Josephine Madden was born Johanna Madden on August 8, 1879 in West Brookfield. [West Brookfield Vital Records] Her parents were John Madden, born in Ireland, and his second wife Johanna Daneher, born probably in Roxbury, MA.
Josephine married Frank (Chauncey Franklin) Irish, son of Samuel and Maria (Eaton) Irish, in Brookfield on November 27, 1901. Frank worked at the Fishing Rod factory in town and Josephine was a stitcher.
Sometime after the birth of their first son, Harold, in August of 1903, the family moved to Connecticut, living first in Canaan, and eventually settling in Waterbury. Josephine died 17 September 1939 in Waterbury, leaving her husband and three children. She is buried in Calvary Cemetery, in Waterbury.
[The maiden name of Josephine's mother, Johanna Danaher Madden, is found in the records to have many variations, including Donahan, Danahar, and possibly Donbar. Her parents were John and Bridget (Cunningham) Danaher, and I believe they arrived in the United States shortly before Johanna's birth, although I have located no birth record to date. Johanna is sometimes found as Joanna on census records in Roxbury and later in Marlborough.]
Further information on the Madden and Irish families may be found in my online database which is linked to
http://westbrookfieldgenealogy.org/
