FATHER'S DAY, Jun 19, 2016 - 3 Generations of GILLESPIE fathers

My father, his father, and his father... a line of GILLESPIE men in our family. Photos are rather the worse for wear, coffee stains on dad's jaw for instance, scratches etc. on other photos.

1941: John GILLESPIE,
          Dad in his Army uniform, taken in Vancouver, BC, Canada
          1907 Cambusnethan Scotland - 1975 Burnaby BC Canada

1899: William John "Jack" GILLESPIE,
          Grandpa in engagement photo, in Barrow in Furness, Lancashire, England
          1876 Augher Tyrone Ireland - 1964 North Vancouver ,BC Canada

1895ish: George GILLESPIE,
          Great-grandfather, from family photo, in Barrow in Furness, Lancashire, England
          1851 Newton Tyrone Ireland - 1941 Barrow in Furness

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY to fathers everywhere...

A Conundrum: What is George GILLESPIE's father's name?

I've known for many years that George GILLESPIE, my great-grandfather on my father's side, had parents, James GILLESPIE, and Elizabeth [unknown surname - possibly Morrison].  The photo to the right here was taken about 1895.

Why was I so certain? Because I had carefully tracked back, proving linkages step by step, from my dad to his father, to his parents, and to his grandparents.  And the confirmation was to see them in Barrow in Furness on the 1881 England Census, James & Elizabeth, Andrew son, Robert son, Margaret dau, George son & son's wife Catherine, plus grandsons Wm John (Grandpa) and James Robert.  All born in Ireland, but living in Barrow in Furness, Lancashire, England in 1881. Grandpa Wm John was born in Augher, Tyrone.

Recently, using the site IrelandXO - Ireland Reaching Out - I found more information to help me track down George & Catherine's marriage certificate.  I was hoping to find their fathers' names, possibly more information.  A year ago, on an index of Ireland Marriages 1845-1958, I had found a marriage listing for the Registration district of Clogher (County Tyrone), showing Catherine Armstrong married to George Gelespie in 1875.

Well that seems clearly the right couple, doesn't it? I mean, really, how many Catherine Armstrongs could there be in County Tyrone in either the Parish of Clogher or the town of Clogher, marrying a George Gillespie/Gelespie (many variants), the year before my grandpa was born-?  None, right? Of course.  So with encouragement and a little extra information of the correct district from a friendly Clogher Parish volunteer on IrelandXO, I sent away for the marriage certificate from the GRO online.  Only £8, plus mailing. Quite reasonable.

And in only a week, I received the certificate, as noted in the Registrar's District of Dungannon, see photo of Glenhoy Presbyterian Church on the right:

#16  Nov. 25th '75  Geo. Gelespie & C. Armstrong married in the Glenhoy Presb. Church, by Licence, by R. Warnock, with signatures of witnesses William Wright and James Scott and with the marks of George Gelespie and Cathrine Armstrong.  Except for the signatures of the minister and the witnesses, the document seems to have been completely filled out by the minister.

BUT:  George's father?  "William Gelespie"   Ignore spelling of course.  And Catherine's father?  "John Armstrong"   Unknown to me, so can't evaluate

Oh dear... Why does it say William as his father, when from 1881 onward, we know his father was James?

Of course, I could make an assumption this still could be correct.  That is, his full legal name might be William James.  He could have decided to use James as his commonly-used name. In the same way my Grandpa was William John, but was always known by a nickname for his middle name John - "Jack."

Could that be the reason for William?  Too easy, isn't it.  I mean, it is possible, but I'm definitely suspicious.  Although, notice my Grandpa's name: William (after George's father??) John (after Catherine's father??) Maybe? Sigh.

Back to my newly updated Research Plan.  I need to try to find the birth record of any of the Gillespie siblings of George, to see if they list any of their parents, and/or the marriage record(s) as well, to see what they put down for their father's name. Money is a bit tight, so I'll try one at a time, so I don't pay for the wrong person other than my great-grand ancestors!

