Ireland XO
Back to Message Board

Looking for Blake in Galway

Galway

Hello, my last Irish "brick wall" is Edward Blake. He is my ggg-grandfather and the family story is that he is from County Galway. My father did a DNA test and the y chromosome came back to County Mayo, which may broaden my search. He married in the US to another Irish immigrant, Bridget Kidney, from Cork. He died in East St. Louis, Illinois, USA, and his death was well covered in the news (he made a public suicide attempt after murdering a man in the bar he (Blake) owned). The death records placed his birth year at approximately 1828, but I realize there is likely quite some wiggle room here.

His oldest son is Richard, his second son is Bernard (died in infancy, named for the priest who baptized him), his daughter is Mary and his youngest son is Edward, my ancestor. We don't know what happened to Richard, his son, although family story also says that Richard returned to Ireland as an adult. I do not know of any other relatives, like siblings or a parent--it appears Edward arrived in the US alone and found his way to Kansas City, where he married Bridget in 1858. 

Any ideas on where to start with Edward would be most welcome. I appreciate your time~

Bridgett Blake, St. Louis, Missouri, USA

Bridgett

9 replies

Bridgett,

The surname "Blake" is common in parts of Counties Galway and Mayo. They are descended from a Richard Caddell, Sheriff of Connacht in 1303 and were one of the Tribes of Galway city.

Free site  www.askaboutireland.ie ; will give you an indication of their locations in the 1800's.

I attach copies of emigrants to the USA following the Irish famine in 1847 - Edward and Edmond.

Do you have details of Edward's marriage in 1858 and  his death record?

Regards,

McCoy

Further to previous Post, Griffith's valuation has 4 people named "Richard Blake" in County Cork. Three have small portions of land and a 4th has a House and Yard in Mallow. Due to the fact that Edward's wife was from Cork and that his eldest son was named "Richard" there is a possibility that he was from County Cork and not Galway?

Regards,

McCoy

Bridgett,

Us Census for 1880 has a record of an Edward Blake, Saloon Keeper. Wife Bridget aged 46 years and a niece named Mollie Tuohey who was born in Ms. Do you know anything of the "Tuohey" connection?

I attach two records for a Bridget Kidney baptised in Cork in 1832 and 1835.

Regards

McCoy

McCoy, thank you so much for your replies! Mallow and the other locations being so far from Tracton (I have triangulated BRidget's family to there), I'm not ready to jump on the Cork Blake's just yet--my father's y chromosome DNA points to County Mayo so that and the family story of Galway has been my focus. I do have his marriage and death records and the US census records on him and Bridget. The Toohey/Tuohy/Touhey connection is another puzzle I am trying to unravel. Edward is buried in the same grave as some Touheys and some Hogans, but I don't know if they are on the Blake side or the Kidney/Dwyne/Dwyer side. Or if they aren't really related, but were friends/neighbors. It's exhausting! 

I am hoping to figure Edward out and then perhaps work on the Tooheys and Hogans. I have some of it sketched out--brothers are Malachy and Mathew Tuohy, and I believe Mathew married a Catherine and they were the parents of Mollie. Catherine died in the 1873 cholera epidemic in East St. Louis and Mathew followed a few years later, so it makes sense that Mollie would be living with Bridget and Edward. She's listed as niece but I have the impression that a lot of lying to government officials happened on this side. 

I appreciate your digging! I will look at the Cork Blakes, see if I can find church records from that era and that place--I had really good luck with Cork, so maybe I can triangulate something. My hunch says western Ireland, though...

Bridgett

Bridgett

Hi Bridget,

The Blakes were landlords in Annaghdown a parish in Galway. My husband's family is from that area. He tells me that the Blakes were well known for their kindness to their tenants, especially during the famine. To this day their kindness is not forgotten. That is why their house was one of the few not burned down during the war of independence.

His uncle tells the story of a man from Corrandulla about to be executed during one of the world wars. Not sure why the British army was about to execute him but the officer in charge of the firing squad asked the man where he was from before he was led out. When the man replied saying Corrandulla, the officer, who was one of the Blakes, switched to speaking Irish and said in Irish 'There is nothing I can do for you now. When I start to give the orders, turn,  and jump over the wall. there is a river on the other side that is your only chance.' The man did as instructed and survived and returned years later to the village. My husband's uncle knew the survivor and retold the story in Irish.

Anne McCarthy Murphy 

Kibeacanty Volunteer

Anne McCarthy MurphyIrelandXO Volunteer

Anne, I really appreciate your reply! I visited with my father this weekend and pressed him for any information he could remember that his father told him. One thing that I hadn't heard before was that the family story was told to him that in the 17th century our family lost their land and wound up in County Clare as goat farmers. I had never even looked in Clare for any Blakes, and this afternoon sifted through Griffith's Valuation just to start. My ancestor would have been in the US by then, but taking a glance around I realized there were tight clusters of Blakes in various parts of County Clare. I think I will post again on that message board.

Bridgett

Hi Bridgett,

Your father's story of losing their land in the 17thC ties in with the Cromwellian ethnic clearances. A well known saying in Ireland is 'To Hell or to Connacht', meaning if you stayed in your original family lands you were hanged(Hell). Clare Library online has excellent resources on this. I attach a link that mentions that Blakes were moved.https://www.clarelibrary.ie/eolas/coclare/history/frost/chap22_transplanted_papists.htm

Here is a more extensive  study on it https://www.clarelibrary.ie/eolas/coclare/history/frost/frost.htm

And this is an overview of the historical context https://www.clarelibrary.ie/eolas/coclare/history/cromwell_settlement.htm

Regards

Anne McCarthy-murphy

Anne McCarthy MurphyIrelandXO Volunteer

Anne, thank you again! This is so nice of you to find these resources and the little details, too. I appreciate your work,

Bridgett

Bridgett

Hi Bridget

I admin the East Galway Genealogy FB group and would welcome you to join 

https://www.facebook.com/groups/eastgalwaygenealogy

You may find more connections there as it is interactive and with over 5,500 members there is bound to be some family and relatives 

re DNA Most people around have done an Ancestry DNA test - if you have done a DNA test see a full step by step in the FB group to use it in searrching matches within the group 

Best of luck in your research

Martin

MartinCurley

Reply

Reply
One image file up to 2 MB.