USA Trip
American ALLEN cousin discovery trip, 16-29 July 2013......UPDATE 13 June 2013
Meeting with descendants of MY great great grandfather Samuel JOHN & Eliza (nee Hartley)
Background summary
John ALLEN dob 1836 and Eliza (Hartley) 1834, married in Desertlyn Church of Ireland, Moneymore 1855. They had 6 children…. We know that 3 sisters emigrated to the US in the 1880’s and settled in Delaware, around the Hockessin area, near Wilmington, DE.
One son is known to us, Sam, married Susanna Ross, as he is my great grandfather!
The other 2 sons, William John (can read & write) & Thomas (cannot read) I have not traced, other than finding their names on the 1911 Census, as residents in a house Nr 6 Tintagh (Lissan Upper, Londonderry). There are children mentioned in this census as “American Presbyterian” !?
Were they on holiday from the US, or had they returned to remain in Ireland and who was their father…? William John or Thomas. More work still to be done!!
(August 2014!.....That work has now been almost completed. See under heading "The American Connection" furthest down....williamsarahamerica)
It is some of the descendants of these sisters that I have traced, still based in Delaware, also in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, whom we hope to meet during this trip.
Below is a summary of the sisters family set up in the USA, taken from the research collected and put into the My Heritage Family Tree programme. Whilst preparing this text I have discovered errors in birth dates, so revisions to be made. (Raymond : check against the dates you have!?)
Sister 1 : Sarah Elizabeth 1864-1950, married Wilson Crooks Sr (Irish) in Hockessin 1888. Don’t have any emigration date! Had 7 children with him. He died 1899 and she remarried James Kelly 1902 and had 3 more children. We are staying at Kennett Square B&B (see itinerary below) which is just across the border into Pennsylvania, and it’s in this town that the Kelly family are known!
Sister 2 : Jane 1866 - ??. Acc to Emigration records in USA Jane emigrated in 1883. Married Andrew Ritchie (also Irish) and had 6 children, the first being stillborn. Anna Glenn our family guide is related to both Jane and Sarah, through a 2nd cousin marriage.
Sister 3 : Eliza 1868-?? was married in Claggan Presbyterian Church, Cookstown to George Marshall, 5 December 1889. They then emigrated travelling on the ship Manitoba from Moville, date unknown, to a cousins (or was it a sister’s farm?) farm in Delaware, probably Hockessin area! They had 7 children, one of whom Joseph Marshall married Anna Mae Rudolf and was father of Ann Priscoe!
Anna Prisco, recently celebrated her 90th birthday, on 23 May, 2013 (she’s the lady who wrote to my parents in 1996!!) We hope to meet Anna shortly after arrival, at the Lily Inn, Burlington, New Jersey.
ITINERARY
16-29 July 2013. We arrive Philadelphia (via Newark) on Wednesday 17 July at 15:49.
The Rapid Rover minibus service to the Lily Inn, Burlington. Don’t know exact arrival time at the Inn, but at a guess, between 17-18:00 (5-6pm). Expecting some visitors that evening!
We will be based at the Lily Inn, Thursday 18, Friday 19 and until Sat am 20th. Then we plan to rent a car to drive into Delaware and stay Sat night 20, Sunday 21 (possibly 22 as well?) and departing Monday/Tuesday to return to Lily Inn. We will stay at the Kennet Square B&B, just inside PA.
Kennett Square is where Sarah (Allen) and her 2nd husband lived.
Anna Glenn, lives some 10 mins from Kennett Sq in Chads Ford and she very kindly will be showing us around and spending most of the time with us!
Anna has a unique family relationship to both sisters Sarah & Jane : Her great grandmother on her father’s side was Sarah and her great great grandmother on her mother’s side was Jane!
We will return again to the Lily Inn, staying there until early Wednesday morning 24 July….giving us Tuesday back at the Inn.
Then it's goodbyes and …….
Then we depart for Chicago (from PHL) early Wednesday morning 09:45, to meet up with some of Liz’s cousins (O’Brien’s). A meeting with BOTH the living and the dead! By that I mean visiting Forest Home Cemetry, Chicago, where George O'Brien, great uncle and Frank O'Brien, Liz's full uncle, are buried. We also visit full cousin Sid, wife Betty and family circle.
We fly back to Philadelphia on the Sunday evening arr around 10pm, for our return flight to Stockholm the following day, Monday 29 July, dep PHL 13:40.
When the “dust” has settled, I will give try and write some form of report on the trip and who we met, under the section "American Connection"
I feel it’s important to include family in this trip and its preparation, simply because these people are our blood and part of our heritage.
Des