Individual Details

Mary MCDONAGH

(Abt 1778 - 2 Nov 1839)

The only definite information we have on the McDonagh family is that they came from Co. Sligo. However, in his book 'Ancestral Quest, Tracing my Ancestors in Ireland' (2008), Patrick Lavin provides us with the following information on the Sligo origins of Mary and her husband, Laurence O'Hara:

"Laurence and Mary often went back to visit their families in Sligo. Those visits were usually for a short period, possibly only a day or two. When Laurence went alone, he went on horseback; when Mary accompanied him, they traveled by horse-drawn vehicle of some kind. The direction he took was along the Ballintogher road.....that would seem to suggest that the destination was some place between the line Lough Arrow/Riverstown and the Leitrim border.....the length of the visit, mode of transport and the poor quality of secondary roads at the time would have their destination at not more than 15-20 miles away. Therefore, it can be accepted, with some degree of certainty, that the area in County Sligo where Laurence and Mary came from was somewhere within the Kilmactranny-Riverstown-Ballintogher triangle".

It is not known when exactly Mary and Laurence, settled in the Cootehall area of Co. Roscommon, but by 1833, they were well established in Cootehall, with Laurence and his sons farming in the townlands of Clegna, Knockadaff and Glooria.

While it appears that Mary's surname was usually spelled McDonagh, the McDonough spelling was also used, such as on Mary's headstone in Ardcarne Cemetery.

Events

BirthAbt 1778probably Riverstown area, Co. Sligo
MarriageAbt 1796Laurence O'HARA
Death2 Nov 1839Cootehall, Co. Roscommon
BurialArdcarne Cemetery, Cootehall, Co. Roscommon

Families

SpouseLaurence O'HARA (1772 - 1839)
ChildWilliam O'HARA (1797 - 1872)
ChildJohanna (Jane) O'HARA (caution: not verified) (1800 - )
ChildRoger O'HARA (1800 - 1865)
ChildPatrick O'HARA (1808 - 1886)
ChildLaurence O'HARA (1815 - 1885)
Father'unknown' MCDONAGH (1750 - )
SiblingAnn (Hannah) MCDONAGH (caution: not verified) (1776 - 1872)
SiblingMichael MCDONAGH (caution: not verified) (1796 - )