North Street, Newry, County Down

North Street, Newry, County Down
North Street, Newry, County Down

Wednesday 21 November 2018

Lieutenant Colonel Francis Edward Biddulph [1834-1919]


Francis Edward Biddulph was the only son of Nicholas Biddulph of Congor House, Borrisokane, County Tipperary and his first wife Catherine Lucas daughter of Rev. Edward Lucas, of Rakenry, County Cavan.
No. 330 - Francis Edward Biddulph son of Nicholas and Catherine Biddulph was born 2nd June 1834 and baptized the 28th July 1834. Registered 28th July 1834 by me Thomas Harper - Rector.
I certify that the above is a correct copy taken from the Baptismal Register of the church of St. Peter Maryborough. Robert R. Tilson. Incumbent. 27th April 1917.
His mother Catherine died on the 6th June 1834.
His father Nicholas married Isabella Digges La Touche in Dublin in 1839.
Francis married Annabella Kennedy in 1861.
Biddulph and Kennedy - On the 17th instant, in St. Jude's Church, Southsea, by the Rev. H.T. Brownrigg, Francis Edward Biddulph, Esq., of Congor House, County Tipperary, to Annabella, third daughter of the late John Kennedy, Esq., of Ballyrainny House, County Down.
They had fourteen children, five of whom survived to adulthood.

1.   Catherine Mary Biddulph [1861-1869] Died in Bangalore, India, aged eight.
2.      Nicholas Trafalgar Biddulph [1863-1950] Born on board the TRAFALGAR on the way to India. Died in Southsea, Hants, England.
3.   Francis Biddulph [9 Dec – 13 Dec 1865] Burma.
4.   Hugh Wray Biddulph [1866-1843] Born in Tonghoo, Burma. Died in New   Barnet, Kent, England.
5.   Arthur Stuart Biddulph [1868-1878]. Born in Bangalore, Madras, India. Died in Borrisokane, County Tipperary, Ireland, aged ten.
6.   Charles Thomas Biddulph [1869-1900] Born in Bangalore, India. Died in Queenstown, South Africa.
7.   William Henry Biddulph [1870-1875] Born in Dublin. Died in Pembroke Dock, Wales, on the 6th of March 1875, aged five.
8.       Ethel Emily Biddulph [1872-1875] Born in Aghada, County Cork. Died in Pembroke Dock, Wales, aged three.
9.    Ormus Llewellyn Biddulph [12 Feb – 2 Sept 1874]. Pembroke Dock, Wales.
10.  Isabella Alice Biddulph [12 Feb – 6 March 1875] Pembroke Dock, Wales.
11.  Amy Biddulph [1875-1970] Born in Aldershot, Hants, England. Died in Dalkey, County Dublin.
12.  Alice Biddulph [29 Aug – 31 Aug 1877] Rosemount, New Kilmainham, Dublin.
13.  May Teresa Biddulph [1879-1925] Born Birr, County Offaly. Died in Alassio, Italy.
14.  Beatrice Anne Biddulph [1889-1867] Born Birr, County Offaly. Died in Ballybrack, County Dublin.

Francis had chosen a military career He served in both the 9th and 19th Regiments. The family moved from England to Burma and India, and back to England.
After Francis’s retirement from the Army he and Annabella went to live in St. Kilda’s, Birr, King’s County. Francis was a Magistrate for King's County and a prominent member of the community. They later moved to Marie Lodge, Dalkey, County Dublin.
Their marriage had lasted fifty years and they celebrated their golden wedding in Bulloch Castle, Dalkey, County Dublin, in 1911.
In 1917 the family, including two of their daughters, Amy and May, and four of their grandchildren, returned to Southsea where they had first met.
Lieutenant-Colonel Francis Edward Biddulph, died in 1919 in Southsea in his eighty-fifth year.
Biddulph - May 16, 1919, at 21 Brading av., Southsea, Lieutenant-Colonel Francis Edward Biddulph, late of the 9th and 19th Regiments, and of Marie Lodge, Dalkey, son of the late Nicholas Biddulph, Esq., of Congor, Co. Tipperary.
His funeral took place with full military honours.
Annabella died in 1925.
BIDDULPH - August 16, 1925 at 31 Stanley Street, Southsea,  the  residence of her daughter Mrs Fitz-Gerald, Annabella widow of the late Lieutenant-Colonel F.E.Biddulph, 9th and 15th Regiments, of Fortal, King's County, and Marie Lodge, Dalkey, Ireland. (Irish Times, Wednesday, August 19, 1925)
Francis and Annabella are buried in Highland Road Cemetery, Portsmouth, Hampshire, England.


