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Michael Power (1865/1871 - 1910) - help with DOB

Dublin

Hi everyone, I'm hoping to get a bit of assistance with my Great-Great Grandfather, Michael Power Sr. I've been looking into my family tree for quite some time, but I've really struggled with the Irish side - despite that being the side I am more interested in.

Michael Power is especially troublesome, as I think somewhere in the past I've made a wrong connection and confused myself. All I can verify for definite is that he was married to Catherine Skelly in 1898, who was a flower seller in Dublin. She went on to marry Patrick Collins after Michael's death, which I believe was on the 17th April 1910, in St Michael's Hospital, Dun Laoghaire, .

I know that Michael's father was James Power (as listed on his and Catherine's wedding certificate), but I am unsure about his mother. For a long while I believed his mother to be Mary Cardiff, but that would place his birth year as being 1865, however the death certificate I found for him giver his age as being 39 - which places his year of birth as being 1870-1871.

I have found two possible Michael Powers born around that time with a father named James - one in Tipperary (mother named Margaret) and the other in Ballymahon (Mother named Bridget).

An additional detail is that if Michael died in April 1910, his wife was remarried by October 1910, which seems an awfully short period of time, but then maybe after 12 years they just didn't like each other...

I need to work out whether I have a) got the wrong death certificate - no spouse is listed on it or b) whether I have the wrong DOB, and if so, which of my other options is the correct one?

I must add, that having searched the records, that death certificate seems to be the only one possible in the area. The last Power child was born in 1909, and having checked from 1908 onwards (as he may have passed before the birth) up to the re-marriage of Catherine, there are no other viable suspects as far as I can tell. This leads me to believe it must be the DOB that I have got wrong. It would help if he showed up on the 1901 census with his wife, but unfortunately he is missing, and his wife is listed as the head of the household.

Anyway, I've attached all the records I've found relating to him so far, and any help would be greatly appreciated!

Thank you!

elenor finch-archer

4 replies

Elenor,

Attached is a civil birth record for a Michael Power born in 1864 to father James and mother Eliza Cullen.His father's occupation is cooper (barrel maker). When he married, his father was a shoemaker...one can imagine that he could have had a different trade by 1898. Since he married Dublin, it's more likely he was from there rather than Tipperary or Ballymahon. The birth year of 1864 is earlier than you are searching for, but keep in mind that folks back then did not celebrate their births nor keep track of the year they were born as we do today.

Regards,

Carolyn

Thank you Carolyn - I had come across this Michael Power years ago, and had discounted him and then forgot about his existence! You're right, he's a far better match than the others I have found. I will see if I can find any other potential links to him in other records.

Thanks again for your help - its very much appreciated!

elenor finch-archer

https://civilrecords.irishgenealogy.ie/churchrecords/images/deaths_returns/deaths_1900/05750/4624127.pdf

Is the death above (James Power, shoemaker, widowed ,aged 60 who dies 2nd July 1900 as reported by his daughter Mary Anne Power ) the Tipperary one you refer to ?

agha

Hi!

It sounds like you’ve been on quite the journey with your family tree, especially with the Irish side. I took a look, and it seems you may have the correct Michael Power after all. I found the microfilm of the marriage of Michael Power and Catherine Skelly on the NLI's Catholic Parish Registers website.

Here: https://registers.nli.ie/registers/vtls000633817?locale=en#page/55/mode/1up

Their marriage is also transcribed on Findmypast (Subscription website) -

First name(s) Michael
Last name Power
Marriage year 1898
Marriage date 08 May 1898
Address Mooney's Court, Patrick St
Parish Kingstown
Alternative parish names Dun Laoghaire, St. Michael's, Kingstown
County Dublin
Diocese Dublin
Country Ireland
Spouse's first name(s) Catherine
Spouse's last name Skelly
Spouse's address 16 Patrick St
Father's first name(s) James
Father's last name Power
Mother's first name(s) Mary
Mother's last name Cardiff
Spouse's father's first name(s) William
Spouse's father's last name Skelly
Spouse's mother's first name(s) Bridget
Spouse's mother's last name Mahony
Archive National Library of Ireland
Register type Marriage
Archive / microfilm reference Microfilm09073-06

Hope this helps!

ahtram2024

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