Patrick DOOLEY, son of Michael DOOLEY and Sarah (Unknown) was probably born in the 1820s in County Laois, or Queens County as it was then known. Patrick was the brother of my great great grandmother, Catherine (Dooley) HYLAND, and the brother of Sarah (Dooley) CONROY.
Patrick married Rosanna STAPELTON and had the following children:
A granddaughter reported Patrick (senior) died of a farming accident when his daughter, her mother, Mary Ann was young. His death was likely to be at age 50 in the second quarter of 1875. This would have left the family without their own farm and perhaps explains the pattern of migration and why Patrick (the son) worked on his HYLAND cousins’ farm.
Patrick’s wife Rose appears to have died in 1908 at the Maryborough Asylum which became the Portlaoise Mental Hospital in the 1920s.[1]
The 1901 census shows a match for Rose in the asylum. [2] Rose could read and write. She suffered from ‘melancholia’ and had been affected for 15 years and 5 months. The cause was believed to be ‘hereditary.’
Patrick and Rose’s children:
Sarah DOOLEY (1869-1956)
Sarah, the oldest child of Patrick DOOLEY and Rose STAPLETON was born 14th February 1869 in Ballydavis. Her baptismal sponsors were Anthony KEEGAN and Brigid HYLAND.
Sarah emigrated to the US in 1889 on the Germanic, via Liverpool to New York arriving on 29th March. Sarah did not marry.
On May 19th 1905 a Martin KEIGAN of Maryborough, born around 1875, arrived into New York from Liverpool, to join his cousin Sarah Dooley. Remember Sarah’s baptismal sponsor was a KEAGAN. (Martin was in fact born 1871 in Coolbanagher to Martin and Margaret, nee STAPELTON, presumably Rose’s sister.)
In 1910, aged 40, Sarah was working as a housekeeper for a French priest and lived on the “road to St Peter’s church.” She had two servants working under her.
In 1920 the address was given as St Peter’s Woodville Road, Zekiah Swamp, Charles, Maryland. Sarah continued as a housekeeper at the parish rectory. She had two servants working under her and two eight year old orphans also lived at the rectory. She was recorded as having been naturalised in the 1910 Census, but was listed in this census as an Alien.
Sarah had been living at 1614 West Baltimore street, Maryland at the time of her death on 10th January 1956. She was almost 87 years old. Sarah is buried at St. Mary’s Catholic cemetery, Washington D.C. A death notice was placed in The Evening Sun on 12th Jan 1956.
Mary Ann (Dooley) GONLEY (1871-1961)
See separate blog posts.
Michael DOOLEY (1872- unknown)
See separate blog posts
Patrick DOOLEY (1875-1946)
Patrick was the youngest child of Patrick DOOLEY and Rose STAPLETON. He was born 8th July 1875.
Patrick lived and worked with his first cousins, the Hylands, at their farm in Morette. After the death of his cousins Patrick stayed on at the farm. His death certificate records him as dying 16 Dec 1946, although the record of probate of his will states 13 December.
We can see in Patrick’s will below some further family connections – the FLYNN family and Patrick’s niece Agnes GONLEY (mistakenly recorded as Connelly).
Patrick FLYNN was the executor of Patrick’s estate.
Patrick’s will shows the livestock and farm produce were at that time worth £ 417 pounds, the equivalent of about €16,700 in 2018.
The farm was sold in 1947 to “the Flynns of the Heath.”
[1] The 1901 Census records staff working at the Asylum in Beladd, but there is no listing of patients.
[2] There are no other census records or death records in Ireland for Rose or Rosanna Dooley so the R.D. in the asylum is therefore extremely likely to be ours.
[3] Martin KEAGAN’S birth certificate.
In Search of Thomas Davis 