Allen Blog- Hugh's Story- Part 4- Neighbors and Extended Family

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The Lives of Tenant Farmers

The Allens and their neighbors did not own the houses that they lived in or the land on which they had  toiled for generations. They were tenant farmers. The Penal Laws had taken most rights from Irish Catholics- in early times they could not vote, buy land, hold office, possess weapons, or even, in the earliest days, attend school or legally practice their religion. By 1778 Protestants owned 95% of the land. The Penal laws remained in effect until 1829, with the act of Catholic Emancipation. But the results were already entrenched in a society of wealthy Protestant land owners and poor Catholic tenant farmers. Richard Allen and his neighbors leased their land from a gentleman named Charles P. Leslie. 

Neighbors

Great Umberstown was a small rural district with a dozen or so family farms. In the 1901 census for we see remaining neighbors- the Sweeneys, Dorans, Byrnes, Reillys, Mahons, Murrins and Corcorans. Many of these names appeared as baptismal sponsors for the Allen children in earlier years. 

These farms appear in 1855 on Griffith’s Valuation showing their acreage and location (number) on the valuation map. Richard Allen’s home was #4 on the map. Patrick Reilly’s home (#5) was the largest in the area with 30 acres of land. Patrick Sweeney (#11) had 20 acres, Thomas Murrin (#6) 16 acres, William Doran (#9) 11 acres, John Corcoran (#8) 8 acres, Michael Connolly ((#7) 7 acres, and James Mulary (#12) 6 acres. The amount of acreage tells an important story-although the land in Meath was fertile, supporting a large family on less than 10 acres had to be very difficult. 

Also shown in Great Umberstown, next to Richard Allen’s farm, was Willoughby J. Lightburne (#1) with 295 acres. Richard’s neighbor to the west was a Protestant landowner. Lightburne was a lawyer who lived in Trim, his home there being “Harcourt Lodge.”  His father Stafford Lightburne had been a Protestant curate under Rev. Jonathan Swift (author of “Gulliver’s Travels) when he was a minister in the Laracor Church of Ireland.[2] Lightburne would have hired farmers to till his land and care for his grazing animals. This may have been an additional source of income for the Allen family or their neighbors. 

Figure 1- shows the map of Griffiths Valuation of 1855- showing the plots of land of each tenant. Richard Allen was #4- note that the Allen farm borders the Dangan Estate in gray.The other plot numbers match the names of the Great Umberstown neighbors above- Lightburn #1 is to the upper left of the Allen farm.)

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Figure 2- Griffith's Valuation for Great Umberstown, with map location number, name of tenant, name of landowner, description of property, number of acres, tax value of land, tax value of house, and total taxes due (in pounds and shillings.)

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Nearby family and friends

At this point, we are unsure of who might have been in Hugh’s extended family. But we do know that families of the time were large, and that most people did not move far from their home farms (a fact that was soon to change) so there is a good likelihood that relatives lived nearby. In nearby Dangan, there were 24 residences including James Allen who lived on 5 acres, and Peter Allen lived on 3 acres. Likely friends (names appearing on parish records as baptismal sponsors for the Allen family) were John McCann (19 acres) and Michael Rattigan (4 acres)- all tenants of Thomas Burrows, the owner of the Dangan Estate. 

There were also several Allen (and Sweeney) families in nearby townships- close neighborhoods all within easy walking distance of Great Umberstown. In Ballinrig were 8 residences, including a James Allen with 26 acres and a Rose Allen with 10 acres. Likely friends here were Walter Rattigan, James, Thomas and Peter Byrne, and James Connolly. In Clondoogan were 45 residences, with John Allen (21 acres) Edward Allen (11 acres) and more Byrne, Rattigan, and Reilly families. It is likely that Hugh grew up with numerous aunts, uncles, and cousins.

You can search these records for further clues and see the maps at: 

http://www.askaboutireland.ie/griffith-valuation/index.xml

(County meath, Barony Lower Moyfenragh, Union Trim, Parish Laracor- Great Umberstown is page 7 under Laracor Parish)

[1] London Illustrated Times (google pictures)

[2] Johnathan Swift: A Literary Reference to his Life and Works by Paul J. DeGategno, R. Jay Stubblefield

[3] Griffith's Valuation 1855 chart and map of Great Umberstown 

Allen Blog- Hugh's Story- Part 3 - Hugh's Home and Farm in Ireland

A typical cottage of the time in Meath

A thatched cottage in Meath

Although simple by today’s standards, Hugh grew up in a home that was comfortable compared to the typical Irish farm family. Based on the 1901 and 1911 census of John Allen, his brother, we can get a picture of the home that Hugh likely grew up in. The outside walls of the house were originally made of wood or mud brick, but were later covered with concrete or stone. There were three windows and a door on the front of the house. The roof was thatched - a traditional material in great demand by some homeowners now. Inside, the house had 2-4 rooms for the family of twelve to live in. [1] 

Weather in Ireland could be chilly and wet and the house would have had a central open fireplace to burn the traditional smoky peat turf for heating and cooking. A tea kettle and cooking pot would be hung directly over the fire. Furnishings would have been simple- tables, chairs, and beds or straw stuffed pallets with quilts for the family. 

