Edith Johnson Murphy, Edith Catherine Murphy Harrington, Joseph Charlie Murphy: elegance, perseverance, and domination of foes at the bar, respectively. (Photo taken during one of my grandparents' last visits from Atlanta to backcountry New York.)Date: October, 1966
Location: Kings Settlement, NY
By: LH
Location: Kings Settlement, NY
By: LH
3 comments:
I thought Grandmother's first name was Catherine all these years!
Adam-(I guess signing this was unnecessary as I am the only person on the planet that can call her Grandmother)
I don't know how many years I thought mother's first name was Catherine, Adam, but it was more than just a few, because I can remember being surprised that it wasn't.
Her family always called her Catherine (as she always identified herself) to differentiate her from her mother. I think she dropped the "Edith" altogether when she married Dad and used "Catherine Murphy Harrington" as her full, official monicker from then on.
First and middle names in that part of the family have always been a little odd by Yankee standards (but perfectly normal by southern ones), for example:
Your great-grandfather Murphy's birth certificate name was Joseph Charlie Murphy, but he was always called "J.C." (or, simply, "sir".) Your great-uncle Calvin -- born John Calvin Murphy -- was called "little J.C." until he showed up at kindergarten and the teacher insisted that he choose a "real name," so he went with Calvin (or so the family tradition goes), but now he goes by "John" for everyone except family. One of his older brothers, a longtime Judge in the Atlanta courts, went by his magnificent middle name, Ophalon, despite having the perfectly serviceable "David" as a first name.
And then, of course, there's me: no middle name to turn to, hung up forever between "Sherwood" and "Woody."
More response than you bargained for, Chuck?
Do you think we're related to Eddie Murphy? His brother's name is Charlie (and is much funnier than his brother these days, Google him).
Charles McMackin Murphy Sneddeker Polonia Consuelo Chavez Adam Harrington-
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