The Irish Bomfords

By 1833 the last of Robert and Maria’s (15.5) daughters (Chapter 21) had married and left Rahinstown (19.1) to the only son, Robert George and his wife Elizabeth (Kennedy) (21.5). These two were married in October 1826 (21.5) and so were well established at Rahinstown, and Robert George had taken his place as a country gentleman.

Amongst the documents is a booklet concerning the County Meath Civil Accounts at the Lent Assizes of 1834; the majority of expenses concern road upkeep, but the police, public buildings and ‘malicious damage’ are also included. The booklet shows that Robert George, now aged 33, had already taken the usual responsibilities expected of a landlord. In 1834 he was the 21st Member of the Meath Grand Jury, and he remained a member until his death in 1846. He had been appointed a ‘supervisor’ of the road passing his front gates from Summerhill to Edenderry “between the mearing of Agher and Michael Coffey’s forge at Ballinaskea”, a distance of about two miles. The accounts show that in 1834 he had received £18.1.7 for road repairs and had submitted three claims for current repairs totalling £45.5.9. Taken overall the roads of Ireland were kept in good order at this time and this was largely due to the system. After all, the local landlord would get a bad name from his friends and neighbours, who had to travel over his particular portion, if the road had not been well maintained.

The Kilkenny Independent of Wednesday 27th November 1827 shows that Robert George Bomford and Richard Bolton were returned by the Judges of Assize to serve the Office of High Sheriff in Meath for the ensuing year. The Dublin directories show that Robert George was made a Meath Magistrate in 1836 and he remained a JP until he died. All this indicates that he and Elizabeth lived at Rahinstown, however they did have a town house in Dublin from at least 1833. This house, No 7 Upper Merrion Street, was where Robert George's mother also lived and, indeed, it may have been her house, at least initially. Later, during the 1840s, Maria lived with her daughter, Frances Georgina Bolton (21.6), at Bective Abbey on the Boyne and she died there in 1848. However, in 1836, there is a note in the Ordnance Survey Name Book that “the pleasure gardens appear very much neglected” at Rahinstown and this, coupled with the fact that all the land was let, leads me to think that Robert George and Elizabeth lived in Dublin for most of the time.

Robert George had two major concerns during this period. The first was the clearance of the land at Rahinstown and the other properties of the debts and mortgages consequent to his father’s settlement on his children. The second was consequent to the death of his father-in-law in 1834. Elizabeth was the only surviving child and so heir of James Trail Kennedy her father who had much property in Co Down and around there. We shall deal in this chapter with these two items and complete with the death of Robert George and the sale of Rahinstown.

22.2 Rahinstown Mortgages and Release

It will be remembered that Maria took out at least three mortgages on the land in order to pay the settlement money to her daughters. These were:

£2,000 from John Graham in 1821 (21.2)

£2,500 from John Graham in 1824 (21.2.1)

£1,384.12.3 from William Jones Armstrong in 1827 or £1,500 old currency, making a total of £6,000 old currency or about £5,540 in the new currency (21.6.1).

As seemed to be normal, the mortgages were handed around almost as though they were currency and this happened with these ones, so much so that it is difficult to keep trace of them.

22.2.1 Rahinstown Mortgage 1st November 1831

William Jones Armstrong of Slademore Lodge, Co Dublin, with the consent of Robert George Bomford of Rahinstown, made over the mortgage on Dirpatrick, Arradstown, Baconstown and Rahinstown to Hamilton Trail Johnston of Hollybrook, Co Down. (1837 Book 20 No 80)

This is the £1,384 mortgage of l827 (21.6.1). Although we do not know who Hamilton Trail Johnston is, the name ‘Trail’ indicates that he was some relation of James Trail Kennedy, Elizabeth’s father.

22.2.2 Rahinstown Mortgage 30th May 1838

Some of the mortgage money on Rahinstown, Dirpatrick, Arradstown and Baconstown is passed from Henry Chinnery Justice of Ely Place, Dublin and John Tew Armstrong of Dominic Street, Dublin, to Robert Stewart Kennedy of Temple Street, Dublin, barrister, with the consent of Robert George Bomford of Rahinstown. (1838 Book 11 No 226)

Henry Chinnery Justice and John Tew Armstrong had become in 1831 the new trustees of the marriage settlement of Frances Rose Bomford and Samuel Pratt Winter both of whom died late in 1831 (18.6.2). The original trustees were John Pratt Winter and Isaac Bomford; the next deed of 1831 concerns the hand over of Isaac Bomford’s trusteeships. Henry Chinnery Justice was also a trustee of Jemima Bolton’s annuity of 1833 (21.7.1), and the agent for Lady Annette Maria Hesketh (22.9.3).

Robert Stewart Kennedy (1805 - 1854) was the eldest surviving son of Hugh Kennedy (1775 - 1852) of Cultra, Co Down, on the south shore of Belfast Lough to the east of Holywood. The Armstrong connection is clarified in the next deed of 1831, in which Isaac, the son of David Bomford and first cousin of Robert and Maria Bomford, hands over the mortgage because he is elderly, aged 65, and retiring.

Isaac Bomford Relinquishes his Trusteeships 29th April 1831

Isaac Bomford of Blessington Street, Dublin, wishes to be relieved of his trusteeships (which are all listed). This deed concerns the brothers.

