Long Paddy's House

We'll the summer's nearly over. I've been reading back over the previous posts and there's quite a lot of information in there. So here's a photo to brighten things up. This is the house where Long Paddy and his family lived in Aghlem.

The story so far...

The starting point in tying all these McCadden's together is the Griffith Valuation and the three McCadden's listed there, Owen, Patrick and Denis. The three men are close in age so it is quite possible that they are brothers. We are pretty certain that Patrick and Denis are given that they shared the same farm in Stranass. This potentially leads us back to a single McCadden family with the parents being born in the late 1700's.

Owen had son, also called Owen. The younger Owen's family mostly emigrated to America. This includes Elizabeth (1901), Grace (1881), Bridget, John (1895), Mary and Joseph (1892). Charles (1890) and Theresa (1903) stayed in Ireland.

Denis (1818) and his wife Rose Quinn had seven children Patrick (1861), Anthony, Denis, Joseph, James, Margaret and Alice. Patrick who stayed in the family home. Patrick and his wife Ellen Cassidy had a large family of thirteen. Celia Agnes (1897), Mary Anne (1899), Denis Joseph (1900), Patrick (1902), Bridget (1904), Rose Ellen (1906), Joseph Denis (1908), Francis Hugh (1911), John (), Anthony (), Alice (), Nora (), Margaret (1922).

Patrick (1811) and his wife Catherine had at least three sons, John (1861), Anthony (1859), and 'long' Paddy (1862).

Patrick's John (1861) stayed in the family home in Stranass. He had twelve children, Patrick (1901), Andrew (1904), Anthony (1910), Andrew (1907), Joseph, Conny, John (1900), Sarah (1897), Margaret (1898), Eileen (1905), Bridget Agnes (1895), Mary Anne (1893).

Patrick's Anthony (1859) had four sons, Patrick, John (1881), James (1883) and Anthony (1891).

Long Paddy (1862) had seven children, six boys Patrick, John (1883), Andrew (1886), Joseph (1887), James (1891), Edward (1896) and one girl Cassie (1882).
Long Paddy's John and Minnie Logue had seven children, Packie (1911), Sonny, Kathleen (1926), Theresa (1913), Tommy (1914), Anthony (1929) and Eddie (1923).
Long Paddy's Cassie and Michael John Breslin had eight children, Vincent, Joseph, Edward, Michael, Patrick Mary, Kathleen and Bridget.

As you can see, big families were certainly the norm. From the three original McCadden's we have a list of about 122 McCadden's.

The McCadden's of Clarlougheske - Catherine McCadden (1882 – 1961)

Long Paddy’s eldest daughter, Cassie (Catherine) McCadden, married Michael John Breslin. After they were married Cassie moved to Clarlougheske to the Breslin family home. Cassie and Michael John had eight children, 5 boys (Vincent, Joseph, Edward, Michael, Patrick) and 3 girls (Mary, Kathleen, Bridget). Of these children, Bridget migrated to America (New York) where she married Frank McGuiness, Michael moved to England and Edward moved to County Antrim. Packie moved between Antrim and Donegal. Packie in particular, was a natural historian and had many memories of days past. Mary and Kathleen, also have fond memories of spending their summer holidays in Aghlem with their grandparents, Paddy and Bridget. The rhododendron bushes outside the house were always well kept and there were always plenty of children around to play with on the hill.

The McCadden's of Meenadreen - John McCadden (1880 – 1953)

Long Paddy’s eldest son, John McCadden, married Minnie (Mary) Logue in 1910 at St. Bridget's Church, Ballintra. After they were married John and Minnie moved up the road to Meenadreen. They had seven children, Patrick (Packie, 17/10/1911), James (Sonny), Kathleen (9/1926), Theresa (9/1913), Thomas (Tommy, 1914), Anthony (1929) and Edward (Eddie, 7/1923). Two additional daughters died young. The Meenadreen records sow a Mary who died only 9 months old in 1920. Also there was a Philomena born in 1932.

