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Robert Brownlee,

Cavan

Good day to all,
I have just joined Ireland XO, and am searching for my Irish ancestors. One of my ancestors is a Robert Brownlee, who supposedly emigrated from County Cavan in the mid 1800's, age 12 or 13, to the United States.Another piece of the story is that he may have been born to a Catholic family, and then been adopted by a Protestant family, adopting the surname more or less on his way here. Has anyone ever heard of a family from one side of the reigious divide adopting poor children from the other?

From research already done, it seems the family name Brownlee is more likely from the Borders territory of England/Scotland. Can anyone clarify any of this?

Thanks,

Gerard

IrelandXO member

2 replies

Gerard,

The majority of the Brownlee, Brownly, Brownlie households in Cavan in the 1901 census are Church of Ireland which points to plantation settler origins. Possibly from England, though many Scots from the Borders did also end up Church of Ireland (in contrast to Presbyterian the main denomination in Scotland).

You will find families with mixed denominations in them for various reasons. Some as a spin off to a mixed marriage. The norm was for the bride to marry in her own church and then to attend her husband’s church, but with a Church of Ireland = RC marriage sometimes each party held to their own denomination. You will sometimes find the sons brought up under the husband’s denomination, and the daughters under the wife’s.

If then something happens to that family eg illness or death and the children are either orphans or there’s a surviving husband who can’t maintain them on his own, then they were often split around the relatives, or grandparents. So you could then end up with a child of one denomination living in a house which was another, but within the same family group.

I did some research on a Brownlie fmaily in Cavan recently that migrated to Australia and Brownlow is a variant spelling of the name that you should bear in mind too.

Elwyn, IrelandXO Volunteer ☘IrelandXO Volunteer

Hi Gerard & Elwyn (Happy New Year!),

www.rootsireland.ie/ has 4 baptism records of Robert Brownlee (+ surname variants) from Cavan; all are C of I

The first 2 are 1831 & 1835 so I assume they are too early; the others are these:

Name:Robert BrownleeDate of Birth:
Date of Baptism:03-Sep-1850Address:BailieboroParish/District:BAILIEBOROUGHGender:MaleCountyCo. Cavan
Denomination:Church Of Ireland
Father:Robert Brownlee Occupation Labourer

Mother:Nancy Brownlee
Sponsor 1 /
Informant 1:Unknown Sponsor 2 /
Informant 2:Unknown 
Notes:

NO BIRTH DATE GIVEN BIRTH DATE BASED ON CHRISTENING DATE
BAPTISM SOLEMNIZED IN THE PARISH OF BAILIEBORO ALIAS MOYBOLOGUE

Name:Robert BrownleeDate of Birth:
Date of Baptism:03-Sep-1850Address:BailieboroParish/District:BAILIEBOROUGHGender:MaleCountyCo. Cavan
Denomination:Church Of Ireland
Father:Robert Brownlee Occupation Labourer

Mother:Nancy Brownlee
Sponsor 1 /
Informant 1:Unknown Sponsor 2 /
Informant 2:Unknown 
Notes:

NO BIRTH DATE GIVEN BIRTH DATE BASED ON CHRISTENING DATE
BAPTISM SOLEMNIZED IN THE PARISH OF BAILIEBORO ALIAS MOYBOLOGUE

Col

ColCaffIrelandXO Volunteer

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