History Of The Fire And Police Departments Of Minneapolis

History of the Fire and Police Departments of Minneapolis was published by The Relief Association Publishing in 1890. It provides an historical overview of the city's fire department from about 1850 and the police department from 1855. Traditionally, many Irish immigrants and their descendants joined both departments throughout the United States, making this publication very useful if you had such as ancestor in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

The detailed history of both departments provides a vivid idea of what it was like to work as a fireman or policeman in the city. The majority of the publication is given over to the fire department and there are many illustrations of the tools they used, as well pictures of those who occupied the higher ranks of both institutions.

Of particular interest to genealogists will be chapter 16, Date of Organization of Companies (p. 163), and chapter 17, Company Quarters and Fire Apparatus (p. 172). Both chapters list the members of each engine company in the city as they existed at the time of publication. Name, rank, age, country of birth, and previous occupation are provided.

The example, below, shows the strong Irish influence in Engine Company no.1, with nearly all members born in Ireland, or U.S./Canadian born with traditionally Irish surnames.[1]

 The publication of this book was timely as it can serve as a census substitute for the destroyed 1890 U.S. Federal Census. It is a  niche resource, but incredibly useful for those with ancestors in that niche. 

Access the book on Internet Archive.

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[1] History of the Fire and Police Departments of Minneapolis. Minneapolis, MN: The Relief Association Publishing. 1890. Available online at https://archive.org/stream/historyfireandp00costgoog#page/n168/mode/2up: accessed 16 January 2016.

In Praise Of Dr. Terrence M. Punch, FIGRS

Dr. Terrence M. Punch, FIGRS is the expert when it comes to genealogy research in maritime Canada (the provinces of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island). Since the 1970s, he has published numerous books on Scottish, Irish and French immigration. Of particular interest to this blog is his series of books concerning Irish immigrants to Canada. 

Maritime Canada highlighted in green[1]

At least seven of his books cover this topic and they, along with his guide books to research in the region, are an indispensible resource for anyone with Irish ancestry in that part of Canada. His publications to date include:

• Montbeliard Immigration to Nova Scotia, 1749-1752. Revised Edition (2015)
• North America's Maritime Funnel: The Ships that Brought the Irish, 1749-1852 (2012)
• Some Early Scots in Maritime Canada. Volume IIII (2012)
• Some Early Scots in Maritime Canada. Volume II (2011)
• Some Early Scots in Maritime Canada. Volume I (2011)
• Erin's Sons: Irish Arrivals in Atlantic Canada to 1863. Volume IV (2010)
• Erin's Sons: Irish Arrivals in Atlantic Canada, 1751-1858. Volume III (2009)
• Erin's Sons, Volume II (2009)
• Erin's Sons: Irish Arrivals in Atlantic Canada, 1761-1853 (2008)
• Genealogist's Handbook for Atlantic Canada Research (1997)
• Religious Marriages in Halifax, 1768-1841, From Primary Sources (1991)
• Research in Atlantic Canada (1989)
• In Which County?: Nova Scotia Surnames From Birth Registers, 1864 to 1877 (1985)
• Genealogical Research in Nova Scotia (1983)
• Nova Scotia Vital Statistics From Newspapers, 1769-1812 (1981)
• Irish Halifax: The Immigrant Generation, 1815-1859 (1981)
• Some Sons of Erin in Nova Scotia (1980)
• Nova Scotia Vital Statistics From Newspapers, 1813-1822 (1978)

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[1] "Canada Maritime provinces map" by QuartierLatin1968 - user created. 2012. Licensed under Public Domain via Commons - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Canada_Maritime_provinces_map.png#/media/File:Canada_Maritime_provinces_map.png: accessed 9 January 2016.

Irish Immigrants In McLean County, Illinois

The output of historical works about Irish immigration to the U.S. and Canada is vast. The books and academic journals that focus on the macro-history of Irish immigration can be of value to genealogists as it can help place the story of their immigrant ancestors in the wider historical narrative.