Minnie died quite young in 1934 aged only 44. Several of John and Minnie’s children were quite young still and went to live with relatives. Anthony, for example, went to live with the McCadden’s of Leghoney, specifically John McCadden and his wife Bridget. This supports the view that the McCadden’s of Aghlem and Leghoney were closely related. If long Paddy were the son of Patrick, then John of Meenadreen and John of Leghoney would be 1st cousins. It would not be unusual in those times for 1st cousins to take in children, particularly as John of Leghoney had a relatively small family by the standards of the day. John McCadden of Meenadreen died on the 17th January 1953.

Of John and Minnie’s seven children, four remained unmarried (Sonny, Kathleen, Tommy, Eddie). Theresa and Eddie moved to Glasgow, Scotland. Kathleen entered the religious orders as a nun in Oxford and Anthony moved to Leeds. Tommy lived his later life in a town called Kesh in Co. Fermanagh. Sonny remained in the family home in Meenadreen. He died on the 18th June, 1966. After this, the house and land were sold and from that point there are no more McCadden’s in the townland of Meenadreen. John and Mary’s eldest son, Packie married Rose Kelly in 1949. At the wedding Vincent Breslin served as Packie’s best man. Vincent and Packie were 1st cousins; Vincent’s mother was Cassie McCadden, daughter of long Paddy. After their marriage, Packie and Rose moved to Dublin where they lived most of their lives in Dublin. Rose died in Letterkenny General Hospital after falling ill during a trip home. Packie then remained in Donegal, living with his daughter Mary in Cullionboy until his death in 2001.

The McCadden family headstone can be found in Clar. It lists the family as being from Meenadreen. Although not listed explicitly on the headstone, not all members of the family died in Meenadreen (though all are buried in the grave). Tommy died in the Royal Victoria Hospital in Belfast. Rose (wife of Packie) died in Letterkenny General Hospital. Packie died in Cullionboy. John McCadden’s Minnie is not buried in the McCadden family plot, but rather in her own Logue family plot.

The McCadden's of Aghlem - Long Paddy McCadden (1862 – 1933)

In addition to Owen’s family, another McCadden family have lived in Aghlem. The 1901 census returns for Aghlem list the family of Pat McCadden. Pat was known locally as ‘long’ Paddy. The origins of the nickname are long gone. However, with the large number of Patrick McCaddens in such a small area, nicknames were common. Presumably, long Paddy was one of the taller Patrick McCaddens, or at least taller than his father (if his father was a Patrick). The exact connection of long Paddy to the three McCadden's seen in Griffith has not been conclusively established. Denis McCadden had a son Patrick in Stranass, so it can be ruled out that long Paddy is a son of Denis. This leaves Owen McCadden of Aghlem and Patrick McCadden of Stranass. There have been close links between long Paddy’s branches and Patrick McCadden’s branches. Family history suggests that it is most likely that long Paddy is the son of Patrick. This would make him a brother of John McCadden of Stranass and Anthony McCadden of Leghoney.

Long Paddy was born sometime between 1852 and 1862 depending on which record source is correct. He married Bridget Gillespie in 1879 at St. Bridget's Church, Ballintra, Co. Donegal. They had seven children, six boys Patrick, John (1883), Andrew (1886), Joseph (1887), James (1891), Edward (1896) and one girl Cassie (1882). John moved up the road to Meenadreen and Cassie moved down the road to Clarlougheske.

Joseph and James moved to America. There is a record in the Ellis Island collection that shows that James emigrated in 1913 and went to live with his brother Joseph. This in turn implies Joseph emigrated sometime before 1913. As Joseph is not listed in the 1911 census, it is likely he emigrated sometime between 1901 and 1911. The Ellis Island records do, in fact, list a Joseph McCadden arriving in 1906, but the exact townland, or the Irish relative is missing from this record. However, given that the destination of both James and Joseph is Philadelphia, it seems likely that this is indeed, Joseph McCadden of Aghlem.

