Nesbitt Family
Origins
The surname Nesbitt (along with all its variant forms) comes from one or other of the places named Nesbit(t) or Nisbit found in County Durham, Northumberland and Berwicksire. Its literal meaning is "nose bight", referring to a piece of land shaped like a nose. The name was most commonly found in the far North of England and the Scotttish Lowlands, and was probably taken to Ireland at the beginning of the 17th century, when Randall McDonnell, the newly created Earl of Antrim, promoted the settlement of Lowland Scots on his estates.
Forms of the name include Nesbit(t), Nisbet(t), Nisbit, Naisbett and Naisbitt, several of which were used interchangeably by early generations of our branch of the family.
First generation
William Nesbitt
The first definite record I have of our family in Antrim is William Nesbitt of Carnmoney, who is named as the father of five children baptised there between 1732 and 1744.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
John Nesbitt
Martha Nesbitt
Sarah Nesbitt
Elizabeth Nesbitt
William Nesbitt
(1732-?)
(1734-?)
(1736-?)
(1741-?)
(1744-?)
William's wife is not named on the baptism records, and I have no record of his own birth or death.
Second generation
John Nesbitt
John Nesbitt, oldest known child of William Nesbitt, was baptised in Carnmoney on 16 April 1732. His wife's name is unknown, but John is named as the father of four children baptised in Carnmoney between 1755 and 1771, while a further child probably belongs to this family although no baptism record has been found for him. There is a gap between the first three children and the fourth, so possibly John was married twice, but this may just be due to missing records.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
(1755-?)
(1756-?)
(1759-?)
(1771-?)
m. Elizabeth Jane Irwin, 1781
m. Betty Long
Third generation
William Nesbitt
William Nesbitt, third known child of John Nesbitt, was baptised in Carnmoney on 6 June 1759 and married Jane Elizabeth Irwin there on 22 July 1781. They had three children, all baptised in Carnmoney:
1.
2.
3.
Martha Nesbitt
John Nesbitt
William Nesbitt
(1782-?)
(1785-?)
(1789-?)
I lose track of the family after this, so they may have moved away from Carnmoney.
Samuel Nesbitt
Samuel Nesbitt, son of John Nesbitt, was baptised in Carnmoney on 26 March 1771 and had six children there with his first wife Betty Long:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
(1793-?)
(1796-1882)
(1799-?)
(1802-?)
(1804-?)
(1807-?)
m. Margaret
m. Anne McCourtney, 1822
m. William McIlhenney, 1830
m. Eliza McLaughlin, 1827
m. John Kirkpatrick, 1823
After Betty's death Samuel married Dorothy Campbell in Carnmoney on 20 May 1830 and had four more children:
7.
8.
9.
10.
(1831-1891)
(1833-?)
(1837-1902)
(1843-1914)
m. Elizabeth Cunningham, 1859
m. David Kelso, 1872
m. Philip Leeson, 1877
m. Ann Jane Hope, 1866
Dorothy died in Carnmoney on 29 January 1880 at the age of 80.
John Nesbitt
John Nesbitt, born around 1770, was probably a son of John Nesbitt, although little is known about him at present. He had four sons, all baptised in Carnmoney:
1.
2.
3.
4.
John Nesbitt
Richard Nesbitt
William Nesbitt
Robert Nesbitt
(1798-?)
(1800-?)
(1804-?)
(1808-?)
There is no further record of this family in Carnmoney, and I have not yet located them elsewhere.
Fourth generation
Andrew Nesbitt
Andrew Nesbitt, oldest child of Samuel Nesbitt and Betty Long, was born in Carnmoney in February 1793 and married a woman named Margaret. They had six children, all baptised in Carnmoney:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Nancy Nesbitt
Thomas Nesbitt
Eliza Jane Nesbitt
Andrew Nesbitt
Isabella Nesbitt
Margaret Jane Nesbitt
(1818-?)
(1822-?)
(1822-?)
(1825-1865)
(1828-?)
(1831-?)
This branch of the family possibly moved to Belfast: Andrew Jr. who served in the Royal Marine Light Infantry, died there on 25 May 1865.
Samuel Nesbitt
(1827-?)
(c.1829-1902)
(c.1832-?)
(c.1840-1904)
(c.1841-?)
(c.1842-1890)
(1851-1903)
Samuel Nesbitt, second son of Samuel Nesbitt and Betty Long, was baptised in Carnmoney on 28 August 1796 and married Anne McCourtney there on 27 July 1822. They had at least seven children:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
David Nesbitt
m. Janet Fitzgerald, 1850
m. James Cassidy, 1863
m. Sarah Gault, 1852
m. Thomas Jack, 1860
m. Agnes Rice, 1861
m. Charles Potts, 1868
m. Hugh Larmour, 1873
Samuel and Anne's first child was born (or at least baptised) in Carnmoney, but the couple spent the rest of their married life in Carrickfergus, where Samuel worked on the fishing boats. Anne died in Carrickfergus on 3 July 1878 and Samuel died in Larne workhouse of erysipelas on 12 January 1882.
Mary Ann Nesbitt
Mary Ann Nesbitt, third child and oldest daughter of Samuel Nesbitt and Betty Long, was baptised in Carnmoney on 22 December 1799 and married William McIlhenney, a labourer, there on 26 June 1830. They had one known child:
1.
(c. 1840-?)
m. Thomas Kirkpatrick, 1866
Nothing more is known about Mary Ann and William (whose surname is spelled in various ways on different records) - they both possibly died before the beginning of civil registration in Ireland in 1864.
David Nesbitt
David Nesbitt, fourth child of Samuel Nesbitt and Betty Long, was baptised in Carnmoney on 18 July 1802 and married Eliza McLaughlin there on 23 January 1827. He was possibly married previously to an unknown woman who died young, as two older children whose baptisms have not been found name their father as David on their marriage certificates. The children born after 1827 were all baptised in Carnmoney and their mother is named as Eliza.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
(c.1822-?)
(1823-?)
(1827-1885)
(c.1831-?)
(1834-?)
(1839-?)
(1842-?)
m. Wilson Thomson, 1845
m. Isabella Spratt, 1855
m. Jane Harper
m. Edward Kane, 1852
David and Eliza probably died before 1864.
William Nesbitt
William Nesbitt, oldest child of Samuel Nesbitt and his second wife Dorothy Campbell, was baptised in Carnmoney on 27 February 1831. He migrated to Glasgow, where he worked as a labourer, and married Elizabeth Cunningham in Springburn on 16 December 1859. They had ten children, including two sets of twins, but sadly most of the children died in infancy. The children's births were all registered with the spelling Nisbet, and this form of the surname was adopted by subsequent generations.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
William Nisbet
Elizabeth Nisbet
Elizabeth Nisbet
Dorothea Nisbet
Elizabeth Nisbet
William Nisbet
Alexander Nisbet
Dorothea Nisbet
(1860-1863)
(1860-1862)
(1863-1865)
(1864-1944)
(1866-1935)
(1869-1871)
(1869-1870)
(1871-1874)
(1873-1878)
(1875-1876)
m. Robert Cochran, 1890
m. Frances Jane Taggart, 1910
William died in Dennistoun on 29 May 1891.
Matilda Jane Nesbitt
Matilda Jane Nesbitt, daughter of Samuel Nesbitt and his second wife Dorothy Campbell, was baptised in Carnmoney on 26 February 1837 and married Philip Leeson in Belfast on 2 November 1877. Philip, a carter, was born in Tipton on 29 July 1852: he also used the name William at times. The couple had two children:
1.
2.
(1878-1949)
(1881-1974)
m. Sarah Johnson, 1903
m. Bertha Beveridge, 1903
After David's birth the family moved to Bootle and spent the rest of their lives in the Liverpool area. Matilda died in Liverpool in 1902.
