The Irish Bomfords

This chapter starts with an up-date of David (8.11) and his family to 1800, of his brother Isaac (8.10) and his family to 1803 and ends with a summary the Bomfords and their estates at the turn of the century, together with Townland maps. David, Isaac and John are sons of Stephen Bomford and Anne Smith (2.13, 5.8).

16.1 Death of John Bomford 1776

In 1776 the Reverend John Bomford (8.7) died (11.11) and left his property to his brothers David, aged 46, and Isaac, about the same age, indeed it could be argued that they were twins. David inherited just over 1,200 acres, which he leased; he also had property in Dublin. Isaac inherited Ferrans and Tyrrellstown amounting to 776 acres and he too had Dublin property.

16.1.1 David Bomford 1780

In 1780 David was living in Dublin as a merchant probably in the grocery business, and soon after he went to work in the Post Office (11.8). His marriage to Sarah Burtchaell occurred in 1756 (8.11) and in 1780 there were four children alive, three girls and a boy; the fourth child, Mary Elizabeth, ‘died young’ and so may be dead. There was also the illegitimate son Stephen (11.9) who died in 1782 in India.

Sometime in the late 1780s or early 1790s David, then aged about 60, his wife and one unmarried daughter, Sarah Frances, moved to Gallow, which had probably been empty since the Rev John died in 1776, and started farming some of his land.

16.1.2 David's Family 1780

In 1780 David’s family had all been born:

Links to 16.2, 16.3, 19.4, 19.5, 19.6, 19.6.2. Isaac is at 16.5. There is also Stephen Bomford, a possible illegitimate son (11.9)

Mary Elizabeth Bomford was baptised on 28 September 1768 (St Audoen COI parish records)

16.1.3 Isaac Bomford 1780

In 1780 Isaac (the elder) was an attorney at the Court of the Exchequer and was living in Dublin, so his land was leased. His earlier life is recorded in paragraph 11.14 and his marriage to Sarah Mathews in 1756 in paragraph 8.10. They had one daughter, Anne Trevor Bomford, who in 1780 must be in her late teens or early 20s; she married in 1791 (16.7).

When Isaac died (16.6) he left his halves of Ferrans and Tyrrellstown to his nephew, David’s son Isaac (16.5, 24.9.4), and so all the Rev John’s property ended up in his hands.

In this section there are two property deeds.

16.1.4 Lease - Gurteen 9th February 1781

David and Isaac Bomford both of Dublin lease to David Jones of Clonmoyle, Co Westmeath, the land of Gurteen 358 Irish acres (580 statute) in the Parish of Lynn, Co Westmeath, bounded on the north by Clonmoyle, for 31 years. (Book 339 Page 43 No 226877)

The last lease of Gurteen was in 1738 by Stephen the elder to David Jones of Clonmoyle; this David must be his son. Gurteen came to Stephen the younger who left it to the Rev John, and he in turn left it to the brothers, David and Isaac. The rent in 1738 was £169.4.9 and since there is very little difference in the area that figure probably remains, and the rent is shared between the two brothers. There being no further mention of Gurteen in the deeds it has been removed as a Bomford property at the end of this lease, in 1812.

16.1.5 Lease - Kilglan 19th February 1788

David Bomford hands over the land of Kilglan, Co Meath, containing 40 plantation acres (65 statute) for 999 years to John Nugent Wade.

Witnessed: Isaac Bomford of Dublin. (Book 387 Page 369 No 262062).

Kilglan, meaning the ‘wood of the glen’, is in the Parish of Balfeaghan or Balfechan. The 1654 survey records it as containing 123 plantation acres (199 statute), and lying east of Ferrans and north of the ‘Rye Watter’ with ‘on the premisses a stone house’.

The 65 acres of the lease is only a small part of Kilglan and most likely that part adjacent to Ferrans; this would give David a block of nearly 1,100 acres including Gallow and Ferrans.

By 1836 it contained 336 statute acres and was the property of Colonel Friend of Portarlington, leased by Mr Tew of Dublin and he sub-let it at 23/- an acre. Again the boundaries must have been changed.

There is no other mention concerning the Bomfords at Kilglan and this lease must remain a bit of a mystery. The Royal Canal was driven through this area about 1795 and the Ryewater was diverted; the Canal Company compulsorily purchased the south end of both Ferrans and Kilglan and it is possible that the area of this lease was involved.

In 1805 George Bomford took over the Wade family lease of Drumlargan (15.13.4), and in this deed there is mention of John Wade of Bachelor’s Lodge; this John Wade and the John Nugent Wade of this lease may be the same person, but even if not they are probably related.

16.2 Marriage - Jane Bomford & Duke Cooper August 1785

Jane Bomford, David’s eldest child, must have been born around 1762 so she must have been about 23 when she married. The Diocese of Dublin issued the marriage licence so that was where they were married: “Bomford, Jane, and Duke Cooper, 1785, ML Page 291”.

Betham gives more detail: “ Cooper, Duke, of Great Down, Co Westmeath, Gent, and Jane Bomford of the Parish of St Peter, Dublin, spinster, 12th August 1785”,

The Hibernian Magazine of August 1785 page 448 records: “Duke Cooper of Great Downe, Co Westmeath, to Miss Bomford, daughter of David Bomford of Camden Street, Dublin”.

A transcription of the St Peter parish records, Dublin, records that Anne Bomfort (sic) married Duke Cooper on 14 August 1785. That is consistent with the parish record that it was Jane Bomford who married John North (16.3), and in contradiction of everything else.

One can assume that they were married from David and Sarah’s house at 64 Camden Street. It might be said that they went and lived at Great Down in Westmeath but I rather think that Duke Cooper worked in Dublin.

Great Down is about 4 miles from Mullingar on the north side of the road just before it forks to Killucan and Kinnegad, in the Parish of Killucan. The valuation of 1854 shows no Coopers there, so we must assume that the family had moved away. The house was rated in 1854 at £5, which would make it a very small one or very dilapidated, probably both; there is no sign of any house there now.

So far I have failed to find any reference to Duke Cooper, but there were other Coopers in the area who were likely to be related.

16.2.1 The Cooper Family

As far as our documents are concerned Duke Cooper was mentioned in the will of his father-in-law David (19.6) in which he was bequeathed ‘my Silver Snuff Box’, he is not mentioned again, so all that can be said about him is that he was alive in 1807.

Jane is not only mentioned in her father’s will but also in that of her brother, Isaac (23.4.1), so she was alive in 1835.

The children were mentioned in both wills, though neither will contained a full list of them. The sequence of their births is not known except that John Cooper was the eldest son; they have been listed in the order they appear in the wills. Except for John, they were all minors in 1807 (19.6), thus the eldest might have been born in the mid 1780s and the youngest about 1796.

It is interesting that Isaac, Duke and Sarah were not mentioned in their uncle Isaac’s will of 1835 and one wonders if they had died by then: at that date they would be in their 40s.

