The search for Juliana, Elizabeth and Joanna Boyle in Causeway parish

THE SEARCH FOR JULIANA, eLIZABETH AND JOANNA BOYLE IN CAUSEWAY PARISH

Family history research comes down to a time consuming process of recording and analysis.  If you are very lucky you strike gold quickly but not when you have a great range of alternative possibilities.  Then you have to assemble and compare, putting aside the maybes for further work.  One might say that one was trying to bring order from chaos, particularly as Irish families of those times used the same name again and again.

I have to do this exercise for all the names with which our family was associated including Flahive, Ferris, Nelan, Dee, Ryle and then of course there are the (O’)Connors!

This blog runs the risk of not seeing trees for the wood, but here goes...

Sponsors

It seems that wives used their maiden names most of the time (but sometimes not) when acting as sponsors – adds to the general confusion.  I need to ask locally what the normal practice was, if there was one.

The incidence of Boyles versus Donoghues

I have said before that the Boyle name seems to be more common in Causeway than Donoghue and this data proves it.

There are so many townland names that it gets difficult to place them, so I have attached maps for Rattoo and Killury parishes at the end of the main text in this blog with acknowledgement to http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~irlker/civparlist.html#dna.  The identification number used with the maps is shown in square brackets below in front of the townland name with R = Rattoo and K=Killury.

In Rattoo civil parish, the O’Donoghues are concentrated (more than 5 references for parents and sponsors) in [R19]Benmore/Ballyduff (26), [R33]Drommartin (21), [R1&7]Knoppoge (14), [R35]Ballincrossig (8) townlands. 

In Killury civil parish the concentration is in [K12]Dromnacarra (22), [K3]Kilmore (18) and [K10]Ardagh townlands.  All bar Dromnacarra (4 miles) are within 2 miles of Ballyduff.

The Boyle name for the same two civil parishes is, however, concentrated in many more townlands.

In Rattoo, the Boyles appear significantly in, [R30]Ballinbranhig (6), [35]Ballincrossig (20), [R19]Benmore/Ballyduff (24), [R33]Drommartin (14), [R30]Knockercreeveen (15), [R23]Rahealy (5), [R15]Rattoo (9), [R25]Sleveen (47), [R36]Tullaghna (28).

In Killury, we find them in [K2]Ardoughter (7), [K22]Ballinclemesig (12), [K15]Ballinglanna (47), [K9]Ballynaskreena (9), [K11]Castleshannon (7), [Town]Causeway (5), [K4]Cloghaneleesh (5), [K12]Dromnacarra (7), [K23]Lisduff (5), [K21]Rathmorrel (11).

In Killahan civil parish (still in Causeway RC parish), Clooneen contains (23) and in a townland, for which I have not been able to identify the civil parish, called Redfield there are (8).

The Boyle first names

In my last blog the Boyle names with their main events/dates found in Benmore/Ballyduff were:-

Generation One – Juliana’s sibling perhaps: Daniel (hus.1809-14), Patrick (sponsor 1814), Joanna (wife 1810, 1818), John (sp. 1810, 1818) and Catherine (sp.1812).

Generation Two – Juliana’s nephews and nieces perhaps: Joanna (wife to John Donoghue with kids 1838-45), Jude/Judith (sp.1844), Elizabeth (wife to James Donoghue with kids 1836-47), Julia (sp.1844), John (sp.1844), Brian (sp.1840), Ellen (sp.1840), Catherine (sp.1850), Mary (wife 1850).

This suggests that they were all from the same family group which is unlikely to be the case.  They could just have carried the same surname.

However most of these names are common in Causeway parish except perhaps for Juliana/Julia and Elizabeth.  The three cases we have in the tree are 

Generation One: James and Juliana Boyle – birth guess 1780s

Generation Two: James and Elizabeth Boyle – birth guess 1816

                            John and Joanna Boyle – birth guess 1819

The results

In going through all the Causeway townlands where Boyles occur I have ranked them as Probable, Possible and Unlikely in order to narrow down our alternatives.  The Probables and Possibles are noted below.

Probables:

[25]Sleveen counts as gold dust.  There are more Boyles there than anywhere else bar Ballinglanna (same number, 47). 

In 1839 Joanna Boyle married John Donohue and he was Thomas, my gggrandfather’s, brother in my opinion.  Joanna and John named their first boy and girl, James (Donoghue) and Juliana (Boyle), which gives me confidence that John was their son.