Alexander Nesbitt
Alexander Nesbitt, youngest child of Samuel Nesbitt and his second wife Dorothy Campbell, was baptised in Carnmoney on 24 September 1843 and married Ann Jane Hope in Templecorran on 17 November 1866. After the birth of their first child they followed the example of Alexander's brother William and migrated to Glasgow, where Alexander worked as a furnaceman in a copper works, and a further nine children were born, most of whom would die young. The Scottish-born children were all registered as Nisbet.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Ann Nisbet
Sarah Nisbet
Annie Nisbet
Matilda Nisbet
David Alexander Nisbet
Ann Jane Nisbet
Samuel Nisbet
Martha Nisbet
James Nisbet
(1867-1955)
(1869-1871)
(1871-1872)
(1873-1877)
(1875-1881)
(1877-1878)
(1879-1883)
(1883-1916)
(1885-1889)
(1889-1890)
m. Samuel Stars, 1892
Alexander died in Glasgow on 10 August 1914 and Ann on 17 March 1916.
Fifth generation
Joseph Nesbitt
Joseph Nesbitt, oldest known child of Samuel Nesbitt and Anne McCourtney, was baptised in Carnmoney on 25 November 1827 and married Janet Fitzgerald in Carrickfergus on 18 August 1850. They had three known children:.
1.
2.
3.
(c.1854-1895)
(c.1857-1934)
(1860-?)
m. John McKay, 1873
m. James Howie, 1882
The couple spent the early part of their married life in Carrickfergus before returning to Joseph's natal Carnmoney where their youngest child was born.
Elizabeth Nesbitt
Elizabeth Nesbitt, daughter of Samuel Nesbitt and Anne McCourtney, was born in Carrickfergus in about 1829. She had at least three children with Thomas McCune, a ship carpenter:
1.
2.
3.
(c.1847-1890)
(c.1848-1908)
(1852-1926)
m. Maria Campbell, 1868
m. Matilda Magee, 1872
m. Thomas Cahey, 1873
Elizabeth then married James Cassidy, a mariner, in Carrickfergus on 16 January 1863 and had a daughter.
4.
(c.1863-?)
m. Edward Carroll, 1895
The only plausible death record for James (unless he was lost at sea) is in Carrickfergus in 1873 aged 47, although this document describes him as a bachelor. In any case, soon after Hannah's birth Elizabeth appears to have returned to Thomas McCune and had two more children with him:
5.
6.
(1865-?)
(1867-?)
m. Catherine Fearn, 1883
m. Mary Totten, 1891
Samuel and Samson's birth registrations give their parents as Thomas McCune and Elizabeth McCune, "formerly Nesbitt", although no marriage record has been found. I have DNA matches with descendants of their older siblings Joseph and Elizabeth.
Thomas died in Carrickfergus on 6 May 1884 aged 60 and his death was registered by his "widow" Elizabeth. The 1901 census shows Elizabeth (recorded as McCune) living with Hannah, her daughter by James Cassidy. She died at Hannah’s home in Carrickfergus on 29 July 1902 aged 73 and her death was registered by her son Samuel McCune's wife
The timeline seems improbable and I originally thought that there might be two separate Elizabeth Nesbitts of roughly the same age, but the 1901 census and Elizabeth's death record seem to rule this out, so unless further evidence is found, it appears that there was just one Elizabeth with a convoluted love life!
Sampson Nesbitt
Sampson Nesbitt, son of Samuel Nesbitt and Anne McCourtney, was born in Carrickfergus in about 1832 and married Sarah Gault there on 7 August 1852. The marriage record states that both were "minors", ie under 21 years old at the time, and that Sampson was a labourer.
The couple had two known children:
1.
2.
(c.1858-1941)
(c.1863-1903)
m. Isabella Henderson, 1880
m. Christopher Morrow, 1881
Sampson died young (presumably before the introduction of civil death registration in 1864) and Sarah married James Cain, a baker, in Belfast on 2 January 1866: she had four more children with her second husband.
I have DNA matches with descendants of Sampson's daughter Sarah.
Mary Anne Nesbitt
Mary Anne Nesbitt, daughter of Samuel Nesbitt and Anne McCourtney, was born in Carrickfergus in about 1840 and married Thomas Jack there on 21 October 1860. Thomas was about ten years older than his wife and mainly worked as a fisherman, although on their marriage record his occupation is given as labourer. They had at least three children together and another daughter was born before their marriage: it is unclear whether Thomas was her father.
1.
2.
3.
4.
(c.1860-1919)
(1866-1939)
(1868-1893)
(c.1870-?)
m. Alexander Clawson, 1902
m. Jane Allen, 1891
Thomas died in Carrickfergus on 31 July 1901 and Mary Anne on 9 July 1904.
Hannah Nesbitt
Hannah Nesbitt, youngest daughter of Samuel Nesbitt and Anne McCourtney, was born in Carrickfergus in about 1851 and married Hugh Larmour there on 28 March 1873. Hugh was born in about 1847 and was a sailor like many of the extended family.
Hugh and Mary Anne had six children, all born in Carrickfergus.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
(1873-?)
(1875-1916)
(1876-1901)
(1881-1895)
(1884-1963)
(1886-1886)
m. Mary Ann Anderson, 1899
m. Elizabeth Adams, 1897
m. Mary Jane Simpson, 1914
By 1901 the family had moved to Belfast where Hannah died on 27 March 1903 and Hugh on 18 August 1914. I have DNA matches with descendants of this family.
Elizabeth McIlhenney
Elizabeth McIlhenney (or McIlhinny), only known child of William McIlhenney and Mary Ann Nesbitt, was born in about 1840, probably in Carnmoney. She married Thomas Kirkpatrick, a flax dresser, there on 30 April 1866 and the couple had seven children all born in Carnmoney.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
David Alexander Kirkpatrick
Samuel Francis Kirkpatrick
Charles Marshall Kirkpatrick
(1866-?)
(1868-1936)
(1870-?)
(1873-?)
(1875-?)
(1878-?)
(1880-?)
m. Sarah Twig, 1902
m. Lina Inez Ainsworth, 1901
m. William Barnett, 1890
m. Evelyn Mawhinney, 1915
m. John Graham, 1901
Elizabeth died in Ballyclaverty on 23 May 1914. I have DNA matches with descendants of this line.
John Nesbitt
John Nesbitt, son of David Nesbitt and Eliza McLaughlin, was baptised in Carnmoney on 5 November 1827. He worked as a stone mason and married Jane Harper while still a very young man.
The couple had eight children, all born in Carnmoney.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Robert Harper Nesbitt
John Nesbitt
Eliza Jane Nesbitt
Andrew Nesbitt
Margaret Nesbitt
(1847-1908)
(1849-?)
(1852-?)
(1854-1913)
(1856-?)
(1859-?)
(1861-?)
(1864-?)
m. Isabella Magee, 1870
m. Agnes Manson, 1880
m. Lizzie Kerr, 1878
John died of pulmonary tuberculosis in Ballyduff on 14 June 1885. Nothing is known about his wife Jane at present, although their second son was possibly named after her father.
Eliza Nesbitt
Eliza Nesbitt, daughter of David Nesbitt and Eliza McLaughlin, was born in Carnmoney in about 1831 and married Edward Kane there on 7 May 1858. Edward was born in about 1830 and worked as a labourer or cartman.
The couple spent most or all of their married life in Templepatrick where their five known children were born. They almost certainly had further children born before the beginning of civil registration who have not yet been identified.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
(c.1861-?)
(1866-?)
(1868-1897)
(1870-1894)
(1873-1879)
m. William Gourley, 1882
m. James Carson, 1893
James and David both died of pulmonary tuberculosis in their early 20s.
Edward died in Belfast on 25 July 1891 and in 1911 Eliza was living with her married daughter Annie.
Matilda Jane Nisbet
Matilda Jane Nisbet was born in Glasgow on 4 September 1864 and was one of only two children born to William Nesbitt and Elizabeth Cunningham to survive beyond infancy. She married Robert Cochran, a pottery labourer, in Glasgow on 18 July 1890 and had two children, one of whom died young.
1.
2.