16.3 Marriage - Anne Bomford & John North September 1786

Anne must have been born about 1764 and when she was about 22, just a year after her sister Jane was married, she married John North. The marriage licence was issued by the Diocese of Dublin: “Bomford, Anne, and John North, 1786, ML Page 296.”

The Hibernian Magazine of September 1786, page 504, reports: “John North of Whitewell, Co Westmeath, to Miss Bomford, daughter of David Bomford of Camden Street.”

Betham gives a more precise date: “Miss Bomford, daughter of David of Camden Street, married John North of Whitewell in September 1786”.

They were married in Dublin, probably from David’s house at 64 Camden Street.

According to a transcription of the St Peter parish records, Dublin, Jane Bomford (16.2) and John North were married on 23 July 1786. There is still some checking to be done (as at July 2010).

16.3.1 Marriage Settlement 8th May 1786

Between:

1. John North of Tyrrellspass and Roger North of Whitewell, both in Co Westmeath

2. John North of Whitewell, eldest son and heir of Roger North

3. David Bomford of Camden Street, Dublin, and Anne Bomford, spinster, second daughter of David Bomford

4. Stephen Bomford, eldest son of David Bomford, and Roger North of Brackland, Co Westmeath.

On July 1757 Thomas Smyth of Co Westmeath leased to John North of Tyrrellspass the lands of Kilbride known as Whitewell containing 240 plantation acres (389 statute) at a rent of £97.19.6 for the lives mentioned.

A marriage is intended between John North the younger and Anne Bomford, and this lease of Whitewell is made over to John North the younger. Now John North the younger makes the lease over to Stephen Bomford and Roger North of Brackland in trust for an annuity of £70 to Anne Bomford on his death, or, if she has no children, an annuity of £100.

Witnessed: Isaac Bomford. (Book 377 Page 288 No 252340)

Roger North of Brackland, Co Westmeath, may be the son of Joseph North of Brackland, King’s Co, and so an uncle of John North and Anne, but see 16.4.7.

Peter Bamford originally recorded this deed with Isaac Bomford instead of Stephen Bomford as a party of the fourth part, and concluded that the Isaac Bomford who witnessed the deed was David’s brother: 'it cannot be his son, Anne's brother, since he is a party to the deed'. However, a reinvestigation of the deed in July 2009 definitely shows that it was Stephen Bomford, eldest son of David Bomford, who was a party of the fourth part, not Isaac, and was trustee to the marriage settlement. So the witness probably was Isaac, David's son, Anne's brother, and an attorney (16.1.3) though described in the deed only as 'gent'.

A consequence of Stephen being a party to this deed is that he must have still been alive in 1786. Previously, he had been thought to have died in India in 1782 (11.9).

Children of the marriage. Anne and John North had eight children, three boys, John, David and Isaac, and five daughters, Marianne, Jane, Sarah Frances, Sophie and Deborah: see the North tree and 23.7.

A John North won a contract to rebuild the Gaol of Newgate in Dublin. The Government subsequently withdrew from the contact and the English Parliament passed an Act in 1840 to pay compensation to John North. As there was a shortfall in the funds available to pay the compensation, an amending Act was passed in 1842 to ensure that his administratrix Anne North could receive the compensation, John North being by then 'lately deceased'. That John and Anne might be John North and Anne Bomford - though John would have probably have been well into his seventies by 1840 (given the date of his marriage) and perhaps a little old to be entering into major building contracts, even if he was not already dead: a gravestone indicates that he died in 1836 or 1838 aged 88, and he is described as deceased in his daughter Deborah's marriage settlement of 7 August 1839 (North tree). An alternative John and Anne would be John North and Anne Maud, who married in 1827 (marriage licences index), when he was a house painter, though that John might have been rather young to have entered into a major contract and to have died by 1842. Anne was described in her death certificate as the widow of a builder. As at September 2007 is it not known how John North and Anne Maud fit into the North family, and there is no other reason to suppose that any of 'our' John Norths were builders.

16.3.2 Whitewell

Whitewell, which was also named Kilbride previously (it was part of a larger Kilbride), is half a mile south of Tyrrellstown. Tyrrellstown has been a Bomford property since 1724 and now belongs to David Bomford. According to the settlement Whitewell was leased in 1757 by Thomas Smyth of Co Westmeath (the reference is too vague to place him) to John North of Tyrrellspass which is about 10 miles south of Whitewell. John North of Tyrrellspass was possibly a cousin (Peter Bamford's initial placement: it now seems more likely he was the father, born 1707 and so aged about 79 in 1786) of Roger North, the father of our John North (see North family tree). The lease was made over in trust to Stephen Bomford, the eldest son of David, and Roger North of Brackland for an annuity to Anne Bomford about to be married.

There are two other reports of deeds of 1757 which transferred Whitewell. The first is deed 290 362 192544of 13 Aug 1772, which also recites the 1757 deed recited in the marriage settlement and gives additional details including that the date was 22 July 1757, Roger North of Whitewell was the eldest son of John North of Kilbride, Thomas Smith was of Drumcree, and that the lives were Roger North of Dublin, Chas North 3rd son of Roger then of Newcastle, Westmeath, and Jas McCabe of Bracklin. The second deed gives an entirely different seller and buyer, but the same 'lives': Deed 200 338 133388 of 1757 records that John North of Cornhill, Co Tipperary, did lease and confirm to Roger North of Newcastle his heirs etc, that part of Kilbride known as Whitewell, ~240 acres, to have and hold during the lives of Roger North, Charles North and James McCabe and their survivors, witness Ulysses North of Newcastle. It appears that the second dealing was a mortgage or similar, and John North of Tyrrellspass had moved and become John North of Cornhill.

Undoubtedly (?) after the wedding in 1786 Anne and John lived at and farmed Whitewell, certainly (?) their three sons (23.7) were all farmers; but by 1838 the family was not living there as the Ordnance Field Namebooks record: “Whitewell, Parish of Kilbride, 403 acres all arable and pasture. Contains a house and garden called Whitewell House, the seat of A Grose Esq.” However by 1854 it was again occupied by a John North (probably their grandson) according to the Griffith’s Valuation.

