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By Roberta M. O'Brien Updated March 2, 2002 William John (Jack) O'Brien (1894-1978) Jack was a sniper in the artillary in WWI and was hit in the leg by shrapnel at Paschendael. The doctors wanted to amputate the leg but a nurse convinced them that they should leave it on. (This gave him a phobia of doctors which lasted all this life) After a lengthy recuperation in England, he went back to Chapleau and married Eva Petrosky. They had one son. Jack was laid off at the beginning of the depression and spent the next several years working at various railway jobs all over North America, doing "grubstake" prospecting and farming a few acres in the bush while Eva worked as a clerk for various businesses in town. At the end of the depression, he was hired back by the CPR as a trainman and worked his way up to conductor on the CPR "Canadian" passenger service. While in England, Jack discovered socialism. He joined the Cooperative Commonwealth Federation (CCF) to fight for justice for workers. This resulted in his excommunication from the Catholic Church. But Jack wouldn't be deterred and he stayed heavily involved with the CCF/NDP until just before he died. Ancestors and Relatives of Jack O'Brien O'Brien Research
(2) Two brothers sent to Australia I hired a research firm in Ireland to look for two O'Briens from the Newmarket area sent to Australia about 1824. They turned up Cork Jail records and newspaper accounts of William 40 and Patrick 30 who were caught out after the curfew in Newmarket and were sentenced in December of 1823 to 7 years transportation under the Insurrection Act. I have not yet found any evidence of their arrival in Australia. (3) The other brother sent to Canada This is like looking for a needle in a haystack. One obvious candidate is John O'Brien from Kanturk who was also on the "Stakesby" in 1823. He was last noted about 1825 as "working at his trade in Montreal". It is also possible that the other brother came out on his own in 1823 or at some later date. (4) Descendants and relatives I am tracing O'Brien and White relatives in the Huntley/Almonte area and their migrations up the Ottawa Valley and to western Canada and the States. I have found several relatives (some of them have found me) who have more current information.
Fitzgerald | Buckley | Curran | James White | Michael White | Sheehan | My great-great-great-grandparents Timothy and Mary O'Brien came to the Bathurst District of Upper Canada from Newmarket County Cork in 1823. They were part of the first Peter Robinson emigration. The family with children Margaret, Bridget and Denis is listed (no.s 90-94) on the Stakesby ships list. Timothy was first offered a free land grant on the East half of lot 4 concession 2 in Darling Township but finding the land unsuitable he moved the family to the northwest corner of Huntley Township. After considering several lots, he decided on the West half of lot 22 concession 10 in Huntley. His descendants lived on this lot until Oct. 1891 Timothy died in the late summer or fall of 1827 leaving Mary with six children to raise on her own. Widow Mary O'Brien fought a lengthy battle with the lands authorities to ensure that her eldest son Denis would obtain the patent for the land grant. Denis was finally awarded the patent by the Heir and Devisee Commission in 1853. Denis died March 5, 1863 at age 40 unmarried. The Surrogate Court of Carleton County awarded his property to his mother Widow Mary O'Brien. Mary herself died c.1865 and on May 11, 1866 the court awarded the property to the younger son Timothy (jnr), my great-great-grandfather. Timothy O'Brien (jnr) and Mary Fitzgerald Timothy and Mary Fitzgerald raised a large family on the farm which now included Timothy's own property next door on lot 23. Over the years, they sold off various parcels and, in one case, seem to have given away a small plot. They also had mortgages on the farm several times but always managed to pay them back (perhaps by selling parts off). Suddenly, in October 1891, after obtaining a promise from Thomas Kennedy to buy the farm, they moved to a 100 acre lot in the north end of Admaston Township, near Douglas, Renfrew county. They are listed there in the 1901 census with grandsons John Gibney b.1888 and Andrew Ellis b.1895. In 1901 40 acres were severed off for their daughter Ellen Quinn. Timothy died in 1902 in Admaston. In 1906, the mortgage company foreclosed on the property and everyone moved to north to Douglas. Mary Fitzgerald died in Douglas in 1919. Dennis O'Brien and Mary White Dennis was dibilitated in 1930 from an illness and after that collected a pension. He died about 1947 and Mary died about 1950. When I asked my Dad about his Grandfather, he laughed but couldn't explain why. I gather that my Great-Grandfather was a great wit and story-teller. Dinny O'Brien became somewhat of a mythic figure; he is one of the Ottawa Valley characters in Joan Finnigan's book "Laughing All The Way Home" (apparentley many of the stories attributed to Dinny happened after he died!) He is also mentioned with fondness in Garfield T. Ogilvie's whimsical book about West Huntley "Once Upon a Country Lane".