James Allan Cochran
Elizabeth Cochran
(1891-1918)
(1893-1895)
Robert died of enteric fever on 9 November 1894 at the age of 35, and Matilda then married Joseph Downie in Glasgow on 14 July 1896. They had two sets of twins, but sadly all four children died in infancy.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Matilda Downie
Catherine Downie
Agnes Downie
Joseph Downie
(1896-1897)
(1896-1899)
(1900-1901)
(1900-1901)
Matilda was widowed for a second time when Joseph died of bronchial asthma on 11 March 1900, a few months before the birth of Agnes and Joseph Jr. Tragically she would go on to lose her only surviving son in the closing months of World War I when he was killed in action while serving with the Scottish Rifles.
Matilda died in Kintilloch, Dunbartonshire on 8 January 1944.
Samuel Nisbet
Samuel Nisbet, younger surviving child of William Nesbitt and Elizabeth Cunningham, was born in Glasgow on 16 April 1866. The 1901 census shows him living with his widowed sister Matilda, before marrying Frances Jane Taggart in Glasgow on 17 June 1910 at the relatively late age (for the time) of 44. Frances, who was nearly 20 years his junior, was born in Dennistoun on 7 January 1886.
The couple had four children, all born in Glasgow.
1.
2.
3.
4.
Matilda Jane Campbell Nisbet
William Ash Goshton Gordon Nisbet
Samuel Nisbet
Mary Nisbet
(1912-1992)
(1918-1988)
(1920-1989)
(1922-1923)
m. Daniel Boyle Godfrey, 1933
m. Margaret Foy McLean, 1946
m. Joy Dinsmore Ladd, 1944
Samuel died in Glasgow on 8 January 1935 and Frances died in 1956.
David Leeson
David Leeson, older son of Philip Leeson and Matilda Jane Nesbitt, was born in Belfast on 7 November 1878 and moved to England with his family as baby. According to the 1911 census he lost an arm at the age of 4 - presumably in an accident of some kind - and as an adult he worked as a night watchman. He married Sarah Johnson in Liverpool on 25 May 1903 and had one child.
1.
William David Leeson
(1904-1967)
m. Sheila Alice Radcliff, 1936
Sarah died in Liverpool on 30 March 1944 and David died in late 1949.
William Alfred Leeson
William Alfred Leeson, younger son of Philip Leeson and Matilda Jane Nesbitt, was born in Bootle on 2 February 1881 shortly after the family moved there from Belfast. He spent his working life as a railway clerk and married Bertha Beveridge in Kirkdale in 1903. The couple had seven children, all born in Kirkdale or Liverpool.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
William Beveridge Leeson
Albert Leeson
Richard Leeson
Hannah Leeson
Raymond Leeson
Alan Leeson
Kenneth Leeson
(1904-1955)
(1907-1979)
(1910-1985)
(1914-2004)
(1923-1927)
(1926-2005)
(1929-1978)
m. Eliza Agnes Sinclair, 1936
m. John Van Schie, 1936
Bertha died in Liverpool in 1955 and William died in Redcar on 6 January 1974.
Eliza Jane Nesbitt
Eliza Jane Nesbitt, oldest child of Alexander Nesbitt and Ann Jane Hope, was born in Ballycarry on 14 December 1867 shortly before her family moved to Glasgow. She married Samuel Stars, another Irish migrant, in Dennistoun on 14 July 1892. Samuel was born in Magherafelt on 14 February 1865 and moved to Glasgow as a young man, working as a furnaceman in a copper works.
Samuel and Eliza had eight children.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Albert Nesbitt Stars
Annie Nisbet Stars
Mary Stars
Alexander Stars
Matilda Stars
Jane Stars
Annie Stars
Eliza Jane Stars
(1890-1897)
(1893-1900)
(1894-1985)
(1896-1975)
(1898-1898)
(1900-1902)
(1902-1988)
(1904-1999)
m. George Dalrymple, 1927
m. John Fleming Binnie, 1932
m. Robert Simpson, 1928
Samuel died in Glasgow on 3 March 1937 and Eliza on 13 December 1955.
Sixth generation
Margaret Nesbitt
Margaret Nesbitt, oldest known child of Joseph Nesbitt and Janet Fitzgerald, was born in Carrickfergus in about 1854. She married John McKay in Belfast on 15 June 1873.
Samuel and Eliza had eight children, three of whom died in infancy.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
John McKay
Arthur McKay
John McKay
James Howie McKay
(1874-1956)
(1877-1877)
(1878-1878)
(1880-1963)
(1884-1948)
(1888-1944)
(1890-1965)
(1894-1895)
m. Margaret Gillies, 1899
m. Kate Eliza Hikey, 1914
m. William Hogarth, 1906
m. Sarah Burgess Avinue, 1912
m. Catherine Perrie Malcolm, 1936
The couple left Ireland in 1877 or 1878, and after travelling between Durham, Edinburgh and Dundee settled definitively in Edinburgh in about 1889. Margaret and John were both quite young when they died: John died in Edinburgh on 6 June 1894 aged 44 and Margaret on 17 November 1895 aged 41. Their younger children (at least) then went to live with their maternal aunt Ann and her husband James Howie, who had no children of their own. Several of the children would later emigrate to the US.
David McCune
David McCune, oldest known child of Thomas McCune and Elizabeth Nesbitt, was born in Carrickfergus in about 1847. He was a sailor and married Maria Campbell in Carrickfergus on 11 August 1868 when he was 21 and Maria was just 18 years old.
The couple had ten children, all born in Carrickfergus.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Elizabeth McCune
David McCune
David McCune
(1869-?)
(1870-?)
(1873-?)
(1875-1875)
(1877-?)
(1880-1958)
(1882-1948)
(1885-1911)
(1886-?)
(1889-?)
m. John Waring, 1891
m. Sarah Perryman, 1896
m. George Alexander McClelland, 1896
m. Samuel Ferguson, 1902
m. William Burnside Doyle, 1903
m. William Montgomery, 1905
m. Matilda Weir, 1916
m. Robert James Gill, 1911
David died in Carrickfergus on 14 June 1890 and Maria on 16 April 1909.
Joseph McCune
Joseph McCune, son of Thomas McCune and Elizabeth Nesbitt, was born in Carrickfergus in about 1848. He was a sailor like his brother when he married Matilda Magee in Belfast on 1 April 1872.
Matilda and Joseph spent their married life in Carrickfergus and had eight children.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
William James McCune
Isabella McCune
Joseph McCune
Emma McCune
Maggie McCune
Elizabeth McCune
(1877-1949)
(1879-?)
(1881-?)
(1883-1918)
(1885-1918)
(1887-?)
(1889-?)
(1892-?)
m. William Barry, 1909
m. Elizabbeth Carson, 1909
m. Samuel Lyle Beattie, 1913
m. Mary Munce Robinson, 1913
Joseph died in Carrickfergus on 9 June 1908 and Matilda on 25 February 1891.
Elizabeth McCune
Elizabeth McCune, daughter of Thomas McCune and Elizabeth Nesbitt, was born in Carrickfergus on 8 December 1852. She was just 17 when she gave birth to a son whose father is unknown.
1.
(1871-1931)
m. Lizzie Johnston, 1892
Elizabeth married Thomas Cahey (or Caughey), a sailor, in Belfast on 22 July 1873. The couple had four children, all born in Carrickfergus.
2.
3.
4.
5.
(1877-?)
(1879-1929)
(1882-1952)
(1884-?)
m. Hugh Hamill, 1894
m. Alice McBride, 1897
m. Elizabeth Jane Hunter, 1903
m. Martha Jane Moore, 1901
Thomas died in Carrickfergus of cystitis on 4 June 1888 aged 36 and Matilda outlived him by nearly forty years, dying in Carrickfergus on 13 June 1926.
Hannah Cassidy
Hannah Cassidy, only known child of James Cassidy and Elizabeth Nesbitt, was born in about 1863, probably in Carrickfergus. She had two children whose father is not named on the birth record, but who subsequently used the surname Reid.
1.
2.
Andrew Cassidy aka Reid
Elizabeth Cassidy aka Reid
(1886-?)