In the Registry of Deeds there is a memorandum, 874 451 580951, of an Indenture of Lease dated 20 Aug 1831 which concerns this John North. It was made between Godfrey Wills Berry of Tyrrellspass [this John's son in law], assignee of estate & effects of John North an Insolvent 1st part; John North of Tyrrellspass 2nd part; & Arthur Grose of Whitewell 3rd part; Whitewell was transferred to Arthur Grose for a yearly rent of £280 per annum and all tenants holdings from 1st May during the natural life and lives of Eleanor North wife of John Roger North, Arthur Grose the lessee, and Arthur Gallagher Grose his only son, & survivors etc (EN email 14 Sep 2008). 1843 Book 15, No. 215 refers to 104 acres, part of Whitewell, formerly the property of John North, deceased, by John Roger North, Dublin, to Arthur Grose, signed 11 Oct. 1843. Reference is made to a previous indenture of the same nature, so this was an looks like an extension. It also names Godfrey Wills Berry [husband of John Roger North's sister Sarah Frances North], Abraham Pilkington of Kilbride Castle [husband of Mary Elizabeth North] and Edward Danial Duffy (Eva North email 15 Nov 2007). 1847 Book 1, No. 55 records that John Roger North leased lands at Whitewell to John George Battersby. Griffith's Valuation records these lands: the first deed refers to Whitewell House and land around it; the second to land along the Whitewell Road (Sheila Perino email 16 Nov 2007).

16.4 The North Family

A number of Norths have appeared and some of them must be relatives of our John North of Whitewell. I have found no real ties to the various families, although one or two interesting connections with these deeds have come to light. However I feel sure that many, if not all, of the Westmeath Norths must be related, and the following is produced to keep my notes intact and waiting for further clues which may come to light to tie them all together definitely. (Further clues have indeed emerged: see North family tree.)

The information, except where otherwise stated, all comes from the Betham will extracts, which record names and relationships, and a few places. These are shown as trees for each will and more fully in 16.4.6.

16.4.1 Will of Francis North

Francis North, attorney King’s Bench (Deeds of 1709 (2.4.1), of 1725 & 1726 (4.4), of 1731 (5.4.1)).

Will dated 17th June and Proved 1st July 1738

His son Edward North was a ‘life’ in the deed of 1721 (3.2) when he was about 17. He is also mentioned in the deed of December 1734 (7.4), but he is not mentioned in Betham.

Francis parents are not mentioned but he had two brothers and a sister; one wonders whether one brother was not Joseph North of Newcastle Co Westmeath.

(A) The un-named daughter who married at St Mary’s Dublin Mr Connell could be Dorothy North. Dorothy Connell was the wife of Richard Connell, Clerk to Frances North. Richard appears in many deeds and was a friend of Thomas Bomford the elder, and it was to Richard Connell that Thomas wrote the letter of August 1739 (5.5).

16.4.2 Will of Joseph North

Joseph North of Newcastle, Co Westmeath, will dated 7th March 1728; probate August 1729, so he probably died in 1729.

Betham also made an extract of the will of his eldest son: Roger North of Newcastle, will dated 23rd June 1765, probate 24th February 1766, he probably died in 1766.

These two wills have been placed together as one tree and to them can be added the Bagot connection from the Grand Juries of Westmeath.

Links to 16.4.3 16.4.4 16.4.5. See the North tree for more information.

Bagot Family of Kilcoursey, King’s Co

The tie in of these two families is very clear from the sources, but to my mind there is a missing generation in the Bagot connection; it is difficult to reconcile Elizabeth North who was married in 1790 with her sister Mary who married Milo Bagot when Milo was not born until 1807. We have since found a deed (483 539 316980) indicating that Milo Bagot married Maria North in 1795, so it seems his birthdate of 1807 is wrong.

The Bagot/North connection is not important to the Bomford story except that (an earlier) Milo Bagot appears in the Partridge will (11.10) and the family re-appears in Chapter 30 (30.3.2).

Link to 11.10.

16.4.3 Will of William North of Kilbride

William North of Kilbride, Co Westmeath, will 19th June 1782, probate 17th October 1783, so died c1783 His sons Roger and Joseph inherited. He is not mentioned in the deeds.

The marriage settlement of May 1786 (16.3.1) records a lease of “Kilbride known as Whitewell”. Roger North, the father of John who married Anne Bomford, came from Whitewell so almost certainly the Roger of the deed and of this will is the same person and the father-in-law of Anne Bomford. [Maybe not though: it seems Roger North of Whitewell is the son of William's brother John North of Tyrrellspass who married Margaret Abernethy. See the North tree for latest thinking.]

16.4.4 Will of John North of Tyrrellspass

John North of Tyrrellspass, Co Westmeath, will 23rd April 1757, proved 30th September 1757, and so died in 1757.

'Kilbride, known as Whitewell', was leased to either the father or to his son John in July 1757. It is difficult to say which John leased it because this was the year that John the elder died. (It was neither of these Johns: see Kilbride)

The marriage settlement of May 1786 (16.3) mentions both John North of Tyrrellspass (John the younger) and Roger North of Whitewell. These two were probably related and it is probable that John the elder was a son of Joseph of Newcastle. If so then John the younger and Roger of Whitewell were cousins.

16.4.5 Will of Roger North of Guilford

Roger North of Guilford, Co Westmeath, will dated 11th July 1787, proved 19th January 1791, so died c1790. He is not mentioned in any of the deeds, but he, his brother Richard and an un-named sister who married Robert Macky appear to be the grandchildren of Joseph North of Newcastle. It follows therefore that the un-named sister must be Susannah [The basis for this conclusion was probably that Betham's extract of Roger's will mentions a brother in law Robert Macky: '18 North Roger of Guilford Co Westmeath Gent - dated 11th July 1787 pd 19th Jany 1791 - wife Elizabeth - daur Mary Jane - Brother in law Robert Macky - Brother Richard North' (EN email 25 Apr 2008). At the time Peter wrote it had not been established that Roger married Elizabeth Macky, which made her brother Robert Macky the brother in law of Roger North. The further basis for the suppostion that Susanna married Robert was probably a supposition that Susanna was not otherwise married; however, we have since found Book 289 Vol 29 No 183108 of 1770 which records the marriage of Susanna North, 3rd daughter of Roger North [senior], late of Newcastle, to Thomas Collins, Dublin. Under the will of her father she gets £600 provided she marry with the consent of Ulysses North, Newcastle [her brother], and William North, Clonfad [her uncle] (EN email 10 March 2008). As all three sisters [of Roger North junior] are now thought to have married others, and there is no need for any of them to have married Robert Macky to make him Roger's brother in law, it is highly doubtful that any of them did].

16.4.6 North family of Westmeath

Placing all these together and assuming that the correct connections have been made, the North family of Westmeath might look like this (for an expanded and corrected version of these relationships, see the North family tree):

For an expanded and corrected version of these relationships, see the North family tree.

16.4.7 Joseph and Roger North of Brackland & William North of Clonfad

1. Roger North of Brackland, Co Westmeath, who with Isaac Bomford, was a trustee of the John North - Anne Bomford marriage settlement of 16.3.1. Vicars records the will of “Joseph North of Brackland, King’s Co, 1786”, but no entry could be found in the Betham extracts [it has been now: see the North tree]. This Joseph of Brackland was the son of Joseph of Newcastle and the father of a Roger North, recorded in the North tree as Roger of Clonfad or of Kilduff rather than as 'of Brackland', who married Barbara Conran. There is a Brackland in King’s Co and another in Co Westmeath, so the placement of Joseph of Brackland in the tree above was recorded with question marks in case a mistake had been made. Brackland also seems to have been recorded as Bracklyn and Brakland. Why Roger North of Brackland, b 1734 so aged about 52 at the time of the marriage settlement and a distant relation, should have been included in the settlement is a mystery; the connection may have been Clonfad, which Roger North of Brackland inherited from his uncle William North in 1800, but of which he was already in possession according to William's will.

