William and Mary Ann (O'Neil) Major married in Ireland in 1865 and emigrated to the United States where they stayed with his brother Charles in Skaneateles Falls, NY. Both men worked at the Hartlot Paper Company. Charles had arrived in Skaneateles in the late 1850s.

William and Mary Ann Major had 10 children, including John W. Major, whose name usually appears, even on his tombstone, as John J. Major. According to his widow, Rose, that was an error. Apparently, John, the first born son, was named after his grandfather, with his middle name taken from his father.

From the Skaneateles Press, November 1, 1895:

The death of William Major, a young man of Skaneateles Falls, is peculiarly sad from the fact that he went to East Syracuse for an elder brother who was taken with the disease, bringing him to the family home at Skaneateles Falls. The brother first taken is recovering while death claimed the younger one.

John played baseball for Glensides team

In 1893 John Major married Rose McLaughlin in Skaneateles, NY. Rose was the daughter of John McLaughlin and his second wife Mary Casey. McLaughlin and his first wife, Mary McGrorry emigrated from Ireland in 1851, settling in Skaneateles, NY, but they moved to Louisville, KY, in 1858. Mary McLaughin and the couple's child, William, died in Kentucky. John McLaughlin returned to Skaneateles in 1868. There he married Mary Casey, also a native of Ireland. They had at least four children, Rose being the second born.

John and Rose Major moved to Solvay where John was a volunteer fireman. He also was involved in politics and served two terms as a village trustee.