Martha Kavanagh

Martha Kavanagh was born around 1933 in Brooklyn, New York, the second child and eldest daughter of Patrick Kavanagh (a barge captain from Arklow, County Wicklow) and Sarah "Sadie" Rolf (b. Canada). She was raised in Brooklyn alongside her older brother, Robert, and her two younger sisters, Irene and Barbara.

In the 1940 US Federal Census, seven-year-old Martha was living with her family at 206 60th Street, Brooklyn, and attending school. By the time of the 1950 census, the family was residing in a second-floor apartment at 180 83rd Street, Brooklyn. 

At 17 years old, Martha was single and employed as a sales clerk in a retail candy shop, working alongside her older brother Robert, who held the same job.