2. The only North of the 1700s not included in the above is William North of Clonfad, Co Westmeath, who died in 1800 according to Vicar’s prerogative wills. This is of interest because Clonfad was a Bomford property and William North must have been a tenant of Stephen Bomford of Rahinstown. To stretch a point he might just be a younger son of Roger of Whitewell who had other children (16.4.3), and so a brother-in-law of Anne Bomford. Another William North of Clonfad, Co Westmeath, probably the eldest son who inherited, married Maria, daughter of Richard Homan in April 1806 (extract from Hibernian Magazine). Sheila Perino (email 14 July 2007) has placed this latter William as the son of Philip North, a son of Joseph North of Newcastle who died in 1729 (16.4.6).

16.5 Isaac Bomford 1788-1805 Almanack Entries

David’s only son, Isaac (the younger) (16.1.2), has a number of entries in Watson’s and Wilson’s Almanack in which he is titled ‘Isaac Bomford Junior’ to differentiate him from his uncle, Isaac (the elder) (16.1.3). For the years 1788-90 he is listed as “Attorney of the Court of The Exchequer, of Camden Street”.

Isaac was baptised on 31st March 1766 (St Audeon parish records, Dublin), so in 1788 he would be aged 22 and just qualified as an attorney. No doubt he was trained by his uncle, Isaac the elder, and living at his father’s town house at 64 Camden Street where his father moved to in 1778. David’s last Almanack entry at this address was in 1786 which matches quite well with Isaac being ‘of Camden Street’ in 1788.

His next Almanack entry is from 1803 to 1807 when he was listed as a “Commissioner of Affidavits in Meath for the Courts of the King’s Bench, Common Pleas, and the Court of the Exchequer.”

This entry sounds as though he had moved from Dublin back to Co Meath and to Gallow. Isaac’s father David was to die in 1809, aged about 80, and it is possible that Isaac in 1791 moved to Gallow where his parents were then living, 1791 being the year after his last listing ‘of Camden Street’.

This matches very well with the story of 1798, which my father got from John George North-Bomford, 1883-1965, and had inserted in Burke.

Arthur Wellesley, the future Duke of Wellington, but then Major General, and his older brother William, later the 3rd Earl of Mornington, were staying at Dangan Castle when they were disturbed by raiders. The two brothers had to flee and the only transport to be found quickly were two carthorses. They galloped off down the road making for the garrison town of Kilcock, but after a few miles their horses were blown. However they made Gallow where Isaac gave them fresh mounts and they reached Kilcock safely. Meanwhile the ‘raiders’ arrived at Gallow in hot pursuit and found no fresh mounts for themselves there because Isaac had sent all the other horses across the fields to the Winters at Agher. However whilst their horses were having a breather, Isaac or his father David invited all the pursuers into the house where they all became drunk on a barrel of porter. There is no backing to this story but it would hardly have been passed down through the generations if it had not been founded on truth; ‘JG’ North-Bomford was particularly pleased that if it was not for his relative Isaac’s quick thinking, the Duke of Wellington might have been killed and thus the Battle of Waterloo might have been lost and the future of the British Empire in doubt. As an interesting sideline, over a hundred years later raiders arrived at Oakley Park during the ‘troubles’; they wanted to burn down the house but George Lyndon Bomford got them intoxicated, and after a night of drinking they parted the best of friends.

But to return to Isaac. Against the move to Gallow in 1791, there are three deeds which place him as being ‘of Dublin’.

1. 1st May 1793. Isaac Bomford of Dublin is mentioned as a trustee of the reconveyance of a mortgage between Dorcas Winter, widow of Dublin, and Richard Griffith. (Book 495 Page 64 No 321262)

2. 23rd December 1794. Isaac Bomford of Dublin and William Marshal, merchant of Clones Co Monaghan, were the trustees of a settlement dated 16th June 1792 made after the marriage of Richard Griffith and Eliza Griffith (Wailer) his wife of Dublin. (Book 482 Page 364 No 311204)

This marriage settlement crops up again on 6th May 1825: In which Isaac Bomford of Blessington Street, Dublin, with the consent of Richard Griffiths of Kellenure, Co Cavan, leases to George Moore of Analore, Co Monagahan, land in Co Cavan and Monagahan. (Book 803 Page 237 No 541972)

3. 1st March 1799. Isaac Bomford of Dublin is mentioned as the trustee of another mortgage. (Book 494 Page 679 No 339531)

Altogether it is not possible to say whether Isaac ever lived at Gallow permanently: it seems he was content to be an attorney based in Dublin and left the business of farming to his father and the tenants, only going to Gallow for visits.

Isaac’s marriage and later life will be found in 19.5.

16.6 Isaac Bomford the Elder 1730-1793

Isaac, the youngest of Stephen of Gallow’s boys (5.8), was born about 1730 and has been an attorney since about 1750 (11.14). In 1756 he married Sarah Mathews (8.10). They lived in Dublin and had one child, a daughter named Anne Trevor; she married and had four children (see below).

Isaac took on the training as attorneys of his two nephews, Trevor the son of his brother Stephen, and Isaac the son of his brother David, and they slowly took over his business so that he had virtually retired by 1790.

Isaac died aged about 63 in 1793 (prerogative wills). A brief extract of his will dated 2nd July 1792 is in Betham’s notebooks (Vol 8, p 29) and reads:

“Isaac Bomford of Dublin, Gent, 2nd July 1792 (will), 1793 (probate)

wife: Sarah, daur Edw Mathews Esqr

daur: Anne Trevor B, wife of Rev Newburgh Barroughs

nephew: Isaac B, his lands of Ferrans, Co Meath, and Tyrrellstown

brother: Hill Mathews Esqr.”

So his nephew Isaac Bomford, the son of his brother David Bomford, inherited Isaac's half of Ferrans and Tyrrellstown and, eventually, became the owner of all the Rev John Bomford’s estates on the death of his father c1809.

16.6.1 Death of Sarah, Isaac’s Wife

It is not known when Sarah died, or where she lived after the death of Isaac, but she was alive in January 1803 as the following deed concerning Mathews’ property shows:

Mathews’ Property 6th January 1803

Between

1. Sarah Bomford (Mathews), widow

Whillon Wilson and Jane Wilson (Mathews), his wife

Ann Hamilton (Mathews), widow

Mary Bland (Mathews), widow

Leslie Mathews, spinster

2. Edward Mathews of Dublin

3. Pat Clancy of Dublin (Gent, of Blackhall Street, died 1810)

4. Clement Barry of Dublin

Edward Mathews paid £3,300 to those of Party 1 for the land they leased in Co Down (all listed). (Book 560 Page 30 No 371973)

All those in Party 1 were sisters, and the deed is probably a consequence of some settlement of their father, Edward Mathews, who died in 1758. The Edward Mathews of the deed (Party 2) was their brother who in 1803 was probably the oldest surviving son.

