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DESCENDANTS OF THOMAS KNIGHT |
Descendants of Thomas
Knight, Essex, Union, Middlesex
Counties, New Jersey
Generation No. 4
7. HELEN4 ELLIVINE (HELEN MARIE "NELLIE"3 KNIGHT, HENRY PATRICK2, THOMAS1) was born 1905. She married NORMAN GOVETTE.
Child of HELEN ELLIVINE and NORMAN
GOVETTE is:
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NORMAN5 GOVETTE, JR.. |
8. JOHN DOMBROSKI4 PRINCE (HELEN MARIE "NELLIE"3KNIGHT, HENRY PATRICK2, THOMAS1) was born Unknown, and died in Battle of the Bulge; France bet 12 Dec.1944 and 16 Jan.1945. He married EILEEN REILLY probably in Hillside, Union Co. NJ, daughter of PATRICK REILLY/O'REILLY and MARIE KNIGHT.
More About JOHN DOMBROSKI PRINCE:
Religion: Catholic
Occupation: sales clerk in a store
Military: Hoffman-Prince VFW chapter named for him
Residences: Hillside, Union Co.; Laurence Harbor, NJ
Military: U. S. Army, World War II; killed in action
Notes for EILEEN REILLY:
Eileen was adopted by Marie Knight and Patrick J. Reilly, Jr. at the New
York Foundling Home.
More About EILEEN REILLY:
Religion: Roman Catholic, St. Catherine's Hillside, NJ
Occupation: Lionel Trains, Hillside, NJ
Residences: Hillside, NJ; Laurence Harbor, NJ; Sunland, Ca.
Child of JOHN PRINCE and EILEEN REILLY
is:
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SHARON5 PRINCE, b. Abt. May 1944, Hillside, Union Co. NJ. |
9. EILEEN4 REILLY (MARIE M.3KNIGHT, HENRY PATRICK2, THOMAS1) was born Abt. 1917 in Probably New York, and died Abt. 1987 in Sunland, California. She married JOHN DOMBROSKI PRINCE probably in Hillside, Union Co. NJ, son of WILLIAM PRINCE and HELEN KNIGHT.
Eileen was adopted by Marie Knight and Patrick J. Reilly, Jr. at the New York Foundling Home.
More About EILEEN REILLY:
Religion: Roman Catholic, St. Catherine's Hillside, NJ
Occupation: Lionel Trains, Hillside, NJ
Residences: Hillside, NJ; Laurence Harbor, NJ; Sunland, Ca.
More About JOHN DOMBROSKI PRINCE:
Religion: Catholic
Occupation: sales clerk in a store
Military: Hoffman-Prince VFW chapter in Laurence Harbor named for him
Residences: Hillside, Union Co.; Laurence Harbor, NJ
Military: U. S. Army, World War II; killed in action
Child of EILEEN REILLY and JOHN PRINCE
is:
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SHARON5 PRINCE, b. Abt. May 1944, Hillside, Union Co. NJ. |
10. GLADYS "SNOOKS" 4 KNIGHT (HENRY PATRICK "HARRY"3, HENRY PATRICK2, THOMAS1) was born 1914, and died March 07, 1985 in Roselle, Union Co. NJ. She married RUSSELL LARSON.
More About RUSSELL LARSON:
Occupation: Bus Driver
Child of GLADYS KNIGHT and RUSSELL
LARSON is:
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ROSALIND5 LARSON, d. January 31, 1985, Roselle, Union Co. NJ; m. JACK WILLIAMS, a Roselle , NJ. policeman.. |
11. LILLIAN4 KNIGHT (HENRY PATRICK "HARRY"3, HENRY PATRICK2, THOMAS1) was born April 01, 1918 in Summit, NJ, and died about 1991. She married EDWARD SANTEE July 10, 1941 in Elizabeth, Union Co. NJ.
More About EDWARD SANTEE:
Residences: Berkley Heights, NJ; Toms River, NJ
Children of LILLIAN KNIGHT and EDWARD
SANTEE are:
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BARBARA5 SANTEE, b. July 18, 1936. |
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PATRICIA SANTEE, b. April 13, 1940. |
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FLORENCE SANTEE, b. February 17, 1942. |
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iv. |
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EDWARD SANTEE, JR., b. April 04, 1943. |
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v. |
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CAROL SANTEE, b. May 10, 1944. |
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NANCY SANTEE, b. August 05, 1949. |
12. WILLIAM LOUIS "BUMPS" 4KNIGHT (HENRY PATRICK "HARRY"3, HENRYPATRICK2, THOMAS1) was born July 16, 1927 in Summit, NJ, and died January 1987 in South Plainfield, Middlesex Co. NJ. He married CONSTANCE RILLO April 24, 1954 in Summit, NJ.
