Lyons family Shragh, Drummin District Electoral Division, Galway.
IMPORTANT to descendants of my Lyons family. The genetic condition haemochromatosis is in this Lyons family. Haemochromatosis causes diabetes, liver cancer, cirrhosis, heart disease and osteoarthritis among other things. I have haemochromatosis.
My Lyons family come from a place called Shragh/Srah, Co. Galway.
My father was Matthew Anthony Lyons and he married Dr. Margaret Murray who had been born in Belfast but who was brought up in Celbridge, Co. Kildare.
My paternal Grandfather was Matthew John Lyons who was born in Galway c.1896. His father was Michael Lyons and his mother was Anna or Annie Porter. Michael & Annie had 8 children, 6 of whom were still alive in 1911.
Lyons family Shragh 1911 census
This family :
Michael 52 : born c.1859
Annie 38 : born c.1873
Matt John 15, born c.1896
Bridget Mary 13, born c.1898
Catherine A. 8, born c. 1903
Patt 6, born circa 1905
Michael 3, born c. 1908
Mary Anne 0
Michael & Annie had been married for 17 years and 6 of their 8 children still lived.
Matthew John Lyons married Helena Noonan and they moved to Longford, he was highly involved in the meat industry in Ireland.
In 1901 this Lyons family also lived at the same address only in 1901 Michaels mother Bridget was still living in the house. There is another child listed who is not listed in 1911 and that is Thomas Lyons who was aged 0. A Thomas Ford is also listed, he is a cousin of Bridget the Head of House. Thomas Ford was born in America
Lyons family Shragh 1901 census image
Also in Shragh /Shrah we have another Lyons family. This is the family of John Lyons who is 40. His wife is called Bridget and she is 27. Living with them they have two of Johns brothers. Daniel who is 35 and James who is 31.
I believe that these two families in the same townland are related to one another.
The first Lyons baptism in the Roman Catholic parish of Woodford, Ballinakill, Galway (Roman Catholic parish records 2433) is that of a Matthew Lyons son of a John Lyons & Maria Donohoe (John is THE most common first male name but Matthew is in general Irish records not so common)
The Woodford, Ballinakill parish records are initially in Latin and no place name is given. I have not finished transcribing the information from these records so what I am giving here is a little bit itsy bitsy. The gaps will be filled in as time goes by.
1821 in these records we have
John & Maria Donohoe baptise their son Matthew on 23 November 1821.
Cornelius Lyons & Anna are sponsors.
Richard & Bridget Dwyer baptise Eleanor 31st Dec 1821
Michael & Maria Go?niry baptise Patrick 20th Dec 1821.
Malachy & Maria Torpy baptise Margaret 18th April 1822.
1851-52
Laurence & Winifred Slattery baptise Anna, 27th June 1851. Thomas Lyons sponsor
James & Anna Donohue baptise James 23rd Dec 1852. John Lyons sponsor.
1865-75/6 Woodford RC parish records
We have
Martin & Anne Abberton having children baptised 1871-76 : Bridget, Laurence, Mary A., & William
Francis & Mary C…. 1875. Michael
Thomas & Mary Culligan, 1873. Anne
Francis & Catherine Fitzgerald, 1865 Michael
John & Helena/Elenora/Elanora Geeran/Gearin. 1865, 68, 71. Patrick, Thomas and John also possibly a James in 1875.
Thomas & Mary Gilligan 1875 : Mary.
I believe Mary Culligan is Mary Gilligan
We have John & Nellie Goery having a Margaret baptised in 1873.
Eleanor=Nellie. I believe this is the same couple as John & Eleanor/Helena/Geeran
Patrick & Elizabeth Hickey, 1865. Eliza
John & Ellen Joyran 1875 – this is never Eleanor Geeran again……phonetically it could easily be!! Daughter is Anne.
Francis & Mary Killeen/Killian 1866-72. Anne, Catherine, Richard.
can’t read & Bridget McDonald 1870 – Michael
Patrick & Bridget McDonnell 1872, Mary
McDonald=McDonnell – possible phonetic
Thomas & Anne, 1871. Anne M.