16.6.2 The Mathews Family

The will of Dorcas Williams was extracted from Betham in the belief that it was the will of our Dorcas Bomford who married Edward Williams of Trim. However this was not so and it turned out that Dorcas Williams was the sister of Edward Williams and the aunt of Isaac Bomford.

No Mathews family tree has been found but when we put together the sources we get a pretty good picture of Isaac Bomford’s in-laws. The sources are:

a. Will of Edward Mathews from Betham dated 10th January 1756 with probate on 19th June 1758 (8.10),

b. Will of Dorcas Williams from Betham dated 12th August 1781 with probate on 18th November 1783,

c. The above 1803 deed. This records ‘Willon’ Wilson, whereas the will of Dorcas records ‘Whitton’ Wilson.

d. Hill Mathews died intestate and administration was granted to his mother Sarah on 28th May 1794 (Eustace Wills).

e. Burke’s Irish Family Records includes the Bland family. Humphry Bland who married Mary Mathews was Captain in 62nd Regiment, and the second son of William Bland, Captain 8th Dragoons; his eldest brother John inherited Blandsfort House at Abbeyleix, a big square three story, five bay house built in 1715. John’s descendant, a great-great-grand-daughter, Lilian Emily Bland was the first woman to build and fly an aeroplane in the British Isles; she used whiskey poured through the ear-trumpet of her aunt to feed the engine on the maiden flight in 1910 of her plane, the ‘Mayfly’.

16.7 Marriage Anne Trevor & Rev Newburgh Burroughs September 1791

Anne Trevor Bomford is the only daughter of Isaac and Sarah (Mathews) and would be about 30 when she married. The marriage licence bonds prerogative from Betham’s notebooks record “Boroughs Newborough and Bomford Anne Trevor of the Parish of St Paul, Diocese of Dublin, spinster, September 1791.” Betham has got his name wrong; it should be ‘Burroughs, Newburgh’.

Their marriage is also reported in the August 1791 issue of the Hibernian magazine on page 192 “Rev Burroughs, Newburgh, (II) to Miss Anne Bomford, daughter of Isaac Bomford.” The Magazine indicates that Anne was Newburgh’s second wife, but, although much has been found about Newburgh, no other mention of a previous wife has been found. The Magazine and the following marriage settlement both point to August as the month of the wedding, but the marriage licence was not issued until September 7th 1791.

16.7.1 Marriage Settlement 19th August 1791

Isaac Bomford of Dublin granted to Anne Trevor Bomford, spinster, his daughter, an annuity of £60 for life chargeable upon the lands of Ferrans alias Fenners, in the Barony of Deece. (Book 449 Page 403 No 288506)

16.7.2 The Burroughs Family

From various sources including Isaac’s will of 1793 and the will of Isaac the younger of 1835 (23.4), but mainly from Canon Leslie’s Register, we know quite a lot about the Burroughs family.

Newburgh’s father was Lewis Burroughs, his grandfather was Francis Burroughs, and they both came from Co Derry. Lewis Burroughs was born in 1713 and got his MA at Trinity in 1739, and his Doctorate of Divinity in 1765. He was ordained in 1744 and died as Archdeacon of Derry in April 1786. He married Mary Cane of Larabryan, Co Kildare, and had a large family including Newburgh and the eldest son, William, who became a baronet and was Advocate-General of Bengal. Lewis was a poet of sorts and was an intimate friend of Frederick Hervey (1730-1803), 4th Earl of Bristol and Bishop of Derry who was known as an eccentric and capricious patron of the arts, became identified with the aspirations of Irish nationalism and showed sympathy with the suppressed Catholic majority. The Earl Bishop befriended Lewis’s widow and family who lived at Ballyscullion when Lewis died in 1786. His widow Mary died at Bury in 1800.

Newburgh, the second son, was ordained in 1776 and served in a couple of parishes. The year after his father died he became Rector of Ballyscullion, his home parish, which no doubt was arranged by the Bishop, He remained there until 1795, and it was no doubt to the Rectory at Ballyscullion that he took his bride, Anne Trevor.

16.7.3 After the Marriage

Whilst at Ballyscullion, Newburgh was also Domestic Chaplain to John Frederick Sackville the 3rd Duke of Dorset who at that time was British Ambassador in Paris; a difficult post as the Duke was there before, during and after the French Revolution. On occasions Anne travelled to Paris with her husband.

Newburgh, like his father, seems to have been ‘persona grata’ with his Bishop, the Earl of Bristol. However in 1796 a disagreement arose between them and Newburgh and his wife Anne visited the Bishop at his request on the Continent, agreement was reached, and they became friends again.

They had three sons and a daughter; the eldest son was named Sackville Burroughs, no doubt named after the Duke of Dorset, the other two were William Hamilton Burroughs and James Lewis Burroughs. The daughter Selina Burroughs seems to have been a favourite of the Bishop and he evidently helped her after her parents' death; Newburgh died in 1798 and Anne must have died soon after him, say c1800, because the Bishop who himself died in 1803 helped Selina ‘after her parent’s death’. Selina could only have been about 10 when the Bishop died. The three sons are all mentioned in Isaac the younger’s will of 1835 so they were all alive then and apparently unmarried, but there is no mention of Selina so she may have died before 1835.

Anne’s father Isaac died in 1793 (16.6) and Newburgh must have disputed Isaac’s will as there is a Cause Paper entitled “Bomford against Burroughs, will, 1793, name of deceased Isaac Bomford”. Further information is in the Irwin papers (National Library, GO MS 432, page 181:Leonard Riley email 20 Feb 2009): Prerogative Cause, Bomford vs Burroughs 1793 Isaac Bomford Jr nephew, ready legatee of Isaac Bomford Dr of City of Dublin disputes grant of probate to Rev Newborrough and Ann Trevor Bomford als Burroughs.

No argument against the will has been found but I guess that it must be concerning the bequest of the land to his nephew, Isaac. No doubt Newburgh felt that the land should have gone to Isaac’s only child, his wife Anne, and so to their children. Some private agreement may have been reached because, in Isaac the younger’s will of 1835, there is a bequest of £150 to each of the Burroughs boys.

