Liverpool & South West Lancashire FHS - Forum

My Gt Gt Grandparents were John and Mary Donlan, he was born about 1847 in Dunmore, Galway and she was born Mary Wilson in 1861 Eccleston. the last I can find of them in St Helens is the birth of a son Samuel in 1896. in 1901 census Mary is in Blackburn with most of her children.

I cant find a death record for John, one rumour is he went back to Ireland and another that he went to America.

Can anyone help with suggestions?

Ant

Hi

Re: the America theory - you could check the free index at www.ancestorsonboard.com or the Ellis Island website www.ellisisland.org

There was free passage between Ireland and England so there would not be any shipping records if he did return to Ireland

There are 2 other possible sources - the 1900 and 1910 US census and the 1901 Irish census

Some people on this forum have US access to Ancestry but I'll have to get back to you re: the Irish 1901

have a look at

http://www.genealogybranches.com/irishcensus.html

Something doesn't add up here

1881 has John Donlan b Galway in lodgings in Openshaw - unmarried

1891 has him aged 49 b Ireland and Mary 24 but with a son John aged 13 b Upholland

1901 Mary is 39 and son John is 22

Lancashire Marriage indexes for the years: 1878

DONLAN John WILSON Mary Wigan, Register Office or Registrar Attended Wigan & Leigh ROW/47/139

Where is Mary and son John in 1881?

HI Carole
1891 Mary's age looks like scribble, loop at the top could be 29 not 24.

I believe this is them in 1881 as DONBOY
Higher Lane Upholland (John jr's birthplace)
John 38 bn Galway agr labr
Mary 20 bn St Helens, John 2, Mary 1 both bn Upholland.
RG11 3782/105/18

Looking at 1901 the youngest born in St Helens 1894. They must have moved to Blackburn, one would think, because of John snr's work.
Will keep wombating
Tina

Hi Ant & Carole
There are 3 John Donlan's in 1901. 1 is single cattleman on farm, 2nd is single lodging in Manchester and the 3rd is in Warrington workhouse, 59 married genl labr bn Ireland.
Tina

Hi Carole and Tina,

something just doesnt add up, but Tina is right about Upholland in 1881 so the John in Openshaw must be a different one.

Mary was 20 on her marriage cert but was still only 20 3 years later in the 1881 census

Carole I think you are looking at a different family in 1891, my Donlan's were at 48 Sutton St St Helens,

Tina, in 1901 there were another two children in the fever hospital in Blackburn, Mary(who according to her age was actually Margaret Ellen) and Samuel b 1896 in st Helens, and another two children still in St Helens with their grandmother, Thomas, and Mary, now married to Edward Griffiths,

I have tried the links Carole but no luck as yet, the co Galway one is only part working at the moment so will try again later,

Ant

Hi

Carole I think you are looking at a different family in 1891, my Donlan's were at 48 Sutton St St Helens,

No - I have the right family. Address was Sutton St

1891 has him aged 49 b Ireland and Mary 24 but with a son John aged 13 b Upholland

The 1881 unmarried John Donlan is clearly another person and Tina has correctly identified them on the 1881

Hi Carole
This for your info 1901 Thomas as Donlann 17 bn St.H with grandma Ann Wilson
RG13/3526/175/15
Lots of kiddies in the Fever Hospital but have to say there were also a lot of staff to care for them.
Back later
Tina
ps It could be your John in the workhouse, perhaps fallen on hard times, ill health??
I'm wondering if there are admission records??

Hi Ant
I don't know where we can go from here. There's no way of knowing if he went back to Ireland or if that was a cover up because they weren't together.
No records for that time for admissions to the workhouse.(If that was him)
I'll try the deaths again.
Sorry mate
Tina

Thanks for looking Tina,

I just thought someone online might know something as I cant be the only relative,

Ant

Hi Ant
Did you have any luck through Genes Reunited at all??
Tina

Hi Tina,

Ive only found someone else asking the same question. Have tried putting a posting on the 'trying to find' board.

Ant

No luck on genes, am wondering if anyone has the cd of burials at St Annes Sutton to see if he is there?

Hi Folks,

Well I eventually found someone with a transcript of St Annes burials, no John, but his infant daughter Margaret is buried there in 1888.

Am beginning to think the 1901 single cattleman in Bolton above may be him and lying about marital status!

Also am wondering if the dob given by someone else as 1st April 1848 Dunmore is a joke or to mislead as according to 1881 census he was born 1842/3.

How do i go about searching backwards for a birth in Ireland?

Ant

Without taking a visit to Ireland in person, your best bet is to check with the LDS www.familysearch.org and contact your nearest centre who can check the catalogues for you and if there is the Parish Register for the church in question available on film, they can order it for you to view when it comes.

Hi Ant,
You could try the Irish FHS website which is free to search (you do have to register, but that's free and quick to do), but you have to pay to view records.
There are some John Donelan's in the RC parish of Dunmore between 1844 and 1848 (4 of them) - see below
http://galwaywest.brsgenealogy.com/quis ... artQuery=0
Not sure if that is any help or not, but probably worth you having a root around.
Chris

Thanks Mary and Chris,

I have tried LDS but they do not have the records, just tried West Galway FHS, last time I tried the records were not available but this time I found two between 1844 and 1848, what are you doing differently to get 4 Chris?

One of the two contains the dates that I was given by another person researching earlier.

All I know from John's wedding cert is his father was John also, a joiner, and dead by 1878

Ant

Another thing to try is a Rootsweb mailing list for the County you are interested in http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/ Although it's hosted by Ancestry you don't need to have a subscription.

I've found that many local people join these lists and have some records available to them which they are willing to use to help.

Hi Ant,
Very odd, just tried it again and this time I got 6 entries.
I'm entering
Birth recs Co Galway West
donlan
John
1847 +-4
Dunmore RC
Standard Surname search
this returns 6 John Donelan's
1843x2,
1844
1845x2
1848
adding father's name John just returns the 1848 one only.
There are no returns for Dunmore (CI)
Chris