McConnell and Crawford, of the Parish of Killead, Co Antrim

Eleanor,

Griffiths Valuation for 1862 lists 3 McConnell households in Dungonnell. Arthur had plots 8 & 9 (a 44 acre farm); Thomas had plots 6 & 7 (40 acres) and William had 10b (a house and garden).

The above 2 farms are close to each other and are on the Loughshore Rd near Bay Cottage B & B. Looking at the Valuation Revision records, Arthur’s property changes to David Smith in 1872.  Part of Thomas’s property transfers to Arthur Davidson in 1885 but he retains some of it. His name continues through to at least 1911, though he’s not in the census for either 1901 or 1911. William leaves 10b in 1903 but again he’s not in the census, so the dates may be out.

An Anne McConnell appears in the records on plot 8a (a house and 1 acre) in 1880. In 1896 that changes to William, then he is deleted in 1898.

Plot 10b today is at the corner where the Dungonnell road and Ballyginniff Rd intersect. (The house itself may be gone by now but that’s where it was).

You can view them on the Griffiths Valuation maps:

http://www.askaboutireland.ie/griffith-valuation/index.xml

The name Langford in your ancestors names may be in respect of the Langford family who lived nearby. There is now an old WW2 airfield near Dungonnell at Langford Lodge which is presumably where the Langford's house once was.

There’s an Alexander a farming in the 1901 & 1911 censuses, though he doesn’t appear in the Valuation records.

1901 census:

http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/pages/1901/Antrim/Seacash/Dungann…

1911 census:

http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/pages/1911/Antrim/Seacash/Dungonnell/108683/

http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/pages/1911/Antrim/Seacash/Dungonnell/108684/

Some probate abstracts:

The Will of Arthur M'Connell late of Dungonnell County Antrim Farmer deceased who died 25 January 1879 at same place was proved at Belfast by the oaths of William M'Connell of Cherryvalley and William Hunter of Ardmore both in (Crumlin) said County Farmers the Executors.

The above will is on-line, on the PRONI site, and mentions his unmarried daughter Anne McConnell plus his son William. It also mentions daughters Margaret, Mary, Sarah, Bella & Jane plus the 7 children of his son Langford who is deceased. Arthur was 103 when he died.

https://civilrecords.irishgenealogy.ie/churchrecords/images/deaths_retu…

Letters of Administration of the personal estate of Langford M'Connell late of Dungonnell County Antrim Fish Dealer and Farmer deceased who died 11 October 1870 at same place were granted at Belfast to Margaret M'Connell of Dungonnell (Antrim) aforesaid the Widow of said deceased.

Above died intestate and his probate file was destroyed in the 1922 fire.

Probate of the Will of Thomas M'Connell late of Dungonnell County Antrim Farmer who died 21 February 1898 granted at Belfast to Alexander M'Connell and James B. Clerk both of Dungonnell Farmers.

The Will of Anne M'Connell late of Whiteport Dungonnell County Antrim Spinster who died 7 January 1894 at same place was proved at Belfast by William M'Connell of Lakeview Sydenham County Down Gentleman one of the Executors.

Above 2 wills are on-line on the PRONI wills site.

Probate of the Will of Alexander McConnell late of Dungonnell County Antrim Farmer who died 26 February 1913 granted at Belfast to John Harkness (Junior) and James Harkness Farmers.

Above will is not on-line but should be in PRONI in paper format. You can view it there free.

Arthur (born 1857) was born before the start of statutory birth registration in Ireland (1864) so you won’t find a birth certificate for him. You might find a baptism if you know what denomination he was.  You haven’t said, and so I don’t know. The only clue is that Alexander in the 1901 & 1911 censuses was Unitarian (sometimes also known as Non Subscribing Presbyterian). The nearest Unitarian church to Dungonnell that I am aware of is in Antrim town, but it has been disused for many years and I don’t think any baptism and marriage records have survived. (The NSP Minister in Larne has notional responsibility for the church and I spoke to him once many years ago when he said he had no records). The graveyard there is fenced off and locked but is looked after by Antrim Council and you can get the key from the Council Offices.

