Church Record Sunday: Sponsors and Witnesses

Baptismal sponsors and marriage witnesses can provide vital clues of familial relationships. With a long list of children and sponsors, patterns can sometimes be overlooked. Wordle (www.wordle.net) is a fun way to uncover patterns or perhaps just make all those names more memorable. The following Wordle is based on the names associated with John Mahony's marriage and the baptisms of his children.

It is immediately apparent from the Wordle that I will have to work much harder to search online databases for Catherine Knowles than for her husband, John Mahoney. There are simply more variant spellings and names used in her records.

The number of times a surname appears in set of records is not all there is to it. Some names were very common in a specific area making it more likely that the name would appear as a sponsor or witness. Irish Ancestors lists 'Daly' as the most common name in Ballymartle Civil Parish 1851 - 1853. ('Most common' is determined by the surname of the head of the household and not a complete accounting of all families bearing that surname in the Parish.) Are Dalys close associates of the Mahoneys or were they frequently sponsors simply because there were so many Dalys living in Ballymartle?

There is more than a fun picture behind these names. Exploring the church records further gives some interesting potential relationships. Michael Brien was a witness to John and Catharine (Knowles) Mahoney's marriage. A couple years later Michael Brien and Margaret  Knowles had a son, Michael. It is possible that Margaret Knowles and Catherine Knowles are related, perhaps even sisters. Mary Mahony and Joan Mahony were baptismal sponsors of some of John and Catharine's children and also likely relations.

Much like the cluster of names in the Wordle, the witnesses and sponsors formed a community around John and Catharine. They might be the key to identifying migration patterns or locating the right Mahoney amongst a sea of possible candidates.

Sources:
Ballymartle Parochial Area (Ballymartle, Cork, Ireland). Clountead, Ballingarry and Ballymartle Parish Records, Cork and Ross Diocese, 1836-1880. Database and digital images. John Mahony-Catherine Knowles marriage (1841); Andy Mahony baptism (1842); Margaret Mahoney baptism (1845); Cors [Cornelius] Mahony baptism (1848); John Mahoney baptism (1854); William Mahoney baptism (1857) and Patrick Mahoney (1860). Irish Genealogy: Explore your Family History. http://churchrecords.irishgenealogy.ie/churchrecords/ : 2009.

Feinberg, Jonathan. Wordle. http://www.wordle.net/ : 2011.

IrishTimes.com. Irish Ancestors. http://www.irishtimes.com/ancestor/index.htm : 2012.

Sepia Saturday 149: Riverstick

Pink Pub and the Belgooly River
© Neville Goodman and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons License.

I'm off to soak my feet in the Belgooly River and enjoy a pint at the Pink Pub this week. This photograph is from the website, Geograph: Photograph Every Grid Square.(1) The Geograph Ireland project is out to collect photographs of every square kilometer of Ireland. This a boon to those of us who would love to partake the waters (or ale) but live too far afield. An armchair tour with a pint in hand is as close as we might come!

John Mahoney (1818-1904) lived in Riverstick, Cork, Ireland within the same grid square as the Pink Pub.(2) Though I doubt it was the Pink Pub in the 19th or early 20th Century. As I follow the Mahoneys back in time, I'll have to brush up on Irish geography. I can't think of a more diverting way than to explore on Geograph. I'm already encouraged that the area is sparsely populated even today so perhaps there will be only one John Mahoney haunting the area. (Could I be so lucky?!)

20th Century records give John's residence as Riverstick, Curroragh Townland.(2) His marriage and the baptisms of his first 5 children occurred in Ballymartle (Clontead or Belgooly) Parochial Area, Cork & Ross Catholic Diocese.(3) Curroragh Townland is in Ballymartle Civil Parish.

Using Ask About Ireland, "Griffith's Valuation" map overlays, Riverstick lies partly in Curroragh, Curra and Boulaling Townlands.(4) Ask About Ireland maps are under copyright but are easy to create using the Place Name Search entering Ballymartle (step 1) and Cork (step 2). These maps confirm that the various locations in most family records were in or near Riverstick.

The only surprise is John's son, Patrick (1860-1948). Patrick was baptized in the "Ballingarry (Clontead or Belgooly) Parochial Area."(5) Patrick is surely from the same family as his baptismal record names the same parents. Patrick corresponded with his family in Ireland after immigration to the United States. Some letters from his brother, William, survive and are in the family collection.(6)

What makes Ballingarry so intriguing are the possible ties between the Mahoneys of Ballingarry and the Mahoneys of Ballymartle. It appears I will be following the twisty country roads of County Cork to Ballingarry to unravel the mystery of Patrick's baptism.

Country Road in Co. Cork near Fartha, Ballyfeard, Tracton and Ballingarry, Cork, Ireland © Hywel Williams and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons License. (7)

The Sepia Saturday photograph of the week sent me on a metaphorical journey to Ireland, the Belgooly River and the Pink Pub with a not so metaphorical pint.  Definitely preferable to taking the waters! For more journeys inspired by an Irish stream and curative waters, see Sepia Saturday 149.

Sources:
(1) Goodman, Neville. "Pink Pub and the Belgooly River." Digital image. Geograph: Photograph Every Grid Square. http://www.geograph.ie/photo/2116920 : 2012. Image copyright Neville Goodman and licensed for reuse under Creative Commons License.
(2) Ireland. Cork. 1901/1911 census of Ireland. Digital images. John Mahony entry (1901); William and Margaret (sister) Mahony entry (1911). National Archives of Ireland. Census of Ireland 1901/1911. http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/ : 2006; Ireland. Kinsale District. Death Records. 1904, vol. 5: 245, John Mahony. General Register Office, Dublin.
(3) Ballymartle Parochial Area (Ballymartle, Cork, Ireland). Clountead, Ballingarry and Ballymartle Parish Records, Cork and Ross Diocese, 1836-1880. Database and digital images. John Mahony-Catherine Knowles marriage (1841); Andy Mahony baptism (1842); Margart Mahoney baptism (1845); Cors Mahony baptism (1848); John Mahoney baptism (1854) and William Mahoney baptism (1857).   Irish Genealogy: Explore your Family History. http://churchrecords.irishgenealogy.ie/churchrecords/ : 2009.
(4)  An Chomhairle Leabharlanna. "Griffith's Valuation." Ask About Ireland. http://www.askaboutireland.ie/griffith-valuation/ : 2003.
(5) Ballymartle Parochial Area (Ballymartle, Cork, Ireland). Clountead, Ballingarry and Ballymartle Parish Records, Cork and Ross Diocese, 1836-1880. Database and digital images. Pat Mahony baptism (1860).   Irish Genealogy: Explore your Family History. http://churchrecords.irishgenealogy.ie/churchrecords/ : 2009.
(6) Filios, Norma. Mahoney History and Genealogy. N.p.: The Author, n.d.
(7) Williams, Hywel. "Country Road in County Cork,near to Fartha, Ballyfeard, Tracton and Ballingarry, Cork, Ireland." Digital image. Geograph: Photograph Every Grid Square. http://www.geograph.ie/photo/2773538 : 2012. Image copyright Hywel Williams and licensed for reuse under Creative Commons License.