1. William Jones Armstrong, late Colonial Secretary in Demerara and Essequebo in the West Indies, and Thomas Knox Armstrong of Fellows Hall, Co Armagh

2. John Tew Armstrong of North Frederick Street, Dublin

(Book 871 Page 4 No 579004)

The Armstrong Family

This family can be added to the Tew family tree of 9.3.7.

John Tew, 1722 - c1771 (son of David Tew and Elizabeth (Smith) whose sister Anne (Smith) married Stephen Bomford of Gallow (2.13), nephew of Elizabeth (Tew) and Thomas Bomford the elder of Rahinstown (1.10), alderman, Lord Mayor of Dublin in 1759), married Margaret, 4th daughter of Robert Maxwell, Captain of Horse, of Fellows Hall, Tynan near Killylea, Co Armagh, whose brother John became 1st Baron Farnham. They had two sons, Robert Maxwell Tew and William Tew, and four daughters, the third being:

Margaret Tew, born 1757, married 1784 and died aged 103 in June 1860. She married Rev William Jones Armstrong, born 1764, MA (Trinity), Rector of Termonfeckin in Co Louth, and died 1825. They had three sons and three daughters:

1. William Jones Armstrong, Colonial Secretary in Demerara and Essequebo in the West Indies, and later of Killylea Co Armagh, barrister, born 22nd May 1794 and died 1872. He married and had children. He gave the 1827 mortgage of £1,384 to Maria Bomford (21.6.1).

2. John Tew Armstrong, solicitor of Dublin, born January 1796, married in 1839 Anne, daughter of Ralph Tew of Rodanstown, Co Meath, (who was probably the ‘Mr Tew of Dublin’ who leased part of Kilglin in 1836 16.1.5 ). He acquired the £1,384 mortgage from his older brother before 1831.

3. Thomas Knox Armstrong, born 13th July 1797, inherited Fellows Hall from his grandmother Margaret (Maxwell) and was living there in 1838 according to Lewis’ Dictionary, and died in Rome in January 1840. In 1833 he married Catherine Frances, 2nd daughter of Wallop Brabazon (1770 - 1831) of Rath House, Louth. They had two daughters.

Incidentally Lewis also records in the same parish as Fellows Hall “Durtan of Maxwell Cross Esq.”. He may be a grandson of Elizabeth Tew, daughter of John Tew of Mulhussy, who married a Mr Cross.

Rahinstown Mortgage 27th November 1838

Another change of mortgage on Rahinstown, etc, with the consent of Robert George Bomford of Rahinstown to (? Hamilton Trail) Johnston. (1839 Book 1 No 207)

22.2.3 Rahinstown Mortgage for £12,000 29th December 1838

The lands of Rahinstown, Dirpatrick, Arradstown and Baconstown are leased to John Martley of Rutland Square, Dublin, by Robert George Bomford of Rahinstown. (1839 Book 2 No 237)

This deed is missing but it is referred to in a later deed, 22.9.2. It is for an additional mortgage by Robert George for £12,000 and was probably taken out to finally settle his sister’s inheritance.

So now, in 1838, the original two mortgages to James Graham for £4,500 still stand. The mortgage for £1,384 is split between Hamilton Trail Johnston and Robert Stewart Kennedy. And there is this new mortgage for £12,000 to John Martley.

Meanwhile the Bomford sisters, who were owed money from the settlement, now officially clear the estate of any further claim by the following two deeds of release.

22.2.4 Deed of Release of Rahinstown 14th February 1839

Between

1. Hon Frederick, James Tollemache of Hyde Park Place, London

2. Richard Bolton of Bective Abbey, Co Meath (21.6.1), and Richard Bolton of Cheltenham, Gloucestershire (21.7.1)

3. Robert George Bomford of Rahinstown

4. John Bolton Massey of Ballywire, Co Tipperary.

Reciting

That John Bolton Massey has paid £2,796.4.7½ to both [each of?] the Richard Boltons.

Now the two Richard Boltons and Frederick James Tollemache release the lands of Dirpatrick 475 Irish acres (770 statute) Arradstown 77 Irish acres (125 statute) Baconstown 501 Irish acres (821 statute) and Rahinstown 396 Irish acres (642 statute). (1839 Book 15 No 118)

22.2.5 Deed of Release of Rahinstown 17th August 1839

Between

1. Richard Martin Southcote Mansergh of Grenane, Co Tipperary (21.3.1)

2. Sir Thomas Henry Hesketh of Old Rufford Hall, Lancashire, and Annette Maria (Bomford), his wife (21.4.2).

3. Robert George Bomford of Rahinstown and Sir Thomas Henry Hesketh. Both trustees of the marriage settlement of Charles Martin with Susanna Margaret Bomford (21.8). (The Martins probably could not sign the deed because at this date Charles was Chaplain at Mannheim.)

4. Robert George Bomford and Hamilton Trail Johnston of Hollypark (or maybe Hollybrook, see 22.2.1), Co Down.

5. John Bolton Massey of Ballywire, Co Tipperary

The above all release the lands as listed in the previous deed. The various sums which were paid off, being £3,000, £3,000 and £3,000, were part of the trust of £15,000 (19.2.2) and all in accordance with the will of Robert Bomford (21.2 recital 2). (1840 Book 1 No 239)

22.3 Ordnance Survey Field Name Books 1836

In 1835 and 1836 a survey was carried out, largely by the Royal Engineers, of each townland in Ireland. This was written up in the “Ordnance Survey Field Name Books”, and was followed by a new six-inch map of Ireland in 1837. The following is the report on those townlands containing Robert George’s property.

