Kia ora.
I am keen to find out about my 3xgreat grandfather, John McGivern / Giverin / Giveran. His wife and daughters used these spellings on certificates issued in Aorearoa / NZ.
John married my 3xgreat grandmother, Mary Ann Keogh, in the 1850s-1860s and they had three children, Michael, Mary and Jane. Jane is my 2xgreat grandmother.
The story goes that John was gored to death by his bull on his farm in 1870, but this is all that has come down to us about him. The story was said to have been published in the Westmeath Independent1870, but I could not find any reference to such an article when searching in Athlone's library in the early 2000s.
After his death, his wife Mary Ann, came to NZ. A few years later, his daughters, Mary and Jane followed their mother. Michael stayed in Ireland (presumably) and was noted (though not named) on Mary Ann's death certificate as being 68 years old 1924.
Any leads on this would be so very much appreciated.
He mihi nui,
Na, Anne H
Anne1472
Saturday 27th Jun 2020, 05:19AMMessage Board Replies
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Anne:
Welcome to Ireland Reaching Out!
Your family is very elusive. I searched the subscription site Roots Ireland and did not locate the marriage record or the baptismal records for the three children. Based on 1855 Griffiths Valuation data, the surname Giveran (and variants) was rare and found in the parish of Taughmaconnell in South Roscommon. There was a Daniel Giveran and Edward Giveran in that area but no John Giveran.
I looked at death records and the only John Giveran record was in 1881 but that John was a widower, he died of natural causes and ironically the informant was his son Michael.
see seventh record https://civilrecords.irishgenealogy.ie/churchrecords/images/deaths_returns/deaths_1881/06448/4853002.pdf
The Michael who was the informant was shown in the 1901 census as Geveran and living in Monksland with his family
http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/pages/1901/Roscommon/Athlone/Monksland/1652901/
Is it possible that Michael Mary and Jane were born prior to 1850 maybe prior to 1840? Maybe John was not gored by a bull but was the John who died in 1881?
Let me know your thoughts.
Roger McDonnell
Castlemore Roscommon, IrelandXO Volunteer ☘
Saturday 27th Jun 2020, 01:02PM -
Kia ora, Roger.
Thank you for your swift reply to my query and apologies for taking so long to get back in touch. I’ve been going through my records to see if any of it fits with what you have found. I have not made any progress on that.
The last name, Giveran vs McGiveran or variant: My Great Great Grandmother came over as McGivern as did her daughters as McGiveran and McGiverin – possibly written as heard by the relevant ‘official’. I understand these three women were literate. It’s so strange that the name hardly exists now in Athlone.
The info about the death of John McG was from a Keogh ‘cousin’ who I was writing to in the 90s. Her name is P. Keogh who lived in Tavanagh, Athlone. This lovely woman wrote that the last of the McGivern name owned land about a a mile from where she and her family lived in Tavanagh around the 1930-40s. She said the article about the McGivern death caused by being gored by his bull was published in the Westmeath Independent in 1870.
The Giverans you mention are intriguing. John would have been born circa 1800 and Michael circa 1836. The Christian names are so exact and these dates are so similar to the births of Mary Ann’s father (b.c. late 1790s) and herself (b.c.1833 -1837). Her father was Denis James Keogh who was living in Feacle House between 1814 and 1837.
We think we descend from Denis James second wife, Catherine Sharkey. They married late-ish 1832 in St. Peters & Pauls. Catherine Sharkey d. 1842 at age 40 and she and her son, John Peter, are buried in the Athlone Abbey cemetery!
Mary Ann came to NZ in 1870, followed by her daughters, Mary and Jane, in 1875. The birth dates for the sisters have remained fairly consistent in the official records, not including shipping. When Mary died in 1924, the ages of her two sons were noted. We are quuite sure the older, aged 68, was Michael b.c. 1856. The name Michael has come down to us via the offspring of both of his sisters.
The marriage and other records of Mary Ann and her brother (probably 1/2 brother), Patrick, are very consistent with the info her granddaughters and niece passed to us. Also, Keogh relations in Athlone knew of the brother and sister and wondered what had happened to them. They were delighted to receive my letters out of the blue.
By the way, Roger, one of my Scottish lines is MacDonnell of the Highland Glengarry branch.
I have my fingers crossed that my great great grandfather will allow us to find his records. It might be that he was, in fact, Giverin or variant spelling. One of the MacDonnells was also very elusive. I finally found him as MacDonald in marriage records of the early 1800s. I recognised him by his wife’s name!
I look forward to hearing from you again.
Thank you, Roger.
He mihi nui (Warm regards).
Anne
Anne1472
Sunday 5th Jul 2020, 10:41AM