Sweeney Family - Dunbartonshire

[mrs acb]

Oh this is good,I am wondering if we have uncovered something here? I  have a marriage cert for Charles and Mary Moan 1884.They had a son Denis born around 1885 in the USA, is this your Denis? Mary Moan returned to Dumbarton around 1897 with Denis and some other children including a Sarah (all Charles children) but in 1899 had twins with her brother in law David.David never married and died as a "Pedlar" at Park Street House Motherwell in 1939 (poor soul) his DC is signed by a Sarah Sweeney (niece) is this your great aunt or really his niece? Her address is given as 20 Braidhurst st Motherwell.Ive been trying for ages to figure out who this Sarah is  The next bit ,the bit that has me thinking is Denis Sweeneys DC ,I have him( as  does another Sweeney researcher)  passing away in 1970 in Dumbarton in Risk Street age 72,I can't annoyingly find his DC in my file but I know its him.Do you have a 1915 DC for him too? Or did your aunt Sarah just say he was dead meaning dead to her hahah.Oh just to ask in Motherwell there is a grave with Denis,his brother Hugh(?) and your great aunt Sarah? I don't know something is missing probably my brain!!! 



Hi I went back and had a dig around SP ,I can't see a DC  for a Denis Sweeney 1915 ish,what I do have is that Denis had a widow named Elsie Hawthorn who died in Dumbarton 1990 age 90, however I can find no marriage certificate for them.Could it be that Denis ran off with a young Elsie leaving you great aunt Sarah simmering or could it be that Denis was a bigamist or just called Elsie his wife for apperance sake and hence the reason your great aunt Sarah never remarried was because she was still leagally married to Denis? Speculation I know but I am curious another visit to the Michell on its way me thinks 

[mrs acb]

Oh this is good,I am wondering if we have uncovered something here? I  have a marriage cert for Charles and Mary Moan 1884.They had a son Denis born around 1885 in the USA, is this your Denis? Mary Moan returned to Dumbarton around 1897 with Denis and some other children including a Sarah (all Charles children) but in 1899 had twins with her brother in law David.David never married and died as a "Pedlar" at Park Street House Motherwell in 1939 (poor soul) his DC is signed by a Sarah Sweeney (niece) is this your great aunt or the Sarah mentioned above? Her address is given as 20 Braidhurst st Motherwell.Ive been trying for ages to figure out who this Sarah is  The next bit ,the bit that has me thinking is Denis Sweeneys DC ,I have him (and so does another Sweeney researcher) as  passing away in 1970 in Dumbarton in Risk Street age 72,I can't annoyingly find his DC in my file but I know its him.Do you have a 1915 DC for him too? Or did your aunt Sarah just say he was dead meaning dead to her hahah I don't know ,but something is missing probably my brain!

Hi I went back and had a dig around SP ,I can't see a DC  for a Denis Sweeney 1915 ish,what I do have is that Denis had a widow named Elsie Hawthorn who died in Dumbarton 1990 age 90, however I can find no marrige certificate for them.Could it be that Denis ran off with a young Elsie leaving you great aunt Sarah simmering or could it be that Denis is a bigamist or just called Elsie his wife and hence the reason your great aunt Sarah never remarried was because she was still leagally married to Denis? Speculation I know but I am curious another visit to the Michell on its way me thinks 

[Lodger]

Yes, my great aunt lived at 20 Braidhurst Street from about 1938 until she died in 1975.
When she died I had to go to the cemeteries office in Motherwell to try and find a place to bury her as there wasn't any lair papers in the house. I can't remember after all this time but I must have had something to go on, perhaps Denis Sweeney's death certificate but I do know that the lair was found in time to bury her there. David must have been the other one I was thinking about as being interred in the 1940s, 1939 is close enough.

