Androphy Family History Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Under Construction
Abe Androphy - My Grandfather
Abraham E. Androphy (1895 -1966) was my grandfather. He was my mother's father and a man who I knew very well.
I was his first grandson. Grandpa Abe was a wonderful grandfather, father, husband and brother. He was a kind man, strong as an ox, a natural teacher, a quick study with an inquisitive mind who was accomplished in many disciplines relating to business, electricity, electronics, construction and architecture. He ran a successful radio, television and GE appliance business for many years (more on that later) and he was also a licensed electrician and a general contractor who designed and built new homes. He was also active in public service in Civil Defense and as an Auxiliary Police Officer in Derby Connecticut. He and my grandmother loved to travel and visit their many grandchildren and other relatives.
He was married to my grandmother, Rose Kelman Androphy, for over 50 years, until the day he died. They were wonderful grandparents and I was fortunate to spend a lot of time with both of them when I was young. They were a both a major influence on my life.
Abe Androphy's Early Years
Brooklyn New York
Note: I am writing this from memory from what my grandparents told me and from the many photos that they showed me when I was growing up. Any errors or mistakes are mine.
Grandpa Abe grew up in Brooklyn, NY. That's why he spoke with a Brooklyn accent. He grew up in a poor family, and, although he never used the word, where they lived, today, would be called a tenement. Cousin Ronald Androphy tracked down where the Androphy family lived and found that the residences that had stood there were demolished years ago to make way for a pillar for the Brooklyn Bridge.
Ronald also found out that the family's name was not originally Androphy. The 1900 Census taker had made an error. Either they could not understand the way it was pronounced or the census taker misspelled the name, but it was originally something like Androwski, a more common Eastern European name. Anyone with the last name or related to someone named Androphy (And-row-fee) are probably related to each other since the name is unique.
Abe's parents were Joseph Androwski (Androphy) and Esther Shaprinsky (1866-1934) Androphy. Great grandmother's parents were Abraham Shaprinsky and Tobie Cohen Shaprinsky. The Shaprinisky family name was anglicized by some family member to Schaffer. I met a few of those relatives who lived here in Connecticut when I was younger.
There were four children in the Androwski family around the turn of the century. Grandpa Abe was born March 15, 1895. His siblings were his older sister Rae (1893-?), his older brother Jules (Julius) (1897-1968) and his younger sister Jean (Shana) Androphy Monheit (1902-?). While he did tell me about his early days in Brooklyn, Grandpa never spoke to me much about his parents. He did tell me that his father (my great-grandfather), Joseph Androwski, abandoned the family when Abe was was around ten years old. No one seems to know what happened to Joseph Androwski. There were some family stories that he went to South America but it was more likely that he just moved a few miles away. This was not uncommon in the days before Social Security IDs and other modern ways to track missing people.
Straw Hat "Boaters" and Hershey Bars
After his father abandoned the family, Grandpa Abe left school to help support the rest of the family. He could not remember exactly when he left school, but he was relatively young he recalled, probably in the 5th or 6th grade. Students in the New York City school system were not tracked closely or obligated to attend school, so it was no big deal in those days. However, he always regretted not having a better education, but it never seemed to hold him back in life. He told me that he supported himself and his family by doing odd jobs. On more than one occasion he talked to me about how he delivered Straw Hats or "Boaters" to "millionaires" all over New York City. He told me that he and his brother, Jules, worked together on many of these jobs. He said that the pay for delivering the hats was small, but the tips were good. He and Jules also sold Hershey Bars on Coney Island, a major resort and amusement park in Brooklyn/New York City.
My grandparents, Rose Kelman Androphy and Abe Androphy. I took this picture when I visited them in Florida around 1964 or so.