Help needed. Ballentine & Ferris Marriage Larne

[MaggieTag]

Hi all,

Hoping to get some information about Daniel Ballentine & Agnes Ferris who married on 20.12.1878 at Larne 1st Pesbyterian.

I know its really cheeky to ask and that I could go for another certifcate but I'm post Christmas skint!

If anyone out there has info on the age of the couple, residence and Fathers occupations I would be most grateful.

Thanks

Mags

[kingskerswell]

Mags,
         Fathers were Robert Ballintine and William Ferris according to Ancestry Ireland and in 1911 the couple lived in 9 Agnes Street Shankill Belfast. Daniel was 60 years and Agnes was 49. They had 8 children living with them.

Regards

[helenar]

One of those children on the census was named Charles Ferres Ballentine, have you seen the book Old families of larne and District complied by George Rutherford, as there are gravestones in St Cedma's that have the name Charles Ferres. PRONI also has a will calendar index for this name.

[MaggieTag]

Thank you both very much. My ballentine family are very much Belfast people but there has always been talk of them being oriinally from the "country". I'll do some more digging!

[kingskerswell]

Mags,
        Have a look in Griffiths and I think that you will find that your Ballentine family had it's roots in the Ballymena area. Ferris looks like Belfast.

Regards

[jeyhey]

Hi Maggie

Hope I'm getting through to you - been fiddling about with activations and all sorts for ages now!  Daniel Ballentine and Agnes Ferris, I believe, were my great-grandparents.  My mother, their granddaughter, is still alive and kicking at the ripe old age of 82.  Just happened to mention to her today as we were on our way to put flowers on the family grave that I would be interested in researching the Ferris side of the family.  The grave (Belfast) is eternal home to my grandfather, Charles Ferris Ballentine (joiner), his wife Mary and my very late uncle John Ferris Ballentine.  I have a younger cousin named Ian Ferris xxx!  My mum had a brother who died in infancy - his name was Ferris Ballentine.   As per family folklore, my mum's interpretation of family history is that the Ferris side of the family hailed from France.  Three brothers arrived in Larne in order to escape persecution - they were Huguenots  They set up mills in the area - their offspring went into the building trade.   Ferris Park bears their name.   All sorts of little snippets of family history filter through - my mum remembers her grandmother referring to 'the bastinet' which is French for pram.  The Ballentines did hail from Co Antrim - Bushmills has been mentioned as the homeplace of my great-grandfather.  If, in fact, the French thread of the family is neither myth nor legend, the spelling would have been 'Ferres'.   J'ai etudie la langue francaise a l'ecole.   Je parle assez bien mais j'ai oublie presque tous!   I'm going to hit the button now and hope it works!     

[MaggieTag]

Hi Jey,

How amazing and exciting to hear from you. I'm a Ballentine by marriage and researching the family for my ex. How lucky you are to still have your Mum and that she remembers so much about the family, you really should have a good old yarn with her and write it all down  I have gathered a lot of information on the family since January and would be delighted to share it with you. The Ferris family did originally use Ferres but the name has been anglicized down the years . I wonder does your Mum remember my late dearly loved father in law Charlie Ballentine he was the son of William Ferres Ballentine and Mary Gordon and would have been your Mums cousin. I think I have your grandparents marriage Charles Ballentine and Mary Browne in March 1927 in Tranmere - is that right.
If you scroll through the the link below for census fragments for Larne Town 1851 to item number 71 you'll see your Great Great Great Grandparents Charles and Nancy Ferres and your Great Great Grandfather William Ferres

I'm sure your Mum would be really interested to see it as well.

I have my tree on GenesReunited but its a subscription site I think its about £10 for six months.

We cant exchange personal messages until you've made at least 3 posts and can't post anything  on living people.

Again I'm really delighted to hear from you - please keep in touch.

Mags

http://irishgenealogy.net/cp/phpbb3/viewtopic.php?f=34&t=1725

[jeyhey]

Hi again Mags!

Small world!

Thanks for you reply and the Census link.   I've checked it out at item 71 and see listed the names of my ancestors.   There's also another mention of 'Ferres' at item 73 - a married son with a baby daughter named Nancy, after her grandmother.   Showed it to mum and all sorts of stories came pouring forth, eg how Daniel met Agnes (a redhead apparently!). 

