Grammy's Pictures (1) - Miles Standish

Grammy painted many pictures over the years.  Many were copies of paintings by masters, others were her original compositions.

Mom made notes on a few.  This is the first of what will eventually be many posts showing some of those pictures, the stories and other fragments of notes that exist on the paintings.  Miles Standish was, I believe, Mom's favorite of the paintings.  It hung in the dining room in Gig Harbor.

25x21 [Jean Madden]

Crough Patrick

Ireland's Holy Mountain

The tradition of making a pilgrimage to Croagh Patrick dates back to the Stone Age, when visitors gathered to celebrate the beginning of the harvest. Archaeological excavations have uncovered a Celtic hill fort and glass beads dating to the 3rd century BC.  Christian significance dates back to Patrick, who legend says banished the snakes from Ireland from this mount.

Well, I enjoyed it from the bottom, the views are wonderful and sitting in it's shadow is the a National Famine Monument.  Kailee who visited a few weeks later made it to the top, as did some of the family during our original Family Gathering in Ireland in 1998!!

Kailee at the top - Sept 2017

The Famine Memorial

Visitor Centre
Croagh Patrick Heritage Trail
National Famine Monument - Wild Atlantic Way
List of Memorials to the Great Famine
More Pictures

St. Bridget's Cemetery, Simpson

In 1853, the Michael Buckley family came to what is now St. Bridget's parish. The first mass was offered by Fr. Michael Prendergast in the Buckley log cabin located about 500 feet west of the present church. The land for the church and cemetery was donated by Mr. Buckley.

The early Irish settlers were served by priests coming from Winona. Later the parish was cared for by priests from St. John's parish, Rochester. In 1879, Fr. Edward Stack became the first resident pastor.

The church was built in 1859 of native limestone with parishioners furnishing most of the labor. Originally the church opened to the south to face the stage road from Winona. Sometime before 1883 a tornado destroyed the church roof. It was rebuilt with the door to the north, since the road to Simpson, a railroad town since 1865, now passed there. In 1914 a bell tower and sacristy completed the church as it stands today.

First settlers included the Buckley, Twohey and Campion families. The Buckley family settled along the stage trail from Winona to High Forest. In 1855, the first Mass was said in the Buckley home, located about 500 feet west of the present church. A kitchen table was used as an altar.

The Rev. Michael Pendergast from Winona's St. Thomas parish was in charge at St. Bridget's in those early years. He traveled by horseback where needed.

John C. and wife Bridget Buckley donated 10 acres of land in 1858 as a site for church and cemetery. Parishioners began constructing a church from native limestone, while lumber, glass and millwork were hauled up from Winona.

By 1859, St. Bridget's was completed and dedicated by Bishop T.L. Grace of St. Paul. Father O' Gorman of Rochester served St. Bridget's until 1879. Then the Rev. Edward Stack became the first resident pastor.

The cemetery was platted to the east of the church and just south of the stagecoach road leading to the Buckley Settlement and High Forest. Records show Margaret Campion was the earliest known burial, in 1854.

St john's church 1863 completed 1871 the cemetery dates from 1874.

Catherine Lawler and Daughter Hannah

Margaret  dau of Richard and Mary (Lawler) O'Connor

St. Bridget's Cemetery - Dropbox
St Bridget's Cemetery - Find A Grave
ST. Bridget's Church
As the Spirit Moves Me
St Bridget Church - A Walk About

The Lawler Farm

Betty and Mary Louise Lawler and Jean English @1938

As a child, Mom (Jean English) spent many hours on the Lawler Farm.  This was the farm of  her Great Aunt and Uncle, Eva (Baier) and William Lawler.   On my visit in July, I was fortunate to not only see this farm where she had spent parts of her summers but to meet Steve Lawler and his wife Brenda who are still living on the farm as well as Martha Bowen, who lives on a farm just across the way and with her sister Margaret offers a B&E (as she says that is eggs, you get to cook them yourself.)  I toured the house and it looked like a wonderful place to stay.  Check it out  Irish Ridge B&E.

Evie Lawler and Jean English @1935

John English in the tree

The area is gorgeous, some of the most luscious farms I ever seen.  If it weren't a couple thousand miles away, I would be renting that house on a regular basis!

Grandpa English, who had spent many summers on the Baier Farm which was just minutes away, also loved to visit.  Although Eva was his Aunt, she was just a few years older than he.  Although I didn't know Grandpa well, my memories were all pretty much of a fun loving man who would definitely be climbing the trees!

The Original Building

Eva's Grotto

Steve and Martha

More Lawler Farm Pictures

1883 Plat Map.  Note Bowen Farm and Lawler Family Farm in lower right corner

Baier Immigration

I have looked for years, and years, and years.  There were so many clues, not the least Joseph's naturalization papers which give an arrival date in New York City of 15th Oct 1848.  Yet, I never found the record.  Fortunately I also never gave up hope....so when Family Search and the Ellis Island Foundation announced the were working together to put all New York arrival records online I thought time to check again. 

It took half an hour to find but here is the record with a few surprises and perhaps a few mistakes, and definitely major mistakes in the indexing. 

First surprise was the spelling of the surname, BEYERLE.  Then came a major indexing mistake, Kuniguda's index entry gave her surname as Beyvile. 

