A Young Widow Farmer

For some time I have had information about a family of six children from a transcription of the 1911 Irish Census, all with the surname McElhagga and have wondered how to get further information about them. Now that I have the 1901 Census I know that McElhagga was a mistranscription for McIlhagga. I looked for each of the children in turn in my own birth index using the name and year (worked out from the child's age) and knowing the name of their mother from the census. I drew blanks on the first five but found Nathaniel aged 5 (in 1901) born with parents Agnes and Archibald McIlhagga. Up to this point I hadn't known the father's name. The 1901 Census simply has Agnes McIlhagga, age 34, widow, farmer. In addition to the six children who were all 'scholars' aged 15 down to 5, there was also living with them at 28 Maxwellswalls, Connor, Agnes' father, Robert Jamison, aged 82. This of course gave me her maiden name and I was able to look up the marriage of Agnes and Archibald on the AncestryIreland website. They married on 8th June 1885 in Wellington Street Presbyterian Church, Ballymena. Archibald was a farmer, as we have seen, in Maxwellswalls. Agnes was the daughter of a farmer in Tardee. The interesting detail on the marriage record is that Agnes was a 'minor'. This meant 'under 21' and we know from the ages she gave in the 1901 and 1911 Censuses that she was either 17 or 18. She was in fact six months pregnant when they married.

I suspect that Archibald was somewhat (maybe considerably) older than Agnes. I have the birth date of one of his brothers in the 1830s. Archibald died on 10th April 1898 and we know from his will (proved on 27th September 1901) that he left everything to his wife. The schedules attached to the 1901 Census show us that Agnes not only owned the land on which their house, number 28 Maxwellswalls, stood, but also that on which 29 stood. Clearly from the time of Archibald's death three years earlier Agnes had continued to farm, no doubt with a little help from her retired father. This would have meant a continuing stable family life for all the children who were still in education. William, the eldest is called 'Farmer's son' so clearly was employed on the farm. We have a very different picture ten years later from the 1911 Census, possibly a change which came about when her father died, when the family moved into the Shankill area of Belfast. They were still all together, all still single and living at 3 Diamond Street.

William, the eldest, now 25, was a General Labourer, as was his brothers Robert, 23, and John, 17. Jennie, 21, was a Linen Weaver, as was her sister Margaret, 19. Nathaniel aged 15 was a Message Boy. There is now no occupation against Agnes' name, who is 45 and still 'Head of Household'. With six incomes coming in she could no doubt afford simply to continue to be the home keeper, though doubtless she had her own income from the sale of the farm in Maxwellswalls. After this time I do not know what happened to William. Jeannie married later in 1911 (23rd June) to Thomas Smyth. Her sister Margaret was her marriage witness, though I don't know what happened subsequently to 'Maggie', nor indeed to Robert (Bob). John married Elizabeth Kerr. They had three children, William Wallace, Elizabeth and John. After John senior's death in December 1946 consideration was clearly given to emigration and it would seem that almost the whole family went to Queensland, Australia in the mid '50s, though John turns up later in New Zealand where his descendants flourish today. Other descendants are in Australia though one, an eminent scientist, has moved back to the United Kingdom. Archibald and Agnes' youngest son, Nathaniel, married Charlotte and had two sons who I think stayed in Northern Ireland.

Finally, there is a Memorial Inscription in Connor New Cemetery, as follows:

McIlhagga

In loving memory of Nathaniel McIlhagga

beloved husband of Charlotte McIlhagga,

died 22nd March 1937

aged 41 years.