There were a number of Boyle families in Sleveen because from 1828 to 1840, three Joannas had their first child.

All of our Boyle first names, bar Elizabeth, are there, in particular Brian which I have not found anywhere else.  Brian Boyle was a sponsor at the birth of John and Joanna’s daughter, Juliana, in 1840.   Brian was a father from 1808-25, his wife’s name was Mary Disset

Patrick (sp.1814) was a father in Sleveen from 1810-26.  His wife was Honora Connell; the Connell name has relevance in Poplar in 1851.

John (sp.1810, 1818) was also a father in Sleveen from 1810-14 and his wife was a Mary Connor, my gggrandmother’s name, but there were an awful lot of Mary Connors.

So we can say that they were probably Joanna’s siblings.

I am not, however, convinced that our Juliana Boyle came from Sleveen.  There is only one case of a Donoghue sponsor to Boyles in Sleveen and that was a Juliana Donoghue in 1848 which is a bit late for our Juliana and too early for the third generation Julianas (see family tree).  The implication of this is that the siblings that I have listed above for her may not have been her family at all; possibly related but not siblings or nephews and nieces.

I need to ask my contacts in Ballyduff how old sponsors for baptisms might have been, because if this was our Juliana she would have been in her sixties/seventies.

[R35]Ballincrossig is a Probable because virtually all the Boyle first names are present and there is a couple, Daniel Custello and Ellen Donoghue, for whom a Juliana Boyle was sponsor for their child Ellen in 1844.  They had two others Daniel and Joanna in 1848 for whom an Ellen Donoghue was sponsor.

There is an Elizabeth baptised in 1821, daughter to William Boyle and Julia Connor and another b.1820 to also a William Boyle but an Elizabeth Connor mother.  Our Elizabeth’s first child was born in 1836, so she would have been 15-16 unless her baptism was very delayed.  I think I am right in saying that there was no minimum age for marriage at that time but parental consent was needed if woman was under 21, so that is possible.

Clooneen is in Killahan civil parish but only 2.5 miles from Ballyduff.  Juliana Boyle and James Donohough are sponsors for John Donohough & Ellen Johnson at the baptism of their daughter Juliana in 1812.   This could have been James’s brother.  There are lots of Boyle and Donoghue events in this townland. 

In Ballyhennessy townland in Dysert 1 civil parish, about 5 miles from Ballyduff,  there is a baptism of a Thomas Donoghue in 1822 to parents John Donoghue and Mary Scanlan, for whom the sponsors are James and Julia Donoghue.  So there are a few of this combination  around!

Possibles:

[R33]Drommartin is a long shot but there is an O’Connor in the States with ancestry here who has Donoghue heritage in Benmore/Ballyduff, so perhaps...

[R32]Knockercreeveen is also a long shot but it has all the right names even if they are not of the right generation.  This has one of the few Elizabeths (b.1841), really too late for ours.

[K15]Ballinglanna has all the right names incl. Elizabeth (b.1837) but no Juliana.

So we have cracked Joanna Boyle and may have found Elizabeth.  Juliana’s origin place will remain an ongoing question, which may never be solved.

If you want to see the raw data, it is at the end of this blog!

Rattoo Civil Parish Townlands & Map

Many thanks to Sean Ruad for this data from the IreAtlas Townland Database

With acknowledgement to http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~irlker/civparlist.html#dna

Rattoo is about 3 miles from top to toe as the crow flies.

Templenoe, Listowel PLU, Munster Province
Townlands	Acres	Barony	Map#
Addergown	454	Clanmaurice	22
Ardcullen	198	Clanmaurice	3
Ardcullen-Marshes	168	Clanmaurice	5
Ayle	57	Clanmaurice	2
Ballinbranhig	301	Clanmorris	30
Ballincrossig	292	Clanmaurice	35
BALLYDUFF T.	DNA	Clanmaurice	**
Ballyhorgan	296	Clanmaurice	12
Ballyhorgan Marshes	137	Clanmaurice	14
Ballyouneen	656	Iraghticonnor	37
Benmore	223	Clanmaurice	19
Bishopscourt North	85	Clanmaurice	10
Bishopscourt South	144	Clanmaurice	17
Clooneagh	20	Clanmaurice	16
Cloonlogher	161	Clanmaurice	28
Corbally	170	Clanmaurice	29
Derryco	174	Clanmaurice	4
DROMMARTIN T.	DNA	Clanmaurice	**
Drommartin	382	Clanmaurice	33
Dromroe	101	Clanmaurice	34
Farranedmond	10	Clanmaurice	18
Glanerdalliv	258	Clanmaurice	26
Killarida	511	Iraghticonnor	38
Knockananore	200	Clanmaurice	24
Knockavaghig	176	Clanmaurice	31
Knockercreeveen	163	Clanmaurice	32
Knocknacree	154	Clanmaurice	20
Knoppoge North	181	Clanmaurice	1
Knoppoge South	161	Clanmaurice	7
Lacka East	38	Clanmaurice	9
Lacka West	165	Clanmaurice	8
Leagh	191	Clanmaurice	6
Leagh Marshes	87	Clanmaurice	13
Lisnagoneeny	207	Clanmaurice	27
Rahealy	215	Clanmaurice	23
Rattoo	379	Clanmaurice	15
Rattoo Island	1	Clanmaurice	*
Sheepwalk	91	Clanmaurice	11
Sleveen	386	Clanmaurice	25
Slievawaddra	154	Clanmaurice	21
Tullaghna	434	Clanmaurice	36

