Out of Ireland
Billy Donnelly was a friendly man. He lived with his unmarried sister in a house not far from our camp. I looked forward to his evening visits. Just about dusk, he would make his appearance from the path that led through the field. In his hand would be a barn lantern to guide his footsteps safely home again. Billy was from the old school; the tweed cap would be removed as soon as he stepped across the threshold.
Although his grandfather, Peter Donnelly, had left the Emerald Isle way back in 1841, Billy was extremely proud of his Irish roots. As he balanced a cup of tea on his knee, he would tell me stories of the early settlers on his Erin Go Bragh Road. I heard of their love of Ireland, their sorrows as well as joys, their memories of homeland and the dream of a better life for the next generation. He kept his Irish ancestors alive long after they had been taken to their final resting place in the churchyard.
In 1997, Carolyn Ryan, Mac Trueman, Mia Urquhart and Steve McKinley of the Saint John Times Globe traced how the flood of Irish immigrants during the Great Famine (1845-1852) changed the face of Ireland, North America and specifically, Saint John and New Brunswick. Their articles were printed in a seven-week series entitled "Out of Ireland."
Carolyn Ryan, now the editor of the Times Globe, wrote: "Nothing is more Irish than the leaving of Ireland.
"The Irish soul has always been torn by good-byes, but still, millions have sailed away to new lives.""Out of Ireland" has many fascinating stories:
Margaret Patterson Kirkpatrick, who came to Saint John from County Donegal in 1831, left an amazing legacy 2,000 descendants.
Visit the Irish settlements of Lower Cove South End of Saint John in Chain of Louth.
Decide if absentee landlord Charles William Fitzwilliam was a cruel tyrant or one of the good guys.
See the 1840s through the Prendergast letters.
Walk the road from conviction of treason in Ireland to becoming a Father of Confederation with Thomas D'Arcy McGee.
Reading these articles will be a journey across time, ocean and land from pre-Famine Ireland to modern North America.
You will relive the days of the Irish saga to the promised land.
The publication "Out of Ireland" is in the reference department at the Saint John Free Public Library, Market Square.
Several of the OUT OF IRELAND articles are on my website at Home
If you are interested in purchasing a copy of
OUT OF IRELAND contact Ruby
Query 98-370
Bartlett - Hutchinson - Jenkins: I am looking for information on the following people: James Holly Bartlett (1807-1883) of Saint John, N.B.; Charlotte Hutchison (born 1815), wife of James Bartlett; Richard Bartlett III (1767-1830) buried near Lepreau, N.B.; Miriam Jenkins (1844-1883) died in Moncton, N.B.
Evelyn Greathouse, Paddington, Kalamazoo, MI, 49001. Or E-mail to Darrell.Greathouse@gte.net or 2126Query 98-371
Gorham - Perkins - Bostwick: Several publications state that Samuel Gorham (1796-1862), who married Fanny Perkins in Kingston in 1824, was the son of Loyalist Nathaniel Gorham and his second wife, Sarah (Bostwick) Gorham. When Nathaniel died in 1846, the only male children mentioned in his will were George and Henry. Is there any documentation that shows that Samuel was really the son of Nathaniel?
Carol Norman, 6643 Lennox Ave., Van Nuys, CA, 91405. Or E-mail to cgnorm@earthlink.netQuery 98-372
Oliver: I would like to locate information regarding the David Oliver family, with sons David and Warren, perhaps others. The Olivers were involved in the ship-building industry in the Waterside area of New Brunswick. To date, their vessels have not been located, but the supposition exists that when the ships reached their destination, they were sold and the Olivers returned to build other vessels. These are not my lines, but I am trying to help a friend who does not have this means of communication. Any help would be appreciated, with sincere thanks.
jesbel@oberon.ark.com Or write to J.M. Belcher, 40 - 396 Harrogate Rd., Campbell River, B.C., V9W 1W2.Query 98-373
Magee - Lane - Keegan: Does anyone have any knowledge of the Magee Farm in the Quispamsis area in 1940-50s? This family is a descendant and/or related to the Magees and Lanes of the 1850-1880s whom I am researching. I am also seeking information on the Keegan family with links to the Keegans who settled in the Huron Tract in Western Ontario in the mid 1840s to early 1860s. They were in Perth County around the village of Dublin (formerly Carronbrook) in Hibbert Township. There may be connections with the Fletcher and Morgan families. A Margaret Keegan lived in Saint John and was married to James Archibald Morgan from 1880-1908. Also Letitia Eliza Keegan lived in Saint John from 1835 until her death in 1885 and is buried at Fernhill Cemetery.
Schani Biermann, 99 Sunset Dr., Regina, Sask., S4S 5V7. Or E-mail to uss.enterprise@sk.sympatico.caQuery 98-374
Sipprell - Foster - Nason - Carr: William Sipprell married Sally Foster in 1790 in Kings Co., N.B. His land claim was in 1794. He fought in the American Revolution on the British side New Jersey Volunteers 1st Battalion, 1780-1783. I need proof of Huguenot descendence. I also seek the names of the parents of Simon Nason and wife Polly (Mary) Carr. Simon was baptized as an adult on Dec. 27, 1816, at Kingston Trinity Church, N.B. He received a land grant in 1814 in Kings Co. A son, James John, was born in 1815 and died in 1887 in Charlotte Co. I also would like to find the names of the parents of Mary (Polly) Carr and proof of her marriage to Simon Nason.
Ruthanne Hayes Haight, 21008 NE 117 th St., Redmond, WA, 98053-5309.Query 98-375
Hoyt: My wife's great-great-grandfather, David James or Jeorge Hoyt, is shown on all censuses in the United States to have been born in New Brunswick in about 1826. The U.S. National Archives records indicate that in 1845, he enlisted in the U.S. Army at Houlton, Me., and served in the Mexican War. Trying to find his parents has been a major roadblock! Can anyone help me?
Dr. Tommy G. Johnson, 184 Moss Hill Terrace Rd., Natchitoches, LA, 71457-6425. Telephone (318) 357-1375 or E-mail to drtjohnson@cp-tel.net
Ruby Cusack is a genealogy buff living in Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada. Readers are invited to send their New Brunswick genealogical queries to Ruby at rmcusack@nbnet.nb.ca. When E-Mailing please put Yesteryear Families in the Subject line. Please include in the query, your name and postal address as someone reading the newspaper, may have information to share with you but not have access to E-mail. Queries should be no more than 45 words in length.
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