Frank Tunney, Harrington, c.1923

[Unclehefty]

I'm looking for records/evidence of a Frank/Francis Tunney listed as Father of Margaret Laura Tunney b.1923, Harrington.  He is listed as a fruit farmer, can anyone help?

Uncle heFTy

[Geoff-E]

Birth record of Margaret shows mother to have been nee McDONOUGH, so

Marriages Dec 1907
McDONOUGH    Mary Catherine         Durham    10a   738   
TUNNEY    Frank         Durham    10a   738

Possibles ...   

Births Jun 1885 
McDONOUGH    Mary Catherine         Durham    10a   353

Births Dec 1884
TUNNY  Francis         Durham    10a   385

From 1891 census, parents of Frank seem to be Martin and Esther -

Marriages Sep 1879 
KENNICK    Esther         Durham    10a   370   
TUNNEY    Martin         Durham    10a   370

[Unclehefty]

Thanks for that, but the Frank (my grandfather) there was killed at the Somme in 1915. He was a miner, it is either a clerical error of Mary remarried another Frank Tunney - I am puzzled.

[Geoff-E]

Ah, I see. 

A sister of my grandad's had a daughter 3 years after her husband died in WW1.  Birth certificate named dead husband as the father.

I see Mary C TUNNEY died in Coventry, so she got around a bit.

[Unclehefty]

What confuses me here is the reference to him being a fruit farmer, I would love to find reference to the father elsewhere. it is likely that Mary had a dalliance and I would love to resolve the story.

Uncle H

[Geoff-E]

I see that MLT married in Coventry too.  To my mind, Warwickshire seems much more of a fruit farming area than does west Cumberland.

When you say "listed as a fruit farmer", I presume you are talking of MLT's marriage.  Frank TUNNEY worked at a pit didn't he?

It's sounding awfully like a fabrication to me.

[Unclehefty]

Its as long story but my father was a brother to two sisters and a half-sister (MLT), a lot of the miners from the North East 'migrated' to the Midlands during the war and the Tunneys and McDonoughs are well populated there.  The irony is that the Tunneys also came from Cumbria but all originated in Ireland.

My 'spin' on this is that, somehow they managed to list Francis (Frank) Tunney as the father but as he had been dead for 8 years something was concocted on the grounds of respectability to enable Mary C and MLT + brothers and sisters to return back to Northumberland.  I guess whoever the father is, he was a fruit farmer in real life and (in the well known movie catchphrase) 'only the names have been changed to protect the innocent.   One day I will unearth the story - but I have other generations to explore...

Uncle H