“Hugh Murray was born in County Down, Ireland, December 18, 1839. His father, Michael Murray, also a native of Ireland, was a farmer by occupation; he married Catherine Murray, a native of the same place, and they had ten children, five sons and five daughters. Hugh, the seventh child, came to the United States in 1857, settled in Washington County, Mo., and commenced working at the trade of wagon-making, which he has since followed. He married Miss Mary Maloney September 10, 1866. She was born in Connecticut, and was a daughter of Michael and Ann Maloney. Mr. and Mrs. Murray have eight children living, viz.: William, Katie, Annie, Nora, Hugh, Edward, Andrew and Paul; one daughter, Emma, was deceased at the age of six years. Mr. Murray has recently added to his business a stock of coffins and undertaker’s supplies, and has done a satisfactory business in this line. He is a man of strict honor and commands the respect of all his acquaintances.”
– History of Washington County Missouri. (1888) Chicago: Goodspeed Publishing Company.
On June 19, 1866 the court recorder for St. Charles County, Missouri, entered the marriage date for Hugh Murray and Mary Molone[y] as Sunday, September 10, 1865. The ceremony was performed by M. Oakley, who is likely Maurice Oakley, a Catholic priest at St. Charles Borromeo Church in St. Charles, Missouri from 1863-1866.
Hugh and Mary’s nine children were born between 1866 and 1883 and were baptized in St.James Catholic Church in Potosi, Missouri. By 1901 it would appear that the entire family had moved to St. Louis, Misssouri, where it seems all or most of Hugh and Mary’s 26 grandchildren were born between 1899 and 1926. One granddaughter is still living.
Hugh and Mary’s grandchildren had 44 children born roughly between 1926 and 1966. About 33-37 were living in July 2011.
| Mary (Moloney) Murray Obituary St. Louis Post Dispatch 29 June 1912, page 10  |
Hugh Murray Obituary St. Louis Post Dispatch 03 September 1916, page 1B  |
Really interesting research! s
I am at the beginning of researching my family history and my great Grandmother was a Margaret Jane Murray who married a Patrick Flynn in Killinchy in 1896. It says on the certificate that her father was Michael (deceased). A William Murray and another Margaret Murray were witnesses. They moved to Sligo soon after the marriage.I am trying to work out which Murrays she was related to!
Would you have any idea about this?
Many thanks!
Hi- This reply is extremely delayed (you commented 6/6/25). My sincere apologies.
Obviously, I don’t know how far you’ve come in your research since then and may likely not be able to offer you much.
I do know a bit about your great-grandmother, Margaret Jane Murray, and her husband, Patrick Flynn. It may be that my Murray ancestors from Down are related to yours in some way. (My great-grandmother, Mary Murray, married Bernard Flynn in 1851 in the catholic parish of Carrickamnnon and Saintfield. Mary’s father was a farmer named Michael Murray.)
As you may have discovered, “Murray” is a very common name in co. Down. Frequently, a “Murray” will marry a “Murray” – making sorting them out a bit challenging. And men are often named: Michael, John, Patrick, James, or William; while women are Margaret, Mary, Catherine, or Rose.
If you are looking for a bit of guidance on family research in Ireland, I can offer a free video of a presentation I gave last March to the Dallas Genealogical Society. The handout has a lot of links to resources that may be useful. The links to both are below.
So, again, my apologies. It would be great to figure out more about the connections among the Murrays in Down and I’m willing to help out.
Regards,
Kathleen
Irish Research: Discovering a Family Left Behind – Kathleen R. Murray, PhD (YouTube – 1:00:06) https://youtu.be/gIRw5i3gV7A
Handout (PDF) https://dallasgenealogy.org/DGS_Docs/General_Meetings/2025/2025-03-01%20Irish%20Research%20Presentation%202025%20KMurray.pdf