Hi Valally,
I am the one that you had correspondence with many years back.
Yes, my email used to be the vaxxine.com address but that changed many years ago. You can contact me directly PM through here, as you did a few days ago.
Yes, Mary McAloney was my cousin. She passed away 12 Dec 2003. Her mother (my aunt), Edith nee Hill passed away on 4 Aug 2001 and Robert McAloney (my uncle who was the son of James McAloney and Mary (Anne) nee Carson) passed away on 14 Dec 1961. He was 86 years, 6 months and 24 days old at the time of his death in 1961. My aunt never remarried. Our family being very small and matriarchical, my aunt and my mother worked together, Mary looked after me after school, we lived within a blocks of each other. So, our relationships were very close.
To date, 10 children have been absolutely confirmed as having been born to James McAloney and Mary (Ann) Carson. I put Mary's middle name in brackets as sometimes it was used on the birth certificates of the children and sometimes it wasn't. Until a baptism document can be found for her no one can say with impunity that her name was or was not Mary Anne or simply Mary.
James McAloney and Mary (Ann) Carson married 17 Nov 1861 but the earliest confirmed child is William who was born circa 1864/5. So, there is a definite possibility that there was one or two children born even earlier in their marriage that may have died in infancy or during childbirth. Some things such as this we may never know.
You and I have both been working toward the same end, Valally - to attempt to locate living descendants with more knowledge of the family than either of us have. I have more than you do. What I am able to share, I have. The rest, I'm afraid relates to the more delicate and private side of Robert's life in all of the places in which he has lived. Some of the information I have (all documented proof) affects other living descendants and as such ethically and morally I cannot share that information. I am in regular touch with Robert's other descendants.
Just to summarize the known children of James and Mary (Ann) nee Carson for you:
The Dead:
1. Robert John born 27 Dec 1867, died 13 Sep 1874 (Brook Street, Coleraine)
2. unnamed son born 1 Feb 1870, died 3 Feb 1870
3. Annie Margaret born 26 Nov, died 26 Dec 1870
4. Andrew born 24 Oct 1871, died 29 Oct 1871
The Living:
5. William born circa 1864/5, married twice had 5 known children, died 19 Apr 1917 Whitehead, Templecorran.
6. Eliza born circa 1869 married Archibald Hamill, no known children.
7. James born 13 Sep 1871 married once, 8 children identified.
8. Robert (my uncle) born 20 May 1875, married 3 times, 5 children between the 3 wives. Unfortunately, none of the other children knew even as much as I do about Robert's life.
9. Andrew born 14 Dec 1877, died 12 Nov 1908, known to have lived with Jane Quinn in a possibly common-law marriage. The lack of a marriage certificate is a hindrance. Jane's second marriage seems to have been very blatantly registered under her maiden surname of Quinn despite her assertion that her names was, at that time, Jane McAloney, from irishgenealogy.ie, to wit:
"Party 1 Name JAMES MCNERLANE
Party 2 Name JANE QUINN
Date of Event 18 August 1913
Group Registration ID 1706435
SR District/Reg Area Coleraine"
This second marriage was by licence.
The fact that Andrew and Jane's first child was named Andrew Carson McAloney would strongly suggest that this family properly belongs to James McAloney and Mary (Ann) nee Carson. However, the commonness of the surname Carson dictates that one also has to always reserve, in the light of the lack of other documentary evidence to the contrary, that there is a possibility that this family belongs to a different branch of the McAloney tribe.
10. Matilda born 15 Aug 1880, fate unknown.
So, to sum up, it would appear that any living descendants would likely now be found to be descendants of either William or James - you comprising descendants of Andrew and myself and my contacts comprising descendants/relatives of Robert. Of course, if anyone can locate Matilda or discover if she or Eliza had any children, then those two daughters are also possible sources of descendants.
Must run for now.