However, considerable genealogical value can be derived from historical publications that focus on smaller geographical areas, such as a town, county, early settlement, or rural area. These more localized publications can contain biographies of immigrant settlers, detailed notes about Irish neighborhoods, and useful information that can help with research in records, such as those of the local Catholic Church.  One such example is Irish Immigrants in McLean County, Illinois.[1]

McLean county is in the center of Illinois and has the city of Bloomington as its county seat. Many of the first Irish immigrants to this area were brought there by working on the railroad that was built through the county in the 1840s and 1850s.

These types of publications can be difficult to get hold of. If this book is of interest to your research, two good starting places  are the McLean County Historical Society, who published the book, and Worldcat, the worldwide catalog of over 10,000 libraries. You can read a brief introduction to the book at this link.

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[1] Koos, Greg, ed. Irish Immigrants in McLean County, Illinois. Bloomington, IL: McLean County Historical Society, 2000

Kansas Irish Genealogy Sources

It can be more difficult to find substantial and useful sources for the study of Irish genealogy in the United States the further west one is from the east coast. The vast majority of Irish immigrants stayed in states such as New York, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. Nevertheless, many did travel to the midwest and beyond, where records about their lives were made and books written about their communities.

For those who are researching their Irish ancestry in Kansas, the state historical society provides a very useful online bibliography of sources, reproduced below, to aid such research. You can access the relevant webpage of the Kansas Historical Society by clicking here.

Bird, Roy. The Irish Arrive in Kansas. Kanhistique. 5 (March 1980): 1 and 3. (Oversize/K/978.105/K13/v.5/no. 11).

Bush, Maynie S. "Irish." The Frankfort Story. Frankfort, KS: Frankfort Centennial Committee, 1967. (K/978.1/-M35/F853/pp. 139-143).

Butler, Thomas A. The State of Kansas and Irish Immigration. Dublin, Ireland: McGlashan and Gill, 1871. (K/325.1/Pam.v.1).

Forter, Emma E. "The Irish in Marshall County." History of Marshall County, Kansas. Indianapolis, IN: B.F. Bowen Co., 1917. (K/978.1/-M35/F77).

"Into Old History: Dedicates a Feature to Early Irish Settlers of Solomon Community." Salina Journal. July 18, 1933. [1 p.]. (Reel: S 303).

"Irish Colony Settled Garden Township." Newton Kansan (Fiftieth Anniversary Edition). Aug. 22, 1922. [1 p.]. (Reel: N 469)

Madden, John. "The Irish Colony in Marion County." Florence Bulletin. Oct. 11, 1934. [1 p.]. (Reel: NP 4303).

__________. "A Lost Colony." Marion Review. Sept. 26, 1934. [2 pp.]. (Location: 34-04-01-02).

O'Neill, Pat. From the Bottom Up: The Story of the Irish in Kansas City. Kansas City, MO: Pants Publisher, 2000. (K/917.78/On2).

Owen, J.S. "Irish Came to Kansas Not in Colonies But in Families." Topeka State Journal. Mar. 18, 1939. [1 p.]. (Reel: T 1593).

Patrick, Nikki. "Irish Had Role in the Growth of Southeast Kansas." Pittsburg Morning Sun. Mar. 13, 1982. [2 pp.]. (Reel: P 1500).

Redmond, Bernard P. "History of Coal Creek: Its Irish Pioneers. Seneca Courier-Tribune. Apr. 14, 21 and 28, May 5, 12 and 29, June 2, 12, 16 and 19, and July 3 and 7, 1941. [13 pp.]. (Reel: S 891).

Rupp, Jane C. "Irish Settlement in Clark Township." Marion County Scrapbook. (Vol. 1). N.p.: Author, 1927. (K/978.1/-M34/R87/p. 45).

Taylor, Loren L. "A Short Ethnic History of the Irish People in Wyandotte County." A Short Ethnic History of Wyandotte County. Kansas City, KS: Kansas City Kansas Ethnic Council, 1982. (K/978.1/-W97/K133s).

