Ancestral Homes : Cushina, County Offaly

This old Irish farmhouse, in Cushina, County Offaly, Ireland was home for my Murray ancestors. Joseph Murray (1869-1939) younger brother of my great great grandmother, Agnes Murray, lived here. Agnes immigrated to America in the 1880s and the rest of the Murray clan remained home in County Offaly.

Joseph Murray home, Cushina, County Offaly

Below is another old Irish farmhouse in Cushina. Home of John Murray (1865-1932). Another brother of Agnes Murray. I wonder if he is seated in the chair? Supposedly his son-in-law, James Whelehan, is in the photo. Also, I am curious if these homes are still standing? Picture dates to the late 1920s or early 1930s.

John Murray home, Cushina, County Offaly

Ancestral Homes : 171 Hollywood Avenue

Ok, this house may not be in a historic district or be very "old." But it was my grandfather's house. Joseph Albert Koreman built the house in the 1950s with union labor. He would have it no other way. He was the Business Agent for the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW #724) in Albany from 1947 till 1976.

171 Hollywood Avenue, circa 1990

Below is photo of 171 Hollywood Avenue recently taken in December 2018.

December 2018

Circa September 1992, I planted the maple tree on the front lawn. It was removed by myself and a good friend from a cousin's home. We transplanted it here. Looks like someone gave it a "little" trimming. The front lawn is a sod lawn. With a little maintenance, water, fertilizer, and shade from the tree cover, this property should have the nicest lawn on the street during the warmer months.

Ancestral Homes : 44 West Van Vechten Street

44 West Van Vechten Street

44 West Van Vechten Street, Albany, off Second Avenue. Ancestral home of my grandfather, George Edward Kirk White (1910-1982). He grew up in this house with his four sisters:

• Margaret Agnes White (1905-1984) married Stanley Carr
• Clara Edna White (1906-1978) married George Jacob Fleig
• Mary Wilson White (1908-1973) married Elton T. Blanchard
• Marie Mulder White (1912-1976) married John Joseph Fish

And his parents:

• George Washington White (1871-1935) and Clara Hitchcock Boyd (1882-1966).

George Washington White

Clara Boyd Hitchcock White

Ancestral Homes : 47 Alexander Street, Albany

47 Alexander Street, circa 2014

The home above, 47 Alexander Street, was that of my 2nd great-granduncle, Stephen Behrhof. Younger brother of my great great grandmother Margaret Behrhof Koreman. Stephen was a tailor who worked with his nephew Henry Koreman Jr. A 1900 Albany city directory lists their business as

Koreman & Behrhof, clothier, 276 South Pearl.

An article from the Knickerbocker News on 03 September 1968, 1:1 by Charley Mooney mentions William Lofink saying "I just made my weekly payment of $1 at Koreman & Behrhof's, 276 South Pearl Street where they sell $15 suits. Then I stopped at George Deiseroth's bakery, Third Avenue and Elizabeth Street (this will be the focus of the next blog post).

This home is no longer standing if my memory serves me correctly. A series of homes were torn down soon afterward. Many of the homes in this section of the South End were built circa 1855-1860.

Ancestral Homes : 9 Benjamin Street, Albany

9 Benjamin Street, Albany
Home of ggg grandfather, Joseph Albert

Ancestral Home : 445 Clinton Avenue, Albany

445 Clinton Avenue, Albany
Home of great great grandfather Charles William White
one of few homes on Clinton Avenue with a front lawn

Wordless Wednesday : 120 Morton Avenue, Albany

120 Morton Avenue, Albany
Home of my gg grandfather
Henry Koreman

Wordless Wednesday : 42 Delaware Street

42 Delaware Street, Albany
Birth place of numerous Bailey
Ancestors & Relatives

Wordless Wednesday : 187 First Street

187 First Street, Albany
Former home of Klaasje Klasen Booy
great great great grandmother

Wordless Wednesday : 55 Second Avenue, Albany, NY

55 Second Avenue, Albany
Home of my great great great grandfather
John Albert

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: Week 39; Jacobus Mulder & 73 Dove Street

It seems that I fell behind on my weekly ancestor bios. Summer and nice weather holds lots of things to do over research and writing. But, after racing around in yesterday's Albany History Race and being very near to a home of one of my great great great grandparents located at 73 Dove Street in Center Square I decided to revisit these ancestors.

Jacobus Mulder and Klaasje Klasen Booij were both Dutch immigrants to America. Jacobus, born 7 March 1824 in Leerdam, Zuid-Holland, Netherlands arrived in New York aboard the "Emblem" on 24 August 1848 with his siblings and German-born parents, Christian Friedrich Moller and Ursula Muller.

Klaasje, born 14 March 1833 in Oostellingwerf, Friesland, Netherlands also arrived in New York in 1847 with her siblings and parents, Klaas Booij and Geesje Raeloss Hoorn. At some point after arrival in the United States my ancestors names changed.

