Follow me down a rabbit hole - Anne Rochford Hynes

This is the second post in a series (starting here) exploring a DNA match with a lady (we’re calling her TL), who shares DNA with several members of my extended Wynne-Hynes family. TL's great-great-grandmother was Anne Rochford Hynes, born in Ireland about 1843. Anne had the same surname as my great-great-grandmother, Bridget (Hynes) Wynne, hence the investigation.

Anne Rochford Hynes and her husband Edward Mayne Mollier Tabuteau were settlers in New Zealand, in the latter half of the 1860s. They settled on a 99-acre farm at Hupara, near Kawakawa, in the Northland region.[1]

Two questions must now be answered in respect of Anne Rochford Hynes. First, where exactly did she come from in Ireland? and secondly, have members of my extended family got any other DNA matches with her descendants?

Origins in Ireland
The only mention of Edward and Anne’s Irish origins found in New Zealand came from their son Joseph’s World War I ‘Attestation’ form. This document confirms his father Edward Tabuteau was born in Dublin, Ireland. But, his mother Anne Tabuteau’s birthplace was given solely as ‘Ireland’. Not a good start! Why was the county of her birth not stated? [2]

Joseph Augustus Moliere Tabuteau, Attestation for General Service, 1917

Edward Mayne Tabuteau’s baptism on 15 November 1841 was then easily found in the registers of St Mary’s Anglican Church, Dublin (despite his surname being transcribed incorrectly as Johntea). He was born at 122 Abbey Street, in Dublin city, on 25 October 1841, the son of Bartholomew Moliere Tabuteau, a wine merchant, and Mary Jane. [3]

Despite extensive searching, there was no sign of Anne Rochford Hynes’ baptism in Ireland, nor any trace of her supposed parents, named as Edward Hynes and Bridget Rochford in several family trees found online. Not such a good start at all!

DNA matches with descendants of Edward Tabuteau and Anne Hynes
Edward and Anne had five children born in New Zealand. Harriette was born in 1867, Annie in 1869, Thomas Edward in 1871, Joseph Augustus Moliere in 1873 and Richard Arthur in 1875. Thomas died, unmarried, in 1894 and Joseph in 1940, leaving only three children with potential descendants. [4]

The couple’s firstborn child, Harriette Tabuteau, married John Alexander Lindesay Hall in 1885. They had eleven children, all girls. Their youngest daughter Frances Harriette May Hall was TL’s grandmother, but none of their other descendants are apparent among our DNA matches. [5]

Second born Annie Tabuteau married Norman May in 1897. They had two children, a boy, and a girl. Both went on to marry, but their descendants are not apparent among our DNA matches. [5]

Their youngest son, Richard Arthur Tabuteau, married Mabel Vaughan Johnston in 1906, and the couple had three sons. Several members of my 'Wynne-Hynes’ family, who descend from Bridget Hynes's children Agnes Patrick, Mary and John, all match two chaps sporting the Tabuteau surname. Let’s call them T1 and T2. I suspect they descend from one or more of Richard's sons.[5]

My 'cousin' Paul, who descends from Bridget's daughter Agnes, has an estimated 4th-6th cousin match with T1 and an estimated 5th-8th cousin match with T2. We also know T1 is related to TL, as she is listed among Paul and T1’s shared matches on Ancestry.com.

Larry, who descends from Bridget's son Patrick, shares an estimated 4th-6th cousin match with T1 and an estimated 5th-8th cousin match with T2. Again, T1 is shown as related to TL, with her being listed among Larry and T1’s shared matches on Ancestry.com.

Phyllis, who descends from Bridget's daughter Mary, shares an estimated 5th-8th cousin match with T1.

Holly, who descends from Bridget's son John, shares an estimated 5th-8th cousin match with both T1 and T2. 

Neither my Aunt Anne, my first cousin Aileen, nor I, share any discernible DNA with the Tabuteau lads. Aileen, Phyllis, Holly and I are all a generation removed.

We know T1 is related to TL, so it’s quite possible he descends from Richard, and thus also has the Hynes surname in his family tree. I’m betting the same goes for T2, except he shares less than 20cM DNA with TL, excluding him from Ancestry.com's shared matches calculation. It is also possible they're related on a different Tabuteau line completely, though I'd like to believe otherwise.