Waldron, Nell B. "Colonization in Kansas from 1861 to 1890." Doctorate dissertation, Northwest University, Evanston, 1923. (K/325.1/W147/c. 2/pp. 40-120).

Irish In Cleveland Book

Many states, cities, and towns have a seminal publication about the Irish community that lives there. In Cleveland, Ohio it is The Irish Americans And Their Communities of Cleveland. The book was published in 1978 and written by Nelson Callahan and William Hickey.

The book begins with a brief overview of Irish history and Irish immigration to North America, before focusing on the Irish immigrants who came to Cleveland. Chapter 3, Settling in Cleveland, forms the core of the first section and follows a broadly chronological path through the 19th century. Beginning with those who first came in the 1820s, it moves on to those who lived on Whiskey Island and in Irishtown, focusing on such topics as employment, crime, the Civil War, and politics along the way.

The Catholic Church is a central theme that runs through the second half of the book. As in many other urban areas, it played a defining role in the lives of 19th century Irish immigrants who moved to the growing American cities. Readers will learn about the parishes and cemeteries in the city, which can lead to useful genealogical information. There are also maps, photographs, and information about Cleveland Irish organizations as they existed when the book was published.

While not aimed at genealogists, the book will be valuable to those who have ancestors in the city. Luckily it is available to read for free on the Cleveland Memory website, click here to access. 

Biographical History Of The American Irish In Chicago

Biographical History of the American Irish in Chicago[1] is an 1897 publication that falls into the category of books that highlight the origins, life, and achievements of notable Irish-born immigrants and first generation Irish Americans in the United States. In total, the book contains information for about 300 such people who lived in the Chicago area in the 19th century.

For almost every entry, the place of origin in Ireland is given for those who were immigrants. The place of origin of their parents is noted for many of those who were first generation Irish American. Other useful genealogical information is included for many entries such as year of immigration, early movements in the US for immigrants, employment history, who they married, how many children they had, and date and place of death and burial. Pictures and signatures are also included for some of those written about.

This example gives a flavor of what is contained in the publication:[2]

As with almost all of these 19th century biographical publications, there are no citations from primary sources. Use the information as a guide in your research and, as much as is possible, verify any information with primary documents.

You can read the book in full on the always excellent Hathi Trust website.

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[1] Ffrench, Charles. Biographical History of the American Irish in Chicago. Chicago, IL: American Biographical Publishing Co. 1897.

[2] Ibid. pp. 10-11.

Library Of Congress - Virtual Primer

The Library of Congress (LoC) in Washington, D.C. is the de facto national library of the United States and, depending on the metric used, vies with the British Library for the title of the largest library in the world. As a result, you can find a pretty decent Irish genealogy book collection.

The LoC website has a useful introduction to this collection of books. By their own admission, it is not comprehensive and it does seem to be a little dated (Grenham's 1st edition of Tracing Your Irish Ancestors is listed) and general (books from the 1930s-1960s about broad migration patterns are also included). However, if you live in the DC metro area, it is probably a good place to visit if you are looking to do broad research on the topic of Irish genealogy and local history.

Access it here.

Guest Post: From Roscommon to Canada II

In June, I highlighted the research being carried out in the archives of the Mahon Strokestown Park estate, Co. Roscommon by historians at NUI (National University of Ireland) Maynooth. Lead by Dr. Ciarán Reilly, they aim to learn more about the lives of the estates' tenants during the Famine and the passage to Canada of many of them, both assisted and unassisted.

Dr. Reilly has kindly provided an article to Townland of Origin to highlight this work. He would like to hear from descendants who have knowledge of these Famine-era emigrants. You can contact him on Twitter at @ciaranjreilly, or via the Centre for the Study of Historic Houses and Estates.

Dr. Reilly's new book 'Strokestown and the Great Irish Famine' will be published this month by Four Courts Press in Ireland. He also runs the Great Irish Famine blog.

