The 'Stafford' O'Neills of Rocktown / Ballymacpeake

[M_ONeill]

I've taken a quick, initial look over your ancestry tree, Anne - I notice you have Hugh O'Neill's parents listed as a Hugh O'Neill and an unknown Mulholland. I'd be interested to know where you got that link from as Mulholland is a very important name in the Rocktown/Dreenan area, and the family was very heavily intermarried with the O'Neills of the area.

Esther Downing, who I believe may be (but have not yet confirmed as) an ancestor of mine was the daughter of a Stafford Downing and a Rose Mulholland. Esther then supposedly married a James O'Neill.

John O'Neill of Ballymacpeake (born c.1820) married his first wife Bridget 'Biddy' Mulholland of the townland of Eden in 1851. They required canonical dispensation as they were related to the third degree which I believe made them second cousins - implying a prior marriage between their ancestors.

I had thought Stafford and Rose might have been the link (given the prevalence of 'Stafford' as a family name among John's siblings and children) but if there was another marriage (such as this elder Hugh) then it might give cause for reappraisal.

The Mulhollands were one of the two major landowning families in the local area, second only to the Downings. The Ballymacpeake O'Neills continued to be heavily intermarried with them - even going so far as to continuing to marry Mulholland cousins after emigrating to New Zealand.

[M_ONeill]

Another thing I noticed - one of the sponsors for John O'Neill's birth in 1826 is a Mulholland. First name is tough to make out, but I think it's Dennis. The same name appears as a sponsor for an Ann Given - daughter of a John Given and Bridget Mulholland of Cashel. Might be worth looking into to see if he's a relation of some kind.

Secondly, I notice that on John O'Neill and Catherine Kealey's marriage record, they appear to have recieved dispensation to marry - so it's possible that they were also perhaps related to some degree. I can't quite make out the handwriting in the 'impediments' entry but there's something written in there. Might be worth posting in the handwriting deciphering forum on here!

[anneannielouise]

Thanks for your message! Yes I did spot the sponsors (Margey and Mulholland) a few years back when I first started researching them and that is who the Mulholland in the tree references, though no hints have appeared on Ancestry to help me substantiate that! The Denis Mulholland had a son George and I put him in the tree as well to see if that would kickstart any thru lines but to date it has not. I may change it to Margey!

As you will have noticed every single entry on that wedding record had dispensations (usually re: Banns). Where they were cousins of any degree it is usually noted (and there are examples of that on the records). Frustratingly there is no indication on Catherine and John's wedding record (as there is on the one above them) of them being cousins at all.

I have checked my DNA with Paul's and there is no indication that we are related at all or that he is related to any of my other Rocktown O'Neills. Interestingly though he does seem to have a connection with a number of my McCloskey cousins over that side of Derry and there are some O'Neills in that line as well that he may be related to. Thanks again.

[M_ONeill]

Giving this thread a bit of a bump, as I've been back to chipping away at this part of the tree recently.

I've been combing through the local records trying to uncover as many links between the 'Stafford' families as I can. It's something of a tangled web, but it seems clear to me that a group of these families, predominantly centred in and around Dreenan, seem to have very close relationships with each other. However, it is not clear how they relate to the group of families based up near Ballymacpeake, such as the other branch of Stafford O'Neills. I'm now reconsidering my idea that the two branches both diverge from the same point, the marriage of James and Esther Downing. I'm beginning to think that they may be more distant cousins than first thought, and that the O'Neill/Downing connection goes back to a much earlier point.

I'll write out some of my findings regarding the connections Dreenan group of 'Stafford' families:

In 1837 there is a marriage between a Michael McTammeny and a Mary O'Neill, with the witnesses as a Stafford and Arthur O'Neill. Given the date, this Stafford O'Neill may be too old to be either the one in Rocktown or the one in Ballymacpeake and may be an entirely different man.

In 1839 there is a Dreenan baptism for a Peter McCann, son of Stafford McCann and Mary McTammeny. The eye is obviously drawn to a potential link between Mary and the Michael listed above. In another 'Stafford' Link, one of the sponsors of this baptism is Michael Dinnen. I believe this is likely the same man mentioned previously in this thread; the husband of Elizabeth Downing. He died in 1841, the same year as the inquest, not 1839 as I previously thought.

