Peter Thomas Karr

Kerr Coat of Arms

McDermott Coat of Arms

The Headstone of Peter & Veronica Karr

Grandpa Pete's Death Certificate

Peter Karr's Police Personnel Record Page #2

Peter Karr's Police Personnel Record Page #1

Peter Thomas Karr WWI Draft Registration Card

xii. Peter Thomas Karr (born on 8 Nov 1899 in Chicago, Cook, Illinois, USA - died on 10 Jul 1945 in Chicago, Cook, Illinois, USA).

Peter married Rose Veronica McDermott on 29 Apr 1922 in Chicago, Cook, Illinois, USA. Marriage status: married. Rose was born on 1 Jul 1897 in Chicago, Cook, Illinois, USA, died on 4 Jun 1967 in Chicago, Cook, Illinois, USA at age 69, and was buried on 9 Jun 1967 in St. Mary's Cemetery, Chicago, Cook, Illinois, USA.

What happened to the surname of Kerr? Well, there are 2 family stories and 1 story conjured up by a vivid imagination. The first story I heard was from Aunt Catherine. She stated that Grandpa changed the name because he did not like the connotation of a cur (an obsolete term that denotes a mongrel or inferior dog). Another story says he changed the name during the war (one of the World Wars - never found out which one) because he did not want to be thought of as being of German descent. My vivid imagination thought he changed the name because he was Chicago cop and was trying to disguise his person by changing his last name. I thought he would have been hiding from the mob. (Hey, I did not say it was logical, only a part of a vivid imagination.)