John Purcell Born 1856

[Jim McNamara]

Hi Barry,

Since yours was born in 1856, this is unlikely him except in the off chance a transcriber error changed 1866 to 1856. In any event here is a John PURCELL baptism record in Feakle in 1866. Maybe a relation.

15 SEP 1866

John

Son

Ned Purcell & Ellen Molony

Matt & Margy Molony

A. Connellan

[Lucille]

Barry

You asked which college John Purcell might have gone to for his medical training - he is not listed in the Alumni Dublinensis (Trinity College Dublin) which is on findmypast so he probably either went to Galway (now NUIG National University of Ireland, Galway) or to University College Dublin. I don't know, though I would like to, what archival material they hold or how accessible it is.

However the following link to the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland http://www.rcpi.ie/article.php?locID=1.12.19.28 gives details of their archival holdings. It has been on my to-do list for several months to go in there and chase up several family members so if you can wait a couple of weeks I'll put JP on my list too.

I attended a lecture last year by their archivist Harriet Wheelock who seemed both knowledgeable and approachable so I might get some more background information on medical information.

Lucille

[pwaldron]

I've only been keeping half an eye on this thread over the past few weeks and didn't realise how much I could contribute.

ancestry.com has UK Medical Registers every fourth year from 1859-1959 at
http://search.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=T31183

John Purcell of Silsden, via Leeds appears in 1883 (p.714).
Date and Place of Registration: 1878, Sept. 28, I.
Lic. R. Coll. Surg. Edin., 1878, Lic. R. Coll. Phys. Edin., 1878

I'd be surprised if John wasn't related to Catherine McDonnell née Purcell who died in 1904 aged 92. I've been told that she was originally from Baurroe, Feakle. You'll find her in Broadford in the 1901 census at
http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/p ... d/1083181/
with her farmer son; her other three sons became doctors. The UK Medical Register 1911 lists one of them as follows:
Name: Denis McDonnell
Address: Silsden, via Keighley, Yorkshire
Date and Place of Registration: 1878, Jan. 9 I[reland]
Qualifications: Lic. R. Coll. Surg. Irel., 1877. Lic. Apoth. Hall Dubl., 1878.

Catherine's greatgreatgrandson's wife has done a lot of research on the family tree, so I've drawn this thread to her attention.

So Dr. Denis McDonnell and Dr. John Purcell were exact contemporaries, neighbours in Ireland, and neighbours in Yorkshire, and each had a parent named Purcell, so draw your own conclusions!

This looks like your Mattie Purcell in 1901:
http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/p ... n/1084778/

Neil Purcell at
https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/F52L-GPP
is obviously a transcription error for Ned Purcell, nickname for Edward/Edmond. As Jim has pointed out, Ned's son John, both born and baptised in 1866, obviously is way too young to be the doctor who registered in 1878: https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/FR3F-L8B

You'll find 13 post-1864 birth records for that family at
https://familysearch.org/search/record/ ... id=1584963
and one pre-1864 child at
http://www.clarelibrary.ie/eolas/coclar ... _order.htm
It looks they lived in Feakle Dispensary District but not in Feakle Catholic Parish, but Ellen was probably from within the Catholic parish and had her first child baptised there.

The map at
http://www.logainm.ie/eolas/Data/Brainse/sw-sheet.jpg
shows that the Feakle Dispensary District comprised eight DEDs; the census website will show which townlands were in each of these DEDs; and seanruad.com will tell you which civil parishes these townlands were in. Translating that into Catholic parishes is a little trickier, Jim McNamara is an expert on the locality and has done most of the work for you at
http://www.irelandxo.com/group/feakle-clare

I hope some of this will help

Paddy

PS: Lucille, is the findmypast.ie version of Alumni Dublinenses the 1924 first edition? If so, it stops in 1846, far too early for a man who didn't qualify until 1878. But as we now know that he studied in Edinburgh, that's not really relevant.

[smcarberry]

I attended a lecture last year by their archivist Harriet Wheelock who seemed both knowledgeable and approachable so I might get some more background information on medical information.

