For fun, I thought I would check who were my related New Year babies. I used the Publish tool in Family Tree Maker to find who was in my Calendar for that date.
First, I found a young man, living in Australia, who is a 1st cousin twice removed in our descending family.
Then the excitement of finding twins born in 1899 in Scotland -- John R Dalgleish who died in 1947 and his brother Stanley Dalgleish who died 50 years later in 1977. However, they are extremely distantly linked -- being brothers-in-law to a great uncle!
My best ancestral link and New Year baby was Alexander Shanks born in 1820 in Lisnabrague, Co Down, Northern Ireland.
His parents were James Shanks and Margaret Guy, known as Peggy. Alexander was their 5th child of eight, five girls and three boys. Eliza (born & died in 1810) Margaret, John, Samuel, Alexander, Eliza, Sarah, and Mary.
Alexander is my 1st cousin 4 times removed.
His father James was a brother of my 3 times grandfather, Samuel Shanks.
I have found no record of Alexander marrying. His death was registered in nearby town Banbridge in 1894.
I was lucky to have excerpts from John’s (Alexander’s brother) diary, so shall include some interesting little snippets regarding Alexander (called Alex by his family).
The Shanks family were keen protestants and consequently teetotallers.
“Tuesday 18 March 1834, father, Alex and I joined the Fourtowns Temperance Society at an address delivered on that day by Mr McClain.”
The family also attended preacher meetings and singings in barns and meadows at the Shanks place and at other neighbours around the district. The Rock, the schoolhouse, and the Malt kiln in Poyntzpass were also mentioned as used for these gatherings.
Family births, marriages and deaths were listed and dated. And there were many children and adults who died young.
John’s sister’s (Eliza) husband (Thomas Cunningham) died on November 29, 1846, and his father (John Cunningham) on December 16, not a month later. And so John talks about:
“a bowel complaint being very prevalent in the country at this time and after, Dysentery of which many died. The disease was occasioned or at least aggravated by the failure of the potato crop, which were small with percentage unwholesome, owing to the stalks having been killed by the blight in July.”
Eliza Cunningham née Shanks, sister of Alex and John died after a long and lingering illness, a little after 10 o’clock on Tuesday night, April 6, 1947. Only 5 months after her husband.
“She was merely 25 years of age at her death and lies buried beside her husband in the Rock Meeting House green.”
Following on from these deaths John described a distressing episode, where the Executor of the Cunningham wills tried to use his position to lay claim to their property. Alexander and his sister Sarah (known as Sally) were living at their deceased sister’s house caring for the children and property.
“Four months after the men’s deaths, (and only 13 days after Eliza died) on Monday morning April 19 1847, Billy McKeag, executor of John Cunningham’s will, came with a crew up to the house at Killysavan, and took forcible possession of it from Alex and Sally who were there managing the place and taking care of the children. They were driven out violently and because they endeavoured to retain possession and to resist him, he summonsed them to Newry Petty Sessions (sic: Petit Sefions) for assault. McKeag that morning forcibly detained the youngest child James and would not give him up till the 27 of April (Auction Day) when we got him. On the day before, 26th, Hugh Bennett, Mr Brush’s agent came here from Rathfrailand and stopped all night, to attend the auction at Killysavan the next day. The same evening an attorney letter was received here (written and sent to my father and Alex by Mr Morris’ attorney, Lurgan, by insolvent Billy’s directions) containing threatening language.
27. On Tuesday, April 27th, 1947, Insolvent Billy McKeag, John Cunningham’s hopeful executor auctioned a good deal of the chattels at Killysavan. We got little James out of his clutches on that same day. The child looked very ill when he was brought here.
28. Insolvent Billy prosecuted Alex and Sally for assaulting him and the trial came on at Newry Petty Sessions, but the case was dismissed, which caused Billy’s countenance to fall 50 per cent.
29. After Billy McKeag and his gang took forcible possession of the house in Killysavan, Alex summonsed him and them to Banbridge Petty Sessions; the case came on Thurs Apr 29 when informations were granted by the magistrates against Billy and his party, to be tried at the July Quarter Sessions, Newry.
3 July. At Newry Quarter Sessions, on Saturday, July 3rd, Billy McKeag agreed to give up all the property he had received as John Cunningham’s executor into the hands of trustees, in consequence of which the trial of him and the others did not proceed.
12 July. On Monday 12 the house and farm at Killysavan were put in Alex’s possession by the Sub-sheriff who came out of Newry for that purpose.
This year 1847 was one of famine and distress to the poor, many of whom died of hunger and disease.”
On Tuesday the 11th of February 1873, John Shanks left his house in Lisnabrague and went to Glenloughan to live with his kind friends John and Mary Graham. He had suffered from ear problems and deafness during most of his life. By the end of February John had sold his farm and all his houses in Lisnabrague to his brother Alexander, for 440 pounds.
Facts of Interest
Famine Dysentery
Ref: History Ireland. Ireland’s History Magazine
https://www.historyireland.com/18th-19th-century-history/epidemic-diseases-of-the-great-famine/
'During the terrible winter of 1846-47, chronic dysentery, or ‘starvation dysentery’ as it was sometimes called, was reported to be very prevalent among the destitute. In west Cork, which was one of the worst famine-affected areas of the country, one doctor noted that the pulse of those suffering from this horrible affliction was almost entirely absent, that the extremities of the body were livid and cold, the face haggard and ghost-like, the voice barely audible and reminiscent of the cholera whine.
The duration of the diarrhoea varies from a few days to a fortnight, depending upon the severity of the attack. There may also be nausea, aching pain in the limbs, and shivery feelings, while there is always fever. An attack cannot develop except through the agency of the specific bacillus. However, anything which causes an intestinal upset, such as unsuitable food, predisposes to infection. The smell from evacuations was very offensive, almost intolerable, he said. The discharges continued unabated until the body wasted to a skeleton. Dysentery is rendered more virulent by famine and by the concurrence of other exhausting diseases.'
Plus --
Irish Famine: How Ulster was devastated by its impact.
Ref: BBC News. Published: 26 September 2015.
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-northern-ireland-34369080
'Surprisingly, research shows that the events from 1845 to 51 affected normally prosperous parts of the north-east, including Belfast, north Down and particularly the linen triangle of north Armagh.'
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