I am looking for ANY additional information that may add to what I already know about my Gallagher ancestors from Ballyshannon, Co Donegal.
My grandfather, Henry, who was born in Ballyshannon in 1907, left Ireland and emigrated to Lancashire, England, around 1936. Three of his siblings, Annie {born 1899}, Mary Agnes {born 1905}, and Patrick {born 1897}, also emigrated to Lancashire around the same time. Five other siblings had died in Ballyshannon by 1925; Mary Ellen {born 1895} died sometime before 1901, Maggie {born 1901} died aged 3 after being burnt in an accident in what was then the family home at East Rock in 1904, Catherine {born 1911} died in 1912, Anthony Francis {born 1909} died in 1918, and Thomas Joseph {born 1904} died a bachelor aged 21 in 1925.
Their parents {my great grandparents} were called Patrick Gallagher and Anne McGee. The family lived at 8 Erne Street in the 1930's up to possibly the early 1940's {As yet I have been unable to find an accurate death date for Patrick; family letters indicate that it was before September 1939. Anne seems to have died at Erne Street in 1938}. Their census returns say that in 1911 they lived at 46 East Port, and in 1901 Patrick lived at 2 Ballyhanna with his mother, Ellen, whilst his wife Anne and children are recorded as lodging at 41 West Port. Patrick Gallagher and Anne McGee were married on May 30th 1895 in St. Joseph's R.C. chapel, the Rock, Ballyshannon.
Patrick's father and mother were called James Gallagher and Ellen Cox {Anne's father was called Terence McGee, and her mother was called Mary Fox}. James and Ellen were married in Ballyshannon registrar's office on February 14th 1852. James' address prior to his marriage was Lissacholly, in the parish of Kilbarron {Ellen's address was at Knocknashangan and her father was called Thomas Cox}.
James' father was called Henry Gallagher. Henry is recorded in Griffith's Valuation as renting a house and land in the townland of Lissacholly circa 1858. James Gallagher and Ellen Cox had at least five children; Patrick {my great grandfather} was born on February 23rd 1866 in Camlin, Bridget Ellen was born on January 27th 1861 also in Camlin, Mary was born on March 1st 1859 in Templenew, Ann was born in December 1856 in Edenagor, and Henry, who is estimated to have been born around 1855 on his civil death record {he died unmarried aged 39 at his mother Ellen's home in Ballyhanna in 1894}.
My great great great grandfather, Henry Gallagher of Lissacholly, is estimated to have been born around 1794. He died in Lissacholly aged 85 on March 25th 1879. I definitely know that other than his son James {my great great grandfather} Henry had another child, a daughter called Anne Jane Gallagher {although, there are probably a few more children belonging to Henry that I have yet to discover}. Anne Jane married William Clarke on August 16th 1855 in Kilbarron Church of Ireland parish church. They had at least two children; Anne Jane Clarke born on November 2nd 1867 in Camlin, and another daughter, whose first name is not recorded on her civil birth record, was also born in Camlin on February 5th 1870.
I would be very interested to find out more about all these people. For instance, it is highly probable that my great grandfather Patrick's sisters may have married and had children. Therefore, I should still have some distant relatives in Ballyshannon. As yet I have been unable to track them down.