* Rattoo Island is a townland in Ratoo according to the "General Alphabetical Index to the Townlands of Ireland" 1851, but it is not on the map information we have available which are modeled after the Inner City Trust Maps, based on the Ordnance Survey completed in 1846.

** DNA = Does Not Apply (see below).

Towns/Townlands: "One of the confusing things about Irish government is that the "towns" for the most part really had no legal status. That is, no government function. They were just built-up areas. Therefore, you can't really look for "Ballylongford Town" on the Griffiths Valuation and find anything, (nor will you find them on Government Ordance Survey maps which our townland maps are based on - Waterlilys). It might be as many as a half dozen townlands which contain the areas which comprise the "Town of Ballylongford" or Castleisland or whatever." Ray Marshall. Therefore towns will be listed without acres or map numbers; instead you will see DNA = Does Not Apply.

Killury Civil Parish Townlands & Map

Killury civil parish runs along the west side of Rattoo.  Look for the spike in Rattoo, it fits into the insert below.  Some of these townlands are very close to Benmore/Ballyduff.

Killury is about 4-5 miles from top to toe

Killury Parish, Listowel PLU, Clanmaurice Barony, Munster Province
Townland	Acres	Map #
Ardagh	889	10
Ardoughter	864	2
Ballinclemesig	384	22
Ballinglanna	676	15
Ballynaskreena	311	9
Ballynoe	238	19
CAUSEWAY T.	DNA	*
Castleshannon	386	11
Clashmelcon	958	1
Cleanderry	638	13
Cloghane	481	4
Derryra Beg	34	6
Derryra More	23	7
Dromkeen East	684	17
Dromkeen West	729	18
Dromnacarra	673	12
Farran	189	16
Feeans	510	14
Kilmore	590	3
Knoppoge	391	5
Lisduff	284	23
Lissycurrig	285	20
Meenogahane	625	8
Rathmorrel	236	21

* DNA = Does Not Apply.

THE RAW DATA

5 or more entries in the register makes a townland relevant.  Names listed are Boyle parents, children (including to Boyle wives) and sponsors.

Rattoo:

Addergown: 3, Juliana (1783, child Edmund), Ellen (wife 1831-5), Catherine (1833).  Donoghues: None  UNLIKELY

Ardoughter: 7, Honora, John, Richard, Julia (1838), James, Thomas, Daniel (1846), Mary (1849), Brigid, Patrick (1851).  Donoghues: Patrick (1830s) and wife Julia (1851) UNLIKELY

Ballinbranhig: 6, James, Mary (wife 1813-16, dau, John, Joanna (wife 1813 & dau. 1813 & 1826), Bridget, Michael, Thomas.  Donoghues: None UNLIKELY

Ballincrossig: 20, Mary (wife 1783-4, b.1812, sp.1837), Patrick (sp.1784, b.1809), Terence, Margaret, William, John (sp.1817), Daniel (sp.1819), Ellen (b.1815, sp.1829), Michael, Juliana (b.1817 and b.1826 (same parents), sp.1844 Ellen Donohue, sp.1845 Patrick Connor), Elizabeth (b.1820, b.1821), Catherine (sp.1842).  Donoghues: Mary Donohue wife 1828-42, Brigid wife 1840, Ellen wife 1842-8) POSSIBLE because all the Boyle first names are present and there is a couple, Daniel Custello and Ellen Donoghue, for whom a Juliana Boyle was sponsor for their child Ellen in 1844.  They had two others, Daniel and Joanna, in 1848 for whom an Ellen Donoghue was sponsor.  There is also an Elizabeth b.1821 to William Boyle and Julia Connor and another b.1820 to also a William Boyle but an Elizabeth Connor.  If Elizabeth’s first child was born in 1836 she would have been 15-16 unless her baptism was very delayed.  I think I am right in saying that there was no minimum age for marriage at that time but parental consent was needed if woman was under 21.

