Burrowes: The trail's gone cold

[Exarch]

Hi there,

I am researching my family, Burrowes, but I have hit something of a rut. About a decade ago, my parents paid a third-party firm to look through records, but the results were unsatisfactory; starting with my grandfather, Robert William Burrowes, here's what they found:

Robert William Burrowes (born in Rialto, Dublin, 2 November 1904 - 16 February 2002),

son of
George Burrowes (a ward master in Dublin by occupation, born in an uncertain location, perhaps Leitrim, 1863 - 29 April 1909),

son of who we presume to be,
William Beresford Burrowes.

The trail goes cold there.

Unfortunately, there is no birth certificate for George, and the only reference to his date of birth is on his death certificate. Concerning William Beresford Burrowes, there is no direct evidence that he is indeed George's father, but family tradition has always included this unusual Beresford link, and indeed, the landed Burroweses of Cavan have strong connections with the Beresford family, though I am not sure how or if we are linked. What is equally curious is that an 1855 entry to the records of the parish of Tomregan in Co. Cavan registers the baptism of another son of William Beresford Burrowes, Robert William, also the name of my grandfather. This seems to link William Beresford and George; perhaps George named his son after his brother?

According to William Beresford Burrowes' marriage certificate (31 May 1854) he was a 'land sub-agent' of Ballinamore, Co. Leitrim, son of William Burrowes, a tax collector; William Beresford married Mary Ann Pringle of the Clifton townland of the parish of Tomregan in Co. Cavan, the daughter of Robert Pringle, a farmer.

So, that's it really. The family has, supposedly, a connection with Belturbet in Co. Cavan, which is about 20 miles from Ballinamore in Leitrim, where William B. and his family resided.

I'm not sure where to go from here. I'd really like to find out about William Beresford Burrowes, his father, and prove or disprove his relation to George. Any assistance would be greatly appreciated!

[alpinecottage]

It is notoriously difficult to track  family in Ireland before the mid 19th C because records were not kept or were destroyed....however, have you tried googling Beresford Burrows - there are lots of them and you may be able to sort out enough information to help your search.

Also try Google Books, because there are lots of hits in Debretts and other books

[shanew147]

....
Robert William Burrowes[/b] (born in Rialto, Dublin, 2 November 1904 - 16 February 2002),

son of
George Burrowes (a ward master in Dublin by occupation, born in an uncertain location, perhaps Leitrim, 1863 - 29 April 1909),

son of who we presume to be,
William Beresford Burrowes.

The trail goes cold there.

Unfortunately, there is no birth certificate for George, and the only reference to his date of birth is on his death certificate. Concerning William Beresford Burrowes, there is no direct evidence that he is indeed George's father, but family tradition has always included this unusual Beresford link....
...

George's birth seems to be before the start of full registration, so you would need check what parish records for his place of birth to see if baptism records are available for the dates in question

have you located George on the 1901 census ?

there are a few possible matches for him - see : link

The George living in Dublin looks like a possibility, although the age conflicts a little with the details you have...

There's a good match for Robert and his mother on the 1911 census, living in Rialto - see : Burrows Household, Rialto Cottages

Do you have a birth cert for Robert ?
That should show his mother's maiden name... using that you could search for the marriage of George and Ellen. This would show their father's names and occupations and show if William is his father.


Shane

[Exarch]

Thank you both for the replies!

alpinecottage: I have indeed tried Googling Beresford Burrowes; the only satisfactory result that I can come up with is a marriage certificate where W.B.B. appears as a witness.

shanew147: Thank you for the in-depth search! I have come across George in the census before, but as you say, the age conflicts with his death certificate. If he was 43 in 1901, he'd have to have been born in 1853, a full ten years before the date on his death certificate. But - and perhaps I'm grasping at straws here - the mother of that household in Wood Quay is Marion Burrowes. Considering William Beresford Burrowes' wife was named 'Mary Ann', the census record could have been a misspelling, or rather, it is merely coincidence.

I have both the birth cert for Robert and the marriage certificate for George and Ellen. William Burrowes is listed as his father, by occupation a solictor's managing clerk, but there is no mentioning of 'Beresford'. There is something written beneath William's surname, but it is illegible to me. It looks almost like (dies), but of course, that can't be right.

[shanew147]

....
There is something written beneath William's surname, but it is illegible to me. It looks almost like (dies), but of course, that can't be right.
...

could it be 'decd' - as in deceased ?

This can sometimes appear on marriage cert under the father's names


Shane

[Exarch]

Good call!

Yes, quite possibly. With that in mind, it is either (decd. or (dec.). In that case, he was definitely dead before 18 August 1902.

[shanew147]

I presume you've already seen this marriage and death... if it's the same William then there might be some clues on the certs to follow up to check (e.g. occupation, residences etc) if this is the same William as the father of George.

Name: William Beresford Burrowes
 Registration district:   Cavan
 Event type: Marriage
 Registration quarter and year: 1854
 Volume : 3 / Page : 610 

 Name: William Beresford Burrowes
 Registration district:   Carrick-on-Shannon
 Event type: Death
 Registration Year: 1872
 Age : 41  (est. year of birth 1831)
 Volume : 18 / Page: 48

fits with the possible Cavan/Leitrim clues you mentioned..


Shane

edited   just remembered that you already have details for this marriage

[Pringle1820]

There was Rev. Charles Beresford who was Rector of Bailieborough and died in 1849 of, I think, typhoid fever. I'm wondering is he related because there are also Pringles in the surrounding area. Hope it helps,
Adam

[hallmark]

Pedigree of Bermingham, Barons Athenry, Earl of Louth, being the descendants and co-heirs of the 22nd Baron: Sewell, Richards, Beresford, Burrowes, Drummond, Leeson, St. George, Annesley, McGuire, Trotter, Burke, Kirwan, Dillon, 1717 - 1869.

Dublin: National Library of Ireland, Genealogical Office: Ms. 180, pp. 14-23