Searching for William
Murphy
La recherche de William Murphy
Here is the original Discuss Detroit thread started by "Mary_murphy" [en français, gracieuseté de Google Translate]. She is requesting help in finding more information about her paternal grandfather.
Click here to view the continuation of that thread on the new Discuss Detroit Forum.
This is all that "Mary_murphy", a French citizen who is learning English, knows about him:
William Murphy was a soldier (presumably in the U.S. Army) who was sent to France during World War One
while stationed in or near Limoges, France, he met a Frenchwoman named Germaine Catherine Chapus, who was born on May 15, 1897 in Limoges
he told Germaine Chapus that he was an auto mechanic who lived in Detroit, Michigan prior to entering the military and that his parents (or possibly his grandparents) were Irish immigrants. Her descendants remember being told that he was tall with reddish-blond hair.
a son named René was born to Germaine and William on July 28, 1919 in Poitiers, France (70 miles/114 km northwest of Limoges). "Mary_murphy's" father René died in 2005.
William might have been born in 1893 or 1894, based on family oral history of the age difference between her grandparents; if he was a U.S. soldier, he most likely was born sometime between 06 June 1886 and 06 June 1896 (the birth date range of the 21 through 31 year old males who had to report for the First Draft Registration on 05 June 1917 [source] ); this is because of those men who registered in the Second Draft on 05 June 1918 or especially in the Third Draft on 12 September 1918, very few of them were sent overseas.
after his unit had returned to the U.S., he sent several letters to Germaine, which were destroyed by her mother.
Below are the individuals named "William Murphy" we have found so far who might fit the known information and the age limits of the First Draft Registration. More individuals might be added if we find additional records. Click on the links to view the source document or location map.
A "red cell" at the far left means that individual could not have been the father of René because of the reason given in red in the far right cell. It is assumed that anyone just registering for the draft on 12 September 1918 could not have possibly been inducted and sent to France in the time for the conception - therefore no further information is needed on that person.
As a result of the research conducted by DtCtyGrl, Lferg, Faygoredpop and myself, through the process of elimination we have been able to reduce the list down to 4 possible men with the name William Murphy from Michigan who were (or could have been) in the US Army during 1918.
UPDATE: 03 August 2009
I received this response today from the National Personnel Records Center informing me that their search for the military personnel files of William Murphy (#1) was unsuccessful. They conclude that his file was destroyed in the 12 July 1973 fire. However, they informed me that they were able to find his Final Pay Voucher and that a photocopy may be ordered for a $20.00 reproduction fee. But after reading their enclosed "Final Pay Voucher Fact Sheet", it appears that this document would not contain any information that would be useful for our search.
Rather than expending any more effort on William Murphy #1 at this time, I will submit a SF-180 for William J. Murphy #18 as soon as I can.
UPDATE: 20 October 2009
I contacted the New Albany National Cemetery to see what additional information they might have about William J. Murphy #18. The only useful information they could provide was the fact that he served in the "Ordnance Department" of the US Army. Adding that fact to the other information we have collected about him, I filled out his SF-180 Request form and mailed it today to the National Personnel Records Center in St. Louis, MO.
UPDATE: 30 November 2009
I received a form letter response from
the National Personnel Records Center in St. Louis, MO regarding
the "SF-180" I submitted for William J. Murphy #18. As
with William Murphy #1, they indicate that his military personnel
records were either damaged or destroyed in the July 1973 fire
and they asked me to fill out and return this "NA Form 13075",
which I have done.
Now we will have to sit back and wait again. In the meantime, I
have found our William J. Murphy #18 in an on-line family tree
and I have e-mailed the owner of that family tree to see if he
has any more information about him, but I have not yet received a
response.