Saturday 10 November 2018

REMEMBRANCE NOVEMBER 11TH 2018

BIDDULPH, RICHARD HERBERT HOWELL
Died 8th July 1917
Burial: La Targette British Cemetery, Neuville-Saint-Vaast, Departement du Pas-de-Calais, Nord-Pas-de-Calais, France
Plot: I. E. 3.

BIDDULPH, ROBERT ASSHETON
2nd Dragoon Guards, Queen's Bays. 19 Nov 1916. Died in Wellesley House Hospital Aldershot. Robert Assheton Biddulph’s name is inscribed on the National Roll of Honour at the Irish National War Memorial Gardens, Dublin. He is buried in Killoughey Church of Ireland graveyard, County Offaly.

CADELL, ASSHETON BIDDULPH
Death: Feb. 19, 1916, Belgium, aged 21
Inscription: Devonshire Regiment attd. 8th Bn. Queen's Own (Royal West Kent Regiment).
Burial: Lijssenthoek Military Cemetery, Poperinge ,Arrondissement Ieper
West Flanders (West-Vlaanderen), Belgium

CLARKE, RICHARD
Rank, sergeant, Royal Canadian Horse Artillery [formerly Royal Irish Constabulary]; killed in action, October 20, 1916.
He is buried in Carnoy Military Cemetery, Somme, France.

CREAGH, CHARLES O'MOORE
Royal Field Artillery. Killed in action 23rd March 1918.
He is buried in Arras, France. Arras Memorial Bay 1.

GOOLD-ADAMS, JOHN
Regiment: Prince of Wales's Leinster Regiment (Royal Canadians)
Death Date: 4 May 1915
Death Place: Ypres

PEGOT-OGIER, Jean-Bertrand
Décédé le 2 octobre 1915, sur le Front, à Moulin sous Touvent (Oise), France.

SCATCHERD, JOHN L.
11th Battery C.F.A.
Killed in action Sept. 3, 1918 Buried at Vis-Eu Aptois, Pas-de-Calais, France.
Awarded the Military Cross and Bar.

Wednesday 7 November 2018

Ellen Louisa Biddulph [1856- 1900]


Ellen Louisa Biddulph was the ninth and youngest child of Nicholas Biddulph of Congor House, Borrisokane, County Tipperary and his second wife Isabella Digges La Touche.
She is mentioned in her sister Grace Elizabeth’s Will. Grace Elizabeth had died in 1896.
 I give and bequeath to my sister Ellen Louisa Biddulph 7 Shares in the Great Southern Railway...I give my fur cloak blue and white shawl lace scarf furniture cheval glass mirror to my sister Ellen Louisa Biddulph except sofa and armchair.[1]
Ellen Louisa died on the 20th May 1900 at 95 Leinster Road, Rathmines, Dublin, of cirrhosis of the liver and intestinal haemorrhage.
May 21, at 94 Leinster Road, Rathmines, Ellen Louisa, daughter of the late Nicholas Biddulph, Esq., J.P. of Congor House, Borrisokane.
She left £3, 684. 4s 5d. Probate of her Will was granted to her brother Robert Waller Biddulph, Fleet Surgeon, R.N.
She had formerly lived at 2 Belmont Terrace, Donnybrook, Dublin. She never married.





[1] Grace Elizabeth Biddulph Will, 1896. NAI

Monday 5 November 2018

Grace Elizabeth Biddulph [1854-1896]


