A Life in Motion: Henry Makey’s Changing Course

I’ve adapted Amy Johnson Crow’s 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks challenge.
Each week I follow my children’s ahnentafel numbering to select the featured ancestor, ensuring no one through the mid–sixth generation is left behind.

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: 2026 Week 30: Free Space

A Young Man and Horses

My Week 30 ancestor is Henry Makey. This week’s choose-your-own-adventure prompt gave me room simply to follow the next ancestor in my children’s ahnentafel. At nineteen, Henry was working as an assistant horse trainer. Family stories remember him as a jockey—and say that a fall from a horse ended that part of his life.

Henry Mackey was born in September 1881 in Buffalo, Erie, New York, to immigrant parents. His father, a boilermaker working on ships, died earlier that year, before Henry was born. His stepfather seemed to follow similar occupations: “riveter” or “ship builder” in various cities on the Great Lakes or the Hudson River.

Henry, however, seems to have followed his own calling. Family stories call him a jockey, and go on to say there was a “fall from a horse” and he was a jockey no more. The 1900 census supports at least part of that family story. Nineteen-year-old Henry was living with his mother and stepfather in Chicago and working as an “assistant horse trainer.”

A New Name and a New Direction

Henry and his brothers Edward and William moved from Chicago to New York City, at which point his name is consistently spelled “Makey.” His 1903 Staten Island marriage does not ask for his occupation. Every census and form I’ve located since then states that he was an engineer – his daughter said he operated a steamroller and paved the streets of Queens, New York.

Henry’s brother William seems to have followed the Buffalo woman he loved to New York City, but I find it interesting that Henry and Edward followed, leaving their mother and stepfather behind. Was it economic opportunity which drew them? A desire to leave the past behind? A need for a different space? Their willingness to relocate suggests an adventurous streak—or at least a readiness to follow opportunity.

Leaving Room for Adventure

I am trying to live a life of adventure—as much as the wife and daughter of accountants can, lol. In fact, that’s one of my New Year’s resolutions.  I like to think that Henry, whose own life took several unexpected turns, might understand my determination to leave room for adventure.

Henry Makey, 1881-1958

AI Disclosure

This post was created by me with the help of AI tools. While AI helps organize research, the storytelling and discoveries are my own.

Next Week’s Topic: A Day in the Life