(1888-?)
Hannah then married Edward Carroll, a carpenter born in England, on 6 May 1895 in Belfast. The couple had one child.
3.
Edward Carroll
(1866-?)
Hannah's mother lived with the family towards the end of her life.
Samuel McCune
Samuel McCune, son of Thomas McCune and Elizabeth Nesbitt, was born in Carrickfergus on 6 August 1865 after Elizabeth apparently left her husband James Cassidy and returned to her former lover. He was a sailor like many of his male relatives, and married Catherine Fearn in Belfast on 11 February 1883.
Catherine and Samuel had seven children.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Annabella McCune
Christina McCune
David McCune
Matilda Magee McCune
(1883-?)
(1886-1887)
(1889-?)
(1891-?)
(1893-1973)
(1895-1895)
(1896-?)
m. George Thomson, 1912
m. Sarah Hamilton, 1912
m. Edith Tomlinson, 1918
m. Robert Snoody, 1918
Samuel and Catherine's first child was born in Belfast, but they then returned to Carrickfergus where they spent virtually all their married life.
Samson McCune
Samson McCune, youngest child of Thomas McCune and Elizabeth Nesbitt, was born in Carrickfergus on 7 November 1867 and followed in the footsteps of his father and brother, becoming a sailor. He married Mary Tottten in Carrickfergus on 3 April 1891 and had two children.
1.
2.
Thomas McCune
Lucinda McCune
(1891-?)
(1893-?)
m. Margaret Hannan, 1920
m. Hugh Erdis, 1918
Thomas McCune joined the Special Reserve of the Royal Garrison Artillery on 3 April 1909 and consequently was mobilised immediately at the outbreak of World War I. He was drafted to France on 28 June 1915, serving as a gun layer, and was discharged from the army on 5 April 1916 at the termination of his period of engagement. Just under a month later, Thomas joined the Royal Naval Reserve and spent the rest of the war as a deckhand on various ships.
Samson Nesbitt
Samson Nesbitt, son of Sampson Nesbitt and Sarah Gault, was born in Belfast in about 1858. He married Isabella Henderson in Belfast on 30 March 1880 and the couple raised a family of seven children.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Clara Nesbitt
Maria Nesbitt
Isabella Nesbitt
(1881-1932)
(1883-1885)
(1887-1950)
(1888-1978)
(1890-1965)
(1894-1894)
(1895-?)
m. Joseph Nevin, 1903
m. Eliza Jane Rock, 1906
m. Shouldham Patrick Scullion, 1907
m. Ellen Cook, 1912
In March 1904 Samson found himself in court, charged with assaulting his wife, who was in hospital with three broken ribs. He admitted losing his temper, knocking her down and kicking her after he gave her money to go shopping and she returned with neither the money nor the goods. When Isabella was released from hospital she pleaded in her husband's favour, testifying that she had used the money to go drinking. and that "his violence was caused by her own conduct". The charges were dismissed, which sits a little uncomfortably with us today, but at least there is no record of any further domestic problems.
Isabella died in Belfast on 4 October 1927 and on 28 June 1941 Samson was knocked down and killed when he walked in front of a tram as he was crossing the road. They are buried together in Belfast City Cemetery in the same grave as their daughter Sarah.
Sarah Nesbitt
Sarah Nesbitt, daughter of Sampson Nesbitt and Sarah Gault, was born in Belfast in about 1863 and married Christopher Morrow in Belfast on 19 August 1881. Christopher, a cabinet maker, was born in Belfast in about 1858.
Sarah and Christopher had seven children.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Robert Morrow
(1882-1972)
(1883-1966)
(1886-1911)
(1888-?)
(1890-1979)
(1892-?)
(1895-27)
m. John Thomas McManus, 1904
m. Selina McFarlane, 1904
m. Elizabeth Parks
m. Francis Nugent Mooney, 1917
m. William John Crothers Johnston, 1912
m. John Smyth, 1917
Sarah died in Belfast on 27 October 1903 aged 40 and Christopher died there on 17 April 1925.
Sarah Nesbitt
Sarah Nesbitt, daughter of Mary Ann Nesbitt, was born in Carrickfergus in about 1860 before her mother married Thomas Jack. Although Sarah is recorded on the 1901 census with the surname Jack, all other records give her surname as Nesbitt.
Sarah worked as a mill hand and had a daughter whose father is unknown..
1.
Wilhelmina Nesbitt
(1885-?)
Sarah never married and died in Belfast on 10 October 1919.
Rachel Jack
Rachel Jack, oldest known child of Thomas Jack and Mary Ann Nesbitt, was born in Carrickfergus on 15 March 1866.
She worked as a mill hand as a young woman and had a son whose father is unknown..
1.
William Jack
(1895-?)
Rachel married Alexander Clawson, a sailor, in Carrickfergus on 14 October 1902. Alexander was born in Carrickfergus in about 1861 and was a widower with five children from his first marriage. Rachel and Alexander had two children together, the first of whom was born before their marriage and registered with his mother's surname Jack, although he subsequently used his father's name.
2.
3.
David Nesbitt Jack aka Clawson
Hugh Clawson
(1902-?)
(1904-?)
Alexander died in Belfast on 10 September 1917 and Rachel on 20 November 1939.
Thomas Jack
Thomas Jack, son of Thomas Jack and Mary Ann Nesbitt, was born in Carrickfergus in about 1870 and became a sailor like many of the family. He married Jane Allen in Carrickfergus on 11 April 1891 and had one son.
1.
Thomas Jack
(1897-1939)
Thomas Jr. was working as a marine fireman on the S.S. Clapham when he drowned in Ayr Harbour after falling between the boat and the quay during the blackout.
m. Mary Ann Dobbin
David Hugh Larmour
David Hugh Larmour, second son of Hugh Larmour and Hannah Nesbitt, was born in Carrickfergus on 20 February 1875 and worked as a labourer as a young man. He enlisted in the Royal Irish Rifles on 22 January 1895 and served with them for three years, including a year in South Africa, before being discharged on medical grounds due to rheumatism.
David married Mary Ann Anderson in Belfast on 9 July 1899: Mary was born in Bengal, India on 14 September 1875 while her father, a serving soldier, was stationed there.
The couple had ten children, all born in Belfast, but four died in infancy.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Hannah Bella Larmour
Sarah Ann Larmour
Theresa Hampton Larmour
David Larmour
William Hampton Larmour
Jonathan Hamilton Larmour
Samuel Larmour
Elizabeth Irvine Larmour
Catherine Anderson Larmour
Walter Quirey Larmour
(1900-1900)
(1902-1902)
(1903-1903)
(1904-1959)
(1905-?)
(1906-1907)
(1908-?)
(1911-?)
(1912-?)
(1915-?)
m. Jeannie Shaw, 1906
David rejoined the Irish Rifles during World War I and was promoted to Sergeant before being killed in action on 28 June 1916. He is buried in Bois-Carré Military Cemetery near the village of Haisnes, Pas-de-Calais.
After David's death Mary married James Caughey in Belfast on 6 March 1920. She died in Belfast on 17 January 1965 at the age of 89.
Charles Larmour
Charles Larmour, son of Hugh Larmour and Hannah Nesbitt, was born in Carrickfergus on Christmas Day 1876 and worked as a labourer. He
married Elizabeth Adams in Belfast on 19 April 1897 and had one daughter.
1.
Mary Ann Larmour
(1898-1923)
m. Robert McKinney, 1916
Charles and Elizabeth both died of pulmonary tuberculosis in their early 20s: Elizabeth on 25 June 1900 and Charles on 19 June 1901. Their daughter Mary ("Minnie") was brought up by her paternal grandparents.
Samuel Larmour
Samuel Larmour, son of Hugh Larmour and Hannah Nesbitt, was born in Carrickfergus on 23 November 1884 and worked as a groom. He
married Mary Jane Simpson in St Anne's Church, Belfast on 30 May 1914 and had one son.
1.
Charles Larmour
(1914-?)