Griffiths has a John McConnell farming in Corbally in 1862. Plot 6 (14 acres). Again you can locate that and follow the ownership through using the Griffiths maps and the revaluation records. The 1901 census has 1 McConnell in the townland:

http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/pages/1901/Antrim/Seacash/Corbally/917568/

He was Presbyterian. Nearest Presbyterian church is probably in Killead, though there’s another at Loanends. Killead’s records start in 1826, Loanends in 1834 (but with some gaps). Copies of both in PRONI. Personal visit required to view them.

McConnell Thompson of Corbally British county Antrim farmer died 31 July 1933 at Massereene Hospital Antrim Probate Belfast 31 October to Jeanie Eadie McConnell the widow and Olivia Thompson widow. Effects £430 1s. 8d.

Tracing Presbyterians baptisms and burials in Ireland can be tricky. They didn’t use the parish system and which church you attended was very much a matter of personal choice and so not always the closest to where you lived. Further more they weren’t always buried in the graveyard of the church they attended. Some Presbyterian churches don’t have a graveyard attached, and folk often used the Church of Ireland instead. And of course some families had family plots in odd locations too. Presbyterian churches generally didn’t keep burial records, so if there’s no gravestone it can be difficult to find them. However your family appears to have been fairly comfortably off financially and so I would expect there to be gravestones somewhere. Tradition was to marry in the bride’s church (after which she'd attend her husband's), so if you can find any local marriages for McConnell women, then that may be a clue as to the family church

Killead Presbyterian gravestones are on the “Find a Grave” site. I searched but did not find any McConnell or Crawford gravestones listed.

There’s a Benjamin Crawford in Gortnagallon in Griffiths. The family has left by the 1901 census.

Probate abstracts:

Letters of Administration of the personal estate of Arthur Crawford late of Gortnagallon and Belfast both in County Antrim Gentleman who died 27 February 1889 at Belfast were granted at Belfast to William Crawford of Gortnagallon in said County Farmer a Brother.

The Will of Benjamin Crawford late of Gortnagallon County Antrim Farmer deceased who died 17 May 1874 at same place was proved at Belfast by the oath of William Crawford of Gortnagallon (Crumlin) aforesaid Farmer one of the Executors.

The Will (with one Codicil) of John Crawford formerly of the Cape of Good Hope and late of Gortnagallon County Antrim Gentleman who died 24 October 1891 at Gortnagallon was proved at Belfast by William Crawford of Gortnagallon Farmer the sole Executor.

Arthur died intestate and his probate file was destroyed in the 1922 fire in Dublin. The other 2 have survived and are on the PRONI wills site.

With the McConnell family being Presbyterian, and residing in Co Antrim, that tends to point to them being descendants of Scots who settled in the area in the 1600s (as would be the case for the majority of the population of Co Antrim, so that’s not unusual).

Hi Eleanor,

The marriage of Langford & Margaret is on www.rootsireland.ie/ & has the fathers' names:

Date of Marriage:25-May-1849
Parish / District:ANTRIM
County:Co. Antrim
Husband LangfordMcconnell Address:Dungonnell Killead Church of IrelandOccupation:FARMER Full Age (Over 21)Status:Bachelor (Previously unmarried)
WifeName:MargaretCrawford Gornagarran KilleadDenomination:Church of Ireland SEAMSTRESSAge:Full Age (Over 21) Spinster (Previously unmarried)
Husband's Father Arthur Mcconnell Occupation FARMER
Wife's FatherName BenjaminCrawford Occupation:FARMER

Witness 1Benjamin Crawford
Witness 2 WilliamMcelrath
Notes:

Church: KILLEAD Church of Ireland
BY BANNS E MOCKLER (CLERK).