A Baker and BreadServers

In the 1901 Census of Ireland there appears to be a lone couple at 45 Wigton Street, Belfast. John McIlhagga, aged 27, was born in Belfast about 1874. He was a Baker. Bella was two years older, born about 1872 in County Antrim. Fortunately I have some Irish marriage records, including that of John McIlhagga to Isabella daughter of Thomas McKay, tailor. Interestingly John's father, also John, is called a BreadServer. Presumably father served the bread to the public that son John baked. John and Isabella were married at St.Anne's Church of Ireland, Shankill, Belfast, on 11th July 1893 when John was 22 and lived at 48 Brussels Street. Isabella was 24, worked as a Smoother, I imagine in the Linen Industry, and lived at 67 Grove Street. Their witnesses' names do not give me any further clues about them at present (Frederick McCullough and Elizabeth Thompson), but John Senior's occupation possibly does.

By good fortune (for us) another marriage of only seven moths earlier, on 23rd November 1892 was of John McIlhagga, son of Robert, BreadServer and Widower, of Belfast to Anne, daughter of David Kerr, Farmer of Belfast. This marriage was at Townsend Presbyterian Church, Shankill. Anne had not been married before. Little did they all know that John Senior's experience of widowhood and remarriage would become John Junior's experience. Isabella died at the comparatively young age of fifty-four and John would remarry Mary Elizabeth. We know this from the headstone commemorating his parents and both his wives which John erected in Templepatrick Old Graveyard. His mother was Margaret, daughter of Paul Douglas and Jane Johnston. The Douglas Records go back to 1763 in the village of Ballycushin on the North Antrim Coast. The Templepatrick Memorial Inscription reads as follows:

In loving memory

of my dear mother Margaret McIlhagga

and my father John McIlhagga

also my dear wife Isabella McIlhagga

who died 19th March 1926

also my dear wife Mary Elizabeth

who died 19th November 1939

also my brother Samuel

who died 30th November 1944.

John McIlhagga who died 16th July 1956.

Peace perfect peace.

The Memorial Inscription is in Medium Grey Sandstone with Wrought Iron Metal surround.

The last piece of this jigsaw is the name of John Senior's father as Robert McIlhagga, a Farmer. But herein lies a difficulty! The record of John's first marriage to Margaret Douglas names his father as John, a Labourer. And we know this is correct from the Gravestone. So what are the possibilities? Perhaps John the BreadServer who married in 1892 was not John Junior's father and there were two John McIlhaggas, both Breadservers. Really unlikely! Perhaps the record which says John Senior's father was Robert was wrong. Rather unlikely. Perhaps the father's name was Robert John or John Robert. I certainly have no record of these two names together. One final line of enquiry: John and Margaret had six children, Hannah (1870), Jane (1872), John (1874), Daniel (1880), Robert (1885) and Samuel (undated, probably about 1877). If John was the eldest son he may have been named after his grandfather, which accords with the name of his father's marriage to Margaret. Grandfather John would have had to have been born before (say) 1825. So where do I go from here?

McIlhagan and McIlhagar

In my FamilySearch trawl there were just two McIlhagans. Both, however, are errors for other name variants. The first is the marriage of Jane in 1846. This should have been transcribed as Jane McIlhagar (see below) who married William Witherspoon on 11th April 1846. The second was the baptism in 1870 of Mary. This should have been transcribed as Mary, daughter of John McIlhagger and Mary Jane (Hull) on 9th October 1870 in Ballymena. Mary emigrated to Australia, married Jacob Heiniger in Queensland and had twelve children there.

