My wife Victoria’s earliest memories of her great-grandmother, Hazel Quinn Krupa, are full of warmth. As a child, she’d sit beside Hazel at the nursing home, holding her soft, delicate hands. Hazel’s snow-white hair framed a calm, kind face. The nurses, amused, spoke of her sly habit of “borrowing” small items from other patients.1 Another great-granddaughter recalls Hazel offering her orange Tic Tacs—a small, cherished gesture.2 To her great-grandchildren, Hazel was a quiet, kind presence.
![Photograph of Hazel Quinn Krupa and her great-granddaughter, Victoria, taken in Whitman, Massachusetts, about 1994; digital image provided by [mother-in-law's name withheld for privacy], with permission of photographer and living subject.](https://i0.wp.com/cmlgenealogy.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/447cfafe-c25b-467b-937e-4e750e901a46.jpg?resize=736%2C598&ssl=1)
Photograph of Hazel Quinn Krupa and her great-granddaughter, Victoria, taken in Whitman, Massachusetts, about 1993; digital image provided by my mother-in-law [name withheld for privacy], shown here with permission of photographer and living subject.
These memories paint a serene picture, but Hazel’s life was far from simple. Born on 19 May 1909, in Brockton, Massachusetts, she was the daughter of Canadian immigrants, Marshall Quinn and Flora Pearl Sabean.3 Hazel’s 91 years included two marriages, two daughters—Brenda and Elaine—and a life of fierce independence and complex family dynamics.4
Victoria’s recollections differ from her mother’s, offering a contrasting perspective. My mother-in-law remembers Hazel as stern, her once-red hair turning white after a workplace accident. Hazel’s sharp wit once deterred her and her twin sister from swimming in a hotel pool, warning them of alligators. Her memories mix humor and frustration, shaped by Hazel’s critical nature. For example, Hazel advised her to “listen to your husband” during a marital dispute—ironic, given Hazel’s two divorces.5
Hazel’s independence extended to her career. A granddaughter recalls her as head of housekeeping at a Nantucket hotel, managing staff with authority. The same granddaughter notes a sometimes complicated relationship between Hazel and her daughter Brenda, but it was Hazel who intervened when Brenda’s marriage became volatile, ensuring her safety and helping her rebuild her life.6
The death certificate of Hazel Q. Krupa offers only a skeleton of details: she passed away on 28 June 2000, in Abington, Massachusetts, from cardiac arrest, with diabetes and dementia contributing. At the time, she was listed as divorced and had worked as an executive housekeeper.7
But Hazel was so much more than these dry facts.
Hazel’s story is a reminder of the complexity of a human life. While her great-grandchildren experienced her as a figure of quiet kindness, earlier generations knew a woman of sharp contrasts: strict yet loving, independent yet flawed. Her role as a mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother spanned moments of conflict and reconciliation, disappointment and deep connection.
Her burial at Fern Hill Cemetery in Hanson, Massachusetts, on 30 June 2000,8 a hot summer day,9 marked the close of a life full of transformation and resilience. Hazel’s legacy, preserved through both official records and family memories, challenges us to see our ancestors in their full humanity. She was not just the elderly woman Victoria knew, or solely the strict matron her granddaughters recall—she was all of these things and more.
Photograph of Hazel Quinn Krupa with her great-granddaughter, Victoria, taken at the Colony House Nursing Home, Abington, Massachusetts, about 1998; digital image provided by my mother-in-law [name withheld for privacy], shown here with permission of photographer and living subject.
![Photograph of Hazel Quinn Krupa with her great-granddaughter, Victoria, taken at the Colony House Nursing Home, Abington, Massachusetts, about 1998; digital image provided by [mother-in-law's name withheld for privacy], with permission of photographer and living subject.](https://i0.wp.com/cmlgenealogy.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/57ef655d-7fbc-40b7-b8ef-4225f6f77ff1.jpg?resize=736%2C730&ssl=1)
This is just an introduction to Hazel Quinn. It is the beginning of my exploration into her life, and the beginning of a broader project to uncover and share the lives of all sixteen of my children’s great-great-grandparents. Each ancestor left behind a legacy shaped by triumphs and struggles, and each story deserves to be told in full. I invite you to join me as we continue this journey, exploring individual records, family narratives, and the historical context that shaped their lives.
- Recollections of Hazel’s great-granddaughter, Victoria, Dec 2024. ↩︎
- Recollections of Hazel’s great-granddaughter, Dec 2024. ↩︎
- Massachusetts, Plymouth County, Abington, certificate of death, registered no. 72, Hazel Q. Krupa, 28 Jun 2000; certified long-form copy from Abington Town Clerk’s Office, obtained 04 Dec 2024. ↩︎
- For sources relating to these generalized statements, please see Hazel’s Research and Records page; Christopher M Lather, “#31. Hazel Quinn, Research and Records,” Christopher M. Lather Genealogy (https://cmlgenealogy.com). ↩︎
- Recollections of Hazel’s granddaughter (my mother-in-law), Dec 2024. Name withheld to protect privacy. ↩︎
- Recollections of Hazel’s granddaughter, Dec 2024. Name withheld to protect privacy. ↩︎
- Certificate of Death for Hazel Q. Krupa. ↩︎
- Ibid. ↩︎
- Recollections of Hazel’s great-granddaughter, Dec 2024. ↩︎
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