The McCadden's of Aghlem - Owen McCadden

As mentioned, the Griffith Valuation lists three McCadden’s, Patrick and Denis in Stranass and Owen in Aghlem. Unfortunately, this is the only record we have of Owen. We do in fact see another Owen McCadden (1856 - 1934) listed in the census records, but his age makes him too young to be the same person as in Griffith. Owen, son of Owen, is the more likely explanation here. The Owen in the 1911 census was born 1856. He and his wife Mary Kelly had 8 children, 3 sons, and 5 daughters. Of those children, 5 are listed in the 1911 census, three sons, Charles (1890), Joseph (1892), John (1895) and 3 daughters Catherine (1888), Lizzie (1901) and Teresa (1903). An additional two daughters, Grace (1881) and Mary had already emigrated to America by the time of the 1911 census.

Moving from census returns to the Ellis Island records we see that there is another spelling for the townland of Aghlem (Aughlin), but the immigrant’s names are still recognisable. There are four members of Owen McCadden’s family listed (Elizabeth, Grace (married name Hanna), Bridget, John). Owen’s children are listed as going to their sister Mary confirming that Mary went to America first. We also know that Joseph emigrated to America.

Comparing Ellis Island records to the 1911 Census there are a few discrepancies. The one name that matches up well is John (listed as 16 in 1911 and 20 in 1915). Bridget appears to be missing from the 1911 Census even though she only emigrated in 1913. Elizabeth is more confusing. She is listed as 10 year old Lizzie in 1910, though her immigration record shows her as having immigrated as 21 year old Elizabeth in 1902. If the immigration date was in fact 1922, these dates would be reconciled. This would also fit with another fact. When Elizabeth entered America her sister Mary is listed as married (married name Meehan). However, for the other sibling who entered between 1910 and 1915, Mary is listed as McCadden (implying she is still single at this time). If Elizabeth did indeed enter in 1921 this gives 2 facts about Mary. First she emigrated sometime before 1910 (rather than pre-1902 as implied by the immigration record) and second that she got married sometime between 1915 and 1922 to a man named Meehan.

With six children in America, two remained in Donegal. Charles is listed as being present at Owen’s death, so it is likely that he remained in the family home. Theresa moved to Drimadoney and married into the Lawn family. In Clar cemetery, a grave marks the family plot of Owen McCadden of Aghlem. The names of the family are not listed, except for Theresa. Theresa died very young at in 1935 aged only 34. Owen, himself, died in 1934.

Beyond the records here not much is known about this branch of McCadden’s. One of the reasons for this is the high number of daughters in Owen’s family. Patriarchal family history is usually easier to trace. In addition, the fact that five of the children emigrated, meant that there may be McCadden’s with family knowledge scattered all over America.

The McCadden's of Leghoney - Anthony McCadden (1859 – 1942)

Although there are no specific records indicating this, we believe that Anthony McCadden is the son of Patrick McCadden (1811 – 1904) of Stranass. We do know that Anthony moved from his home in Stranass to Leghoney when he married his wife Catherine Slevin. Anthony and Catherine had four children, all boys – Patrick, John (1881), James (1883) and Anthony (1891). Tragically, Anthony died at birth. Of the other sons, Pat's intention was to save enough money in Scotland to go to America. However, Pat was killed in Glasgow on the railways. His father, Anthony, went over to Scotland, and brought his body home to be buried in Ireland.

This left the other two sons, John and James. These two sons are recorded with Anthony in the 1901 census. By the time of the census Catherine had died in 1893. She died quite young, aged only 40. By the 1911 census, James had left the family home and it has passed down to John. John was, in fact married twice. The first was to Bridget Calhoun. They had one son, Patrick. In fact, Bridget died in child birth. John’s second marriage was to Bridget Quinn on February 16th 1911. The marriage record shows that John was a widower and his occupation is listed as farmer. Brigid is listed as the daughter of Patrick Quinn, a spinster and a domestic. The marriage took place at St Brigid's church and was celebrated by Father Patrick Daly, in the presence of Hugh Devlin and Bridget McGrane.