Rahinstown

“569 acres the property of Mr Bomford who relets it at £2.10.0 an acre, Rahinstown House is a very good one but the pleasure gardens appear to be very much neglected” (which leads me to believe that perhaps they lived in Dublin, they were certainly not farming it themselves). “The demesne is well planted with fir and round trees.”

Baconstown

“1097 acres is let at £2 an acre and is the property of Mr Bomford. Used chiefly for grazing and the fields in the south are very large, the land is good.”

Arradstown

“1038 acres, the property of Mr Leslie of Glasslough, Co Monaghan, rented to Mr Henry Williams at 10/6 an acre. Mr Henry Williams lives in Curraghmore Cottage, a neat thatched cottage, and Robert Williams lives in Arrodstown House, a two storied thatched good farmhouse; first built by King Arod, a Dane, in 900 A.D.”

Dirpatrick, also Derrypatrick

“967 acres, it is the property of Mr Mcvey of Druithstown from whom Mr Bomford has the whole in perpetuity at 4/6 an acre. It is let in farms of 37 to 200 acres at £1.10.0 an acre. The largest of these farms is with Mr Langan of Woodland near Skreen.” (Mr Mcvey of Druithstown is Ferdinand Meath McVeagh, 1789-1866, of Drewstown House, southwest of Kells, who’s grand-daughter Flora Mary McVeagh Sadleir married George Winter Bomford, the son of George Bomford of Oakley Park, see 30.2.2).

Mullagh in the Parish of Kilmore

“496 acres, the property of Mr Bomford who has it let at £1.15.0 per acre.”

Even if we allow that the Arradstown land must really have been part of the neighbouring Dirpatrick townland, the acreage recorded in the deed of February 1839 (22.2.4) does not match that of the Ordnance Survey.

The difference is not great, 2,358 acres of the deed against 2,633 of the survey, and this probably occurs because the deed figures are extracted from the deeds of the previous century, and also because there is the muddling difference between the Irish or Plantation measure and the statute acre. We must accept the Ordnance Survey and so Robert George had 2,633 statute acres plus the 496 acres of Mullagh from which we can work out his income, approximately.

Property	Lease/Income	To Head Landlord	Net Income
Rahinstown &	£1,422.10.0	Sir Arthur Langford, £160.0.0	£3 456.10.0
Baconstown	£2,194.0.0
Dirpatrick	£1,450.10.0	Ferdinand McVeagh, £217.11.6	£1,232.18.6
Mullagh	£868.0.0	???	£800.0.0

This brings in a total of £5,489.8.6 from which will be deducted a further amount due for tithes, cess and so on. We might say that Robert George was worth about £4,500 a year, and, in view of the £12,000 mortgage and the others, that he was living beyond his means. However he was forced to have these large mortgages so that he could credit his sisters according to his father’s settlement of 1811, which amounted to £15,000. These settlements made life very difficult for the next of kin and in some cases they caused the break-up of estates. Indeed it will be seen that on Robert George’s death the land had to be sold to settle the mortgages.

One cannot help comparing the above figures with those of the previous century. In 1743 the Langford’s got the same £160 for Rahinstown and Baconstown, but the Bomfords had never leased those lands before Robert George did, and so there is no comparison there. Rahinstown and Baconstown had always been the ‘home farm’ even in Robert Bomford’s days. However we can do better in the case of Dirpatrick. In 1725 the Head Landlord, William Conolly, received £200 a year which compares favourably with Ferdinand McVeagh’s £217. In 1750 Stephen Bomford leased Dirpatrick at about 8/9 an acre, now it is £1.10.0 an acre, an increase of about 350% in about 90 years. It is not known when McVeagh became the head landlord of Dirpatrick.

22.4 Kennedy Property

The detail of the Kennedy property is not recorded here, but it is all listed in the following deeds. It would appear that Robert George and Elizabeth (21.5) went to Co Down to settle Elizabeth's affairs on the death of her father in 1834.

22.4.1 Kennedy Property 13th April 1834

This deed all concerns the land and the inheritance of Elizabeth and is between:

1. Robert George Bomford of Annadale, Co Down, and Elizabeth Bomford (Kennedy) his wife, the only surviving child and heiress of James Trail Kennedy, late of Annadale, deceased

2. Robert Francis Gordon of Belfast, (1802 - 1883, eldest son of Alexander Gordon, 1762 - 1829, of Castle Place, Belfast; he later succeeded to both Florida Manor and Delamont House, both in Co Down). (1835 Book 8 No 59)

22.4.2 Kennedy Property 21st July 1846

Robert George Bomford of Rahinstown leases - (two deeds):

1. to Alexander McDonnell of Belfast, merchant:

a. the land of Ballymafeigh, Co Down, consisting of 13 statute acres in the Parish of Newtownbreda in the Barony of Castlereagh for 28 years at a rent of £30 a year. (1848 Book 7 No 105)

b. 91 statute acres in the townland of Galwally in the Parish of Newtown Breda for three lives at a rent of £290 (a bit steep, misprint?). The land of both these leases was formerly belonging to James Trail Kennedy, deceased. (1848 Book 7 No 109)

