According to the 1900 Federal Census, Maria Gabriel was born in Pittsburgh in July 1890 to Jacob Gabriel and Philomena Abt, both born in Germany. At that time, Jacob and Philomena "Minnie" K. Gabriel had the following children: John, 19, Joseph, 17, Alis, 15, Marie, 9, Minnie, 8, and Sadie, 8 months.

The mother died December 13, 1909. The father died April 19, 1931.

At 6:20 a.m. on January 3, 1942, Miss Marie Gabriel, a resident of 4744 Friendship Avenue, Pittsburgh, burned to death when the rooming house she lived in caught fire.

The news article says she was employed at West Penn Hospital; the death record indicates St. Francis Hospital. Her exact age is unclear, but it matters not.

DEATH NOTICE: Gabriel - Suddenly, on Saturday Jan 3, 1942, in her 51st year, Marie Catherine Gabriel, of 4744 Friendship Ave., Pittsburgh. Friends received at Maloy Funeral Home, 616 West Grant Ave., Duquesne, Pa. Requiem high mass Wednesday, Jan 7, at 9:30 a.m. in Holy Name Church, Duquesne. Interment in Braddock Catholic Cemetery, Braddock.

On January 5, 1942, it was announced in The Pittsburgh Press that Miss Marie Butler, 38, a clerk for the Reliance Life Insurance Company, had died from her injuries.