George's siblings, all born in N.Ireland:
  - Andrew, b. abt 1858, unclear if he married, d. 1924 Belfast, N.Ireland
  - Robert, b. abt 1861, m. Mary Ann McGarry, 10 Apr 1882 in  Barrow, d. 1906 Belfast, N.Ireland
  - Margaret Ann, b. abt 1863, m. Joseph Smith, 4th Q 1882 in Barrow, d. ? after 1911 Belfast (living, 1911 Census)

And of course, I definitely must research any William Gillespie/Gelespie in Co. Tyrone... plus any other Armstrongs including John Armstrong. We do know from other older first cousins that Catherine had several siblings:  George, Susan, Samuel, Bessie [Elizabeth?], and an unknown-named brother (disabled).  I have no idea where Catherine's birth is in this group of siblings.  But as I know her birth year is abt 1853 from Censuses in England, I can assume the other siblings are from 1840-1870.  Clearly I could/should also search out these Armstrong siblings as well.  Busybusybusy.

There are times I do wish my ancestors were written up in histories, were in court, had a higher status so would be more visible back in those days, in Northern Ireland.  But they weren't.  They were hard-working lower class labourers. Adventurous enough to hop across from Ireland to northern England for work, up to Scotland for work, then across the ocean and across Canada, to find a better life for their families.  Good on them.  But could they please leave me a little clue or two??  I'm looking...

If you know anything more about any of the above individuals, I would be so pleased for more details. And if you wish more information on them, I'm also happy to share. Contact me at my address at the bottom of the page.

Sometimes my Blogger account seems not to allow me to "reply" to your comments. Do know that I value your comments immensely. You make my day! Thanks for stopping by to read my personal genealogy posts.

52 ANCESTORS, 52 THEMES No.11: Luck of the Irish: DONAGHY & GILLESPIE

This year's challenge by Amy Crow is another weekly blog, but based on Themes. Last week, it was Stormy Weather, and this week it is "Luck of the Irish."  Here is shown the links of how my daughter's great-great-grandmother and my son-in-law's great-grandmother lived a stone's throw (or two) from each other in Ireland, and their descendants met and married in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada - half-way 'round the world.

My greatgrandmother, Catherine ARMSTRONG, bap. 3 May 1853 in Parish Clogher, Augher, County Tyrone, N.Ireland, married George GILLESPIE in 1875 in Augher. I have written a number of times about my GILLESPIE line, and this photo of  Catherine is taken in 1895-1898, from a family photograph. 

The Parish birthplace - Clogher, County Tyrone - was listed on their 1911 Census in Barrow-in-Furness, Lancashire, England. The family had moved from Ireland just before 1881. The village of Augher shows on the birth registration of their first son, my grandfather, Wm John "Jack" GILLESPIE, who was born there.  His birth was attended by the Informant, Margerie Armstrong - who could be Catherine's mother, grandmother, aunt, or sister... I have yet to find any record of Margerie.  As you can see on the extreme right box, it took several months to finally name Grandpa! I wonder why? 

Transcription: Births registered in the District of Clogher, in County of Tyrone:  #439.  Birthdate:Twentythree August 1876; blank box for name of baby, M[ale]. Father: George Gillespie; Dwelling place: Augher;  Mother: Catherine Gillespie formerly Armstrong; Father's Profession:  Labourer;  Informant: Margerie Armstrong "X" her mark, present at Birth, Augher; Date Registered: Twenty Eighth August 1876;  [Frar. Scraggs]; Bapt. Name if added after Registration of Birth:  Wm John, 23rd October 1876. 

Now recently, I was asked to research my son-in-law's family, their British & German roots, and ran across a great-grandmother of his born in Ireland. Another Irish connection. How interesting, I thought.  [Happy St.Patrick's Day!]

Martha Jane DONAGHY, b. abt 1877, in Emyvale, County Monaghan, N.Ireland, married 2 Aug 1898 in Glasgow, Scotland to James PERRY, b. 1875 in Hartshill, Warwickshire, England.  Her parents were Patrick DONAGHY and Martha McGUINESS, both of Ireland. The 1911 Census of England & Wales gave the birthplace for each person, which was my first finding of the village of Emyvale in Monaghan for Martha Jane DONAGHY's birthplace.  