2. to Samuel Gibson Getty of Cromac Park, Co Antrim, the land of Ballynafeigh consisting of 13 statute acres for the lives of their Royal Highnesses Prince Albert of Saxe Coburg; Albert Edward, Prince of Wales; and Victoria Adelaide Mary Louise, Princess Royal; from the date of the original lease of 16th February 1813 at a rent of £30. (1848 Book 7 No 106)

On 3rd February 1847 Getty leased his 13 acres to Alexander McDonnell of Annadale, Co Down. Annadale was James Trail Kennedy’s place where Elizabeth was brought up, and it looks as though McDonnell now has the house. Although we do not know the exact site of Annadale House because it is now part of the south-east suburbs of Belfast and built over, there are many streets named to commemorate Annadale; for instance Annadale Embankment runs along the River Lagan between what used to be the seat of the 2nd and 3rd Marquises of Donegall, Ormeau Park, and the seat of Viscount Dungannon, Lord Trevor, at Belvoir Park. Galwally is also built over and lies to the east of Annadale. The two neighbouring suburbs of Ballynafeigh and Newtownbreda contain all these places.

22.5 Dispute and Lease of Rahinstown and Baconstown 13th May 1841

Between

1. Hon Philip Pleydell Bouverie of London ... and many others (Written in full in deed of 20th May 1847, 22.5.2, but including:)

5. Robert George Bomford of Rahinstown

Reciting

1. The lease of Sir Arthur Langford dated 11th December 1691 to Thomas Bomford of the lands of Baconstown and Rahinstown for three lives with the right of perpetual renewal at a rent of £160

2. The deed of settlement of 28th June 1811 when the above land was vested in Benedict Arthure of Seafield, Co Dublin. (This was Robert’s settlement on his children (19.2.2) and John Arthure, Maria’s uncle, was one of the trustees).

3. The report of Judge Goold dated 7th May 1841 in which he stated that there was a covenant in the original lease for perpetual renewal which was binding on the Hon Clotworthy Wellington, Lord Langford.

So Lord Langford now leases Baconstown consisting of 507 plantation acres and Rahinstown consisting of 396 plantation acres. (1841 Book 13 No 138)

22.5.1 Continuation 13th October 1843

This continues from the above deed of 13th May 1841 and confirms Benedict Arthure (son of Rev Benedict) in the lands of Baconstown and Rahinstown for the lives of John Walker; Robert George Bomford of Rahinstown; and Elizabeth Bomford, his wife; at the yearly rent of £160. (1844 Book 2 No 143)

John Walker has not appeared in any of the deeds. However, at a guess, he might be the leasee of Rahinstown and Baconstown, which we know were leased at this date, and as such it would be normal to make him one of the lives. John Walker and Elizabeth Bomford remained two of the lives after Robert George’s death; the third life substituted for Robert George was that of the Prince of Wales (see below).

The Arthur Family

No actual family tree has been found, but from information from Vicar’s, Canon Leslie and these deeds the following has been put together. Audrey Arthure (email 20 Jul 2010) advises that extensive work has been done on the Arthure family tree. It is held privately.

1a Benedict Arthure (or Arthur) died in 1752, probate. He built Seafield House at Donabate, Co Dublin, soon after 1737 probably by remodelling an earlier house. The house is described in Burke’s Guide to Country Houses and the Arthur family lived there until the second half of the 1800s when they sold it to John Hely-Hutchinson whose uncle was the 3rd Earl of Donoughmore. Benedict’s natural son whose mother he married just before he died was:

2a John Arthur of Seafield married Elizabeth Massy, the aunt of Maria (Massy) and Robert Bomford. They had two sons, below, and a daughter Elizabeth about whom nothing is known. John Arthur died in 1757, probate, and his wife Elizabeth (Massy) married again (see 15.5.1).

3a John Arthur of Seafield married Maria Elizabeth Bolton (deed of 1802, 19.1.1). The marriage took place in St Anne’s Church, Dawson Street Dublin, and was carried out by the Bishop of Meath (Hibernian Magazine). Maria Elizabeth Bolton was a sister of Robert Compton Bolton of Brazeel who married Maria Bomford’s sister. It is thought that they had no children since Seafield passed to Benedict some time after the deed of October 1826, 21.5.1, when John was still alive. It was this John Arthur who was a trustee of Robert Bomford’s settlement of 1811 (19.2.2).

3b Benedict Arthur was a clergyman and his life is reported in Canon Leslie’s Succession lists in the RCB Library which reads, “Arthur, Benedict, son of John Arthur, born in Dublin (1753), entered TCD 29th June 1770 aged 17, BA 1774, MA 1777, LLD 1795. Curate of St Thomas Dublin 1784. Went to England. Married Jane, daughter of Thomas Bunbury of Kill, Co Carlow, ML 1st August 1776. She died his widow of Seafield, Co Dublin, 18th October 1842.”

3c Elizabeth about whom nothing is known

The deeds of October 1843 and May 1847 show that Benedict took over as trustee of the 1811 Bomford settlement from John Arthur; but since Jane Arthur died a widow in 1842 then this Benedict must be a son, Benedict of Seafield, born c1778, party to the deeds of 1843 and 1847.

22.5.2 Rahinstown & Baconstown 20th May 1847

Continuing from the above deed, since Robert George Bomford has died, the life of His Royal Highness Albert, Prince of Wales, is substituted.