Ballynaskreena: 9, Joanna (sp.1822), Catherine (wife 1824), Patrick (sp.1835 Mary Connor, sp. 1843) Michael, Margaret, John (sp.1850), Debora, William.  Donoghues: John & Catherine Donohue sp.1859 UNLIKELY

Benmore/Ballyduff: Covered on earlier blog.

Contacts: Ryle in Ireland

Cloghaneleesh: 5, Terence, Patrick (b.1841), Bridget, Juliana (b.1848), Thomas, Michael, Margaret, Mary (b.1849).  Donoghues: Margaret sp.1836 UNLIKELY

Drommartin: 14, Mary (sp.1785), John (sp.1810 James Connor), William, Ellen (sp.1821, wife 1826 sp. Margaret Donohue, sp.1844 James Donohue), James, Margaret, Catherine (sp.1840), Thomas, Jasper.  Donoghues: Lots.  POSSIBLE

Contacts: O’Connor in US

Knockercreeveen: 15, John (sp.1810, 1825, 1831 all Boyle families), Daniel (hus 1817-21), James, Mary (b.1818), Patrick (hus 1818-40, son 1832), Thomas, Helen (b.1822), Juliana (b.1817, b.1825, wife 1846), Johanna (b.1834), Honora (b.1840), Judith (sp.1834), Ellen (wife 1831), Eleanor, Elizabeth (b.1841).  Donoghues: Margaret wife 1810, John sp.1821 & James sp.1824.  POSSIBLE - lots of right names plus one of few Elizabeths anywhere but low chance.

Lisnagoneeny: Same Donoghue woman called Judith, Julia, Juliana

Rahealy: 5, Mary (wife 1832 Thomas Connor, 1834 John Connor), Ellen (sp.1836, wife 1838-43), Juliana (sp.1851), John (b.1834), Patrick (b.1838), Martin.  Donoghues: Ann sp.1819, Mary sp.1840.  UNLIKELY - but lot of Boyle & Connor interactions

Rattoo: 9, Ellen (wife 1783), Honora, Patrick (hus.1822), Mary (sp.1822), Thomas, Margaret, John (hus.1840), Maurice.  Donoghues: Daniel hus.1819, John & Catherine sp.1819, Julia sp.Gunn 1832.  UNLIKELY

Sleveen: 47, John (sp.1784, hus.1810-14 wife Mary Connor sp. Brian, b.1815, hus. 1835), Brian (hus.1808-25, b.1826, sp.1815, sp.1820, 1824, 1827, 1845), Patrick (hus.1810-26, sp.1812, 1825, hus.1839, b.1844), Mary (b.1812, sp.1819, sp.1840 x 2), Joanna (b.1808, sp.1823, 1827, wife1828-39, wife 1836-48, b.1848, sp.1838, 1842, wife 1839 John Donohue), David, Michael, Ellen (sp.1824, 1835, 1837, 1839, wife 1849), Thomas, Catherine (sp.1835, wife 1839), Margaret, Julia (sp.1852), Daniel (b.1827), Winifred, Gobnet, Timothy, Edmund.  Donoghues: Lots.  PROBABLE/CERTAIN

Tullaghna: 28, Thomas, James, Mary (wife 1809-15, wife 1822, wife 1831-42, b. 1834, wife 1831, sp.1835, 1840, 1841, wife 1847), Patrick (b.1809, 1825, sp. 1825), Terence, John (b.1815, hus.1824, sp.1831, 1833, 1837), Catherine (sp.1839, 1842, b.1839), Ellen (wife 1833-42),  Joanna (b.1835), Matthew, Daniel (b.1835, 1842), Margaret, William, Bridget, Honora, Denis, Cornelius, Michael.  Donoghues: John & James hus.1784, Ann wife 1786, Dermot hus.1831, James hus.1831, James sp.1861.  UNLIKELY

Killury:

