My Irish Roots

Seeing as it's March I decided to look at my Irish families. One of them I know a lot about, a second I know nothing about, the third I have a family tree made up by an old fellow (my dad's cousin) now deceased. My problem is I was never much interested in that family. I loved my dad but I just didn't click with his mother. Maybe it had something to do with the "switch" she kept on top of her refrigerator. But starting to look at this family I've become fascinated. They arrived in Ontario early.. probably early 1830's. I know they came from Enskillen in Northern Ireland (near Belfast). I also knew from a Will I had found that they were very poor... although, ashamed to say it I saw my grandmother as a miserly penny pincher. Now I see her differently. Her family had a difficult time and money was not easy to come by.

I thought perhaps they'd come with the Peter Robinson immigrants but they didn't. I found them listed as living here but not in the groups of immigrants. Then I learned that Peter Robinson was looking for Irish Catholics, my family was Methodist so wouldn't have qualified. I also thought, like everyone else, that the potato famine was in 1848/1849. It wasn't. The first crop failures due to the blight were in 1821. Also linen had been a large industry in Ireland but with the coming of the Industrial Revolution in England Irish linen was no longer needed and left many families without a livlihood. Also the British wanted the landowners in Ireland to have x number of British tennants which pushed the Irish off the land they were working. It's really all very sad. The British saw the Irish as little more than uncivilized barbarians - the same way they viewed the Scottish. Makes me ashamed of the British parts of me.

The photo above is what a log cabin would have been like at the time this family arrived although there would have been no second floor or window. The cabins were one room with a dirt floor. There would be windows if they could afford glass, otherwise there was only the door. This family actually started off in a shanty which was even rougher. There were no windows and only canvas to cover the door which didn't keep out the weather or the wild animals. I can't even begin to imagine what it would be like. It looks from the census that perhaps by the 1850's they did have a log house.

Our weather has been wonderful here. Nice and sunny... but I keep thinking about the "In like a Lamb, Out like a Lion" thing. We may suffer for this. When the sun shines I can see all the dust and streaks inside the house so have been spending a good amount of time cleaning... well since the Olympics ended anyway. 

Quilt wise I'm still slugging away at my daughter's quilt. I just realized, though, that if I used stablizer on the back of the appliqued rings that means when I pulled the stabilizer off I weakend or even broke some of the stitches. So I'm going back and doing a second row of stitching.  It's a pain but better safe than having to be constantly mending it.

I'm also working on the first Catalicious embroidery from Red Brolly. She has the second one out now so I better get busy. I'm almost done but I know it will take another couple of nights to finish completely. I'll post a photo when I'm done.