Manus McMenamin : Short Biography

References

Manus McMenamin 1790

Stranorlar (Donegal) Donaghmore (Donegal)

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Additional Information
Date of Birth	1st Jan 1790 (circa)
Date of Death	1st Jan 1857 (circa)
Townland born	Townland of Birth: Approximately 1790 in Gleneely, Raphoe South
Spouse (First Name/s and Maiden/Surname)	Spouse: Anna Quinn
Names of Children	Names of Children: Bridget A., was the youngest child. There were at least three brothers: Thomas, James, and John, and at least two other daughters, whose names I do not know.
Place of Death	Place of Death: Approximately 1857, Knockfair near Lough Alaan, Donegal

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Can anybody show me a register where this information is listed for Manus McMenamin.

I am prepared to accept that a Manus McMenamin is listed as a flax grower.

I am not prepared to accept that that Manus McMenamin was the father of Bridget Anna , James, Thomas and John as is shown on many family trees.

I accept as fact that a Manus Mc Menamin worked in Knockfair, Stranorlar and had offspring, Bridget Anna, James and Thomas.

I do not know if he had a son John.

I do know that my great great grandfather was John McMenamin who worked in Knockfair and that that John was born in 1804 and died in 1867 and was married to Betty Kane of Gortlettragh born 1799 and died 1890

The John McMenamin listed as being brother to Bridget Anna , James and Thomas and with an estimated birth in 1820 I do not know but I think it highly unlikely that a woman who gives birth to a son in 1820 is likely to produce children in 1827,1828, and 1829. Those nlatter three would seem to me to be more likely to have been born as the first three to a union.

Need I go further ? I do have more supporting evidence. I have walked every field in the Knockfair farm and fished the lake and stood on the site of the house that was rented to John McMenamin not to Manus McMenamin in Knockfair.

Now, may I ask you, Ireland XO, to produce verification for the Flax grower information you have listed for Manus McMenamin of Knockfair, Stranorlar, or to please get off the pot.

Yours truely

John McMenamin,

with a direct verifable line back to John McMenamin of Knockfair and a link prior to that via DNA to Dartan,Belalt,Castlefin, CoDonegal

Belalt

Sunday 18th August 2019 12:08AM

Good Evening, John,

It's nice to meet you, at least electronically. Thank you for writing. I'm sorry I've been lax in my family tree research, I will do my best to get back on track soon.

I believe we might be some degree of cousins, because one of my great-great grandmothers was Bridget Anna McMenamin, who was born in Knockfair near Lough Alaan and lived in Ballybofey, Donegal. I have a photo of the Lough that my grandfather took in 1919 when he visited there after World War 1, and some entries in his diary that he wrote down after his visit with his McMenamin relatives there. (I'm so pleased to read that you have been there and fished that lake. My own father would've loved to hear it.)

According to family lore over here, Bridget sailed from Ballybofey to Philadelphia some time in the 1840's with some of her brothers, and then around 1847-48 she married James Kelly, a shoe and bootmaker from Killygordon. I don't know how they met, but I'm guessing their families might have been acquainted because Ballybofey and Killygordon are so close.

As for Manus McMenamin, he's listed as Bridget's father on her death certificate here in Philadelphia. I have a copy of it, and the person giving the information was Frank Tucker. He was one of Bridget's grandsons and my grandfather. My grandfather would've known this from family stories of relatives in Ireland. It's possible that he got it wrong, in part or as a whole, because the family story goes that once Bridget McMenamin arrived in Philadelphia, nobody in Ballybofey ever heard from her again. (I'm sure there's a story there!)

Speaking of family stories, Bridget used to say that she "had a relative back home with a wooden leg." Thanks to the efforts of another extended cousin, Dolores Pollock in California, we have determined that this "relative with a wooden leg" was James (Jimmy Stickleg) McMenamin.

But I digress. As for Manus McMenamin, as I mentioned, my earliest point of reference for him was his daughter Bridget's death certificate. To the best of my memory I have been looking for him in whatever online website records that might mention him.

Well, there we have it. I'm certainly no expert, but I'm hoping these bits of information are helpful in sorting who Manus McMenamin was.

Thank you again for writing. I'm always happy to meet another cousin! I'll try to put some time into this question soon, and correct whatever errors I might have made.

With best wishes to you for a pleasant week,

One of Your Cousins on this side of the Atlantic,

Jan Tucker Mulligan