This indenture was between:

1. Hon Philip Pleydell Bouverie of London “in that part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland called England”. (A description of London which caught my eye)

2. Hon Clotworthy Wellington William Robert, Lord Langford of Summerhill

3. Dame Annetta Maria Hesketh of Rufford Hall, widow. (Sir Thomas Hesketh died in 1843); John Mansergh of Grenane, Co Tipperary (Jane Rosetta had died in 1836 and, although her husband was still alive and had remarried, John Mansergh is her eldest son aged 24 and has inherited her settlement); Richard Bolton of Bective Abbey, Co Meath, and Frances Georgina Bolton his wife; Richard Bolton of Cheltenham and Jemima Letitia Bolton his wife; Susanna Margaret Martin, widow of the City of Dublin (Charles Martin died in 1847 and we now know that he died before May 1847); Louisa Tollemache of London, spinster (the only child of Sarah Maria Tollemache who died in 1835. Louisa would be about 15 now and has inherited her mother’s property)

4. Benedict Arthure of Seafield, Co Dublin.

(1847 Book 19 No 264)

Those in party three were the daughters of Robert Bomford, or their heirs, and now that Robert George was dead they had come into his property. The deed also tells us where they were living in 1847.

22.6. The Land of Mullagh 14th October 1845

Just before he died Robert George handed over the land of Mullagh in trust for his wife Elizabeth. Mullagh was part of Elizabeth’s dowry and so had become a Bomford property in 1826. The later deeds cover the end of Mullagh as far as the Bomfords are concerned.

22.6.1 The Trust - Mullagh 20th May 1847

Robert George Bomford of Rahinstown leased to George Bomford the land of Mallagh or Mullagh consisting of 297 plantation acres (481 statute) in trust for Elizabeth his wife. (This deed makes no mention of money and although the lease is given to George Bomford, the trustee for Elizabeth is George’s brother, Samuel Bomford.) (1846 Book 8 No 52)

22.6.2 Lease - Mullagh 27th May 1858

Between

1. Richard Bolton of Bective Abbey

2. Richard Bolton of Cheltenham and Jemima Letitia Bolton (Bomford) his wife, and Richard George Bolton, their eldest son.

3. Patrick Kenna of Larch Hill, Co Meath and James Kenna of Liverpool, salesmaster.

4. Daniel Treacy of Lower Dominick Street, Dublin

Reciting

1. Richard Bolton, Jemima Letitia Bolton and their eldest son Richard George of Cheltenham requested Richard Bolton of Bective Abbey to make this memorial concerning the land of Mollagh containing 297 plantation acres in Upper Deece.

2. Mollagh (Mullagh) was leased to Daniel Treacy by Richard Bolton as the surviving trustee at the request of the Boltons of Cheltenham, and the Kennas in trust for Patrick and James Kenna until the death of Richard Bolton. (1858 Book 19 No 115)

Richard and Jemima’s eldest son is recorded here as ‘Richard George Bolton’. In Burke the eldest son is George Thomas Lyndon Bolton and the younger son is Richard Bomford George Bolton; so there appears to be a muddle over the names, and, if it were not for the qualification of ‘their eldest son’, this deed could refer to the eldest or the younger son

22.6.3 Lease - Mullagh 27th May 1858

Between

1. Dame Annetta Maria Hesketh (Bomford) of Rufford Hall, Lancashire, widow.

John Southcote Mansergh of Greenane, Co Tipperary.

Richard Bolton of Bective Abbey and Frances Georgina Bolton (Bomford) his wife.

Richard Bolton of Cheltenham, Gloucester, and Jemima Letitia Bolton (Bomford) his wife, and Richard George Bolton their eldest son.

Susannah Margaret Martin (Bomford) of Dublin, widow.

Louisa Tollemache of Ham House, Co Middlesex, spinster.

2. Patrick Kenna of Larch Hill, Co Meath, Esq. and James Kenna of Liverpool, salesmaster.

For £916.13.4 paid to each of party 1 (the co-heirs of Robert George) by James and Patrick Kenna (a total of £5,500), they make over the land of Mollagh containing 297 plantation acres in the Barony of Upper Deece subject to a life interest to Elizabeth Beresford, (widow of Robert George Bomford). (1858 Book 19 No 116)

For all practical purposes Mullagh ceased to be a Bomford property from this date even though Elizabeth has a life interest. Elizabeth married secondly in 1850 Marcus Beresford (22.10).

22.7 Death of Robert George Bomford 11th December 1846

In Saint Ann’s Church in Dawson Street, Dublin, there is a black and white mural, which reads:

In a vault

beneath this Church

are deposited the remains of

Robert George Bomford Esqr

late of Rahinstown House Co Meath.

He departed this life

on 11th of December 1846

in the 45th year of his age

to the inexpressible grief of

his sorrowing wife and family

His sorrowing wife was Elizabeth (21.5), who was living in Dublin, and the sorrowing family (Chapter 21) consisted of his mother, Maria, living at Bective Abbey and his sisters:

Annette Maria Hesketh living at Old Rufford Hall with her two children; her husband had died.
Frances Georgina Bolton living at Bective Abbey with her husband.
Jemima Letitia Bolton living at Cheltenham with her husband and three children,
Susan Margaret Martin living in Germany with her husband and 4 sons

Robert's sister Jane Rosetta Mansergh had died but her husband and five children were alive and living at Greenane, Co Tipperary

The other sister who had died was Sarah Maria Tollemache, but her husband and a daughter were alive and living in London.