The friendship of Newburgh and his father with their Bishop, the Earl of Bristol, may have been responsible for his introduction to the Bomford family. One of the Earl’s daughters, Elizabeth, married John Thomas Foster of Dunleer in 1776. John Thomas Foster was a nephew of Mary and Thomas Bomford the younger of Rahinstown, and he was also the nephew of Margaret and Stephen Sibthorpe whose daughter, another Elizabeth, married Stephen Bomford the younger of Rahinstown in 1745 (8.2.1). Isaac Bomford, Anne Trevor’s father, was the younger brother of both Thomas and Stephen Bomford and so no doubt he knew John Thomas Foster and had met the Earl Bishop and his entourage including the Burroughs.

As a postscript the Earl Bishop lived a life of luxury pandering to his three abiding passions. One passion was Italy where he spent long years to the neglect of his episcopal duties indulging his extravagant tastes in all things Italian. Building was another passion and he furnished his first extraordinary house at Downhill, Co Derry, with Italian paintings, marbles and so on. No sooner was Downhill finished than he started on his second house in 1787 at Ballyscullion which became known as the ‘Bishop’s Folly’; both were crammed with paintings and statuary acquired on his travels with a large and extravagant retinue, so large and extravagant that the Bristol Hotels found in practically every capital in Europe were named after him. It was at Ballyscullion that Mary Burroughs and her family were settled by the Earl Bishop soon after her husband Lewis died in 1786 and where her son Newburgh was made Rector and where Newburgh’s young wife, Anne Trevor Bomford, joined him in 1791. This leads us to the Earl Bishop’s third passion, the ladies. He made off with several married, unmarried and widowed ladies without any intention of marriage as he had a wife, nor was he in the least deterred if they at first demurred at being swept into bed. One cannot help but wonder whether Canon Leslie was not being kind when he recorded that Lewis Burroughs was an intimate friend of Frederick, the Earl Bishop, or whether in truth the intimate friend might not have been his wife or even later his daughter-in-law Anne Trevor.

16.8 Summary of Isaac and his Family

Burke’s entry of just the one word ‘Isaac’ can now be considerably improved to read, Isaac, Attorney of Dublin, born c1730, married 1756 Sarah, 3rd daughter of Edward Mathews, Public Notary of Dublin (d 1758), and died 1793. She died after 1803 leaving one daughter:

Anne Trevor, b c1767, married (ML) 7th September 1791 Archdeacon of Derry, Newburgh Burroughs, 2nd son of Lewis Burroughs (1713 - 1786) Archdeacon of Derry, Rector of Ballyscullion and Domestic Chaplain to 3rd Duke of Dorset. He died in 1798 and she c1800 leaving issue. There is a report that Anne died and was buried at Lisbon, Portugal.

1. Sackville Burroughs, born c1792, alive 1835

2. William Hamilton Burroughs, born c1794, alive 1835

3. James Lewis Burroughs, born 1796, alive 1835

4. Selina. born c1798, died pre-1835

16.9 Summary of the Bomford Family 1800

The last summary of the family was as at 1762 (11.4)

The descendants of Oliver of Cushenstown (7.1.1, 14.0) and of Laurence of Killeglan (12.3) soon die out, and the last members of these branches are recorded in Chapter 17.

Only two grandchildren of Colonel Laurence are alive at the turn of the century, and they are both the children of Stephen the elder of Gallow; they are:

1. Stephen the younger and his wife Elizabeth (Sibthorpe) who are living at Rahinstown. They would be both in their late 70s (Chapter 15, 18).

2. David and his wife Sarah (Burtchaell) who were living at Gallow and would be in their early 70s or perhaps late 60s (this Chapter and 19.3).

It is from these two that all later Bomfords stem and 1800 is a convenient time to record their children who have all grown up.

Children of Stephen the younger of Rahinstown at 1800.

1. Thomas the eldest son. Only two things were known about him: he was alive in 1774 (11.10); and he was said to have died before his father died in 1806 (see 18.1.2). He may have died soon after 1774 because he is not mentioned in the later deeds and as the eldest son he should have been.

Some additional information has since come to light. The List of the General and Field-Officers As They Rank in the Army has a Thomas Bomford as Ensign from 1 January 1766 to 12 July 1770 and then Lieutenant until 6 June 1776, in the 64th Regiment of Foot, the first two years in Ireland and then in America; and then Captain in the 35th Regiment of Foot in America until some time in 1778; enlistment records have not been found. The 35th was garrisoning New York in 1778 but went to the West Indies late in that year. Thomas appears to have left the Army that year and stayed in America.

http://www.lxiv.org/ (a history of the 64^thRegiment of Foot) has extracts of inspection records held by the Public Record Office in London. Included in the report of the inspection on 6 July 1767 is 'Ensign Thomas Bumford, Irish, [age] 19, 1 [years of service, from] 1^st Jan^ry 1766'. This shows Thomas was Irish, aged 19 at 6 July 1767, had 1 year of service and had become an Ensign on 1 Jan 1766, i.e. he was born c 1748. Note spelling Bumford. All of which fits with Thomas of the 64th and 35th being Thomas the eldest son of Stephen the Younger, who was born, presumably, between the marriage of his parents in 1745 and the birth of the second child, Robert, in 1751.

Volume 6 of the Publications of the Buffalo Historical Society at page 71 reports, '... in April, 1783, a letter from England to Mr. Porteous written by Trevor Bomford, announcing the death of his brother Thomas Bomford (late captain in the 35th infantry) ...'. The article is a reprint of A British Privateer in the American Revolution by Henry R Howland in The American Historical Review Vol 7 No 2 Jan 1902 pp 286-303. Thomas had a younger brother Trevor (number 7 below), so this report is consistent with Thomas of the 35th being the son of Stephen. The letter indicates that Thomas died of a cold which rapidly developed into a putrid fever, following his return to Ireland. He died at Rahinstown on 29th March 1783.

(There was another Thomas Bomford of the 35th, also recorded at times in the payrolls as Thomas Bumford, Bummford, Bamford or Barmford. He was a private and served with the 35th from 25 December 1801 until his death in Malta on 20 April 1804. He previously served in the 63rd Regiment of Foot, to which he was recruited on 13 August 1799 in Montgomery, England, close to the border with Wales. He may well be a Welsh Bumford, and is not likely to be any relation to our Thomas.)