Grace Elizabeth Biddulph was the fourth daughter of Nicholas Biddulph, of Congor, Borrisokane, County Tipperary, and his second wife Isabella Digges La Touche.
Late Concert at Nenagh: ...Through some _inadvertence we omitted the names of Miss Anne and Miss Grace Biddulph, who sang at the Concert and are members of the Choral society.[1]
Grace never married. She  died at 5 Addison Terrace, Glasnevin, Dublin, of influenza and weakness, on the 12th of April 1896 aged 50. Previously she had lived in 28 Chelmsford Road, and 24 Sandford Road, both in Ranelagh, Dublin.
Her very detailed will can be found in the National Archives of Ireland. In it she named Isabell Head, her sister, and Robert Waller Biddulph, Fleet Surgeon, R. N., her brother, as her executors.  The following extract gives an interesting glimpse into her life and family connections.
 ‘I give and bequeath to my sister Ellen Louisa Biddulph 7 Shares in the Great Southern Railway. I give and bequeath to my brother William Nicholas Biddulph 3 Shares in the Great Southern Railway. I give to my Godson Robert Richard Biddulph one hundred pounds in the Midland Great Western Railway. I give and bequeath to my sisters Mary and Anne Biddulph one hundred and fifty pounds each. I give to my sister Isabell Head [married to William Henry Head] one hundred pounds. I give to my brothers Robert and Richard Biddulph one hundred pounds each. I give to my God daughter Muriel Grace Biddulph [daughter of her brother Richard Biddulph and Gertrude Allen] one hundred pounds. I give to my old friend Mrs St. Leger 80 pounds in the North British Railway. I give and bequeath to my 3 nieces Amy, May and Beatrice Biddulph 60 pounds each [daughters of her half-brother Francis E. Biddulph]. I give to my friends Charlotte and Alice Exshaw 50 pounds each in the Banks stock. [Charlotte Exshaw was an Evangelist, and may have been a member of the Plymouth Brethren]. I give and bequeath to my nephew Hugh Wray Biddulph one hundred pounds [son of her half-brother Francis E. Biddulph]. I give to my niece Carobel [Caroline Isabel] and nephew Robert Biddulph 30 pounds each [children of Robert Biddulph and Caroline Studdert]. I give to Dr. H.T. Bewley 50 pounds for curing me of a tedious disease. [A physician in Dublin and a member of the Society of Friends]. I give to Nannie and  Norah Wallace 20 pounds each. I give to my brother Robert Biddulph my father’s chain. I give to my sister Isabella Head my diamond ring at her death to go to my niece Bessie Bennett [Elizabeth Head wife of George Bennett, a Church of England Minister] and her daughters [Elizabeth and Winifred]. I also give to the said Bessie Bennett two plated salt cellars. I give to my cousin Alice Franks my Indian bone necklet with bracelets to match and my musical box. I give to my cousin Grace Diggues La Touche my cameo brooch. I give to my sister in law Caroline Biddulph [Caroline Studdert] my Indian shawl. I give to my niece Beatrice Biddulph my gold watch and chain. I give to my 3 nieces Annie [Amy?] May and Beatrice Biddulph my silver bracelets and Indian […] necklets. I give my fur cloak blue and white shawl lace scarf furniture cheval glass mirror to my sister Ellen Louisa Biddulph except sofa and armchair I give to my sisters Mary and Anne Biddulph. I give my clothes and Kate must send them to the Ladies Distress Fund [This may have been the Association for the Relief of Ladies in Distress formed in 1881 at the height of the Land Wars].
I appoint my sister Ellen Louisa Biddulph to be my residuary legatee of everything belonging to me in moneys not mentioned by me in this Will.
I wish to be buried in Congor Churchyard.
I do not wish this Will to be put through the Probate Banks if it can be settled otherwise money transferred by solicitor.’
Probate of the Will was granted at Dublin to Robert Waller Biddulph of Yeory Villa, Herbert road, Southsea, Hants, England, Fleet Surgeon R. N.   Her estate amounted to £3638.0.0.






[1] Nenagh Guardian,Wednesday,February19,1873.

Sunday 28 October 2018

Mary Biddulph [1842-1914]

                                         Birr View, Crinkill. [MyHome.ie]

Mary Biddulph was born in 1842, the second daughter of Nicholas Biddulph and his second wife Isabella Digges La Touche, and is likely to have been a twin of her brother James Digges La Touche Biddulph.
In the 1901 Census she is living in Bunrevan with her sister Annie Biddulph after the death of her brother James. She was 52. Annie was two years younger. By the 1911 Census she is living in Birr View, Crinkill, alone, Annie having died in September 1901. It appears that she was leasing from Patrick Corboy. There was no land involved, only a residence.
Mary Biddulph died in 1st January 1914. She was 72 years old. She, like James, is buried in Congor graveyard at Ardcroney.
In memory of Mary Biddulph who died 1st January 1914.
She left £4, 671 15s  9d.  She had appointed her brothers Robert and Richard as her executors. In her will she made a bequest of £100 to the church at Ardcroney.[1] Her sister Annie is commemorated below a window in this church, but there does not appear to be any commemoration of Mary. The Ardcroney church is now situated in Bunratty Folk Park.



[1] Legal Notices, The Irish Times, 07 Feb 1914.

