The Kinsley Family in Longford County, Ireland

[ShortyC]

When I was eight years old my father retired from the US Navy and decided to ship us all to Norfolk, Virginia to be closer to his family (in West Virginia). We flew to California to pick up our mom's car from my aunt and proceeded to drive east across the U.S.

Along the way, we stopped at a very small historic town called Kinsley, Kansas where two Irish brothers (I guess named Kinsley??) helped built the town and even made a small stone Catholic church which we sat in. He told the gift shop attendant that someone in our family tree was most likely responsible because our surname was Kinsley as well.

He always believed that there was a direct link but as I trolled FindMyPast, I realised that was never the case. I searched by his father's name which was Dale Arlington Kinsley because he has a very unique second name and found out that his father's name was Samuel A. Kinsley born in West Virginia in 1867.

Sam's father's name was John A. Kinsley and he was an emigrant from Ireland. Census in West Virginia shows that his occupation was a farmer in Monongalia, West Virginia.

Previous to that, it was possible that John Kinsley was living in Pittstown Renesselaer, New York and possibly came over from Ireland in 1850 which would have made him 22 years of age.

In 1858 he married a woman from West Virginia named Elisabeth J. Frum.

I know he died in 1880 because the census shows Elisabeth the head of the household - she never remarried; bless. She also raised her four kids on her own!

Anyway, I believe my great great grandfather was born in Ballynagoshen which is part of Co. Longford, Ireland in 1828. There was a baptism record of a John Kinsley in Longford Co and that he was from Ballynagoshen.

In one of the links provided in RootsChat states that Ballynagoshen is 267 acres in Co. Longford, Barony: Longford, Civil Parish is Killoe and province is Leinster.

In another link I found a John Kinsley living on Turnpike Road in Co. Longford and it was under something called Temple Michael? And oddly enough in the same link, two people lived on "Kinsley's Yard" which was off the "Main Rd"..

This question is to someone who is well educated about Longford County - was the Kinsley name that big? Because as far as I can tell, they weren't land owners and I can't find records before 1828 for who were his parents, siblings, etc. I'm only going to assume that war or famine brought John to America.

Would anyone be able to shed any light for me?

Thanks.

ShortyC

P.S. I also at one time came across a link about a book on a John Kinsley who helped set up a church or something in New England (US) but I'm not sure that was my great great grandfather.

[gaffy]

This question is to someone who is well educated about Longford County - was the Kinsley name that big?

I'm not familiar enough with Longford to give you a specific answer, but the Irish Times shows only 1 Kinsley in Longford out of only 17 in Griffiths Valuation (there are a few more if you look at Griffiths yourself, but I think the Irish Times removes duplicates). The highest number is in Dublin.

The 1901 census shows 5 in Longford out of 51, the 1911 census 0 in Longford out of 71. Again, the highest number is in Dublin.

Not terribly scientific and there could be spelling variants, but in general terms I'm not getting a sense of the Kinsley name being big in Longford.

For the benefit of others reading your post, what is the basis for believing that John A. Kinsley came from Longford (as opposed to anywhere else in Ireland), is there mention of Longford somewhere in American records?

[shanew147]

...
In another link I found a John Kinsley living on Turnpike Road in Co. Longford and it was under something called Temple Michael? And oddly enough in the same link, two people lived on "Kinsley's Yard" which was off the "Main Rd"..
.....

The other reference you mentioned is from Griffith's Valuation with the entry dated 1854 (this section published 22nd Nov. 1854), and is for a property at Turnpike rd. in Longford town, which is located in Templemichael civil parish. In the 1830s Turnpike Rd. ran south east from the town towards Edgeworthstown

.........believe my great great grandfather was born in Ballynagoshen which is part of Co. Longford, Ireland in 1828. ....

Ballynagoshen townland is located about 9km (abt 5 ½ miles) south east of Longford town, and on the road to the town of Edgeworthstown. the townland contained Ballynagoshen House, and in the 1830s several quarries. Later a small section of the railway line to Sligo passed through the south of the townland.

There doesn't appear to be any Kinsley (or similar) properties listed at Ballynagoshen townland on either Griffth's or the Tithes in 1833.

RC parish for Ballynagoshen was also named Killoe, and baptism and marriage records, with a few gaps, go back to 1826. These seem to be available on an LDS film.

[shellyesq]

It looks like John died in 1890:  http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=8405727

This looks like the family in the 1880 census - https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/M6TM-ZHQ