Mary died in Belfast on 12 May 1946 and Samuel on 8 October 1963: they share a grave in Belfast City Cemetery.
John Kirkpatrick
John Kirkpatrick, oldest child of Thomas Kirkpatrick and Elizabeth McIlhenney, was born in Carnmoney on 17 June 1866 and worked as a general labourer. He married Sarah Twigg in Belfast on 19 May 1902 and had five children, all born in Doagh.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Annie Kirkpatrick
Elizabeth Kirkpatrick
Sarah Kirkpatrick
Thomas Kirkpatrick
Mary Kirkpatrick
(1904-?)
(1906-?)
(1908-?)
(1911-?)
(1913-?)
Nothing is currently known of this family after 1913.
m. Frank Bullock
m. Minerva Louise Bahan, 1935
m. Agnes Veronica Warren, 1931
William Kirkpatrick
William Kirkpatrick, son of Thomas Kirkpatrick and Elizabeth McIlhenney, was born in Carnmoney on 26 February 1868 and emigrated to Vermont, USA when still very young - possibly with an unknown relative. He was working as a teamster when he married Lina Inez Ainsworth in Walden, Vermont on 20 March 1901: the record states that it was his second marriage, but no details of his first marriage are known at present. Lina was born in Hardwick, Vermont on 26 March 1877.
William and Lina had five children.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Lola Kirkpatrick
Darren Warren Kirkpatrick
Clifton Thomas Kirkpatrick
Roland Alfred Kirkpatrick
Raymond Francis Kirkpatrick
(1902-?)
(1904-?
(1910-?)
(1913-?)
(1916-?)
William died in Waterford, Vermont on 20 February 1936.
Elizabeth Kirkpatrick
Elizabeth Kirkpatrick, third child and oldest daughter of Thomas Kirkpatrick and Elizabeth McIlhenney, was born in Carnmoney on 28 July 1870. She was a deaf-mute, and was probably educated at a school such as the one run by the Belfast Mission to the Deaf and Dumb. It is likely that she met her husband, William Barnett, either there or at a similar institution, as he too was deaf and dumb. They married in Carnmoney on 7 April 1890 and had three children.
1.
2.
3.
James Barnett
Thomas Barnett
Elizabeth Barnett
(1900-1905)
(1903-?)
(1903-?)
William worked as a hand driller at the famous Harland and Wolff Shipyard in Belfast, and sadly he was killed in an accident just a few weeks after the birth of his twins when he fell 30 feet to the floor from where he was working on a ship. At an inquest attended by the Superintendent of the Mission to the Deaf and Dumb as well as one of the teachers from the school who interpreted for Elizabeth, it was established that no one was to blame, except possibly poor William himself for "walking where he had no business to be". Despite this, the company made a financial settlement on his widow and children.
When James Barnett died of diphtheria at the age of five, his death was registered by his paternal grandfather, Thomas Kirkpatrick, and the twins were living with their grandparents in 1911. No record of Elizabeth has been found after 1903.
Mary Ann Kirkpatrick
Mary Ann Kirkpatrick, daughter of Thomas Kirkpatrick and Elizabeth McIlhenney, was born in Carnmoney on 27 July 1875 and married John Graham in Ballylinny on 11 January 1901. John, a tram car driver, was born in Templepatrick on 6 July 1874
Mary and John had six children.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Thomas Graham
Sarah Jane Graham
Elizabeth Kirkpatrick Graham
Agnes Graham
Charles Marshall Graham
Margaret Graham
(1902-1902)
(1903-1906)
(1906-?)
(1908-?)
(1910-?)
(1919-?)
Nothing more is known about this family at present.
William Nesbitt
William Nesbitt, oldest child of John Nesbitt and Jane Harper, was born in Carnmoney on 28 March 1847. Unlike many of the men in the family who worked mainly in the fishing trade or as casual labourers, William became a stone cutter, making "setts" for road-building among other things.
He married Isabella Magee in Belfast on 16 May 1870 and had eight children.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Isabella Nesbitt
Mary Nesbitt
John Nesbitt
Eliza Jane Nesbitt
Margaret Nesbitt
[Unnamed female] Nesbitt
Alexander Nesbitt
Hannah Nesbitt
(1871-1944)
(1873-?)
(1876-?)
(1878-1917)
(1880-?)
(1883-1883)
(1884-?)
(1887-?)
m. James Scott Couser, 1898
m. Lizzie Newell, 1899
m. Robert James Mahood, 1900
Isabella died of pulmonary tuberculosis in Belfast on 6 March 1891 at the age of 42, and William then married Agnes Kerr in Shankhill on 15 January 1892. Agnes was born in about 1857 and was probably the sister of Lizzie Kerr, who was married to William's younger brother Samuel.
There were no children from his second marriage and William too died of pulmonary tuberculosis in Belfast on 12 January 1908.
Joseph Nesbitt
Joseph Nesbitt, son of John Nesbitt and Jane Harper, was born in Carnmoney on 3 September 1854 and worked as a stone cutter or stone dresser like his father and older brother William. He married Agnes Manson in Carnmoney on 13 September 1880 and had nine children, three of whom died young.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Robert Nesbitt
Andrew John Nesbitt
Joseph Nesbitt
Robert Nesbitt
Jane Nesbitt
John Samuel George Nesbitt
Agnes Nesbitt
Annie Louisa Nesbitt
William Nesbitt
(1881-1886)
(1883-1883)
(1884-1890)
(1887-1957)
(1889-1916)
(1891-1967)
(1894-1970)
(1897-1994)
(1899-1965)
m. Anne Isabella Taggart, 1910
m. Thomas Henry Purdon Cairns, 1911
m. Ellen Woods, 1919
m. William George Preston, 1919
m. Elsie Elizabeth May Davison, 1923
In 1888 the family travelled to the US, spending at least six years in Vermont, where three of the children were born. They returned to Ireland between 1894 and 1897, but several of the children would later emigrate permanently.
Joseph died of acute pleuro-pneumonia in Belfast on 20 December 1913 and his widow spent the final years of her life in the US. She died in Detroit, Michigan on 29 January 1929.
Samuel Nesbitt
Samuel Nesbitt, son of John Nesbitt and Jane Harper, was born in Carnmoney on 29 July 1856 and like others of his immediate family worked as a stone cutter. He married Lizzie Kerr in Carnmoney on 7 November 1878 when she was just 18 years old.
Lizzie and Samuel had four children.
1.
2.
3.
4.
Jane Harper Nesbitt
Lizzie Nesbitt
Annie Nesbitt
Samuel Nesbitt
(1881-?)
(1884-?)
(c. 1889-?)
(1899-?)
Nothing more is known about this family at present.
Annie Vance Kane
Annie Vance Kane, oldest known child of Edward Kane and Eliza Nesbitt, was born in about 1861, probably in either Carnmoney or Templepatrick. She married William Gourley, a linen finisher in Templepatrick on Christmas Day 1882 and had ten children, all born in Craigarogan townland. Sadly, however, only three of the children survived past infancy.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Edward Martin Gourley
James Alexander Gourley
William Hugh McKee Gourley
John Gourley
David Thomas Kane Gourley
Adrian Noel Shelley Gourley
Sarah McKeen Gourley
Henry Knowles Nesbitt Gourley
Elizabeth Queenie Gourley
Alfred Turner Gourley
(1883-1889)
(1885-1886)
(1886-1887)
(1887-1889)
(1890-1980)
(1892-1892)
(1893-1894)
(1895-1897)
(1897-1967)
(1899-1980)
The couple's ninth child was born in the year of Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee, and was presumably given the middle name "Queenie" in honour of the occasion.
David Gourley emigrated to Canada in 1923
William died in Belfast on 31 May 1921.
m. Margaret Jane Connolly, 1921
m. Martha Barr Bell
Seventh generation
Joseph McKay
Joseph McKay, oldest child of John McKay and Margaret Nesbitt, was born in Belfast on 19 April 1874. The family moved around during his childhood, but by the time he was about 16 they had settled in Edinburgh, where he married Margaret Gillies in 1899.