Klaas Booij changed to Nicholas Boyd. Geesje Raeloss Hoorn Booij became Lucretia Boyd. Their children's names changed also; Klaasje Klasen Booij was now Clara Boyd; brother Remmelt Klaus Booij became Robert Boyd; and younger brother Mense Booij was now known as Nelson Boyd.

Jacobus and Clara both Dutch immigrants met in Albany and were married on 13 July 1850 at the Madison Avenue Reformed Church. Jacobus was naturalized in Albany and became a United States citizen on 23 October 1854.

1854 Jacobus Mulder Naturalization

Soon after becoming American citizens the couple began their family which included:

• Eugenia: (03 October 1855 - 03 March 1876)
• John Nelson: (13 August 1858 - 12 June 1878)
• Maria Louisa: (11 November 1859 - 19 February 1919) married Edward Kirk Hitchcock
• Nicholas Boyd: (19 June 1862 - 03 October 1919) married Euretta E. Bates
• James: (08 December 1873 - 06 July 1928) married Henrietta Dorothy Karl

73 Dove Street, May 2015

In the early 1870s the family purchased 73 Dove Street. Jacobus was a carver and I am curious whether his shop was on the first floor of his home. The interior photos of the home were found on the Internet when the home was previously for sale.

73 Dove Street, interior, pre 2014

73 Dove Street, interior, pre 2014

Shortly after daughter Eugenia died in March 1876 from consumption, Jacobus purchased a plot in Albany Rural Cemetery on 20 May 1876 for $50.00. 

1876 lot purchase card

On 19 December 1887, Jacobus died from pneumonia at 73 Dove Street. His wife, Clara, died on 19 February 1920 from arterio sclerosis. They are buried in the Mulder family plot at Albany Rural Cemetery.

Mulder plot in Albany Rural Cemetery

Old Homestead

A lot of us talk about what it was like going to grandma or grandpa's house when we were kids. But how many people can say they know the house that their great grandparents or earlier lived in. I have a small collection of photos of the home's of my ancestors when they lived in Albany. Most of the photos are recent.

A decision was made to check out the ancestral homes of my relatives after viewing city directories for years and documenting where they lived. Then I thought, lets see if these houses are still standing and what it looks like today. I have found that some are in great shape and others, well, not in as great shape.

Further below are a couple of photos of the former home of my ggg grandfather, Thomas O'Donnell. He was a longtime resident at 31 Van Zandt Street in Albany. Thomas was born in County Tipperary, Ireland in 1827. Thomas immigrated in 1844; perhaps to Canada for a cheaper fare to North America. He may have come through Grosse Île, Quebec’s former immigrant quarantine station. Canada's Ellis Island. This might be feasible because he married Catherine McCarthy in 1845 in Montreal and their oldest child Mary Anne was born in Canada the following year. Children of Thomas and Catherine:

• Mary Anne (1846-1895) married James A. Burns
• Johanna (1853-1912) married Henry Joseph Bailey
• William (1856-1888)
• John James (1858-1892) married Rose M. Clair

By 1853 the family was living in Albany where the rest of the children were born. Thomas was a laborer, served in the Civil War, and died on 25 September 1869. He was originally buried in St. John's Cemetery on Delaware Avenue in Albany. After all of the interments were removed, there is no trace of him being re-buried in St. Agnes' Cemetery where his wife is buried.

Below; two angles of 31 Van Zandt Street, Albany, New York.

Anna Simon; 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: Week 8

For this week's ancestor bio I picked Anna Simon who married Josef Eger; younger brother to my great great grandfather Georg Eger.  Tante Anna was picked because of the number of children that she and Josef had.  I believe that I have another ancestor in my database who had more children than Anna but I just cannot remember her name at the moment.

Anna Simon was born on 05 February 1873 in Trausnitz in the German state of Bayern after Bismarck's unification of all German states into the country of Deutschland.  She married Josef Eger who was born on 09 February 1870 in Trausnitz also.  They were married on 08 October 1895 and had the following children.

• Katharina (09 September 1894 - 23 March 1976) married Alois Rottler
• Margarete (06 August 1896 - xxxx)
• Josef (21 June 1897 - xxxx)
• Johann (10 May 1898 - 14 February 1962)
• Josef (16 April 1899 - 08 December 1975) married Anna Lobinger
• Mathias (02 March 1900 - xxxx)
• Maria (22 February 1901 - xxxx)
• Mathias (27 March 1902 - xxxx)
• Margarete (28 April 1903 - xxxx)
• Michael (29 October 1904 - 07 September 1992) married Franzisha Vogl
• Margarete (04 December 1905 - 1974)
• Georg (16 January 1907 - 1907)
• Georg (11 December 1907 - 1993) married Elisabeth Simon
• Maria (11 April 1909 - xxxx) married Georg Schulmeyer
• Barbara (30 April 1910 - xxxx)
• Andreai (05 July 1911 - xxxx)
• Anna (20 September 1912 - xxxx)
• stillborn boy (13 April 1914)

Josef Eger died on 18 August 1954 and Anna died three days later on the 21st.

Below is a photo of my ancestral home in Trausnitz.  My great great grandfather, Georg Eger was born here and Josef and Anna raised their family here also.