Re: O'NEILLS OF PORTMARNOCK IRELAND
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In reply to:
Re: O'NEILLS OF PORTMARNOCK IRELAND
Sandy Riley 3/03/03
I was just going thru my notes and this is the information that I have.
The O'Neills of Magh dá chonn have traditionally been called the O'Neills of Leinster. These O'Neills have been, and are, a distinct O'Neill sept in the parishes called Moyacomb(Co. Wexford, Co. Wicklow and Co. Carlow). This area was also known as Fearann Uí Néill or its anglicised equivalent.
Nicholas O'Neill is first listed on the Wilmot Township, Bradford County, PA census in 1850. Living in his household is his wife, Mary, his sons, Nicholas, Martin and James. Also living in the home is a young single Irish woman named Mary Mullin/Mallon (who later married James) and a little girl named Mary McCormick (I have yet to determine how she is connected with the family or who her parents are).
Calculating dates from the census rolls, I am determining Nicholas' date of birth to be around 1780 and Mary's to be around 1782.
1. James, the eldest son, was born July 25, 1819 in Co. Wexford and died Sept. 9, 1899. He is buried in Cummiskey Cemetery, Wilmot Township, Bradford County, PA. He and his brothers were all farmers and had huge tracts of land in this area. James married Mary Mullin/Mallon around 1850-1851. Mary was Feb. 2, 1829 in Co. Meath and died Jan. 29, 1904. She is buried next to her husband at Cummiskey's Cemetery.
James and Mary had the following children:
a. Martin (1851 - Aft. 1920). Martin never married and continued to farm the family homestead until his death.
b. Ellen (Nov. 22, 1852 - Nov. 10, 1915). Ellen married Francis J. Coyle in 1889. They had six daughters and four of them (Margaret, Elizabeth, Julia and Ellen) became nuns.
c. Patrick (April 15, 1855 - March 19, 1917). Patrick married the former Catherine Pender and had two children, possibly more, including a son named James who was killed in battle during WWI. Patrick died from a heart attack.
d. James (1856 - Aft. 1930) James was another one of the infamous bachelor O'Neill brothers. He and his brothers, Martin, Owen and John, lived and farmed together until their deaths.
e. Mary Ann (1858 - Aft. 1932) There are two Mary Ann O'Neills who were around the same age. One of the two married a Dennis Ryan. They are often confused and even I am not sure which one is the correct one.
f. John (1860 - Bef. 1930) One of the four bachelor brothers.
g. Owen (1863 - Oct. 3, 1911) Bachelor brother.
h. William (June 8, 1864 - May 30, 1884) Never married.
i. Kathryn (August 16, 1868 - April 1, 1932) She married John Farley who newly arrived in America around 1885 or so. I have yet to determine where in Ireland John is from. My great-grandmother, his daughter, spoke with a slight brogue her entire life even though she had never been to Ireland. I believe she had this speech pattern from being around her father. Kathryn and John had three children: Margaret Josephine Brigid, James and Mary Ann.
j. Julia (August 16, 1868 - 1945) Julia married Henry Saxe.
It's important to note that Kathryn and Julia were twins. There are numerous sets of twins in the O'Neill family. I believe it is something from the O'Neill gene pool.
2. Martin, the second son of Nicholas and Mary, was born Jan. 7, 1825 in Co. Wexford and died Jan. 2, 1899. Martin married Ann Coyle, who was born in New Jersey or New York, depending on the source.
The children of Martin and Ann are:
a. Mary (1856 - ?) who married James Cavanaugh on Nov. 15, 1881.
b. James (July 2, 1858 - Dec. 16, 1881) James was struck with Typhoid Fever during an epidemic and died at 23.
c. Thomas (Dec. 16, 1860 - March 20, 1879) Thomas died from Diptheria during an epidemic.
d. John (August 22, 1862 - March 15, 1879) John also died during the same Diptheria epidemic.
e. Francis (1867 - 1956) Francis was a farmer and married a woman named Mary.
f. Anna (June 18, 1871 - March 3, 1879) Anna died from the same Diptheria epidemic that killed Thomas, John and her twin, William.
g. William (June 18, 1871 - March 3, 1879)Died from Diptheria.
h. Richard (1875 - ?) Married a woman named Allie and had six children.
i. Blanche (1879 - ?) Blanche married a Dennis North and had two daughters who died young. It's interesting to note that in the 1880 census, Blanche, aged 8 months, is listed as Martin's step-daughter. This leads me to believe that either Martin isn't Blanche's father or Ann is not her mother. On the same census, there is a young Irish woman, Catherine Gilbride, aged 16, living in the home as a "servant" for the family. The census states that Catherine was born in PA and both of her parents are from Ireland, but I could not find any other Gilbride's in the general area.
3. Nicholas is the third son of Nicholas and Mary. Nicholas was born Nov. 10, 1828 in Co. Wexford and died Jan. 14, 1897. Like his brothers, Nicholas is buried at Cummiskey Cemetery in Wilmot. Nicholas married Margaret Kelly, who was born in New York to an Irish father and a Native American mother. Very little is known about this branch of the family even though they resided practically next door to the families of Martin and James.
The children of Nicholas and Margaret are:
a. James (March 1855 - ?) James married Margaret Harrison in 1893 and had five children.
b. Nicholas (1856 - ?) Nothing is known about Nicholas.
c. Mary Ann (1858 - ?)Possibly the wife of Dennis Ryan. Confused with Mary Ann, the daughter of James O'Neill.
d. Rev. J. Peter (March 19, 1860 - March 7, 1902)
e. Ellen (1862 - ?)
f. Martin (1866 - July 28, 1928)
g. Margaret (1867 - ?)
h. John (1869 - ?)
i. Elizabeth (1871 -?) married William McGee. Daughter Marguerite became a nun in Scranton, PA.
j. Theresa (1873 - ?)
k. Anastasia (1875 -?)
You can email me directly: [email protected] if you would like to share more information.