Pushing the Branches Back to Reveal an Earlier Generation

The Desmonds of Macroom are part of my family tree that is far enough back that it can be a bit tricky. In the past the heritage center at Mallow had sent me a good deal of baptismal and marriage certificates on this family. This center covers part of Cork but not Cork City and Glenville. It does include Killavullen very proximate to Glenville.

My great-great grandmother was born Mary Ann Desmond to Denis Desmond(1806-) and Julia Creedon(1814-) who married at Macroom, County Cork on 23 Nov 1837. The witnesses as best as I can decipher from the register were Rev. T McGrath and Patrick O’Connell.

Theirs was a fruitful marriage, blessed with 9 children between 1838-1858. Their youngest daughter Julia Desmond was born just shy of six years before civil registration of births began on 1 Jan 1864.

At a Catholic baptism a sponsor is required, with two being the norm. Usually one from each parent’s family or circle of friends is selected. From 1862-1872, the following Desmonds were chosen to sponsor Mary Ann’s children: 1862 Julia, 1864 Michael, 1866 Honora, 1868 Julia, 1870 Denis and 1872 Patrick & Bridget. In 1877 a  Julia Creedon was chosen. There were numerous Riordans selected as well over the years.

When I accidentally stumbled upon the death registration for Mary Ann Riordan of Massytown, Macroom in 1917, I knew I found my great-grandfather’s sister. The age was about right and her rank, profession or occupation as daughter of a mason also led me to think that this was the daughter born in 1868. 

The most intriguing fact though was the name of the informant and her connection to the deceased. When one died at a hospital a nurse or other official is the informant. Fortunately, when one died at home a relative reports the death. Here, Julia Desmond, cousin, present at death, Massytown, strongly suggested that she was a first cousin to Mary Ann and therefore a relative of mine as well.

Trying to track children that were baptized between 1840-1858 can be difficult because without more information, I could have started a wild goose chase. The child may have died soon after birth and without civil death records until 1864, there might be no way to determine when the death occurred. Even with the civil records available it could require an inordinate number of searches in the records with no end in sight.

Searching the heritage of Julia Desmond offered a more practical option. I made a few assumptions. One that she was a first cousin who, based on her surname, was single and the daughter of one of Mary Ann Desmond’s three known brothers: Michael(1844-), Denis(1847-) and Patrick(1851-). These three names were among her selections for godfathers for her children. This strongly suggested that each of the three survived infancy.

The 1911 Irish Census found a Julia Desmond, 22, living with her widowed mother and siblings. In 1901, the father was still living at Mill Lane and his name was Denis Desmond. A search of the civil marriage records found a union between Denis Desmond and Ellen Neville on 3 Oct 1886. He was a publican which fit in with a story my uncle once wrote about an ancestor owning a pub in Macroom. He would not be an ancestor but it would make a connection between a relative and a pub in Macroom. 

Denis’ father was also named Denis, was deceased and also a publican. This gentleman would support Uncle Dennis’ claim that our ancestor ran a pub in Macroom; he was my great-great-great grandfather. 

Denis and Ellen had 4 children: Denis, Julia, John and Mary Ann. This followed a very common naming pattern in Ireland. The first son was named for his paternal grandfather. The first daughter was named for her maternal grandmother(and here her paternal grandmother as well). The second son was named for his maternal grandfather. The second daughter was not named for her mother(Ellen), if following a pattern. Since the grandmothers’ name was already used the someone else would be honored with a namesake. 

I will now discuss the MacIwraith family I mentioned last time. In the widow Ellen Desmond family’s 1911 census a 15 year-old boy named Henry McIwraith is living with them. He was an apprentice and listed as a visitor.

I came upon the name MacIlwraith three different times in my recent research. First, in the 1899 marriage record between Cornelius Foley and Catherine Riordan, Alexander MacIlwraith was the witness. Second, in the 1911 Irish Census at Macroom a 15 year-old Henry McIlwraith was enumerated with the family of the late Denis Desmond. Lastly, also in a 1911 Irish Census at Monkstown, David Denis McIlwraith and his wife were listed as cousins-in-law in the household of William Reid and his wife the former Margaret Riordan.

Working from knowns to unknowns, I started with the Reids and their cousins. William was listed as the head of household. Since they were identified as cousin-in-law, it said to me that David Denis was related to Margaret. David Denis was born around 1886 in Cork City. I was able to find a birth registration for him there.

On the eleventh of January 1886, David Denis MacIlwraith was born at Douglas Street, in Cork City. His parents were Alexander MacIlwraith, an engineer and Bride Desmond MacIlwraith. They had other children named: Julia, Alexander, Catherine, Bridget, Henry and Mary. This followed a limited pattern. David Denis was named for both grandfathers. Julia after her maternal grandmother. Alexander after his father. Catherine after her paternal grandmother. Bridget after her mother. Henry Augustine after his paternal uncle. Mary Frances perhaps after her maternal aunt.

There is a marriage record at the church in Macroom between Alexander and Bridget on 18 May 1884. There is no civil marriage recorded. I checked Ancestry and FamilySearch, but there was no citation. I also went to my local family history center and checked the microfilm copy of the 1884 marriage indexes. Sometimes, things got missed. Unfortunately, without the civil marriage record I have more work to do to determine their fathers’ names and determine the exact relationships.

I haven’t found the baptismal records for the children. They are not old enough to have been on microfilm and are part of County Cork that does not have a heritage center.  All but Julia and Alexander had birth certificates. Bridget(1893-1894) was born on Douglas Road in 1893 but died at the new family home on Wrights Lane. She had both a birth and death certificate. She was registered as Bridget MacAlwraith in the births so it took several attempts to discover her birth in the index. She was Bride on the death record. The other children all lived to be counted in both the 1901 and 1911 censuses. 

In 1901, the record reveals a practice once much more common than today for mixed marriages. Alexander was born in Scotland and a Presbyterian. He and his sons, David, Alexander and Henry were Presbyterians in the 1901 census. Conversely, his wife Bride and their living daughters, Julia, Catherine and Mary were Roman Catholics.

Something apparently changed between 1901 and 1911. Even though they appear in three separate census records, each of the male family members were enumerated as Roman Catholics. Both Alexanders were now Roman Catholic. David living in Monkstown was also Catholic. Henry presumably living with his uncle’s widow and their children, his first cousins, was also Catholic.