O'Connor Killarney area to Worcester Mass. USA

Hello Merski,

Fancy meeting you here! Julia O'Connor died 10 JAN 1889. There was a funeral notice in the "Worcester Spy". I know she's your Julia, notice states she was wife of late Dennis..residence was 3 Cullen St.(not sure that still exists).

I have a few branches of early Brosnihan's in the Worcester database, one from Kilbrean(John/Ellen Finnigan), the other is a mystery. Mystery Brosnihan's are children of Denis and Margaret, they were here in the '40's. I got data off graves at St. John's.I did obits, marriages etc. so I have connected them to more than a few Worcester folk. I do have a Michael, not sure if he is your godparent

As you know I'm related to the Donoghue's, however most of the data I have on the different branches in Worcester would be after 1860. Most (not all) of the Donoghue's in my database are from the the areas south of Killarney.

Not much help but at least you now have a death date. Hopefully somebody local in Ireland can shed some light.

Hey "cousin"  I'd be interested in your obit of Michael Bresnihan.  The Ellen that was sponsor with him could have been a wife, sister, cousin or aunt or maybe not even realted (though I wouldn't believeit to be so.)

Hi,

Do you have any idea when your Denis was born??

I have a Denis/Dennis Connor born 1813 to Jeremiah (or Dermot) Connor and Mary Horgan in Killarney. He seems to be the eldest of this family and I know that several siblings or nieces/nephews went to New Zealand or USA. I do not know about Denis unfortunately. I have a tree of one of the (O)Connor but it does not mention Denis but it does for most of the other siblings. Also James O' Connor who went to the USA wrote a letter to his mother in the 1850's and mentions many people (family and people from Ireland who went to the states) as well as asking after family back in Ireland but no mention of Denis.

The baptism says he was born in Droumduhig, Killarney. I guess the problem is that Connor is such a common name...

Claire

Claire,  Didn't I help you a long time ago?  James wrote home to ireland telling of all the people he saw...i think the email was nettieparadise etc.  I still have that letter that you sent me a copy of.  Did you ever find the sister Julia who was in New Haven Connecticut but we didn't know her married name.  If you ever do I might be able to figure the connection.  My Denis' only daughter was named Julia but she died very young indeed.  We may be connected but we're missing that link......

Mary Ellen

Hi Mary Ellen

Most probably!! I do write a lot of emails to people but I certainly do have a memory of sneding that letter (as I have only sent it to a couple of people!)

I found that Julia married Patrick Sullivan just before they left Ireland in 1859. They appear to have had twins then got married and then left Ireland. I have not been able to track them after this point (apart from that letter which was not long after they got there by the sounds).

I did look into a few places that James was working and living in but that is about all I have been able to do. I have had no luck in finding him or Julia's family. Sigh!!!! I have had better luck in tracing the O' Connor's in New Zealand. It is just such a common name it is hard to fit the right people with the right famil.

Claire

Can you check the letter to see where Julia was living?  I'm pretty sure it was New Haven or New London.  I don't think I ever knew her husbands name.  Will try the 1860 census of CT.

Julia married Patrick Sullivan. One of my gg uncles was a witness at the wedding or was a sponser/godparent to one of the children (Ellen and William born 1859).

I am currently at work and so I don't have the lettter but those names are familiar. I do know one place he worked they were building a dam somewhere on the US/Candian border. I have a strong feeling Connetticuit (spelling???) was the state he was in or had seemed to be based. From memory he did go around with Patrick Sullivan for a while working as well, but I don't know where they ended up and having yet another boring common name, it is hard to trace them or their children.

Claire

Ok,

I have been looking at the letter and I have come up with a few issues. 

Firstly I have 2 x James Connor born to Dermot or Jeremiah Connor and Ellen Horgan. One in 1816 and the other in 1831, both in Droumduhig. I assumed that the first James died and a second one was born but then that makes James moving to america in about 1845 (as in the letter of 1852 and he said he had been there 7 years) and that makes James 14, if he was born in 1831. 

Secondly James talks about his sister Julia and her husband in 1852, but I have them being married in 1859.

SIGH!!!

This means I have some big issues with the dates...either I have got the wrong family in Ireland or who knows what. Julia may possibly have become widowed, moved back to Ireland, got married, had kids and moved back to america. (off the top of my head I think I found a record of them leaving Ireland not long after their twins were born...I will have to look for that).

Anyway that means we can't search for Julia as we don't know her surname (since she is married).

James talks about a Michael Quirk being a cousin from Rosemore. I think this may be the son of James Quirk and Honora Connor who was born about 1815, but this is just a stab in the dark.

The place names mentioned were Dansville, New york, where James appeared to be based at the time of the letter. He seems to have moved about to where the work was and mentions several places he worked. It will be hard to track him in census records with him moving about so much!!!

He says Julia was living in New London, CT. 

Another sigh!!!

Claire

Claire, I was a bit afraid that things were getting mixed up... Can you email me off this?  My email is mer330@hotmail.com.  I don't have any of the fancy databases that I used to have but I'm a relatively good coach.

Write down evrything that you are certain off...which is always the best place to start....LOL

Mary Ellen

Hi Claire & Merski52

I hope you don't mind me adding a little bit of information to yours. I live in New Zealand, Ed O'Connor is in Hudson Massachusetts, he contacted me again a few weeks ago as he is looking for members of his ancestors families that came to NZ, a Mary O'Connor married Cornelius Horgan, I found descendants and have put him in touch with them, Other O'Connors , Michael Cornelius & Honora, from the same family also came to NZ, also  Falvey & Quirks and many more Kerry families as well,

My Great grandfather Francis O'Connor (& 3 brothers came to NZ) from Castlegregory,and some of his fathers siblings went to America. (Patrick O'Connor, son of Michael O'Connor & Ellen Barry, his wife Elizabeth Deen/Deane). Unfortunately I haven't made contact with their descendants yet.

Ed would have a lot of information and is also on the Kerry mail List (as I am too, very worthwhile) a lot of information and great people, hope this helps!

Good Luck

Maureen O'Connor NZ

Hi Maureen,

I have been in contact with Ed and he talked about a kiwi cousin looking up some information for him.

The O'Connors are a complicated bunch and have connections with my tree in several ways. It is pretty tricky trying to figure out who is related to who. We are related to the O'Connors with my gg grandmother being one who married a Falvey and her mother was a Horgan.  I have found the Horgan's and O'Connors linked up together several time and other O'Connor's who I can't figure out where they fit in to the O'Connors also marry Horgan's (Ed and your lot). Since they came from a similar area in Ireland it is possible they are related but it is basically impossible to figure out with the lack of records beyond 1800.

What I have come to realise is that my g grandfather Michael Falvey came to Nz knowing there were a LOT of cousins (O'Connors and Horgan's) here already.  I am having the most issues with these blimmin O'Connors (since it is not the most uncommon of names, unlike Falvey and Horgan!!).

I do have some of the apparently unrelated O'Connors on my tree in case I can find a link and to see how different O'Connors fit in.

Any help sorting them out is apprciated!!

Claire