Library Forum

According to family history, my gggrandfather, John Taylor (b.c1810), left his home at Coolisteague, Clare, to emigrate to America, after his first wife, Eliza Whelan , died in 1835. He left his infant son, Robert b 1835, to be raised by an aunt. That baby, my ggrandfather, eventually emigrated to Australia. I would love to know what happened to John, who remarried, but I don't even know what state in USA he went to. Can anyone help?
Gabrielle, Australia

Gabrielle,

One approach might be to follow the Whelan line to see whether you can identify present-day Whelan descendants and see whether they have any knowledge of John Taylor whose mother was Eliza Whelan.

There was a Maurice Whelan in Coollisteige in the parish of Kiltenanlea in the Griffiths Valuation (ca. 1855) - see http://www.clarelibrary.ie/eolas/coclar ... nanlea.htm .

Furthermore, there was still a Whelan family in Coollisteige quite recently (1901 census; see http://www.clarelibrary.ie/eolas/coclar ... e109_4.htm ).

Did you ask around Coollisteige to see whether anyone has any recollection of the Whelans ?

Paddy

Thank you, Paddy , for your help. I did write to a Whelan family in Coolisteigue and they had been in the area 200 years but could not help, except to say that all their relatives are buried "at Doonass graveyard in Clonlara". I had previously written to the parish priest at Clonlara as I thought Eliza might be buried there , and her baby baptised there, but he couldn't find any records.
Am not sure if the Doonass graveyard is the same as the Clonlara one.
So hard trying to piece it together from the other side of the world!