On 24 May 1883 my great grandaunt, Elizabeth Brawley married Charles McCafferty. The strange thing about Elizabeth is that when she died in 1946 she had been on her own for a long time. The family knew her as Lizzie Brawley and certainly my mum's generation of the family had no idea that she had … Continue reading An Unhappy Marriage – Elizabeth Brawley 1861-1846
Brawley
The Ancestral Road Trip (Part 1)
It’s been 2 years since I posted about wanting to travel to Ireland for a road trip round the ancestors’ home towns. With a son still in school we haven’t found the time and even this year we don’t have the 3 weeks I think we’d need to do it justice. What we do have … Continue reading The Ancestral Road Trip (Part 1)
Catherine Brawley 1859-1960
The village of Newmains, Lanarkshire really owes its existence to the Coltness Iron Works which was established in 1839. The promise of employment led many Irish immigrants to make their homes in the rows of houses provided by the company. My family first arrived in the village in the late 1850s. The first Newmains birth … Continue reading Catherine Brawley 1859-1960
An Ancestral Road Trip
Some time in the not too distant future I would like to take a trip to Ireland and visit the places my ancestors lived. I have visited Ireland before with breaks in Dublin and Cork. Great trips but no family connections. To be honest, the last time I visited Ireland I had no idea about … Continue reading An Ancestral Road Trip
Searching For His Father – Matthew Brawley 1915-2005
A while back I posted the story of Edith Cran and her connection to my family tree. Edith had two children, Matthew and Edith who were adopted by my great grand uncle Matthew Brawley. You can read the post by clicking here. I am sure that both of her children are biologically related to the … Continue reading Searching For His Father – Matthew Brawley 1915-2005
A Surprise For My Mother
Finding new family photos is always exciting. The picture below was sent to me by Maureen who discovered my blog via Facebook. She and I are connected through her great grandfather, Edward Cooper who was the second husband of my great granny, Sarah Helferty and stepfather to my maternal granny. We keep in contact and … Continue reading A Surprise For My Mother
Shaking The Branches 