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This is a post I made yesterday on the Galway Genealogy DNA board.  As I noted, my great-grandparents, Edward Donnellon and Bridget Murray emigrated from Dunmore in 1880, moving to Cincinnati.  I learned recently, that one of Edward's sisters also moved to Cincinnati where she married a widower named John Reddington.  The Donnellon name can be spelled a good handful of ways.  I should note that the gap in the siblings shown below is because the baptismal records in Dunmore have this gap, so there may be more siblings during the ten years or so that the book has left.  Not sure historically why that was.

I'm interested in connecting with descendents of Edward's siblings.  I've had great luck connecting with Bridget's family since our families stayed in contact over the years, so we knew who the descendents were. 

I'm copying a post I put up on the Donnellan (sp) FB page because I'd like to touch base with others who may be descended from the siblings of my great-grandfather Edward James Donnellon. I don't know when or where his parents were born, although I know they were married in 1839 in Dunmore. Recent comparisions with some folks Gedmatch kits suggests they may have come from Clonberne. My hope in connecting with others who are descended from his siblings is to find any family that may have had family history further back. Or for that matter, someone who might be related through our Nestor line too.

Here's what I wrote:

Now that I've done the Ancestry DNA and also added my Gedmatch number (A072420), I thought I'd break out my own Donnellon family a bit more, since I'm seeing some closer connections among some of you. In the group here, I have my oldest brother, along with a number of first cousins, some second cousins and even a 1st cousin, once removed.

We're all descended from Edward John Donnellon, born in Dunmore in 1859. He married Bridget Murray (also of Dunmore) in 1879 and left shortly after that emigrating to the United States with three of Bridget's Murray sisters (one of whom returned to Ireland and is the grandmother of the famed Galway footballer Jack Mahon, my mom's second cousin).

Edward was the son of James Donnellon and Mary Nestor. I have no info about the years they were born or died. They were married on 16 May, 1839. The other children in the family were as follows:

Mary Donnellon b. 1840
Patrick Donnellon b. 1842
Bridget Donnellon b 1845, d. 1882
Mary Donnellon b. 1855
Anne Donnellon b. 1856, d. 1905 (Cincinnati, Ohio)
Thomas Donnellon b. 1859
John Donnellon b. 1865
James Donnellon (no info)

One other little tidbit, the 1910 U.S. Census shows a man named Edward Redington living with Edward & Bridget here in Cincinnati, shown as "brother-in-law". I'm virtually certain that he's not related through Bridget's Murray side as I have all of her sisters accounted for marriage-wise. So that could be something too. [update: his name actually was John Reddington - I'm assuming a transcription error, but I've found his obituary - Anne Donnellon was his second wife]

joemetz

Tuesday 11th Jul 2017, 09:44AM

Message Board Replies

  • Hi Joe

    There are a couple of Donnellon (+ surname variants) - Reddington marriages on www.rootsireland.ie/:

    Date of Marriage:25-Mar-1830
    Parish / District:TUAM
    County:Co. Galway
    Husband
    WifeName:OwenRedington
    MargaretDonelanAddress:Not Recorded
    Not RecordedDenomination:Roman Catholic
    Roman Catholic

    Date of Marriage:08-Dec-1881
    Parish / District:DUNMORE-TUAM
    County:Co. Galway
    Husband
    WifeName:MichaelDonnelon
    MaryRedingtonAddress:Cloonmore
    GurteenDenomination:
    Occupation:LANDHOLDER
    Not RecordedAge:Ful
    FulStatus:Bachelor (Previously unmarried)
    Spinster (Previously unmarried)
    Husband's Father
    Wife's FatherName:PatrickDonnelon
    ThomasRedingtonAddress:
    Denomination:
    Occupation:FARMER
    FARMER

    Witness 1
    Witness 2Name:JohnGowlan
    BridgetRedingtonAddress:

    There are 3 James Donnellon Galway baptisms on roots - 1814 Kilcummin-Oughterard, 1815 Loughrea & 1820 Ballinasloe.

    The Dunmore records only start in 1864 I'm afraid.

    Col
     

    ColCaff, IrelandXO Volunteer ☘

    Tuesday 11th Jul 2017, 12:25PM

  • Hi- I need to check the Gedmatch number. I have hit a brick wall in my ancestry search for Donnellan. My GEdmatch is A58871L and my mother was A103639. My mother was Anna Patricia Donnellan (1923 - 2014)

    . Her father was Patrick Donnellan (b. 1878) from Cloonmauragh and later lived in Beaugh, Dunmore. His father was Michael Donnellan (?1829 to 1900) and mother was Celia Daly (b 1842). Trying to find Micheal's father and mother.

