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Mary Conole (c1856-1929) of Ballyvaughan Co Clare: A Mystery

Clare

Mary Conole (c1856-1929) of Ballyvaughan: A Mystery

https://www.ancestry.com.au/family-tree/person/tree/5329504/person/-743253632/facts

My GG Grandmother Mary Conole arrived in Queensland Australia aboard the Lady Douglas in 1875. Eleven months later she gave birth to my Great Grandmother Julia Maria Berry in Lilyvale, Western Queensland. On the birth certificate Mary gave her surname as Nolan and [EDIT} [on her marriage certificate] her parents’ names as John Conole and Margaret Conry. Eighteen months after that she married Frank Egerton and they had nine children. On her death certificate (a son as informant) Martin Connolan is given as her father’s name and mother unknown.

Various documents put her birth year between 1856 and 1860 but the place given was always Ballyvaughan. I visited the Ballyvaughan church in 2002 and could find no evidence of her birth or indeed any Conole (or spelling variant) births. A cousin repeated the investigation in 2012 but once again no evidence of Conole or similar name.

I have been through the NLI microfilm 1854-1876 but no possible births.

There is a couple Martin Conolan from Craggagh (father listed as Pat Conolan) and Margaret Conway from Dereen married 1869 and still in Dereen on the 1901 census. Could Margaret be older than stated and the mother of Mary? But there is a huge gap between Mary’s birth even in 1860 and the birth of their first child in 1872.

There is a couple John Conlan and Anne Davoren from Ballyvaughan who migrated with all their children to South Australia in 1854. They had a Martin. Could he have gone back to Ireland? A cousin has DNA matches to this couple but I don’t know the details.

I can’t find any matches on our various tests other than to Mary Conole.

Any help appreciated. Any ideas?

Happy to upload certificates or provide further information.

Coming to Ireland in May this year

Kathryn Barrett

4 replies

Kathryn,

For other volunteers- Ballyvaughan being discussed above is in Clare.

The Martin and Margaret on the 1901 census had a daughter Mary in 1874. I believe she married Michael McGrath prior to 1900. I did not find a marriage record but found their daughter's baptism record. They are on the 1901 census living in Derreen, Clare.

Record from Ancestry

NameMaria Connolan[Mary Connolan]
Baptism Age0[0]
Event TypeBaptism
Birth Date4 Sep 1874
Baptism Date6 Sep 1874
Baptism PlaceBallyvaughan, Clare, Ireland
Parish VariantsCarrah, Glanaraghy, Glenaragah and Carrah, Glenaragh
DioceseGalway
FatherMartinio Connolan
MotherMargarita Conway

@@@@@@@@@@

Record from RootsIreland

Name:Margaret McGrathDate of Birth:
  Date of Baptism:7-Oct-1900
Address:DerreenParish/District:BALLYVAUGHAN
Gender:FemaleCountyCo. Clare
Denomination:Roman Catholic
Father:Michael McGrathMother:Maria Cullinan
Occupation:
Sponsor 1 /Informant 1:Pat ConnellanSponsor 2 /Informant 2:Maria Connellan
Notes:
MOTHER AND SPONSORS GIVEN ON CARD AS CONOLAN

Regards- Mary

mtvrdk@gmail.com

Kathryn,

Trust the info that Mary herseIf provided--that her parents were John and Margaret.

The person providing the information on Mary's death record wouId not have been as reIiabIe as Mary herseIf. He may have been confused, grieving, mistaken, etc. It's a probIem geneaIogists often find with death certs.

glanvil3@aol.com

This record is from a pIace in GaIway that is distance from BaIIyvaughan, but the names match and the year works. Is it possibIe Margaret was from GaIway? The marriage usuaIIy took pIace in the bride's church.

Date of Marriage:           30-Jul-1854                       

Parish / District: Killeenadeema                 County: Co. Galway

Husband                                                       Wife

Name:  John     Connelly                            Margaret            Conroy

Address:              Not Recorded                   Not Recorded

Denomination:  Roman Catholic               Roman Catholic

Witness 1                          Witness 2

Name:  Denis    Cunningham                     Mary     Cunningham

glanvil3@aol.com

Thank you so ver much MaryTV and Patricia for your valuable thoughts and suggestions. I've been down quite a few rabbit holes since then and have come up with the following.

A number of people have Martin Conolan and Margaret Conway as Mary Conole's parents on their Ancestry trees, although many will be just copied across rather than researched. I see a few problems with this couple being the parents viz.:-

  1. Mary gave her father's name on more than one certificate as John Conole.
  2. Two obituaries identify Mr J Conole as her father so that must have been the family story.
  3. Mary Conole was born 1856-1860 which leaves a very long gap before the birth of their first Michael in 1870 which comes one year after the marriage in 1869. Why didn't they name him Patrick? Might Margaret's father been seriously ill so they wanted to change the usual order??
  4. They also have a Mary b1874 so that tells me my Mary Conole can't be the child of both of them.
  5. If Margaret Conway was 20 when she married she was too young to be Mary Conole's mother.
  6. The only mention of Martin Connellan I have is on Mary's death certificate. Her son was the informant and he didn't know her mother's name at all.

So I have unhooked this family and have left them on the tree as a hanging branch. https://www.ancestry.com.au/family-tree/person/tree/5329504/person/-743252926/facts

My cousin researchers and I have often wondered if Mary was loose with the truth. In newspaper notices she was described as the youngest daughter, and the second daughter, of Mr J Conole from Melbourne and as having a brother who was a doctor in Melbourne. The latter being highly unlikely I should think. I often wonder if she was from the workhouse and invented a past for herself??

Any further thoughts appreciated.

With gratitude

Kathryn

Kathryn Barrett

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