The Hayes family, especially in Lecumpher

Birth of George Archibold Bradley  28/11/1884  son of Archibold and Martha Jane nee Hayes  (Registration district Magherafelt)

v

This is the death of an Archibold Bradley 1884, in attendance his wife Jane  (Martha Jane) . Note he died in March 1884 and George above was born the same year, perhaps that is why she started a new life in America.

v

Birth of Robert Bradley  1883

Birth  of Janetta Martha 1878

v

Birth of Sarah 1876

v

Birth of Eliza 1875

Marriage of John Hayes and Rosanna Latimer 1848

v

The PRONI wills site has 3 probate abstracts relating to the Hayes family.

 The Will of George Hayes late of Lecumpher in the County of Londonderry Farmer deceased who died 18 June 1861 at same place was proved at Londonderry by the oath of Henry M'Kee of Tuney in said County Farmer one of the Executors.

Above will is on-line and mentions sons Thomas (who inherited the farm), John, Hugh & Alexander (the last 2 residing in America), plus daughters Mary McKelvey, Margaret Stewart, Sarah Jane Ross and Eliza.

 Letters of Administration of the personal estate of Eliza Hayes late of Lecumpher in the County of Londonderry Spinster deceased who died 30 October 1865 at same place were granted at Londonderry to Thomas Hayes of Lecumpher (Desertmartin) aforesaid Farmer the Brother and one of the next of kin of said deceased.

Above died intestate and so there's no will.

 The Will of Thomas Hayes late of Lecumpher County Londonderry Farmer who died 5 January 1892 at same place was proved at Londonderry by William M'Geehan of Ballymacpherson in said County Farmer one of the Executors.

Above will is on-line and mentions his nephew Robert Hayes (who inherited the farm), and nieces Martha Bradley & Elizabeth Barclay.

Thomas was 66 when he died.

Robert Hayes in the 1901 census:

https://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/pages/1901/Londonderry/Brackaghs…

Note Robert was married. Is there perhaps some confusion between Thomas, who I think was single, and his nephew Robert who was married? Robert's wife was dead by 1911:

https://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/pages/1911/Londonderry/Brackagh_…

Roseanna Hayes (nee Latimer) death in 1908:

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

George Hays in the 1831 census, at which time his family consisted of 5 males and 4 females, all "other Protestants" which may be Baptist in this case, since that was the denomination in the 1901 census. If so, you won't find any baptism records for the family, and that denomination does not baptise at birth.

Griffiths Valuation (1859) lists 2 Hayes farms in Lecumpher, beside each other. John Hayes had plot 13 which was 19 acres and George had plot 14 which was 21 acres. Both would be easy enough to locate today. They are either side of the A29 near Lecumpher Presbyterian church, just south from Desertmartin. The buildings on George's farm have all been demolished and it;s just farmland but John's looks to still be a large functioning farm, judging by a satellite image anyway. The Valuation Revision records (on the PRONI website) show both Lecumpher farms changing hands in 1912. A Henry Smith became the new owner.

Can't get any leads on Catherine Hayes.

Hi Elwyn/Elieen

 

Thank you so much for the assistance. Some of that which you found I knew, but you found many new things. You also offered some insights I had not yet considered. Though I had briefly looked at wills you found much more. I spent all the last two days delving into this problem and updating my Ancestry tree (Richard G. Sayre)

I had not found the will of Thomas or the letters of Administration for Eliza. Now I will try to find Hugh & Alexander in America. The mention of his nieces and nephew are key pieces of information. So, I think the will of Thomas and the valuation records suggests that Thomas is the son of John who died in 1861.

I had not even considered the 1831 census – I thought it was destroyed. His home in 1831 is 40 miles from Lecumpher so he could be the lease holder.

Thank you for all the clippings from the civil records. I have also downloaded the records you found, and I am adding them to the tree. I found more children from Archibald Bradley and Martha Jane Hayes. You found Eliza (1875), Sarah (1876), Janetta Martha (1878), Robert (1883), George (1884). I found Thomas John (1881), Edith Maude (1886), Alfred Hayes (1890). I think it more likely that the Archibald Bradley who died 18 Dec 1894 (4689173) is the husband of Martha. Each or these birth records identify Martha Jane Hayes as the mother. Then question is who is the Archibald who died in 1884?

This record from NAI corelates to Archibald.

1895 BRADLEY, Archibald

[29] Effects £258 19s 6 March.

Letters of Administration of the personal

 estate of Archibald Bradley late of Gulladuff County

Londonderry Farmer who died 17 December 1894

 at Ballymacombs were granted at Londonderry to

Robert Hayes of Lecumpher in said County Farmer

 the Attorney of the Widow.

 

Some Tasks we plan for our time in Ireland:

Research Drapers records PRONI D3632

Research Salters records PRONI D4108 (filmed as MIC631 through D4108/5 – collection continues to D4108/12/11, D4108/3 are leases

Baptist records. As you observed, religious records might not help, but I have been working my way through the records transcribed by the Derry genealogy center. No luck finding Catherine in their records so far. Though I know Baptists did not do infant baptisms, there are sometimes membership lists. I did not see any of those in the Derry GC, but PRONI has some.

Living Cousins. It does not appear that Robert had children, so finding descendants of John Hayes will probably be difficult.

Thanks so much for your help.

Rick

Rick,

I realise I missed the link to the 1831 census. Sorry:

http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/pages/1831/Londonderry/Loughinshollen/Desertmartin/Lecumpher/3/

The name has been mistranscribed but if you look at the original it was Hays. And he was living in Lecumpher. The 1831 census of Derry is really the only part of the 1831 census that has survived. Reportedly it was out of the Public Record Office for some reason or other when the building was burned in 1922.

