Deposition A
Delcena Fingar

Case of Julia A. Fingar, No. 655747

On this 4 day of October, 1902, at Syracuse, County of Onondaga State of New York, before me, E. F. Mason a special examiner of the Bureau of Pensions, personally appeared Delcena Fingar, who, being by me first duly sworn to answer truly all interrogations propounded to her during this special examination of aforesaid claim for pension, deposes and says:

I am 66 years of age; occupation baker, and my post=office address 208 Maltbie St. Syracuse, N.Y. I was married to Jacob William Fingar, November 27, 1884 at Utica, N.Y. by the Rev W. E. Reynolds a Methodist Epispocal Minister. I was married under the name of Delcena Marsh. I have our marriage Ctf, which I herewith submit to you. [this certificate was not found with the records - D.F.] I had been previously married to Henry L. Smith from whom I was divorced, as I gave my maiden name. I was divorced in the Coyuga Co., N.Y. Court at Auburn, N.Y. I think in 1881. Oliver Wood of Auburn, N.Y. was my atty, but he has since died.

Jacob W. Fingar came to board with me in Auburn, N.Y. about two or three years before we were married. I know he boarded with me in Auburn, N.Y. about six months and then I moved to Syracuse, N.Y. and then he came here and in 1884 I went to Utica, N.Y. to visit my sister, Catherine Marsh and he went with me and we were married before we came back. The said Jacob W. Fingar told me he had been married before he was married to me and that his first wife was dead. He told me he had been previously married to his own cousin and that she had been dead a good while before we were married. I do not know where the soldier lived prior to the time I met him in Auburn, N.Y. in about 1881. The soldier adopted a little girl about 4 years of age about three months before he and I were married. He called her Myrtle Fingar. She is now living with me and is in her 22 year. The soldier never told me anything in regard to the history of this girl, but I have always thought she was his own daughter. She is very like him. She knows nothing of her own history.

No sir, I never heard of a Lorana Parks or Fingar of Locke, N.Y. I lived with Jacob W. Fingar from the time we were married in 1884 until he died, Nov 14, 1896. He was a pensioner at the rate of $12.00 a month when he died. Soon after his death, I learned through Mr. Daniel Hunt of Syracuse, N.Y. now deceased, that my husband had a wife living from whom he had never been divorced. I heard that she was living in Philmont, Columbia Co., N.Y.

I went to visit her in March 1897, and she then told me that she and the soldier had never been legally divorced, but she said that they had a verbal agreement that they would live separate and that they would never bother each other. She told me then she did not want the pension that they had enough to live on without it and that I had earned the pension by taking care of [??????], but I told her that if she had never been divorced from the soldier I was not his legal widow and that I could not get the pension. Then she said to me that she would make a claim for his pension and that if she obtained it she would give me half of what she got. Then I came back home.

/s/ Dealcina Fingar

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