Now while the next indexing mistake I'm going to mention is explainable by the fact the family was on two frames of the microfilm, this one is unfathomable.  Kunigunda has no surname listed just ditto from Johan above.

The second indexing mistake is that Johan's birthplace is listed as Bohemia.  It is obvious when you put the list back together that he is grouped with the rest of the family as being from Bavaria, but an indexer did not see that on the page he was on.

Now the next part is the ages.  If I didn't have the corroboration of Joseph's arrival being in Oct of 1848, albeit the 9th rather than the 15th, I might have wondered a little harder whether I had the right family.

The reason is the ages given.  I believe that Joseph's age on the manifest is in error.  Everything else found supports the 1835 birth date he always used.  I'm guessing the numbers were transposed and should have read 12 rather than 21. 

The ages of Johan and Kunigunda are also of interest.  If Johan is 51 he was born about 1797 rather than 1806 and Kunigunda abt 1799.

My problem with those ages is that Kunigunda would have been 47 at the birth of son Johann.  The 1850 census gives Kuniguda's age as 46 and Johann as 40.

In fact only son Johann has the correct age of 2.  Daughters Anna and Matgaretta are listed as 4 and 6 but they are a little older.  Other records are also inconsistent.

But, in spite of all the discrepancies, I do believe this is the right record. The names are right, no known family member is missing and they are in the right order.  Of interest is the A Bauer(l) listed directly below the family.  Is he related?

Baier Farm - Haverhill MN

I was fortunate to get a great tour of the area around the Baier and Lawler farms near Rochester by second cousin (1R) Martha Bowman, MD.  The Baier farm has been sold and is slated for development.  This is a combination of pictures from the late 1800s, early 1900s and 2018.

John Baier with pigs on the farm

County Mayo 1831

"The State of the country at this moment is indeed appalling -- the people have hitherto borne their sufferings with patience and submission, almost without a murmur -- their miseries are now increased to a pitch at which even credulity pauses -- famine goads them on -- they see thier wives and children perishing of hunger before their eyes -- they call upon their landlords for assistance, and we blush to say that there are among the pampered sons of fortune, men who are deaf to the calls of humanity, who meet their appeals with indifference, and their remonstrances with the ridge of bayonets! ......

..."But a short time since a similar feeling appeared to animate the noble proprietor of the soil of Westport -- A meeting was called by the Marquis to devise measures for the relief of the poor, and resolutions adopted, which we are inclined to think might admit to some amendment, had due dconsideration been bestowed upon their framing.  They merely set for that a scarcity was apprehended, and that should it occur, measures would be taken to employ the poor. The scarcity they apprehend, already exists, and to an alarming extent, as may be seen by the Resolutions of the Magistrates of Newport.... " (Connaught Telegraph 19 Jan 1831 pg 4

This was not the great famine of 1845-1849 or the last major famine, that of 1879- 1880 when so many Irish fled the country.  This was just one of the earlier lesser famines that decimated the population of Ireland over and over again.  

In Aghagower the parish of the Burkes we read....

"WESTPORT DISTRICT - Mr Matthew McDonnell stated, that those who had some time ago a supply of provisions, are now distitute, having charitably divided with their poor neighbours; this has materially increased the number of applicants for relief. Last month 8000 were relieved, weekly : the number is now increased to 12,000........Mr Ward stated, that in the parish of Aughagower, the poor are taking the sheep -- in a population of 8000, not more than 500 have provisions -- families of 7, subsisting on one quaart of meal per day..... " (Connaught Telegraph 15 Jun 1831)

And in Islandeady the parish of the Geraghtys and the Walshes.......

"ISLANDEDIN - Rev. Mr Joyce, stated, 5,033 in distress, not including Mrs. Palmer's tenants. 495 in four villages, Mrs. Palmers property, had received relief, but it was exhausted, and they were starving -- 133 had never received support from any quarter -- several of those who had received meal from Mrs. Palmer, had been obliged to sell part to procure seed potatoes and were in great distress, having even sold their shoes. The relief to the parish last week, from the Central Committee, was 56l. 8s. 9d, in meal; also from Mr. O'Malley, meal purchased at a high rate, to the value of 10l. Mr. Alexander Clendining, stated, that Mr. Sharpe had by letters to him, offered to issue provisions to the under tenants, if their landlords would subscribe 50l -- they had not done so."  (Connaught Telegraph 22 Jun 1831)

In an article that says thousands of pounds have been collected in England and Dublin for the reliefof the poor and distributed, but none to the Central Committee of Mayo, the editors of the Connacht Telegraph on 6 Jul 1831 state......

"Every day the distress of the peasantry of Mayo becomes more awful. At this moment, there are on the charitable list 216,543 men, women, and children, not one of whom according to returns duly attested, can command sufficient food to sustain life; solely depending for existence on public bounty. We cannot say what relief is at hand; but we fearlessly assert, that what has hitherto been afforded is inadequate and that a shor allowance has caused death and disease.  At this moment, many hundreds, having sold their beds, are lying in their wretched hovels on straw, sinking under famine and sickness, without nourishment, medicine, or medical assistance!"

Connaught Telegraph 20 Jul 1831

Famine 1831 News Articles