There are actually (at least) two Stafford McCanns in Dreenan, the latter of which marries a Sarah Cushley (sometimes written 'Costello') in 1866 in Moyagall. His father is given as a Patrick McCann. The elder Stafford did have a child named Peter (baptised 1838), but he'd have been more of a contemporary with the younger Stafford in age. The witnesses to Stafford and Sarah's wedding were James and Hannah O'Neill of Rocktown. I believe this James O'Neill was the grocer mentioned previously.

(Continued below...)

[M_ONeill]

James and Hannah were also the witnesses at Stafford Dinnen's marriage at the age of 60 to the 42 year old Bridget O'Neill. They were both widowed and were both some degree of cousins. Stafford was the son of Michael Dinnen and Elizabeth Downing, Bridget was the daughter of a Bernard O'Neill and a Martha Cassidy. This Stafford Dinnen and a John Dinnen (possibly a brother) were also renting a parcel of land from my 3x great grandfather John Carmichael, husband of Ellen O'Neill, beginning sometime prior to the first Griffiths valuation in 1859. I've yet to figure out exactly what this land relationship was, but it seems to tie my tree (as well as the other Rocktown O'Neills) fairly clearly into what seems like some kind of kinship network stretching north into Dreenan.

(It's at this point I feel like I need a cork board, pins and a *lot* of string...)

Going back to the McCanns, another Stafford McCann appears as a sponsor on the 1862 baptism of John Stafford O'Neill, son of Stafford O'Neill and Sarah McErlane. Stafford and Sarah were married in 1855 in Greenlough and I have a strong feeling that this Stafford was a sibling of my 3x great grandmother Ellen O'Neill due to how close their two families were - even going so far to move their families to neighbouring farms in the southernmost part of Rocktown.

The McErlane connection is another interesting one. There is a Stafford James McLoughlin registered in Innishrush in 1865, the son of a Henry McLoughlin and a Mary McErlane (whose name is sometimes written as Maria or even Mavina). The two were married in Ballyscullion in 1857. It is not clear how they link into the other Stafford families - I suspect there may be a connection to Sarah McErlane's family, but I've yet to find any hard evidence. There is also a Theresa McErlane of Cullear  who marries a Henry Downey of Drumard in 1888. She may also be related into this same McErlane family, but as yet evidence is thin and it remains a theory. It is interesting to note that the Ballymacpeake Stafford O'Neills also intermarry with McErlanes - one of the few points of overlap between the two branches.

There is an 1878 Dreenan baptism of a Francis McNally, parents a John McNally and Bridget Henry. The sponsors are a James Stafford Dinnen and an Elizabeth Dinnen. I'm not sure of the specifics, but it seems fairly clear that John S. and Elizabeth belong to the family line beginning with Michael Dinnen.

Finally, there's a registered birth of a Stafford Kane in 1872, son of a Thomas Kane, schoolmaster, and an Elizabeth Downing of Dreenan. The couple were married in the Maghera parish church in a CoI ceremony in 1866. Elizabeth's father is listed as a Stafford Downing.

So as you can see, a very tangled web! I'm not sure exactly where to go from here, but I feel like there are enough overlapping families here that there should be at least some evidence that I'm yet to uncover.

I'd be especially interested to hear from other experts on the local Downing family who might be able to shed some light on the links between these families!

[dukewm]

I think I've narrowed down the James and Hannah O'Neill who were listed as witnesses on the civil record of Stafford Dinnen's and Bridget O'Neill's wedding in 1872.

James O'Neill was born c.1813 (according to death record) and died in 1884 in Dreenan. He was a 'Farmer and Grocer' according to his will. His wife Hannah was born c. 1824. An Arthur Brannon was the informant on her death record. A Sarah Brannon was the second witness on the parish record of Stafford Dinnen's marriage, so there may be some link to the Brannon family, possibly friends, neighbours or even relations.

