Elizabeth Dockery : Short Biography

Elizabeth Dockery was born on 14 April 1916 in Ballacagher/Ballycaher, Ballintober, Co Roscommon. She was born in the midst of the 1916 rising which was currently going on in Dublin. Her parents were herd Patrick Dockery and Mary Ellen Devine. They named Elizabeth after her paternal grandmother who lived with them at the time. She was known her whole life as Lily. 

The Dockerys lived in a four roomed house with three front windows that her father had recently purchased under the Land Commission Act from Edward Melia. They had a stable, cow house, calf house, barn and fowl house behind the house. Lily grew up around horses and other farm animals and enjoyed farming, often going out to help her father. When she was born, there was already an older child, Anne Maria, known as May. Both of her elderly grandparents lived with them. Her grandfather Patrick Sr died when she was a baby.

Between the years of 1917 and 1920, Lily gained three new sisters, Teresa, Susan Josephine "Josie", and Christina Kathleen "Chris" Dockery. All the sisters were very close growing up, particularly Lily and Teresa. Her granny Elizabeth died on Christmas Day of 1921 when Lily was five years old. 

Lily completed primary school then began helping her parents full time. She remembered her young life fondly and often reminisced about days spent at festivals, fairs and dances. Her family held very nationalistic beliefs that they passed onto their children. She was proud of the efforts of the 1916 rising and war of independence that she was just a child during. She spent a lot of time as a child with Shanagher cousins.

In 1945, Lily went to live with her elderly aunt, Anne Doyle nee Dockery, in Ballinderry, Kilbride. Anne had been widowed for many years and lived alone in the house her husband left her. Lily's eldest sister May had gone to take care of her also a few years before and found herself a husband in Kilbride. Lily was at the time twenty nine years old, which was considered then by members of her family quite old to be unmarried. She settled down in Kilbride for a year with her aunt.

Lily would make a walk each week to the local shop in Ballinderry to buy groceries for her aunt. The shop was ran by Martin Flanagan, a former blacksmith of Clooncor who married into a Kilbride family. He became friendly with Lily after they talked on her shopping trips and took a shine to her. He had a nephew, Patrick Flanagan of Tulsk, whose father died the year before. He proposed the idea of a match to Lily and her aunt and arranged a meeting between the two. Martin was eager for Patrick to marry and tried hard to persuade Lily, telling her the land in Tulsk was the best in the countyand singing his nephew's praises. After meeting and talking a few times, Lily and Patrick agreed to the union. 

They were married in Ballintober that same year of 1945, Teresa being Lily's bridesmaid. Lily moved to Patrick's house in Grange, Tulsk, a two storey house of four rooms, considered quite good for the times. She settled in well there, befriending many neighbours, and was happy in her marraige. She had a daughter and a son with Patrick within the next few years. Her mother died in 1949.

Tragically, Patrick died unexpectedly on 29 Aug 1953, while Lily was pregnant with her third child. The next few years were very hard for her, managing his farm alone while rearing three small children. However, she did an excellent job, giving her children a happy and safe childhood.

Throughout the rest of her life she remained close with all her children and helped raise her many grandchildren also. She was remembered by everyone as a kind, funny, generous and warm person. She died aged ninety six on 20 May 2012 in Tulsk.