Wendy, Since your request I have been trying to figure out an answer. As I haven't found any specific information on your person, I will give you some general information on the home. My notes, although I haven't called the Veterans Administration to find out about this directly, says that you simply have to call or write to get information about the residents of the home. I also have written down that this sounds fishy since most military medical records are "sealed" and only proven family members have access to the records. With that said, the address to the VA is: Department of Veterans Affairs VA Medical Center 5000 West National Ave Milwaukee, WI 53295 (414) 384-2000 toll free: (800) 827-1000. The Northwest Home for Disabled Volunteer Soliders is also known as Wood National Home. Many residents of the home are buried in Wood National Cemetery. I looked him up for you and I don't see him buried in the National Cemetery. The homes were run in military fashion and men could admit themselves to the home voluntarily and could request a discharge at any time. Only soldiers were admited. No care was given to the Wisconsin families of the soldiers until 1887 when a home was opened in Waupaca, Wis. to accomodate widows and families. I would take the "absent" to mean that at the time of the census Daniel had checked himself out of the home temporarily. Maybe spending time at home with the family because he was feeling better, or perhaps he had a family function to attend. I have some information on the home's history here: http://linkstothepast.com/milwaukee/soldiershome.html As far as a death certificate, there are two indexes available for Milwaukee county. The statewide register which is available as a database on the Wisconsin Historical Society Website and the County. I have found that sometimes people are recorded in one but not the other. I am not sure about the records of Jefferson county. It could be one of those missing in action certificates. Deaths were not always recorded where they happened, but in the county of residence of the individual. Could be he died in Jefferson County and his residence was the home, so they didn't know what to do with it! If you can't find official birth certificates you may want to check the church where they may have belonged. Perhaps there is a baptismal record or something else that would indicate the birth. Margaret is listed as being born in Mass. Do you know when she moved out this way? Could any of the marriage records or birth records be out where she is from? I don't know if he is your Daniel, but there is a Daniel J. Boyle in Milwaukee in 1890 His occupation was Collector and two addresses are listed. Location 1: 17 Iron block Location 2: 504 Cass. Hope that gives you some more clues. Good Luck in your search! Ellen- www.LinksToThePast.com *********** REPLY SEPARATOR *********** On 12/23/2006 at 12:48 PM wdanderson2@peoplepc.com wrote: >I decided to repost this request as I felt that the original may have >been >lost in the "Bicker Fest" that has recently been occurring on the >Milwaukee >list.... Sorry to be redundant, for those who saw but could offer no help, >and those that had no part of what was going on.....Wendy > >**I need a little help. Does anyone know how to access records for a person >who was in this home? (Northwest Home for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers) >My husbands gg grandfather Daniel Boyle is listed in the 1900 census at >the >home. >The census then goes on to state that he is "absent". I can not find a >death >record/burial for him but believe he died Nov 5, 1905. I was hoping that >maybe records still existed for men at the home. > >I am having quite the time with this family. Daniel Boyle married Margaret >White Oct 1865 in Watertown Jefferson, Wisconsin. I can not find a marriage >record. They appear on the 1860 - 1880 census as living in Douglas, >Marquette, Wisconsin. During that time they had at least 7 children, >Mary -15 Oct 1866, John William 16 Nov 1868, Tressie 1870, Julia 1874, >Maggie 1877 & Eugene 15 Jan 1880. But.... I can find NO birth, death or >marriage records for anyone in the family. I have no idea who Daniels >parents are. He was born in Ireland. Hence the hope of a marriage record >for >Daniel & Margaret. > >>From what I can piece together from pension records Daniel had an accident >with a streetcar May 30 1893 in Milwaukee. I have no idea if he was living >in the home at that time or perhaps in Milwaukee. I do know that by Oct >1893 >he was living in Briggsville, Marquette, Wisconsin. So I think that he was >probably just in Milwaukee for another reason. Just a guess. > >Thanks for any help you can give me. > >Wendy in Washington state > > > > > >------------------------------- >To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to >WIMILWAU-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the >quotes in the subject and the body of the message