I am looking for help to find a marriage record for my great grandfather Denis McManus who was married to Bridget Maglone.
The census of 1901 and 1911 show them living in Dog Big townland and the occupation as caretaker. I have no idea what he would be caretaking.
Any information on my family would be gratefully received
I can’t see the marriage in the civil records. The 1911 census says the couple had been married 15 years so around 1895/96. Sometimes priests omitted to copy a religious marriage to the civil authorities. So it’s possible there’s a record in the church but not in the civil set. Big Dog is in the RC parish of Devenish. Their records for the 1890s are not on-line anywhere so far as I am aware but you could contact the parochial office to see if they have the marriage in the original register.
Not certain but I think the nearest church is probably Derrygonnelly. (If I am wrong they’ll surely know the correct one).
Fr. Cathal Deery, PP
Parochial House,
Derrygonnelly,
Co. Fermanagh. BT93 6HW.
T: (028) 6864 1207
E: office@bothaparish.com or fr.cathal@bothaparish.com
Sorry can’t suggest what Denis may have been caretaker of.
Thank you Fr Cathal
I will contact the parochial office in Derrygonnelly to see if they can trace a MC. It could be that they married somewhere else.
very best wishes
Angela
Hi Elwyn
I think Big Dog townland is now part of a national park and I wondered if he may have been looking after land connected to this.
Thank you for replying
very best wishes
Angela
Angela,
It's not really a national park. It's just an area popular with walkers. You can park there and go for forest walks. (All forests are open to the public, so that's a common arrangement). It's all farmland or forest. And in 1901 & 1911, National Parks hadn't even been invented. There were about 5 or 6 farms in that townland, and that was it really. Total population of the townland in 1901 was 63 people. Farms don't normally need a caretaker. I can't see anything in the immediate vicinty then that might need a caretaker.
Elwyn
Thank you that gives me a better idea. is there any way of identifying which farm Denis McManus would have lived in?
very best wishes
Angela
Angela,
Denis isn't listed in the Valuation Revision records but according to the 1911 census, his landlord was Bridget Carroll, and the Carroll family had plot 6 in the townland (about 253 acres) so I suspect he lived there. That was near to the modern Knockmore Rd. If you look at the outbuildings return, you will see that Denis's house had 3 rooms, 3 windows at the front, and a thatched roof. There was 1 stable, 2 cow houses and a barn. I don't think the land would have been of very high quality and that's probably why it's all now used for forestry. Looking at the land on Google Earth, I don't see any obvious sign of the farm buildings today. There is a track into the forest which look to have been there in the 1800s, so if you visit the area, you could explore that for any signs of old buildings. In the 1911 census there were 10 houses Dog Big.
Hi Elwyn
That is really helpful.When I am able to visit I will see if I can find the track and imagine what it would have been like there. I think his son ,Bernard McManus born in 1898 built a property around Derrygonnelly so Denis may have moved from the house with three rooms and a thatched roof.
Tryin to track this line of the McManus family is elusive as Bernard ,Denis's son,moved to Cavan and that is where my father Desmond Denis McManus was born in 1924.Bernard enrolled in the Free State Army and shows up on the 1922 census .His Mother Bridget who i am assuming was Bridget Maglone shows as Bridget McManus on the 1922 Census and is living at Wheathill Derrygonnolly.Bernard was posted to Belturbet abd met Alice Smith his wife and my grandmother whilst in the Army.
very best wishes
Angela
Angela,
I looked for a possible death for Bridget McManus, post 1922. There are 3 in the Enniskillen registration area:
7.1.1939 aged 76
22.3.1940 aged 76
20.2.1944 aged 83
The 1940 death was registered in Ely sub-district. I think that probably covers Derrygonnelly. So, if you want to check those out, I’d start with that one. They are not viewable on-line free. You have to pay GRONI £2.50 a time to view them. You need to open an account and buy a few credits.
Hi Elwyn
I have looked at the record for Bridget Mcmanus who died on 22 March 1940 and think this is likely to be the correct one as it shows Pat Mcmanus who reigistered her death as her brother in law and she as a widow to a caretaker.
I also found a birth certificate for a Bridget Maglone born in August 1865 which gives her parents as Patt Maglone and Mary Gallagher
Interestingly on Family search web site it shows her as being born at Ely Lodge . I researched Ely Lodge and wondered if Denis Mcmanus was the caretaker for Ely Lodge as it is in the right vicinity and his wife was born there
Speculative but possible
Thank you again for your help
very best wishes
Angela
You might try checking church parish records for Killesher, County Fermanagh, where Dog Big is located. Caretaker likely meant tending an estate or church grounds. Civil marriage records post-1864 could list Denis McManus and Bridget Maglone—search via irishgenealogy.ie for clues. Good luck uncovering more!