About Us
My grandfather Michael Hughes
Michael was born in 1899 in Bullaun, Kilmaine Parish, County Mayo. His parents were Charles Hughes and Winifred Thornton. His mother Winny, died in the Spring of 1933. Later in the summer he married my grandmother Mary Gilmore. Michael was a farmer all his life and remained on the family land he had inherited from his father. Michael lived in the family home in Bullaun and there he started married life and the first four of the children were born. In 1942 he started building the new house on a site next to the main road. My mother Julie was the first of the children born in the new house. Michael lived there until his death on the 16th of March 1974.
My grandmother Mary Gilmore
Mary was born in 1914 in Caherrevagh (Caher), Kilmaine Parish, County Mayo. She was the daughter of John Gilmore and Ellen Finnerty. Mary was 19 when she married my Grandfather who was 14 years her senior. At that time she had strongly considered emigrating to the USA where several of her siblings had gone, but US emigration controls changed which stopped her, and eventually marriage kept her in Mayo. Mary had nine children. She died on the 3rd of June 2000 in Galway.
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Bullaun/Cathereevagh
These two townlands border each other in the south of Kilmaine Parish. They are less than a couple of miles from the border with County Galway.
Bullaun borders the following other townlands:
- Caherrevagh and Cloonnameeltoge to the east
- Cregnanagh to the west
- Gorteens to the east
- Kill to the east
- Lisheenielagaun to the north
- Tobernadarry to the east
About Us
John Gilmore and Ellen Finnerty
My great grandfather John Gilmore was born early in 1861 in Caherrevagh. On the 28th Of January 1894 he married his first wife Anne Conroy. John married his second wife Ellen Finnerty on the 7th of February 1906. Ellen was born at Toberrowe near Brownsisland.
My Uncle Ollie Hughes
Michael Oliver Hughes was born on the 16th of October 1935 in Bullaun, Mayo. As a young man he worked locally for the McGath family near Shrule as well as the family farm in Bullaun.
In 1962 Ollie moved to London and worked as a labourer. He worked a long time throughout the 60s on the construction of new underground Victoria tube line.
Ollie died on the 25th June 1980 in Southwark, London.
My Aunt Phil Hughes
My aunt Phil Hughes was born on the 15th April 1947 in Bullaun. Phil worked as a hairdresser all her adult life. Firstly in Ballinrobe and then in Kay's hairdressing Salon in Ballyhaunis. She died in 1985
Hughes Photo Gallery
Julia Hughes Family tree
More Family History
Additional Information
Hughes Ancestors
My great grandfather Charles Hughes was born in 1858 and died in1923 in Bullaun.
He was the the son of Michael Hughes (1807-1887) and Kitty Burke (1822-1872).
In May 1895 Charles married Winnifred (Winnie) Thornton from Cahereevagh. Winnie was the daughter of William Thornton (1824-1903) and Catherine Meenaghan (1828-1908).
In addition to my Grandfather Michael, Charles and Winnie had two daughters:
- Margaret Hughes, born 1896 and never married.
- Katie Hughes, born April 1902. Katie married Stephen O'Malley in 1923. She died in Dublin in March 1958. They had five children.
Siblings of Charles Hughes
Charles Hughes had a older sister, Mary (1851-1919), who married Thomas Corbett of Ramolin near Shrule in 1879 and they had five children.
Another sister, Margaret Hughes (1860-1939) was a couple of years younger than Charles. Margaret married Martin Hughes (1858-1914) also of Bullaun in 1891. So confusingly you had two Hughes from Bullaun marrying each other!
They lived on the land right by the main road between Shrule and Kilmaine, on which our own Hughes family home was built in 1942. Margaret Hughes has a single daughter called Julia who was born in 1897, Julia was got married in October 1920 to James Heneghan of Turin. Tragically Julia died quite young in 1938. Margaret Hughes herself died a year later in 1939. It was because of this that the land was left to her nephew, my grandfather Michael Hughes.
Sister Catherine Hughes was born 1855 married John Lynch and their daughter Margaret 1878-1944 went to New York and married Michael Kelly. They had daughters Theresa Marie and Gertrude.
Brother Thomas Hughes b1854, emigrated to the USA and raised his family in New Haven Connecticut. Thomas and his wife Catherine Walsh had the children listed in further section down below.
