Laird of Tralee

[denysenz]

As I mentioned in an earlier posting ,I have been told my Ggrandmother's uncle, who she was brought up by ,was the Laird of Tralee  ,around the 1850's.Can anyone tell me what this actually means.Is this an actual title in Ireland as I always thought a Laird was Scottish.Her name was Julia Savage but I have no idea if her Uncle was a Savage.

[Christopher]

Hello denysenz,

I assume that the Laird of Tralee may have been the equivalent of the Mayor of Tralee. I'd suggest sending a message to Tralee Council www.tralee.ie/index.htm to see if they can throw any light on this title.

Christopher

[denysenz]

thank you Christopher,I will try that.

[Christopher]

Hello denysenz,

Laird means a landowner so your ancestors may not have had the title Laird of Tralee ... they may have owned land in the town. It's possible that oral history in the family was slightly exaggerated.

Christopher

[denysenz]

Yes , I've been thinking the same thing.The story goes that my great grandmother was brought up by this "Laird of Tralee ", with his 4 sons after the tragic deaths of her mother and father within days of her birth and days of each other.Her only female friend in the household was a housemaid, with whom she ran away to NZ .When her uncle discovered this fact he paid her fare and cleared her from being an assisted passenger. If any of this is true they must have had a bit of wealth. It is such a great story I would love to know how much is fact and how much is fiction..

[jaylay]

Hi denysenz

What a wonderful story!  There are a few Julia Savage entries for Kerry in www.familysearch.org - have you tried that?   Also, there are some trade directories online for Tralee - I will try and find the link and post them - you may find some clues there.

Jaylay

[jaylay]

Kerry County and Borough Directory 1862:

http://www.rootschat.com/links/036s/

Jaylay

[Christopher]

Hi jaylay,

That's a handy link but which particular dignitary is the missing Laird of Tralee

The directory lists everything from a Custos Rotulorum to an Esq. In between are a number of educated dignitaries who have letters after their names so they obviously graduated with a degree although some of those letters are for honorary positions.  A search for Laird or the surname Savage reveals nothing unless we are looking for a Lord. The directory lists one ... Rt. Hon Lord Ventry, Burnham, Dingle

The Lairdland site offers nothing apart from a the e-mail address of a guy named Laird. http://lairdland.com/index.htm

"Travels of Sir William Brereton in Ireland, 1635" refer to an Irish Laird www.ucc.ie/celt/online/E630001/text002.html

Christopher