James Digges La Touche Biddulph [1842-1895]

James Digges La Touche was the second son of Nicholas Biddulph of Congor, but the first son of his second wife Isabella Digges La Touche. His sister Mary was born the same year. It seems likely that they were twins but there are no surviving baptismal records. The church records for Ardcroney were destroyed in 1922.
James Biddulph died in Parsonstown in 1895 from general debility five years certified according to his death record. He was fifty years old. His sister Mary Biddulph was present at the de
BIDDULPH - October 14, at Bunraven, Parsonstown, J. Digges la Touche Biddulph, son of the late Nicholas Biddulph, Congor, Borrisokane. Funeral at 9 o'c. tomorrow (Thursday) morning for Congor.[1]



[1] Deaths. The Irish Times, Wed., October 16th, 1895.

Sunday 14 October 2018

Nicholas William John Biddulph [1890-1958] in Canada


Nicholas William John Biddulph was born on the 22nd of December 1890, the eldest son of William Biddulph [1848-1915] of Congor House, Borrisokane, County Tipperary, and Fortal, King’s County and his wife, Rebecca Clarke. He is recorded in the 1901 Census living with his parents in Birr, King’s County. In the 1911 Census he is still living with his parents, but now in Park Avenue, Pembroke East, Dublin, with six sisters and brothers. He is described as a commercial clerk.
He married Kathleen Taylor in 1945, in Edinburgh, Scotland. Her brother Richard Taylor lived at 28 Broughton Road, Edinburgh. Kathleen and Richard were the children of Benjamin and Elizabeth Taylor. Elizabeth Taylor and Rebecca Clarke were sisters making Nicholas and Kathleen first cousins.
They had three children, two daughters and one son. All were born in Saskatchewan, Canada.
Their eldest daughter, Doreen Elizabeth Biddulph, was born in 1947 in Saskatchewan, Canada. She married Ronald John Swann. She died in 2012.

Nicholas William John Biddulph died in Saskatchewan, Canada on the 21st of January, 1958 and is buried in Young Cemetery, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. His grave can be found on findagrave.
His wife Kathleen died in 2000 and is buried at Woodlawn Cemetery, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. She was predeceased by a granddaughter Rhonda Lee Swann who died in 1978 aged 5.

Tuesday 9 October 2018

Centenary of the sinking of R.M.S. Leinster 10th October 1918







One hundred years ago, on the 10th of October 1918, the R.M.S. Leinster was torpedoed and sunk off the Kish Bank in the Irish Sea, by a German submarine UB-123. Over 500 people lost their lives.

Saturday 29 September 2018

Francis Waller Biddulph [1810-1886] in Canada


Francis Waller Biddulph [1810-1886], was the younger brother of Richard Biddulph [1809-1888], sons of Francis Biddulph of Mount Oliver and Mary Steele.  Both emigrated to Canada. A third brother, Nicholas Biddulph, who was born in 1803 and was the eldest son, inherited Fortal and remained in Ireland. Anne, and Elizabeth, their sisters, also remained in Ireland. Anne married Hugh Boyd Wray in 1823. They had one son, Jackson, who died in the Crimea. Elizabeth died unmarried, aged 75.
His aunt, Elizabeth Biddulph, had married Robert Waller of Newport, County Tipperary, in 1806. This would appear to be the origin of his second name.
Francis married Elizabeth Shore [1813-1862].
They had two children, Mary Elizabeth Biddulph born in 1847, and Richard Francis Steele Biddulph born in 1850. Both were born in Canada.

Richard Francis Steele Biddulph married Gertrude Lucy Howell, daughter of Thomas Jones Howell, in London in 1886.
They had four children,
1. Frances Catherine, born in 1887 in Ontario, Canada.
2. Richard Herbert Howell, born on the 14th of October, 1889 in Ontario, Canada, and registered as Richard Allan Biddulph in the Canadian records.  B.Sc., 1912, McGill University, Montreal. He was a chemical engineer. He died at Avion, France, age 27, on the 5th July 1917. [Service No: 487521 Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry (Eastern Ontario Regiment) No. 2 Coy.]
He is buried in La Targette British Cemetery, Neuville-Saint-Vaast, Departement du Pas-de-Calais, Nord-Pas-de-Calais, France. Plot I.E.3. A photograph of his grave can be found on findagrave.
3. Hubert Waller Steele was born in 1892 in Colborne Street, London, Ontario, Canada, according to a document signed by his sister Frances Catherine Biddulph in Bath, Somerset, England, in 1935.
4. Gertrude Mary, was born in 1895, in Reading, England. Gertrude and one of her brothers travelled to Canada in 1921. In 1935 she was living in Wormley Lodge, Broxbourne, Herefordshire, England.  Gertrude Mary never married. She died in 1992.
Richard and Gertrude had returned to England to live in 10 Castle Crescent, St. Mary’s, Reading, Berkshire, before her birth.  In the 1901 census, Richard was living on his own means.

