My Kirwins came from Ireland to Vermont-New Hampshire-Canada -- depends on when you check the map. At any rate, they migrated from there to the Chicago/Joliet, Illinois area. My great grandfather, John W. Kirwin, brought his family to Hodgeman County, Kansas about 1875. My grandmother was born there. Some of their children were born in Illinois. My great grandmother's name was Catherine Kennedy (I know it was Catherine -- not absolutely certain about Kennedy).Newspaper articles state that John W. Kirwin served with Union troops in the Civil War, but I have not been able to document this. I have photographs of many Kirwin relatives in Joliet, Illinois, ca 1860-1880, but cannot identify them. I don't know why my gr-grandfather moved to Kansas. He had been a policeman in Chicago and failed completely as a farmer in Kansas. The family moved to Wichita, KS, where my gr-grandfather became a policeman again and was killed while on duty -- in 1886. The Kirwin children were quite successful so far as I know. My grandmother, Rose Ellen Kirwin married -- and her children becamse a Pharmacist, a salesman, housewives and the "baby" became a math professor at Long Beach State College in California. I would say that in general, all the KIrwins did well. Carole Shanahan