Andrew Malone 5th great grandpa on RoostMagic tree

Andrew Malone was born about 1775 in Pennsylvania, Mary was born about the same time and probably near the same place. They married around 1795. Mary’s last name and parents are unknown. The 1820 census shows Andrew and Mary lived in Washington Township, Franklin County, PA about 40 miles northwest of Baltimore  They lived in Franklin County until 1828 or 1829 when the family moved west. Andrew and Mary were in their 50s, their kids were in their 20s, 30s. Maybe a son or daughter in law joined the journey. If the family drove their horse and wagon 10 miles every day the 258 mile journey to Stark, Ohio would have taken about 35 days.

Families moving west in the 1800s dealt with some things. Once they arrived at their new home, “earlier settlers … were confronted with two sets of problems: the one concerned with shelter, food, health, and protection – things vital and immediate … the other with ownership of land, transportation, and currency – things necessary for his economic advancement … Without the successful solution to the first, there was little need to worry about the second”.

In Stark County, Ohio, the Malone family joined an already established  community of German American  farmers from Pennsylvania. Their Ohio neighbors may have been their same Pennsylvania neighbors: Bair, Fryberger, Harter and Miller families. The community stepped up, pitched in, helped out to make the move easier for the new arrivals.

Andrew and Mary’s children married and had families in Stark. Their daughter Margaret married George Bair, grandparents of Fianna Druckenbrod who with her husband William Miller moved further west to  Bremer County Iowa.

The 1850 US census shows Andrew lived with daughter Margaret, her husband George Bair and their young family. Every person on the census page is born in Germany, Pennsylvania or Ohio. Most are farmers, with  a blacksmith, carpenter and a couple laborers.

Sources

• Pennsylvania, Septennial Census, 1779-1863 at Ancestry
• United States Census, 1850 at FamilySearch