Ellen Murphy Family History
Ellen Murphy's Paternal Grandparents
Ellen’s grandmother was Mary Murphy. Mary Murphy was 84 according to the 1901 census, living with Ellen’s parents and family in Corragunt, and died on 21st Sept 1903, when her age is reported as 81. This indicates she was born sometime between 1817 and 1822. Her birth name is verified as Mary Murphy from her son Michael’s birth record in 1866.
Ellen’s grandfather was
James Murphy.
This is verified based on Pat Murphy’s 1916 pension claim referring to the 1851 census.
James and Mary Murphy’s eldest child identified from the 1901 census was born
about 1842. This suggests that they were married in the late 1830s or early
1840s. James died on September 3rd 1875 according to his gravestone in Roslea
cemetery, aged 61 years – implying a birth date c. 1814.
James and Mary had a large family, many born during the famine era. When a child died young it was customary to re-use the given name, so the family tree below has two Michaels and two Josephs. It can be assumed the first one died before the 2nd one was born.
John
c. 1842 - ????
Henry
c. 1844 - ????
Mary Ann
c. 1847 - ????
Patrick
c. 1848 - 1923
Bernard
1854/55 - 1876
James Murphy
c. 1814 - 1875
Mary Murphy
c. 1820 - 1903
John
c. 1842 - ????
Henry
c. 1844 - ????
Mary Ann
c. 1847 - ????
Bernard
1854/55 - 1876
Catherine
pre 1851 - ????
Ellen
pre 1851 - ????
James
pre 1851 - ????
Joseph I
pre 1851 - ????
Michael I
pre 1851 - ????
Thomas
pre 1851 - ????
Joseph II
1862 - ????
Michael II
1865 - ????
Ellen Murphy's Paternal Uncles and Aunts
James and Mary Murphy’s family have been identified from several sources.
Marriage records identify Patrick (Ellen’s father), Mary Ann, Henry and John.
Michael’s birth is recorded in the civil records, and Joseph in the Roslea
parish records.
Bernard is identified on the family gravestone.
Mary Ann claimed a pension based on the 1851 census in 1915,
and the census extract confirms all the above names, plus Thomas, James,
Ellen and Catherine – children alive at the address in 1851.
The Joseph
and Michael
listed in 1851 must have died in childhood, as the names were re-used in 1862 and 1866 respectively.
John
John was born about 1842. He married Elizabeth (Isabel) McMahon on 5th February
1886 in Clones church. They lived in
Corragunt.
Thomas and Mary Ann Murphy
were witnesses. They had nine children, of whom six, all boys, were alive in 1911.
The three children who died young were their daughters
Ellen,
Marianne and
Catherine.
No records have been found for their eldest son
James after 1911, although he may have gone to the USA. Their second son
Bernard inherited the farm, married and had family in
Corragunt.
He died in 1978 and his name appears on a gravestone in Roslea (pictured).
Family lore suggests that Joseph died at sea in the 1920s and
John emigrated to London and may have been a Christian brother. Of the two youngest sons,
Patrick emigrated to Scotland and had family there and
Michael went to the USA, where he married Agnes Lynch,
who was from the Roslea area, in New York in 1924 and had family, some of whose descendants are
still living around New York.
John senior died in Corragunt on 14th January 1914 and Isabella died 6 months later on 24th July 1914. John’s family will be explored further in a future update.
Henry
Henry was born about 1844 (based on the 1901 census). He married
Catherine Mulligan
in Roslea on 21st February 1867. Catherine Mulligan was born about
1846 and was from
Corraleek.
They lived in
Corragunt
and had ten children, all but one surviving to adulthood.
The children were born between 1868 and 1890 and six of them
had left home by the time of the 1901 census. One son
James married
Ellen Murray in 1919 and he
shares the grave location with Ellen’s grandfather.
The youngest child Catherine
married Joseph McAloon (a first cousin of Ellen) in 1907
and they had a large family. The McAloons are discussed
here.
Two of the children – Mary Anne and Thomas – emigrated to Providence, Rhode Island and had families there.
Mary Ann
Mary Ann was born about 1847 (based on the 1901 census details). She married Patrick Lawler in Roslea on 21st February 1871 and lived in the adjacent townland of Carnmore. Mary Ann claimed a pension in 1915 as mentioned above. They had three children, all alive, at the time of the 1911 census. Philip was born 4th January 1872. He emigrated to the USA at the young age of 16 in 1888 and appears to have done military service there. When he applied for U.S. citizenship in 1920 in Maryland he was married to a lady from Glasgow called Annie. I have not found definite records after 1920 for Philip. Mary was born about 1876. She married Michael McAloon of Eshnadarragh, who was a first cousin of Ellen’s mother. The McAloons are discussed here. James, the youngest, was born 17 November 1878, and was single and a postman in the 1911 census. After the death of his father on 26th February 1917, James married Bridget Reilly from nearby Eshnadarragh, and took over the farm in 1919.
Catherine
Catherine married Patrick Beggan from Corraleek in Roslea on 20th July 1884. No further records have been found for Catherine or Patrick in the Corraleek area, in the census, or land registry. They may have emigrated.
Bernard
Bernard is recorded on the Murphy headstone in Roslea cemetery. He died at the age of 21 on 17th Oct 1876, indicating he was born about 1855.
Other children of James and Mary Murphy
For Ellen, James and Thomas, no records apart from the 1851 census have been found. For Joseph II and Michael II, only birth or baptismal records have been found in 1862 and 1865 respectively. Some or all may have died in childhood.