Craic On

Australian in Moville

I received this today by email.

I am a journalist wishing to visit ancestral Moville-renowned for the exit  of emigrants heading for Australia.

I hope to arrive in/near Moville mid June and need to know if there is a historical Society, archives, museums or venue where I can research family and related emigration ex Moville to St. John, New Brunswick .

Hoping to hear from you, Gael S Connell, Perth Western Australia.

Then there was a follow up email.

Gael Connell

My name is Gael Connell, I travel via SERVAS, an international peach group which publishes reviews of traveller’s trips each month.

My last published article was re Norway.

I decided this morning when I found the letter from Una Matthewson, Staff officer, Central Library, Letterkenny, Co. Donegal, to travel northwards after my arrival in Cork City (I have to pick up a baptismal certificate from St. Mary’s Diocese of Cork and Ross).

Wants to Meet Moville Historian

Family research, dating back to before 1827 indicates that the siblings (born in Ireland) of my Great Grandfather (born in New Brunswick) may have emigrated from Ireland to St John, New Brunswick from Moville.

Therefore, I would like to stay a while in Moville at a hostel or cheap BnB, meet any historian willing to be taken out to lunch by me and get as much information as I can.

My cousins are now interested in passing on whatever I have to them for the benefit of their children.

The relatives that we know of are: Daniel and Ellen Hart (the name may have been anglicised from a Jewish name).

Shipping List – Madawaska

First 8 children born in Ireland may have been Daniel, Margaret, Jane, Philip. These names appear on the shipping list for the brig MADAWASKA which sailed ex Londonderry April 18th, 1833.

My great-grandfather, the youngest of the eight, was born circa 1827 when his parents had settled in New Brunswick, Canada.

The archivist at Perth’s Battye library has very kindly been researching for me on new information released by the National Library of Ireland.

Thank God for that.

My Career

I graduated from Curtin University, did my cadetship at Swan Express, Midland, Western Australia, then moved to the Sunday Independent-a weekly paper – where I wrote rags-to-riches stories.

These were mostly about hard-working Italian migrants who were given 2/6 (two shillings and sixpence) on arrival and made their millions by sheer hard work.

I also worked for national magazines doing stories on how the upper crust live.

Lastly, but not least, I worked for Bord Failte and entered articles (when space permitted) in the small country paper of which I was the hard-working editor.

If you, personally are interested, there may be an opportunity for you to run articles on Moville to attract family-researching tourists to you.

Contact With President Higgins

I did suggest to your president, Mr. Higgins, that an article on Ireland be inserted into the quarterly Seniors magazine posted out free by the federal government to most seniors – most of which have the time, money and motivation.

Instead, he, or some one who did not listen, inserted a rather derogatory article in the local RAC (Royal Automobile Club) magazine.

I   would like to meet you and exchange ideas.

CraicOn Comment

It’s great to hear from people in far-flung places about their Moville connections.

If anyone knows about any Moville Historical society just let me know and I’ll pass the details to Gael.