William MAHONEY, was born around 1838 in Clonmel, Tipperary County, Ireland.
It is believed that William MAHONEY left his wife in Ireland and travelled to the United States sometime after 1878.
He had the following known children that either travelled with William MAHONEY, Sr., or came at a later date, except Johanna:
Ellen MAHONY was born 4 June 1864 in Clonmel
William R. MAHONY was born on 22 April 1866 in Clonmel
Anne MAHONY was born 20 June 1868 in Clonmel.
Margaret MAHONY was born on 15 September 1870 and passed away around 1912. Margaret married Thomas LEE.
Johanna MAHONY was born 20 July 1872 in Tipperary. Possibly died in the 3rd quarter of 1886 in Clonmel.
Patrick MAHONY, was born on 25 May 1876 in Clonmel and died in San Francisco, California on May 22, 1915, at the age of 38.
Sometime around 1915 William R. MAHONEY(1866-1944)
constructed a metal chair so that his father William MAHONEY, Sr., (1837-1918) could
sit down when they went to the cemetery to visit the elder William's children,
Margaret MAHONEY LEE(1870-1912) and Patrick MAHONEY(1876-1915), both of whom
had recently passed away. The remaining family of William
Mahoney, Sr. would travel from Oakland to Holy Cross Cemetery every Sunday and
spend the afternoon by the grave side.
For many decades, after the passing of
William Mahoney, Sr., the JOYCE family of Oakland would take care of the chair.
The JOYCE’S are possibly descendants of Thomas Lee's sister, thought to be a
Bridget Lee. For 30 years(1975-2005), or so, Mary Ellen Gleeson Murphy and her
family, of Redwood City, and since about 2005 the Murphy family daughter, all
descendants of Margaret MAHONEY LEE, have been taking care of the chair, occasionally
sanding it and re-spraying it with Rustoleum.
The chair is still located next to the
MAHONEY family gravestone in HOLY CROSS CEMETERY.
The family is forever grateful to the
caring staff at Holy Cross Cemetery. This wonderful staff has been moving the
chair for over 107 years so they can maintain the lawn around the stone.
(Click on the link below to view the chair next to the stone.)
Margaret MAHONEY LEE is buried a few yards away with her husband Thomas LEE.
This page was last updated on November 28, 2022
