Martin Mahoney

The Beaver Township Clan


Martin Mahoney Age 24	Martin and Mary Their Wedding Picture

Martin Mahoney was my grandfather. He was born on April 30, 1873. He had a twin sister, Jane, who died of measles about six weeks after she was born. She is buried in the Cemetery at Chestnut Corners where the Immaculate Conception Church was.

Martin went to Buffalo, N.Y., to find work. We have always assumed that his older brother, Marcus, was influential in both getting Martin to come to Buffalo and in helping him find a job. He was a street car conductor. On September 7,1898, he married Mary Elizabeth Schweitzer, born September 12, 1879, in Port Colbourne, Ontario, Canada to Jacob Schweitzer and Caroline Gruber. Martin and Mary's first son, John Jacob, was born on October 16, 1899. In Buffalo, N.Y.

In July of 1902, Martin received a letter from his father, John, which reads as follows:

Conneatville, Pa.
July 8, 1902

My dear son Martin,

You may be a little surprised when I tell you that I am sick and suffering from a bad fall which I got July 1st. I went to see Mrs. McCabe and road with another man and in getting out of the rig fell backward and struck on my neck and it is a great wonder that I was not killed.

years. You may have the place when I we are gone. All we ask is a good living and comfort the remainder of our lives, and surely you cannot think this only fair. Up to this time we have been quite able to manage, but now your mother is not capable of managing all the affairs of the house and as far as Mamie and I are concerned I am sure she and I will agree and John Jacob will keep us company. If you come home we will talk the matter over and come

The muscles in the neck are quite badly strained and the whole body jarred I can sit up only a few minutes at a time and that tires me out badly. Dr. Greenfield has come several times but I improve very slowly. I am afraid my working days are over and George cannot do all the work. Now I will make you an offer which I have never made any of the others. If you come here and take good care of your Mother and me, which may be for only a few

to some agreement. Mary went house keeping in Cleveland about a month ago. The Sisters came home last Saturday when they heard I was sick. They will return to Erie next Monday. Now write as soon as you receive this. We have free delivery here now and will receive your letter as soon as it arrives. I hope you are all well. With love and best wishes to all

I am your loving
father
J. Mahoney

Martin and his wife were not eager to accept this offer. As Jim writes "Martin had no great desire to return and take over the farm; for one thing, he must have felt that George really deserved it; and, besides, he had a good job as a streetcar operator and seems to have already decided against being a farmer. It took him another year to act, evidently looking into the alternatives and sounding out the family in the meantime.

"If Martin was not eager to go and live on the farm, his wife must have relished the idea even less. It was her the offer depended on, for she was the one who was needed to take care of Martin's aging parents, especially the mother, who was becoming an invalid eventually unable to feed or bathe herself and who was so helpless in her last days that she had to be tied in her chair when she was left alone."

There was another letter from John to his son, Martin:

Conneautville, Pa. Jan. 2, 1904 My dear son Martin Your mother is some better than she was but is not able to walk but a very little. If you are satisfied to come I will give you a deed to the place and everything on it	There is not much more time to write. How is Mark. The Sisters are going back to day so we are alone. Write as soon as you get it. Love to you all From us all Your Loving father John Mahoney
Only I would want a life lease of it for myself and your mother. We want you to write right away and let us know what you would do for we need Mamie the worst way. Now, we want you to be satisfied and I think we will get along peaceful. Your mother is very anxious to have you come. How are Mamie and John?

Martin's wife, Mary, Jim adds "agreed to go on the condition that after the old folks were gone they would return to Buffalo, a promise that was made but somehow never carried out."

As he had promised, John gave Martin a deed to the farm. There is a property transfer recorded at the Crawford County Courthouse (Deed book 163 601), in which the farm passed from John and his wife, Mary, to Martin and his wife, Mary E. Mahoney. George Mahoney was the witness. The transaction was dated Feb. 25, 1904.

The picture above, although undated, is the farm about as it looked when Martin got it from his parents. If you look closely enough, you will see what appears to be a Model T Ford sitting in the driveway just to the left of the old milk house.

Here is the family record sheet for Martin and Mary.

________________________________________________________________________________

Husband: Martin Mahoney

   Born: 30 Apr 1873      at: Beaver Twp., Crawford Co., Pa.  
Married: 7 Sep 1898       at: Buffalo, Erie Co., N.Y.  
   Died: 27 Dec 1941      at: Meadville, Crawford Co., Pa.  
 Father:John Mahoney
 Mother:Mary Hinchey
______________________________________________________________________________

   Wife: Mary Elizabeth Schweitzer

   Born: 12 Sep 1879      at: Port Colburne, , Ontario, Canada  
   Died: 13 Jul 1971      at: Meadville, Crawford Co., Pa.  
 Father:Jacob Schweitzer
 Mother:Caroline Gruber
________________________________________________________________________________

CHILDREN
________________________________________________________________________________

   Name: John Jacob Mahoney
   Born: 16 Oct 1899      at: Buffalo, Erie Co., N.Y.  
Married: 25 Nov 1926      at: Buffalo, Erie Co., N.Y.  
   Died: 23 Sep 1980      at: Buffalo, , NY  
Spouses: Antoinette Ann Endres  
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   Name: Edward Paul Mahoney
   Born: 6 Jul 1905       at: Beaver Twp., Crawford Co., Pa.  
Married: 14 Aug 1934      at: Conneautville, , Pa.  
   Died: 12 Sep 1983      at: Meadville, Crawford Co., Pa.  
Spouses: Anna Marie Fobes 
 
________________________________________________________________________________

   Name: Daniel Mahoney
   Born: 8 Oct 1918       at: Beaver Twp., Crawford Co., Pa.  
Married: 17 Sep 1949      at: Crossingville, , Pa.  
   Died: 26 Sep 1989      at: Erie, Erie Co., Pa.  
Spouses: Catherine Tobin
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