Hope the health problems are resolved soon, Maire. I am always excited to see your posts, and missed them lately. You have helped me, and probably most of us, so much with your expert advice and knowledge! Deb Deborah Large Fox Help! The Faerie Folk Hid My Ancestors! http://irishfamilyresearch.blogspot.com

Deborah, Had to put things to one side for a while for health reasons but hope to get back to it soon. Máire ----- Original Message ----- From: "Deborah Fox" <deborahlargefox@verizon.net> To: <irl-kil-castlecomer@rootsweb.com> Sent: Sunday, October 17, 2010 5:50 PM Subject: [IRL-KIL-CASTLECOMER] tapes and Maire's research > Thanks for the tips regarding the cds and tapes. Will most certainly > pursue > them. > Good to see a posting, Maire. Was wondering if you were still working on > your emigration study? Deb > Deborah Large Fox Help! The Faerie Folk Hid My Ancestors! > http://irishfamilyresearch.blogspot.com > > > > > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > IRL-KIL-CASTLECOMER-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' > without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message

Thanks for the tips regarding the cds and tapes. Will most certainly pursue them. Good to see a posting, Maire. Was wondering if you were still working on your emigration study? Deb Deborah Large Fox Help! The Faerie Folk Hid My Ancestors! http://irishfamilyresearch.blogspot.com

Thanks Jack for the link to tapes/CDs on the Irish Life and Lore site. The two Kilkenny ones are what we need. Eileen Crennan is one of the people on http://www.irishlifeandlore.com/?page=shop/secondkilkennycollection and others at http://www.irishlifeandlore.com/?page=shop/kilkennycollection Elaine H JackLangton@aol.com wrote: > Hi Deb, > > It occurs to me that there are audio tapes featuring many Castlecomer > folk. They are online at > > _http://www.irishlifeandlore.com/_ (http://www.irishlifeandlore.com/) > > Just reading the "liner notes" and studying their honest faces can > give one a pretty good idea of what they went through, many of them being born > in the early 20th century. I was most interested in the Kilkenny > Collection #2, since I had met and become friendly with some of them. My father's > brother John Langton recorded a CD, though the interviewer was more > interested in hearing about how to light and maintain a cooking fire (!) than > anything else, so it was somewhat disappointing. His daughter, Martha Kelly, is > also represented by a CD, though I haven't heard it. As I recall they were > fairly pricey, once the euro was converted to the dollar. > > Jack Langton > > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to IRL-KIL-CASTLECOMER-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message > >

Hi Deborah The tape is from the Kilkenny Library collection. But the link is not working today. I have emailed them that the link is no good. Go to this page Kilkenny Library Local studies http://kilkennylibrary.kilkenny.ie/eng/About_Us/Our_Services/Local_Studies/ Just near the end of that long page there is a section *Irish Life and Lore Series: Kilkenny Collection * BUT THE LINK GIVEN THERE IS NOT WORKING. That is where I got my Crennan tape info a while ago. There were from memory perhaps a dozen or more CDs in 2 sections..I hope they fix the link soon http://kilkennylibrary.kilkenny.ie/eng/About_Us/Our_Services/Local_Studies/Life_and_Lore/Life_and_Lore.html Deborah Fox wrote: > Since there were many French Huguenot settlers in nearby areas of Co. > Laois, I would think there is the possibility that some of the families > migrated into the Castlecomer area, although I have not seen this > documented. Thanks, Jack, for the tips. I have the Lee book and most of the > volumes that deal with Huguenots in Ireland, just passing references here > and there to an early settlement in Co. Kilkenny that did not last. > Elaine, what are these tapes/cd collections that you mention? Where are > they found? Deb > Deborah Large Fox Help! The Faerie Folk Hid My Ancestors! > http://irishfamilyresearch.blogspot.com > > > > > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to IRL-KIL-CASTLECOMER-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message > >

Dear Jack, A few snippets!! The resemblance to the town of Alsinore in Italy seems to be a myth. The Italian Embassy informed me that there is no such town in Italy. Perhaps it was a reference to an Italian 'Signor'. It was Sir Christopher Wandesforde who built the town of Castlecomer in the late 1630s. He didn't actually 'take over the mines' - he was granted 22,000 acres of land and the mines were a bonus. The lime trees in The Square are said to have been planted in the early nineteenth century during the ownership of Lady Anne Wandesforde, Countess of Ormonde. The Hugeonot family of La Rive lived in the last house in The Square beside the bridge in the 18th century - the house is still knowm as La Rive. I enjoy reading your emails. Máire Downey

Hi Deb, It occurs to me that there are audio tapes featuring many Castlecomer folk. They are online at _http://www.irishlifeandlore.com/_ (http://www.irishlifeandlore.com/) Just reading the "liner notes" and studying their honest faces can give one a pretty good idea of what they went through, many of them being born in the early 20th century. I was most interested in the Kilkenny Collection #2, since I had met and become friendly with some of them. My father's brother John Langton recorded a CD, though the interviewer was more interested in hearing about how to light and maintain a cooking fire (!) than anything else, so it was somewhat disappointing. His daughter, Martha Kelly, is also represented by a CD, though I haven't heard it. As I recall they were fairly pricey, once the euro was converted to the dollar. Jack Langton