Next, I'll follow up on Anne Rochford (Hynes) Tabuteau's origins in Ireland, and identify more of the DNA matches we share in common with her descendant(s). Hopefully, that will confirm the match is definitely on their Hynes side, and rule out Edward Tabuteau being the source of our match; he did live alongside our ancestors in Dublin city, after-all. Tune in next week for an update.

Continued, here.

Sources:
1. New Zealand Electoral Rolls, 1871-72, no. 445, Edward Mayne Tabuteau, freehold, Kawakawa Settlement, transcription accessed at FindMyPast; A Return of the Freeholders of New Zealand, October 1882, Edward Mayn Tabuteau, settler, Kawakawa, 99 acres, transcription accessed at FindMyPast.
2.'New Zealand, World War I Service Records', Attestation for General Service, 1917, Joseph Agustus Moliere Tabuteau, accessed Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga.
3. Baptism of Edward Mayne Tabuteau of 122- Abbey St., St Mary COI, accessed Church records on IrishGenealogy.ie.
4. Births 1867/10858, Births 1869/12060, Births 1871/12398, Births 1875/5383, Deaths 1894/3967, Deaths 1940/17537, accessed New Zealand, Births, Deaths Marriages Online; Birth Joseph Tabuteau, Attestation for General Service, 1917.
5. Marriages 1885/2682, Marriages 1897/2521, Marriages 1906/5963, accessed Births, Deaths and Marriages Online.

Image: Sir John Tenniel's illustration of 'The White Rabbit', in Lewis Carroll's The Nursery Alice (London, 1890), accessed on Wikipedia.

Follow me down a rabbit hole

When my friend Jacqi Stevens at A Family Tapestry recently proclaimed her intention to ‘plunge down rabbit holes with wild abandon to find answers to her questions, I came to the understanding that all my genealogy undertakings of late share similarities with Alice’s pursuit of the White Rabbit.

My current project—investigating our connection to several 'related' DNA matches—may also be a hopeless pursuit.The likelihood of ever obtaining the necessary evidence, to be nail down exactly how we are related, is probably poor, or else I’d have come across the documents already. Yet, the prospect of discovering further ancestors is so appealing, it justifies the risk of ending up on just another wild goose chase.

So… staying within the parameters of the rule 'start with what you know' 😉—we know our significant DNA matches are descendants of our ancestors—I'm looking at one of my closest unidentified DNA matches. Let's call her TL. Ancestry.com places her in the 4th to 6th cousin bracket, based on us sharing one 39cM segment.

TL also shares an estimated 4th-6th cousin match (one 41cM segment) with my Aunt Anne, an estimated 4th-6th cousin match (one 32cM segment) with Anne's first cousin Larry, and an estimated 5th-8th cousin match (8cM in two segments) with their second cousin Paul. Anne and Larry descend from Bridget Hynes' son Patrick, while Paul descends from Bridget's daughter Agnes. TL does not match my cousins Phyllis, Holly or Aileen, who descend from Bridget's children, Mary, John and Patrick, respectively.

Bear in mind, Ancestry.com estimates only 32% of 5th cousins, 11% of 6th cousins and only 3% of 7th cousins share enough DNA for the relationship to be detected.

TL didn't respond to my message, but she does have a fairly decent online family tree, now based in New Zealand. Only one ancestral couple among all her great-great-grandparents came from Ireland, and only the wife was of actual Irish origin. TL's tree named her immigrant Irish ancestor as Anne Rochford Hynes, born about 1843. Anne's parents were shown as Edmond Hynes and Bridget Rochford. My second-great-grandmother, Bridget Hynes, was born about 1831 in Limerick, the daughter of John and Margaret Hynes.

Normally, I'm wary of single segment matches, but this one is quite large, and a surname in common is a very good start. Wouldn't you agree! Let's see if we can connect Anne Rochfort Hynes to our family tree, and in so doing, see if we can learn anything more about our own ancestry.

But first, TL's ascent to Anne Rochfort Hynes, Edward Hynes and Bridget Rochfort needs to be verified, and their other descendants identified. Hopefully then the other, as yet unknown, DNA matches we share in common with TL might be properly placed in either her or our family tree. Join me next week to see what I find out.

