Eveline Yvonne (Breault) O'Connell, age 32
Mrs. Eveline Yvonne (Breault) O'Connell of Main Street, Unionville, was born May 25, 1912 in Woonsocket, Rhode Island, daughter of Woonsocket natives Josephine (Durocher) and Celestine Breault. Mrs. O'Connell leaves her husband, Dr. Enos J. O'Connell; their sons, Robert, 6, and James, 2; and their daughter Judy, 3. Eveline attended the circus with her two older children, Robert, 6, and Doris Jean, 4; her father-in-law, Daniel O'Connell; and her husband's aunt Annie Burns. The group sat in the northeast section of the big top, section V or W, and became separated when trying to escape from the burning tent. Eveline was found dead at the circus grounds after the fire on July 6, with her daughter Doris Jean dead in her arms. Annie Burns was found gravely injured and later died from her injuries, while 6-year-old Robert O'Connell and his grandfather were able to escape with their lives.
Body #1552 was identified as Eveline by an unburned shoe by her husband, Dr. Enos J. O'Connell on Thursday, July 6 at the State Armory morgue and removed to Hale Funeral Home in Unionville for burial at St. Mary's Cemetery in Avon. In 1930, Eveline's piano talent led her to the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston where she polished her skills and became a concert pianist. She turned down an offer of a joint national tour with a future TV celebrity after Dr. O'Connell proposed to marry her. The two were married in 1936 and soon moved to Unionville. Mrs. O'Connell's estate was awarded $12,000 by the arbitration board.
Eveline's son Robert O'Connell's story about his family and their experience can be read here: A Circus Fire Survivor's Story
Body #1552 was identified as Eveline by an unburned shoe by her husband, Dr. Enos J. O'Connell on Thursday, July 6 at the State Armory morgue and removed to Hale Funeral Home in Unionville for burial at St. Mary's Cemetery in Avon. In 1930, Eveline's piano talent led her to the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston where she polished her skills and became a concert pianist. She turned down an offer of a joint national tour with a future TV celebrity after Dr. O'Connell proposed to marry her. The two were married in 1936 and soon moved to Unionville. Mrs. O'Connell's estate was awarded $12,000 by the arbitration board.
Eveline's son Robert O'Connell's story about his family and their experience can be read here: A Circus Fire Survivor's Story
