Dear Sir/Madam,
I would be grateful for any assistance you may be able to provide me in researching my ancestors in the Westport area of Mayo. I believe my Great-Great-Grandmother, Ellen McNavin, was born in or around Westport to a Peter (Mc)Navin in c 1832. She emigrated to Stockport, Manchester, England sometime before 1851 where she worked as a servant in a household. She married my GG-Grandfather in 1854. Ellen’s father is identified as “Peter McNavin”, farmer, deceased, in her marriage record in 1854. Ellen’s granddaughter is my grandmother.
I’ve established Westport as the likely origin for Ellen as a result of both ruling out other prospective parents/locations and the fact that a Michael O’Gara was a sponsor at the baptism of Ellen’s daughter Mary in Stockport in 1857. Michael O’Gara’s sister Elizabeth married Thomas Wood in Aughaval on December 27, 1837. A Margaret Navin was a witness to the marriage between Elizabeth and Thomas Wood. Michael’s brother Christopher married Cecily Wood in Aughaval on January 15, 1838. These are the only entries for the O’Gara family in Aughaval in the period of interest.
I note that there was a Peter Navin who married Bridget Gavan in Aughaval in 1825. The name “Peter Navin” is sufficiently rare that combined with the O’Gara connection I’m hypothesizing that Ellen was Peter’s daughter. The witnesses to Peter Navin and Bridget’s marriage were Michael Gavan and Cicely Navin. Cicely was also a witness to the marriage of Anthony Navin in 1827. I’m guessing that Peter, Cecily and Anthony were siblings and likely children of Thomas and Mary Navin who died in 1870 and 1882, respectively, at the elderly ages of 100 and 103.
I would be very grateful for any assistance or insight you may be able to provide in confirming my conjecture above.
Lastly, one nagging concern I have is the description of my GG-Grandmother in 3x English civil records and 2x church baptism records as “McNavin” (and derivatives) while all the individuals in Westport appear to be named Navin (and derivatives) without the “Mc”. May anything be read into the addition or deletion of the “Mc” for purposes of identifying likely ancestors or relatives?
Many thanks in advance for any assistance you may be able to provide!
Regards,
Pete Dale