Continued, here.

Image: Sir John Tenniel's illustration of 'The White Rabbit', in Lewis Carroll's The Nursery Alice (London, 1890), accessed on Wikipedia.

On the far side of a brick wall #7 ~ Conclusions

After much searching, no further sign of Rosanna (Slattery) Corcoran / Cochrane's family has been uncovered, not since they were all together in Manchester, England, in 1881. You'd think some of her six children would have left a trail of breadcrumbs for me to follow. None of them did. Maybe someday one of their descendants will turn up among our DNA matches. 🙏

Circumstantial evidence suggests Rosanna was a half-sister to Mary Anne Leonard, and both were daughters of Mary (Riley, Leonard) Slattery. Chances are Mary Leonard was my third-great-grandmother, who married John Radcliffe in Liverpool in 1848. My goals have been 1) to find documentary evidence definitively stating Mary Leonard was a daughter of Mary [Riley] Slattery; 2) to confirm this Mary Leonard was the one who married John Radcliffe; and 3) to 'prove' John Radcliffe and Mary Leonard were my third-great-grandparents.

Confirming Mary Leonard as the daughter of Mary (Riley) Slattery
Prior to the COVID-19 lock-down, I ordered the copy death register for Mary Slattery, aged forty, who died in Liverpool, in the second quarter of 1847. The hope was it would show the informant as 'Mary Leonard, daughter.' But the record arrived in my in-box recently, with no such luck!

Copy death register, Mary Slattery, 1847, Liverpool, General Register Office

Mary Slattery died of phythisis (tuberculosis) at home in Sawney Pope Street. As a bonus, her occupation was shown as the 'widow of Thomas Slattery, labourer'. So the record is for the right woman. But the informant was 'Mary Slattery, present at death, Sawney Pope Street', not 'Mary Leonard, daughter'. Who was this other Mary Slattery? Was she Mary Leonard using her step-father's name - nothing unusual in that - but if so, it is unusual her relationship to the deceased was not stated (going by the practice in Ireland, anyway).

There was a death of a another Mary Slattery, aged forty, in Liverpool, in the same quarter of 1847 - too much of a coincidence to be ignored. This copy register will be obtained when the General Registry Office staff get back to normal after the lock-down. It may possibly throw further light on the situation.

Confirming it was this Mary Leonard that married John Radcliffe
It's now apparent, documentation likely never existed directly connecting the Slatterys to the Radcliffes (other than John and Mary's marriage record, that is). Mary and Thomas Slattery died in the Spring of 1847, while Mary Leonard and John Radcliffe did not marry until January 1848, and Mary [Leonard] Radcliffe supposedly died in April 1853, four years before Rosanna Slattery married James Corcoran.

The circumstantial evidence collected, including the census listing Mary Leonard among the children of Mary and Thomas Slattery, in Liverpool, in 1841, and the records confirming the Slatterys, Mary Leonard and John Radcliffe all lived in Sawney Pope Street, Liverpool in 1847/1848, will have to suffice.

'Proving' Mary (Leonard) Radcliffe was my third-great-grandmother
A final objective of this research has been to find further evidence confirming John and Mary (Leonard) Radcliffe were my John and Mary. Much available evidence suggests they were (discussed previously here and here), bar two minor conflicts.

First, their daughter, Anne Radcliffe, was born in Liverpool, in 1849. My great-great-grandmother, Anne Radcliffe, daughter of John and Mary (maiden name not documented) Radcliffe, was born about 1849, but both surviving Irish census returns say she was born in Co. Dublin, Ireland. Granted, she grew up with her father's family in Malahide, Co. Dublin. Her mother died when she was a toddler and her father emigrated to Australia in 1858. Probably, she didn't remember her time in Liverpool. Maybe she did not know she was born in England, or just felt no connection to the country.

Secondly, the marriage of John Radcliffe and Mary Radcliffe was held in the Church of St Nicholas, according to the rites of the Established Church in Liverpool, i.e. a Protestant church. My John Radcliffe was from a Catholic family. He was baptised in 1827 and his father in 1798. But the fact that Anne, daughter of John and Mary (Leonard) Radcliffe, was baptised in St Anthony's Roman Catholic church, in Liverpool, suggests theirs was a mixed marriage. If Mary Leonard was my third-great-grandmother, she was probably Protestant.