The St Anne parish records (transcript, original document), Dublin, record Robert George Bomford, d 11 December 1846. The nature of the record is not clear - it seems to be a note concerning several deaths over a span of years, rather than contemporary register of burials. The entry is under the heading 'Under South Gallery', and it may be a reference to the inscription noted above. The immediately following note in the document is of Maria Massy Bomford, died 10 July 1848, Robert's mother (22.8).

There must have been a strong connection with St Ann’s Church for Robert George to be buried there, and this adds strength to the argument that only occasionally was Rahinstown occupied, and that No 7 Upper Merrion Street was the main residence. The Almanacks record that from 1833 until 1851 Mrs Bomford occupied Number 7. Mrs Bomford was Maria until she died in 1848 and then Elizabeth until she married again in 1850.

This town house must have been fairly spacious because it was valued at £110 which is more than double the 1854 valuation of £50 for Rahinstown; of course Rahinstown was much older and in the country but even so it only compares with the valuation of the same date of £50 for Oakley Park before the extension was added by George Bomford, and so Rahinstown must have been less attractive.

The following deed of 1856 indicates that the Merrion Street house remained the property of Elizabeth who by that date had married Archbishop Beresford. Samuel Bomford and Robert Wybrants were her trustees.

No 7 Upper Merrion Street 13th October 1856

Between:

1. Samuel Bomford of Tyne Bembridge, Isle of Wight (Chapter 26), and Robert Wybrants of Rutland Square, Dublin, barrister

2. Samuel Athanasius Cusack of Stevens Hospital, Dublin, surgeon,

Reciting:

The lease of 7th February 1839 to Samuel Cusack of part of the north side of Merrion Street now called No 7 Upper Merrion Street including the coach houses, stabling, etc, by Samuel Bomford and Robert Wybrants for 99 years at a rent of £41.1.3.

This memorial re-states the above. (1856 Book 29 No 220).

The IGI has a probate record with an 'event date' of 1786 re 7 Upper Merrion Street: Ireland Landed Estate Court Files, name Bomford, document 012, volume 008, date June 1851 (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KCFZ-3ZP). An image is available but has not been seen - requires a member login.

22.8 Death of Maria Bomford 10th July 1848

The only known record of the death of Maria Bomford (15.5), Robert George’s mother, is a mural in black and white marble, in St Ann’s Church, Dawson Street in Dublin, which reads

Sacred

to the memory of

MARIA MASSY BOMFORD

widow of the late Robert Bomford Esq.

of Rahinstown House, Co. Meath

who departed this life July the 10th 1848

aged 79 years

Her surviving children record in this tablet

their deep sorrow for the loss of the best and

kindest of mothers and their humble hope that

she sleeps in Christ Jesus to be raised by

Him at the last day unto everlasting life

The tablets for Maria and her son (22.7) are a matching pair. The memorial is inscribed on white marble, centre top, and the small square below contains the crest, coat of arms and the motto. The surrounds are black marble.

In both cases the motto and the crest are the same, but the coat of arms is different. Perhaps the coat of arms on Maria's memorial reflects Bomford and Massy-Dawson coats of arms.

The motto reads “Justus et Fidelis”.

The Bomford arms, crest and motto are discussed in 25.5.

At 22.1 above, Peter Bamford's text says Maria died at Bective Abbey, home of her daughter Frances. It is not known where Maria was buried, perhaps at Rathcore Churchyard with her husband, Robert, who had died 31 years before Maria in April 1817. Robert's gravestone (19.2.3) makes no mention of Maria, which suggests she was buried elsewhere.

The St Anne parish records (transcript, original document), Dublin, record Maria Massy Bomford, died 10 July 1848, age 79. The nature of the record is not clear - it seems to be a note concerning several deaths over a span of years, rather than contemporary register of burials. The entry is under the heading 'Under South Gallery', and it may be a reference to the inscription noted above. The immediately preceding note in the document is of Robert George Bomford, d 11 December 1846, Maria's son (22.7).

22.9 The Sale of Rahinstown, Baconstown, Dirpatrick and Arrodstown 1850 - 1854

There are three more deeds concerning Rahinstown and the other properties, two about the mortgages and one lease. Robert George died intestate and his sisters became his co-heirs, actually two of his sisters had died and their names were substituted by two of their children, John Southcote Mansergh and Louisa Tollemache. It is not known whether any of them wanted the house or land, but it looks as though it had to be sold anyway to clear the mortgages, particularly the £12,000 one. The 1851 lease is only for part of Rahinstown and really could be ignored except that it does show that the property had not been sold before October 1851. The Griffith’s Valuation of 1854 however states that Rahinstown and Baconstown were the property of Robert Fowler (1797 - 1863), so these properties must have been sold in 1852 or 1853. We can assume that Dirpatrick and Arrodstown were also sold at this time. No deed of sale was found in the Registry under ‘Bomford’ so the price is not known.

It should perhaps be mentioned that Ireland was in a very depressed state just after the famine, which started in 1845 and went on for three years. Robert George died at the height of the famine and it is most likely that no rents were paid at this time; indeed some years probably passed before the co-heirs received any income from the land, and no doubt all this had a bearing on the sale.

Since then Rahinstown has been in the hands of the Fowlers and the present (1990) owner is Brigadier Bryan Fowler. The old ‘Bomford’ house was pulled down after a fire and Robert Fowler’s son built the present house about 1875 on the same site; Sir Charles Lanyon designed it. Robert Fowler, who bought Rahinstown, was the eldest son of the Right Reverend Robert Fowler, Bishop of Ossary; in August 1820 he married Jane Anne (1798-1828) sister of John, the 3rd Earl Erne; Robert died on 6th February 1863.

