The Mapleys in Michigan, USA


Mableys Dept. Store/Majestic Building
Christopher Mabley's house

Michigan was a popular settlement place for emigrants after the 1830's - Michigan became a state in 1837, and land was very affordable compared to the East Coast. The Erie Canal opened up the Great Lakes region from New York, and the region was flourishing by the 1850's after iron and copper industries were founded near Pontiac. Subsequent ecnomic growth was spurred by the automobile industry developing in the State (1897-).

Michigan's development also attracted Canadians, with many moving south from Ontario in the 19th Century to seek new economic opportunities. With Canada part of the Commonwealth, 84% of migrants were from the UK at this time, and after the US civil war and the western expanion in the USA, the migrant wave southwards increased. Pontiac, founded in 1818, was the second European-American settlement established in Michigan after Dearborn (near Detroit). It became the county seat of Oakland, and pulled in people seeking a new life.

Thomas William Mapley, a gardener from Newport Pagnell, emigrated to the US in 1867, at the age of 16, leaving his family behind (they would all sail 3 years later to join him, and settle in upstate New York). After his wife Adele died, he moved with his daughter to Michigan and settled there, establishing the first of many Mapley generations in Michigan. He died in November 1918 from Spanish Flu.

William Mabley, a tailor, clothier and silk merchant from St Minver in Cornwall, emigrated to Canada with all his 7 children in the 1840's, 6 of which moved on to Michigan in the 1860-70's. The Mableys were all engaged in the cloth trade, and established themselves in the clothing industry.

Christopher Richards Mabley, born in Cornwall, England, emigrated to the USA in 1877 with his cloth merchant father and brothers/sisters, via Toronto to America. There he opened a chain of clothing stores (known as Mabley & Co) across Michigan (Pontiac, Ionia, Flint, Detroit), and in other US states, and became known as "The Merchant Prince". His stores were so successful that he was soon able to commission the tallest building in Detroit (14 floors) as his flagship store but died in 1885 before it could be completed.
The building was renamed the Majestic Building by a new owner because of the many letter Ms (for Mabley) carved into the stonework.
Christopher Mabley

Geographical Index by chronological order :

Family index by Generation

1st Generation :-

2nd. Generation :-

3rd. Generation :-

4th. Generation :-

5th. Generation :-


1st. Michigan Generation

From William Thomas Mapley :- from Newport Pagnell ==>

  • Thomas William Mapley (9/5/1851 - 15/11/1918) m. Adele Palmer in New York in 1871.
    He then moved from New York to Michigan after her death, where he re-married to Alice Barbara Kessel (24/2/1860 - 6/4/1937) in 1882
    He emigrated from Newport Pagnell, England, on SS City of Baltimore, arriving September 1867.
    • Anna Mapley (30/4/1872 - 27/7/1941)
    • Marshall William Mapley (21/7/1883 - 3/12/1944)
    • Frank George Mapley (29/4/1886 - 13/1/1975)
    • Grant Ulysses Mapley (25/12/1887 - 18/1/1984)
    • Lena Blanche Mapley (11/3/1890 - 8/9/1947)
    • Sherry Charles Mapley (15/10/1892 - 28/3/1981)
    • Beatrice Lottie Mapley (26/4/1895 - 15/12/1977)
    • Mildred Catherine Mapley (23/8/1897 -)
    • Ralph T. Mapley (29/8/1901 - 20/1/1985)

From William Mably :- from St Minver, Cornwall ==>

Go to top ==>


2nd. Michigan Generation

From Thomas William Mapley :-

  • Marshall William Mapley (21/7/1883 - 3/12/1944) m. Ella Seaman Hartt (26/1/1888 - 9/6/1975) in 1906
    • Gerls Hartt Mapley (13/4/1909 - 23/2/1983)
    • Harriet Alice Mapley (23/11/1911 - 20/4/1965)
    • Richard Marshall Mapley (24/1/1913 - 29/9/1996)
    • Margery Weldron Mapley (1914 - )
    • Jean Elizabeth Mapley (6/3/1921 - 11/1/1930)
  • Frank George Mapley (29/4/1886 - 13/1/1975) m. Minnie A Elliott (1887 - 30/11/1956) in 1906
    • Evelyn L Mapley (1907 - 1964)
    • Georgia Kessel Mapley (1911)
    • Francis Elliott Mapley (1914 - 13/12/1972)
    • Leone E Mapley (1916 - 1979)
    • Cleo D Mapley (1919 - )
  • Grant Ulysses Mapley (25/12/1887 - 18/1/1984) m. Mabel Clara Harbin (11/4/1893 - 25/4/1980) in 1909
    • Burl Ulyssess Mapley (17/1/1910 - 6/12/1981)
    • Thomas J Mapley (1911 - 2002)
    • Helen Elizabeth Mapley (6/6/1914 - 6/8/1941)
    • Sherry Norman Mapley (28/1/1916 - 3/5/2005)
    • Charles Harbin Mapley (1918 - 20/11/1960)
    • Betty Jane Mapley (16/6/1921 - )
    • Clarence Lawrence Mapley (25/5/1929 - 2/6/1929)
    • Mae Mapley (1931 - )
  • Sherry Charles Mapley (15/10/1892 - 28/3/1981) m. Merle H Myers (1896 - 1993) in 1917
    • Sherry C Mapley (1919 - 30/11/1987)
    • Donald Merrill Mapley (8/4/1920 - 25/5/2007)
  • Ralph T. Mapley (29/8/1901 - 20/1/1985) m. Frances Schember (1908 - 15/11/1972) in 1926
    • Jack Mapley (1927 - )
    • Mary Lou Mapley (1929 - )

From Christopher Richards Mabley :-

  • Carleton Raymond Mapley (1878 - 1963) m. Louise Christine Taylor (1880 - 1968) in ??
    • Carlton Raymond Mabley (1903 - )
    • Louis Christopher Mabley (1905 - )
    • George Taylor Mabley (1907 - )
    • Frank Knight Mabley (1909 - )
    • Thompson Hollister Mabley (1909 - )
    • Katherine Louise Mabley (1910 - )
    • Theodore Mabley (1912 - )

Go to top ==>


3rd. Michigan Generation

From Marshall William Mapley :-

From Frank George Mapley :-

From Grant Ulysses Mapley :-

From Sherry Charles Mapley :-

From Ralph T. Mapley Mapley :-