24 years ago

On St Patrick's Day I remember my first visit in 2001 to Ballyfoyle, Kilkenny, and the home of Patrick Kealy, my Great-Great-Grandfather.

It was the birthplace of my Great-Grandmother Mary Kealy who emigrated to New South Wales.
#genealogy #familyhistory #ireland

Standing at the gate of an ancestral home in Ballyfoyle, Kilkenny

If you ever go across the sea to Ireland...

... crooned Bing Crosby when he visited Ireland in the 1960s.

I read an article, Has Australia forgotten its Irish Past?,  in The Brisbane Times this morning and that set me to reflecting on my Irish forbears, my ancestry is somewhere over 50% Irish (I wonder if my DNA results when I get them will agree).

As today is St Patrick's Day I am remembering my one and only trip Across the Sea to Ireland (in an Aer Lingus jet) in 2001. I remembr a lush green country, friendly people, helpful priests and welcoming distant cousins.

As Curry is my maiden name I had to pose in front of this street sign in Limerick 2001

Sadly the photos I have of that trip are few (one was selective when using film) and the quality is rather poor. 

Standing at the gate of my Great-Great Grandfather - Patrick Kealy's farm in Ballyfoyle Kilkenny 2001

Facilities for family history research have improved since 2001 but the quality of what I have on file for my Irish ancestors is still weak. As actions on this St Patrick's Day I will revisit my Irish research (not right this minute) and move a return trip to Ireland up a few rungs on my bucket list. 

I won't forget my Irish past.

"My key to Ireland"

Kealy Family Home in Ballyfoyle, Kilkenny

As the only address I had for my father's distant cousins was Ballyfoyle, Kilkenny, Ireland I did not know where to find them when we arrived in the tiny village one wintry January day. Before leaving Australia we had done our homework and, from a Baptismal certificate we had for my great-grandmother, we knew that she had been baptised in Ballyfoyle.

After visiting the churches and cemeteries at Ballyfoyle and Muckalee in search of graves and being made most welcome by the priest at Muckalee who let us transcribe Kealy family details from the Church Registers we decided to try and find the cousins.

As dusk was approaching we called at the tiny Post Office where the clerk gave us directions to the cousins house. I was apprehensive about cold calling but my husband insisted that, as we had travelled from Australia, we should knock. We were given a royal welcome, plied with whisky and offered a bed for the night which we had to decline. Visiting the elderly cousins, who were thrilled to have dropins from Australia, gave us valuable information about our ancestors and an opportunity to sit at a table made by my great-great-grandfather.

Sitting in a room of the house that members of my family had used for over 200 years made me feel so connected to my heritage. It was an awesome experience.

This post has been submitted to Carnival of Irish Heritage & Culture : My key to Ireland.

One of my Favourite Pictures

This post is as a result of an idea from Amy Coffin at WeTree. She has come up with a series of 52 different blogging.prompts, one for each week of the year.

For Week 1: Upload your favorite picture and talk about it on your blog. Answer the who/what/when/where/why of the subject matter and explain why it is your favorite.

The happy couple in this photo are my 2nd great-grandparents, Patrick Kealy and his wife, Catherine (nee Bowe). They lived in the village of Ballyfoyle, Kilkenny Ireland.

Only two of the children of Patrick (c 1810-1875) and Catherine Kealy (1821-1887 ) remained in Ireland; some of their descendants are still resident in Ballyfoyle.One by one the youngsters set off to seek their fortunes in new lands.

My Great-Grandmother, Mary Kealy, who married John D'arcy Tierney in Maitland and settled in Dungog, followed her brothers, Michael and Thomas, to Australia in 1877. Her sister, Alice, then followed in 1880.