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Descendants of Francis (1832-1895) & Elizabeth Walker Grey (1828-1920)

I'm hoping to contact descendents of Francis & Elizabeth Walker Grey, Church of Ireland, Leaffony, Kilglass, Sligo.

According to their 1863 marriage record, Francis was a farmer and Elizabeth was a teacher. In the 1901 Census the family

lived at 'House 31' in Leaffony, Easky West, Sligo. In the 1911 Census they are residents of 'House 20',in Leaffony,

Easky West, Sligo. They had 4sons: William, b.1864;John, b.1866 who emigrated to the U.S.;Francis, b.1868 and

James, b.1870 who was running the farm in 1911 with his wife Annie Kate.

According to the 1911 census James and Annie Kate had 6 children: William Henry, b.1903; Mary Ann, b.1904;

Francis James, b.1905; George Walker, b.1906; John Morrow, b.1907; Lizzie Jane, b.1910.

I'mspending a couple of weeks on the west coast of Ireland thisMay, and I'd very much like to meet up with relatives of Elizabeth Walker Grey,a gr. aunt. Any information would be much appreciated.

Thank you.

Kathi K.

chipmonk_198@h…

5 replies

Kathi,

The numbering in the 1901 & 1911 censuses was the enumerators’ private system. Each had their own system. So the family is probably in the same property for both censuses. (Properties in those days didn’t have modern house numbers. Indeed that is still the case in some locations in Ireland. So the enumerators just made some up to keep their own records. The numbers varied from census to census.).

The 1863 Griffiths Valuation lists several Gray families in Leaffony. Plots 26 & 27 were tenanted by William & John. And I see there were 2 farms there in 1901 so these are probably the descendants of both.

http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/pages/1901/Sligo/Easky_West/Leaffony/1677926/

http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/pages/1901/Sligo/Easky_West/Leaffony/1677936/

The 1863 marriage certificate should tell you who Francis’s father was. That should help you identify the correct property on Griffiths maps.

In 1833, the tithe applotment records for Leaffony list William & Alexander Grey/Gray as each having a farm in the townland:

http://titheapplotmentbooks.nationalarchives.ie/search/tab/home.jsp

Francis Grey died aged 64 on 10.1.1896 at Leaffoney. His wife was the residuary legatee. Estate was valued at £284.

http://www.willcalendars.nationalarchives.ie

The death cert records that the son Francis George was the informant.

https://civilrecords.irishgenealogy.ie/

I looked in the modern phone book but did not see any Grey/Gray families listed in Leaffoney today. However that may not be conclusive as many people aren’t listed these days. You may need to knock on a few doors in the townland to find out for certain.

 

Elwyn, IrelandXO Volunteer ☘IrelandXO Volunteer

Elwyn,

Thank you for your very prompt and very helpful response.

Re: the Griffiths maps, how do I access them? I've tried several times, but without success.

Also, where is the townland 'Cartronarmstrong' in the Parish of Kilglass, Diocese of Killalla, County Sligo. I believe that Elizabeth Walker Grey's father and grandfather, William and James, leased a fair amount of land there. However, I can only find it on the 1833 Tithe Applotment lists. It is not on any other townland list nor is it in the Griffith's Valuation. 

Thank you again for all your help. 

Kathi K.

chipmonk_198@h…

For Griffiths maps, use the “Griffiths Places” option and then type in the townland and county. There is a “map views” option. Click on that and increase the size of the map.  You can use the slider bar to switch between the contemporaneous map and a modern map.

I don’t see a Cartronarmstrong in the parish but there is a townland of Cartron so presumably that’s the one you are looking for. Many townlands had multiple names and some had ill defined boundaries, and these were mostly standardized in the mid 1800s by the Griffiths clerks. So you often find townlands in the tithes that have disappeared or been renamed by the time of Griffiths.

Cartron is near the Fairy Cake Café.For information, there are 4 places named Cartron in Co. Sligo and another 18 with Cartron plus a suffix.

Elwyn, IrelandXO Volunteer ☘IrelandXO Volunteer

Thank you. It took me awhile to figure out the map section on Griffiths, but I eventually did.

As for Cartron, it certainly is a popular name in Sligo, but the one in Kilglass parish is right where I'd

hoped it would be.

Kathi K  

chipmonk_198@h…

I believe that there were two separate Gray/Grey families.

Our John Gray came from Scotland in the 1840s and married Annie Chambers.

Our story goes...After 1901 there was another family who lived just down the road and had the same surname of Gray. The story goes both heads of each family went to a local bar called Poullahiney’s (about 3 miles away) to discuss who would change. I guess with a drink or three. Our family lost hence the ‘e’ but most kept it the old way with an ‘a’.

There are two different Gray. Grey graves in the local cemetery

Our family has the head listed as either Moses or Samuel in 1901 in Ralthlee  and in 1911 census in Leaffoney

Lorraine Wilson

(husbands grandmother was Ethel Agnes Grey from Leaffoney)

 

ljwilson52@gmail.com

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