What does it mean when a generation dies? How much is lost when the last of a family’s generation passes away?
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She was Mary Margaret McMahon, but her family nicknamed her “Tiny” because of her small frame (often shortened to just “Tine”). She married Joseph Mattimore at Holy Family Church in 1925. Of her 23 grandchildren, she only knew the first six — all aged three and under — before her death in 1957. She had just turned 63 when she died. Here is the story of our Grandmother Mattimore, whom we never knew.
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October 10th is the 58th anniversary of the death of our grandfather Joseph Mattimore. He was only 66 years old when he died. It was totally unexpected, and likely a terrible shock to his five children, and to Harry, his only sibling. There was drama involved. And baseball. Read on for the story…
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Genealogy research is always evolving as new documents are digitized and more and more people take DNA tests. From time to time I’ll share updates to previous posts or new information as I discover it. This is one of those updates.
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October brings crisper air and baseball playoffs — the perfect time for a Mattimore baseball story. Great-grandfather Henry Mattimore’s older brother Mike was a professional baseball player. Born in 1858, about three years before the American Civil War, Mike played in four major league seasons between 1887 and 1890. Although our great-granduncle’s pro career was short, it was a lively one.
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Throw your name into the virtual hat for a chance to win an Ancestry DNA kit. I’m doing an end-of-summer flash drawing for anyone in Mattimore-land who is interested. I have two (2) DNA kits to give away.
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If you look deep enough, you’ll find that almost all family trees have questionable ancestors or even hidden scandals. Ours is no exception. Read on for the story of our great, great grandfather Cornelius O’Rourke.
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When I found a newspaper clipping about someone searching for a Michael Mattimoe, it gave me goosebumps. This was a whisper from the past. A small one, but one that was 166 years old. Was this our Michael Mattimoe? Our immigrant ancestor who left Ireland during the Great Famine? Was someone in his family looking for him so long ago?
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How is it we are here, walking this path in life? What circumstances had to happen in order for our great grandfather Henry Mattimore to be born in Renovo, Pennsylvania in 1862 in the midst of the American Civil War? His parents, unknown to each other, had come from different parts of Ireland on different ships at different times, and had somehow ended up in proximity to each other in the same American city.
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Do siblings have the same DNA? It seems like brothers and sisters should have the same ancestry background. After all, they have the same parents, right? While biological siblings DO have the same family tree — parents, grandparents and so on, their genetic code might be different. Because of how DNA is passed on, it is possible for siblings to have differences in their ancestry at the DNA level.
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