The unveiling of a memorial wall by An Taoiseach Enda Kenny TD[1] at the Irish National Famine Museum at Strokestown in May 2014, to mark the National Famine Commemoration, highlighted the ongoing efforts to locate Irish Famine emigrants from county Roscommon.  The research is led by Dr Ciarán Reilly of the Centre for the Study of Historic Irish Houses & Estates, NUI Maynooth. Much of the information on emigrants is gleaned from the voluminous Strokestown archive, a collection of more than 50,000 documents, the vast majority of which pertain to the Great Irish Famine. In total, Dr Reilly estimates that almost 5,000 people emigrated from around the Mahon estate at Strokestown during the Famine, with 1,490 part of an ill-fated assisted emigration scheme in 1847.

Upon the death of Rev. Maurice Mahon, third baron Hartland, in November 1845, Major Denis Mahon inherited the 11,000 acre Strokestown estate in county Roscommon. Years of neglect and mismanagement meant that the estate was now almost £30,000 in debt. In an effort to radically overhaul the problems of gross overcrowding, subdivision of the land and mounting arrears, John Ross Mahon, the land agent, devised a scheme of assisted emigration. For the estate administration this made economic sense; to keep the people in Roscommon workhouse would cost over £11,000 annually whereas a once off emigration scheme would cost £5,800. In May 1847 1,490 tenants left from the Strokestown estate for Quebec in British North America (Canada). They were accompanied on their walk to Dublin, via the Royal Canal footway, by the bailiff, John Robinson who was instructed to stay with them all the way to Liverpool and ensure that they boarded the ships.

Leaving Liverpool on four ships the Virginius, Naomi, John Munn and the Erin’s Queen, the Mahon tenants were amongst the first to be characterised as sailing on coffin ships during the Famine. With Cholera and typhus rampant the emigrants were exposed to the ravages of  disease. The Toronto Globe newspaper was amongst the first to highlight the problems encountered by the passengers on board the Virginius and thus reported its arrival at Grosse Île:

            

The Virginius from Liverpool, with 496 passengers, had lost 158 by death, nearly one third of the whole, and she had 180 sick; above one half the whole will never see their home in the new world.

Those who managed to emerge from the ship were described as ‘ghastly, yellow-looking spectres, unshaven and hollow cheeked.’ Dr. George Douglas who treated and spoke with the Mahon tenants at Grosse Île noted that some had even died at the River Mersey in Liverpool.  It was also claimed that on arrival at Grosse Île, the ship’s master had to bribe his crew at the rate of a sovereign per corpse, to remove the dead from the hold. On the ship Erin's Queen, the situation was no better, 78 passengers had died and a further 104 were sick. Again, according to the Globe ‘the filth and dirt in these vessels hold creates such an effluvium as to make it difficult to breathe.’ While in harbour the ship was abandoned by the crew and captain who feared for their lives. On the ship John Munn more than 100 were sick and 59 were dead, while on the Naomi 78 were dead.

Some of the names featured on the memorial wall at Strokestown also feature in an exhibition Emigrant Faces from county Roscommon which Dr Reilly designed for the National Famine Commemoration Week. They include the Tighes and the Quinns, orphaned by the voyage. A number of other emigrants also feature including Michael Dufficy, Edwin O'Beirne, Elijah Impey, Pat Hanly and Pat Kelly. Most of the 1,490 cohort who arrived in Quebec in 1847 made their way over the ensuing months and years into American cities and towns. Relatively, few actually stayed in Canada. The search for the 1,490 assisted emigrants and other Strokestown natives who emigrated during the Famine continues.  Thankfully, it is proving fruitful and the destination and subsequent details of as many as 300 of these has been ascertained. These details will soon been collated by Dr Reilly and made available in a number of formats. Visitors to the Irish National Famine Museum at Strokestown can now see the list of 275 families who were part of the scheme, their townland of origin and the number of family members who travelled.

The following snippets might be of interest:

* In 1876 Mary Tarpey had the unique distinction of being the oldest person in Long Island, New York. Having left Strokestown in 1853, incredibly when she was then 84 years old, Tarpey attributed her longevity to a daily glass of whiskey!