Ballinclemesig: 12, Mary (wife 1812, sp.1830, 1839, wife 1834, b. 1834, 1842), Catherine (b.1812), Patrick (sp.1830, 1836, 1840, b. 1847, hus.1850) Margaret, Ann, Joanna (b.1837), Bridget, Michael, Ellen (b.1852), Elizabeth (b.1850), John (hus.1851), William, Juliana (b.1851).  Donoghues: None.  UNLIKELY

Ballinglanna: 47, Patrick (sp.1783, hus.1784,b.1811, b.1812, sp.1826, b.1847, b.1846, hus.1848-9),  Thomas, Joanna (wife 1807, b.1830, b.1809, b.1833, b.1834, b.1850), Terence, John (sp.1808, b.1827, sp.1823, b.1826, hus.1832-51, b.1851, b.1839, sp.1846, Michael, Margaret, Mary (wife 1808-30, b.1808, sp.1830, b.1814, sp.1823, sp.1826, wife 1825-6, sp.1825, b.1826, b.1834, b.1848, sp.1846, sp.1850), Catherine (b.1810, b.1821, sp.1821, b.1836, wife 1850), Daniel (b.1815), Elizabeth (b.1837), Ellen (b.1844, wife 1836-48), Honora, Bridget, Timothy.  Donoghues: Bridget sp.1846.  All the right names incl. Elizabeth but no Juliana so POSSIBLE

Contacts: Boyle in US

Castleshannon: 7, Margaret, Juliana (wife 1826-44), Joanna (b.1825), Patrick (b.1830, sp.1840, hus.1827-44, b.1844), Mary (b.1826, b.1836), William, John (b.1840), Bridget, Michael, Thomas, Julia (b.1838).  Donoghues: Some - Maurice, John & Joanna, Bridget.  UNLIKELY but Ryle connection?

Causeway: 5, William, John (sp.1809), Mary (b.1827), Honora.  Donoghues: John & Ellen sp.1810, Ellen wife 1833, sp.1860.  UNLIKELY

Dromnacarra: 9, Margaret, Catherine (b.1807, sp.1842, Thomas, Joanna (b.1809, 1814, Bridget, Daniel (b.1817, Michael, Patrick (b.1824, sp.1842, John (b.1827, sp.1855), Mary (wife 1833-42, Ellen (sp.1855), Michael.  Donoghues: Lots, particularly Bartholomew sp.1819, b.1823 to Margaret Donohue, sp.1822, sp.1826, hus.1826.  Possible because of Bartholomew but as he gets married to a Mary Moore in 1826 UNLIKELY

Lisduff: 5, John, Mary.  Donoghues: None.   UNLIKELY

Rathmorrel: 11, Mary, John, Ellen, Patrick, Bridget, Richard, Michael, Martin, Terence.  Donoghues: None.  UNLIKELY

Killahan:

Clooneen: 23, Thomas, John (hus.1809-32, sp. 1809, 1818,1820, 1841), Catherine (sp.1809, 1832, 1835, wife 1849), Mary (wife 1809, sp.1836, wife 1835), Juliana (sp.1812 with James Donohough for John Donohough & Ellen Johnson, sp.1846), Ellen (b.1809, b.1836, 1844), Patrick (b.1818), Margaret, Honora, James.  Donoghues: Lots and James and Juliana/Julia.  PROBABLE

Unknown civil parishes:

Redfield: 8, Honora, Thomas, Catherine (sp.1835, b.1839), Mary (wife 1835-47), Margaret, Morgan, James, Ellen (b.1847), Patrick  (sp.1845), Elizabeth (sp.1845).  Donoghues: None.  UNLIKELY

Vagrant: only 2, but one is Elizabeth (sp.1835).  Donoghues: One, Dermot.  UNLIKELY

The search for our Boyle ancestors in Benmore/Ballyduff

The search for our Boyle ancestors in Benmore/Ballyduff

Based on just Benmore and Ballyduff entries in the Causeway parish register I have searched for Juliana’s siblings, cousins, nieces and nephews and other possible connections.  Listing the references provides me with target names and relationships.  There are generally many more Boyles in the Causeway register than Donoghues, so much harder task.

Recall

James Donoghue and Juliana Boyle (my generation’s ggggrandparents)

Thomas Donoghue and Ellen Connor (my generation’s gggrandparents)

Generation One

Juliana Boyle (b.1780s), wife of James Donoghue as above:

1819 – sponsor at baptism of Honora, dau. of John Connor and Ellen Donohue (probable mother of our Ellen Connor above).

