52 Ancestors 52 Weeks – Large Family

Blogger Amy Johnson Crow has challenged us with writing about an Ancestor once a week for the year 2019.  She will give us prompts to get us started.  This week's prompt is Large Family.

My great grandparents, William John Mathers and Mary McCrudden Mathers, had 9 children 7 who lived to adulthood. My grandfather, William Mathers/Mathews was the youngest child and only 1 of 2 boys.  The second oldest, James was born in 1868 and my grandfather was born in 1884 quite a difference in age. William John Mathers was a shoemaker and in the 1880 New York Census he lived at 226 W. 28^th Street, New York City and had his wife and 7 children living above his shop.

When the children got married and had children, they all stayed very close.  They lived within several blocks to each other in New York City.  The grandchildren of William Mathers and Mary McCrudden Mathers were 32 in number.  The families got together for every special occasion.

Their Children were-

Mary Jane – Married Joseph Flanagan and had 12 children

James – Married Cecelia O’Brien and had 1 son

Catherine – Married Patrick Morris and had 2 daughters

Ellen (Nellie) – Married William Hickey and had 6 children

Ann – Married William White and had 2 daughters

Theresa – Married William Rudolph and had 5 children

William – Married Mary (Mamie) McGuigan and had 4 children

The grandchildren were born between 1890 and 1924.  Grandma, Mary McCrudden Mathers was alive for all their births, she died in 1933.  Unfortunately, Grandpa, William John Mathers only lived until 1902.

Even though William and Mary had 7 children and I think that is a large family, their oldest daughter, Mary Jane had a larger family.  Mary Jane Mathers and Joseph Flanagan had 12 children, their oldest was born in 1890 and their youngest was born in 1914.  The amazing thing is their youngest who was born in 1914 lived until 2015.