COUNTY LOUTH
Joe Biden
(former USA Vice President)
and
his Irish Finnegan Ancestors.
continued 06:-
IRELAND - SOURCES
Finnegan Families,
Templetown Townland.
In the Tithe
Applotment Books, 1833, for Templetown Townland (see
copy below) were:-
County
Louth, Civil Parish of Carlingford, pages
22 and 28.
(Source:
TitheApplotmentBooks.nationalarchives.ie)
Simon Finnegan.
Simon and Co
[possibly other family members] was
in occupation of 9 Irish acres and 1 rood.
See later.
Laurence
Finnegan.
Laurence and Co occupied
6 Irish acres and 2 roods.
This may be the Laurence Finnegan
who married, 26 September 1829,
an Ann McDonnell (aka Mary Anne?) and their
children
may have included:-
Seragh? ,
born 1830, but no specific address
was
listed;
Rose?,
born 1834 in Templetown,
with mother 'Mary
McDonald'
and
Thomas,
born
1835 in Templetown,
with mother 'Anne
McDonald'.
Their marriage was
listed in the
Marriage column of the Belfast
Newsletter.
(Source:
The Belfast Newsletter dated 20 October
1829, British Newspaper Archives.)
He was not
the
Laurence Finnegan
of Templetown that died in 1865.
That Laurence Finnegan died 16 May 1865 in
Templetown, a bachelor age about 59 years old and a
farmer.
A Daniel Finegan, possibly
residing in same house as Laurence but relationship
not stated, was the informant of the latter's death.
While no Laurence Finnegan
was listed in Griffith's
Valuation as the main occupier of
a premises there was a Sarah Finnegan
occupying a house where Simon Finnegan
was
the immediate lessor.
Bryan
Finnegan, deceased.
The
Representatives of Bryan Finnegan
occupied two parcels of land
amounting to 13 Irish acres, 2 roods and 24 perches.
Following is a copy Griffith's Valuation,
published in 1854, for Templetown
Townland
where Finnegans were listed as main occupiers.
(source: www.ancestry.com but is
widely available).
Again from
various records, so far searched, this would appear
to be the position with the named occupiers above:-
Hugh Fin negan.
At
Plot 12ABa a Hugh Finnegan
occupied a house, offices and
jointly with Simon Finnegan 12
statute acres,
2 roods and 30 perches of land. The land was
in good condition and in tillage.
This Hugh Finnegan
could be the person that was married to Anne Murphy
from Templetown on 21 Dec 1813. Hugh and Anne were
residing in Templetown when the children were born.
Their family included: Thomas (1815); Mary (1819);
Patt (1823); James (1825); John? (1827); Anne
(1829); James (1831) and
Catherine (1834).
Simon Fin negan.
Simon Finnegan
resided in a house at Plot
12ABb. He also was the
occupier of a number of neighbouring parcels
of land including at the Kilwirra (Cill Mhuire) old
cemetery;
some of the strand (which gave rights to the sea
weed but seemingly only with
the consent of the landlord's
agent) and some vacant houses in the townland. Again
the land was described as been of good quality and
in tillage. There was also a house occupied by a
Sarah Finnegan,
free, and held at will from Simon.
As Simon Finnegan was probably the person who was
listed in 1833 in the Tithe Applotment Books he
was likely the person that was married to Mary Mills
and had family including Biddy (1816); Mary (1820);
Thomas (1822) and Daniel (1829).
This Simon may
have died in 1859.
Catherine
Finnegan.
At Plot 13c a
Catherine Finnegan
occupied a house where the immediate lessor was a
Patrick Kearney.
Thomas Finnegan.