1823 – sponsor at baptism of Ellen, dau. of Bartholomew Donohue (James’s brother) and Bridget Ferris

Possible brother - Daniel Boyle (b.1780s) married to Catherine Tuite:

1809 – baptism of dau. Ellen, sponsor Catherine Gunn; Gunn family known to be friendly with Juliana

1814 – baptism of dau. Margaret, sponsor Patrick Boyle, another possible brother

1810 - possible sister, Joanna Boyle marriage to Denis Kearney, sponsor John Boyle, another possible brother

            1818 – marriage of John Boyle & Margaret Leehy, brother as above

1812 - possible sister – Catherine Boyle, sponsor at baptism of Ellen, dau. of Thomas Chute & Dorothy Birch

In summary, Juliana’s siblings may have included Daniel, Patrick, Joanna, John and Catherine.

Generation Two: Juliana’s (and James’s) further children or nieces and nephews

1838 - Joanna Boyle, sponsor at baptism of Denis, son of Denis Hanifan & Eliza Connor; Ellen’s (see below) sister as other sponsor was James Connor, a probable brother

            1839 – Joanna Boyle married John Donoghue (Thomas’s brother)

            1841 – Joanna Boyle, sponsor at baptism of John, son of Thomas Donoghue and             Ellen Connor as above

            1842 – Jude Boyle (Jude short for Joanna) sponsor at baptism of Michael son of             Thomas Ryle and Mary Donoghue (Thomas’s sister)

1836+ – Baptisms of James Donoghue (Thomas’s brother) & Elizabeth Boyle’s children: Juliana (1836), Ellen (1839), Honora (1842), Mary (1844) with sponsor Julia Boyle (seems rather late for this to be our Juliana?), Patrick (1847)

1840 – Brian Boyle and Ellen Boyle, sponsors at baptism of Juliana, dau of John Donoghue and Joanna Boyle

1844 – Anastasia Boyle married to Patrick Donnoghue (probably son of Patrick Donoghue (son of James and Juliana) and Catherine Dee) had a dau. Mary for whom the sponsors were John Boyle and Jude Boyle

            1847 – Catherine Boyle sponsor at baptism of James, son of Anastasia and Patrick

            above

1850 – Mary Boyle and Simon Halloran had a son Samuel for whom the sponsors were John Boyle and Catherine Boyle

So we have Boyle names of Joanna (Jude), Elizabeth, Julia (Julia and Joanna were both derivations of Sibán in Irish so could be same person), John, Brian, Ellen, Anastasia, Catherine, Mary.

The degree of intermarriage between Donoghues and Boyles seems extraordinary in today’s terms, but one must remember that the social circle was very narrow in the first half of the 19^th century.

The next step will be to look at the nearby townlands and see if other Boyle families might be offer alternative theories.

Our extended family in Ballyduff 1782-1852: The O'Donoghue male line

OUR EXTENDED FAMILY IN BALLYDUFF 1782-1852

THE O’DONOGHUE MALE LINE 
(to go to family tree click here)

I have now searched all the Causeway parish records from 1782-1852 for the Donoghue and Boyle names and analysed them by townland.  The records for 1787 to late 1806 are not available.  The Connor name is just too extensive to cover in the same way.  I will look at the other adjacent RC parishes and townlands in due course.

Family history is all about creating hypotheses and then trying to prove or disprove them.  It is time to try to come to some conclusions as to our extended family and their friends in Ballyduff and Poplar.  I will deal first with the O’Donoghue male line and in later blogs with the female lines.

Witnesses or sponsors are a key influence in trying to pin down who was ours and who not.  They are the closest relationships to the folk whose major event (marriage or birth) is shown in the parish register.  This note will show who I think were of our family and why.  I have used the ratings of strong, medium and weak to describe my level of assurance.

If in doubt, my working assumption is that sponsors (godparents/witnesses) would not have been chosen later than age 30-35 as 40 was average life expectancy at that time.  This might help me separate siblings from uncles and aunts.  A confusion in the consideration of sponsors is that they seem to vary in their use of maiden vs married names.

I have used the surname spellings as recorded in the register in the detailed comments but they are all the same as Donoghue really.

It is clear that the recording practices of the parish priests could be very random as to who finished up in the register.  The priest would very often carry out the services at the homes of the people involved, wrote the details on a piece of paper and might or might not have remembered to make an entry.  It seems very few marriages were recorded.  In fact I have been told that religious practice itself was not very strong prior to the famine.