Ireland Marriages, 1619-1898 records three events in the first half of the 19th Century for the surname McIlhagar. Two of them were marriages performed at the Presbyterian Church in Broughshane. Given that a large McIlhagga family lived in Ballycloughan, Broughshane, we have the possibility of cousins living close by. The earliest event however was of Jane McIlhagar marrying William Witherspoon on 11th April 1846 at Kirkinriola, Ballymena, Co. Antrim. Unfortunately no parents' names are noted. The second is a year later on 21st March 1847 of Eliza McIlhagar, daughter of James, a farmer, to Robert son of Robert McCarley. The marriage place is given as Racavan, which is a Civil Parish. In fact it was at Broughshane. Interestingly we know of another clan-McCarley marriage living at or near Broughshane. We know this from the parents names in the Baptism Register of the Presbyterian Church. They are John McIlhago or McElhager (born 1788) and Jenie or Jenny or Jane McCarley (born 1790). The dates mean that Jenny/Jane was probably the sister of Robert. I have already written about John and Jane in an earlier blog. They were part of the family which emigrated to Jamestown, Pensylvania. The third marriage, also at Broughshane, was on 25th August 1847 of Mary, daughter of William McIlhagar (also spelled McIlhaggar) to John son of Robert Auld. We know of one other Auld reference, connected to our Maxwell's Walls families. Margaret Auld married Paul Burney in 1874. Was this John and Mary (nee McIlhagar)'s daughter? I'm afraid that at present I do not have family trees into which I can fit Witherspoon, McCarley or Auld. Yet more research!

McIlhaggo - McNeilly

The 1901 Irish Census has just been published and as I analyse all our clan references (which will take a little time!) I hope that some of our genealogical problems will be solved. However this is really not true of the first references to come up. They concern a household at 45 Ballygallough, Ballyclare in the District of Larne, County Antrim. The head of the household was James McNeilly, a farmer, born about 1843, who was unmarried. In the same household was his sister Mary, born about 1836, now Mary McIlhaggo. Her husband is the third name at number 45. He was William McIlhaggo, another farmer, born about 1851. William and Mary had married on 15th March 1875 in Mountpottinger Presbyterian Church, Belfast. (I am adding whatever other information I have, as I go along). Interestingly the two witnesses at the marriage were James McNeilly and Mary Jane McIlhagar, who was probably William's eldest sister. We know from the 1911 Census when William was head of a household at 52 Ballygallagh (note slightly different spelling), that he had another sister, Jenny, who was single in 1911. The last clan member on the 1901 list was William and Mary's daughter, Maggie born 1876 or 1877. She is listed as Niece, of James McNeilly. She too was still single ten years later. We know from William and Mary's marriage record that Mary's father was Joseph McNeilly and William's was William John McIlhaggar (or McIlhaggo to use the 1901 spelling). All but William were Presbyterians. William belonged to The Brethren. The only other Plymouth Brethren I have found in the clan were a family a generation later, namely Samuel Robinson and Jane McNeice and children. Was Samuel influenced by William? If so, were they related? Samuel's father was George, whose father was William. Was William who married Mary McNeilly therefore a brother of George? The 1901 household included two unmarried servants, Martha Pennie, 20, a domestic Servant and James Adair, 26, a Farm Servant. It will need further research to know where this family fits into the clan.

Aha! I have found William's two other sisters. They were living together at 4 Clement's Hill, Ballynure. Jannet, aged 50 was the Home Keeper and Head of Family. Mary Jane, aged 58 was working as a Muslin Lopper. Neither was married and both belonged to the Church of Ireland.

Death in New York

Marilyn S. McIlhagga

We report with sadness the death on 4th June (Friday last) of Marilyn, aged 71, wife of William McIlhagga in New York. She was born Marilyn Susan Weber on 30th March 1931 in Buffalo, New York. She married William Archibald McIlhagga on 22nd September 1961. A marriage of 47 years leaves a widower, three children and two grandchildren. Marilyn's funeral is on Monday 7th June when a Memorial Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at the Infant of Prague Roman Catholic Church, Cheektowaga. William is the younger son of James McIlhagga and Jean Blue Crawford. Jean was brought up in Fairlie, Largs, Scotland, the eldest daughter of Archibald and Mary (nee Drummond) Crawford. James was brought up in Greenock, Renfrew, Scotland, son of James and Johanna (nee McCulloch) McIlhagga. James junior emigrated to the USA in 1922 and became a naturalized citizen in 1937. We send our sincere condolences to all the family in New York, not least because William is my third cousin.

