May family of Skerries

[may2491]

I am looking for information on the May Family (or families) of Skerries about the time period of the 1860s.
The father was in boating or fishing and apparently died lost at sea.  The son emigrated to America in the 1870s or 1880s.  Thank you.

Timothy May

[shanew147]

I have a May ancestor from near Skerries - a little earlier that your dates though. My gtgtgt grandmother is a Margaret May. She married a Rooney in Skerries/Holmpatrick RC parish in 1841 and they raised their children in Piercetown townland, located between Skerries and Loughshinny

I've a possible baptism for Margaret in 1821 in Skerries parish with parents William May and Etty Archer, but have not traced any sibling or side branches yet..



Shane

[may2491]

Shane,

Thank you for this quick response.  It is quite possible that my gtgt-grandparents were also born in that area, all I know is that they were born in Ireland.  If they also came from that area they may have been in the Skerries/Holmpatrick area around the same time as your ancestors.  They may even be related.

The name of father and son is Patrick and the son is Patrick Joseph (the father may also be "Patrick Joseph").  The mother is Mary.  Are these names familiar?
Can you tell from these names if they are RC?

I do not have any indication what church the family belonged to although I am leaning to the possibility that they belonged to the Skerries/Holmpatrick RC parish which today I think is called "St. Patrick's."

I will jot down your ancestors' names in case there is a family connection or if I can find anything in my own searches.

Timothy

[shanew147]

most of the children's names in the next generation can be accounted for in the Rooney line - but there are a few 'left over' that could be of May origin - i.e. Esther/Etty, Margaret and Maria/Mary. The name Esther in particular was passed down through three generations.

I also have a marriage for William May and Esther Archer in 1821 in Swords Skerries RC parish, residences given for both as 'Skerries'. Witnesses are 'Patt May' and 'Jane Archer'. Possible relations - maybe siblings to the bride & groom ?

...
The name of father and son is Patrick and the son is Patrick Joseph (the father may also be "Patrick Joseph").  The mother is Mary.
....

Do you have a year of birth, even an estimate, for your Patrick jnr ?


Shane

[may2491]

Siblings is a possibility.  Also, I will keep in mind the Swords RC parish.

Patrick Joseph was born about 1868.  His father, Patrick (Joseph?), is supposed to have died at sea around the same time.

Timothy

[shanew147]

If your Patrick was born around 1868 then he should probably appear in civil birth records. These started in 1864. You can search an index to these on the FamilySearch website, there are also many extracted birth on the same website, which give a bit more details - e.g. parents names.

see : Introduction to Irish Records

The registration district for north county Dublin, including Skerries, Rush etc is Balrothery. I had a quick search but didn't see any likely matches in the area. The closest match is a William Patrick May in the right sub-district, but parents are Joseph & Mary.

Do you have marriage, death certs etc for your Patrick ?  Where in the US did he end up ?


Shane

[may2491]

I do not have any birth record at this point.  I have found other helpful information on FamilySearch before.  Also, without knowing that Balrothery is the registration district I have done searches with it and have found some information. 

I found the same Joseph and Mary too and am not ruling out that the father may have been named Joseph Patrick or was named Patrick Joseph but went by his middle name, "Joseph."

I do not have confirmation of port of entry but family lore says he arrived at Philadelphia.  I am not ruling out New York.  From there he went to Chicago where he met and married my gt-grandmother and from there they went to Ohio.  I have marriage cert. and a likely death cert.

Thank you for the information about the Irish records.

Timothy

[shanew147]

Siblings is a possibility.  Also, I will keep in mind the Swords RC parish.

Patrick Joseph was born about 1868.  His father, Patrick (Joseph?), is supposed to have died at sea around the same time.
....

There's a possible baptism match showing up on the free index of the RootsIreland pay-website. A Patrick May baptised in Swords Skerries RC parish in 1868. Father's name is matching Pat or Patrick and mother's first name appears to be Anne. I cant get a search match for her surname (this search feature doesn't always work), but this should be included in the transcript.

There doesn't appear to be a corresponding civil record, so there may not be a birth cert available. The only major detail that this would add compared to a RC parish record would be father's occupation.

There are several Patrick May death registrations listed on the BMD Index, but assuming the death took place close to Skerries around the time of the birth of Patrick jnr, then this looks like the best match by probable age for Patrick snr...  might be work trying a cert for this to confirm occupation, cause of death etc (Note death certs dont usually include family information - see following link).

 Name: Patrick May
 Registration district: Balrothery
 Event type: Death
 Registration  year: 1868
 Age : 49 (est. birth year 1819)
 Volume: 2 / Page: 316

see : Ordering Certs from GRO Roscommon
        Details included on a Death Cert


Shane

[may2491]

Thank you for this search.  I purchased the same baptismal record from the RootsIreland pay-website and your information is accurate, except it does not mention the "Swords RC" church or any church on the baptism record.  Can you share a link where the church name shows up? (FamilySearch?)  Thanks.

The mother being named "Anne" poses some difference with our family record of "Mary."  However, there is always the possibility of both names being put together as in "Mary Anne."

The death registration for Patrick Sr. that you post is also one I have seen recently and appears to be the closest match for a possible death record.  Thank you for information on how to order certificates.  It is encouraging that we are coming up with similar results since I am not very experienced with these searches.

Timothy