As previously argued it is thought that Thomas the Elder first built a house at Rahinstown when he married in 1691 and that Stephen the Younger improved it during the second half of the 1700s. Thereafter it was considered as the best of the Bomford houses and it became the ‘senior’ house of the eldest son. It was a Bomford property for just over 160 years, from 1691 to c1853.

Baconstown, just across the road from Rahinstown, was nearly always coupled with Rahinstown in the deeds and so was also in Bomford hands from 1691 to c1853, about 160 years. The other two properties four miles away to the northeast beyond Summerhill were also coupled together in most of the deeds; Dirpatrick and Arrodstown were first leased in 1725 and so belonged to the Bomfords for about 125 years. The four townlands totalled about 2,375 statute acres.

The sale of Rahinstown not only ended an era but with the death of Robert George that particular branch died out, and George Bomford of Oakley Park became the founder of the new ‘senior’ branch.

22.9.1 Mortgage on Rahinstown 27th February 1850

Between

1. Isabella Jane Martley, widow and sole executor of John Martley of Rutland Square, Dublin, Counsel at Law. (John Martley had the £12,000 mortgage of 1838 on Rahinstown and the land)

2. Elizabeth Bomford (Kennedy), widow and executor of Robert George Bomford of Rahinstown

Dame Annetta Maria Hesketh, widow of Sir Thomas Hesketh (d 1843) late of Rufford Hall, Co Lancaster

John Mansergh of Greenane, Co Tipperary, eldest son of Jane Rosetta Mansergh (Bomford) since deceased, wife of Richard Martin Southcote Mansergh

Richard Bolton of Bective Abbey, Co Meath, and his wife Frances Georgina Bolton (Bomford)

Susannah Margaret Martin (Bomford) of Baden-Baden in Germany, widow of Rev Charles Martin (d 1847)

Richard Bolton of Suffolk Square, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire and his wife Jemima Letitia Bolton (Bomford)

Louisa Tollemache, only child of Hon Frederick Tollemache who survived his late wife Sarah Maria Tollemache (Bomford, d 1835)

3. Richard Bolton of Cheltenham

4. Edward John Smith of Rutland Square, Dublin

This indenture concerns a mortgage of £2,990 originally taken out by Robert Bomford on the lands of Derpatrick, Arradstown, Baconstown 396 acres and Rahinstown. Now that Robert George Bomford is dead Richard Bolton of Cheltenham redeems the mortgage, and all those in Party 2 share the inheritance of Robert George equally. (1850 Book 4 No 143)

It is not known which mortgage this is, it is not the £12,000 one (22.2.3), but it might pre-date Robert George and be one that his father Robert took out; the deed is not very explicit.

The 396 acres is the old plantation measure and belongs to Rahinstown and not to Baconstown.

22.9.2 Redemption of Rahinstown £12,000 Mortgage 4th July 1850

This deed concerns the same land and the same people as in the deed above of 27th February 1850, but the mortgage is different. This mortgage is for £12,000, which originated on 29th December 1838 between Robert George Bomford and John Martley (22.2.3). John Martley died on 6th November 1839; Robert George Bomford died on 11th December 1846 intestate and without issue, leaving his wife Elizabeth Bomford, now Elizabeth Beresford, a widow.

The co-heirs at law were all those in Party 2 of the February deed. Although it is not defined, the deed reads as though the lands of Dirpatrick, Arradstown, Baconstown and Rahinstown were sold to settle this mortgage. (1850 Book 10 No 38)

22.9.3 Lease of Rahinstown 20th October 1851

The landlords of Robert George Bomford’s property lease to George Douglas of Rahinstown, farmer, the land of Rahinstown consisting of 116 statute acres. The landlords (the co-heirs) consist of:

1. Henry Chinnerry Justice, Land Agent for Dame Annette Maria Hesketh of Rufford Hall, widow

2. Richard Bolton of Bective Abbey and Frances Georgina Bolton (Bomford) his wife

3. John Southcote Mansergh of Greenane

4. Richard Bolton of Cheltenham and Jemima Letitia Bolton (Bomford) his wife

5. Susanna Margaret Martin (Bomford) of Dublin, widow

6. Louisa Tollemache of Horn House, Co Surrey. (Should be Ham House). (1852 Book 3 No 145)

22.10 Elizabeth Marries Secondly Marcus Beresford 6th June 1850

Four years after Robert George died (22.7), Elizabeth married again on 6th June 1850, at Saint James, Westminster, London. Her second husband was Marcus Gervais de la Poer Beresford, and she was his second wife.

Marcus’s great-grandfather was Sir Marcus Beresford (1694 - 1763). In 1720 he was made Baron Beresford of Beresford, Co Cavan, and in 1746 he became the 1st Earl of Tyrone. His wife was the heiress of Curraghmore at Portlaw, Co Waterford, Lady Catherine De la Poer (or Power).

This marriage had been predicted in 1693 by the ghost of the bride’s uncle, John Power, to the bridegroom’s mother, Nichola, Lady Beresford, at Gill Hall on the Lagan, Co Down.