* A number of women and children who remained on the Strokestown estate in the aftermath of the Famine had been abandoned. They included Catherine Connor whose mother left for England; Maria Hanly abandoned by her father Peter who went to England and Margaret Kearns whose father went to Scotland.

* Michael Hayden (1842-1917) of Strokestown emigrated to America in the wake of the Famine, settling in Washington D.C. in 1854. During the American Civil War he was a member of the home guard for the defence of Washington D.C. Later he worked in Gauster's French Restaurant in the city where he claims John Wilkes Booth and his companions hatched their plan to murder President Abraham Lincoln.

* Daniel Tighe, one of the 1847 emigrants to Canada, appears on various Canadian census returns as  Tay, Tyre, Thy and Tye. It is little wonder then that the search for Irish Famine emigrants often proves difficult.

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[1] Teachta Dála, much the same as member of Congress, but specifically referring to the lower house of the Irish Parliament, the Dáil.

The Irish Catholic Genesis Of Lowell

The Irish Catholic Genesis of Lowell[1] is the title of a short publication that provides some very interesting genealogical information about Irish immigrants and their descendants in this Massachusetts city. Published in 1920, it focuses on the 1820-1850 time period and there are short articles and lists concerning the following topics:

The arrival of the first wave of Catholic Irish in the 1820s and 1830s, including a mention of how many of them were from counties Cork and Dublin

The establishment of the first Catholic Church

A list of important dates and events for the Lowell Irish community

A profile of Hugh Cummiskey, one of the early leaders of the Irish community and stated as being from Tyrone

The first Irish school

Irishmen who paid a poll tax in the city between 1826 and 1830

Entries for those who were believed to be Irish from the Lowell city directory of 1835

All in all, this is a very useful publication for anyone with pre-Famine ancestors in Lowell, MA. A word of caution though, as with all of these types of early biographic/city history publications, there are no citations from primary sources. Use the information as a guide in your research and, as much as is possible, verify any information with primary documents.

Click here to read this publication.

I have also previously written about St. Patrick's Cemetery in Lowell, click here to read.

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[1] O'Dwyer, George Francis. The Irish Catholic Genesis of Lowell. Lowell, MA: Sullivan Bros. 1920.

Are You Related To A Bishop?

Finding out that you have an ecclesiastical figure in your family tree can be very useful for discovering your ancestor's place of origin in Ireland. In the Catholic Church, some form of study at a seminary is required to become a deacon, priest, or bishop. The first seminaries in the U.S. date back to the early 19th century and, if they survive, their records can be of value.

After ordination, members of the clergy were often profiled in parish publications or historical overviews of the Catholic Church in a particular city of state. For example, for more information about this topic in New York City, see Chapters 4 and 7 of my book, Finding Your Irish Ancestors in New York City.

That self-promoting segue brings me to an interesting title I recently came across, Bishops of the United States of Irish Birth or Descent.[1] Chances are, if you have a Catholic bishops in your family tree you more than likely already know about it. If you don't know, or do, but don't know about their ancestry, then this book is worth a look. It contains a valuable amount of genealogical information about the 466 bishops profiled, from John Carroll, appointed in 1784 as Bishop of the Apostolic Prefecture of the United States (it became the Diocese of Baltimore in 1789), to John Ford, appointed as Bishop of Kaying, China, in 1935, the year before the book was published.

Entries from p.38 of  Bishops of the United States of Irish Birth or Descent

When known, information is provided about the birth date and place of the bishop, where his parents were from, surname history information, and other useful nuggets about their origin. The chapter, Mothers of the Bishops, is particularly innovative, and provides the maiden names of all, bar three, of the bishops. There is also an Irish county and U.S. state breakdown of where bishops were born. Up to 1935, Tipperary and Massachusetts lead the way with twelve and twenty-nine, respectively.

The book is available to read on the excellent Hathi Trust website. If anyone has a bishop in their family tree it would be very interesting to hear from you in the comments section.

EDIT (25 April): A commenter on a previous post made the excellent point that information in these types of publications should be treated just the same as any secondary source. Citations are not provided for the claimed genealogical information. Use them as a guide in your research and be prepared to find evidence to the contrary of what is published in such volumes.

