History of CSO

In 1982, a retired Railroad Conductor in Springfield, Massachusetts named John J. Claffey became interested in the "Genealogy of the Claffey family" when enticed by a mail-order ad. He purchased a copy of "The Amazing Story of the Claffeys of America" by Sharon Taylor, which was nothing more than some generic how-to research information and a list of about 350 Claffey names and addresses. John then proceeded to write to these addresses to ask if they could share genealogical information on their family and descendants.

My father received one of these letters from John and passed it on to me. The resulting correspondence with John prompted me to submit my name to the LDS Church as a contact point for all Claffey research, primarily because I had already been computerizing a lot of the data I had collected. Since then, many Claffeys that I have corresponded with have mentioned that John's letter provided the impetus to get involved on some level in documenting what family history was know. The Claffey Surname Organization was founded to provide research advice to these Claffey families, to coordinate their efforts with those researching similar lines, and to share in the fun of the hunt. We owe a debt of gratitude to John for being the first to interest us all. Thank you!

There are a couple of other Claffeys that have broadened their interests outside of there own immediate family lines. The first and foremost is Seamus Claffey, Ferbane, Co. Offaly, Republic of Ireland.

In 1990 I wrote to all 40 Claffey listings I could find in the 1988/89 Irish telephone directories. I received six replies. Seamus and his lovely wife Kathleen invited me to use Ferbane and their house as a base for research, which I promptly did when a business trip to Scotland gave me the opportunity. Not only did Seamus take me around to meet many of the prominent Claffey families in the area, but he endlessly devoted a great deal of his time pouring over the research material I brought with me, correcting mistakes as he found them. This dear man treated me not just as a cousin, as we are all known to the Irish, but as part of his family. I hope to be able to visit with him again soon. I owe him more than I have given him in return for his kindness and friendship.

Another fine gentleman that has been keenly interested in the history of the Claffey name is Frank Claffey, Portumna, Co. Galway, Rep. of Ireland. I was fortunate enough to enjoy his hospitality with Seamus one day.