Martin Kelly
- Born
- 1803-01-01 12:00:00
- Died
- 1888-01-01 12:00:00
- Gender
- Male
- Place of migration
- Migrated to /Born in Canada
Martin Kelly was born in Kilkenny, as stated in his obituary. His DOB and place of birth come closest to the record located in Kilfane Parish, parents James and Margaret (Foran) Kelly, although his parentage has not been proven. Census records place his DOB as between 1799-1811.
He was married October 30 1839in Gowran Parish, to Catherine Doolin (Dolan, Dowling) of Raheen. Their first child, Patrick was born in Tullaherin in 1840. Shortly thereafter, they immigrated to Quebec where their daughter, Margaret was born in 1842. They then moved on to Mara Township, Simcoe Co, Ontario where Martin purchased Lot 24, Concession 12. Nine more children were born to them in Mara, among them, my great-grandfather, Thos. Kelly.
Oral history said that Martin had been educated at Trinity College in Dublin, but as a Catholic, he probably did not graduate. We investigated and found no record at Trinity. He was, however, a man of unusual intelligence and again, according to oral history, he set up office in a tavern in Orillia, Brechin, or Uptergrove, and gave people legal advice; payment was probably a draft or two. His obituary mentions his mental prowess.
Catherine was a wise woman and sent four of her six sons away from the farmland of Ontario to the United States, to find their way. Their eldest, Patrick, went to California where he married and had two sons. His wife died in childbirth, and Patrick died of malaria when the boys were just 4 and 5. Martin and Catherine sent for them and the boys grew up in their grandparents' household.
Michael, Thomas, Martin Jr., and John also went to the States to seek their fortunes. Michael traveled the U.S. as a timber cruiser and settled in Minnesota. Thomas also cruised timber, but later had a variety of investments as a bank president and settled in Cadillac and Lake City, Michigan. Martin Jr. lost a leg to the logging industry and became a bookkeeper in Grand Rapids, Michigan, later moving to Muskegon, Michigan, while John settled in Idaho, later in Butte, Montana, and worked in copper mining.