The Richard Allen family home was taxed at 15 shillings- nearly 3 times the amount of most homes of farmers in the area- which leads us to believe that this was a fairly nice home.  In the valuation, we see that John Allen has a house and garden on Richard's farm. This was taxed for only 4 shillings. At first I thought that this was his son, John, but later came to a different realization- this may well have been his father (or both of his parents.)

John Allen is listed in the 1828 Tithe Applotment Books as living in this area. It would make sense that when he was too old to farm, he (and his wife) would retire to a smaller house with just a garden and leave the main house and farm to his son, Richard. Could John Allen be our ancestor? I think it is highly likely. All eight of Richard's sons would have been home- and unmarried- at the time of the 1854 valuation. It was not the tradition to give land or a home to a son until after they were married and starting their own family...and only one name is listed. John Allen.

Below- Richard Allen’s farm on Griffith’s Valuation of 1854. 

 Richard Allen leases from Charles P. Leslie. The valuation reflects the expected income for the year- thus the Allen farmland would be expected to produce a profit of about 12 pounds 5 shillings each year.[2]  

                                             The Farm

The Allen farm in Great Umberstown consisted of 17 acres of fertile farmland and green pasture. The Knightsbrook River ran through the property, providing abundant water for the family and their animals.[3] Fishing in its waters was likely a favorite pastime of Hugh and his brothers. 

Hugh's mother, Margaret Sweeney Allen, had plenty of room to keep a kitchen garden to provide the family with vegetables and herbs. His father, Richard would have also worked the field crops- which may have included oats, potatoes, and other staples which could be used by the family and for added income.

 Like most small farms of the area, Hugh’s family likely had at least one cow for milk, a flock of chickens for eggs and meat, and a family of pigs for meat and sale for cash at the local markets. With 17 acres, they probably had a donkey to help plow the land and to hitch to a cart to travel back and forth from town and church- but many families of the area walked. 

There would have been a number of outbuildings on the farm; in 1911 we see that there was a stable, cow house, piggery, fowl house, barn, and turf house.[4] (John Allen is #13 on the images below.)

1911 census for John Allen (#13), Great Umberstown, showing barns and outbuildings

1911 Census for John Allen (#13,) Great Umberstown, showing home information

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1- 1911 Census for John Allen, Great Umberstown, Meath, House and Buildings

2- Griffiths Valuation 1855, Richard Allen, Great Umberstown, Meath

3- Google Earth 

4- 1911 Census for John Allen, Great Umberstown, Meath,  Out-offices and Farmsteadings

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Allen Blog- Hugh's Story- Part 2- Hugh's Childhood Family

                                         
                                              Hugh Allen

                                    Hugh’s Childhood Family

 My mother’s grandfather, Hugh Allen, was born in Ireland on 3 March, 1834.[1]  His parents, Richard Allen and Margaret Sweeney, had been married in Summerhill Parish, County Meath, in 1825. (The Parish registry below shows Rich Allen and Mag Sweeney and their witnesses.)2

Hugh grew up in a family of ten children. His eldest sister was Mary, born the year after his parents’ marriage, and eight years older than Hugh. There is little doubt that Mary bore many of the household chores and helped with caring for her nine younger siblings- this was a pattern that existed in the family into my mother’s own upbringing- the girls helped with the inside house work and the boys helped with the outside farm work. Hugh had two older brothers- Franklin (also known as “Frank” or “Francis”) who was five years older, and John, who was just a year older than Hugh. Just a year after Hugh’s birth his younger brother Patrick was born, followed by the birth of four more brothers over the next ten years- Peter, Richard, Thomas, and Edward. This household of eight boys was no doubt a crucial help with the daily farm chores but they also probably consumed a good deal of the product- a challenge during the famine years to come. Finally, in 1847 a baby sister was born- Catherine.3 This was the last child to whom Margaret would give birth.

Date of Baptism	name	Place	Sponsors
1826 28 May	Mary Allen	Summerhill, Meath	John Reely Mary Murran
1829 3 February	Franklin C “Francis” Allen	Dangan Parish, Summerhill, Meath	Peter Allen Mary McCann
1833 20 May	John Allen	Summerhill, Meath	Patrick Gugerly Rose Maran
1834 3 March (birth)	Hugh Allen	Summerhill, Meath
1835 5 June	Patrick Allen	Summerhill, Meath	Jane
1837 28 June	Peter Allen	Summerhill, Meath	Pat Sweeney Cate McCan
1839 15 Sept	Richard Allen	Summerhill, Meath	Richard Ruley Honor Corcoran
1841 22 Nov	Thomas Allen	Dangan Parish, Summerhill, Meath	Thomas McCan Christine Fitzsimons
1844 4 March	Edward Allen	Summerhill, Meath	Patrick Ruley Catharine Ruley
21 May 1847	Catherine Allen	Summerhill, Meath	Thomas Murns Ellen Sweeney

Records of baptisms of the children of Richard Allen and Margaret Sweeney- here we see that they were baptized in the church at Dangan, Parish of Summerhill.

