kirwan

[Slev]

Hi Kerri,

Well, we used to visit an old lady in Fermanagh who my father called Auntie Minnie. I was very young and did not realise that she might be related to Auntie Annie, Tess and Uncle Tom, but it is very possible! She lived with a family, who seemed to be either her son and his wife, or her daughter and husband, and they had one son that I used to play with. This would have been in the early 60's which, going by the Census would put Minnie in her mid 70's. What were your parents and grandparent's names on Minnie's side of your family?

[Kerri Philpott]

My great grandmother came to Canada and married Robert Grant, a railroad man from County Down. Their only daughter was Mary Margaret, but she went by Jean. She married Leslie Holland and they had two daughters, Patricia and Barbara. Barbara is my mother.

My grandmother had told us there was a falling out of some sort between her mother and the family and she was put out of the house. But we unfortunately did not start asking about Minnie until my grandmother's health started to decline, so we don't have a lot of details.

[Slev]

Unfortunately, not the same Minnie. The lady I met must have been on the Slevin side of the family. The only one of my Grandmother Sarah's siblings that I met who had children who would be still alive was Annie, and, as she was the baby of the family, she possibly never met Minnie and would not have known anything about her to pass on to her children.....

[Kerri Philpott]

Thank you. Do you have any information on their parents, John and Mary Ann?

[Slev]

No, unfortunately, none. I never met my Grandmother Sarah, as she died before I was born.

[gaffy]

... The detail here would point to a John Kirwin who married Mary Anne McGin in Brookeborough RC Church in June 1880 ...

Correction to my previous post, birth details for John and Mary Anne Kirwan's children point to her maiden name being McGirr rather than McGin.

At the time of the 1880 marriage, John Kirwan lived in "Carricknapolin" (the townland of Carrickpolin in the civil parish of Aghalurcher), his father James was a farmer, Mary Anne McGirr lived in Corlough, the daughter of James McGirr, also a farmer.  This is the marriage in the church register, in Aghavea RC parish, a dispensation was obtained and an Edward McGirr was one of the witnesses (right page, 4th entry down):

http://registers.nli.ie/registers/vtls000632784#page/34/mode/1up

This is a possibility for Mary Anne's parents in 1901:
http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/pages/1901/Fermanagh/Brookeboro/Coreough/1355808/

Same folk in 1911: http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/pages/1911/Fermanagh/Brookeborough/Tullynagowan/521903/

[Kerri Philpott]

Thanks! I have seen both before. That does appear to be a pretty good potential match for her family.

[gaffy]

Using Alice McGirr as a possible lead (born approx. 1867-1871 based on the 1901/1911 census returns) to work back to the parents of potential sister Mary Anne McGirr (who married John Kirwan), the closest I can find is one born on 13 October 1865 to farmer James McGirr and Mary Anne Fleming, the address was Corlough.  There were also the following children born to a couple with these same names with the same Corlough address: unnamed in 1869; Susan in 1870; Teresa in 1874. I realise "Mary Anne" doesn't tally with the "Margaret" McGirr in the 1901 census return, so just for noting until this can be ruled in or out.

Edited to add: Also, a 27 year old Susan McGirr living in Corlough in 1899 (the same Susan born in 1870?)  married a William McDonagh in Brookborough RC Church in that year, her father was a farmer called James McGirr and a Mary Kirwan was a witness. Looks like her in 1901 / 1911:

http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/pages/1901/Fermanagh/Deerpark/Lismalore/1356561/
http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/pages/1911/Fermanagh/Deerpark/Lismalore/522533/

[gaffy]

Hi Gaffy,

The 1911 census is definitely Sarah Kirwan's family, despite the incorrect spelling of the family name.
I know this for certain because I met many of her siblings (my father's aunts and uncles), including
Teresa, Thomas and Annie, all who emigrated to Glasgow, Scotland.

Sorry Slev, just realised that I hadn't acknowledged your post, thank you, I've tried to add my  tuppenceworth on Sarah's mother's McGirr side