Magaret and Joseph had three sons, but two died as babies.
1.
2.
3.
John McKay
Joseph McKay
James Howie McKay
(1900-1901)
(1901-1973)
(1903-1904)
m. Marion Lydia Gessert, 1936
Margaret died in Edinburgh in 1905 at the age of 25.
Joseph and his surviving son emigrated to Canada shortly after Margaret's death, and he married Evaline Maida Allen in Toronto on 20 April 1907: there were no children from his second marriage. Joseph and Evaline relocated to the US in 1923, ending up in Los Angeles where Joseph died on 7 September 1956 and Evaline on 18 January 1958.
Arthur McKay
Arthur McKay, son of John McKay and Margaret Nesbitt, was born in Edinburgh on 15 June 1880. Following the erly death of his parents he lived with his mzternal aunt Ann Jane Nesbitt and her husband James Howie before emigrating to illinois in 1906. He married Eliza Hickey in Cook on 16 November 1914 and had one son.
1.
Arthur Donald McKay
(1915-1979)
Arthur died in Illinois in May 1963.
Annie McKay
Annie McKay, daughter of John McKay and Margaret Nesbitt, was born in Seaham Harbour, Durham on 10 November 1884, a short time before her family moved permanently to Scotland. She was only 10 when her parents died, so she went to live with his maternal aunt Ann Jane Nesbitt and her husband James Howie.
Annie married William Hogarth in Leith in 1906 and had four children, all born in Leith.
1.
2.
3.
4.
William Hogarth
Margaret Hogarth
Arthur Hogarth
Mary Hogarth
(1907-1968)
(1909-1994)
(1914-1971)
(1916-1980)
m. Harriet
m. Walter Coubrough, 1929
m. Lorraine Marion Sternwedel, 1936
m. James Robert Sigwalt, 1936
In 1906 the family emigrated to Illinois, where they lived in the Chicago area.
Annie died in Cook on 21 December 1948 and William in December 1952.
Samuel McKay
Samuel McKay, son of John McKay and Margaret Nesbitt, was born in Dundee on 6 June 1888, and was living in Edinburgh when he was orphaned in 1895. Like most of his siblings, he went to live with his maternal aunt Ann Jane Nesbitt and her husband James Howie until he was old enough to fend for himself.
Samuel married Sarah Burgess Avinue in Leith on 1 March 1912 and had at least eight children, all born in Leith.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
John McKay
Hannah Alice Burgess McKay
Margaret Nesbit McKay
James Howie McKay
Jessie Gray Avinue McKay
Annie Nisbet Hogarth McKay
Sarah Burgess Avinue McKay
Samuel Nisbet McKay
(1912-?)
(1913-?)
(1915-?)
(1917-1917)
(1918-1992)
(1921-1996)
(1924-1925)
(1926-1991)
m. Eugene Percy Mansell Walker, 1945
Samuel died in Kintilloch in 1944 and Sarah in 1949.
Annie McCune
Annie McCune, oldest child of David McCune and Maria Campbell, was born in Carrickfergus on 5 June 1869 and married John Waring in Belfast on 27 May 1891. John, a plasterer, was born in Belfast on 13 July 1872.
The couple had six children, two of whom died young.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
John Waring
John Waring
Minnie Elizabeth Waring
Maria Waring
Nellie Waring
William James Waring
(1892-?)
(1894-?)
(1897-?)
(1901-?)
(1906-1907)
(1908-?)
Nothing is known of this family after the 1911 census.
Joseph McCune
Joseph McCune, second child and oldest son of David McCune and Maria Campbell, was born Carrickfergus on 2 September 1870. Unlike his father, he worked as a labourer rather than a fisherman. He married Sarah Perryman in Belfast on Christmas Day 1896 and had seven children, all born in Belfast.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Samuel Perryman McCune
David McCune
Joseph McCune
Willliam James McCune
Sarah McCune
Emma McCune
Violet McCune
(1900-?)
(1901-?)
(1905-?)
(1906-?)
(1911-?)
(1913-?)
(1915-?)
Mary McCune
Mary McCune, daughter of David McCune and Maria Campbell, was born in Carrickfergus on 3 July 1877 and married George Alexander McClelland, a plasterer, in Belfast on 6 April 1896. George and Mary were both recorded as "minors" (ie under 21) on their marriage certificate.
The couple had eight known children as well as at least two more who died young according to the 1911 census.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
William John McClelland
George McClelland
Leonard McClelland
Emma McClelland
Robert McClelland
Thomas McClelland
Lucy McClelland
Sarah Jane McClelland
(1896-1917)
(1898-?)
(1900-?)
(1902-?)
(1904-1905)
(1906-?)
(1911-?)
(1913-?)
George and Mary's oldest son William was killed in action in France on 14 December 1917 while serving with the Royal Irish Rifles.
George himself enlisted in the Royal Engineers shortly after the outbreak of World War I, and volunteered for a further year's service with the Royal Army Medical Corps in 1919 instead of being demobilised.
Hannah McCune
Hannah McCune, daughter of David McCune and Maria Campbell, was born In Carrickfergus on 22 March 1880 and married Samuel Ferguson, a general labourer, in Belfast on Christmas Day 1902.
The couple spent all their married life in Belfast and had eight children.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Wallace Ferguson
Hannah Ferguson
Rebecca Ferguson
John Ferguson
Maria Ferguson
Samuel Elliott Ferguson
Emma Ferguson
Margaret Jane Ferguson
(1903-?)
(1904-1990)
(1907-1965)
(1910-1910)
(1911-?)
(1914-1989)
(1917-?)
(1920-?)
m. Joseph Allen
m. ? Loughins
m. Sarah Jane Burns
Samuel died in Belfast on 28 December 1950 and Hannah on 12 May 1958. They share a grave in Belfast City Cemetery with their daughter Rebecca.
Maria McCune
Maria McCune, daughter of David McCune and Maria Campbell, was born In Carrickfergus on 8 November 1882 and married William Burnside Doyle in Belfast on 5 December 1903. William was working as a packer at the time of their marriage, and is recorded in the 1911 census as a warehouse porter.
Maria and William had six children, all born in Belfast.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Emma Burnside Doyle
William Burnside Doyle
Maria Burnside Doyle
David McCune Burnside Doyle
Sarah Burnside Doyle
Henry Doyle
(1904-?)
(1907-?)
(1909-?)
(1913-?)
(1919-1922)
(1919-?)
William died in Belfast on 11 January 1929 and Maria on 6 June 1948. They are buried together in Belfast City Cemetery .
Emma McCune
Emma McCune, daughter of David McCune and Maria Campbell, was born In Carrickfergus on 15 April 1885 and married William Montgomery, a shipyard labourer, in Belfast on 8 July 1905.
The couple had three children, all born in Belfast.
1.
2.
3.
Isabella Montgomery
Maggie Jane Montgomery
William Montgomery
(1906-?)
(1907-1913)
(1909-?)
Emma died in Belfast on 24 April 1911 aged just 26, and William died three years later on 14 January 1913. Both succumbed to pulmonary tuberculosis, a disease which was rife in Ireland at the time and which had no effective treatment. The couple share a grave in Dundonald Cemetery with their daughter Maggie and their niece Sarah Doyle.
The two surviving children were very young when their parents died, and probably went to live with their grandparents or other family members.
Margaret Jane McCune
Margaret Jane McCune, youngest child of David McCune and Maria Campbell, was born In Carrickfergus on 22 Ocober 1889 and married Robert James Gill, a van driver, in Belfast on 26 March 1911.
The couple had four children, all born in Belfast.
1.
2.
3.
4.
Eleanor McKee Gill
William Massey Gill
Margaret Jane Gill
Mary Gill
(1912-?)
(1913-?)
(1915-?)
(1917-?)
Nothing more is known about this family at present.
Matilda Jane McCune
Matilda Jane McCune, daughter of Joseph McCune and Matilda Magee, was born In Carrickfergus on 11 March 1883 and married Samuel Lyle Beattie there on 28 February 1913. Samuel was born in Carrickfergus on 11 February 1885 and worked as a clerk.