More About WILLIAM LOUIS
"BUMPS" KNIGHT:
Religion: Catholic
Occupation: Mechanic
Residences: South Plainfield; Hillside, NJ
Military: U.S. Army
Children of WILLIAM KNIGHT and
CONSTANCE RILLO are:
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DONNA5 KNIGHT, b. June 30, 1956, Summit, NJ; m. MIKE PERETTE. |
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EVELYN KNIGHT. |
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13. SARAH LORRETTA4 KNIGHT (JOSEPH THOMAS3,
HENRY PATRICK2, THOMAS1) was
born September 18, 1914 in 27 No. 14th St, Newark, Essex Co NJ8.
She married (1) RUSSELL JOSEPH ANTHONY LACEY June 26, 1932 in Christ the King
Ch, Hillside, Union Co NJ9. They divorced.
She married (2) GEORGE FELIX KLEIN October 04, 1974 in St. Paul the Apostle Ch,
Irvington, Essex, NJ. Lorretta passed away on 29 April 2000 at the home
of
her daughter, Joan Mazauskas, in Miami where Lorretta had been living just
across the hall.
Notes for SARAH LORRETTA KNIGHT:
Sarah Lorretta Knight and Russell Lacey were married at 4 PM in Christ the
King Church in Hillside with the witnesses being Robert Knight and Florence
Lacey. Russell Lacey married second, Alberta Halprin of Bloomfield,
NJ. Russell is buried in Hollywood Memorial Park, Union, NJ, Lot 274,
Unit D, Sec 34, Grave 3 with Caffrey Funeral Home, Irvington, NJ, being in
charge of arrangements. Russell was a driver for the Railway Express Company.
Loretta was Roman Catholic; worked as Municipal Court Clerk in Irvington for many years. She formed the National Association of Court Clerks and was its first president. She has lived most of her life in Newark, Hillside, Irvington, and upon retirement she moved to Brooksville, Florida where Helen and Andy were already living. In 1993, after Helen's death, she moved to Miami to be near her daughter, Joan, and some of the grandchildren. Things she enjoyed doing when she was younger are camping and making ceramics. She also liked crafts, knitting and crocheting. Lorretta came from Florida when Bill had his triple bypass operation in January 1992 at Robert Wood Johnson Hospital, and she stayed with my mother, Verda Cain, so I could be with Bill at the hospital as much as possible. This I will never forget because she was so generous with her time to help then.
More About SARAH LORRETTA KNIGHT:
Religion: Roman Catholic
Occupation: Municipal Court Clerk, Irvington, NJ
Hobbies: Camping, ceramics,crochet, knit,
Education: Graduated High School
Military: Formed Natl Assn Court Clerks,first president
Residences: Newark, Hillside, Irvington, Brooksville, Fl
Residences: 1993-2000, Miami, Fl10
Medical Information: Osteoporosis, Diabetes, Heart problems, Emphysema,
Cancer.
Burial: Holy Sepulchre Cemetery, East Orange, NJ. in the Knight family
plot.
Notes for GEORGE FELIX KLEIN:
The parents of George Felix Klein were Felix Klein and Julia Alexovitz,
according to Joan Mazauskas. George owned an electronics shop. He served in the
U.S. Navy abt 1920-23, and played fiddle and horn in the navy orchestra. He has
a daughter, Judy who married Bruce Buchanan and they live in Maplewood. Her
mother was Dorothy Ambelli Lacey Klein, George's deceased first wife.
George passed away August 8, 1998 in Maplewood, NJ.
More About GEORGE FELIX KLEIN:
Religion: Catholic
Occupation: General Electric, Western Electric, Kearny, NJ
Occupation: Electronics shop
Talent: Played violin and French Horn
Residences: Newark, Irvington, NJ, Brooksville, FL, Miami, FL
Military: U.S. Navy
Marriage Notes for SARAH KNIGHT
and GEORGE KLEIN:
This was the second marriage for both Loretta and George Klein. George
married first, Dorothy Ambielli Lacey, the widow of Edward Lacey. Edward was a
brother to Russell Lacey, Loretta's first husband.
Children of SARAH KNIGHT and RUSSELL
LACEY are:
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JOAN FLORENCE5 LACEY, b. January 25, 1933, Irvington General Hospital, Irvington, Essex Co.NJ. |
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PATRICIA ANN LACEY, b. October 31, 1934, Irvington, Essex Co. NJ. |
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LYNNE FRANCES LACEY, b. August 19, 1944, Irvington Gen. Hospital, Irvington, Essex Co. NJ. |
14. ROBERT JOSEPH KNIGHT (JOSEPH THOMAS3, HENRY PATRICK2, THOMAS1) was born March 16, 1916 in Newark, Essex Co. NJ11, and died October 22, 1994 in South Amboy, Middlesex Co. NJ. He married VIRGINIA “JEAN" MICHENFELDER October 12, 1946 in St Ann's R.C. Church, Newark, Essex Co. NJ12. She was born in the ironbound section of Newark, NJ on March 14, 1924 , and died November 26, 2006 near Corrales, NM. Both of their funerals were held at St. Laurence Roman Catholic church, her’s on December 2, 2006. Burial of both was in Holy Sepulchre Cemetery.