At Plot 30AB a
Thomas Finnegan
occupied 12 statute acres and 29
perches of land as well as three houses (two vacant
and one occupied by a Mary McArdle). This land was
at the eastern end of the townland near the
seashore. It was stated that it was excellent land,
the best in Templetown, and the best of tillage. He
would also have a claim to some of the sea
weed along the seashore which was used as
manure and
any excess could be sold. This
seemingly differed from the occupiers
further north in the townland,
such as Simon Finnegan,
who could only obtain the sea
weed with the consent of the landlord's
agent. The land was held at will, at a rent of
£1-9s-0d per acre per annum from the Representatives
of Ross Moore.
This Thomas Finnegan,
or his son Thomas,
was stated to be living in the adjoining townland of
Whitestown.
Thomas born about 1827, likely son of
Thomas,
by the time of his death in 1887 occupied
more land as well as a public house (known today as
Lily Finnegan's Pub) in Whitestown Village. He also
occupied some land to the north-west, in
Willville Upper and Lower in the adjoining Willville
Townland.
In the early 1850s it was said
that the land in Whitestown was
continually being improved by the occupiers and
without much cost. This was due to
the rents being low and limestone
and sea weed obtainable
from the shore where the
occupiers had also two
or three good lime kilns
built.
As a
result they were said to be 'considerably well off'.
However it was also stated that if their leases
expired the rent would be raised from £1-6-0 to
about £2-0-0 per acre per annum.
Thomas Finnegan, born about 1827, was
married to a Margaret Kearney and had at least eight
children. When he died he left a will but besides
some confusing wording some of his children were
under age at the time of his death
and so an Administration was taken out by
his widow Margaret. However she
died,
within a few years, and
before its completion and so
a further Administration was
granted to their eldest daughter.
From Thomas Finnegan's
will his 8 acres and 3 houses and garden in
Templetown Townland was to go to his son John as
well as £300 and two horses?; his son William, when
he became of age, was to inherit the farm in Upper
Willville, Halpenny's house and the house in
Whitestown known as the 'potatoe house'', £150 and
two horses; his son James was to inherit 7 acres in
Lower Willville and the 6 acres of land and house
where family resided with pub in Whitestown Village.
Provision was made for his widow and it was intended
the family would continue to reside in Whitestown
and James would manage the business until his
youngest son, likely John, came of age.
However, when Thomas died and also
his wife Margaret a few years later,
the son James was under age to obtain the licence
for the pub.
The older sister Kate had
to
agree to provide a manager until James
came of age. James died in 1901 and his
brother William took over managing the pub. The
sister Kate was married to a Bernard Sloan, a
widower and a butcher
in Newry, County Down, and they
had about seven children. By the 1911 census, and
after her husband's death, she and two of her
children went to live and work with her brother
William in the pub. William died, in 1928, and was
buried in Kilwirra cemetery in nearby
Templetown Townland.
The above Thomas Finegan was stated to be
born about 1827 and if the old headstone in
the above graveyard was erected by him
then his parents, based on details stated to be on
headstone,
were Thomas and Catherine and brothers
included
James and Patrick who were
also mentioned on the
headstone. His mother could be a Catherine
Murphy.
From
the Cooley
Baptism Parish Registers the
children
baptised with parents
Tom [Thomas] Finigan
and
Cate [Catherine]
Murphy included:-
Anne? Finigan,
baptised March 1813?,
Whitestown;
Cate [F]inegan?,
baptised 23 December 1814,
Whitestown;
James? Finigan,
baptised
18? December 1815,
Whitestown;
Mary Finigan,
baptised 6 May 1818,
Whitestown;
Catherine Finigan,
baptised 3 January 1821,
Whitestown;
Patt
Finigan,
baptised 3 January 1821,
(twin of above);
Ann
Finegan,
baptised 23 July 1824,
Whitestown and
Tho? Finegan,
baptised
30 December 1829?,
In an 1841 census for tenants in
Whitestown,
found among
the private papers
of a landlord, this would appear to be
the above family:-
Thomas age 60 (so born about
1781);
Cath (age 54);
James (age 22);
Mary (age 21);
Pat (age 20);
Cath (age 18)
Thos (age 14).
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