Thursday 19 July 2012

Two marriages & Two burials

Finally, from the Kirkinriola records I have noted two marriages and two burials. The first marriage I have already referred to in my recent blog, 'Shoemakers', the full record of which is:

Marriage at St. Patrick's, Kirkinriola on 1 November 1854:
John Hill, 22, Bachelor, Shoemaker, of Mill Street, Ballymena; Father: William Hill, Shoemaker; and
Margaret McIlhagger, 21, Spinster, of Harryville, Ballymena; Father: Crawford McIlhagga, Shoemaker.
Both bride and groom 'made their mark'. The Witnesses did not include a McIlhagga. Their signatures are difficult to read but are possibly Lorna Heaney and ? Henry.

The second marriage is of a McIlhagga widow. She had first been married to John McIlhagga, a Timber Yard Labourer, son of William, a Weaver (possibly from Tulleygarley). John had previously been married to Mary Ann Atkinson by whom he had had six children. He then married Margaret Tuff in 1901. As far as we know they didn't have any children. John died in 1903 and Margaret, now Widow Margaret McIlhagga married Joseph Hills, the full record of which is:

Marriage at St. Patrick's, Kirkinriola, on 11 April 1903:
Joseph Hillis, full age, Bachelor, Carter of Harryville, Ballymena; Father: Jospeh Hillis, Labourer; and
Margaret MacIlhaggart, full age, Widow, Mill-hand, of King Street, Ballymena; Father: Thomas Tuff, Shoemaker.
Margaret 'made her mark'.

The two burials are at the turn of the 19th/20th Centuries and are both from Queen Street, Ballymena. The first is Mary McIlhagga of 87 Queen Street, who was buried on 9 February 1898 aged 54 years. This means she was born about 1844. The second burial was on 23 February 1902 of John McIlhagga of Queen Street. He was 65 years, so was born about 1837. This means that Mary and John were born within seven years of each other. Were they siblings or husband and wife, or were they not closely related?

Although John died just a few months after the 1901 Census the only John listed there was 58 years old, though of course he may have given a false age. In 1901 he was a lodger in Ballymena High Street and was probably the John  who was to marry Margaret Tuff in July 1901, in which case they would only have had 8 months of married life before he died. Who Mary was I'm even less sure. She lived at 87 Queen Street, but by 1901 a Hamill family lived there, interestingly with a newborn son called Andrew Fullerton (full name), a surname we have come across before. Was there a link?


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