John and Bridget had six children, four boys, Joseph (1921), John (1918), Anthony (1915), Daniel, and two girls, Kathleen (1910) and Bridget (1925). Tragically, two of John and Bridget’s children died young, Joseph died before he was two, and Bridget died less than a year old. Of the other children, Kathleen moved to Leeds, England. John and Anthony spent many years moving in England and Scotland before returning to Ireland.

Moving from John to James. James McCadden moved to Drumcroagh and married Ellie Gildea (1898). They had at least one son James (1920) and two daughters, Margaret and Catherine (1938). James died on the 26th October 1964 aged 80 and Ellie died on the 7th April aged 83. James son James died in 1993 and Catherine died in 1995.

The McCadden's of Stranass - Denis McCadden (1818 – 1887)

Denis McCadden's name first appears in the Griffith Valuation, which occurred in the middle of the 19th century. The death records show that he died on the 23rd July 1887 and his age is listed as 69 when he died. This would indicate that Denis was born in 1818. Our family information on Denis is that he married Rose Quinn (sometime before 1867). Together, Denis and Rose had seven children – Patrick, Anthony, Denis, Joseph, James, Margaret and Alice. Rose died on 4th August 1910 and is listed as being 81 when she died. This would mean that Rose was born in 1819. As we see from the census returns, by 1901 Denis McCadden’s home has passed to his son, Patrick McCadden.

Patrick was born sometime between 1861 and 1867 according to the various records. He married Ellen Cassidy, the Cassidy’s being another large family in the area. It seems likely that they married sometime in the 1890’s. Patrick and Ellen had a very large family, thirteen children in all. There were six boys and seven girls. Three of the children were already born by the 1901 census (Celia Agnes 1897, Mary Anne 1899, Denis Joseph 1900). By 1911, another five children were born (Patrick 1902, Bridget 1904, Rose Ellen 1906, Joseph Denis 1908, Francis Hugh 1911).
Tragically, Denis Joseph died in 1905, aged only 5 years. The remaining children of Pat and Ellen were born between 1911 and 1922 (John, Anthony, Alice, Nora, Margaret). Pat died on the 21st February, 1951, followed by his wife Ellen on the 4th February, 1953.

Alice McCadden remembers, there were two McCadden families in Stranass, Donegal, Patrick McCadden's and the John McCadden family that lived "on the hill". According to Alice, Patrick McCadden and John McCadden were cousins. There were friendly relations between the families and Alice remembers playing with the girls.

As Pat and Ellen’s children grew up, a large family would once again result in emigration for many of the children. Joseph moved to New York in 1911. Mary Anne and Cecilia Agnes moved to Boston in 1920 and 1921. One puzzling Ellis Island entry is that of James McCadden. The exact record lists him as entering America on 2nd April 1905. However, his address of origin is simply listed as Co. Donegal, that is the townland is missing. In addition, the field listing the relative in Ireland is missing. However, he went to almost the same location as Mary Anne and Cecilia went to in 1920. He also went to the Donohue family, which is the same family as Mary Anne and Cecilia went to. It seems possible that James is another son of Pat and Ellen. If this is the case, it is unknown why he would be missing from the 1901 census. Another possibility is that James is another son of Denis.

Of those who did not move to America, Bridget entered a convent where she took the name of Sister Paula. Margaret actually stayed quite close to home. She married Patrick Sullivan and moved to Cullionboy a neighbouring townland in Donegal Parish.

