The Ancestry of Jean Ann English

Geraghty - Rents

On 11 Jan 1879 a meeting was held in Carrabawn, which was 4.1 kilometers from Carrownaclea. Attended by over 1200 farmers the intent of the meeting was to form together to protest the current rents, especially in the face of another famine.  In attendance were Michael and Patt Geraghty.

The Connaught Telegraph (11 Jan 1879 p4) reported the meeting, noting that it was a rainy day and a rather uninteresting meeting.  Michael Geraghty proposed the following:  "That whereas we are, owing to the causes mentioned, unable at present to meet our engagements and as we are threatened with another famine,  we hereby solemnly pledge ourselves to pay no rents to our landlords until they make such an abatement in their rents as will enable us to tide over our present difficulties, and we hereby declare the tenant farmer who pays rent before such a reduction is made our common enemy and an enemy of the peasantry of Ireland."

Patt Geraghty seconded another resolution which declared that the merchants of Westport would be enemies if they took on the lands of tenant farmers who were evicted for non-payment.

Was this our Patt Geraghty?  The answer is unknown.  But it definitely could have been.  Our Patt Geraghty's son Patrick was definitely politically  involved after immigration to Minnesota, being the founder and editor of a Union paper at the time that unions were just forming.

The number of farmers present necessitates attendance from outlying areas and Carrownaclea was only 4.1 kilometers (just 2.5 miles) away.

The Mayo Tenant's Defence Association was formed in Castlebar in October 1878 by James Daly. In November Parnell joined others at a meeting, giving support to the movement. As owner of the Connaght Telegraph, Daly gave the movement a voice. The goals was the implementation of the 3 Fs: fixity of tenure, fair rent and freedom to sell their holding. After their meeting in January the farmers of the Westport area approached Daly asking for support. Fearing libel he refused to expose individual landlords but began to publish rent grievances in general. He also publicized a meeting to be held 22 Feb 1879. That meeting was postponed until April.

On 19 Apr 1879 to following notice was printed in the Telegraph....

Over 13000 tenant farmers attended the meeting according to the two page report in the Telegraph the following Saturday, April 26.

As the year progressed more support was garnered and on 25 Oct the Telegraph reported the formation of the Irish National Land League in Dublin as of the 21st.  The Mayo Defence League was absorbed into the movement.

The goal of the movement was to gain the 3Fs for the peasantry: Fixity of Tenure, Fair Rent and Freedom to sell their holding.  Over the next few years hundreds of thousands of £s were invested in relief funds and emigration schemes. Reduction of rents were instituted and by 1882 the Land War was winding down.  

Patrick's direct landlord was Capt. Alex Wyndham.  I have not found any mention of him in the papers of the day.  Did Patrick withhold his rent?  Did he end up in arrears to the point he was unable to make up what he owed.  Did he get fed up with the fact that nothing had really changed?  I wish we had a way to find the answers as to why the family emigrated in 1884.


Irish Land League - Wikipedia
The Limits to Land Reform - The Land Acts of Ireland 1870-1909

Geraghty - Edward (Ned)

...the father of Patrick, died on 1 Feb 1880 in Carrownaclea, Mayo, Ireland(1).  His age is given as seventy, putting his birth year as approximately 1810.

The earliest record found to date for Ned is the 1846 schedule of the Irish Reproductive Loan Fund. The register notes that Ned had taken out a loan for  £2-5 of which he had already paid back £1-12-10. His sureties for the loan were Michael Geraghty and Dominick Nolan.(2)

The Irish Reproductive Loan Fund was created in 1822 as the Irish Relief Committee with surplus relief funds from the famine of 1822, £55,000 in total. The money was reinvested into a microfinance institution, which gave short term loans for capital or reproductive purposes, such as purchasing fishing equipment, repairing sheds for curing fish or purchasing seeds for farming. The loans were never to exceed twelve months and the borrower was charged a modest interest rate. The whole system was centrally controlled in London, funds were distributed across ten county boards in Ireland and then further distributed to local associations. The committee became a corporation in June 1844, known as the Irish Reproductive Load-Fund Institution.
The minimum age to borrow was 21 years old and the minimum amount was £1. The borrower supplied their address and occupation. Each loan was guaranteed by two sureties, who agreed to pay the loan if the borrower defaulted. A married woman (if her husband was still alive) could not agree to be a guarantor for a loan.