Thomas and Mary (Riley) Slattery's children (Ellen, Thomas and Francis) were baptised in St Anthony's RC Church. Infants, Thomas and Francis, were buried in St Anthony's RC graveyard, as was Thomas Slattery himself - all in paupers graves. But when Mary (Riley) Slattery died, within weeks of her husband death, she was not buried in the same graveyard as her family. Why not? Was she buried in a Protestant graveyard instead? Is this another hint to seek out Protestant records to further the research on this branch of the family?

But where?

Sources: Copy death register, Mary Slattery, Apr-Jun 1847, Liverpool, General Register Office. All other sources referred to have been cited in previous posts in the 'On the far side of a brick wall' series:

• #1 ~ Just Mary;
• #2 ~ Mary Leonard and the Slatterys;
• #3 ~ but is it the right Mary Leonard?;
• #4 ~ Death of Thomas and Mary Slattery;
• #5 ~ Rosanna and Ellen Slattery;
• #6 ~ The hunt for DNA cousins.

Signature Silhouette #6 ~ John Radcliffe

For many of my ancestors, there are no photographs, no treasured heirlooms, not even a funeral card to remember them by. But of those who could read and write, a few left their signatures behind. They often signed historical census returns, for example, copies of which still survive. Apart from descendants, their signature may be all that remains of them today. So, it's my intention to feature a Signature Silhouette for each of my ancestors, until they are all are preserved.

Here's one for my maternal third great grandfather, John Radcliffe (1827-1866). It's from the register of his second marriage, in Melbourne, Australia. It's dated 1861, and just might be the oldest signature so far found, of all my ancestors.

Sources:
Idea for post courtesy of Cathy Meder-Dempsey at Opening Doors in Brick Walls.

Source of signature: Copy marriage register, John Radcliffe and Bridget Flanagan, 1861, no. 486, purchased from Births, marriages and deaths, Victoria, Australia.

Organising Your Digital Family History Files

Generally, ‘how-to’ posts are not my thing, but recently a few people have asked how I file the records generated in my genealogy research. Then, a budding family historian told me how he is struggling to stay on top of the paper mountain he’s constructing. Many genealogists already have their own preferred way of doing things, but those starting out, or experiencing difficulties, may find this post helpful.

I don’t do paper clutter. Truthfully, I’ve no original documents and few original photographs to file. So, I save everything on the computer and back it up to the cloud, and periodically to an external hard drive.

Goals of a filing system
My document filing system is not perfect. But let’s face it, I’m in this for the family history, not to become a professional archivist. If you’re like me -

• you want something simple, easy to remember and easy to implement,
• a way to find any document, immediately, at any time, and not waste precious genealogy time searching for it,
• a system that helps avoid duplicating the same research, and
• facilitates the easy back up all your genealogy records, together,

A big ask, you might think! My filing system achieves all that, and much more.

Filing system
First, a file folder named ‘Genealogy Research’ contains all my family history documents, in one place, to facilitate easy back up.

The Genealogy Research folder has four sub-folders, one for each grandparent.

In each Grandparent folder, there is a sub-folder for every one of my known direct ancestor couples, relating to that grandparent.

All records discovered for an ancestral couple and their family, after their marriage, are stored in their specific sub-folder. Documents relating to their lives prior to their marriage (e.g. copy birth registers) are generally filed in their parent’s folder.

For example, in my paternal grandfather's folder, the first sub-folder contains records for my grandparents, James Byrne and Lena O’Neill. It is simply called ‘1 Byrne-O’Neill’. The second sub-folder, ‘2 Byrne-Mahon’, relates to James’ parents, Michael Byrne and Elizabeth Mahon. The third sub-folder ‘3 Byrne-Leahy’ is for Michael’s parents, while ‘4 Mahon-McDonnell’ is for Elizabeth’s parents, etc., etc. Records for Lena O’Neill’s ancestors are similarly saved in her Grandparent folder.

