Edward Foley/John Foley

my ggggrandparents, John Foley/Ellen C(K)avanagh and their son Edward are from.

Perhaps provide some more info, such as years of birth/death (approx), Edward's siblings, wife, children, year of marriage.  This would help narrow them down. Thanks.

Hi Patricia,

Edward emigrated to the US in the late 1840’s. The 1850 census has an Edward Foley in Schuykill Haven, PA. He applied for citizenship in 1854. He was naturalized in 1860 in LaSalle,IL and that paperwork mentions Schuykill Haven, so we are pretty certain this is Edward. Of course there are contradictions. The 1850 census lists his age as 28. After marrying Eliza Malone Farrell(widow of Michael Farrell) in 1857, the 1860 census has both Edward and Eliza listed as 30!!  He died in 1863 so there are no other records for him in the U.S.  So, he could have been born in 1822-1830. The parish that he was married in(St Patrick’s in LaSalle) has just a single mention of his death. “I buried Edward Foley, aged about 40”, March 25, 1863.

We don’t have any information as to where he came from or if any siblings came to the U.S. either before or after him.

If he was first born, chances seem good that his grandfather was an Edward. If that were true, chances are his father, John, would have been born in the late 1790’s- early 1800’s-1810?

That’s about all I can give you.

Thank you for taking an interest.

Pat

PJK,

If you haven't seen the vital and church records for Edward's children, it is possible that they might include their father's exact place of birth.  I once found "Co. Longford" on a child's baptismal record.

Hi Patricia,

His four children were all baptized at St Pat's in LaSalle, Ellen in 1857, Margaret in 1859, John in 1861 and Edward in 1863.  The only information besides the parents names were sponsor names.

I have found a few Edward Foley's on passenger lists but none have personal info other than approx age.

I keep thinking Edward and Eliza(and/or her first husband Michael Farrell) may have come from the same area in Ireland, mainly because they all ended up in LaSalle, IL.  FYI, her first husband died after fathering 3 children born in1852, 1854 and 1855.  Eliza then married Edward in 1857 and he died in 1863.  Eliza lived until 1919 and outlived all but her youngest son Edward and two daughters from Farrell.  Ellen died in 1871, John in 1913 and Margaret in 1914.  Eliza's obituary claimed she emigrated with her parents at the age of 15.  I have found no evidence her parents lived in the U.S.  Her parents were listed in the register of her marriage to Michael Farrell as Michael Malone and Anna McNamara.  In the 1900 census, she's listed as 69, year of immigration 1847, lived in U.S. 53 years and not naturalized.  It also says she had 7 children with three surviving, her son Edward and two daughters from the Farrrell marriage.  I have a copy of the probate after her death and no mention of where she was from!  She's actually buried in an unmarked grave with Michael Farrell, her son Edward and two grandchildren, sibling children of her oldest daughter, Jane Farrell.  I've never found where Edward, her second husband, is buried.

It is truly a mystery!!!

Once again, thanks for replying.

Pat

Pat,

If I were researching your family, I would research all of the baptismal sponsors. They were usually relatives or close friends.  They may lead you to uncovering relationships that get you back to Ireland.

Hi Patricia,

Difficult to read the names of the sponsors for the four children but none appear to be relatives.  No Foley's or Malones.

I did find an interesting fact in the probate.  The lawyer that wrote her will had a witness named W. F. McNamara.  Her mothers maiden name was McNamara.  If I remember correctly, Mr. McNamara was mayor of LaSalle at some point.  I doubt it was coincidence that she trusted someone named McNamara to be there, with the lawyer, during the writing of her will, for him not to be related to her, on her mother's side.

I've started researching the McNamara angle.

Pat

none appear to be relatives.  No Foley's or Malones.

Some of the women could be married siblings of one member of the couple. Or they might be cousins of the couple. Don't give up!