A speculative hypothesis developed by Nancy Peterson is that Captain Thomas Bomford of the 35th is the mystery father of Lt Colonel George Bomford of the Ordnance Office in Washington, DC, USA: see Nancy's article Guarded Pasts (pdf, 0.2MB). George stated that he was born in New York City. Subsequent to his death, it was stated by his grandson that he was the son of an officer of the British Army named Thomas Bomford. Nancy Peterson has wondered whether Thomas of the 35th is the Thomas Bomford who with no apparent previous history married a widow Basmath Armstrong (nee Fowler) in Bennington County, Vermont, in c 1782. Many ex Loyalists found a home in Vermont after the war. From census records, Thomas and Basmath's household included an (unnamed) boy aged under 16 in 1790 who cannot be accounted for among her sons (from Bennington town and probate records) and may have been the young George, son of Thomas by an earlier relationship. George named his second son James Votey Bomford. Conventionally, the name Votey would refer to George's mother's name or another significant relative. No such connection has yet been found in this case. Alternatively, the name might have been given to honour a close friend. A Thomas Bumford married Ann Ross on 25 February 1779 in Cambridge Massachusetts. The history of that Thomas is unknown. An outside chance is that Ann Ross married Thomas, and died giving birth to George; and that Thomas then remarried Basmath, while a Votey family contributed to George's upbringing. However, if Thomas of the 35th died in 1783 then he can't have been part of Basmath's family in 1790; Basmath lived to c 1829. The letter written by Thomas' brother Trevor reporting Thomas' death in 1783 asks Mr Porteous in New York to "inform that unfortunate woman [Miss Decostor]" of Thomas' death and wishes "that she may find some other way of supporting herself than by relying on the bounty of this family". A promissory note dated New York 1st November 1782 is signed Mary Decoster. Ms Decoster has not yet been traced. The IGI records three Mary Decosters born and two married in Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts in the 1700s. Mary Decoster is a candidate for the mother of George Bomford of the Ordnance Office, though there is no mention of a boy in the correspondence. Again, the name Votey may have come into the family if Mary and/or the young George developed a relationship with the Votey family as servant and/or guardian.

If you have evidence that may cast further light on Thomas, please contact us.

2. Robert is the eldest living son. He was born in 1751 so is now 49. For 20 years he served in India with the Bengal Army of the East India Company (15.4) and came home as a Captain in 1792 to marry Maria (Massy-Dawson) (15.5). For some reason he and his father Stephen did not get on together and, as will soon be seen, his father tried to cut him out of his will. However Robert married into a landed family with property spread around Tipperary, Kildare and Limerick and so was probably not too concerned at this date. In 1802 he and his wife with the first of their children were living in London so this was probably where they lived after their marriage.

3. Margaret married John Mockler about 1779 (15.6). They are both alive and living in Trim; he is now over 50, she about 50 and their son John Mockler is about 20.

4. Stephen had died in 1790 or 1791 (15.9), aged about 35, and unmarried.

5. Anthony is now about 45. He does not marry and will die in 1805. He lived at Rahinstown but really very little is known about him, perhaps he is farming some of his father’s land.

6. George who was born in 1759 (11.10.1) is still a bachelor aged 41 and is living with his parents at Rahinstown. He is the heir presumptive but has branched out and is farming his own land, mostly Drumlargan.

7. Trevor the attorney was born in 1760 and had died in 1797 (15.8.1, 18.5.1) aged about 37. He left his wife Mary (McDonnell) with two girls both minors; George was made their guardians. They were living in Dublin, most likely in Gardiner’s Place. (18.5)

8. Ephraim was born in 1761 so is now 39. He is in the Army serving with the Royal Marines. He remains a bachelor. (18.3)

9. Frances Jane married Lt-Col Cromwell Massy in 1800 when she was about 40 (15.10.1); he had seen service with the Madras Army of the East India Company. They may be living in Dublin, perhaps in the house Frances Jane bought in Denmark Street in 1790.

10. Chichester is the youngest of Stephen’s living children and would be in his early 30s. At that age he is probably serving with the Waterford Militia, which he left, as a Captain. He does not marry. (18.4)

11. Mariana was mentioned in 1774 (11.10) when she was about 8 (11.10.1), whereas all the other children were mentioned in various wills, Mariana has not been (eg 18.1.2), so it is assumed that she has died.

The next update of Stephen's surviving children is at 18.1.2. Then see 19.7 (summary of the whole family).

Children of David of Gallow at 1800.

1. Jane married Duke Cooper (16.2) in August 1785 when she was about 23. Most, if not all, of their six children have been born. They may be living at Great Down, Co Westmeath, but more likely in Dublin.

2. Anne married John North in September 1786 (16.3) when she was about 22. They are both alive and their three sons and a daughter may have been born by 1800. Their family home is Whitewell, Co Westmeath.

3. Isaac is the only son, aged 34. He is an attorney and most probably working in Dublin. He is a bachelor, but will marry Jane Holdcroft in 1807 (19.5).

4. Mary Elizabeth was baptised in 1768 and she ‘died young’, so she must be dead by now.

5. Sarah Frances is now aged about 30 and will be married in 1803 to John Coates (19.4).

David's family is followed in Chapter 19 (19.3). The next update of the whole family, as at 1820, is at 19.7.

16.9.1 Changes in the Bomford Estates since 1762 1800

Stephen the Younger, of Rahinstown. Stephen’s birth date is not known but it must have been about 1718. In 1762 he would have been in his early 40s and perfectly capable of overseeing his large acreage of over 9,500 acres; however by 1800 he was in his early 80s and many leases have not been renewed. His only ‘farming’ son was George, aged 41 and still single, who is branching out on his own but no doubt it is really he who is running Stephen’s remaining property.

Stephen’s leases not renewed:

In Co Meath (near Duleek)

Bellewstown, 1,591 acres, c1792

Red Mountain, 97 acres, c1792

In Co Louth

Carlingford, 97 acres, c1793

Castletownbellew, 332 acres, c1792

Castletownbellew Teteitragh, 270 acres, c1792

So Stephen got rid of 2,387 statute acres mostly in 1792; there were no new leases and the land that he kept is listed below (16.9.2).

Reverend John of Gallowdied in 1776. He had no children and his land was passed to his two younger brothers, David and Isaac. Isaac died in 1793 having had one daughter who, as was the custom, did not inherit the land; Isaac’s land was passed to his nephew, Isaac the son of David.

Gallow, 421 acres, passed to David

Ferrans, 429 acres, passed to Isaac, then to nephew Isaac

Culmullin, 901 acres, lease not renewed c1767

Woodtown, 734 acres, passed in trust to George, but the lease was not renewed c1800

Weatherstown, 193 acres, passed to David, lease terminated c1787

Tyrrellstown, 347 acres , passed to Isaac, then to nephew Isaac

Gurteen, 572 acres, passed to both David and Isaac

Gainstown, 128 acres, passed to David, not mentioned again so the lease was probably not renewed in 1790

There were no new leases.

William of Cushenstownhas retired to Delgany where he is living with his second wife. He will shortly die (c1803) aged about 70. In 1762 he had just over 2,500 acres, much of which had been taken over by his son Thomas before 1800.

Cushenstown & Kilmoon, 875 acres, now held by Thomas

Bodman, 112 acres, now held by Thomas

Portlester, 162 acres, now held by Thomas

Crossmacoole, 214 acres, now held by Thomas

Pranstown, 373 acres, lease probably terminated c1790

Farragh, 263 acres, lease not renewed 1786

Cullenhue, 78 acres, lease not renewed 1786

Thorntown, 130 acres, lease not renewed 1783

Surgolstown, 203 acres, sold before 1783

Laurestown, 130 acres, sold before 1783.