Griffith's Valuations (3) were taken in Carrownaclea in 1852.  Edward was living in dwelling 1i which he was leasing from Capt. Alex W Wyndham.  The dwelling was rated at 4 shillings.  Also living in Carrownaclea are John Geraghty, Catherine Geraghty, Patrick Geraghty, James Geraghty, Richard Geraghty, John Niland (Ann/ Ellen Geraghty),  and John Ludden (a possible relative of  Edwards wife Judith.

Edward married Judy Ludden before 1839 but no marriage has been found.  They had the following children

Patrick 1839-1923

Unknown b & d. bef 27 Nov 1841. This may not be correct, but Ned paid a fee for his wife's churching on the 27 of Nov. Churching was done to cleanse a woman after the birth of a child.  As I delved into the registers it is apparent that many births did not include a separate churching.  I also noticed that in some cases there was no fee paid for the christening of a child.  This leaves two possibilities, one is that the churching usually takes place with the christening and is not recorded separately but sometimes takes place separately and the fee is paid at that time.  A second possibility is that the churching takes place after a stillbirth or miscarriage.  These are not exclusive, my guess from the records I could see is that both of these possibilities were happening.  It is possible that this is a late churching for the birth of Patrick, however it is quite some time after Patrick was supposedly born and there is no christening found which indicates the birth date is likely to be close to correct.

Henry who was christened 12 Jun 1842.  No further records have been found for Henry.  He might have died in childhood, He might have emigrated.  Or, he might have used a different given name.

Mary Ann was christened 2 Jun 1844.  She married James Gallagher on 13 Jun 1844. (4)  They had at least seven children: Michael, Mary, James, Anne, Bridget, Winnifred and Martin, all born in Carrownaclea.

 (1)Islandeady civ reg deaths vol 4 page 47 Informant James Gallagher, Carnaclay, step son

(2) 1. Irish Reproductive Loan Fund, T91 The National Archives at Kew , T91/187 1848-1854 #578 /337; Schedule 8M #133; Schedule 8M #34 (Sec 239 vz 34.(1))

(3) Griffith, Griffith's Primary Valutation of Tenements 1848-1865 Co Kerry 1852- (National Archives of Ireland).

(4) Islandeady civil reg marriages vol 2 page 19 "Mary Geraghty (aged 21) of Caranacle, daughter of Edmond Geraghty, farmer, married James Gallagher (aged 22) or Caranacle, landholder, son of Martin Gallagher, farmer (witnesses: James Nolan and Sarah Moran.)

Two Sisters Alone

Pictures of the Mind
2009 Jean Ann English Madden

“Imagine” Mother said one morning as we sat on her shady patio in Green Valley Arizona. And she told this story.

She told of how she, just five, was left alone to care for her little sister. Her father dead, her mother, out of necessity, working to support the three of them. It is true that her mother’s sister lived downstairs in the duplex that was their home, and so not really all alone.  Aunt Maggie was there to keep an eye on them. Mother told how some days she was given a nickel or a dime and instructed to go down the block to the grocery store on the corner and buy something for their lunch. She told how she would hold her little sister’s hand, walk to the store and buy a little cake.

 “Can you imagine being left alone like that," she asked so softly, so sadly.

I can't imagine such a thing, can you?  

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Jewel (JuJu) and Mary Agnes (May) Geraghty

Mary Agnes Geraghty was born 26 Jul 1892 in Saint Paul, Minnesota to John Geraghty and Mary Agnes Walsh.  Her Sister Jewel was born 10 May 1894.  They had two younger sisters Winnifred (Oct 1895 - May 1896) and Angella (Jul 1897 - Mar 1898).

John Geraghty passed away in Nov 1897 at the age of 33 of consumption, leaving his widow with three small daughters. After the death of Angella, Mary returned to work...not to the Ryan Hotel where she had been the head of housekeeping before her marriage, but instead taking up nursing of the ill and elderly, a job that often took her away from her children. They could be found with grandparents and other relatives when she was away.

Aunt Maggie was the sister of Mary Walsh Geraghty.  She had married William Hagerty on 7 May 1895 in St. Paul and by 1897 had a son and another child on the way.  In 1900 the Hagerty's  were renting  539 Partridge St., the second flat  had been let to another family.  That year May and JuJu are listed in the census with their Geraghty grandparents.  Whether they were living at that address in 1897 when May was five is unknown.

Pictures of the Mind: My Mother - 2009 Jean Ann English Madden - A compilation of stories about Mary Agnes Geraghty English.

Geraghty Tombstone
Calvary Cemetery
St. Paul, Minnesota