Francis Waller Biddulph died in Canada in 1886. He is buried in Christ Church Anglican Cemetery, 3424 Glanworth Drive, Glanworth, Westminster Township [Concession 7, lot 18], Middlesex County, Ontario, Canada, together with his wife Elizabeth who died in 1862. The grave stone bears the name Waller Biddulph. 

Richard Biddulph [1809-1888] in Canada


Richard Biddulph [1809-1888] and Francis Waller Biddulph [1810-1886] were brothers, sons of Francis Biddulph of Mount Oliver and Mary Steele.  Both emigrated to Canada. A third brother, Nicholas Biddulph, who was born in 1803 and was the eldest son, inherited Fortal and remained in Ireland. Anne, and Elizabeth, their sisters, also remained in Ireland. Anne married Hugh Boyd Wray in 1823. They had one son, Jackson, who died in the Crimea. Elizabeth died unmarried aged 75.

Ciaran Joseph Reilly[1] describes the difficulties in Ireland at that time:
King’s County was no different than anywhere else on the eve of the Famine in that there was a huge dichotomy between rich and poor, landless and landlord.

Many landlords, for a variety of reasons, were on the verge of bankruptcy even before the Famine. Some estates suffered from the spendthrift nature of their owners or heirs. The Biddulph estate was broken up in 1824 following a litigation case with Robert Waller of Annaghmore which cost over £18,000 and almost bankrupt the latter. The Bernards of Kinnitty, who were much more financially astute, working from an annual rental of over £10,000, purchased the Biddulph’s house at Rathrobin during a time when it was said they “feathered their nests nicely‟. But they still ran into financial difficulty a decade later when they invested heavily in the building of Castlebernard at Kinnitty in 1833.

 The tenants of various es-tates at Ballyboy, gathered in hundreds outside the residences of Mr Biddulph of Rathrobin, Mr Dunne and other gentlemen and then went to Johnstone Stoney in Frankford seeking employment. Amongst their chief concerns was finding employment, threatening that they would “take food by force‟ if their demands were not met.

Richard Biddulph married Catherine Matilda Bates of Northumberland. They had four children, Selina Elizabeth born in 1839, Amelia Maria born in 1843, Richard also born in 1843, was most probably a twin and may have died young, and Catherine Matilda born in 1845.
Richard’s youngest daughter, Catherine Matilda, married John Labatt in St. Paul’s Cathedral. Huron, in 1866. The Labatts had come from Ireland, from Mount Mellick, in County Laois, and were a Huguenot family. They were brewers and Labatt later became the biggest brewery in Canada. Sadly, Catherine died from measles, leaving three very young daughters. John Labatt married again, Elizabeth Lynch, who was Irish and Catholic. They had nine children.
Many of the Labatt family are buried at Woodland, London Cemetery, Middlesex, Ontario including Catherine Matilda. Her grandson John Labatt Scatcherd is buried in France. He died in 1918 and was awarded the Military Cross and Bar.

Richard Biddulph died in Canada in 1888.
On 17th September, at his residence, Wortley House, London, Canada, Richard Steele Buddulph, Esq., JP, younger brother of late Nicholas Biddulph, JP, Congor House, Borrisokane. [Nenagh Guardian 1888]

[1] Land Agents and Estate Management  in King’s County During the  Great  Famine, 1838-53,
by Ciaran Joseph Reilly. Thesis for the degree of PhD., Department of History, NUI, Maynooth.