The McCadden's of Stranass - Patrick McCadden (1811 - 1904)

Patrick McCadden first appears in Griffith Valuation. The census of 1901 lists Patrick’s age as 90. This would make his date of birth in 1811. Although he is listed as head of the household in the 1901 census, in practice the family home has already passed down to Patrick’s son, John McCadden. We know that large families were the norm in Ireland at this time so it is unlikely that John is Patrick’s only son. Family sources lead us to believe that Patrick had at least one other son, Anthony McCadden, who moved to Leghoney when he married Catherine Slevin, and possibly a third son 'long' Paddy McCadden who moved to Aghlem and married Bridget Gillespie. From the census of 1901, we see that Patrick was already about 50 by the time John was born. Although it was not unheard of for men to marry quite late in life, it seems likely that John was not the eldest child.

One thing missing from the census records is any mention of Patrick’s wife. The death records list a Catherine McCadden who died in 1898, aged 85 with son John listed as present. This is most likely Patrick’s wife. The death records also list Patrick himself dying on the 1st November 1904. His age here is listed as 96, putting his birth in 1908. This disagrees with the census returns but small differences such as these are common at this time, when people didn’t pay close attention to their birth dates.

Patrick’s son John was born in 1861 and he married Katie (Catherine) Devlin sometime before 1893. John and Katie had 12 children, 7 boys (Patrick, Andrew, Anthony, Andrew, Joseph, Conny, John) and 5 girls (Sara, Margaret, Eileen, Bridget Agnes, Mary Anne).

By 1901 census Mary Anne (1893), Sarah (1897), Maggie (1898) and John (1900) were born. Although not listed Bridget (1895) was also born by this time. By 1911 Patrick (1901), Ellen (1905), Andrew (1907) and Anthony (1910) were also listed in census returns. Tragically there was also another Andrew, born in 1904 who died as an infant. One confusing entry in the 1901 census is Richard McCadden. He is listed as Patrick’s son, which must be a mistake given Patrick’s age and the fact that his wife Catherine would have been 82 when he was born. Richard is not a “McCadden” name (such as Patrick or John). There are no other records for Richard anywhere and there is no family recollection of him. One strange possibility is that somehow there is a mix up in the 1901 census return and the “Richard” is in fact “Bridget”. This would explain Bridget’s absence from the 1901 return and it would fit the birth date given on both 1901 and 1911 returns. John himself died on the 21st May 1932, followed by his Katie on the 26th March 1941. After, John’s death the family home passed down to his son Anthony.

And what became of John and Katie’s children? Inevitably, with such a large family, many of them emigrated. As can be seen from the Ellis Island records, Mary, Bridget, Sarah went to America. John also went, though he went first to Canada and then travelled down to Boston. Andy migrated to Scotland and Connie was a merchant seaman during World War II before migrating to Australia. Anthony also spent a lot of time in Scotland.

The family headstone in Clar cemetary takes the story further, showing the deaths of John’s children, Anthony in 1968, Andy in 1986, Ellen in 1977 and Maggie in 1985. There is another McCadden headstone in Clar cemetary, which lists Bridget McCadden. Bridget is the wife of Anthony McCadden.

Patrick, John, James, Anthony

As was typical in Ireland, the McCadden men frequently shared first names. In this case the common names are Patrick, James, John, Anthony. Similarly, among the McCadden women, the names Mary, Catherine and Bridget occur frequently. With so many people sharing so few names, it can be quite confusing seeing where each of the McCadden’s fit relative to one another. It is also made more difficult due to the fact that there are no record sources which tie member of families beyond closest family members (e.g. fathers and sons, but no uncles and cousins).

However, by piecing together the different record sources and combining it with what could be termed "McCadden family memory" it is possibe to piece together a picture of the McCadden history. Over the next few posts I will try and tell the story so far. With all the Patrick's, John's, etc. it's not a simple story to tell. Perhaps the easiest way is to take it one townland at a time.