If you look at the family tree I just sent you, it appears that James O'Neill (Jr or II), was likely a son of James O'Neill who married Esther Downing.  I know factually that Esther was baptized on 4 Apr 1789 at St. Lurach's, Maghera by Alexander Clotworthy Downing, and that she was the daughter of Stafford Downing of Dreenan.
Stafford Dinnen, b. c.1812, was the son of Michael Dinnen and Elizabeth Downing, daughter of Stafford Downing of Dreenan.
It would be speculation, but HIGHLY probable, that James O'Neill (Jr.) and Stafford Dinnen were first cousins, sharing Stafford Downing and Rose Mulholland (a set of grandparents) through their respective mothers.

A case where a "picture" (the tree) is worth a thousand words.

A 'James O'Neill (Grocer)' is listed as one of the donors towards the construction of Lavey Chapel, there his residence is given as 'Dreenan Lower'.

[M_ONeill]

Hi Rick,

First of all, thank you so much for the family tree! It's very comprehensive and I'm sure it's going to be massively helpful in my own research.

If James Jr. is indeed the son of James and Esther, then that'd be something of a breakthrough - I'd be one step closer to proving a link between my confirmed ancestor, Ellen O'Neill and the Downing line through Esther. I'm curious as to whether you've come across any particular records showing James Jr to be James the elder's son, or whether it's just an educated guess on your part, given the dates? (Forgive me if this information is already included in the tree itself, I'm still in the process of reviewing!)

If we assume for the moment that James Jr is indeed James and Esther's son, it raises the question of how exactly Ellen O'Neill fits into the family line. One current theory I have is that her eldest son, William James Carmichael, may be named for his two grandfathers. It's highly likely that his paternal grandfather was a William Carmichael of Drumard, making a James O'Neill a possibility for the maternal line.

Ellen's year of birth is somewhat indistinct; the 1901 census gives 1827 but her death record lists 1820. The earlier date would place her in roughly the right age bracket to be a sibling of James Jr. It may also be relevant that Esther Downing had a sibling named Elinor. If Ellen was Esther's daughter It's possible that she was named for her aunt.

I wonder also about Stafford O'Neill who married Sarah McErlane. I have long thought him as a potential sibling of Ellen, but given that his death record lists his birth year as c1830, he is on the cusp of being a possible son of James Junior, depending how accurate the dates are. I still think on the balance of probabilities he is more likely to be a sibling of Ellen, but there is perhaps a question mark there.

Well, I can't complain about not having enough leads on this particular branch! Thanks once again, Rick, this is going to be a huge help!

[M_ONeill]

An interesting little addendum: I've just found the actual text of James O'Neill's will (previously I had only seen the shorter, index entry).

Curiously, James O'Neill's name is always given followed with the name 'Henry' in brackets every time it appears (see attachment). I'm not sure precisely what that means; whether it's a nickame or whether it evinces any link to the local Henry family. The O'Neills of Rocktown seem to rent land almost exclusively from a Henry family, specifically the line of a Captain Robert Henry. May be pure coincidence, but it'd be interesting to know why Henry was appended to James' name.

In the body of the will, James leaves everything to his wife Hannah, and recommends to her that after her death she leave the greater part to 'my niece Rose Mallon'. This suggests to me the possibility that James and Hannah never had (surviving) children. I've yet to narrow down Rosie Mallon in the records - there is a Rose Mallon living in Ballydermot in the 1901 census, but she is 72 and thus older than James.

All in all, James left Hannah effects totalling £133. 2s. 9d. Witnesses were Charles Convery and Hugh Henery (sic).

[M_ONeill]

Well, we can add a new wrinkle to the picture - I've just found records showing a Stafford McNally who married Ellen McGuire in Termoneeny in 1861. Witnesses at the wedding were a Thomas Downey and a Nancy McCann. The couple had a son Henry in 1862.

My mind naturally goes to the previously mentioned couple John and Bridget McNally, who had James Stafford Dinnen and Elizabeth Dinnen as sponsors at the baptism of their child Francis. John and Bridget also had a son John Stafford McNally born in 1865. So it seems likely that the McNally family are another catholic family potentially branching off the Dreenan Downings, in an as-yet unknown fashion.