Wednesday 26 September 2018

John Biddulph [abt 1730 - aft 1773] and Alice Scott [1733 - aft 1773]

 John Biddulph was one of five children of John Biddulph [abt1700 - abt 1739] who had been born in Rathrobin which his brother Francis inherited. He died in 1739, when his children were still minors. 
John is believed to have been in the Army.
Lieutenant John Biddulph to be Captain, vice Don resigned.[1]
He married Alice Scott, the widow of his cousin Nicholas Biddulph, in 1769.
Married. In Limerick, John Biddulph, of this City, Esq., to Mrs Biddulph, relict of Nicholas Biddulph, late of Castle Biddulph, King's County, Esq.[2]
Alice Scott was the daughter of Angel Scott of Cahircon, County Clare, and his wife Katherine Babington. She had married Nicholas Biddulph of Rathrobin and Fortal, the widower of Patience Colley of Stradbally, in 1754. 
Killaloe, Biddulph Nicholas 1754 Scott Alice
Diocesan and Prerogative Marriage License Bonds, 1623-1866.[3]
They had one son, Angel Biddulph, who died in 1769 while still a child. His father, Nicholas, had died previously on the 11th June 1762.
The marriage between John Biddulph and Alice Scott did not last long. They separated in 1773.
Deed of separation of John Bedulph and Alice Scott. 1773.[4]



[1] Hibernian Journal, or Chronicle of Liberty, 24 Jan 1781
[2] Freeman's Journal, Dec 02, 1769
[3] NAI
[4] Registry of Deeds: 296 568 198298

Tuesday 25 September 2018

Mary Anne Biddulph [1769-], Vicarstown, Queen’s County


Mary Anne Biddulph was the second daughter of Francis Biddulph [1727-1806] of Vicarstown, Queen’s County, and Eliza Harrison.
She married John Scott  of Graiguenaskerry, Queen's County, also known as Fisherstown.
He appears as John Scott in the Stradbally Register for 1784.
Married Miss Mary Anne Biddulph, 27 December 1784, Stradbally Parish.[1]
However he is named as William Scott in the Freeman’s Journal of the following month.
Married. At Vicarstown, Queen's-county, William Scott, of Fisherstown, Esq., to Miss Mary Anne Biddulph.[2]




[1] Stradbally Register 1, Leighlin, Queen's County. RCBL
[2] Freeman's Journal, Thur Jan 06, 1785

Monday 24 September 2018

Patience Biddulph [1773 -], Vicarstown, Queen’s County


Patience Biddulph [1773-] was the third surviving daughter of Francis Biddulph [1727-1806] of Vicarstown, Queen’s County, and his wife Eliza Harrison of Leeds. She can be found as Patience Bedulph.[1]
An earlier daughter born in 1771 was also christened Patience, but she died as an infant in 1772. Another daughter, Frances Margaret Sarah Biddulph [1772- 1775] born in 1772, died as a child in 1775.
Patience married Henry Warner Esq., of Kells, in 1801.[2]  Henry Warner is listed as one of the directors of the Grand Canal and River Boyne Companies in The Treble Almanac in 1802 along with Robert Waller, Esq. Robert Waller  married Elizabeth Biddulph in 1806. Elizabeth and Patience were first cousins.
In 1803 Henry Warner is listed in The Treble Almanac as a Barrack Master for the District of Kells by the Ordnance Civil Branch, Barrack Board, Barrack Department Office 22 Merrion Street, Dublin.
Patience and Henry Warner had six children.
Eliza Warner [Abt 1804-1850]. Eliza married the Rev. Edward Nangle [1800-1883], of the Achill Mission, where she spent many difficult years. They had eleven children, five of whom survived. She died in 1850, and is buried near Dugort on Achill Island, County Mayo with six of her children.  Edward Nangle is buried in Deansgrange Cemetery, County Dublin, with his second wife Sarah.
Matilda Patience Warner [1807-1976]. Matilda married the Reverend Thomas Atkinson.
Eleanor Harriet Warner [Abt 1809 - 1830].  Eleanor married John Malam of Norfolk. She died in 1830 and is buried in St. Brigid’s Cemetery, Stillorgan, County Dublin.
In memory of Eleanor Harriet wife the wife of John Malam of the county of Norfolk Esq and daughter of Henry Warner of Merrion Square Esq who died October 4th 1830 in the 21st year of her age.
Patience Grace Warner [1815-1890], who was known as Grace Warner, never married. She died on Achill Island, County Mayo, aged 75. The unnamed beneficiary of Grace's will may have been George Nangle, youngest son of her sister Eliza. George lived for many years in Denbigh Asylum, Wales, where he died in 1895.
Henry Biddulph Warner married Amelia Solomon in Edgbaston, Warwick, in 1832.
 Amelia died in 1847 and is buried in Mount Jerome Cemetery, Dublin.
 Sacred  to the Memory  of  Amelia  wife of  Henry Biddulph Warner Esq  of Dawson Court, County Meath  by birth and by faith a daughter of faithful Abraham  on the 21st of Dec. 1847 aged 40  She departed to be with Christ which is far better  "Come Lord Jesus (-) Amen
Henry subsequently married Ann Cooke, widow of Charles Bradford Lane.
Biddulph Warner.  Biddulph Warner became a writer. One of his novels The Coquette, is still available. Biddulph Warner dedicated it to his cousin Richard Grattan, of Drummin, County Kildare, son of his aunt Elizabeth Biddulph.  Healthy mushrooms: a review of "Checkmate, a Tale; The Coquette" by Biddulph Warner, can be found in The Irish Quarterly Review, Vol. VIII, pp.1421-1440, January 1859.