I couldn't find Margaret or Langford's baptism records on roots

The Representative Church Body Library in Dublin,s website shows that PRONI has the Killead C of I baptisms (1838 to 1996) , marriage (1845 to 1997) & death (1872 to 1948) records; have you tried the PRONI website? Search for family history in the search bar on the home page.

You could also visit GRONI during your visit

There are 133 William McConnell baptism records from Antrim on roots but Corbally is not in the list of parishes. It seems they come under Ahoghill but roots only has Ahoghill R C.

Elwyn, one of the other site volunteers, is an Ahoghill expert so hopefully he'll see your post and reply also

The RCBL shows that PRONI has C of I records for Ahoghill for B 1811-1928 M 1811-1996 & D 1821-1952

Col

Eleanor,

PRONI have copies of a set of letters relating to the McConnell family of Dungonnell, under the Ref T2319/1. Jane McConnell, daughter of Arthur McConnell, married Henry Johnson in 1845. The PRONI catalogue describes the papers as follows:

“Louise Wyatt, Editor Henry Johnson, Hamilton, Canada West to Jane Johnson, Dungonnell, Co. Antrim

Printed article extracted from the "Ontario History, 1948" by Louise Wyatt. The Article, "The Johnson Letters", 13 in number, are chiefly Henry Johnson's letters to his wife, and hers to him, written between May 1848 and July 1850. Each letter is printed in full. They tell of how he left Ireland, of his voyage to New York, of his experience looking for work in Canada West in 1848-9, and of how, at his urgent plea, his wife left Ireland with their two small children to try to rejoin him at Quebec. Henry's account of the people, the country, and working conditions in Southern Ontario is particularly vivid and detailed. Henry Johnson died in Montreal of Cholera, 4th July, 1849.”

The letters also get a mention on the DIPPAM site with comments below. (Not sure who the author is) but it mentions Langford McConnell. Note that Jane McConnell married in Muckamore Presbyterian church on 2.5.1845. Unfortunately Muckamore Presbyterian has no marriages earlier than 1845 and no baptism records before 1861. However looking at the church history, it only opened sometime around 1831 – 1843 and so McConnells baptised or married before that must have used one of the other Presbyterian churches in the area. And they are probably buried somewhere else too. Muckamore church history:

http://www.muckamore.com/our-congregation/our-community/our-history.html

Comment from the DIPPAM site:

These letters area fine example of the conditions which drove many people to emigrate in the late 1840's.  The Great Famine resulted in thousands of evictions. People were deeply in debt and found great difficulty in paying even what they owed to each other.  The majority of small tradesmen were bankrupt. These conditions caused many to emigrate in 1847.

In 1848 Henry Johnson from Antrim at the age of twenty-eight years and involved in the woollen and grocery business felt the pressure of rents, poor rates and debts.  He was confined in Carrickfergus Jail in May 1848.

The evidence in Letters 1, 3, 4 and 6 suggested that this was due to debt but the burning of the Four Courts and their records made it impossible to verify this.  Letter 4 mentioned that he took the pledge against drinking but "debts" and "creditors" are frequently mentioned.   In later unpublished letters it was revealed that Henry owed few debts and that even in October 1849 none of the debts owed to him had been paid.

Approximately a month after he received Letter 1 in jail Henry Johnson emigrated to America.

The Johnson-McConnell Letters consist of thirteen letters which passed between Henry Johnson and his wife from May 1848 to May 1849, and two references for jobs for Henry Johnson, one in Ireland and another in Canada.  They are at present in the possession of the editor who was the great-grand daughter of Jane and Henry Johnson.  Henry Johnson married Jane McConnell near Ardmore, Lough Neagh at Shanoguestown (Muckamore) Meeting House beside Oldstone Antrim, in May 1845.  She was twenty-one and he was twenty-five.  Jane's grandfather held land and Henry's family were members of the Cromwellian settlement.  In 1848 Henry and Jane belonged to the small shop-keeping group as indicated in letters 2B, 8, and later unpublished letters to Jane Johnson.  They belonged to large families of eleven and nine.  It is evident that famine or fever did not cause the death of any of them, although Henry had four additional brothers and sisters who 'died in infancy'.  Jane's father survived to 103, and her mother to 90.  Jane's mother did not write any full-length letters to her but sent messages in letters.  In 1932 her granddaughter described her puffing her clay pipe.

