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Mary Fitzpatrick born 1839 or 1840 Ballymartin, County Down

Down

Mary Fitzpatrick married Bernard Sloan on 20 May 1864, in Ballymartin, County Down when she was 24.

Mary and an Irish born daughter, Mary Ann (born 3 June 1865) arrived in Sydney on the “Burlington” on 16 February 1867. Mary’s age in the shipping manifest is listed as 27.

Parental details are difficult to decipher from the blotting on the shipping manifest but it appears Mary’s father was deceased when she sailed and the mother was living at Ballymartin

(Bernard preceded the wife & child in going to NSW, and presumably sent money for their fare after about 18 months when he had saved it)

Mary is my maternal grandfather’s grandmother hence my interest.

Any information gratefully received. I arrive in County Down on 14 March 2025.

newcrittenden0…

2 replies

When she married, Mary Fitzpatrick gave her townland as Ballykeel. That’s just outside Kilkeel. Her father was named as James Fitzpatrick, a farmer. Farmers tend to stay put so I’d expect that’s where the family farm was. The 2 witnesses were Daniel and Patrick Fitzpatrick.

Griffiths Valuation in 1863 doe snot list a James Fitzpatrick, but that could fit with him being dead. Plot 1 - 3 was William Fitzpatrick. He died in 1873:

https://www.irishgenealogy.ie/files/civil/deaths_returns/deaths_1873/020691/7259842.pdf

Informant was a Patt Fitzpatrick.

Plot 7 was Daniel Fitzpatrick senior. Plot 8 was Daniel Fitzpatrick junior, plot 10 was Rose Fitzpatrick (perhaps a widow) and plot 11 was Arthur Fitzpatrick.

All these farms are either side of the modern Carrigenagh Rd. You can see precisely where they are using the maps on the Griffiths site. Plot 1 not longer looks to have a farmhouse but 7,8, 10 & 11 all look to be working farms today.

Could Rose have been James Fitzpatrick’s wife? There is a death for a Rose Fitzpatrick 1969 aged 61. It’s pay to view on the GRONI site. Rose was deleted by 1873 and replaced by Daniel Fitzpatrick.

The farms are all close together, and that would suggest they are probably related.

By the 1901 census there were 3 Fitzpatrick farms in the townland:

http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/pages/1901/Down/Ballykeel/Ballykeel/1234436/

http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/pages/1901/Down/Ballykeel/Ballykeel/1234437/

http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/pages/1901/Down/Ballykeel/Ballykeel/1234438/

Here’s the marriage for a Daniel Fitzpatrick son of Arthur who married Rose Murphy in 1865:

https://www.irishgenealogy.ie/files/civil/marriage_returns/marriages_1865/11560/8252253.pdf

Arthur died in 1888:

https://www.irishgenealogy.ie/files/civil/deaths_returns/deaths_1888/06191/4770314.pdf

There was more than 1 Daniel:

Probate of the Will of Daniel Fitzpatrick late of Ballykeel County Down Farmer who died 22 February 1902 granted at Belfast to John Smith Farmer and Matthew Martin Merchant.

Avobe will is on-line on the PRONI website and names his children (James, Daniel, Margaret & Elizabeth). This looks to be him in 1901:

http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/pages/1901/Down/Ballykeel/Ballykeel/1234438/

Probate of the Will of Daniel Fitzpatrick late of Ballykeel Kilkeel County Down Farmer who died 5 July 1912 granted at Belfast to Arthur Fitzpatrick Farmer.

Above will is not on-line but should be in PRONI in paper format. Can be copied there free. 

Should you need them, PRONI has 11 probate files for Fitzpatricks of Ballykeel, over the years between 1858 and 1970.

Elwyn, IrelandXO Volunteer ☘IrelandXO Volunteer

I am descendant of the Daniel Fitzpatrick who died 22 Feb 1902, he is one of my 2x great grandfathers, the other Daniel Fitzpatrick, was a first cousin, once removed of my 2x great grandfather.. I have my DNA tested and I match quite a few descendants of Mary Fitzpatrick and Bernard Sloan. I think it is quite possible that James may have been a brother of my 3x great grandfather Daniel Fitzpatrick, b. 1790 and his brother Patrick, b. 1785 (the grandfather of the Daniel who died in 1912).

I'm not sure why, but I can find no proof of other children of my 3x great grandfather Daniel Fitzpatrick, b. 1760. I'm only assuming that James may be a brother due to DNA matches and fact he was from Ballykeel.

MSQ

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