On a map, I saw that the village of Emyvale was very close to the northern edge of County Monaghan... and just for a lark, I looked for where the village of Augher was in the south of County Tyrone.  CLOSE!  Very close: 10.8 miles (17.4 km), in fact.  With a steady walk, it's only a few hours away. Click on the link to see the region on Google Maps.

So I have found that my daughter and her husband, both have direct ancestors - great-grandmothers - who took different routes emigrating from their nearby villages in Northern Ireland. And their descendants ended up across the ocean, across Canada, in Victoria, British Columbia, where they met and married. Amazing. Half way round the world.

I'm sorry I don't have a photo of Martha Jane DONAGHY Perry.  Apparently a box or two of photographs is coming "soon".  I can't wait to see if there are photographs of her in the box. 

If you have further information on any of the people listed here, do contact me directly via calewis at telus dot com.  I would love to continue adding more details and photos to my son-in-law's family records.  

NOTE: My Blogger account is acting up and not allowing me to reply to comments just now. Assume that I am absolutely thrilled you took the time to come by, read the notes, and comment. You make my day!

GRANDPARENTS - with a nod to the USA National Grandparents Day, yesterday

Grandparents, as well as a few great-grandparents.                                                                                                     

Beginning with the first page in the photograph album my mother made for all three of us kids, for one Christmas present.  It took her the whole year to do it, in about 1972 or thereabouts.  All three of us had similar photos in 'our' albums, but we also had many specific to us.  "In the Beginning" is the first page in my album, lettering done by Mom.  

Top right on this first page is my maternal great-grandmother (my mother's mother's mother) Clara Augusta "Gussie" GRAVES Terwilliger, 1857-1955.  Mom typed her age as 100, but she died at age 98, not long after this photo of her living in Florida.  We knew her in the family as "Madee" pronounced Maud'ee, a corruption of the Spanish word Madre for mother. 

Below her on this first page is a tintype from Barrow-in-Furness, Lancs, UK, celebrating my paternal grandparents' 1898 engagement, William John "Jack" GILLESPIE, 1876-1964, and beside him, Harriette BUNN, 1879-1962.  Look to the bottom for Jack Gillespie's parents.

Bottom left on this first page is my maternal grandfather, Charles Edward KUHN, 1876-1945. My maternal grandmother, his wife, is below this 1960s photo, Marguerite Josephine "Daisy" TERWILLIGER Kuhn, 1880-1973.  We knew her in the family as "GramPete" from a nickname as "Peter" a corruption of the Spanish word for little girl, Pepita.  

Next is GramPete's father, James Grover "Grove" TERWILLIGER, 1856-1929.  His wife is Madee in the top right photo on the "In the Beginning" page, above.

On the bottom is Grove Terwilliger's father, James M. TERWILLIGER, 1825-1909.

And here we have my Irish paternal great-grandfather, my father's father's father, George GILLESPIE, 1851-1941.   And here on the right, his wife, my great-grandmother, Catherine ARMSTRONG Gillespie, 1853-1923.

I am very pleased to have even these few photos of my grandparents and great-grandparents. As you can see, many of them lived to a good long life.  Another greatgrandmother lived to 102, a number of others lived well into the 90s. 

Any questions and comments may be added in the Comments section below.  Thanks for stopping by. 

1921 CANADA CENSUS - Grandparents GILLESPIE House!

The 1921 Census for Canada was recently published online with a searchable index, on Ancestry.

When it first was released a few months ago as browsable images, unindexed, I searched diligently page by page, section by section, ward by ward.  I knew both sets of grandparents were living in Vancouver in 1921, but search as I did, I found nothing.  It was terribly frustrating, but I knew the searchable index would be done "soon", likely in a few months.

My Grandparents GILLESPIE had arrived in Canada in the previous decade: Grandpa in 1911, then he'd borrowed money from the Salvation Army and paid for Grandma and all 5 children (4-15 yrs) to come to Canada in November 1914.  That's right, just after the first World War started.  What a time that must have been, leaving Barrow in Furness, Lancashire, England, to cross the Atlantic Ocean in 3rd class, my grandmother with 5 children, and whatever they had shipped with them. Arriving in Canada, getting on the Canadian Pacific railway and travelling across Canada to the West Coast, to Vancouver BC.  Finally meeting up with Grandpa after 3 long years apart. Courage, eh? Determination, and much more, I'm sure.