Several members of both families had emigrated.  One of Henry's brothers went to Australia and two of his nephews to America.  A nephew of Jane's went to the United States and one to Manitoba.  Her brother Langford emigrated to the United States but returned to Ireland.  Jane was a Presbyterian and Henry a Methodist.  Henry was of medium height with dark-hair and 'sharp keen eyes' while Jane and both their children had sandy red hair.  Jane was described by one of her daughters and several members of her family as being likeable. The letters describe Henry's departure from Ireland; his journey to New York; his life in Canada; the people and working conditions there during 1848 - 1849.  He pleaded urgently with his wife to leave Ireland withtheir two small children and join him in Canada.  Henry died in July 1849.  Jane, unaware of his death went with her two children to her sister Isabella in London, Ontario.  Jane did not know until 12 October that Henry was dead.  A quote from his death certificate (located in 1946) was as follows.

    'Henry Johnson died on the 4th day of July, one thousand eight hundred and forty nine, aged 29 years and was buried the same day by me.' signed J. Ellegood, assistant minister

Witnesses present J. Palton

                  A. Wardley

There is no stone to mark the spot of his grave and it is unlikely that

any trace of it will be found.  Jane lived with her sister Isabella in

London for the next nine months.  Her brother Langford McConnell, who

lived in Adrian, Michigan was advised by a doctor to leave America.

Jane asked his advice about marrying again.  Langford advised her to

consider her two children.  He thought that there would be very little

for her at home.  He considered Jane's future husband (William Nettleton)

to be a 'sober man'.

Jane's father sent her £4 in October 1849 to help her in her difficult situation.  He wrote in a letter which accompanied the money

 'We Sympathize deeply with you, in your trying circumstances, and  will be glad to do all in our power for you, and the children.  Your trial has been very great in the unexpected removal of Henry... Before you reply to this, write Langford, that you may be certain, that he will advance the money to bring you home.  Should any change take place to prevent his coming - then write and I will Send you the money myself...

  Praying that [the Most High?] may guide, protect and love you, I am ever your affectionate Father'.

The following year he was told of her possible marriage to William Nettleton and advised her to consider it carefully and let him know what her decision was.  Jane and William were married in 1850.  The two children of Jane and Henry Johnson lived with their Nettleton half-brothers and sisters.

Alexander owned a farm in East Williams Lot 15, Concession 7, and three lots east of the Nettleton farm, and one on the same road close to the William McKeen farm, two and a half miles west on the same road.  He died in 1919, unmarried.  In 1875, Mary Johnson married Edwin Brock Van camp of Merrickville and Petrolia.  In 1882 they went to Nebraska.  She died in California in 1930 and he in Denver, Colorado in 1926.  Four of their seven children still live there.  There are later family letters from 1850-73 which describe the experiences of Jane McConnell Johnson Nettleton's family in Ireland in those years also the experiences of the Nettletons in Canada West.

Eleanor, I too am a descendant of Arthur McConnell 1775 - 1879. Suggest you visit website Billion Graves. Gives photos of headstones of William McConnell, father of Arthur Muckamore Graveyard, Oldstone Road, Antrim, 

When here visit Presbyterian Historical Society, Church House, Fisherwick Place, Belfast. Magill Book, compiled by Rev Magill of Millrow Church , since replaced by First Antrim PC. Gives details of McConnell Family. Unique much  prized book! Staff will help search. 

Nearby Linenhall Library, opposite City Hall, holds index of B M D for The Belfast Newsletters. Emigration Letters at PRONI or online, fascinating. Colourful. 

Have you an email address?

Distant and older cousin Elizabeth!