Isle of Man

Parish of Marown, Isle of Man

There are today McIlhaggas who live and work in the Isle of Man. I chanced upon the website called CensusOnline and put in McIlhag*. Strangely it did not produce the Liverpool family to which I referred on 11th January. It did produce William Boyd McIlhagger aged 20 in Hampshire. He had been born in Belfast and was in the Army. Also a James McIlhaggie aged 18, was born in Scotland. No residence is recorded for him. However, most significantly three people are listed in the Isle of Man in the Census for 1901 in England and Wales. This is the first time I have come across any historical references to the Island. The three are Barbar (?Barbara) McIlhaggart, 35; Joseph McIlhaggart, 40 and Margarette McIlhaggart aged 12. All were said to have been born in Scotland and lived now in the Parish of Marown, right in the centre of the Isle of Man, in fact in the only parish which does not border on the coast. Interestingly, Joseph was a Shepherd. I have searched my birth records and all the earlier Censuses taken in Scotland and as yet cannot find any reference to Joseph. I do have just one other reference to the Isle of Man, to the death of James McIlhagger, born 1913 who died 2nd November 1986, aged 73 in the Parish of Onchan. As I pointed out on 29th October last, he was the son of David and Elizabeth (nee Sherwood) McIlhagger of Belfast. He married Ethel Neville in 1939 and had two sons. I have no idea what took him to the Island, possibly a holiday. Any further information about clan members in the Island would be very welcome.

One 'g' McIlhaga

In the FamilySearch website there are nine clan names spelled with one 'g', as McIlhaga. Three of them certainly belong to the family I have written about a couple of times (see blogs of 9th and 10th Nov 09 and 20th Feb 10) namely Margaret daughter of Samuel McIlhaga and Grace Marrs, born 1870 in Ballymoney, William John Marrs, son of Samuel McIlhaga and Grace Marrs, born 26th August 1877 in Belfast, and John Wellwood McIlhaga married in the June Quarter 1941 in Dublin South. Others are simple droppings of a 'g' in the marriage of Nathaniel Owens McIlhag(g)a and Henrietta Wilson in 1866, and possibly James born September quarter 1916 in Ballymena, who may be the son of James Dunlop McIlhagga, though he may also be a son (unknown to me) of William John Marrs McIlhaga. Also Daniel Mc'Ilhaga born 1868 in Ballymoney is probably the son of James McIlhagga and Jane Maitland. Also Rebecca McIlhaga is given as the mother of Elisabeth Dunwoodie at her birth on 3rd June 1881 in New Monkland Landward, Lanark, Scotland. Her father was David Dunwoodie. Rebecca was the daughter of William Gage McIlhagga and Mary Houston. This is a family for which I have no fewer than four spellings of our surname - McIlhaga, McIlhago, McIlhaggie and McIlhagga.

This leaves me with just two people who need further research. On 17th March 1881 Elizabeth McIlhaga is given as the mother of James Johnston in Greenock Middle Parish, Renfrew, Scotland. His father was Robert Johnston. This is a new record for me, which I can check on by looking up the 1881 Census on the ScotlandsPeople website. My records include the marriage of Robert Johnston and Elizabeth McIlhagan in 1877 in Greenock. If I also look this up on ScotlandsPeople hopefully I'll find Elizabeth's parents' names. I will be intrigued to know if They are one of two possible couples I know about. The first is Francis McIlhag(g)a(r) and Nancy Fletcher of Ballymuckvea. The other is John McIlhagga and Mary Stewart of Ballycloughan. Both these couples had a daughter Elizabeth in 1853, about the right year for her to be married in 1877. The final McIlhaga record is one which I have not been able to trace further yet. It is for the marriage of Jane McIlhaga in the June Quarter of 1908 in Belfast. Strangely the Ireland Civil Registration Indexes only give this very basic information, though I believe this to be her marriage to Thomas Robinson on 8th April 1908 in Clifton Park Congregational Church. Her father was James.