The Ballyhooly Connection

Many of the Gowen family groups in County Cork can trace their origins back to Ballyhooly.

Brendan Gowen has done some research...

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Based on the understanding that all our Gowen groups originally came from Ballyhooly, I began there and searched through all the Church records (marriages and baptismals 1811 – 1895) and Civil records ( births, deaths and marriages 1867 - ~ 1930) for that parish for all records of Gowens (Goings, Goens etc...).

With all this information I began to put many of these people into family groups. When I subsequently found out that some family members may have moved outside of Ballyhooly I began to expand the search (through the same records ) for the parish of Fermoy and later for select areas in other neighbouring parishes.  I did a similar exercise and searched through the more recent 1901 and 1911 census returns for the same areas.

 

We now have a fairly extensive collection of Gowen groups who trace there origin back to

Ballyhooly - Some of these groups we can connect to each other – others we are still working on ……. and any information others may have is always welcome.

 

Note: While tracing records of individuals throughout their life we have very often found that vital dates (i.e, date of birth etc…) for that individual are not always consistent through the various records. Example: the Date of Birth given at time of marriage of an individual may not match directly the date of birth calculated from the 1901 census etc…. This is a common occurrence therefore certain assumptions are made to match individuals in the group.

 

The first existence of a Gowen in Ballyhooly is the inscription on the top of a headstone I found in Ballyhooly cemetery, I’ve enclosed a picture and the inscription at the top reads as follows. 

 This is the burial place of Mich ‘ Gowin and family. He departed this life on July 26th 1798 Aged 73 years – may he rest in peace Amen – Mac Gabann

 

 

The reference to Mac Gabann is significant - it references Gowen, Gowan and Gowin - the Irish Smiths – gabann is the Irish word for Smith (or Blacksmith). In all the information I have found from the various records, Farmers and Blacksmiths are the most prominent professions. Even in the US, blacksmithing / horse shoeing were trades of the Gowens. 

 

Based on the age of this Mich’l Gowin and year of death we can calculate he was born in 1725. We don’t know if he was born in Ballyhooly or moved to that area at some stage in his life but in 1766 a religions census was taken in the North Cork area and only one Gowen/ Gowan name was recorded – that of a Michael Gowan of Kilathy parish, The townland of Cappagh is in Kilathy parish - Kilathy has since been absorbed into Ballyhooly parish. 

 

This Michael Gowan was listed as Popish - Catholic. While I have no proof, I believe the man mentioned on the headstone and the man mentioned in the religious census are the same. 

 

Also, more recently inscribed on this headstone are members of the Gowen family currently living in Cappagh, Ballyhooly. 

 

I believe there were many more Gowens buried in this plot over the years though the headstone does not reflect this. 

 

I don’t have any record of this mans wife or children but I do have the names of some people who I believe were his grand children, they include the following; (taken from the earliest records of the Ballyhooly Church baptismal records). 

• Michael Gowen of Cappagh (who married a Catherine Connell) 
• James Gowen of Cappagh 
• Michael Gowen of Lisheen, Ballyhooly (who married a Hanora Fenton) 
• Edmond Gowen of Cappagh 
• Jeremiah Gowen of Ballymacallen, Ballyhooly 
• Laurence Gowen of Cappagh (who married a Mary Dwyer) 
• Denis Gowen of Ballyhooly (who married a Ellen Murphy) 

… and there may have been more….

 

These Gowens (in most cases spelt ‘Going’) I estimate , were born around the 1770 – 1790 time frame - some of them may have been brothers - but obviously not all.

 

Among the names of the next generation of Gowens that I have found (some of them children of the above couples) is a John Gowen born in Cappagh around 1811. I cannot exactly link him to one of the above couples but an educated guess suggests he is the son of Laurence Gowen and Mary Dwyer.

 

I call this John –  John Gowen #2 - because another John Gowen (#1) was also born in Cappagh around that time - approx 1814. I think he is the son of the couple Michael Gowen and Catherine Connell.

 

It is possible Michael and Laurence were brothers - which would make the two Johns first cousins.

 

John Gowen #1, eventually married and settled in Ballyhindon in 1853 – he was my Great Great Grandfather.