I don’t have deep roots, as you can see, especially not for my paternal line. The sub-folders are named with the couple’s surnames, male first. Numbers are assigned solely so my grandfather is listed first, followed by his parents, and then their parents, etc. If your research goes back numerous generations, you may need to add further clarification to the folder name. e.g. their full names, or perhaps add their year of marriage, or maybe add a ‘marriage number’ generated by your genealogy software. Such details add nothing but unnecessary complexity in my case.

Four-Part Filenames
My files generally have a four-part naming format:

YYYY[MMDD] Category Name OptionalDescription

Date: Filenames start with the date, usually in ‘YYYY’ format, though sometimes the month and even the day, in MMDD format can be added, if necessary to portray the proper chronological order of events, as in 1867 below.

Category: The second element of the filename is the category, category being marriage, baptism, census, newspaper, photograph, death, correspondence, etc.

Name: The third element reflects the subject of the record. For individuals, the full name of the person is shown. In marriage records, the surnames of the couple are given. For group records, e.g. census returns, should I have been so lucky, ‘Byrne household’ might have been used in the name part. Keep it simple and consistent.

Optional Description: In the last part of the filename, my additional notes might reflect the source of the record, the quality of the record (e.g. index, transcription, original), maybe a location, or a ‘not found’ note, etc. I keep it short and sweet!

Bear in mind, the rules are guidelines to achieve your goals. Use what best suits any scenario.

Warning: I use spaces in my filenames. This (and probably the use of other symbols) is not recommended for computery reasons, but I didn’t know that when I started. It’s never bothered me, and I’m an advocate of the “if it ain't broke, don't fix it" principle.

Here’s the sub-folder for my great-great-grandparents, ancestral couple John Byrne and Alicia Leahy, as an example:

A top genealogy tool
As you can see, the filing system acts like a Timeline and thus has become one of my top genealogy tools. It enables me immediately spot any missing periods, or inconsistencies in the research. It’s great for highlighting missing information, too. In this case, it acts as an immediate reminder that, despite extensive searching, a death record for my great-great-grandfather has not yet been found. That’s why there’s an additional sub-folder ‘Death of John Byrne Search’.

Additional folders
A separate sub-folder might also be necessary where significant research on a relevant location was carried out, for example, or if there was a lot of correspondence relating to the couple, or, as in this case, I had to kiss numerous frogs before I met my prince. John Byrne was a brick wall ancestor for many years, hence the sub-folder ‘Unrelated Byrne Research’. He was also married before he met Alicia Leahy, so a separate sub-folder containing the records of his first marriage was created - ‘Byrne-Markey (John, first marriage)’:-

Collateral lines
While all direct ancestors have their own folder in the relevant Grandparent folder, a similar folder is created for their siblings and saved in their parent’s folder. It usually relates to their lives post marriage, though if significant research is carried out on an unmarried sibling, they might warrant their own sub-folder. Again, it is named with the surnames of the couple/individual, with the sibling’s given name added, as above. If post-marriage research is carried out on a collateral's children, a sub-folder is created in their parent’s folder, in turn. See example.

This method works extremely well for me. Consistency is the key. Save everything to the relevant sub-folder as you uncover it. You can always reorganise later, when the thrill of the chase is over.

And, don’t stress it – remember, you’re not trying to become an archivist - adapt, if anything isn’t working.

The best method for YOU is always the one YOU’RE happy to use.

And, if you need help with your paper files, Paul Chiddicks of The Chiddicks Family Tree is your man. He's written Organising Your Family History just for you.

On the far side of a brick wall #6 ~ The hunt for DNA cousins

Probably the only greatest chance of finding 'proof' of the relationship between my known Radcliffe family and the Radcliffe/Leonard-Riley-Slatterys in Liverpool/Manchester is with DNA. But first, there'll need to be living descendants on both sides to test.

On the far side of a brick wall #5 ~ Rosanna and Ellen Slattery

So, if both Thomas and Mary Slattery died in Liverpool in 1847, what happened to their children, Rosanna and Ellen, my would-be half third great-grandaunts? In 1841, they had lived with their parents and their older stepsister Mary Leonard in Liverpool, England, but they were not found in the city in the 1851 census.

There is no trace of them in the marriage, or civil death records for Liverpool either, certainly not in the decade before 1851. And, neither were they found in the burial register for St Anthony’s RC graveyard, where their baby brothers Thomas and Francis Slattery were buried. Presumably, they had left the city.