The couple had two childre, both born in Carrickfergus.
1.
2.
Jane Lyle Beattie
Joseph McCune Beattie
(1914-?)
(1917-1918)
m. John Boylan
Matilda died of influenza on 5 November 1918 during the Spanish flu pandemic, and her son Joseph and younger sister Emma both died five days later.
Charles Edward McCune
Charles Edward McCune, son of Joseph McCune and Matilda Magee, was born In Carrickfergus on 28 August 1887 and worked as a railway fireman. He married Mary Munce Robinson in Shankhill on 25 June 1913 and the couple had five children.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Mary Robinson McCune
Matilda McCune
Joseph McCune
Emily McCune
Robert Robinson McCune
(1915-?)
(1916-2002)
(1919-?)
(1921-?)
(1923-2006)
m. Andrew McAllister, 1939
m. Joseph Gerald Gracey
m. Helen Robinson
Charles and Mary's daughter Matilda and her husband emigrated to South Africa.
Thomas McCune
Thomas McCune, son of Elizabeth McCune was born In Carrickfergus on 16 September 1871, two years before his mother's marriage to Thomas Caughey. No father is named on his birth record and he always used the surname McCune, but on his marriage certificate he names Thomas Caughey as his father.
Thomas became a sailor like many of his male relatives. He married Lizzie Johnston in Carrickfergus Methodist Chapel on 25 November 1892 and had nine children.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Margaret McCune
Thomas McCune
Samuel McCune
William McCune
Eliza McCune
Charles McCune
David McCune
James McCune
Joseph McCune
(1893-?)
(1897-1980)
(1898-?)
(1900-?)
(1902-?)
(1904-1955)
(1906-?)
(1908-?)
(1912-1914)
m. Sarah McAllister, 1920
m. Annie McFall
m. Elsie Henderson
Thomas died in Carrickfergus on 17 June 1931 and Lizzie on 4 February 1951.
Hannah Cahey
Hannah Cahey (or Caughey), oldest child of Thomas Cahey and Elizabeth McCune, was born In Carrickfergus on 8 April 1877. As a young woman she worked as a mill hand before marrying Hugh Hamill in St Nicholas' Church, Carrickfergus on 16 January 1894. Hugh, a labourer, was born in Larne on 17 October 1873.
Hugh and Hannah had eleven children, all born in Carrickfergus.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
Sarah Hamill
Hugh Hamill
William James Hamill
Susanna Hamill
Elizabeth Hamill
Thomas Hamill
Hannah Hamill
Isabella Hamill
Mary Hamill
Mabel Hamill
[Unnamed male] Hamill
(1895-?)
(1898-?)
(1900-?)
(1902-?)
(1905-?)
(1907-1980)
(1909-1962)
(1911-?)
(1913-?)
(1916-1974)
(1919-1919)
m. Ann Jane Crosswell
m. William Hagan, 1930
m. Robert Hyslop
Hannah died in Carrickfergus on 30 December 1934 and Hugh on 9 March 1942.
James Cahey
James Cahey (or Caughey), son of Thomas Cahey and Elizabeth McCune, was born In Carrickfergus on 5 November 1879. His birth, like those of his siblings, was registered with the spelling "Cahey", but he later adopted the spelling "Caughey". He was working as a labourer when he married Alice McBride in St Anne's Church, Belfast on 13 September 1897.
The couple spent their married life in Belfast, where all their seven children were born.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Thomas Caughey
Esther Caughey
Alice Caughey
Martha Caughey
James Caughey
Hannah Caughey
Jane Caughey
(1898-1898)
(1898-1969)
(1901-1977)
(1904-1904)
(1905-1966)
(1909-1997)
(1913-?)
m. Lena Wadsworth
Alice died of typhus in Lisburn Fever Hospital on 22 February 1918 and James then married Mary Ann Anderson in St Anne's church, Belfast on 6 March 1920. Mary was the widow of David Hugh Larmour, James' first cousin once removed. James died in Belfast on 21 January 1929 and Mary on 17 January 1965.
William John Cahey
William John Cahey (or Caughey), son of Thomas Cahey and Elizabeth McCune, was born In Carrickfergus on 17 February 1882. Although his birth was registered with the spelling "Cahey", he later adopted the spelling "Caughey". He became a sailor like many of his realtives, and married Elizabeth Jane Hunter in Carrickfergus on 13 March 1903.
They had one child
1.
Thomas Hunter Caughey
(1903-?)
Elizabeth developed stomach cancer, which was virtually impossible to treat at the time; following an operation she died of broncho-pneumonia in the Royal Victoria Hospital, Belfast on 29 August 1910.
William then married Sarah Jane Hunter (no obvious relation of his first wife) in Carrickfergus on 7 December 1917 and had a daughter with her.
2.
Evelyn Caughey
(1919-?)
William died in Carrickfergus on 7 April 1952 and Sarah on 5 October 1962.
Samson McCune Cahey
Samson McCune Cahey (or Caughey), son of Thomas Cahey and Elizabeth McCune, was born In Carrickfergus on 17 June 1884. Although his surname was registered at birth with the spelling "Cahey", he generally used the form "Caughey": the spelling of his first name also varies. Samson was a sailor and married Martha Jane Moore in Templecorran on 10 October 1901.
Martha already had a daughter who lived with them and the couple had two children together.
1.
2.
Elizabeth Moore Caughey
Samson Caughey
(1906-?)
(1909-1987)
Samson enlisted in the Royal Naval Reserve on 1 July 1902 for a period of twelve years. His time in the Reserve expired shortly before the outbreak of World War I, and rather strangely Samson enlisted in the Royal Garrison Artillery on 14 October 1914, only to desert just over two months later. He rejoined the Reserve and was called up to the Royal Navy on 22 April 1915, serving as a deckhand until early 1918. At this point he was in trouble several times for being drunk, including one occasion when be broke out of his ship and was arrested by the civil police for being drunk and disorderly. After a short period of imprisonment for his final offence he was discharged for misconduct on 8 April 1918.
Alice Kate McCune
Alice Kate McCune, daughter of Samuel McCune and Catherine Fearn, was born In Carrickfergus on 11 March 1889 and married George Thomas there on 27 December 1912. At the time of their marriage, both of the couple were working in the weaving industry: Alice as a reeler and George as a yarn finisher.
George and Alice had five children, all born in Carrickfergus.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
George Thomson
Samuel Thomson
Alice Thomson
Edith Thomson
Mary Thomson
(1913-?)
(1914-?)
(1916-?)
(1918-?)
(1919-?)
Nothing more is known about this family at present.
Samuel McCune
Samuel McCune, fourth child and oldest son of Samuel McCune and Catherine Fearn, was born In Carrickfergus on 19 November 1891. He spent most of his working life in the shipbuilding trade as a driller or riveter, although failing health forced him to turn to less strenuous work in later life.
Samuel married Sarah Hamilton in Carrickfergus First Presbyterian Church on Christmas Day 1912 and the couple had six children, all born in Carrickfergus.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Elizabeth McCune
Samuel McCune
David McCune
John Wallace McCune
Alexander McCune
James McCune
(1913-1980)
(1914-?)
(1916-?)
(1918-1957)
(1919-?)
Samuel died in the Royal Victoria Hospital, Belfast on 10 November 1949 "after a lingering illness". Sarah died in Carrickfergus on 27 June 1968.
Alexander McCune
Alexander McCune, son of Samuel McCune and Catherine Fearn, was born In Carrickfergus on 21 March 1893. He worked as a riveter in the shipbuilding trade like his older brother Samuel, but unlike him moved to England to ply his trade.
Alexander married Edith Tomlinson in Goole on 18 July 1918 and had one son, who sadly died as a baby.
1.
Alexander McCune
(1920-1920)
Edith and Alexander both died in Lytham St Anne's in 1973.
