Surname Saturday - Five Generation Birthplace Chart

I've been seeing this all over Facebook and genealogy blogs, so thought I'd join in on the fun! This five generation chart shows the birthplaces of my family, starting with me and going up to my 2x great-grandparents. The paternal lines are on top in each pair and I've color coded them by US state and country.

I added the surnames of my 2x great-grandparents on the right, color coded by their country of origin. The names in white are still unknown or lines I haven't researched that far back yet. Most of the unknowns are probably from the UK, Ireland, and France, but my Matson line is still a mystery. My Gast family was from France, although they were close to the German border. My Councill and Sparks families were from England.

The first blog I saw this on was Linda Hall-Little's Passage to the Past's blog and the template I used was posted on Miriam Robbin's AnceStories blog. J. Paul Hawthorne, author of GeneaSpy blog came up with the original idea. Check out #MyColorfulAncestry on Twitter and Facebook to see more charts.

Those Places Thursday - Thatched Cottages of Ireland

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

I took this picture in September 1990 on my first trip to Ireland. The thing that stood out about these cottages was the traditional thatched roofs. I think this was taken when we were in Adare in County Limerick. It was raining and a bit chilly when we saw the thatched cottages, so this was the only shot I got. I've wondered if they're still there after all these years. Wishing everyone a happy St. Patrick's Day!

Sunday's Obituary - Kate Coakley Egan

The following obituary for Kate Coakley was published in The Wilmington Journal of Clinton, Ohio on September 26, 1906. I suspect that the Coakley family in Wilmington, Ohio was related to my Creeden family. Both families came to the US from County Cork, Ireland somewhere between 1849-1852. Patrick Creedan and Jeremiah Coakley were both present at the first Catholic mass held in Wilmington and Patrick's first wife was Mary Coakley.

Mrs. Kate Egan, wife of Patrick Egan, who for many years conducted a saloon at the corner of South street, adjoining the C.&M.V. Railroad, was found dead in the hallway of her home Tuesday morning at 9:30 o'clock. The obituary goes on to describe details of Kate being found several hours after falling down the stairs in her home.

The deceased was born in County Cork, Ireland, about seventy-two years ago, and came to Wilmington with her parents, Jeremiah and Mary Coakley, about 1852, since which time she has made her home here. Funeral services were held in St. Columbkille Catholic Church on Thursday morning. The rest of the obituary describes her estate, valued at $6,348.44. Her brother Timothy Coakley was appointed as administrator and Edward J. West was the attorney for the administrator.

Kate's first name was spelled Catharine in her marriage license. She was married to Patrick Egan on September 12, 1868.