Later Purchases

Dunreigh, 124 acres, purchased before 1791 and now probably held by Thomas, William’s son.

Lake Tay, Luggalow etc, ? acres, purchased c1770 and sold c1790

Delgany, 66 acres, purchased in 1790. William probably left it to his second wife, Margaret Helen. In 1810 it was in the hands of John Bomford who leased it for 29 years (17.2.3) Lease expires in 1839.

Oliver of Rathfeighwas last mentioned in 1761. In 1800 he would be over 85 and so is likely to be dead. In 1762 he had:

Rathfeigh, 1,280 acres: this lease expired in 1767 and probably was not renewed, indeed it is likely that Oliver died about that date; and Wilson, who in the early days was also ‘of Rathfeigh’, was working in Dublin.

Kilbrew, 147 acres: this lease does not end until c1805. It was most likely inherited by Thomas, William’s son and Oliver’s grand nephew, who is his only close ‘farming relative’ with land in that area.

Thomas of Clounstown, William’s brother, who died c1796 at Ardnacraney in Co Westmeath. In 1762 he had: -

Clounstown, 543 acres, sold in 1784

Brick, 125 acres, lease expired in 1786 but was sold in 1784

When Thomas moved from Clounstown he bought

Harristown, ?168 acres, no real documentation, but Thomas had it in 1784.

Ardnacraney, 96 acres, leased before 1796, and its area was probably more than 96 acres. Although the lease does not expire until 1827, its status in 1800 is not certain.

Ballinakill, 1799-1864, Lisgonell, 1799-1817, Cumberstown, 1762-1832, Stonehall, 1817-1837, & Blackhills, 1846-1850: Thomas and/or his children also possessed these lands in County Westmeath about which we know little. The dates refer to the first and last mention of the lands in the documents. See 14.8.4.

16.9.2 The Bomford Estates 1800

Stephen the Younger of Rahinstown

Rahinstown, 642 acres

Baconstown, 821 acres

Rattin, 460 acres

Clonfad, 567 acres

Arodstown, 125 acres

Dirpatrick, 770 acres

Mylerstown, 483 acres

Dunfierth, 771 acres

Killyan, Mucklin, Mulgeeth, Kilmurry, Kilshanroe, Gurley Mill, Ballynemallagh, & Clonkeran: 2,514 acres, in Co Kildare

Total of Stephen: 7,153 statute acres.

David of Gallow and his son Isaacc

Gallow, 421 acres

Ferrans, 429 acres

Tyrrellstown, 347 acres

Gurteen, 580 acres

New lease

Kilglan, 65 acres

Total of David and Isaac: 1,842 statute acres

George of Rahinstown, son of Stephen the Younger. All new property, dates of acquisition in brackets.

Ross, 458 acres (1781) (in trust for his mother)

Drumlargan, 980 acres (1787)

Knockstown, 222 acres (1787)

Total of George: 1,660 acres

Thomas of Cushenstown, great-grandson of Oliver, son of William, now aged about 45 and the only one of Oliver’s descendants who is farming seriously.

Cushenstown & Kilmoon, 875 acres

Bodman, 12 acres

Portlester, 162 acres

Crossmacoole, 214 acres

Kilbrew, 147 acres

New lease

Dunreigh, 124 acres

Total of Thomas: 1,634 acres

Overall Total acreage held by the family: 12,289 statute acres

This shows a considerable decrease on the 1762 figure of 18,097 acres. About 5,800 acres have been disposed of and, of this, over half belonged to Oliver’s and Laurence’s branches who, with the exception of Thomas, have moved from the land. Actually they do own some land but it has not been included in the above because all those concerned are elderly and have retired. I imagine their land to be parkland around the house with the odd paddock for their horses.

William, grandson of Oliver, aged about 70, was living at Delgany in Co Wicklow.

Delgany, 66 acres

John, grandson of Oliver, a merchant of Dublin now aged about 60. He made two purchases outside Greystones, Co Wicklow.

Upper Rathdown, 50 acres

Killincarrick, acreage not known, leased before 1780

Laurence, grandson of Laurence of Killeglan, and son of Wilson, now aged about 55 and living in Co Dublin, near Lucan.

Ballyowen, 71 acres, purchased in 1799

A few more new properties will appear later, but from 1800 onwards more and more properties will be sold. This is a suitable time, therefore, to insert maps showing the approximate borders of the Bomford townlands of Meath, Westmeath and Kildare. The scale would be too small to show them all so those of North Meath (Oakley Park, near Kells) and of Counties Louth, Dublin and Wicklow have been omitted. A full list of all the properties with cross references to the relevant text will be found in Appendix ‘B’.

Co Kildare Properties (Map and list)

(Click on image above for enlargement. Or view a higher quality image of the Kildare map: 85 kB file). (Map references are in chronological order)

46. Boycetown

47. Whitestown

57. Killyan

58. Mulgeeth

59. Mucklan

60. Kilshanroe

61. Clonkeran

62. Dunfierth

63. Mylerstown

76. Kilmurry

77. Ballynemallagh

78. Clonagh

Co Meath Properties (Map and list)

(Click on image above for enlargement. Or view a higher quality image of the Meath map: 320 kB file)

Index of Meath Properties (map references are in chronological order)

1. Clonmahon

2. Oldtown (Meath)

3. Little Ardrums

4. Ferrans and Brayfield

6. Primatstown

7. Irishrown

8. Kilmoon

9. Cushenstown

10. Bodmin

11. Portlester

12. Rahinstown

13. Baconstown

14. Parkstown

15. Cooleronan

18. Castletown

24. Brick

25. Rathflisk

26. Rathfeigh

27. Gallow

29. Killeglan

30. Clounstown

33. Pranstown

34. Crossanstown

35. Smithstown

36. Thomastown

37. Reesk

38. Kilbrew

45. Crossmacoole

48. Dirpatrick

49. Arrodstown

50. Culmullen

51. Woodtown

52. Weatherstown

53. Little Cabra

56. Thornetown

64. Ross

65. Drumlargan

66. Knockstown

67. Killglan

68. Dunreigh

70. Clonlyon

71. Moynalvy

72. Mullagh

73. Baltrasna

74. Bellewstown (Duleek)

75. Red Mountain

Co Westmeath Properties (Map and List)

(Click on image above for enlargement. Or view a higher quality image of the Westmeath map: 290 kB file)

Index of Westmeath Properties (map references are in chronological order)

5. Clonfad

16. Oldtown

17. Enniscoffey

19. Balloughter (Hightown)

20. Cloncullen

21. Balrowan

22. Gnewbane

23. Tyrrellstown

28. Rattin

31. Gurteen

32. Gainstown

39. Farragh

40. Ballywade

41. Lacken

42. Rathbennett

43. Rathenisky

44. Cullenhue

54. Milltown

55. Ballymagiddon

69. Ballinakill

Next Chapter: Chapter 17

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