Ancestry Project Update
For a few weeks we have been researching the missing birth records of a family of four children all born in Wigan according to the Census records of 1861 onwards.
We realised early on that there were two families with parents with the same first names around at that time, one in Wigan and one in Warrington, and that other people have mixed the two families in their Ancestry Trees which made it all very confusing.
BUT ….. this morning after sticking to our precise, fact based only, tree rule, we have made a fantastic discovery that actually explains a lot about the social history at that time and the problems faced by Irish immigrants on all levels.
The families we are researching are the surnames Connell married to a Shaughnessy. Using a combination of Ancestry.co.uk and Lancashire BMD (and the researchers expert skills with spreadsheets) we have discovered what we feel are the correct birth records of three of the four living children mentioned on censuses and possibly one, maybe both, of the children who died in childhood as indicated on the 1911 Census. (6 children born 2 who have died).
The results show us how difficult it was at times for people with rich Irish accents to communicate names, Birthplaces etc , and how low literacy skills meant that mistakes were not realised.
We have found the three living children’s names recorded as:
1. Connor (father) O’Shockrasey (mother)
2. Conley (father)Shocknessey (mother)
3. Conole (father)Shoknisa (mother)
And the child (possibly both children) who died) :
1. Connall (father) O’Shokashay (mother)
2. Connell (father)O’Shoknasey (mother)
This shows the phonetic interpretation of the names as recorded by the Registry Clerk, but when you speak the names as they are written above, you can actually hear the accent of the person reporting the birth.
An interesting morning and a sense of achievement by both myself and the researcher, and a reminder of the intricacies of researching Irish family trees!
Maxine Williams – Cultural Development Officer.
