Rough family tree

The Cassidy family tree.

I have traced our family’s ancestors back to the Griffiths Valuation, the first census done in Ireland, undertaken after the famine in 1851. No records were kept before that except for birth, marriage and death records kept by some local churches. Many families cannot trace their families before the famine because so many people were uprooted, either because they had to leave their farms to find food and work, they died and left no record or they left Ireland, that it is almost impossible to track families who had not left their own record.

The earliest ancestors I found were James and Thomas Cassidy and I asked Una Cassidy about them when I returned to Bulcaun after researching in Dubling and she told me that they were brothers and the remnant of their cabin was still visible on her farm. Indeed, you had to pass it to arrive at her house, and according to Tommy Cassidy, it is still there.

Thomas Cassidy was the elder of the two brothers and when he married, his brother James had to find his own farm as primogeniture was still in place at that time. Meaning the land belonged to the oldest son. I have not traced Thomas Cassidy to see whom he married but I think he would have been my great-great grandfather. My father’s father was also named Thomas.

So as far back as 1851 our branch of the Cassidy’s lived on the farm in Bulcaun where Gerald Cassidy now lives with his family. So here’s our family tree.

1851

Thomas Cassidy and his brother James were living on the farm and listed in the Griffiths Valuation, Ireland’s first census. When he married, the farm became his. I don’t know his wife’s name or how many children he had, but there would have been at least one son who inherited the farm from him.

If we assume that he married in 1851 or thereabouts at age 25 and had a son, approximately twenty years later in 1871, that son would have taken over the farm and had a son, who was named Thomas. He was my grandfather. Twenty years later he married Mary (Mariah) Gallagher from the neighboring village of Glann, and they had fourteen children. One of them was James, my father, born in 1898.

Because there are no records that I have discovered, but someone else may do that research, these dates, except for my father’s birthday, are estimates. So from this puzzle, The Thomas Cassidy I found in the Dublin Library was my great-great grandfather.

Thomas Cassidy (also known as Ganger) and Mariah Gallagher Cassidy had fourteen children. I don’t know their birthdates except for my father, and don’t know their placement in the family except that Fran, who was living on the farm when I first went to Ireland in 1976, was the youngest.

The boys were:

James, July 17, 1898 (not the oldest but the only birthday I know), married my mother, Mary Drury in Scranton, Pennsylvania and had 5 children-Jack, Rita, Frank, Patsy, Helen (me)

John married Catherine in New York and had two daughter, Ann, who married Bill Beale and has three children, Kara, Mark and Chris and Mary, married to Nick Kravek with no children.

Martin married Nora in New York (I attended that wedding as a toddler) and had one daughter, Maureen who married John Doherty and has three children, Cathy, Kevin and Brian

Patrick moved to California and married Theresa and had two children, Betty and John. John was killed at about age 25 in a car accident and Pat died young leaving Theresa a widow with the two children. I think Betty may have died. She married Frank Malinaggi, and had two children, Linda and John. I am not in touch with them.

Mike, never married, was found dead in the east river, the circumstances of his death still a mystery.

Fran married Una in Charlestown, remained on the farm and had seven children: Tom, Francie, Ann, Bernadette, Liam, Gerald,

I think there may have been a boy named Will but I’m not sure.

The girls were:

Annie married Mr. Henry and had three children, Peggy, married to John Bourke with three children, Geraldine, Brian and John; Pat and Frank???

Bridget married Mr. Frain and had two daughters that I know of, Rita and Tess, but I don’t know the other children.

Kate married James Hughes in New York and two daughters. Rita who married Barry Vaughan and had four children; and Betty who married Jerry Keane and has one daughter, Kathe who has two children, Matthew and Elizabeth who has two children. She is married to Ed whose last name I don’t know. Both Rita and Betty are deceased.

Sis (Mary) married John Drudy and had three children, Jimmy who died at age 5 or so; Jack-married Trudy and had two daughters, Amelia married Ray Gibson and had Gail, Robert, Brian and Greg. Gail and Robert are deceased.

I believe two girls died in infancy but I’m not sure.

Sara (?) became a nun and died soon after.

The descendants of Mary and Jim Cassidy:

Jack Cassidy, October 17, 1922, d. June 20, 1988 of lymphoma. Married Nancy Ard and had four children:

*Kevin, unmarried and no children

*Collette, married Les Rosenthal and has four children, Steven, Rachel, Grace and Stacy, none of whom have children

*Clifford, deceased, who has one son, Ryan McGuffin

*Kris, married John Birmingham and has one daughter, Cassidy

2. Rita Cassidy, October 22, 19__ married Harold (Hal) Jennings and has four children:

*Harvey who married Cathy Stump with three children:

Harvey, Jr., married Barbara Manduca and they have two children, Madeline and Eric; Robyn married Brian Reiss and they have two sons, Brady and Riley

Mark, married Geraldine with one son, Mark Hal

Dennis, married Diane and they have no children

Brian married Janet and they have three children, Erika, married to David Tress with 1 daughter, Emma

Laura, unmarried

Matthew, unmarried

Bill, married Christine Mone with one son, Michael

3. Frank Cassidy: April 23, 19__married Eileen Gaus with two daughters

MaryJane married David Lifson and they have two sons, Jake and Luke

Megan married Michael Levantin and they have one son, Bradley

4. Patrick Cassidy, died at age 5 in 1935 of rheumatic fever

5. Helen Cassidy, July 11, 1939, married Mark Page and has one daughter, Allison, married to Craig Cannizzo with no children.

 

 

 

Parent	Spouse	Children	Children	Grandchildren	GGC
Jim	Mary Drury	Jack, m. Nancy Ard, div.	Kevin	None
			Collette, m. Les Rosenthal	StevenRachelGrace Stacy
		Rita, m. Harold Jennings	Harvey, m. Cathy StumpDennis, m. Diane   Brian m. Janet       Bill m. Christine Mone	Harvey m. Barbara Manduca  No children     Erika, m. David Tress Laura, unmarried Matthew, unmarried   Michael	MadelineEric  Emma
		Frank m. Eileen Gaus	Mary Jane, m. David LifsonMegan, m. Michael Levantin	JakeLuke      Bradley
		Patrick, d. age 5, 1935 of rheumatic fever
		Helen, m. Mark Page, div.	Allison, m. Craig Cannizzo	No children