Robert J. Knight was known as
"Bob" to everyone. He organized the first Little League, Babe Ruth
League, Pop Warner League in the town of Laurence Harbor, located in what was
then known as Madison Township, now known as Old Bridge Township. He also
organized the Green Berets, marching teams, for the girls. He was the first
President of the Babe Ruth League. For the township he served on the recreation
committee for a long period, and he was Democratic Committeeman from Laurence
Harbor, plus he was president of the Democratic Club. He was noted for
his work in the community and in January 2000, a bronze plaque was placed in
the center of the neighborhood where he lived.
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Bob and Jean moved to Laurence Harbor in 1950. Before that, they lived in Irvington and before that in Newark.
Robert used the name Robert Thomas Knight all his life, but he was actually baptized as Robert Joseph Knight. He and his family were unaware that his birth certificate had him listed as Robert Joseph Knight until he applied for Social Security. He went by the name even after he discovered the mistake on the birth certificate. All census, military, newspaper, and business records have Robert T. Knight on them. He even named his first son Robert Thomas, Jr.
WAR RECOLLECTIONS OF ROBERT T. KNIGHT AS TOLD TO HIS SON PAUL J. KNIGHT IN 1993-1994
Robert T. Knight was inducted into the Army of the United States on 31 August 1941. After basic training at Camp Croft, Spartenburg, S.C., he was transferred to Fort Jackson, Columbia, S.C. and remained there until the summer of 1942. While there he was trained in the use of automatic weapons and specialized in the 30 caliber Browning water-cooled machine gun. He also was instructed in the use of a 30 cal. Enfield bolt action rifle and a 45 caliber pistol.
Bob shipped out from New York on 6 August 1942 and sailed to Reykiavik, Iceland. From there he was moved to Akureyi which is located along the Evja Q Fjord at the northern end of Iceland about 50 miles south of the Artic Circle. His camp was situated up on the slopes of a mountain above Akureyi. The weather was frigid and the snow endless. It was impossible to reach their camp by vehicle. The only access to the camp was by ski and donkey. He and his comrades used donkeys to carry supplies up, but the snow was so deep that the donkeys would often sink up to their bellies. Accommodations were spartan, being small tents with up to four men per tent.
Each night one man was responsible to keep the fire going. If he fell asleep, the fire would go out, and their boots would freeze and stiffen such that they could not get them on in the morning. Once a week a fishing group would go down to the Fjord and catch cod for the outfit. While at the mountain camp, they trained on snow shoes and skies. Norwegian soldiers did the training, and Bob was picked by them as part of a select group to form the ski troops. He and his comrades were subjected to rigorous alpine training by members of the Norwegian Olympic ski team. Their training activities included cross country sking and ski jumping. With the aid of the Norwegians, they built a 40 Ft. tall ski jump at the camp and became proficient in jumping off the run. They trained in white snow suits and carried their guns in a sling. Often they would have to herringbone to the top of the mountain in the bitter cold, only to return to a freezing tent.
They spent a year in Iceland during which time Bob visited the city of
Reykiavik where he was impressed by their use of volcanic steam to heat the
town. He even went swimming in the hot springs around the city.
Late in 1943 Bob was shipped from Iceland to Wales where he spent 5 months
practicing amphibious landing. From Wales he was shipped to Southampton on the
southern coast of England where he waited for the D-Day invasion. At that time
he volunteered and was accepted for the rangers (special forces) but he got
sick and was unable to complete the ranger training. He later heard that all
the men with whom he had trained in the ranger battalion were killed during the
invasion of France.
His time in Southampton was somewhat leisurely. His outfit would often play baseball until midnight and occasionally visit London. During one trip to London he was caught in a "V1 Rocket" attack that lasted for two days. He took shelter in the subways as the "buzz bombs" fell from the air throughout the city wreaking tremendous destruction. Upon completion of his duty in London Bob returned to Southampton expecting to resume the somewhat relaxed atmosphere that he had enjoyed there.
