GRIFFIN- CATHERINE - COOLGOREE FOSSABEG

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rryan
Posts: 10
Joined: Sun Mar 28, 2010 10:45 pm

GRIFFIN- CATHERINE - COOLGOREE FOSSABEG

Post by rryan » Tue Feb 26, 2019 5:59 am

Hi ,
I'm looking for any connection to my Catherine Griffin b 1810 roughly in Fossabeg Tomgraney.
I believe her father might have been Patrick.
She married Michael McMahon around 1839-1841.
Known 1 issue Patrick b 1839-1840.
Any info on possible family would be great , as I've got nothing only she possibly died 1865 as her husband Michael came out to Aust to be with his son Patrick who had emigrated to Vic Aust .
Rae Warwick Qld :)

Sduddy
Posts: 1826
Joined: Sun Sep 26, 2010 10:07 am

Re: GRIFFIN- CATHERINE - COOLGOREE FOSSABEG

Post by Sduddy » Sun Mar 10, 2019 12:29 pm

Hi Rae

The Griffins in Fossabeg are mentioned on page 5 of the topic: “Information is wanted of Thomas McNamara of Glandree”: http://www.ourlibrary.ca/phpbb2/viewtop ... f=1&t=6965. This may, or may not be of interest to you. The first two quotes here are from postings by Jimbo - the last one is from a reply by me. At the time of writing, we thought Michael McNamara might be a relative of Thomas McNamara of Glandree. I suspect now that the "Tullah" mentioned was the name of a place in Tomgraney which fell out of use as the century went on. "Tullach" is one of the Irish words for "hill" and so is fairly common all over Ireland.
On the Ship Irene arriving in New South Wales on 16 October 1852 were Michael McNamara (age 30, born Tullagh, County Clare), his wife Mary McNamara (age 28, born Tomgraney, Clare), and their two children Thomas (age 9) and Margaret (age 5) both born in "Tullagh, Tomgraney, County Clare" as per records below from NSW State Archives:

http://indexes.records.nsw.gov.au/ebook ... 0.jpg&No=8

I believe the above passenger listing is only an index, as ancestry.com had a more complete passenger listing for the Ship Irene which included the parents of Michael McNamara (age 30) as Thomas and Margaret "both dead". The parents of Mary McNamara (age 28) were reported as Patrick and Judith Griffin of Tomgraney, Ireland (I assume both still living). Ancestry.com for this record states that the ship arrived on 17 December 1852 which is different from the NSW Archives record. The Sydney Morning Herald of 18 October 1852 (see trove.com below) reported that the Ship Irene arrived with 398 passengers. Fever and measles killed 34 (mostly children), and there were 8 births during the 97 day voyage.
Michael McNamara and Mary Griffin had two additional children in NSW: Michael (1853 - 1853), and Mary Ann (1856 - 1866). This might support the accuracy of the later birth years on the immigration record (versus family tree/death record) for Michael being age 30 (not 38) and his wife Mary being age 28 (not 35) in 1852. Generally, in reviewing the 1852 passenger lists, the immigrants to Australia appear to be on the younger side of thirty. You might argue that this is why Michael and Mary provided false ages on the shipping records, but there is other evidence supporting the later birth years ...

Mary Griffin was the eldest child of a family of seven. Next were (twin?) sisters born about 1834 in Tuamgraney: Susan Griffin (settled in Scotland) and Jane Griffin (settled in Australia). The next child was a sister Kate Griffin born about 1836 who first settled in Scotland but eventually with her family emigrated to Australia. The Griffin sisters appear to have remained in contact with each other. Then on the family tree were three children born in Tuamgraney (two sons Patrick & Michael; and a daughter Judith who died in infancy) but their birth years or other information is not provided. They are placed chronologically as the youngest, but this might not be accurate. The gap between the first born child and the daughters in 1834 would be huge if Mary Griffin was really born in 1819 versus 1826. Also of note, Jane Griffin died in 1923 at the age of 89 so it is doubtful she could have been born much earlier than 1834.
Yes the birthyears of the siblings of Mary Griffin show that it is much more likely that she was born in 1824 than in 1817. I looked at the Griffins who remained in Fossamore and Fossabeg, and who might possibly be her relatives. There’s a Joseph Griffin in Fossabeg 1901, aged 66 – he died in 1909 aged 76 – so was born about 1834. The marriage of a Joseph Griffin was registered in Scarriff in 1866, but the image is not available to view. Some day it will become viewable and we will find out if Joseph’s father is Patrick Griffin.
The Catholic parish of Scarriff and Moynoe also covers some of Tomgraney civil parish, so the parish register shows some records for the Griffins. The baptisms (1852-1872) show that Joseph Griffin and and Kath Molony, Fossabeg, had a son, Andrew, baptised Feb.17, 1867.
Equally, Mary might be from the Grffin family in Fossamore. In the parish records, Fossabeg seems to be usually called Fossabeg, but Fossamore seems to be usually called Derrymore, a place which lies within the townland of Fossa More: http://www.clarelibrary.ie/eolas/coclar ... L11L20L12* . And the surname Griffin is sometimes spelled “Griffey”.
The marriages (1852-1872) show a Pat Griffin, Derrymore, as witness to a couple of marriages in 1854. This may be Mary’s father and, if so, it confirms that he was still alive when she was emigrating.
Sheila

rryan
Posts: 10
Joined: Sun Mar 28, 2010 10:45 pm

Re: GRIFFIN- CATHERINE - COOLGOREE FOSSABEG

Post by rryan » Mon Mar 11, 2019 5:46 am

When Patrick the son of Catherine Griffin & Patrick McMahon married in Vic 1861 to Annie O'Donnell daughter of John O'Donnell & Eliza Driscoll one of the witnesses was a Michael Griffin. Obviously related to Catherine I'm guessing .
Rae

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