Catherine Hayes (born btwn. 1799-1810 in either Limerick or Tipperary, died 1886 in Ontario, Canada)
Basic Facts
--> An ancestor of mine Catherine Hayes came to Ontario, Canada from Ireland.
- Depending on source she was born in the 1799-1810 range.
- She married a man named John Wall.
- There is an Anglican christening record from 1835 in Ontario for their first child, Ellen Jane, suggesting Catherine Hayes had already come to Canada by the mid-1830s.
- She died in 1886 in Ontario.
Uncertain origin county within Ireland
--> Unfortunately, Canada did not start regularly recording ship manifests with names of immigrants arriving in Canada prior to 1865, so I don't know exactly when she came to Canada or where specifically in Ireland she came from.
--> Some online family trees (such has the one I linked above) list her origin as County Tipperary, while others say Limerick. I haven't found primary source documentation to verify either clam conclusively.
--> The best I've found are secondary references, such as the family tree I linked earlier (which says Tipperary) and this more recent excerpt from a commenty newsletter called the "Navan (Ontario) Nugget" which states:
Catherine Wall was born in March Township (current area of Lanark County) to John Wall and Catherine Hayes, both from Limerick, Ireland.
Canadian Census data
--> Perhaps worth noting: the 1871 Canadian Census shows Catherine's husband John Wall self-reported as being from England and Catherine from Ireland (doesn't say where in Ireland).
--> 19th-century Canadian records show Catherine as declaring her religion as "C of E" (note that before 1955 the Anglican Church of Canada was generally just called "Church of England"). I have no idea what this means in terms of the religion she was born into in Ireland, only that she self-identified as C of E by the time she was in Canada.
Summary
I do realize that the following factors make this a challenging one!
- Catherine Hayes is a common name in Ireland
- Uncertain birth-year range (1799-1810)
- Uncertain county of origin (Limerick or Tipperary)
- A couple decades before comprehensive records were being kept in either Canada or Ireland
Thank you very much in advance to anyone who might be able to provide any tips, thoughts, or help!