Irish Immigrant Hardships and Heartaches

 "Suddenly all my ancestors are behind me. Be still, they say. Watch and listen. You are the result of the love of thousands." - Linda Hogan 

My DNA is firmly rooted in Ireland. Four of my eight paternal 2nd great-grandparents were immigrants who fled to this country during the famine. Their stories all ring with courage, hardship and survival. None had easy lives, but because of them their family lines continued, and I am honored to keep their memories alive.

Thomas Dorgan was my 2^nd great grandfather, and not much is known about him. He was born in County Cork, Ireland, where his family lived and farmed. He was the 5^th child of William Dorgan and Johanna (Cotter) Dorgan; the family included three brothers and two sisters.

In May of 1845, William Dorgan passed away, living his family to find a way to survive the coming horrors of the famine, which began that year. As things worsened, eventually Johanna took the brave step of uprooting her family to begin a new life in America.

I have not positively found their arrival information, but a passenger list from the ship Swan, which left Cork and arrived in New York on 5 September 1849, has several matching family members’ names; further research is needed to confirm this is the correct family. But by 1850, the census shows the family living together in Philadelphia, PA. Thomas and one of his brothers, James, somehow ended up in Athens County, OH – I believe they followed the railroad for work.

Enter Catherine Murphy, my 2^nd great grandmother. Catherine is one of my Irish brick walls and I know very little about her early life, other than vague, undocumented references to a father named Stephen Murphy. The 1910 Census gives her arrival date here in America as 1855, but I am still searching passenger lists for her (and, with the name Murphy, I likely will be searching for a very long time).

Catherine was born about 1835, which, if the 1910 Census info is accurate, puts her at age 20 upon arrival. By 1856, she had ended up in Athens County, OH. She had at least one family member in the county, a sister whose name is yet unknown.  Somehow, Catherine met Thomas Dorgan – and her fate, and mine, was sealed. Thomas and Catherine became sweethearts, and she became pregnant.

The first official documentation that I have found so far of Catherine’s life in America is in the infirmary records of the Athens County Poor House, which was established in 1857 to help care for the poor and destitute of the county. Admittance to the poorhouse required residency for a certain time in the township and was thus noted on admittance papers.  Catherine’s entry is as follows:

“Catherine Murphy and her child Mary Murphy, 2 months old, was admitted to Infirmary November 7^th, 1859, by order of the Trustees of Athens Township, age 25 years, birthplace Ireland, residence in the township 3 years. Previous habits not known. Present condition destitute. Never married. Entered by order of Directors. E.F. Brown, Supt.” An additional note in the margin of Catherine’s entry: “Catharine Murphy and child left infirmary with their own accord January 15^th, 1860, being legally discharged by the Directors.”

From here, much of Catherine’s story is in her own words, in Thomas’ Civil War pension file (a goldmine of information). Catherine gave many depositions over many years in an attempt to get financial relief through Thomas’ pension, and in doing so weaves a compelling tale of the family.

Catherine’s first attempt to get the pension was filed in April 1885, when she applied in Mary’s name as a minor child. Since she was remarried, she was not eligible for a widow’s pension. This soon became a nightmare for both mother and daughter. Catherine had no proof of her daughter’s birth, and was aware that the pension would only be awarded to a legitimate child of the soldier. So she did what she felt she had to do. She lied. A lot. And had other people lie for her as well.

In this first application, proof was provided of her marriage to Thomas on 10 Sep 1860 in Clarksville, TN. Affidavits were given by two people who claimed to have known Catherine and Thomas in Clarksville and were present at Mary’s birth. Catherine stated that she was unable to provide proof of Mary’s birth as there were no records and the doctor who attended is dead; there was no priest there at the time of her birth, so there were no records of her baptism. This claim was rejected because of lack of proof.

The next attempt was decades later, in 1912. Catherine learned that under a new act passed in 1901, she could apply for a widow’s pension after the death of her 2^nd husband, as long as she remained a widow. Jeremiah Lyons, whom she married in 1864, died in 1903. With this application, she provided proof of both marriages. Three of her friends signed affidavits attesting to Catherine’s lack of financial support, and one said that she knew her in TN when she was married to Thomas Dorgan. But the pension bureau believed that Catherine was married to a man named Owen McCarty in Athens, OH (she was not.) Her application was denied.

Although these particular documents were not included in my packet of pension information, the final board review states that Catherine appealed the denial and in August of 1915 the decision was reversed when it was proven that Owen McCarty married a different Catherine Murphy. Catherine apparently was awarded the widow’s pension, although I have no further record of it.