But on 6 June, 1944, he was awakened to the roar of thousands of airplanes as the invasion of France began. His outfit was mobilized and on 16 June, ten days after the invasion, he landed in Normandy on Omaha Beach. His company moved from there through Saint Lo in western Normandy, and on to Givet, France, located in the Arden along the border with Belgium. He saw his first action at Givet where he lived in a small shed in a valley near the town. Late one afternoon he heard the sound of approaching airplanes. Three German Messerschmitts were soaring down the valley to attack the town. Bob jumped on the back of a jeep which carried a mounted 50 caliber machine gun. He took aim as the planes approached. The planes were flying low and were unaware of his position. They were"sitting ducks" he remembered. When they were in range he pulled back the bolt, took careful aim and fired. A loud metallic click rose out of the gun chamber. The gun had misfired and by the time he could clear the chamber, the planes had swept by and were out of range.
From Givet, he was moved northward into Belgium and stationed at the town of Namur located along the Meuse River. During the summer of 1944 Bob was shipped to Fontainebleau just southeast of Paris. At allied headquarters in Fontainebleau a picture was taken of Bob leaning on General Eisenhower's car. Upon the liberation of Paris, he received a pass to visit the city. His recollections were of a city rejoicing. Night clubs were reopening and he was privileged to see a performance of the famous Parisian "Can-Can" girls.
In December of 1944 the Battle of the Bulge began. Bob's Company H was loaded into boxcars and rapidly shipped from Fontainebleau to Belgium. Upon arrival they were ordered into ski duty and were outfitted with skis, snow suits, 30 caliber Enfield rifles and 45 caliber pistols. During the early part of the battle, the sky was cloudy and the weather was terrible. Bob remembered that when the weather cleared, the sky was filled with allied bombers, and the ground shook all day from the impact of their bombs. During the heat of the Battle of the Bulge, his unit (on skis) passed through the German lines. They were three miles behind the lines when their Sergeant spotted Germans hiding in the nearby woods. The sergeant passed the order back through the company not to look at the Germans but to continue on.
Luckily the Germans did not want to reveal their position and refrained from firing on Company H, When Company H got past the German troops, they circled around back to the allied lines and reported the German position. A massive artillery barrage was laid down on the forest, shattering trees into splintered wooden shrapnel and killing many of the Germans. After their action behind the German lines, his exhausted company was moved to the rear and assigned to guard German prisoners.
At the end of the Battle of the Bulge, his unit moved across the Rhine River into Germany to the cities of Ludwigshafen and Manheim which had been gutted by battle. He met many of the residents in the cities and felt that of all the European people he had encountered, that the German people were the closest in life style to Americans. From Germany he was moved back to Namur, Belgium and remained there until the surrender of Germany, at which time he was shipped to England. There he had to wait many weeks before he could get a boat back to the U.S. He arrived in New York on 3 October, 1945, and was discharged on 8 October 1945.
During his military service Bob received the American Defense Service Medal, European-African-Middle Eastern Service Medal and the Good Conduct Medal.
Robert Knight was buried in Section L, Lot 301, Grave 1, in the Knight family plot , Holy Sepulchre Cemetery. Jean plans to be buried there with him. Robert died of chronic lung disease and ischemic heart disease.
More About ROBERT JOSEPH KNIGHT:
Christened: St. Catherine's R.C. Church, Hillside, NJ
Religion: Member St. Laurence R.C. Church
Occupation: General Motors, Linden, NJ Shop Steward
Occupation: Installed automobile windshield Glass
Hobbies: Baseball, Bowling, skating, sports in general
Talent: Good with people and kids
Education: 1 year High School, Hillside, NJ
Residences: Newark, Hillside, Irvington, Laurence Harbor
Military: 1941-1945, P.F.C.118 Inf. Co. H. 30th Div, U.S. Army13
Cause of Death: Chronic Lung Disease, Ischemic Heart Disease
Medical Information: Cancer of Prostate, Hypertension, Abdominal aneurysm
More About VIRGINIA "JEAN"
MICHENFELDER:
Christened: St. Columbus R.C. Ch, Newark, NJ
Religion: Member St. Laurence R.C. Church
Occupation: 1942, Prudential Ins, Co Clerical Work
Occupation: 1964-1989, Clerical at Perth Amboy General Hospital
Hobbies: Crochet, senior club activities, work puzzles
Talent: Amiable, good personality, smart
Education: 1942, West Side High School, Newark, NJ
Education: Worked O.B. tax accessor's office 1960-1963
Residences: "Down neck" Newark, Irvington, Laurence Harbor since
1950
Medical Information: Hypertension
Children of ROBERT KNIGHT and VIRGINIA
MICHENFELDER are:
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ROBERT THOMAS5 KNIGHT, b. March 10, 1948, Newark, Essex Co. NJ, St. Michaels Hospital. |
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PAUL JOSEPH KNIGHT, b. November 21, 1952, St. Michaels Hospital, Newark, Essex Co. NJ. |
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Updated 30 April 2000 by Thelma F. Prince |
