet were often shod by Dave Doran's shoe samples. All through life, Catherine had to shop around for a car whose pedals she could reach.

When David Doran died in Baltimore, February 1942, sisters Catherine, Mary & Ruth were still living in Pittsburgh. Catherine and her sister, Hazel, remained close all their lives. When Catherine's daughter, Betty Jane, started working at the Pentagon in 1944, Catherine and her daughters shared a house (4108 Cottage Terrace, Cottage City, MD) with Hazel & Cy. When Catherine obtained a job at Garfinkel's Department Store, the Grainey's moved across the street (4107 Cottage Terrace). The Grainey's next residence was a Baltimore Avenue apartment in Hyattsville, MD. Both of Catherine's daughters married while living in Hyattsville. Catherine later worked for the Embassy Dairy in Washington until her retirement, working part-time after hours for the Office of Price Controls. Catherine's last home, 4105 Cottage Terrace, was, again, a cozy & charming bungalow.

Following the divorce, Catherine and her daughters had little or no communication with Tom Grainey or his family. But after Tom's second wife died in 1974, he suddenly reappeared at the Cottage Terrace door for a visit, eager to get reacquainted. Catherine soon let Tom know that she was not about to take care of him in his golden years. She relished independence and was enjoying her grandchildren. The bungalow had room now for one, not two.

In August 1979, Catherine visited her younger sister in Baltimore to celebrate Ruth's 66th birthday. I talked briefly with them both on the 25th; they seemed in good spirits enjoying each other's company. On August 28th, Catherine suffered a major heart attack in Ruth's apartment and was taken to Baltimore's Union Memorial Hospital. She died about a week later at 6:15 pm., September 7, 1979. Catherine's funeral mass on Sept. 11th was celebrated at St. James Church, Mt. Ranier and she was buried in Fort Lincoln Cemetery, Brentwood, MD (Block 12 Holy Trinity Section Row 687 space #4 n).

Children of Catherine & Tom Grainey

Betty Jane, Catherine's older daughter, married John Herko (8/6/1921-10/17/2001) on July 2, 1949 in St. Jerome's RC Church, Hyattsville, MD. Her two children are: Rosemary [whose son, Christopher William Gardner is a talented graphic artist, a comic book liner] and John Kevin [whose daughter Sara Elizabeth is a happy pre-teen, somewhat a tomboy, loving skating and camping]. Betty Jane's husband, John Herko recently died at the Capitol Nursing & Rehabilitation Center, in Dover, DE following a long illness. His funeral mass was at Our Lady of Charity, Brookhaven, PA. John was buried in All Saints Cemetery, Wilmington, DE.

Rosemary, Catherine's younger daughter, married Richard Morrell Blackman (12/4/1924-5/30/1998) on June 22, 1946. Their four daughters are: Karen, Eileen, Linda, & Elizabeth. Four years ago, Richard Blackman died of a sudden heart attack while driving home after errands. He is buried in the Gate of Heaven Cemetery, Silver Spring, MD.

Following his divorce, Tom Grainey (12/ 27/1900-11/25/1983) served in WW II & later married Jane E. ....... (9/15/1909-6/13/1974). Tom suffered from Alzheimers for many years and died, at age 82, in the Novak Nursing Home, McKeesport, PA. Both he and his 2nd wife are buried in Calvary Catholic Cemetery, Pgh, PA. (Sec. 20, lot 630, grave 5)