The Early McCadden's

Among the very earliest records available in Ireland are the 1665 Hearth Rolls. The Hearth Rolls are a list of persons who were liable to pay the Hearth Tax. This was a tax levied on householders based on the number of hearths in their house. There is one McCadden listed in the parish of Drumhome. His name is Daniel McCadden. And he is listed as living in Tullygallen. It is tempting to speculate that Daniel is the original ancestor of the McCadden’s of Drumhome & Donegal, but there is probably no way to ever confirm this.

The next time we encounter McCadden’s in Donegal is in the 1796 Spinning Wheel Premium Entitlement List. In these records there is an Edward McCadden and Philip McCadden in the neighbouring parish of Killymard and Patrick McCadden in Drumhome. The spinning wheel list is by no means comprehensive as it only lists those which grow flax on their land, but the presence of a Patrick in Drumhome very likely points to an ancestor.

For most of us McCadden descendants, the definite starting point is a group of McCadden men on the border between Donegal and Drumhome parish. The 'Griffith' Valuation (1847 – 1864) lists three men, Patrick McCadden and Denis McCadden in Stranass and Owen McCadden in Aghlem.

The first question that comes to mind, is how are these men related? Unfortunately, there is no definitive evidence which ties these men together. In fact there is very little information of any kind to show anything about these elusive men. One of Denis McCadden’s grandchildren, Alice, seems to remember that her father and Patrick’s son, John were 2nd cousins. This would imply that Patrick and Denis were 1st cousins. Although, Austin Forde who is a great great grandson of Patrick, believes that the relationship may be closer, and that Patrick and Denis may be brothers. But what about Owen, how is he related to Patrick and Denis? In an attempt to dig deeper into the connections, you have to look deeper at each of the townlands.

The Griffith Valuation contains several weaknesses from a genealogical perspective. First, it only records the head of the household. Second it records quite little information about the person. The Cancellation Books are a useful addition to the original valuations in that they show the passing of head of household from 1850's onward. But they still have the same limitations as the original valuation.

The next civil records are the 1901 and 1911 census. They improve on Griffith in that the entire family is listed, not just the head of the house. Looking, at the church records we find additional information which complements the civil records. These include death records for the different parishes and headstone entries in Clar cemetery. These records allow us to advance past the 1901 – 1911 timeframe of the census returns.

More Record Sources

As well as the various sources of 'official' records there are some websites which contain useful pieces of information that have been used when researching the McCadden’s. These websites often contain online transcriptions of the original records.

The Cassidy Family Website
One of the neighbours of the McCadden’s in Aghlem and Leghoney has been the Cassidy’s. There are many ties between the families both geographically and also in marriage (Pat McCadden and Ellen Cassidy. There is an excellent site which has been put together by Chris Cassidy with help from many of his family. There is also a picture of some of the McCadden's when they were at school in Copany.

The Quinn Family Website
I only came accross this recently. Patty has been documenting the Quinns in Donegal. Quinn's are another of the families tied to the McCadden's both in place and in marriage (Denis McCadden and Rose Quinn). Patty's job is that much harder because there are so many Quinns, it can be nearly impossible to tie them all together.

Donegal Genealogy Resources
Lindel Buckley has been researching her Donegal ancestors for many years now. Along the way she has picked up much information and tips on Donegal research. She has put this knowledge to great use and her great site is one of the important staging points when researching Donegal genealogy. Lindel has also made copies of many civil/church records available on the site.

Donegal Strong Puzzle
David Strong is someone who has been researching the Strong family in Britain and Ireland. The family have many connections to Drumhome and David has put together some good information on not only the Strong family but also other aspects on Drumhome history such as the significance of the Hamilton family who were the primary landlord in the part of Donegal were the McCadden's come from.

Record Sources

Here's a list of record sources that I've been using to look for McCadden's, some more useful than others. Not all are available online unfortunately.