If you click on the Census image of Vancouver below, you can read details of  Wm John GILLESPIE (always known as Jack), and Harriet GILLESPIE, plus the children: George, Winifred, John [Dad], and Elizabeth (known as Lil).

In 1921 the family shows up on the Census as living on the east side of Vancouver, at 1512  2nd Avenue East, with 4 of their 5 children. The eldest child, Elsie, had married only the year previous. Reminder, must find Aunt Elsie & Uncle John on the Census as well, see where she and her husband were living!  

My brother is a realtor, so he immediately went looking for the house. We didn't have much hope of finding an old house in that area, but my goodness, we hit pay dirt.

The house, built in 1910, is still standing, looking rather pretty in a simple way, in a narrow long lot.

It is two stories tall with a basement partially underground, a tall box-shape with a front porch, painted happy yellow with white trim, a white lilac bush on the right side by the house, a little white picket fence around the house. It's still there. What a charming find!  You can see the little bit of cake decoration around the tops of the posts of the porch.

Here's another view:

In Vancouver many of these old 1900s clapboard houses have been torn down as waves of redevelopment washed over the city along with waves of new residents and immigrants. Somehow this house is still here, still looking like a home to a family. I'm thrilled, simply thrilled to see this.

Next, I'll be looking for my other Grandparents' home. They arrived in Vancouver around 1913, and lived on the west side of Vancouver.

Any questions or comments are always welcome. You can also email me at calewis at telus dot net

THE NORTHERN IRELAND CONNECTION - Gillespie line

My father's surname was GILLESPIE, and I knew very little about his parents' ancestors when I started trying to research our family tree about 8 years ago.  All direct grandparents and parents were deceased by then, and I wasn't very close to my much-older first cousins on that side.

Dad was born in Cambusnethan, Lanarkshire, Scotland  on Sunday April 7, 1907, coming over to Canada with his Mom and 4 siblings in November 1914, following his father who had arrived in Canada in 1911.  Thank heavens for passenger lists with all their details!   remember both his parents having an accent of some sort - maybe it was Scottish, or English - I wasn't even sure! My Dad was nicknamed "Scottie" when he was younger because of his accent - which disappeared in his teens. My grandparents never talked about the old country that I remember.

I assumed we were Scottish, because of his birthplace, and the tossed-off comment that his older siblings remembered playing on Hadrian's Wall.  But I also knew they lived in Barrow in Furness, Lancashire, England, before coming to Canada.  Hmmmm.  Odd that we never questioned them - or maybe it isn't very odd at all.  Children are rather narcissistic by nature and development, so by the time I thought to ask questions, my grandparents and their older children were deceased.

Research now shows that my grandfather GILLESPIE - Jack (William John) - was born in Augher, County Tyrone, Ireland, 23 August 1876.  And I have the birth registration to prove it, showing his father, his mother and her maiden name (ARMSTRONG), the village, and the belated registration of his name in October 1876.  Yeah!! And the person "present at the birth" had the same surname as Grandpa's mother's maiden name: a Margerie Armstrong, living in the same village of Augher. Possibly her mother? A sister? Aunt? Clues galore! Grandpa's younger brother, Jim (James Robert), was born a few miles further north in Omagh, County Tyrone, Ireland.  Page-by-page-turns through a Family History film found me his birth registration, with same parents' names.  Excellent confirmation.  The entire family - Grandpa, his brother Jim, his parents, and his grandparents with aunt and uncles - all moved from Ireland to Barrow in Furness between 1879-1881, as they are all listed on the England Census 1881.

A few years ago, I finally reached out to a few of my elderly first cousins on my dad's side.  He was the 2nd youngest in the family, and his elder siblings were already married and with teenaged children when he finally got married in 1941. Our first cousins ranged from 15-25 or more years older than us, the youngest grandchildren. June had a lovely large photograph of my Grandpa's siblings and parents, in the mid-1890s (incorrectly labelled as 1890). Grandpa is the young man on the left. What a glorious find! I have also had wonderful conversations with another cousin, Catherine, who is now 87 years old, about our mutual grandparents and stories she remembers.

