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There was never any mining connection that we know of in the story of Francis Ryan.

It was said among the previous generation that he came from farming stock but was not the eldest son, so had to leave. Not sure if his father, Thomas Ryan, was actually "a farmer" because somewhere along the line he has been described as a labourer, as was gt. grandfather Francis.

It is also said (1) that he sailed into Scilly on a steamer. There are also family stories that he was a boatman for a large estate, possibly near Rathcormac "where he had relatives". This is 4 miles from Fermoy, Co. Cork.

Also said (2) that he sailed in, in answer to a recuiting drive for lanourers on the islands. Either way, he "sailed in".

He was in the service of a Capt. Frank Tregarthen on the steamer The Little Western for a while (serving the Scilly Isles), so he had ship/boat experience, tying up with the river boatman story about before he left Ireland.

We don't know how he came to be in West Cornwall in the first place - it was post-famine. He married an islander (Susannah Prideaux). One of their children, Annie Jenkin Ryan, married a Thomas Hickey (from Kilberry, Athy, Co. Kildare), also settled in Penzance, West Cornwall, as an engineer in a quarry and who subsequently went to sea. His influence was such that three sons of his wife's brother, my grandfather, Patrick, incl. my father, all went to sea as careers.

We do know that he was "kicked off" the island of Tresco where he worked for the Governor for digging his own potatoes before digging the Governor's crop - memories of the famine? He had also agitated for more pay for the labourers.

Thanks for your interest.

Keith

Even more interesting! O'Neill as well. We know absolutely nothing in that direction. We had a lot of Hickey connections, mainly in Athy, Co. Kildare where my parents took me in the 1960's, twice. We knew nothing of our Ryan roots in Ireland other than "he came from Wexford" - county or town would have been nice!

The funny thing is that my wife's mother came from Enniscorthy, Co. Wexford so we really should get back there - one of my wife's sisters lives there and would make an excellent vase for staying and looking. Its a bit of a treck from Plymouth, Devon, although we have done it for the occasional family visit.

Keith
 

Many thanks for your good advice - I just hope this task is one that I don't have to leave to my own descendants!

Thanks again .... I just replied to you on the Wexford board!

All I need to find out now is which of these landowners employed boatmen - it suggests that they had river access. Francis Ryan  went on to become a seaman for a time around Cornwall, steaming in Scilly, where he settled as a farm labourer/boatman. Later, as a porter/wagoneer in Penzance. We know he had relatives in the Rathcormac area, around the 1850s.

regards - keith