Hi Maire, Nice to hear from you. Actually I'm glad to hear that the Alsinore business is a rural myth, preferring to believe that the town evolved on it's own, rather than being sculpted from a perhaps faulty memory, and is Irish through and through. Jack Langton

Hi Deborah Crennan of Castlecomer also a Huguenot name? On a a recording of a Mrs Eileen Crennan as noted below**, Mrs Crennan (nee Brennan) makes a few remarks about her husband (Pat Crennan) origins and family. Mrs Crennan mentions a local historian telling him/her/the family that Crennan was a Huguenot name. Might be Tom Lyng from memory. I dont know that Mrs Crennan said it was in a book or just a remark the historian made. I dont have the tape with me as other Crennan relatives here in Australia are listening to it. I have seen discussions that the name Crennan may have been originally Crinion (meaning old man) at one time but in my searches of Castlecomer records, it is Crenan or Crennan. There are Crennan records from the earliest of the extant Castlecomer films. ** This is on the tape NAME: EILEEN CRENNAN, AGE 90, CRUTT, CASTLECOMER Title: Irish Life and Lore Kilkenny Collection, CD 8 Subject: Reminiscences of a shopkeeper Recorded by: Maurice O'Keeffe Deborah Fox wrote: > I am most likely chasing a big, fat red herring here, as American > lawyers like to say, but, going over my files for the umpteenth time, I > noticed that my Ellen Large's baptism in 1833 in St. Mary's Church of > Ireland in Castlecomer has the notation "by M Despard." Now I am wondering > who is this Despard? The rector at the time? A visiting clergy? If so, a > visiting "French Church" clergy (of Irish-French Huguenot descent?). I am > basing my outlandish guesses merely on the French sounding name. I am > wondering if there is any history of St. Mary's having a connection to a > Huguenot congregation? I was told that there was once a Huguenot settlement > in Co. Kilkenny, but traces of it are gone. Deb > Deborah Large Fox Help! The Faerie Folk Hid My Ancestors! > http://irishfamilyresearch.blogspot.com > > > > > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to IRL-KIL-CASTLECOMER-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message > >

Since there were many French Huguenot settlers in nearby areas of Co. Laois, I would think there is the possibility that some of the families migrated into the Castlecomer area, although I have not seen this documented. Thanks, Jack, for the tips. I have the Lee book and most of the volumes that deal with Huguenots in Ireland, just passing references here and there to an early settlement in Co. Kilkenny that did not last. Elaine, what are these tapes/cd collections that you mention? Where are they found? Deb Deborah Large Fox Help! The Faerie Folk Hid My Ancestors! http://irishfamilyresearch.blogspot.com

Deb, Forgot to mention, and in case you haven't seen it, Google books has "The Huguenot Settlements in Ireland" by Grace Lawless Lee. More at _http://tinyurl.com/2wcvf3a_ (http://tinyurl.com/2wcvf3a) Jack Langton

Hi Deb, Castlecomer does have a rather foreign mystique to it, considering it's rural Ireland location. About 10 years ago it began a twinning process with Penvenan in France, and as far as I know there are still visits and ceremonies back and forth. More at _http://www.castlecomer.ie/twinning.php_ (http://www.castlecomer.ie/twinning.php) and _http://www.wellierace.com/index.php?page=A_View_From_America_ (http://www.wellierace.com/index.php?page=A_View_From_America) And 'tis said that when Wandesforde took over the mines in 1635 he changed the appearance of Castlecomer to make it look more like the town of Alsinore in Italy. Don't know if that includes the lime trees in the square. Maybe a Castlecomer historian on the list can fill us in. Jack Langton

I search the French Huguenot history in Ireland and Co. Kilkenny every so often is because Prince Edward Island in Canada is full of Co. Kilkenny names (including a couple of LARGE settlers), and many of those from the Castlecomer area. I have been in touch with Canadian researchers who have matched many of the names on the notes I took on the Wandesforde papers to early settlers of Prince Edward Island. Island lore posits that a John Large, Irishman of Huguenot descent serving in the British army, help found the settlement on PEI. Other names that match with Large in land records are Wright and Tobin. This John is thought to hail from Co, Laois, but there are other LARGE families, supposed to be from Co. Kilkenny, who settled PEI. So, if anyone else is researching Co. Kilkenny people in PEI, or in Huguenot connections, I'd be interested in what they might have found. I also mention this in case it might help another Kilkenny researcher to trace their emigrants. Might be worth looking at PEI. They have some very expert and interested genealogy researchers on the island and their history is very well documented. Deb Deborah Large Fox Help! The Faerie Folk Hid My Ancestors! http://irishfamilyresearch.blogspot.com