    Thursday 21st Jun 2018, 08:26PM

  • Here is the marriage record from rootsireland.ie/ of Michael & Celia which shows their fathers' names; it is a civil record - there is also a briefer R C one

    Date of Marriage:16-Nov-1871
    Parish / District:DUNMORE
    County:Co. Galway
    HusbandMichael Donelon Clooncarah Denomination:Civil Parish / District  Occupation:LANDHOLDER Bachelor Age Full
    WifeCeliaDaleyAddress:Ballymony Civil Parish / District Spinster Age Full

    Husband's Father Michael Donelon LANDHOLDER
    Wife's Father JamesDaley LANDHOLDER
    Witness 1James Daly
    Witness 2 CatherineDaley
    Notes:

    Married By: LOFTUS PATRICK C.C.
    COUPLE RECORDED AS FULL AGE. HUSBANDS FATHER RECORDED AS DECEASED.

    1871 seems late for the birth year you have for Michael but Celia's looks right; maybe his second marriage?

    rootsireland search results for Galway birth/baptisms for Michael D with father Michael start in 1831& go to 1897

    There are 3 from Dunmore: 1859, 1882 & 1883

    The 1821 Irish Census (http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie) has 14 Donellans in Galway but no Michaels!

    The Tithe Applotments have a couple of Michaels (first 2) in 1834 - there is no info on families however

    SurnameForenameTownland/StreetParishCountyYear

    DonellanMlLoughatorickBallynakillGalway1834

    DonellanMichlWoodfieldBoyounaghGalway1834

    DonellanPatGlanawaddraBoyounaghGalway1834

    DonellanPattBallinashownKilgerrillGalway1826

    DonellanPattBallyhoolahanKilgerrillGalway1826

    DonellanPattBallyeighterKilgerrillGalway1826

    DonellanMartinNewcastleKilgerrillGalway1826

    Col

     

     

    ColCaff, IrelandXO Volunteer ☘

    Friday 22nd Jun 2018, 06:23AM

  • Thank you ColCaff!, I had really hit the wall and was getting very confused and got very stuck. Much appreciated. 

    Saturday 23rd Jun 2018, 11:12AM

  • WrenBoston, can you clarify your own Gedmatch number.  You have an L at the end of it, which isn't a correct number.  Not sure I'll have time this weekend, but I'll compare your numbers to mine and various cousins to see if there are any matches. 

    joemetz

    Saturday 23rd Jun 2018, 01:20PM

  • WrenBoston, there is a Facebook group for folks researching Donnellon ancestry with DNA

    https://www.facebook.com/search/top/?q=donnellan%20(sp)%20dna%20genealo…

    joemetz

    Saturday 23rd Jun 2018, 02:01PM

  • ColCaff, I overlooked your reply from last July.  Any of those three James Donnellons could be my great-great grandfather, given that he and Mary Nestor married in 1839 in Dunmore. 

    As for the Reddington marriage, I did locate more info on him.  Later info showed him as John Reddington (born in 1851).  His first wife was Kate Murray (also born in 1851). No idea if she is related to our great-grandmother Bridget Murray. She's not a sister.  Kate died in Cincinnati, Ohio in 1895 and Reddington remarried Anne Donnellon, born in 1856. She was my great-grandfather's sister.  She died in 1905.  Reddington died in Cincinnati, Ohio in 1915.

    Thanks for your help.

    joemetz

    Saturday 23rd Jun 2018, 07:32PM

  • Hi Sorry. I had a typo when I put in. My Gadmatch number. It is A858871. my mom’ is A103639

    Sunday 24th Jun 2018, 12:59PM

  • Hi Joe. My grandfather Patrick Donnellan died before I was born, but according g to my late mother he said he had relatives that lived in Cincinnati. When he was fund raising for Irish funds for “.The Cause, “ around the 1920s,he took a trann to Cincinnati from Boston as my mom. Said, t”to raise money as there were a lot of Irish there and he had relatives there too. “ very vague I know, but interesting. 

     

    Thursday 5th Jul 2018, 07:10AM

  • Wren Boston,

    I was coming to do an update on this post with new info I got today, but was reviewing our back & forth. Very intesting indeed!  I don't match your mother, but a 3rd cousin of mine, Janet Kinsella, does. Oddly, Janet is related through my great-grandma Donnellon's Murray side, but I think there are lots of close families there, so I'm going to check with Janet.  By the 1920s, my great-grandparents family was growing - nine kids and loads of grandkids coming along. Look me up at https://www.facebook.com/joe.metz.31 if you're on FB.

    joemetz

    Thursday 31st Mar 2022, 08:33PM

  • Here's my update on my Donnellon family (how we spelled it once we arrived in the US). 

    I found the death records for my great-grandfather's parents today, so now I have dates for them. His parents married in Dunmore in 1839.

    James Donelan b. 1818, died 29 Jun 1888 in Dunmore (witness was their son John). Showed him as a carpenter, which we knew.

    Mary Nestor Donelan b. 1820, died 29 Oct 1884 in Dunmore (witness was their son John), showed her as carpenter's wife and noted them living at Gater Street, which we had heard too.

    joemetz

    Thursday 31st Mar 2022, 08:36PM

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