Thomas Lawler and Catharina Sweeney

Olmsted County Democrat
Friday 20 January 1898 p3 c7

Mary Lawler left no records that named her parents, however, her brother John's death gives us the name of his father. When she died in 1909 her age is listed as ninety, giving an approximate birth date of 1819.  This would most likely make her the oldest child of Thomas Lawlor.

John's  obituary names all of his living siblings and lists where they live. Mary is the only one still living in Ireland, two are living in New York and the rest are in Minnesota.

The Olmsted County Death Register (Book D Page 151 Line 16 Jan 18, 1898) 
names his father, Thomas but, unfortunately, not his mother.  So it was a wonderful surprise to find an entry in the Lawlor Mortuary Book Bk 6 page 256 that named his mother 

Kath Sweeney.  She is named in the christening records of three children, Bridget, Margaret and Catherine.  The information was provided by John's brother Thomas, so is likely to be correct.  No christening records have been found for the six older children or for the youngest, Hannah.   

One problem with trying to identify Kath as the mother of all the children lay in the mistakes in the contemporary records.  The first was the immigration record for the family in 1851 which gives her age as 25 and then lists all her children except Mary who already married stayed in Ireland.

It is unknown whether Thomas had died or perhaps had emigrated earlier and had now sent for his family.  Either way no record after 1850 has been found for Thomas. There is a burial listed on Find-A-Grave in Holy Cross Cemetery in Ellicottville, New York for a Thomas Lawler with no dates.  This is the cemetery where his son William and his family are buried.  Might it be our Thomas Lawler.

The search is on for Thomas emigrating prior to May of 1851. We know the family was in Buffalo for a time as that is where William married in 1854.  If Thomas is buried in Ellicottville, that might put his death before 1855.  It is possible that he had acquired land and actually died before or during the time the rest of the family was in Buffalo. 

The 1855 NY shows Catherine living with her newly married son William and the rest of her children.  Her age is shown as 70. 1860 Census record for Catharine Lawler shows her living with son John and daughter Hannah in Great Valley, Cattaraugus, New York. An age of seventy would make her old enough to be the mother of all the known children of Thomas Lawler.  There is no doubt that this is the correct Hannah and John, the ages are correct, both were born in Ireland and neither is found in New York in 1870. John's obituary states that he lived for a time in New York, and the eldest son William is also living in Cattaraugus County, New York.

Katharine died in 1867 but we are unsure whether she died in New York or Minnesota.  No record was found.  However, she is listed on the tombstone in St. Bridget's cemetery, Olmsted County MN with her daughter Honnorah (Hannah) who died in 1918. Adding to the age confusion, the had been indexed as  1887 in a book of St. Bridget burials.  The stone does say 1867 and age 74 which puts Catharine's birth about 1793.

The Children of Thomas and Catharina  

Note all birth years except Bridgit, Margaret and Catherine are in question.  Only those three were found in the christening records. No two records found for any child gave the same birth information.  

Mary 1819-1909

William 1820 -1911

Thomas 1828-1917

John 1833-1898

Julia 1835-1912

Johanna 1835-1927

Bridget 1836-1908

Margaret 1839-1898

Catherine 1843

Honnorah 1846