I am most likely chasing a big, fat red herring here, as American lawyers like to say, but, going over my files for the umpteenth time, I noticed that my Ellen Large's baptism in 1833 in St. Mary's Church of Ireland in Castlecomer has the notation "by M Despard." Now I am wondering who is this Despard? The rector at the time? A visiting clergy? If so, a visiting "French Church" clergy (of Irish-French Huguenot descent?). I am basing my outlandish guesses merely on the French sounding name. I am wondering if there is any history of St. Mary's having a connection to a Huguenot congregation? I was told that there was once a Huguenot settlement in Co. Kilkenny, but traces of it are gone. Deb Deborah Large Fox Help! The Faerie Folk Hid My Ancestors! http://irishfamilyresearch.blogspot.com

The death has occurred of Michael (Mick) NOLAN of Massford, Castlecomer, Kilkenny Reposing at the Church of the Sacred Heart, Moneenroe from 3pm today, Monday, with Rosary tonight at 8pm. Requiem Mass on Tuesday morning at 11am. Burial afterward in the adjoining cemetery. Date published: Monday, October 11, 2010 Date of death: Sunday, October 10, 2010

The death has occurred of Thomas CONNEELY of Kiltown, Castlecomer, Kilkenny Formerly of Ballyconneely Co. Galway. Reposing at Coady's Funeral Home Castlecomer. Funeral prayers this evening, Saturday, at 6pm, followed by removal to The Church of the Immaculate Conception, Castlecomer. Funeral Mass tomorrow, Sunday, at 11.30am, followed by burial in the adjoining cemetery. Date published: Saturday, October 02, 2010 Date of death: Thursday, September 30, 2010

RING (Kilkenny Street, Castlecomer, Co. Kilkenny) Sept. 22, 2010, at St. Luke's Hospital, Kilkenny, Andrew (Andy); deeply regretted by his loving wife Betty, sons Martin, Justin and Peter, daughters-in-law Breda, Ann and Esther, grandchildren, great-grandchild, sisters-in-law, brothers-in-law, nephews, nieces, relatives and friends. R.I.P. Funeral Prayers this (Friday) evening at 7 o'c. in Coady's Funeral Home, Castlecomer followed by Removal to the Church of the Immaculate Conception, Castlecomer. Requiem Mass tomorrow (Saturday) morning at 11 o'c. followed by Burial in the adjoining cemetery.

In a message dated 9/19/2010 2:43:06 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time, deborahlargefox@verizon.net writes: Thanks, Jack. I didn't realize that SOMERS was a Comer name--one line of the LARGE family married into a SOMERS line in Pennsylvania, so I guess the families knew each other in Comer also. My list shows that the PA miners were docked for tools, kegs, rent, and powder. So, now I am wondering whether the miners in Comer in the early 1800's had to pay for their "work supplies." Didn't see any such records from that time period in the Wandesforde collection, but then again, I wasn't looking for it at the time. Hmmm, always another question after each discovery, isn't there? Deb Hi Deb, There were 4 Somers families living in Croghtenclogh in 1901, 36 altogether (overall pop. Croghtenclogh 483), three families lived side by side by side, the other quite close. In 1911 the number of Somers there was 23. (The Electoral Dist. for Croghtenclogh is Moneenroe.) I've never seen a reference to the miners having to buy their mining supplies in the Comer mines, I don't think Wandesforde would have gotten a decent night's sleep if he knew the lads were buying dynamite. The last Wandesforde in line didn't even supply showers in the Deer Park mine near Clogh until halfway through the 20th century. Jack Langton

Thanks, Jack. I didn't realize that SOMERS was a Comer name--one line of the LARGE family married into a SOMERS line in Pennsylvania, so I guess the families knew each other in Comer also. My list shows that the PA miners were docked for tools, kegs, rent, and powder. So, now I am wondering whether the miners in Comer in the early 1800's had to pay for their "work supplies." Didn't see any such records from that time period in the Wandesforde collection, but then again, I wasn't looking for it at the time. Hmmm, always another question after each discovery, isn't there? Deb Deborah Large Fox Help! The Faerie Folk Hid My Ancestors! http://irishfamilyresearch.blogspot.com

Hi Debbie, It's not often that we are gifted with a trove such as your cousin sent to you, have fun with it! The only thing I have of that type is a pay voucher, signed by my mother's father James Langton, from Feb. 2, 1901, when he worked for the Enterprise Coal Co. near Excelsior, Pa. In the earnings column it showed him working 4 days @ $2.00 per day, he also got $1.28 as a percentage of some kind, total $9.28. In the "Charges and Collections" column, he was docked $4.50 for rent, $1.75 for coal (yes, he had to buy his own coal), $2.78 for purchases from the General Store, and .25 for "collections", total $9.28. At the time he and Katie had four kids, another was born the next month, and they went on to have six more. I'm sure your new records will show even harsher conditions. I did recognize a Castlecomer name in those records: SOMERS. In fact Eddie SOMERS was a publican in Clogh village until illness forced him to close the business. He passed away a couple of years ago. His brother, I think Richie, has been a Catholic priest in Mississippi for many, many years, I met him once when he came home on annual holiday to Clogh. I'm still looking for that big group of Castlecomer emigrants who left on the same ship and settled in the same place, but hey that would spoil all the fun, ay? Jack Langton