Thorntons (Caherrevagh)
My great Grandmother Winnie Thornton had three brothers:
- Michael (1852-1931),
- Pat b1861
- James (1865-1939)
All of whom never married.
Winnie also had two sisters:
Firstly, Honor (Norah) b1859, who married a man called Patrick Fitzgerald from Cahernaheeny, near Headford. They had two daughters Margaret b1900 and Katie b1902. Margaret married John Lally and Katie married Patrick Walsh.
Secondly, Maggie (b1864-d1933) who married James Hynes. They lived in Townland of Turin. They were childless and so their house was left to Maggie's niece Katie O'Malley (nee Hughes) my Great Aunt.
James Thornton, the last surviving brother died in 1939 and my grandfather Michael and his brother in law Stephen O'Malley jointly bought the Thornton land from the other three nieces who were also beneficiaries. The Thornton house is literally a stones throw from the Gilmore house. In 1945 Stephen O'Malley was moving to Tuam so he sold his share of the Thornton land to Michael Hughes, this left my grandfather as sole owner of over 30 acres.
Meenaghan relatives (Gorteens)
As mentioned before, Winnie Thornton, my great Grandmother, was the daughter of Catherine Meenaghan (1828-1908)
Catherine was from the Townland of Gorteens (sometimes called Gurteens) which is close to Bullaun.
Catherine's brother was Michael Meenaghan (b1839) of Gurteens.
Michael was married to Honor Ryan (1845-1910) and they had the following children :
- John Meenaghan : 1871-1939 who married Kate O'Malley
- Michael Meenaghan : b1874
- Margaret Meenaghan b1875 who married James McTigue of Cahereevagh.
- Martin Meenaghan : b1876
- Sarah Meenaghan : b1877
Honor Meenaghan, the sister of Catherine married Tom Hughes of Bullaun and had the following children:-
Michael Hughes b1855
Patrick Hughes b1858
Kate Hughes b1860 married Thomas Quinn in 1928 in her old age.
Mary Hughes born circa 1862?
Thomas Quinn was still living in Bullaun when my Mum was a child. She remembers him complaining about our families chickens going into his garden!
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Hughes connections in New Haven, USA
The most common destination for my Hughes family to emigrate to was New Haven, Connecticut. My Great Uncle Thomas Hughes and his wife Catherine Walsh emigrated there in the latter part of the 1800s. Their children were:
Michael b1882-1964
Thomas b1885
Katie Hughes b1886 who married Walter F Cox
Harold Hughes b1888 who married Ida V Maturo
John A Hughes b1891 who married Mildred Whalen
William Hughes b1892
Francis Hughes b1897
Charles Hughes b1888 who married Margaret Barry b1898-1983
My great Aunt Catherine Hughes married John Lynch and they lived in New haven and New York. Their daughters were Theresa Marie and Gertrude.Theresa married Paul Heyne.
Children of Patrick Hughes and Sabina Connery
Patrick was a brother to my great Grandfather Michael and also lived in Bullaun. He ,married Sabina Connery, Their children were :-
Patrick J Hughes 1860-1925 married Mary Cavenaugh 1858-1906. Lived in New Haven.
James Hughes d1956 married to Annie Galligan 1873-1934 Lived in New Haven
Martin Hughes 1854-1914 married Winnifred Coleman 1855-1911and remained in Bullaun
Bridget Hughes married Patrick Conroy and lived in Blessington, Kilmaine parish
Other USA emigrants
Another great Uncle Michael Gilmore married Bridget Early 1863-1904 Michael was a Blacksmith in Swinford, Mayo Their children were :
Michael Gilmore 1909
Ellen Gilmore 1881 married William C Fleming, They had daughters Ellen and Magdalene. Lived in Massachusetts.
Thomas Gilmore b1883
Bernard Gilmore b1886
Mary Gilmore b1887-1966 married Patrick J Geagan b1871 in Massachusetts.
John Gilmore b1891
Bridget Gilmore b1894
Anne Gilmore b1896 who married Michael McNicholas b1883
Patrick Gilmore b1900-1966 who married Mary Agnes Hoare b1911in Chicago, Cook Illinois.
James Gilmore 1901