This was a very close community with a lot of intermarriage within a quite limited area.  Marriage between cousins seems to have been quite common.

So many names, so confusing!  Simultaneously with this piece, I have put up a genealogical tree on the blog which summarises all that I have found so far.  Or at least I will do when I can work out how to publish in Landscape!  I suggest you print it out when reading this article to help with identification. 

The male O’Donoghue line

Generation One (parents not known):  James Donoghue and Juliana Boyle

Their children: Thomas (1806: Generation Two below), Patrick (pre-1806), James (pre-1806), Mary (pre-1806), John (pre-1806)

Generation Two: Thomas Donoghue (b.1806) and Ellen Connor (b.1808)

Their children: Juliana (1834), James (1836), Catherine (1839), John (1841), Thomas (1844), Ellen (1847), Mary Ann (Poplar 1852)

Ellen Connor’s parents are thought to have been John Connor and Ellen Donoghue.  Their children were Ellen (1808), Daniel (1814), Mary (1815), Honora (1819), John (1822), James (1824), Margaret (1832?).  I would give this relationship a Medium rating for reasons quoted in an earlier blog.

Generation Three: Thomas O’Donoghue (b.1844) and Mary Sullivan (married in London in 1865, when O’ was put back on certificate)

Their children: Mary (1866), Catherine (1867), Thomas William (1869), Margaret (1872), James (1874), my grandfather, Mary Ann (1877), Gwendoline Anastasia Celina (1880)

James and Julia’s other possible children - Patrick, James, Mary, John and Catherine - are not found in parish records but can be elicited from the parish records.

Patrick: James and Julia are shown as sponsors to Patrick Donohue and Catherine Dee’s child, Mary, in 1823 in adjacent Knoppoge townland.  This implies that Patrick was an older brother to Thomas. Strong

In 1841 a Patrick Donohue was sponsor at the baptism of Thomas and Ellen’s John.  In 1844 Patrick Donnoghue and Anastasia Boyle married with sponsors John and Jude Boyle; Jude is a short form of both Julia and Joanna.  This Patrick may have been the son of Patrick and Catherine above, but see later in Poplar.

James: James Donoghue and Elizabeth Boyle had a daughter Juliana (1836), as the first, she was named after her paternal grandmother.  Their other children were Ellen (1839), Honora (1842), Mary (1844), Patrick (1847). Strong

Mary: Mary Donoghue was a sponsor for James and Elizabeth’s Ellen (1839).  Strong

John: John Donoghue and Joanna Boyle’s first daughter was named Juliana and first son, James, so after paternal grandparents.  Strong

Catherine: In 1812, Catherine Donohue was a sponsor at the baptism of Matthew Ryan and Ellen Callinane’s child, Patrick.  The reason for suspecting a relationship with James is that the other sponsor was George Gunn and we know that Juliana had a connection with the Gunn family.

James Donoghue’s siblings or possibly cousins

Rattoo and Killury civil parishes contain virtually all of the townlands covered by Causeway RC parish. 

I need a way to show where the greater preponderance of O’Donoghues were from 1782-1852.  I have counted the number of parish register references with first time for parents counting once, every time counting for sponsors. 

In Rattoo civil parish, the O’Donoghues are concentrated (more than 5 references) in

Benmore/Ballyduff (26), Drommartin (21), Knoppoge (14), Ballincrossig (8) and Ardagh (6) townlands.  In Killury civil parish the concentration is in Dromnacarra (22) and Kilmore (18).

All bar Dromnacarra (4 miles) are within 2 miles of Ballyduff.

For Generation One, a number of theories can be set up around Sylvester, Bartholomew, Ellen, Catherine and John as siblings of James.  Nearly all of these are based on records for Benmore/Ballyduff. 

