Brennans - 1830 and earlier

Hello Molly,

I have searched www.rootsireland.ie for Bridget and Catherine.  As you can imagine there are numerous Bridgets and Catherine Brennans and it is most difficult to establish which one is yours when you don't have any parents names.

However I searched for a Catherine Brennan in the timeframe from Co. Monaghan and came up with a few.  I looked at all these records and jotted down their parents names.  I then searched for a Bridget Brennan from Co Monaghan and noted that one record had the same parents as for Catherine.  I don't know if these are your ancestors as I can't confirm it.  I would be interested to know the names of their first born sons and daughters as they were usually called after their grandparents.

Catherine Brennan  b. Jan 1841 parish of  Donaghmoyne Co Monaghan father James Brennan mother Catherine McGahan

Bridget Brennan  b. Jan 1849  Parish of Donaghmoyne Co MOnaghan father James Brennan mother Catherine McGahan.

I know these dates don't match up with yours but I would suggest that you keep a very open mind, as most people were undocumented and uneducated.  Their names were spelled phonetically and their ages only guessed at the port of entry, and this is the information that followed them for the rest of their lives.

I hope this helps you in some small way,

KInd regards,

Anne Dennehy

Molly:

Like Anne, I also looked at Roots Ireland but took a break before posting. Roots had two Bridget Brennan baptismal records in Co. Monaghan around 1840. See below. Inniskeen parish is actually in Co. Louth close to the Monaghan border. I also looked at Catherine Brennan baptismal records in the same parish and came up with an 1836 record but the parents names did not match either of the Bridget records.

You mention the 1851 census. Are you referring to the 1851 census search forms that were used to pove or disprove eligibility for the Old Age Pension? Can you share that record with Anne and me?

Roger McDonnell

Name:Bridget BrennanDate of Birth:
Date of Baptism:27-May-1840Address:Not RecordedParish/District:InishkeenGender:FCountyCo. Monaghan
Denomination:Roman Catholic
Father:Matthew BrennanMother:Bridget BrennanOccupation:Not Recorded
Sponsor 1 /
Informant 1:William RafertySponsor 2 /
Informant 2:Margaret Malone

Name:Bridget BrennanDate of Birth:
Date of Baptism:16-Oct-1839Address:Not RecordedParish/District:InishkeenGender:FCountyCo. Monaghan
Denomination:Roman Catholic
Father:Philip BrennanMother:Mary BrennanOccupation:Not Recorded
Sponsor 1 /
Informant 1:Not Recorded Not Recorded

Name:Catherine BrennanDate of Birth:
Date of Baptism:10-Nov-1836Address:Not RecordedParish/District:InishkeenGender:FCountyCo. Monaghan
Denomination:Roman Catholic
Father:Michael BrennanMother:Elizabeth BrennanOccupation:Not Recorded
Sponsor 1 /
Informant 1:Terence FoxSponsor 2 /
Informant 2:Margaret Connolly

Thank you Anne and Roger for your replies. I am going to attach with this reply the copies of two extracts from an 1851 record. You may be correct, Roger, that it is not actually a census record but a pension application. I need help interpreting what is here, but I am hopeful that the records indicate persons who are connected to the Brennan sisters that I am researching because, as you mention, the names of the possible parents are used again by the sisters in naming their children.

I believe that Bridget Brennan (b. 1840 and married in 1863 -- probably in New York -- to Neal Duffy) had only one child: Susan E. Duffy. Catherine (b. 1831, married in 1859 in N.Y. to Edward Callahan from County Donegal) had the following children: Mary Ann (b. 1860 in NY), Bernard (b. 1862 in NY), Rosey (b. 1864, d. 1865), Susan (b. 1868 in Illinois) and Edward Charley (b. 1871 in Illinois.)

I cannot quite sort out what the file named "Rose Ann Cosgrove" is showing, particularly the two notations of names from (apparently two) households on the second page. Perhaps you can help me understand it. I believe the application by Catherine Brennan could be the same Catherine who emigrated to the U.S., but it is difficult to know for certain.

I appreciate your help. I am not familiar with place names and the designations of "parish," "townland" and "barony," but I am learning.

best regards
Molly

On second thought -- IF I am understanding the abstract (in above message) correctly, it appears to be an application made by Catherine Brennan in 1916. This could not be the same Catherine Brennan who married Edward Callahan because she died in 1898 in Nebraska, USA. So I am perhaps no closer to identifying her parents' names.

Molly

Molly:

The second 1851 census search form was for an application filed by a Catherine Brennan in June 1916. She lived in Tullintrat townland in Muckno civil parish and alleged that in 1851 she was living with her parents Bernard and Rose Brennan in Tullintrat. A search was made but the results are not shown. In any event, as you indicated, this record would not be for your ancestor.

The first form was filed in July 1917 for a Rose Ann Brennan Cosgrove who was living in Belfast in 1917. She alleged that her parents were Bernard and Rose Brennan who lived in either Oram or Lisdonny townlands which are both also in Muckno civil parish. The search of the 1851 census located two different Bernard/Rose Brennan families One had a daughter Rosan born around 1830. The other did not have a child named Rose. I don't think either family was connected to your ancestors.

As background, the Old Age Pension process started in 1910. The 1841/1851 censuses were still available at that time and were used to proved that someone was 70 or older which was the age to received pension payments. The pension search forms for 1910-1915 applications are not available. As you likely know, the 1841 and 1851 census returns were destroued in 1922 during the Irish Civil War. Only a few fragments remain.

Roger

Thanks, Roger. That does help me understand the records that I found. I agree, the facts in those documents do not align to support a conclusion that they are the persons I am researching. It looked so promising because of the name similarities, but the dates do not work.

Molly

I have an update on the names for the parents of Bridget Brennan (born 1840) and presumably also her sister Catherine (born 1831.) Bridget's death record indicates that her parents were named Patrick Brennan and Susie Conley. I don't have any dates or places to go with that, but since Catherine's marriage certificate indicates that she was born in County Monaghan, that is my reason for believing that Patrick and Susie might be found there in the 1830-1840 time period. I realize that the records are few in that time, but if these two names help the search, please let me know.