On the Ballentine side of the house.   Your late father-in-law was indeed my mum's cousin.   She paid him a visit occasionally when he was ill and you may have rubbed shoulders with her at his funeral.  Re my late grandparents, Charles and Mary and their marriage.   Mum believed they had been married in Birkenhead - Tranmere is a suburb of Birkenhead so that's about right. 

Photographs exist of my late great-grandmother Agnes and at least one other of my mum's uncle - this was taken during the 1st World War.   He had sustained serious injuries, was in a wheelchair, in a hospital surrounded by other casualties and nurses.   Mum will have the exact info.    Let's hope you get to see these pics and others.

We'll keep in touch!

Cheers
Jey

[MaggieTag]

Hi Jey,

Oh how I would love to hear your Mum's story about how they met! _ I'm just an old romantic at heart -And see the pictures! Agnes appears to have been 11 years older than Daniel - they married 20 Dec 1878 in Larne 1st Pres. and I think that Agnes was only 17!

I've also recently had a contact from a lady in New Zealand via GenesReunited whose mother was Mary Eliza Ballentine younger sister of your Granddad - so yes a very small world!

I've posted a couple of links for the family from the 1901& 1911 census below and also a transcript of the Ferres family headstone in St Cedmas Church Larne.

1901
http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/pages/1901/Antrim/Shankhill/Upper_Glenfarne_Street/950533/
You'll see on this one that Agnes has her mother living with her - her name was Jane Palmer. She married  William Ferres, son of Charles. As far as i can make out, William died 10 years after they married. I'm not sure if Jane & William went to Belfast some time after they married, or if Jane went alone after she was widowed, because I think she married again in Belfast - a man by the name of Beggs? Jane died in 1901.

I have only been able to find 2 siblings for your GGrandmother Agnes - William and Charles and they both married in Manhattan.

Charles Ferres the GGGGrandfather had at least 6 children and owned a lot of property in Larne - I've got a copy of his will, and a copy of others of the Ferres family, and would be very pleased to send you a copy. And yes,  the other Ferres on the 1851 is James, son Charles, and his wife Margaret (Millar) and their daughter Nancy.

Would your mum have any recollections of Daniel having a brother John - also a carpenter/joiner who was in America? Cos I've found an entry for a Daniel Ballentine, carpenter, of Belfast (and there is only our Daniel Ballentine fitting this discription in the 1901 census) going to the States in the early 1900's to visit a brother John?

I think that the man who was injured in WW1 was Daniel Ballentine (1895-1952) son of D & A, who is described on the death transcript that I have as a disabled ex-service man. He lived at 20 Agnes Street.

Daniel and Agnes had 12 children - Jane died 1900 aged 20 (how sad is that); Agnes who married Alexander Hogg; Robert who married Sarah Foster;  William who married Mary Gordon ( parents of my father in law); Mary who died aged 4 in 1892; Catherine never married died of TB in 1940 at 20 Agnes St; Ellen married John McLean (Agnes was living with Ellen & John at 36 Gibson Park Gardens when she died aged 80 in 1942); Daniel as above; your Charles; Jane; Mary Eliza and Rachel -dont have anything on these last 3, maybe your mum may recall them?

My regards to your Mum, and, yes lets keep in touch.


Mags



1911 and headstone details below.


1911
http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/pages/1901/Antrim/Shankhill/Upper_Glenfarne_Street/950533/

FERRIS Headstone St Cedmas Larne

Erected by Charles Ferris in memory of his parents John and Fannie Ferris, also his son William who died 6th January 1861 aged 36 years, and Jane wife of Alexander  Hamiltondied June 8th 1863 aged 28 years, John died 13th January 1874 aged 44 years, also his grandchildren namelyy Nancy Ferris, Robert Ferris, William Ferris, Jane Ferris, Jane Hamilton and Annie McCarley all died young and of his beloved wife Nancy who died 8th December 1877 aged 73 years, Maggie Esther died 29th November 1878 aged 22 years, also her two children John Ferris died 22nd April 1879 aged 31/2 years, and Martha died 18th August 1880 aged 3 years, Robert John ----- 12th April 1881 aged 19 years, the above named Charles Ferris who died 2nd August 1894 aged 92 years, also Mary Ferris wife of above named who died 30th May 1898 aged 69 years.