Mikeg
| Last | First | Middle | Birth | Early Census Records |
1917 Location | 1918 Location | 1920 Census Location | 1930 Census Location | Death | Sources, Remarks and/or Conclusions | |
| 1 | Murphy | William | P. | 22 Nov 1893 in Tamarack, Mich. | 1910 | Kearsarge, Mich. (05 June) | Juvigny, France (28 Aug - 01 Sept) | Kearsarge, Mich. | Saginaw, Mich. | possibly 30 Aug 1969 in Saginaw, Mich. | Ancestry.com (miner, tall with brown
hair) The 32nd Division in the World War DtCtyGrl (SF-180 submitted, informed that his personnel file was destroyed in the 1973 fire at the National Archives - Mikeg |
| 2 | Murphy | William | Patrich (Patrick) |
18 March 1899 in Calumet, Mich. | Calumet, Mich. (12 Sept) | Calumet, Mich. | Ancestry.com (shipping clerk, mining company) Registered for draft too late. | ||||
| 3 | Ancestry.com Stosh, Lferg; 1920 Census: Wife: Loretta, lived on Northwestern St.; 1930 Census: not a veteran, Supt. at Dept. Store. Same person as # 7. |
||||||||||
| 4 | Murphy | William | Leslie | 23 Oct 1896 in S. Boardman, Mich. | 1910 Kalkaska Co., Mich. |
Detroit, Mich. (05 June) | Warren Twp., Mich. | Ancestry.com (medium height, slender build, brown hair) (bookkeeper, Ford Motor Co.) | |||
| 5 | Murphy | William | Leo | 15 Feb 1899 | Detroit, Mich. (12 Sept) | Ancestry.com ("heater" at Anderson Forge Co.) Registered for draft too late. | |||||
| 6 | Murphy | William | Charles | 11 March 1898 | Detroit, Mich. (12 Sept) | Ancestry.com (chauffeur) Registered for draft too late. | |||||
| 7 | Murphy | William | Joseph | 19 May 1892 in Detroit, Mich. | 1900 1910 |
Detroit, Mich. (05 June) | Detroit, Mich. | Detroit, Mich. | March 1980, in Mich. | Ancestry.com SSDI DtCtyGrl Draft Registration: Married, lived on Northwestern St., office supt. at J.L. Hudson. Same person as #3, not a veteran, per 1930 Census. |
|
| 8 | Murphy | William | 08 Aug 1891 in Greenfield Twp., Mich. | 1900 1908 1910 Greenfield Twp., Mich. |
Greenfield Twp., Mich. (05 June) | Greenfield Twp., Mich. | Detroit, Mich. | Ancestry.com (farmer) Mikeg not a veteran, per 1930 Census. |
|||
| 9 | Murphy | William | T. | 28 Sept 1890 in Wyandotte, Mich. | 1910 Wyandotte, Mich. |
Wyandotte, Mich. (05 June) | Wyandotte, Mich. | Wyandotte, Mich. 126 S. Riverbank St. (current photo) |
Ancestry.com (1910: oiler, shipyard;
1930: fireman, city fire dept.) Mikeg. not a veteran, per 1930 Census. |
||
| 10 | Murphy | William | Fletcher | 19 Dec 1892 in Ohio | Detroit, Mich. (05 June) | Ancestry.com (shoemaker) Mikeg, "Mute", exempted from draft, DtCtyGrl |
|||||
| 11 | Murphy | William | Evan | 11 Jul 1895 in Pickford, Chippewa, Mich | 1900 1910 |
Pickford, Mich. (05 June ) | Pickford, Mich. | Familysearch.org (tall, medium build,
brown hair) Gazhekwe DtCtyGrl |
|||
| 12 | Murphy | William | Henry | 01 May 1887 in Charlestown, Mass. | Arlington, Mass. (05 June) | Sep 1983, in Mich. | Social Security Death Index, Mikeg Draft Card, Lferg (5ft. 10in., medium build, light brown hair) Not living in Michigan in 1917. |
||||
| 13 | Murphy | William | 13 Jan 1893 in New Orleans, LA | Detroit, Mich. (05 June ) | Sep 1970, in Mich. | Social Security Death Index. Mikeg "Race: Colored, Hair: Black" from Draft Reg Card. DtCtyGrl |
|||||
| 14 | Murphy | William | 29 Nov 1889 in Auburn, N.Y. | Syracuse, N.Y. (05 June) | Oct 1969, in Mich. | Social Security Death Index. Mikeg Draft Card, Lferg (medium height & build, black hair) Not living in Michigan in 1917. |
|||||
| SSDI. Mikeg (birthdate is same as #7) | |||||||||||
| 16 | Murphy | William | Henry | 28 Nov 1883 | Detroit, Mich. (12 Sept) | 1004 Milwaukee Ave., Detroit, Mich. | Ancestry.com (machinist) DtCtyGrl Registered for draft too late. |
||||
| 17 | Murphy | William | James | 29 Oct 1894 | 1900 1910 Alma, Mich. | Alma, Mich. (05 June) | Alma, Mich. | Detroit, Mich. Vancouver Ave. | (short, medium build, dark brown hair) 1930 US Census:
WW I veteran, married to
Louise, Drug Store proprietor.
Lferg Not living in Detroit in 1917. |
||
| 18 | Murphy | William | J. | 16 April 1895 in Detroit, Mich. | 1900 1910 Detroit, Mich. | Detroit,
Mich. (05 June ) Mullett Ave. |
Detroit, Mich. Mullett Ave. | Detroit, Mich. Mullett Ave. | 10 Dec 1959, in ?, buried in the New Albany National Cemetery, [grave location map] | 1930 US Census: single, WW I veteran, polisher at auto factory. Lferg, DtCtyGrl. 1917 Draft Card, (short, medium build, brown hair) Machinist, Faygoredpop; per his grave marker, he was a Private First Class in the US Army Ordance Dept; SF-180 mailed 10 Oct 2009, Form 13075 mailed 28 Nov 2009, MikeG. | |
| 19 | Murphy | William | 19 April 1895 in ? | Nov. 1970, Beaverton, Gladwin Co., Mich. | Social Security Death Index |
URL: http://genealogy.grobbel.org/murphy
Created: 29 March 2009
Last Updated: 30 Nov 2009
visitors to Mike's pages since
May 24, 2004