[1] Betham Genealogical Abstracts.
[2] Prerogative court Patience Biddulph 1801 Warner Henry
Diocesan and Prerogative Marriage License Bonds, 1623-1866. [NAI]

Saturday 30 June 2018

St. Mary Church of Ireland, Geashill, County Offaly




[Private collection]

Harriet Biddulph [1781-1850], of Vicarstown, Queen’s County

 Harriet was the eighth and youngest child of Francis Biddulph [1727-1806] and Eliza Harrison. Her name can also be found as Biddolph.
She married the Reverend Richard Clarke [1777- 1838] on the 26th of January 1799.
They had 9 children.
1. Elizabeth [1800-1881] was the eldest child. She died in Portarlington, a spinster aged 81, described as a Lady on the death record.
2. Richard [1807-1866] appears to be  the eldest surviving son. He attended TCD in 1824 aged 17 and completed his studies in 1832.  He married Mary Caroline Minchin in 1836.  Rector of Geashill, King's County, he was buried in Geashill Graveyard, St. Mary Church of Ireland.His death was registered in Tullamore. His brother, Jonathon Clarke, of Upper Pembroke Street, Dublin, and his widow, Mary Clarke, of Eglington [sic] Park, Kingstown, County Dublin, were named as two of the executors of his will.
3. Francis [1808-1877] attended TCD in 1824 aged 16 and completed his studies there.[1] He married Rebecca Clarke, daughter of Jonathon Clarke and Elizabeth Thomas, in 1838. They had one son Francis Edward Clarke who became a doctor. Francis was married a second time to Jane Crozier Magee. They had three daughters, Anna Selina, Margaret Jane and Harriet Biddulph. His wife, Jane, their three daughters, and his son Francis Edward, are all mentioned in Francis Clarke’s will.
4. Harriet Biddulph [1811-1904]  can be  found in the 1901 census where she is recorded as  Harriett Clarke, 90, born Kings County, unmarried, Church of Ireland, occupation "income house property" living in Kilmalogue, Port Arlington North. She died in Kilmalogue, Portarlington in 1904; a spinster aged 93, and is described as a Lady on the death record.
5. Jonathon [1816-1887]  also attended TCD in 1831 aged 15, became a solicitor and married. He died on the 28th of July 1887, aged 70, at 30 Clarinda Park East, Kingstown, County Dublin. Minnie E. Clarke, his daughter, was present at his death. His widow, Emily, 16 Crosthwaite Park East, Kingstown, County Dublin died in 1901.
6. Edward John [1825-]  attended TCD in 1842 but there is no record of Edward having  completed his studies.[2]
7. Mary, of whom nothing is known
8. Frances, of whom nothing is known
9. Patience [-1860]
The Reverend Richard Clarke died in 1838 and is buried in St. Michael’s, Portarlington, where he had been a minister for 37 years. He left a will, which no longer exists.
The Rev. Richard Clarke, thirty-seven years Chaplain of St. Michael’s, Portarlington, and twenty years Sovereign of that borough.[3]

The following extract gives some idea of the troubled times of his ministry:
Letter from A Lindsay Kyffin, Chief Constable, Mountmellick, [Queens County or County Laois], to Maj Powell, Inspector General, Corkagh, Rathcoole, [County Wicklow], reporting on intimidation and beatings of workers, who agreed to work on a canal at a lower rate of 10d per day. Mentioning the beatings given to two men named Conroy near Portarlington, an attack on the house of Edward Cavanagh, threats issued to Murphy, tenant of Maj Chitwood. Noting that an investigation conducted by Rev Richard Clarke and his fellow magistrates concluded that a larger constabulary force is required. [CSO/RP/OR/1828/283][4]
 Harriet died in Portarlington in 1850, and is believed to lie in Lea Cemetery, Lea Parish, Queen’s County, together with many of her children.
Lea Parish Graveyard contains a Church of Ireland church (built c. 1810), marked on 1841 OS map as 'Church'. Graveyard contains headstones dating from 19th to 21st century; generally in good condition; mostly upright. The northwest corner of the graveyard is very overgrown and contains some badly damaged gravemarkers dated to the 19th century; this area also contains a large portion of table tombs.[5]