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[1] Hackett, James Dominick. Bishops of the United States of Irish Birth or Descent. New York, NY: American Irish Historical Society. 1936.

Representative Young Irish-Americans of Troy, NY....

.....is the does-what-it-says-on-the-tin title of a series of biographical sketches of 72 men of Irish heritage who lived in the city in the 19th century.[1] The book was published in 1889 and contains excellent genealogical material for those who are profiled. Dates of birth, parents names, years of immigration, schooling, work history, and notable achievements are included where relevant, or known. Profile sketches are also to be found in this publication.

You can read the book on the archive.org website.

William J. Roche in Representative Young Irish-Americans of Troy, NY,  p. 13

Michael Francis Collins in Representative Young Irish-Americans of Troy, NY,  p. 17

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[1] E.H. Lisk. Representative Young Irish-Americans of Troy, NY. Troy, NY: E.H. Lisk. 1889.

Family Stories From Albany, NY

I have recently finished re-reading my copy of Irish America by Reginald Byron (Oxford University Press, 1999). The title may sounds quite broad, but the book is an incredibly detailed anthropological and sociological investigation of the Irish community in Albany, NY.

Research for the book consisted of interviews with 500 Americans of Irish descent in the 1990s, many of whom were elderly, and have most probably passed away by now. Extensive interviews were carried out with these residents, including going into detail about their ancestors. A very basic tenant of social science research is that interviewees almost always remain anonymous, but these interviewees were free to talk about their ancestors.

Some fantastic examples of elicited information include:

My grandfather came from Ireland, by way of England, and landed in Pennsylvania in 1898...He worked in the coalmines. His name was Thomas McCall. After he came up from Pennsylvania he married my grandmother who had been born here. She was Irish...her parents were form Cork and my grandfather was from Clare.[1]

My father's parents came from Sligo; what town I don't know. They were married in Sligo. My grandmother's name was Mary Ryan. She was married to John Laverty. He came here first, I'd say about 1875. [Mary Ryan] was taken to the ship twice but the relatives and everybody made such a terrible fuss that she wouldn't come. My grandfather went to the parish priest, I suppose it was St. Joseph's [in Albany], and told him the problem...On my mother's side, my maternal grandfather had studied to be a priest in Ireland, He came from Claremorris in County Mayo. He got into a spot of trouble...He wrote pamphlets in Gaelic and got into trouble over it.[2]

And check out this great family story:

My mother's mother, Catherine Fitzgerald Bryan, used to tell the story to my mother when she was a little girl in Ballyhaunis, County Mayo, she and her mother Anna Fitzgerald, would meet with their cousins every year, and walk the seven miles to the Knock shire pilgrimage. My father's sister, Aunt Charlottle Black Kramer, told me the story of her great-grand-mother, Mary Ellen Kennedy, in County Kerry. The landlord's son fell in love with Mary Ellen, as she was so beautiful as a young girl of 18 years. When young Mary Ellen told her father of the boy's intentions, the next day he went to the landlord, the boy's father—they were Protestants—and struck a bargain with him. The next week, Mary Ellen and the whole family had a passage to New York City! [3]

The book also goes into macro and micro detail to explain how Irish immigrants ended up in Albany, and how they moved within the city as it developed, contributing to city and religious institutions. It's a must read if you have Irish ancestors from Albany, NY.

A 'Look Inside!' preview is available on Amazon.

More broadly, when perusing their ancestors, genealogists often fail to think of engaging with anthropological, sociological, and academic historical research. Of course it does not help that one of the main places to access this output, academic journals, are mostly behind pay walls on institutional subscription databases, such as JSTOR (With JSTOR, you can read three free articles every two weeks). If possible, you should certainly try to search in academic journals for years, locations, and events that are pertinent to your research.

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[1] Byron, Reginald. Irish America. New York, NY: Oxford University Press. 1999. p. 97.

[2] Byron. 1999. p. 97.

[3] Byron. 1999. p. 94.