1665 Hearth Rolls
The Hearth Rolls are a list of persons who were liable to pay the Hearth Tax. This was a tax levied on householders based on the number of hearths in their house.

The 1796 Spinning Wheel Premium Entitlements List
In an attempt to encourage the growth of flax in Ireland, the linen board offered a spinning wheel to all those growing flax. The 1796 Spinning Wheel Premiums is a list of those who received spinning wheels, and gives the person’s name and parish of residence. Or as the list itself says “A List of Persons to whom Premiums for sowing Flax-seed in the Year 1796 have been adjudged by the Trustees of the Linen Manufacture”.

Tithe Applotment Books
The Tithe Applotment books were compiled between 1823 and 1837 in order to determine the amount which occupiers of agricultural holdings should pay in tithes to the Church of Ireland. There is a manuscript book for almost every parish, giving the names of occupiers, the amount of land held, and the sums to be paid in tithes.

Griffith Valuation
The Primary Valuation (also known as Griffith's Valuation) was published between 1847 and 1864. There is a printed valuation book for each barony or poor law union, showing the names of occupiers of land and buildings, the names of persons from whom these were leased, and the amount and value of the property held.

Cancellation Books
In a way these are a sort of addendum to the Griffith Valuation. They list changes to the original valuation done at the time of Griffith, very often until the present day. They don't list much info, but they do show changes in the head of a household which can give a hint at when someone may have died. They also make a useful gap between Griffith and the 1901/1911 census returns.

Census Returns
A census of the Irish population was taken every 10 years from 1821 until 1911. Manuscript returns for each household survive for all 32 counties for 1901 and 1911. The returns are arranged by townland or, in urban areas, by street.

Ellis Island Immigration Records
There is one name which is synonymous with immigration in America and that is Ellis Island. It has been the first stop for so many as they set out on their new life. There exists a great online record collection which lists the immigration records of those who entered America at the turn of the 19th to 20th century. The archive also lists original passenger manifests of the ships that made the transatlantic crossings.

Donegal Church Records
Given the paucity of civil records for Donegal, any church and parish records become even more important. There are three main churches in the parishes of Drumhome and Donegal. They are St Bridget’s Church in Ballintra, St Patrick’s Church in Donegal Town and St Agatha’s Church in Clar.
In addition there are the following cemeteries - Abbey Cemetery (1600’s), Clar Cemetery (1829), and Ballintra Cemetery (1820).

Finding your Donegal ancestors

For anyone looking to find their Donegal ancestors, it is not something that I can tell in a single post. You could try Lindel's site, she has a lot of good resources and tips for looking. But here are some pointers from my own searches.

Ask your relatives! This is very important and should always be the first step. Sisters, brothers, parents, uncles, aunts, grandparents. You would be surprised how much information can be gotten that way. If, for example, you're grandparents are alive and they remember their grandparents, that's five generations.

Link up. Find out if any relatives are researching also. It can lead to a lot of new info and also it's a lot more fun. At this point I should give a special mention to Kerrin McCadden, friend and cousin for many years now and who has worked with me in putting the McCadden's family jigsaw in a coherent shape. Also link with people who are not related but are looking in the same place. It's a good chance to swap stories and source.

Keep track of as much detail as you can no matter how insignificant, or how irrelevant it may seem. You'd be surprised how much small details can change significance when you find out a little more. A case in point, when I 1st looked at the Irish Census records I was after names and birth dates. I didn't pay attention to the building descriptions that are also included. But the next time I looked at the records after some advice from an expert I realised how much of the family's lifestyle can be worked out from those small details.

Finally the record sources. A lot has been said about historical records in Donegal. Or more precisely the lack of records. The best suggestion I have is to work backwards. And remember - places, names, dates. Without townland or parish references in Donegal it's really like looking for a needle in a haystack.

There's probably a whole load more good suggestions that I'm missing.