(Caution, this is a work in progress and may contain errors) |
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MAJOR SOURCES: Ontario Land Records, Peter Robinson Papers, British Parliamentry Papers, Huntley Township files, Canada census 1842-1901, Ontario BMD, Manitoba Death Records, US census 1870-1920, St Michael's Church records, Carleton County Surrogate Court, Ontario wills, Ottawa church records, newspaper obits., Bennett (1987), Calvin Scholl, Dan Quinn, Joe & Vi Smith, etc. My gr-gr-grandmother, Mary Fitzgerald, was a relative newcomer to Huntley Townhship. According to family legend, her father Michael was evicted from his farm in Co.Cork because he could not pay his tithes. Mary and her brother were sent to North America as indentured servants. At one of the eastern Canadian ports (possibly in Newfoundland) they were separated, Mary was sent to the Ottawa area and the brother was sent to the States. After her indenture was over, Mary obtained employment on a farm near Carp, in the eastern part of Huntley Township. The 1861 census shows Mary Fitzgerald, age 24, working on the farm of George Argue. James Buckley was a Peter Robinson settler from Churchtown, Co. Cork, who came over with a brother Daniel, sister Ellen and their mother Mary in 1823 on the ship "Hebe" (no.s 167-8 & 230-1). After considering some lots in the south end of Huntley, this Buckley family settled on lots 1 & 3 con 12 in the northwest part of Goulbourn Township. James, a shoemaker by trade, married Mary (Bridget) O'Brien in Ottawa 1830 and in 1835 he secured a disputed clergy lot (E.19 con 10) for his mother-in-law Widow O'Brien. James and Mary may have lived on this lot until 1846 when they moved to W ½ lot 19 con 11 Huntley. The Buckley family is listed there in the 1871 census. They then sold this lot and appear to have left Huntley Twp in October 1871. Mary must have died shortly after this; in the 1880 US census James is listed as a widower living with his son Daniel in Sauk Centre Minnesota. Daniel had left Huntley Township after "some trouble" with forged silver dollars. A number of O'Briens, Buckleys and Currans ended up at Daniel's place for short visits or longer stays. In the 1900 census, the McClennans were living next door in a rented house, possibly on Daniel's farm. Ellen O'Brien was probably visiting the Buckleys when she met John Daniel Quinn who lived nearby. Mary O'Brien (her sister) is listed as a witness at Ellen's marriage in 1892. [Quinn] James Curran came from Ireland in 1823 as an eight year old child with his parents John and Sarah, his father's sister Margaret, and siblings Joanna, Thomas and Mary. The came from Lismore, Co. Waterford and are listed on the "Stakesby" under the name of "Green" (no.s 47-53). John and Sarah settled on W ½ lot 13 con 11 Ramsay Twp (very close to Huntley Twp) John Curran died in the early part of 1825. Father John MacDonald from Perth, recorded in his diary that his widow Sarah married William Riordan on Nov 1, 1825. In this marriage record, Sarah's parents are given as William Butler and Margaret O'Brien, and William's parents as Timothy Riorden and Catherine Connell. (Bennett, 1987; 161) Apparently, William Riordan farmed James' lot W ½ lot 13 con 11 until James was of age and he then moved to his own lot E ½ 23 con 5, Ramsay (Bennett, 1987;133) Later on, James Curran acquired W ½ lot 19 and W ½ lot 20 con 12 Huntley where he and Julia are listed in the 1861 census. More research is needed on James' siblings in Ramsay. My gr-gr-gr grandparents, James White and Hanora Mahoney came to Canada in 1823 as Peter Robinson settlers from Clogheen, Tipperary. The family boarded the ship "Hebe" using the name "Brunswick".(no.s 119-123). There are also Michael and James White (no.s 30,31) from Clogheen on the first list. On the second list, James Brunswick seems to have disappeared and it is noted than Nora Brunswick is the wife of James White and the Brunswick children are the children of James White. There is no mention of a second James White. However, hidden in the numerous lists in the lands records is a note that Michael White was on West of lot 3 con. 11 Goulbourn and his son John, age 18 was on the East of lot 3 con 11. (Is John the other "James" from the first ship list?) It seems likely that Michael and James White were related, probably brothers. Someone has recently submitted information about this family to the LDS and it is now incorporated into the International Genealogical Index (IGI). Some of the information has specific dates and seems to be derived from actual records. Other information is obviously conjectoral and should be treated with caution. James White and Hanora Mahoney CAUTION: this is a work in progress and may contain errors. | |
| 1 James WHITE b: Abt. 1785 Clogheen, Tipperary, Ireland d: 1871 Huntley Twp, Ont, Canada | |
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Michael and Johanna (Mahoney?) White There are several extra Whites in the baptismal and census records who may belong
to the Michael White family: CAUTION: this is a work in progress and may contain errors. |
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1 Michael WHITE b: Bef. 1785? Clogheen, Tippereary, Ireland d: Bef. 1851 Goulbourn Twp, Carleton Cnty, Ont. | |
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I am fairly certain that my gr-gr grandmother, Catherine Sheehan, was a younger daughter of James and Mary Sheehan who were also Peter Robinson settlers on the "Hebe" (no.s 281-287). The Sheehans settled on the west half of lot 11 con 4 Ramsay Twp, Lanark County. The widow Mary Sheehan and some of the children including Catherine, age 30, born in Upper Canada, were still there in the 1861 census of Ramsay Twp. CAUTION: this is a work in progress and may contain errors. | |
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1 James SHEEHAN b: Abt. 1785 Buttevant? Cork, Ireland d: Bef. 1861 Ramsay Twp, Ont.
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*Sheehan-McAuliffe??? Included as "family" in the 1861 census record of the Sheehans is a Catherine M.?oulof, age 7 b.Can.W. and a Peggy M.?oulof, age 45, Wid. b.Ire. I assumed that "Peggy" was the daughter Margaret age 10 listed in the 1823 records. After staring at "M.?oulof" for several years, I finally came to the conlusion that it is "McAuliffe". In the 1871 census of Beckwith there is a widow Margaret McAuliffe, age 55 with a large family including a son named Malache and a daughter Catherine age 18. However, this widow McAuliffe is very definitely Margaret Fitzgerald. Are these two Margarets the same person? Or, were there two different widows named Margaret McAuliffe, the same age and with daughters named Catherine the same age? Other Sheehan Families HOME | O'Brien | Fitzgerald | Buckley | Curran | James White | Michael White | Sheehan | Roberta O'Brien e-mail | |