Francis 1829

Thomas 1841

(Similar parish records were available for the other children of Richard Allen and Margaret Sweeney- all but Hugh!)

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1- Family History Notebooks

2- Ireland, Selections of Catholic Parish Marriages and Banns 1742-1884 (Ancestry.com)

3- Ireland, Select Catholic Birth and Baptism Registers, 1763-1912

Allen Blog- Hugh's Story- Part 1- The Process

Three pink notebooks


My mother gave me three pink notebooks. They consisted of carefully compiled information on our Allen, Sweeney, Quinn and Kinsella ancestors and their descendants. My aunt, Helen Allen, had carefully collected and typed a great deal of this information; my cousin, Marjorie Allen, continued her efforts in researching and organizing the genealogical data for our family. These notebooks were the cornerstone of my ongoing research as they contained a wealth of information on our ancestors in America and their descendants, and a precious collection of artifacts- obituaries, news articles, family pictures, etc. The “brick wall” that genealogists always face, was, in this case, information on the family in Ireland, before they came to America.

The quest

On the week of St. Patrick’s Day (2014) I was laid up in bed with a broken ankle, and Ancestry.com offered a few days of free access to their Irish genealogy records. It seemed a good mix. I began the search for my ancestors in Ireland. As always, what started as a brief exploration quickly blossomed into a much longer quest to find out more about this branch of our family. (If you want to explore the beginnings of Allen information which I have posted on ancestry.com, my username there is janmariewv. Here is a link to the site:

http://trees.ancestry.com/tree/67901618/family?cfpid=46176250816&selnode=1

 If you have any problems feel free to send me your email on this blog and I will add you to my contact list there.) Also please feel free to invite other Allen descendants that you think might be interested in this. I very much appreciate any additions, corrections, artifact pictures, etc. which you may have for the ancestry site- this is very much a work in progress and those of you in Illinois may have a great deal of information to add! I also very much appreciate your thoughts and feedback on the blogsite- this is my first attempt at a blog!

Our Lady of Lourdes Church, Dangan, Summerhill Parish, Meath

  Parish Registries

My search on the Irish Records on Ancestry.com brought me to the marriage and birth records for Summerhill Parish (where we knew that our family attended church.) I found out that Irish infants of the time were generally baptized on their day of birth or very soon after. This led me to re-examine some of the birth dates which were listed in the notebooks, or enter a closer date for those which were approximations. It also showed sponsors for each baptism- a clue to family friends and relatives.

Google Earth and Google Maps

I wish I had known how close Summerhill was to Dublin when Mom and I visited Ireland!  We could have been there in no time. I think we only had a vague idea of where Meath was, let alone Summerhill. Thank goodness for Google Earth and Google Maps because now I can do a virtual tour of the area. You can view an interactive map of the area that Hugh lived via Google maps here:

https://mapsengine.google.com/map/edit?mid=z2xplTJpQDmE.k36UII-Kc9ik

The + sign on the lower right will allow you to zoom in closely to each area to and you can navigate with your mouse.


Griffith’s Valuation

Griffith’s Valuation, which was used in the 1850’s to determine taxes, was definitely the richest source of information, as there were no census figures available for Ireland until 1901- after our ancestors left (there was a tithe available for 1828, which was a help as well.) Griffith’s valuation showed our ancestors, their neighbors, and the value of their owned or leased land and homes. It also provided a key to where each person lived on a map of the area. To see the lists and the maps (you can zoom and search these) you can go to the Griffith's Valuation tab at: 

http://www.askaboutireland.ie/

The civil districts in Ireland can be confusing. Although their church parish was Summerhill (and their local church was in Dangan) the civil parish our ancestors lived in was called Laracor. The civil areas they lived in were: County- Meath, Union- Trim, Civil Parish-Laracor, Townsland-Great Umberstown. (Although most of our ancestors referenced “Summerhill” as their point of origin, on Peter Allen’s grave it notes his birth in “Umberstown”- an important clue.)

Peter Allen (brother of Hugh Allen)
Burial: Sacred Heart Cemetery
Burchard, Pawnee County, Nebraska
Birth: unknown
Death: Jan 5, 1905
Inscription: aged 61 y. born in Umberstown, Ireland
(information from findagrave.com)

Website exploration

Findagrave.com is one of the many websites I have explored to find information about our ancestors and the times they lived in. I live in a rural area of West Virginia, so internet research works best for me. I have tried to list resources used to document the sources so you can search for further information if you are interested in a certain topic.