John and Mae (Conlon) Harrington of the Bronx, New York

On 24 March 2011 and 4 January 2013 I wrote blog posts about this couple. Mae is my grandmother’s cousin. In the past I’ve found very little about her and her family. Yesterday I decided to try again.

Thanks to Reclaim the Records, the books listing New York City marriages have been posted online. In 1930 Mae lived with my grandparents Harry and Mary (Doyle) Nunn in the Bronx. In 1940 Mae and her husband John Harrington were living in the Bronx, and stated they were at that same address in 1935. That cut the window for their marriage to five years. Their marriage date was found to be 25 March 1932. (Note my first blog post about Mae was a day after her 25 March wedding date-coincidence?)

My main goal is to connect Mae’s father, Edward Conlon, with my great-grandmother, Margaret (Conlon) Doyle. That I did not accomplish. But I’m getting close. There are other mysteries surrounding this family. I believe the mother Mary (O’Donnell?) Conlon died between 1905 and before the 1910 census as Edward listed himself as widower. I need to find her death date and cause of death. Then what happened to her husband, Edward? Mae and Anna disappear for a few years, until Mae is seen living with the Doyles. Where’s Anna? Mae’s brothers are in an orphanage, until they, too, are living with the Doyles in the 1920s.

I found an Ancestry.com family tree that had Mae’s brother Edward married to Elizabeth “Lil” E. Graham (1892-1973). Earlier I’d found from a census document that Edward had a wife named Elizabeth, but had no maiden name. Now I do. Unfortunately, the woman who posted this tree on Ancestry has not been active for over a year. I sent her an email anyway, but we know what that tells us – sigh.

The other problem with this family is most did not marry, and the ones that did produced one or no children. There might not be much more information to be found, but their story deserves to be told and I intend to do that.

The Family of Margaret Conlon

From left, Maggie (Conlon) Doyle, Patrick Doyle and ?

Margaret (Maggie) (Conlon) Doyle is my paternal great grandmother. She is someone whom I know little about. I am now revisiting this family and hope I can find the link between Edward Conlon and Maggie.

Edward’s daughter, Mary (Mae) b: abt 1902 was always introduced as my grandmother’s cousin. Mae spent her two week summer vacations with us in Upstate New York while visiting my grandmother Mary Agnes (Doyle) Nunn. I’d also met Mae’s brother Lawrence, and knew about George and Edward Conlon.

From left, Mary (Doyle) Nunn and Mae (Conlon) Harrington

 Yesterday I searched the 1905 New York State census and was surprised to find another child in the family—Anna b: abt 1903. Their parents, Edward Conlon b: abt 1873 and Mary (O’Donnell) Conlon b: abt 1873 and family lived in Manhattan.

Edward reports in the 1910 Federal Census that he is a widower working as an oiler in a powerhouse. A brother named Lawrence, age 31, is living with him.

During previous research I’d found the sons Edward and George Conlon living at the Roman Catholic Orphan Asylum for Boys in the Bronx District #35 in 1910. The orphan asylum was located on Sedgewick Avenue and Kingsbridge Road.

Where are Lawrence, Mae and Anna? What happened to the mother and where is she buried. These questions remain to be answered.

In 1915 Edward, George, Lawrence and Mae are boarding with the John and Bridget Conlon family on Wallace Street, Bronx, New York, and then by 1917 the Conlon children still minus Anna are living with Patrick and Maggie (Conlon) Doyle at 164 East 97^th Street in Manhattan.

I’ve come up blank on finding information on Mae’s marriage to John Harrington, his death, and burial. I have Mae’s funeral card with the date of 11 September 1983, but no indication of church or funeral home. I know Mae Conlon and John Harrington were married between the time the census was taken in 1930 and 1935. I’ve looked through the Reclaim the Records index of New York marriages for the Bronx, but now wonder if they went to Manhattan to get married in the same church as my grandparents, St. Lucy’s. That’s my next step.

My challenge is to connect Maggie b: abt 1865 and Edward b: abt 1873 so I can add this branch to my family tree.

And then there is Thomas Conlon living with the Doyles in 1910. Ah, the Irish cousins.

Where's Mae?

When I was a baby genealogist and Internet genealogy resources were limited, I blithely searched for the Conlon family, with little satisfaction.  I searched various sites using variations on spellings, but this family would not be found.

Mae Conlon Harrington (front)
Mary (Nana) Doyle Nunn
Enjoying Anna Maria Island
1963

Mae Conlon is my grandmother’s cousin. I found Mae, along with her three brothers, Edward, George, and Lawrence living with my grandmother's parents, the Doyles, in their Manhattan apartment, in 1920. I found the boys’ 1917 WW I draft cards. In 1910 Edward, George and Lawrence were living in the Orphan Asylum for Boys in Manhattan. Where was Mae? She was not listed with the Doyles. And I still could not find their parents.

My research philosophy is to look again. New information on established sites as well as new Internet sites is available every day, so it is imperative to go back and look again.

The Conlon brick wall had me stumped so I put it aside for quite some time. As Internet resources expanded and my research skills matured, I felt ready to tackle this family line again. I checked the 1910 census; no change there. But FamilySearch.org now has the 1905 New York census online and I don’t believe I had looked there previously for the Conlons.  And there they were on June 1, 1905 living in the Borough of Manhattan, 1505 Lexington Ave, New York City. The family consisted of: Edward Conlon age 31 making his living as an electrician; Mary Conlon age 31, Edward Conlon age 7, George Conlon age 6, May Conlon age 3, and Anna Conlon age 2.

As with most genealogy searches, new information leads to more questions. I had not known about Anna; I cannot find either Anna or Mae in 1910, and most of all, what tragedy befell this family so that the children ended up in an orphanage?