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| Donegal County, from Lonely Planet |
Most of my life I assumed I was genetically a European mix. After my DNA results came in from Ancestry I learned that I was only 46% European mutt. I was also 20% Scottish and 14% Irish. Then some German, Swedish, and French. I also know that, as my dad had no Irish in his make-up and 50% of mine came from him, all of the Irish comes from my mother.
Family research does show Irish ancestors on my dad’s side going
back after 20+ generations or so but the Irish in my genes came from my mom.
The birds are trying to sing their spring songs outside,
despite the snow flurries we had yesterday and the biting temperatures. We are
so near the equinox. The days are lengthening and in my little garden, the
tiger lilies are thinking about peeking out of the earth with their bright
green shoots and we are planning the out the rest of the plots, dreaming about
hands turning warm dirt.
And I am thinking about my Irish heritage. Because of how
long most of my other family lines have been in this country, I was surprised
to discover how recently all of my known Irish ancestors came to this country.
On my mom’s paternal side, the first of my immigrant ancestors from Ireland to
step on American soil was my 7x great-grandfather David Calhoun, born in Donegal
in 1690. He settled and died in Connecticut. David's grandfather was originally
from Scotland, so his family blood was Scotch-Irish, but David only knew
Ireland as his home until he left for America.
Thomas Riddle, also found spelled Ridel or Riddell, was born in Ireland in
1739. He was my 6x great-grandfather. He married in America when he was 20 and Thomas
fought for the colonies in the Revolutionary War as a Private in 1775. I found
other family of his listed Tyrone County as flax growers.
My 6x great-grandparents John Berry, born in 1762, and Nancy Matchet, born in
1767, came to America from Ireland together and settled in the small town of
Mayfield in New York. There are still Berrys living in Mayfield; my direct
ancestors lived there for four generations. They even have their own family
cemetery. I have a current lead that Berry came from County Kerry in Ireland
that I am investigating.
On my mom’s maternal side, my other Irish ancestors all immigrated to New York,
where the Erie Canal was. Thomas Burke was born in Ireland in 1832. He is
listed as living in Lockport in 1855 with his widowed mother Ann, employed in
"boating." He later fought for the 12th Independent
Company during the Civil War.
My 4x great-grandfather Barney Dowd came over from Ireland with his daughters
and their families. I have always held him as a possible grandfather, because
he was living for a while with Mary and David Conners, my 3x great-grandparents.
But I found information that might mean the Conners came from Kerry County,
which would make Mary’s last name Lenchen, which would likely remove Barney
Dowd from my tree.
My Lockportian ancestors all lived in the areas of my
hometown known as Lowertown, where the Irish who worked on the canal had set up
their homes. In honor of them, and all those who came before them, I'll set out
a bowl of warm honey and milk over soda bread and I'll pour a pint of ale for
them.
I'll honor those who left their homelands for a country that
treated them like vermin. I honor that Irish spirit that allowed them to
persevere and plant roots. I call on that strength in hard times. They live on
through me.