Donegal - our place in the world

The McCadden family history is one which ties together many people in many different countries. With so many people it can be hard to keep track. However one thing that does tie us all together is the land we have come from. From as far back as can be traced in records to the present day there have been McCadden’s in County Donegal. In fact, they can be traced back to just a cluster of townlands in the parishes of Donegal & Drumhome.



A civil parish was originally a church division, but later evolved into a civil unit of local administration. A parish is further divided into townlands. A townland is the smallest Irish administrative division.

In the parish of Donegal, McCadden's have lived in the townlands of Leghoney (Anthony), Aghlem (Owen, Paddy), Meenadreen (John), Loughkip and Clarlougheske (Cassie).

In the parish of Drumhome there have been McCadden's in the townlands of Stranass (Patrick, Denis), Coolmore and Tully.

Why McCadden?

For example, why not Mulligan? The simple answer is the McCadden's were much easier to find. Because...

• McCadden is relatively unusual name compared to Mulligan, Kelly, etc.
  
• For many generations, the McCadden's have lived in the same area of Donegal. My other family branches have moved around a lot more.
• The area around Donegal town is a fairly tighly knit community. There were many relatives and neighbours who could help with the search.

For completeness, the full list of family names on the tree so far is Mulligan, McCadden, Wyse, Kelly, Merrins, Gillespie, Gallagher, McGettigan, McAnaw, Logue, Carr.

My McCadden's

It goes something like this...

My mother was Mary McCadden.
Mary McCadden is the daughter of Patrick McCadden and Rose Kelly.
Patrick McCadden was the son of John McCadden and Mary Logue.
John McCadden was the son of Patrick McCadden and Bridget Gillespie.
Patrick McCadden was probably the son of Patrick McCadden.

So this gives Mike, son of Mary, daughter of Patrick, son of John, son of Patrick, son of Patrick.

Why my family history?

There was a disconnected-ness to Donegal in the 1970's. Geographically, it's position on the very north-west of Ireland and the border with Northern Ireland meant that it was quite cut-off from the rest of Ireland. A trip to Dublin would take well over 5 hours, many of that on small country roads. Hardly any house had a telephone. Televisions were still often in black & white. There was a sense that not much had changed in decades or more. Dancing at Lughnasa was set in Donegal in the 30's but it still seems to catch the mood that pervailed in 70's Donegal.

And such was my childhood in Donegal. I may not have been old enough to understand considerations of time and place, but there are some strong memories and impressions. One of the things I remember best is 'rambling', a term used for visiting other people's houses to chat, swap stories or just catch up with friends and neighbours.

Some of my strongest childhood memories are when we were out rambling, or someone came over to ramble. Being a four year old I wasn't what you would call an active participant in the conversation, but there are details that just hang around in my memory. Like the heavy tick tock of the old clocks when there was any lull in the conversation. The overwhelming smell of the turf fires. The curious blue formica pattern on Cassie McAnaw's table. Staying up late on the dugout listening to the grownups. I remember Henry Hone who would come 'over the mountain' to visit. I don't even remember what Henry looked like. I just remember a giant shadow in the doorway as he came in. And in my memory he walks barefoot. I remember Mary Anne Dunnion talking about seeing faries as a child and actually pointing at the spot out here window where she saw them walk accross the hill. At the heart of all this was, is, a connection with the past, in the stories, in the way of life, in the people. I didn't understand it then, and I still don't really understand it now.

For me there is great fun (and sometimes frustration) in the paper chase of researching my family history. But there is also a deep sense of awe in piecing together the lives of the people who came before. Seeing their hardships. But also seeing the connection between the past and the my own experiences.

A beginning...

Of sorts. More a continuation really.

I have wandered around the roots & branches of my family tree for quite some time now. The result has been boxes full of notes, photos, etc. I have tried to arrange and put it into some sort of shape. And then to share with other family members the results. And so this is an experiment, to see if I can use the site to gather the notes, maybe organise them a little, share them with family. That sort of thing.

Mike