Sylvester Donohue and his family

• Sylvester is an unusual name in Causeway parish.
• Sylvester Donohue and Mary Flahive had children, Ellen and John, in 1784 and 1786 and this suggests he was born in the 1760s. 
• In 1812 a Sylvester Donohue was sponsor at the baptism of Anastasia Mahony, daughter of Thomas Mahony and Margaret Sullivan in a townland recorded as Knockanehigue.  I am unable to find this townland, but suspect it is an extension of a Knockane in either Listowel or Ballyheigue, probably the former.  The interesting thought, however, is that in Generation Three in Poplar, Mary Sullivan was the daughter of John Sullivan and Margaret Mahony, and Thomas and Mary gave this name, Anastasia, to their last child born in 1880.  Intriguing but not in any way conclusive, as these surnames are relatively common.
• Sylvester was a sponsor at the birth of Daniel, John Connor and Ellen Donoghue’s second child, in 1814.  As he would have been in his late 40s this Sylvester may have been his son.  Juliana Boyle was a sponsor of their fourth child, Honora, in 1819 suggesting strong family connections of a similar generation.  Similar age considerations apply but I have not found another Juliana Boyle to fulfil this role.
• In 1820 Sylvester Donoghue had an altar tomb or mausoleum built in Rattoo churchyard.  It is placed just below a Boyle one.
• In 1821 Bartholomew Donohue and Bridget Ferris had a first child, Sylvester (named after paternal grandfather), so Bartholomew must have been his son.  In 1823 Juliana Boyle was sponsor to their second recorded child, Ellen, connecting him to James.  In 1832 a Sylvester was sponsor to their third child, James; he was probably Bartholomew’s brother.
• In 1824 the Tithe Applotment Books show a Silay and Bat Donoghue holding land in Chapel Land which would have adjacent to the church in Ballyduff.  These are nicknames for Sylvester (I think) and Bartholomew and confirms their relationship.  Another Bat is shown in East Benmore and this may have been Sylvester and James’s brother.

It is my current opinion that Sylvester and Bartholomew Senior were James’s brothers, but I can only give this and what follows a Medium confidence rating at this stage. 

In 1784, Ellen Donohue, was a sponsor at the baptism of Sylvester and Mary’s first child, Ellen, which suggests she was his sister and therefore also James’s.  She married Maurice Nelan and had a child, Mary, baptised in 1786.  It seems probable that the 1784 child, Ellen, is the wife of John Connor described above, and the mother of Ellen Connor who married James’s son Thomas.  Ellen was, therefore, Thomas’s first cousin once removed, being his uncle’s grandchild.  I have been told that first cousin marriages were quite common.

In 1812, Catherine Donohue was a sponsor at the baptism of Matthew Ryan and Ellen Callinane child, Patrick.  The reason for suspecting a relationship with James is that the other sponsor was George Gunn and we know that Juliana had a connection with the Gunns. 

A sponsor at Ellen and Maurice Nelan’s child, Mary, was John Donohue, which suggests he was her brother.  In the Tithe Applotment Books of 1824, a John Donohue is shown to be on land in Bishopscourt which is adjacent to Benmore.  But John is a well-used name.

At the 1814 baptism of John Connor and Ellen Donohue’s second child, Daniel, the sponsors were Sylvester and Honora Donohough.  As described above it seems unlikely that they would have been of Generation One on the basis of age, so for the moment we will assume that they were Sylvester and Mary Flahive’s children.

In Poplar in 1851

After the famine (1845-51) the incidence of Donoghue events in Causeway reduces to very little.  So what happened to all our ancestors?  They might have died during the famine, left Causeway for another parish looking for work or emigrated to UK, North America or Australasia.

We know that Thomas and Ellen Connor brought their family to London sometime between March 1851 and March 1852 when Mary Ann was born.

I have checked all the Donoghues in Poplar in the 1851 UK census.  Families sent members ahead to recce the proposed new settlement area and there were two possible for our family in 5 Sophia Street.  Honoria Donaghua (b.c.1835, and described as the sister of a Joanna Connell) and John Donohou (b.c.1820, a visitor) were amongst many people living in this one building.  Other names were Fitzgerald, Flaherty, Hayes, Healy, Murphy and these all crop up in the Causeway Donoghue records.  I have not identified birth events in Causeway for these two but the names are common in our family (but also in many others).  At the time of Mary Ann’s birth in 1852 our family was living at 3 Sophia Street which does suggest a relationship.

There is also a Patrick Donohue, wife Ann and child Juliana, living as lodgers with a Dee family in 8 Salters Buildings, Poplar.  He was born around 1821.  Earlier in this note I identified a son of our James and Juliana of this name married to a Catherine Dee; two children are recorded in 1823 and 1826.  It is as yet unclear to me who this Poplar Patrick is, but I feel he is probably one of ours.

How common is the name Juliana Donoghue?  There are only 13 in the whole of Kerry in the period 1784-1852 and 8 of those are in Causeway.  There are however hundreds of Julias, but only a handful in Causeway so Juliana is a very singular name for our part of north Kerry and is a very clear indication that this Patrick probably came from Causeway. 

There is a lot of work yet to be done in Poplar and surrounding districts.