If the Denis Sweeney who was interred in Airbles cemetery, Motherwell in 1915 isn't her husband then who is he?
Park Street House was a Model, my late mother could remember having to go up there when she was a little girl in the 1920s (she lived about 2 minutes away) with a bowl of soup to an old man who was a friend of her father's. I wonder if this was David Sweeney? My grandfather (Sarah's youngest brother) was actually born in Renton and lived at West Bridgend until the family came to Motherwell about 1897. (Sarah and another brother were born before the family left Donegal).
So it is quite possible that my grandfather and his siblings went to school in Dumbarton with these Sweeneys.

I've just checked my 1925 Motherwell Directory, you wont believe it but living at Park Street House at that time were 4 male Sweeneys. DAVID, HUGH, JOHN and "M" Sweeney.

Here is some information from Ancestry -

1901 census. Address 19/23 Henry Shott. (could that be Henry Street?).

All the surnames are Sweeney

MARY, aged 34, charwoman, born Dunoon.
DENIS, aged 16, son, rivet heater, born Dumbarton.
ANNIE, aged 11, daughter, scholar, born Dumbarton.
MARY, aged 8, daughter, scholar, born Philadelphia, America.
SARAH, aged 4, daughter, born Jersey, America.
AGNES, aged 3, born Dumbarton.

I doubt very much that my aunt was a "grass widow" for all those years, my granny (who was her sister-in-law) didn't get on with her and she would have known about this and spilled the beans!
However, you never can tell with families. I'll try to get down to the cemetery and check the lair book again.

[mrs acb]

Ok its was me who has been muddled ,but it didn't help that nearly all of Dennis Sweeney and Mary Boyles children nearly all went on to have a Denis in their brood 

So here its goes: Dennis Sweeney and Mary Boyle have Charles (died in USA)
                                                                                Edward (returned from USA and remarried)
                                                                                David (died at Park st House 1939 age 68yrs)
                                                                                John (I don't know about,could he be Park
                                                                                         St John Sweeney?)
                                                                                 Mary (married to John Reynolds)       
                                                                                 Annie (my great grandmother)

You are right the Denis(your great aunts ex) buried in Motherwell with your great aunt Sarah and a Hugh is the child of Charles Sweeney and Mary Jane Mone.The mix up for me came around because Charles had a brother Edward who also went to the USA with his wife Anne Jane Mone sister of Mary Jane Moan! Anne Jane Mone and Edward had a son Denis Andrew Sweeney and this is the Denis I have passing away in Dumbarton in 1970 age 72( just for the record Edward also had a son named John with his second wife),so the mix up was all mine sorry. I have the ancestry census print out you have and one of the mysteries from that is that old David from Park St house fathered twins( Agnes and David) with his widowed sister in law Mary Jane Moan in 1899,3 yr old Agnes is on that census but no baby David?! I have looked for a DC but no joy In saying all of that I am over the moon to find out your great aunt Sarah is Sarah (niece) on Davids DC his niece in law and not in blood, now its clear  I just wonder why his daughter Agnes didn't sign the death certificate? I have spent so many credits and a visit to the Mitchell to figure out Sarah ,now I know! Thanks . This is another wee thing ,who is Hugh? You see ,Charles,Edward,David,John and my Annie also have a sister Mary.Mary married John Reynolds in 1897 they already had an illigitamate son named Hugh (born 1890) but this baby was known as Hugh Reynolds after John Reynolds father .The way things are sitting at present he is the only Hugh I know about.Have you any idea why the families moved to Motherwell and when? My papa Annies son died just over 3 yrs ago he was 94.He knew little of his mum (long story) but all the Sweeneys disowned Annie when she married my great grandfather Charles McGregor Porterfield all because he was a Church of Scotland fella and not RC ,such a shame.The Sweeneys were a bit of a colourful lot I think Anyway if you would like any copies of certificates like Davids DC for example then PM me your email or regular addresss and I will get them to you,Iam not even sure if you can PM on this site? Anyway thankyou its been an intresting weekend.Anne