 

John Gowen #2 was known to live and work on his leased farm in Cappagh in 1851. He appeared to share one field with a Laurence Gowen – perhaps his brother? I believe this John Gowen #2 was the Great Great grandfather [of the Youghal Gowens].

 

This John Gowen married a Mary Linehan. The Ballyhooly church records have no record of this marriage so I expect that Mary was not from Ballyhooly but one of the other neighbouring parishes and they were probably married there.

 

Their Children, all baptised in Ballyhooly, were as follows:

• Cornelius - Born 1842
• Mary - Born 1844
• Mary - Born 1845
• Michael - Born 1847
• Laurance - Born approx 1850

 

I expect that the child - Mary – born in 1844 may have died young and subsequently the next female child born was also named Mary ( born 1845) – as was customary in those days.

 

There were many other Gowen families also born around this time - many I can trace to present day descendents - in Ireland, the US and in the UK – but for many, I cannot find current day decedents - perhaps many died during this period which was the time of the great famine.

 

Of the children above , I believe:

• Cornelius was the great grandfather [of the Youghal Gowens] – but more about him later…
• Michael, married and settled in Kildinen, Glenville (not far from Ballyhooly) and there are many Gowens still there - all descendents of this man. When John Gowen #2 died in 1903 (aged 92 – which is how I estimated his date of birth) his address was given as Bridestown, Kildinen – and his son Michael was the witness at death.
• Mary, married a Jeremiah Foley of Glanworth
• Laurence, twice married, first to Margaret Barnett of Ballyhooly. They had 3 children, John and Laurence (twins) and Mary. John became a priest in Australia – I know very little else of him. Laurence died young and Mary died aged 16 years. Their father married a second time, (after Margaret, his wife, died suddenly) to a Hannah Murphy. Among their children were Bridget and Kate. This Kate married a Danial Flynn.

I recently met a Lar Flynn whose mother was this Kate (Gowen) Flynn and whose grandfather was Laurance Gowen – he told me his grandfather had a forge in Ballyhooly and was a 7th generation Blacksmith! (this Laurance Gowen, I believe was G granduncle [to the Youghal Gowens]).

 

In the other Gowen families that I have found - who originated from Ballyhooly - I have found blacksmiths in each group and this trade was carried passed on through the generations even when they emigrated to the US. This certainly seems to confirm the saying that the ‘Mac Gabanns' were indeed blacksmiths.

 

Going back to [the Youghal Gowen] Great Grandfather Cornelius, the Civil marriage records show Cornelius, a "farmer in Cappagh", married a Mary Cotter of Rathcormac in 1878.

 

Based on this I expect that Cornelius took over the running of the farm in Cappagh from his father John. I obtained some old maps of Cappagh and I think I can outline the land that was leased by John Gowen in 1851 and can identify the region of the house he lived in.

 

Con and Mary Cotter had the following children:

• John Joseph - Born 1879 [Grandfather to the Youghal Gowens]. The Civil (baptismal) records of Fermoy, record the following children of John Joseph Gowen and Maud Lillian Doe, Brian Boru Square, Fermoy: Maud - Born 1922 and Laurance – Born 1924  - further children were born after he emigrated to England
• Ellen – Born 1881: of Ellen - I know nothing about – perhaps she died young?
• Mary – Born 1883: I think she was Nun ? – she is buried in a ‘Cotter’ grave in Gortroe cemetery, Rathcormac
• Maurice - born 1886: a lady by the name of Madge Keating (nee Gowen ) recently told me that her nephew, Kevin Gowen of Cappagh, Ballyhooly bought a neighbouring farm in Cappagh from a Clancy family who had bought the same farm many years previously from a Maurice Gowen. Based on this I expect that Maurice lived and worked on the farm which was handed down to him from his father Con and his grandfather John. I know nothing else of Maurice.

Con [the Youghal Gowen grandfather] died in 1912 in Fermoy Hospital aged 70 years as a result of an accident. I have a copy of the Civil death record entry if you are interested. His wife Mary (Cotter) died in 1919 - her address was King St, Fermoy - Maurice her son was the witness. I don’t know where they are buried.

 

On [the Youghal Gowen] granfather John  – because he emigrated I would not have known of him except for what my father had told me and my memories of [his son] Con and [Grandson] Maurice visiting my father many years ago.

 

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