Now I'm searching diligently through Northern Ireland records, and maintaining a relationship with Catherine, enjoying reminiscing with her, teasing out more possible clues to follow, and enjoying her stories.  She has photographs my parents didn't - which I've scanned, and is also able to give me relatives' names in England, early history of our grandparents in Canada, explanations, and more!

If you have more information on our GILLESPIE-ARMSTRONG family, do please contact me at calewis at telus dot net and I'll be happy to correspond.  Or, leave a comment below.

SURNAME SATURDAY - George GILLESPIE, b. abt 1850

George GILLESPIE, born about 1851 in Newton, Tyrone, Northern Ireland, is my paternal greatgrandfather.  He gave this year and birthplace on the 1911 UK Census in Barrow in Furness, Lancashire, England, which will help me, I hope, to find his birth registration or baptism, plus marriage registration.  Eventually.

The entire family - George, his wife and two small children, his 2 brothers, 1 sister, and his parents - all emigrated from Northern Ireland in approximately 1879, settling in Barrow where there was a significant increase in ship-building and related industry.

Here is a badly-damaged photo of George, taken in the 1930s; he died in February 1941 in Barrow, at the age of 90, apparently still going for a walk every day with his dog (Judy), according to Mary, his only daughter, with whom he lived:

Grgrandfather George was the eldest of 4 children of James GILLESPIE b. abt 1821 Ireland, and Eliza (Elizabeth) MORRISON, b. abt 1823 Ireland.   James & Eliza married approximately 1850, possibly in the Belfast area, according to several distant cousins.  They had at least 4 children that I have been able to track (to date); these four are listed on the 1881 UK Census for Barrow, and every member in the family is born in Ireland (no place given):
- George (my line) b. abt 1851
- Andrew b. abt 1858
- Robert b. abt 1861
- Margaret b. abt 1863

As you can see, there is a gap of about 7 years between George and his next brother, Andrew, which makes me wonder if there might be another daughter or two, or another son, who decided to stay in Northern Ireland.  Of course they may have lost one or two children at young ages.  There is still much research to do in this family.

George married Catherine ARMSTRONG in about 1875 in Parish Clogher, Tyrone, Northern Ireland, and they had 4 children, the eldest two born in Tyrone, Northern Ireland, the younger two born in Barrow, Lancashire, in England:
- William John "Jack" b. 23 Aug 1876 (my line) b. 23 Aug 1876 ?Augher, Tyrone
- James Robert "Jim" b. 7 Apr 1878 (Parish Beagh?) Armagh or Omagh, Tyrone
- Mary Elizabeth  b. 19 Apr 1883  Barrow in Furness, Lancashire, England
- George Armstrong  b. 1886  Barrow in Furness, Lancashire (d. 8 Aug 1916 at Battle of the Somme, France, WWI)

George & Catherine lived in Barrow for the rest of their lives.  George is listed on the various censuses in Barrow as an Iron Founders Labourer, and an Engine Fitter's Labourer.  The first Census I find the family in is the 1881 UK Census, where all 9 are living in the Walney Ward of Barrow in Furness, at "#262 Brick Cottages".  About 300 brick cottages were built for labourers for the burgeoning steel and ship-building industries.

The two eldest sons emigrated to Canada before the beginning of WWI, and the youngest son, his namesake, died in the Battle of the Somme in 1916.  By the time the war ended, his daughter was the only child still in England.  Mary (b. 1883) married later in life, in September 1930, widowed by 1948. The couple lived with her father until his death in Feb 1941.

Here is an excerpt from a letter Mary wrote to two first cousins of mine when they were young:

"Your greatgranddad is very well considering his 91 years.  He is always doing something.  Yesterday he was chopping wood.  Just now he is putting the potatoes on for the midday meal.  But the wireless is his pet hobby.  I don't think any scholar enjoys the broadcast for Schools, more than he does.  I tell him he ought by now, to be perfect in German & French.  But I really think the Church services are the broadcasts he likes best." 

If you know any information on the above GILLESPIE names and families, do please contact me at calewis at telus dot com.