This was the celebrated “Beresford Ghost Story” in which John Power and Nicola made a pact that whoever died first should appear to the other to prove that there was an after-life. John died and appeared at Nicola’s bedside and told her that he was dead and that there was an after-life. To convince her that he was a genuine apparition and not just a figment of her dreams, he made various prophecies, all of which came true; notably that she would have a son who would marry his niece, and that she would die on her 47th birthday. He also touched her wrist, which made the flesh and sinews shrink, so that for the rest of her life she wore a black ribbon to hide the place.

Curraghmore was originally the medieval castle of the La Poers who were ‘of Curraghmore’ as early as 1450, though they had been granted land in Co Waterford in the late 1100s. They remodelled the castle shortly before 1654 but kept the original tower as part of their new house. This house was further remodelled by Sir Marcus and his son until it had become one of the most famous, and in layout unique, houses in Ireland.

Sir Marcus and Lady Catherine had three sons and six daughters.

The sons were:

1. George, 1735 - 1800, became the 1st Marquess of Waterford in 1789. He erected a copy of an ancient Irish round tower in memory of his eldest 12-year-old son who was killed when jumping his horse over the forecourt railing at Curraghmore. Later Beresfords were renowned for their dashing horsemanship; the 3rd Marquess was one of the most famous MFH’s of his time; while the sporting exploits of the three brothers of the 5th Marquess are legendary, Lord Charles Beresford the Admiral known as ‘Charlie B’, Lord William Beresford who won the VC in the Zulu War, and Lord Marcus Beresford who managed the racing stables of Edward VII and George V. George had three sons and four daughters

a. Henry De la Poer Beresford, 1772 - 1826, the 2nd Marquess whose line continues. He had sufficient political muscle to get his younger brother John made primate of Ireland, and John in turn arranged that the primacy pass to Marcus, so that for the greater part of the 1800s the Church of Ireland was ruled by a Beresford

b. John George, 1773 - 1862, Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of all Ireland

c. George Thomas, 1781 - 1839, became a general and a privy councillor

2. John, 1737 - 1805, was a privy councillor in both London and Dublin, and ‘Taster of the Wines in the Port of Dublin’. He was the grandfather of Marcus and one of the most powerful and influential men in Dublin.

He was responsible for much of the present-day grandeur of Dublin, which, in relation to the other European cities in the late 1700s, may have been less than par for the course, but it was sufficient for it to gain the name of being the second city of the British Empire. There was, of course, another side to the picture to be found in the destitution and disease-rampant older parts of the city.

John Beresford was the Chief Commissioner of the Irish Revenue and a leading member of the Wide Streets Commission but perhaps more importantly, the credit for the improvement of the Port of Dublin was due to his influence. He remodelled the ‘Ballast Board’, which planned the new port, and it was he who initiated the North and South Walls, which retained the tidal Liffey so that the river could be dredged.

At this time there was an absolute orgy of building, much of it on a grand scale, which was the direct outcome of the prosperity induced by the Independent Irish Parliament of the 1780s. John Beresford was largely responsible for Carlisle Bridge, now O’Connell Bridge, he brought James Gandon from England to build the Customs House, and cleared away old buildings on either side of the new North and South Walls to give berths for ships at Eden and Burgh Quays and further downstream.

John had 7 sons and 8 daughters, of whom the first four sons were:

a. Marcus Beresford, 1764 - 1791, married and had children but died before his father.

b. George De la Poer Beresford, 1765 - 1841, became Bishop of Kilmore and Ardagh. He was the father of Marcus, and Marcus took over his bishopric in 1845:

i. John, 1796 - 1856, elder brother of Marcus, was Colonial Secretary of St Vincent in the West Indies.

ii. Marcus, 1801 - 1885 Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of all Ireland (who married Elizabeth. See below).

iii. George died unmarried in 1826.

iv. and two daughters, Charlotte Mary and Frances Beresford.

c. John. Claudius Beresford, 1766 - 1846, Lord Mayor of. Dublin and a Privy Councillor.

d. Charles Cobber Beresford, born 1770, whose daughter Emily married Arthur Cole-Hamilton (33.9.1).

3. William Beresford became Archbishop of Tuam and Baron Decies.

Marcus Gervais de la Poer Beresford was born on 14th February 1801, educated at Cambridge, and became a clergyman. From 1845 to 1862 he was Bishop of Kilmore, Elphin and Ardagh, and his marriage to Elizabeth Bomford was during this period. From 1862 until his death on 26th December 1885 he was Archbishop of Armagh and Lord Primate of Ireland. He died at the Palace, Armagh, and was buried in Armagh Cathedral. Not only was he the Archbishop but a Privy Councillor of Ireland and a landowner; in 1818 he owned a little over 7,500 acres, 6,200 of which was in Co Cavan, which was valued at something over £4,300.

On 25th October 1824 he married Mary, daughter of Colonel Henry Peisley L’Estrange of Moystown, King’s Co. Mary was doubly related to the Bomfords; she was the aunt of Edward L’Estrange who is to shortly marry Belinda North-Bomford (27.10); and her grandfather’s brother was Samuel L’Estrange who in 1750 married Ann Bomford (8.5), one of the daughters of Stephen the elder of Gallow. Mary died in Rome on 31st December 1845 leaving two sons and three daughters who must have been in their late teens in 1850.

The marriage to Elizabeth Bomford (Kennedy) took place 4 years later, on 6th June 1850. They had no children and Elizabeth died ‘suddenly’ on 1st July 1870. The Archbishop lived on for another 15 years.

Next Chapter: Chapter 23

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