From North Tipp To The Canadas

In the forward to Bruce Elliot’s book Irish Migrants in the Canadas: A New Approach, Donald Akenson of Queen’s University, Kingston, Ontario, makes an excellent point: plenty of publications show the statistics of migration from Ireland to North America and plenty of publications focus on individual migrants who made that same journey. But very few focus, in detail, on the migration of communities across the Atlantic.

This book begins to addresses this gap in historical and genealogical research with its focus on the migration of 775 Protestant families from the North Tipperary area to Canada from 1818-1855. 

Forensic in its detail, Irish Migrants in the Canadas gives the reader a vivid understanding of this part of Ireland in the early and mid-19^th century, the families that went to Canada, and what happened to them and the next generations as they built their new life.

This is the type of publication that every genealogist dreams about coming across in relation to one of their ancestors. Local history on both sides of the Atlantic, detailed maps of settlement, passenger list information, constructed pedigree charts, and lots and lots of citations are all to be found.

If you believe you have an ancestor who was a part of this migration then beg, borrow, or steal this book.

From Kerry To Canada

Last month I came across the My Kerry Ancestors website. Run by Kay Caball, a professional genealogist, it has a great blog all about genealogy in Kerry. One very interesting post concerns a migration of people from north Kerry to Canada.

The post focuses on the book The Kerry Chain, The Limerick Link by Carol McCuaig. This book goes into great detail about emigration from north Kerry over the course of the 19th century.

You can read the blog post by clicking here. More generally, the blog is a great read if you have ancestors from Kerry.

Disclaimer: Kay is a graduate of the Certificate in History of Family and Genealogical Methods course at the Irish Ancestry Research Centre (IARC), University of Limerick (UL). UL is my alma mater and I am a research associate at IARC.

From the Blaskets To Beyond Boston

Understanding migration patterns can sometimes be the key to finding the place of origin in Ireland. Another example of this is the number of Kerry people from the Blasket Islands who settled in Springfield, MA. Indeed, the most 'Irish' section of this city was traditionally the Hungry Hill neighborhood.

Commentary from different sources[1][2] indicates that this migration was probably not famine related, but occurred primarily in the first half of the 20th century. But of course, both push and pull factors would have been evident, with the Blaskets being one of the harshest places in Ireland to eke out a living.

More broadly, the scores of young Kerry-born men living in Springfield in the early 20th century is vividly illustrate by a search in the United States World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918 database.

Earlier this year, the Mass Live news website featured articles about the Irish in Springfield, focusing on how the Hungry Hill area got its name and the launch of a book, From the Great Blasket To America: The Last Memoir by an Islander, by a Blasket man, Michael J. Carney.

This document, prepared by archaeologist Chris Fennell, University of Illinois, provides a useful historical introduction to the Blaskets and a bibliography of sources for those with ancestors from the area.

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[1] Fennell, Chris. Tradition and Modernity on Great Blasket Island, Ireland. University of Illinois: unpublished document. Available online at http://www.histarch.illinois.edu/BlasketProject.pdf: accessed 19 November 2013.

[2] Kelliher, Judith. 'Native Irish speaker Michael Carney, of East Longmeadow, scheduled to release his Blasket Island memoir at national celebration in Ireland'. Available online at http://www.masslive.com/living/index.ssf/2013/05/native_irish_speaker_michael_carney_of_east_longmeadow_scheduled_to_release_his_blasket_island_memoi.html: accessed 19 November 2013.

From The Examiner To The Globe

Archive.org should be on the bookmark list of all genealogists. Millions of books have been scanned and are available to consult free of change. One small, yet interesting, publication I came across is a book dedicated to the life of Cork born journalist John O'Callaghan. Originally from Killavullen, near Mallow, he was born in 1865. [1] O'Callaghan moved to Boston and worked for the Boston Globe until his premature death in 1913.[2]

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[1] Gallagher, James T., ed., A Memorial to John O'Callaghan. Jamaica Plains, MA: Angel Guardian Press. 1918. p. 5.

[2] Gallagher, James T. 1918. p. 6.