Harriet has acknowledged that she is an East Clare descendant, by reason of an 1871 marriage between Maurice O'Connell of Kilgorey and Catherine O'Connell of Cappalaheen (Kilkishen). I wish someone could convince her to do an article on her O'Connell lines.

Sharon Carberry

[Lucille]

Holy smoke Paddy - who and what do you not know!!!

You're right about Alumni Dublinenses on findmypast. However I have since found that later versions (up to 1963/64) are available in hard copy in Dublin City Library and Archive (Gilbert Library). Thanks also for flagging the Medical Registers on Ancestry.

Lucille

[Jim McNamara]

Hi Sharon,

Lucille made the post regarding the lecture:
"I attended a lecture last year by their archivist Harriet Wheelock who seemed both knowledgeable and approachable so I might get some more background information on medical information."

Thanks,

[Lucille]

Barry
Now that Paddy has identified Edinburgh as John Purcell's place of training you might want to contact the archive at Edinburgh University -Centre for Research Collections is-crc@ed.ac.uk
Scott McCracken was the "Curatorial Assistant" I was dealing with a few months ago. He was very helpful though there wasn't a lot of information, but then I was looking for someone in the first decade of the 19th century. There should be far more records for the 1870s.

Lucille

[pwaldron]

Lucille, you seem to have an even wider network of contacts than mine - Dublin, Edinburgh, etc.!

[Barryt17]

[quote="Jim McNamara"]Hi Barry,
Since yours was born in 1856, this is unlikely him except in the off chance a transcriber error changed 1866 to 1856. In any event here is a John PURCELL baptism record in Feakle in 1866. Maybe a relation. 15 SEP 1866 John Son Ned Purcell & Ellen Molony

Hi Jim
The John i am researching was born in 1856 and was in the UK in 1880 a qualified Doctor and Surgeon who qualified in Edinburgh in 1878, his father was Jack and his mum Anne (Malloney).

Not sure about A. Connellan
I really appreciate your trouble.

[Barryt17]

I did not realise i had gone over a page so just seen all these posts.

Over a decade ago i did my family tree and as it was so personal found it very emotional finding out about people i never new.
I was shocked by the poverty and upset by how the first world war did not understand a person being shell shocked, as my paternal grandfather was.

Now here i am researching the start of my local football team in West Yorkshire and wow, what a great bunch you all are both with your knowledge of where to research and your generosity of the time you are giving to me.

Rest assured i will check every detail you have all offered and keep you posted of my progress.

2 things i would love to know, Johns parents parents names and his fathers job, obviously as suggested in an earlier post, he must have been someone, to pay for his sons medical school.

Again many thanks. x

[pwaldron]

Barry, can you please scan Dr. John Purcell's marriage certificate from which you have quoted and attach the image to a message here? Something still doesn't quite add up in what you have said about him.

Thanks

Paddy

[mgallery]

I have found the Edinburgh university archives incredibly helpful but so indeed is the Royal College of physicians there who have lists fo registered doctors. Dont forget to contact them (in the early 1800s at least two doctors from West Clare qualified in Edinburgh) my relative Mathias Kenny and Lucille Ellis's relative

[Lucille]

Barry

I'm booked in for a slot next Wednesday in the Royal College of Physicians archive. I'll let you know what I find on John Purcell and possible cousin Denis.

Lucille

[mgallery]

He could have gone to one of the Queens colleges (Galway Cork of Belfast) or to Trinity or to the new Catholic university or to college in the UK. If you have his membership of the Royal college of physicians that will probably tell you where he went to college (I think)

[marymp]

Through an amazing coincidence I just happened to find your post yesterday and immediately felt that I must contribute as I realized that I was in a position to clear up some misconceptions and provide some answers. To begin John Purcell son of Edward and Ellen Moloney is the incorrect John Purcell. Dr. John Purcell Silsden was my grandfather’s brother. He qualified as a doctor at Royal College of surgeons in Edinburgh in 1876. When I was a child I remember meeting his son also called John at various social events in Co. Clare.
Dr. Denis McDonnell was a relative but from the previous generation.