Friday, January 31, 2014

THOMAS NICHOLAS MURPHY - #3 52 ANCESTORS IN 52 WEEKS


In January 2014, Amy Johnson Crow of the Ancestry blog issued the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge.

The premise: write once a week about a specific ancestor. It could be a story, a biography, a photograph, a research problem — any that focuses on that one ancestor. The next week, write about a different ancestor. In 52 weeks, you’ll have taken a closer look at 52 people in your family tree… and maybe learned a little bit more about them in the process.

I have taken the challenge and this week I am talking about my Father-in-Law, Thomas N. Murphy. 


Tom Murphy was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1909 to Thomas Murphy and Florence McDonald. He was the second of four children, John born in 1906, Virginia in 1911 and Eileen in 1913.




He originally worked for the NY Parks Department but when World War 2 came he started working at the Brooklyn Navy Yard.  He was not eligible for service because he was blind in one eye. 


He married Mary Glessoff also of Brooklyn in 1935.  They had one son.


In his early 20's he participated in the Golden Gloves in Brooklyn.  It was a great organization for young men.  They had competitions all over the New York City area.


Tom was a very social person; he loved to get people together for a party.  He, after moving to Hicksville with his family, became the founder of the Millwood Gate Civic Association.


Another love he had was coaching Little League Baseball.  His team of neighborhood boys had several winning years.   Tom also had an unusual gift for math.


While living in Hicksville he was a truck driver for Tidewater Oil Company.  He worked nights delivering to many of the gas stations on Long Island. 


He was  a truly great person. We lost him too early at 51 years old.






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