Rosanna was about eleven years old when she was orphaned, and Ellen only eight. Their half-sister Mary was about twenty-one, so presumably she took care of them. She married John Radcliffe in Liverpool in 1848 (if I've identified the right Mary Leonard) and their daughter Anne Radcliffe was born there in 1849. The Radcliffe family then moved to Rainhill, not far from Liverpool, and my preferred theory has the Ellen Slantey living with them there in 1851 was actually Ellen Slattery. But there was no sign of Rosanna. By then, she would have been fifteen years old and probably working, in service perhaps, someplace else.

The only potential subsequent record of Rosanna was found in Manchester, about thirty-five miles from Liverpool. The England civil marriage index has a Rosa Ann Slattery marrying either James Corcoran or James Kennedy in the second quarter of 1857, in the Chorlton registration district, not far from Manchester city.

It's easy to conclude she married James Corcoran, as the civil birth registers then show James Corcoran born in the fourth quarter of 1857 and Mary Corcoran in the third quarter of 1859. And, the mother's maiden name for both was Slattery. I'll order Rosa Ann's marriage certificate when the COVID 19 restrictions are lifted.

Corcoran family in the 1861 England census, 10 Smith Street, Manchester

In 1861, the Corcoran family lived at 10 Smith Street, Manchester. James was twenty-one years old, and born in Ireland. He worked as a labourer in a sugar works. His wife Rose Ann was also said to have been twenty-one years old, so born about 1840, and not 1836, but she was born in Liverpool, like my 'aunt'. Their children James, aged four, and Mary, aged two, born in Manchester, lived with them.

Another child, Rosanna Corcoran was born in Manchester in 1864, mother's maiden name Slattery. She seemingly died as an infant in Manchester that same year. This is the last potential record of the Corcoran family so far found in Manchester. 

And, no confirmed record of Ellen Slattery has been found since 1851.

Other evidence suggests my third-great-grandmother Mary (theoretically Leonard) Radcliffe died in April 1853, though the register of her death was not found in England. Perhaps she had returned home to Ireland beforehand, as death registrations only commenced there in 1864. We know John Radcliffe emigrated to Australia in 1858, without his daughter Anne, who was left with John's family, in Co. Dublin.

So, what became of the Slattery girls? Another family that seemingly just upped and vanished!

Continued, here.

Sources:

1. Slattery household, Ellen Place, Liverpool, Lancashire, Enumerators' Book, 1841 England Census, accessed $ Ancestry.co.uk.
2. Burial of Thomas Slattery, 16 September 1841 and burial of Francis Slattery, 18 March 1846, St Anthony's 'Liverpool, England, Catholic Burials, 1813-1985', accessed $ Ancestry.co.uk.
3. Church of England marriage register, Radcliffe-Leonard marriage, 1848, St Nicholas Church, Liverpool, Lancashire, England, accessed $ Ancestry.co.uk.
4. Baptism register, Ann Radcliffe, 28 October 1849, St Anthony's RC Church, Liverpool, 'Liverpool, England, Catholic Baptisms, 1802-1906', accessed $ Ancestry.co.uk.
5. Ratcliffe household, Rainhill, Prescot, Lancashire, Enumerators' Book, 1851 England Census, accessed $ Ancestry.co.uk.
6. Marriage of Rosa Ann Slattery, Apr-May-Jun 1857,  Chrolton, Lancashire, 'England and Wales Marriage Registration Index, 1837-2005', accessed $ Ancestry.co.uk.
7. Birth of James Corcoran, 1857, D Quarter and birth of Mary Corcoran, 1859, S Quarter, Manchester, GRO Online Index, accessed HM Passport Office.
8. Corcoran household, Deansgate, Manchester, Lancashire, Enumerators' Book, 1861, England Census, accessed $ Ancestry.co.uk.
9. Birth of Rosanna Corcoran, 1864, M Quarter, Mother's maiden name Slattery, and death of Rose Ann Corcoran, 1864, S Quarter, Manchester, GRO Online Index, accessed HM Passport Office.
10. Marriage certificate, John Radcliffle and Bridget Flanagan, no. 486, 1861, purchased at $ Births, Deaths and Marriages, Victoria (John Radcliffe, a 'widower from April 1853').