Family Stories

Family stories always have to be considered with a grain of salt. When I started I was told a a benign pair of facts; first, that my ancestors were from Omagh on the McGuigan/Goodwin line and second that the Cassidy immigrant was from Newry, County Down and had buried two wives in the US and their stillborn children.

My actual research found the McGuigans were from Clogher very near but distinct from Omagh. It also found that the Cassidy family was indeed from Newry but in addition to the Down part, they also showed up in the County Armagh records for Newry. 

More interesting was that neither the first nor the second Mrs Cassidy had died in childbirth. Also learned was that both women delivered a living baby that was baptized. Margaret McKeon Cassidy did die a week after her delivery but her daughter died at 6 months old. Ellen Hart Cassidy died 9 months after her delivery and her daughter died at 11 months old. 

The third Mrs. Cassidy had the most outrageous claim to her story. Bridget Benson Cassidy was from County Sligo, was 39 when she had her only child and had a brother that "fought with General Custer, his horse was lame the day of the Little Bighorn and that's how he survived." Research showed that Bridget and James Benson hailed from Ballysadare, Co. . Sligo. Bridget was actually 40 when her only child was delivered. James did not stay in camp the day of the Little Bighorn. 

He did, however, serve as a farrier in the US Army from 1876-1881. The day of the Little Bighorn he was stationed at St. Louis. This family story was not true but it was not a complete falsehood either. He had served in the army, was stationed in Dakota Territory shortly after the massacre and his pension file for his widow included his marriage and death certificates.