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Kelly-Doyle

TipperaryKilfeacle (Tipperary)

Hello.  Wondering if someone can point me in the right direction (and I apologize for the long post). I've hit a brick wall with my father's ancestors.  My g-g-grandfather (John Kelly) came to Canada with his parents in/around 1840.  Family history says they came from Co. Tipperary. His parents were Matthew Kelly and Margaret Doyle.  After John's father died in Canada he moved with his mother and brother to Bay City, Michigan where he met and married Catherine Slattery.  I have Catherine's baptismal record from Golden, Kilfaecle. 

My understanding is that when the Irish left Ireland they moved to  wherever other family/friends lived.  It seems coincidental that Catherine was from Tipperary as well as John.  Catherine came to the US with her sister & brother-in-law when she was around 20 years old. I also understand that the Irish did not travel far from home...so in order for the Slattery's to know the Kelly's (or possibly the Doyle's) they would have to have come from the same area in Tipperary - right?  I cannot find any informationn on Matthew or Margaret.

If anyone has some  insight it would be really appreciated.  

a.whalen@xplornet.ca

4 replies

Kelly-Whalen:

You don't mention the approximate year of birth for John Kelly but the Golden RC parish baptismal records start in May 1833. https://registers.nli.ie/parishes/0267

I checked the subscription site FindMyPast and did not locate any Kelly baptismal records in Golden or any parish in Co. Tipperary where the parents were Mathew Kelly and Margaret Doyle.

Likely if they were from Golden/Kilfeacle parish, the children were born before May 1833.

Let me know if you have any questions.

Roger McDonnell

Castlemore RoscommonIrelandXO Volunteer

Thank you for your message.   John was born in and around 1838 (I found him on an Ontario, Canada census of 1851 listed as 13 yrs old).  The (limited) information I have on him was that he was from Tipperary.  Interestingly enough, my cousin thought they came from Co. Clare because that is why she was named "Clare".  I can't even find a marriage record for Matthew and Margaret so maybe I'm looking in the wrong place. (Just fyi, Matthew was born approx. 1806 and Margaret approx. 1807).

The other family story that was passed down was that the father, Matthew, was sent to Barbados for 7 years as an indentured servant. He then came to Canada.  My husband and I were in Ireland in 2015 and happened to be staying within walking distance of the National Archives building in Dublin.  In speaking with the historian, she said that it was unlikely that  he had been an indentured servant because the time period was not correct.

 I don't even know what their port of entry to Canada was. I've kind of hit a brick wall with this part of the family. 

I appreciate your help!

Anne

a.whalen@xplornet.ca

Anne:

I went back to FindMyPast and expanded the search for all of Ireland for any Kelly baptismal record with father Matthew and mother with surname Doyle and I looked for records from 1833-1843 and did not find a record. It is likely that the baptism took place in a parish that does not have records back to his year of baptism.

Roger

Castlemore RoscommonIrelandXO Volunteer

Ok. Thank you so much!

a.whalen@xplornet.ca

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