Sarah Nesbitt
Sarah Nesbitt, oldest child of Samson Nesbitt and Isabella Henderson, was born in Belfast on 18 February 1881 and married Joseph Nevin there on 13 July 1903. Joseph was one of many local men mxployed in the textile industry, where he worked as a cloth finisher.
The couple had five children, all born in Belfast.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Rachel Nevin
Matthew Nevin
Jane Parkinson Nevin
Joseph Robert Nevin
William John Nevin
(1903-2004)
(1905-1931)
(1907-2006)
(1909-1996)
(1911-1989)
m. William Herbert Cummings
m. Marguerite Lois Gallagher, 1927
m. William Scullion
m. Rosanne Pike
Sarah died in Belfast on 9 July 1932 and Joseph died there in 1947.
All five children emigrated to the US, and most of them settled in the New York area.
Sampson Nesbitt
Sampson Nesbitt, son of Samson Nesbitt and Isabella Henderson, was born in Belfast on 26 March 1887 and worked as a labourer. He married Eliza Jane Rock in Trinity Church, Belfast on 25 June 1906 and had five children.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Martha Nesbitt
Sampson Nesbitt
Eliza Jane Nesbitt
Sampson Nesbitt
Sarah Nesbitt
(1908-?)
(1910-1911)
(1912-1968)
(1914-?)
(1920-?)
m. David Thompson
m. ? Kirkpatrick
m. William Turtle
Sampson died in Belfast on 24 January 1950 and Eliza on 7 March 1955. They are buried together in Belfast City Cemetery along with their daughter Eliza.
Jane Nesbitt
Jane Nesbitt, daughter of Samson Nesbitt and Isabella Henderson, was born in Belfast on 10 November 1888 and as a young woman worked in the weaving industry as a reeler. She married Shouldham Patrick Scullion, a labourer, in St John's Church, Belfast on 13 July 1907 and had five children.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
William Scullion
Shouldham Scullion
James Scullion
Jeanie Scullion
Sarah Scullion
(1907-1993)
(1909-1913)
(1911-1959)
(1914-2000)
(1916-?)
m. Jane Parkinson Nevin
m. Matthew James Meehan, 1932
The family emigrated to the US just before the First World War, arriving in New York on 20 July 1914. Shouldham died there on 22 Jnuary 1953 and Jane died in Maryland in October 1978, just short of her 90th birthday.
James Nesbitt
James Nesbitt, son of Samson Nesbitt and Isabella Henderson, was born in Belfast on 16 December 1890 and worked as a labourer. He married Ellen ("Nellie") Cook, a spinner, in St John's Church, Belfast on 16 November 1912 and had at least five children.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Jane Nesbitt
James Nesbitt
William Nesbitt
Samson Nesbitt
Isabella Nesbitt
(1913-?)
(1916-?)
(1918-2002)
(1920-?)
(1923-?)
Ellen died in Belfast on 21 March 1964 and James on 27 April 1956. They are buried together in Belfast City Cemetery along with two of their grandchildren who died in infancy.
Mary Selina Morrow
Mary Selina Morrow, oldest child of Christopher Morrow and Sarah Nesbitt, was born in Belfast on 27 April 1882 and married John Thomas McManus in Trinity Church, Belfast on 5 January 1904. John was born in Belfast on 8 February 1883 and at the time of their marriage was working as a riveter in the shipbuilding industry.
The couple had four children.
1.
2.
3.
4.
William James McManus
John Thomas McManus
Mary Mooney McManus
Samuel McManus
(1904-?)
(1907-1938)
(1913-?)
(1920-?)
The family emigrated to Canada in 1913 and settled in Toronto. For some reason, young Mary was known as Sarah from then onwards.
John had served in the Royal Irish Rifles for sixteen years , including four years spent in South Africa, and he enlisted in the Canadian Expeditionary Force on 23 September 1914 shortly after the outbreak of World War I . He was a gunner with the 3rd Brigade of the Canadian Field Artillery and ended the war with the rank of corporal.
John died in Toronto on 2 September 1957 and Mary died in Whitby, Ontario on 2 March 1972.
Christopher Morrow
Christopher Morrow, second child and oldest son of Christopher Morrow and Sarah Nesbitt was born in Belfast on 30 November 1883. He worked as a silver plater and married Selina McFarlane in Trinity Church, Belfast on 15 May 1904.
The couple had ten children.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Christopher Morrow
Sarah Morrow
Mary Morrow
Christopher Morrow
Robert Morrow
Selina Morrow
Henrietta Morrow
Margaret Morrow
Anne Morrow
Kathleen Morrow
(1905-1905)
(1906-1928)
(1907-?)
(1909-1910)
(1912-2000)
(1912-?)
(1913-?)
(1915-1998)
(1918-2006)
(1920-?)
m. Clifford Oldroyd, 1925
m. William Alexander Stephenson, 1931
m. Dorothy Mae Marlatt, 1932
m. Jack Alma Bull, 1935
m. Edmund Charles Ormond Myers, 1938
Christopher first travelled to Canada at the end of 1909 and the family emigrated definitively some time between 1910 and early 1912. They lived in Toronto, where they would soon be joined by Christopher's older sister Mary and her family.
Christopher enlisted in the Canadian Expeditionary Force on 15 April 1916, and after arriving in England on 7 April 1917 was drafted to France on 1 March 1918. However, five months later he was diagnosed with heart trouble, invalided home to Canada on 24 September 1918 and discharged on medical grounds on 11 December 1918.
Selina died on 6 January 1961 and Christopher on 18 July 1966.
James Morrow
James Morrow, son of Christopher Morrow and Sarah Nesbitt was born in Belfast on 6 January 1886 and as a young man was an apprentice silver plater. He joined the Navy for a period of twelve years on 16 September 1903, but was discharged early on medical grounds on 26 April 1908. After he left the Navy, James worked as a driller in a ship engine works and married Elizabeth Parks in 1909 or 1910. Elizabeth was born in Belfast on 23 April 1892, so was very young when she married.
The couple had one son.
1.
James Morrow
(1910-?)
m. Margaret Allen, 1929
James died of pneumonia in Belfast on 12 December 1911 aged 25, leaving Elizabeth as a 19-year-old widow. She later remarried, and had at least three children with her second husband.
Sarah Morrow
Sarah Morrow, daughter of Christopher Morrow and Sarah Nesbitt was born in Belfast on 25 April 1890 and married Francis Nugent Mooney there on 21 July 1913. Francis was born in Belfast on 5 November 1893 and worked as a clerk.
The couple had three children.
1.
2.
3.
Frank Nugent Mooney
Doris Mooney
John Price Mooney
(1914-1989)
(1919-2020)
(1923-2002)
m. Jane Bell Irvine, 1935
m. Paul Harkley Martin
m. Vera Drew, 1945
The family emigrated to Canada, settling in Winnipeg where their youngest child was born. Francis died in Mission, British Columbia on 13 December 1954 and Sarah died in Winnipeg on 6 July 1979.
Maggie Morrow
Maggie Morrow, daughter of Christopher Morrow and Sarah Nesbitt was born in Belfast on 28 November 1892 and married William John Crothers Johnston there on 16 February 1912. Francis was born in Belfast on 20 January 1893 and worked as a labourer. Both Francis and Maggie claimed to be 21 on their marriage record, but they were actually aged 19.
Maggie and WIlliam had at least five children, all born in Belfast.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
John Johnston
William Johnston
Mary Johnston
Sarah Mooney Johnston
Doris Johnston
(1912-?)
(1913-?)
(1916-?)
(1918-?)
(1921-?)
Nothing more is known of this family at present.
Martha Morrow
Martha Morrow, youngest child of Christopher Morrow and Sarah Nesbitt was born in Belfast on 5 April 1895 and married John Smyth there on 19 September 1917. At the time of their marriage John was serving as a private in the Royal Irish Rifles.
The couple had two known children.
1.
2.
John Smyth
Elizabeth Sophia Greer Smyth
(1918-?)
(1919-?)
Martha died in Belfast on 7 March 1927 aged 31 and John died there on 13 January 1958: they are buried together in Belfast City Cemetery.