In May of 1916, daughter Mary began her own attempt to once again claim Thomas’ pension as his minor child. She hired a lawyer and gave her deposition, stating that she had no record of her own birth but had always said 18 Jul 1861, even though it appeared as 15 Jul 1861 in some of her application documents. There was also some confusion regarding her maiden name, which appears as Lyons on her marriage record, and she explained that she was raised by her stepfather Jeremiah Lyons and used his name all her life, although she knew she was a Dorgan.

But when the pension board had earlier investigated Catherine’s supposed marriage to Owen McCarty, they had discovered both Catherine and Mary in the 1860 census in Clarksville – Catherine Murphy, single, living with her daughter Mary Dorgan, age 10 months and born in Ohio.  They believed her to be illegitimate and ordered yet another special investigation into her date of birth. This is when the real trouble began for mother and daughter.

In July 1916, Catherine and Mary were called to give depositions in Mary’s case. Catherine said she knew Mary was born in July but couldn’t remember the exact date, just that it was 13 months after her marriage. Then she immediately changed her mind, saying “Well, better put it at 10 months”.  She said Mary was baptized in Clarksville when she was about a week old. Mary was about 9 months old when Thomas enlisted. Mary testified that she had always understood her birthday was July 18, 1861.

The board didn't buy it, and called them both in again in July 1917. Catherine, by now 82 years old, finally told the true story about Mary’s birth. She had not wanted her daughter to know she was illegitimate.

She said that Mary was born in Athens, OH about August, 1859; she was not yet married to Thomas, but he was present for the birth and always claimed the baby as his own. They were engaged to be married, but Thomas and his brother James left to find work, following the railroad to Clarksville. Catherine’s sister, with whom she had been living, could not handle either the disgrace or the expense of supporting an unwed mother and forced Catherine and the baby to the county poorhouse.

When Thomas found work, he sent a letter to Catherine to come to Clarksville, and she and the baby headed that way. They were married in September, 1860 at the Catholic church in Clarksville. But times were hard, and Thomas lost his job; with few other options, he returned to Ohio, and on October 26, 1861, he enlisted as a private in Company F, 73^rd Regiment of the Ohio Volunteers. On the company roll dated December 31, 1861, he is described as 22 years old, 6 feet tall, blue eyes, fair hair, dark complexion, a farmer by occupation, born in Ireland.

My young 2^nd great-grandfather never made it out of camp. By January 22, 1862 -just three months after enlisting- he died of “consumption”, leaving his young family to fend for themselves in Tennessee. I have often wondered how Catherine, a young Irish immigrant with no known family nearby and now the widow of a Union soldier in solid Confederate territory, managed. I believe she must have had friends living in Jeffersonville, IN and went there, where she met and eventually married Jeremiah Lyons across the river in Louisville, KY. They settled Jeffersonville, and raised a large family.

Catherine swore that Thomas acknowledged Mary as his daughter, but had no proof. Mary’s testimony followed, simply stating that she had heard her mother’s testimony and seen the report of the census bureau which showed that she was born before her parent’s marriage, and that “today is the first day I knew that – I always thought I was born after the marriage.”

The Bureau denied Mary the minor’s pension.

In 1917, illegitimacy was viewed as a disgrace. Mary, my great-grandmother, was at this time an illiterate 58-year-old married woman, learning of her illegitimacy in a room full of male lawyers and government workers, with her youngest sister as a witness to the proceedings. Catherine was 82 and in poor health, sitting with her adult daughters as she admits their truth. It hurts my heart to think of the humiliation they experienced.

The note on the back of this photo says it is "Grandma Lyons Coyle", which would be my great-grandmother Mary Dorgan Coyle; but I suspect it may actually be her mother, Catherine Murphy Lyons. I can't tell and there is no one to ask.

Catherine died six months later. In March of 2018, her youngest daughter Nellie, who had been her caretaker, was approved to receive reimbursement out of Thomas' pension fund for her mother’s last illness and burial expenses, amounting to $387.50.

Thomas' mother had her share of heartache as well. Back in July of 1864 in Philadelphia, Johanna had received word of his death. She was the first to apply for his pension, being either unaware of his wife and daughter or unwilling to acknowledge them. Her application stated that as a widow who had relied on Thomas for financial support, she was now destitute. Johanna made several attempts, the last in May 1865. In October 1871, she died penniless while living at the Little Sisters of the Poor. In March of 1872, the pension office acknowledged receipt of her application after seven years. There is no record of any money being granted to anyone in Johanna's behalf.