John H. Buckley

John is my great great grandfather.  He was born in Feb. 1852 in Drumtariff, Co. Cork, Ireland to William and Mary Reardon (Riordan) Buckley.  Wm. 'n Mary were married about 1847 in Co. Cork, possibly Drumtariff.  They were born about 1823 presumably there also.  Wm. died Oct 14, 1887 in Queens Co., Long Island Co., New York, USA.  Mary died Dec.1880 in Trenton, Mercer Co., New Jersey, USA.

My cousin has found the baptismal records from the IGI files (film #0883696) in the Mormon Church.  It has John H. listed with parents as Wm. and Mary Reardon Buckley for his baptism in 1852 in Drumtariff, Co. Cork, Ire.   We believe, too that his older sisters were probably born there as well.

John's father bought a farm in Blawerburg, Somerset Co., New Jersey in 1865, but was making his home in Hopewell, NJ at the time of purchase.  By 1876 he had then moved the family back to Hopewell.

Johns siblings were: Hannah b. Nov 1847 & Mary E. b abt 1854 both in Drumtariff (but we have not found any records in the IGI);  William J. b. Jun 1860; Ella Alena b. Jan 1861; James P. b. May, 1865; Katherine C. b. Jun, 1868 all in Hopewell area of New Jersey.  It is plausible to think that there was another child born perhaps between Hannah 'n John H. as to the number of years between them.

Usually a family did not come to the US without sponsors or family already living there.  This is the case with Wm. 'n Mary.  Mary's brother, Daniel Reardon and wife, Hannah Buckley Reardon, and his mother, Johanna Reardon (widow), were all living in Lambertville, Hunterdon Co., New Jersey by 1855.  Records in IRE. need to be looked at for Daniel's marriage and the death of  of his father, James.

John was a Baptist missionary out of Omaha, Nebraska, USA.  He was a member of the Missionaries of American Sunday School Union, as to a program for a Conference 'n School Union held in Sioux City, Iowa in Sept. 9 - 13, 1911.  He was also a circuit rider at one time, serving several small outlying churchs across the prairies of Iowas 'n Nebraska.  John attended the Presbyterian Church in Hopewell, New Jersey while he was growing up.  He planned his removal to Northwestern Illinois about 1875.  Many families from Hopewell had made such a move ver the last 30 years to the small town area of Cordova, Rock Island Co., Illinois, USA.

John began faming when he arrived in the Cordova area.  It was there that he met and married Ruth Marshall on Apr 8, 1877.  Ruth was educated as a nurse.  Her grandmother, Charity Golden Marshall, was one of the founding members of the Baptist Church in Cordova.  As John found that farming was not a passion, he sought to become a minsiter.  He requested references from his former church in Hopewell and thus began his years as a minister.

John 'n Ruth had 7 chidren: Ruth A., Marie A., Laura, Sarah "Sadie" Olive, Justin E., William, and Anna R.