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Deciphering information on US passenger lists (1920s)

TipperaryTemplenoe (Tipperary)

I have been researching my family history for some time now, my father's family mostly coming from areas in the hinterland of Tipperary Town, and my mother's family from Emly in Co. Tipperary and also East Limerick.  Some of my father's aunts, however, immigrated to the United States in the 1920s.  An older aunt, Mary Collins, born in 1902, immigrated in 1923 and arrived through New York in that year.  Her younger sister, Margaret Cristina Collins, born 1903, immigrated in 1929 and arrived in Boston from where she would then go onto live with her sister Mary in Providence, Rhode Island.

A curious point, however, is when reading the passenger lists for both women, they have mysterious entries under the section 'Whether going to join a relative or friend' which provides the name and address of an individual who is supposedly related to the passenger but who is already residing in the United States.  In the case of my grand-aunt Mary, he listed an 'aunt' Mrs Sheldon who was living in Cambridge, Mass., Mary's onward destination at the time, while my grand-aunt Margaret has listed a Mrs John O'Sullivan, also an 'aunt', living in Providence in 1929 where her sister Mary had also moved to.  I am aware that I could possibly be missing some siblings from these women's parents' generation but it strikes me as very unlikely that these relatives listed were in fact related at all, especially Mrs Sheldon.  I have found Catherine Sheldon and her husband Forrest E. Sheldon both living at the address listed in Mary's passenger record but her husband's surname is a rather unlikely name for a relation of an Irish Catholic, and neither is Catherine's maiden name Lavelle Brigham.  I did see that Catherine's mother was Irish but I cannot find her details at present.  The family names if they were indeed Irish would strike me as being Church of Ireland Anglo-Irish if at all associated with Ireland.

I suspect there was some kind of arrangement in Irish communities in the US to provide 'sponsors' so to speak, to aid with emigration, but I cannot find any details about this type of practice.  Perhaps someone with more knowledge of this emigration history could shed some light.

I look forward to hearing any thoughts.

Thanks,

 

Patrick Collins

ptkcollins

4 replies

Patrick.

Many Irish girls went to the USA to work as Domestics.

Have you checked the Federal census for your relatives to see what was the relationship to the householder?

Regards,

McCoy

Patrick,

Lavelle is an Irish name. I looked at some of the records on Ancestry, and Catherine Sheldon's father was William Lavelle, born in Ireland. Her maiden name was Lavelle. Her first husband was named Brigham.

I hope this is helpful.

glanvil3@aol.com

Hello McCoy

I have found both sisters in census records but after 1930.  I know that Mary's intended destination was Cambridge, Mass. but she later moved to Providence, R.I. and she did get married to a Henry McKenna (probably in Providence) sometime between 1930 and 1933, and she was naturalised in 1932.  I can find a Mrs Sheldon in 1920 in Cambridge, Mass. along with her husband Forrest E. Sheldon but as my grandaunt Mary had arrived in 1923 she would not appear on another national census until 1930 as I don't see any 1925 Massachusetts available online (if it exists).  I have found a Mary Collins at some sort of womens' residence in Providence in 1930 but it's difficult to ascertain if it's actually the same person.  My grandaunt Margaret Cristina on the other hand arrived in 1929 with Providence being her intended destination, presumably to unite with her sister and she provides a Mrs O'Sullivan as an 'aunt', living on Westminster Street in Providence, but I have been unable to establish who this is as I can't find any Sullivans in the census living on a Westminster Street.  Margaret's passage also seems to have been paid by her sister according to the passenger list for her entry date and she does eventually end up living with her sister and brother-in-law as she appears with them in the 1950 census.  She must have been living with them too in 1940 as that's when she was naturalised and she gives her sister's address as her place of residence.

On the passenger lists for both sisters' entry dates they give their professions as housemaid and housekeeper respectively so you may be right that their initial objective was to obtain a domestic position when they arrived. I still find it curious though that they listed these other women as aunts.  I wonder if others familiar with the emigration process advised them to do so.

I was just very curious about this as this Mrs Sheldon and Mrs O'Sullivan seem very unlikely to be connected to the family.  It would be nice to see some logical connection though.

Thanks,

 

Patrick

ptkcollins

Hi Patricia,

Thanks for having a look.  Did you see where in Ireland the Lavelle family were from as it's not a surname I'm familiar with, at least not in neck of the woods?

Patrick

ptkcollins

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