[1] Alumni Dublinenses
[2] Alumni Dublinenses
[3] www.limerickcity.ie/media
[4] http://www.csorp.nationalarchives.ie
[5] http://historicgraves.com/graveyard/lea-rathmiles/la-larm

Wednesday 20 June 2018

Patience Biddulph [1817-] Vicarstown, Queen’s County


Patience Biddulph was born in 1817, the tenth daughter and thirteenth child of Francis Harrison Biddulph [1774-1827], Registrar of the Court of Exchequer, Dublin, and his wife, Mary Marsh.
Her death is not recorded in the General Register Office. Nothing more is known of Patience who may have died before registration of death became compulsory in 1864, or  may have emigrated like three of her sisters.

Charlotte Biddulph [1815-] Vicarstown, Queen’s County



Charlotte Biddulph was born on the 9th of December,  1815, the ninth daughter and twelfth child of Francis Harrison Biddulph [1774-1827], Registrar of the Court of Exchequer, Dublin, and his wife, Mary Marsh.
Her death is not recorded in the General Register Office. Nothing more is known of Charlotte who may have died before registration of death became compulsory in 1864, or  may have emigrated like three of her sisters.

Monday 18 June 2018

Sarah Nesbitt Biddulph [1814-1888], Vicarstown, Queen’s County


According to Burkes Landed Gentry of Ireland, 1912, Sarah Nesbitt Biddulph was born on the 11th of  December 1814, the eighth daughter and eleventh child of Francis Harrison Biddulph [1774-1827] of Vicarstown, Queen’s County, Registrar of the Court of Exchequer, Dublin, and his wife Mary Marsh. It was recorded in Burkes that she went to Australia, information presumably supplied by a family member.
This birth date may, however, be incorrect.  Records in Australia suggest that Sarah’s birth date was later, possibly as late as 1824, or even 1830, though inaccuracies and variations in other records make it impossible to be sure.
What is certain is that Sarah emigrated to Australia in 1854 on the STAR OF THE EAST, a Clipper Ship sailing from Liverpool to Melbourne, as an unassisted passenger.  Her name on the passenger list was spelt Beddalph, her age was given as 24, and her estimated birth date was 1830. It seems likely from checking other names on the passenger list that she travelled with a group of friends, among them James Waller, Ralph Gore and Rachel Purefoy.
Until the early 1860s most emigrants left Liverpool on a sailing ship, and the voyage to
Australia would take about 3-4 months…Emigrating in a sailing ship could be unpleasant, particularly during a storm; it was only better in degree in the early days of steamships! [1]
However an article in the Illustrated Sydney News of 22 October 1853 describes the STAR OF THE EAST. ‘As a specimen of modern naval architecture, she is one of the finest vessels that has ever arrived in this port.’
On the other hand, a passenger travelling the same route in the same year, 1853, wrote:
I shall never want you to step your foot on board an emigrant ship, unless in the 1st cabin, for all the places of iniquity my eyes ever beheld, an emigrant ship is the worst, men and women packed indiscriminately together, married couples and young girls, and I am sure  some of the girls will have cause  to remember the STAR OF THE EAST. Then the drinking and gambling, night and day, till your heart would fairly sicken at the sight.[2]
Sarah married William Day, a miner, from New York, on the 10th of February, 1856, in Yackandandah, Victoria.  Gold had been discovered in Yackandandah four years earlier, in 1852, resulting in a gold rush which attracted many prospectors eager to make their fortunes.  For a time Yackandandah became a busy place. Although the gold rush ended a long time ago, it is still possible to obtain a prospector’s license and to pan for gold in Yackandandah.
They had two children, William b. 1857 and Sarah b. 1858. Their daughter, Sarah Day, married Francis Davidson in Sydney in 1880. A son, Francis Biddulph Davidson, was born in 1881.
Sarah Nesbitt Biddulph died in Raglan, New South Wales, in 1888.


[1] https://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/maritime/archive/sheet/12
[2] http://www.old-merseytimes.co.uk/staroftheeast.html