John Murphy - b. 1860 Ennis, Co. Clare

Amanda:

Welcome to Ireland Reaching Out!

I will alert our pairsh liaison for Ennis about your message.

When are you coing to Ireland?

Roger McDonnell

Hi Roger, thank you very much.  We will be in Ireland from the 17th December.  Interestingly (since you are a McDonnell), the other ancestor I am looking for is James Michael McDonnell b. 1815 in Athlone, Co. Westmeath.  He came to Australia with his wife Eliner Sherwood. From memory, he was in the army. Parents were William McDonnell and Mary O'Connor.

Amanda:

My McDonnells come from a small village in Mayo called Carracastle. Very close to the Roscommon border and the town of Ballaghaderreen. Looks like we are not connected.

Roger

Hi Amanda,

Have you tried looking at www.ennisparish.com/genealogy/ ?

Declan

Hi Declan, 

Yes, I have.  No luck. As I said, John Murphy in Ireland = needle in a haystack.

Okay, so more information has come to light. 

Anyhow, as a result of DNA testing, and linking up with a distant cousin, I have been able to get a bit more information.  John Murphy (b.5 May 1860 and baptised in Kilmurry Ibricken) came to Australia with his brother Thomas (b. 1862) aboard the Hawkesbury, arriving in Sydney on 18th September, 1878.  They were sponsored by their uncle, Dennis Murphy.  Dennis Murphy also sponsored Annie and Mary McGuan(e) who arrived in July of 1878 aboard the Earl Dalhousie.

It appears John and Thomas also had an older brother called Dennis who was born in 1859.  Parents are John Murphy (1839-1863), a farmer (parents were Thomas Murphy and Bridget Collins) and Mary Ann Carmody (b. 1840).  She was the daughter of Thomas Carmody and Annie O'Loughlin.  When John Sr died, she remarried John Kearney (also spelt Carney) in 1864 and went on to have several more children with him, a number of whom came to Australia.

I have found nothing further on Dennis (b.1859).  

I have found that Thomas Murphy (b.1862) died in Lismore Australia in 1946.  According to his obituary, he returned to Ireland in 1913 and then came back to Australia.

What I would dearly love to know is if there are any gravesites that are in existance which I could visit on my upcoming trip to Ireland?  Or even what church would they have likely been baptised in so that I can at least sit in there and contemplate the fact that my ancestors had been in the same place.

Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.

Regards,

Amanda.

Amanda:

Maybe Declan will comment also.

Here is a link to the parish web site http://www.killaloediocese.ie/parish/mullagh-kilmurry-ibrickane/   I would contact them about local cemeteries.

Roger

Amanda:

Forgot to ask. When is your trip?

Roger

Try Killernan cemetery  http://www.interment.net/data/ireland/clare/killernan/killernan.htm

Try Killernan cemetery  http://www.interment.net/data/ireland/clare/killernan/killernan.htm