Here’s a link to the marriage of John Barclay & Eliza Hayes in 1884:

http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/pages/1831/Londonderry/Loughinshollen/Desertmartin/Lecumpher/3/

Certificate shows she was the daughter of John (deceased). Here they are in the 1901 census:

http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/pages/1901/Londonderry/Brackaghslievegallion/Durnascullion/1533720/

and 1911:

http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/pages/1911/Londonderry/Brackagh_Slieve_Gallion/Durnascallon/614410/

1874 marriage for Martha J Hayes to Archibald Bradley:

https://civilrecords.irishgenealogy.ie/churchrecords/images/marriage_returns/marriages_1874/11243/8123126.pdf

Probate abstract: Letters of Administration of the personal estate of Archibald Bradley late of Gulladuff County Londonderry Farmer who died 17 December 1894 at Ballymacombs were granted at Londonderry to Robert Hayes of Lecumpher in said County Farmer the Attorney of the Widow.

The term “Letters of administration” for Archibald’s estate tells you he died intestate. So no will.

Tithe applotment records for 1827 list George Hayes farming in Lecumpher:

https://www.irishgenealogyhub.com/derry/tithe-applotments/desertmartin-parish.php

It looks to me as though the farm was split into 2 sometime between the 1831 census and Griffiths (1859).

D3632/B/39/8 at PRONI is a lease dated 1827 for George Huey of Lecumpher. That might be a misreading of George Hays. The lease itself is closed (probably too fragile) but is on MIC617/15.

There is another lease to George Hays of Lecumpher in November 1854. Also closed but available on MIC617/15. Likewise a lease of same date to John Hays. So maybe 1854 was when the farm was split.

Lease dated 6th Jan 1877 to John Hayes of Lecumpher is on MIC617/15. Also to Thomas Hayes and another to Robert Hayes both dated 29th June 1877.

 

D3632/G/5/2/2 (Draper’s agents) is on-line on the PRONI e-catalogue and mentions Robert Latimer of Lecumpher. Including:

“Rowley and John Rowley, Miller, Moneymore to Edward Lawford Esq. They will continue to observe the instruction that each individual tenant seeking assistance to emigrate should have their case considered by the Court of Assistants.

'... Seeing as we do a wonderful move in many of the inhabitants to get off to America and knowing the vast advantage it would be to the estate to get as many families away as possible and amalgamate the farms ... we took the liberty of mentioning that if a few hundreds of pounds were at our disposal we could benefit the estate to a great extent.'[8 Mar. 1847

Rowley and John Rowley, Miller, Moneymore to Edward Lawford Esq. 'We overlooked replying to a portion of yours of the 19th ult. respecting your allusion to our wishing to have a few hundred pounds at our disposal to assist persons to emigrate. In our letter of 2 March to which allude we did not mean to purchase the interest of the tenants out, who were anxious to emigrate, but only to assist them to procure their passages when the purchase money of their farms would not enable them to get away. We stated that after the arrear of rent was paid and more or less of small debts, that too often the sum left was not sufficient to pay the passage money. We also stated that we only intended to advance to each individual tenant a sum not exceeding £10 or £15 except in special cases.'

'In your letter of the said 19 March you state "that the Court were surprised at finding from the memorials of those tenants who have that object in view, that out of 18 there were only 5 who had not already disposed of their lands and consequently the enlargement of farms which you so very properly advocate would only be assisted in those 5 cases and however desirable it may be to get rid of the families of the other 13 applicants the same principle does not apply".'

'In reply to this we beg to say that out of the 18, 9 have or are about disposing of their farms which 9 farms have or are to be amalgamated with other farms and the houses either at present down or are to come down. 4 others lost their farms at the squaring of the townlands in 1842 and other farms were enlarged at that period by these 4 farms being amalgamated with them and these 4 families have squatted down upon the estate. We took the liberty of recommending some assistance being given to them as they were unable to pay their passage to America. The remaining 5 of the 18, 4 of the farms were disposed off to sons of tenants where we could not get them amalgamated and the 5th was the son of a tenant who with his wife and family settled with his father and we recommended that the land should be sold and that all should go to America. We hope that this account of these 18 persons will be satisfactory to the Court. Any that we have lately recommended for assistance to carry them to America it is perfectly understood that their farms are to be amalgamated and their houses to come down...' [12 Apr. 1847].

Rowley and John Rowley, Miller, Moneymore to Edward Lawford Esq. 'We send by this post two packages of memorials on the subject of emigration containing 26 in number. We are sorry to say that the freight for passengers to the United States of America has risen considerably which we fear will debar some of those families leaving this country who have been allowed grants from the Court of Assistants. There is one in particular we would take the liberty of drawing your attention to. Robert Latimore of Lecumpher, when he applied for assistance in November last the passage money was much lower. He has a tolerably large family (the number just now we do not recollect) but unless the Court kindly give him further assistance he cannot get out of the country. £10 was granted to him by your letter of the 19th March and it would take at least £10 more to get him away'.

'We have great pleasure in being able to inform you that when sickness and death in their most appalling shapes are widely spread through many portions of our land there is not one case of fever throughout the length and breadth of this estate'.[28 Apr. 1847].”

Note: The Drapers were one of the London Livery companies who had invested in developing Co Derry in the 1600s. The “Court of Assistants” was their term for their management board.

 

Check the Registry of Deeds records for the late 1700s in case there is a 3 lives lease for the Lecumpher farm. That often gives ages and relationships.

If going to PRONI for the first time, take your passport in order to get your Reader’s Ticket. Issued at reception, takes 2 minutes and valid for 10 years. It’s free.