Chicopee man traces roots

2009-09-09T10:39:00.007-04:00

By Dennis Hohenberger - Correspondent

CHICOPEE – Twenty five years ago Fran Malone, a genealogist, began his quest to trace his family’s roots. The journey started with a graveside conversation.

Malone’s philosophy about genealogy is simple: “The longer you wait, the more difficult it becomes,” as the living have more answers than the dead. His grandparents passed away before he was born and his father died in 1969.

Even without those first-hand accounts, Malone slowly pieced together decades of research, contained in 15 binders that sit on a shelf next to his desk, an extensive computer data-base, and a family tree that contains over 9,400 names, with branches that go back centuries, and roots that extend to Ireland, France, and beyond.

“Each family is an individual and has their own history. But, each family is also connected to the next family that you marry into,” said the retired U.S. Air Force T. Sgt. “So that family becomes part of the big picture.”

His desire to research his roots began as he stood at the grave of his aunt, Lillian Edwards, who was the last of her generation on his father’s side (Cyril Malone). Malone’s sister, Peggy Wietecha, leaned over to him and said, “‘Take a look at the family and how small it has gotten. We have no clue where we even came from.’”

He thought about what his sister had said and gazed out over the cemetery. After the services, he went home and took out a baby book his parents had started. The book contained the names of his parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents.

Malone said most family histories end with the greatgrandparents, as did his family’s.

Shortly after his aunt’s funeral, Malone went to St. Patrick’s Church and obtained the birth, marriage, and death records of family members. He discovered that his great-grandfather, Patrick W. Malone, who came to Chicopee by way of Ventry, County Kerry, Ireland, died in April 1925. With that tidbit of information, Malone then looked up the obituary at the Springfield Library.

The obituary revealed vital information, as it contained the names of his great-grandfather’s brothers: John and William, who moved to Chicopee, and Thomas, who remained in Ireland. He also knew his father had a cousin named William Malone.

He found a William Malone in the Springfield phone book. A women answered the phone when he called. At the start of their conversation, the names he had found began to match up, but her father’s arrival in the country did not jibe.

When he asked her what her grandfather’s name was, she told him it was Thomas (Patrick’s brother) but that he remained in Ireland. The family tree took on new branches that day. She added that Thomas’s parent’s were William Malone and Elizabeth Connor.

Years later, Malone’s sister would visit the family home in Ireland. She met the great-great-grandson of the person who owned their property in the 1850’s. Malone’s family were the tenants. “He actually went up in the attic and pulled out rent receipts for people who paid his great-great-grandfather to live there,” Malone said.

While the information trail can run in many directions,most researchers do not need to travel great distances, as Malone’s sister did, to obtain records.

The Internet became a key tool for Malone, as many genealogy societies and organizations are online. Some, such as ancestry.com, may be fee-based, but they can be invaluable in record searches, combing through databases, constructing a family tree, and connecting with other relatives who share the same passion, Malone said.

He recommends the New England Genealogical Society, who charge a $65 fee; ellisislandrecords.org (records of arrivals at Ellis Island from 1892 – 1924); castlegarden.org (prior to Ellis Island), and rootsweb.ancestary.com.

He said Massachusetts is fortunate to have two National Achieve storage and records centers, with facilities in Pittsfield and Waltham. Still, public libraries, town halls, church records, and state sites are a good starting place. Twice a month Malone conducts a course on genealogy at the Agawam Senior Center.

Malone summed up his experiences in tracing his family’s roots, “You do get to know them on a personal basis. They become part of your family as much as the relatives you do know. You learn the street they lived on, they homes they live in, and the jobs they did.”

To learn more about the Malone family and their history, visit: www.malonedirectory.com.

______________________________________________________________________________
Copied with Permission from the Chicopee Register VOLUME 11 • NUMBER 41 published Thursday, August 20, 2009
Photograph from Chicopee Register -by DENNIS HOHENBERGER
Some corrections made in the post we published in the following issue

Read the original here - http://www.malonedirectory.com/www.malonedirectory.com/pdf_files/082009chicopee02.pdf

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2009-05-15T10:43:00.002-04:00

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Chicopee man traces roots

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