| Interesting People: Thomas Astleford and Elinor Kersey |
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| The Chamney house, August 2002 ^^^ (holes from musket balls still in shakes on the upper story) |
| ^^^ "The WOOD", August 2002 (located at the green dot below, now occupied by Ken Minion) |
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| "Here lieath the body of Samuel Ashelfoard who departed this life January the 7th 1768 - Aged 68 years"--from Carma Astleford "This man's grave is located behind the old Church of Ireland building at Aghowle Parish." --Ward Maynard |
| Ballyraheen hill, site of the battle |
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| probably where Thomas Astleford jumped the mill race |
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| ^^^ Coolattin |
| <<< Aghowle Church |
| Coolkenna ^^^ |
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| THE BATTLE OF BALLYRAHEEN, 1798 "On the 2nd of July [1798], as the insurgents began to move towards Shillelagh, they were pursued by a body of yeoman, cavalry and infantry, before whom they retired to an eminence called Ballyraheen Hill. Here they took post, but as the yeoman moved up the hill, the unsurgents poured upon them with such impetuousity and vehemence that they were in an instant utterly discomfited, with the loss of seventy privates and two officers, all infantry, for none of the cavalry fell. The officers were Captain Chamney of Coolattin, and Captain Nixon of the Coolkenna corps; besides numbers were wounded. Sixty privates under Captain Moreton of the Tinahely, and Lieutenant Chamney of the Coolatin yeoman, retreated into Captain Chamney's house at the foot of the hill, whither they were pursued by the insurgents, who continued to attack them all night; but they were resisted with the utmost bravery and coolness, and at length repulsed with considerable loss, to which it is probable the light afforded by a house adjoining that of Mr. Henry Moreton (which had been set on fire by th insurgents in their frenzy), contributed not a little, as it enabled those within to aim with precision at the assailants. It was several times attempted to fire the house, by approaching the door under the cover of feather-beds, which proved unsuccessful." ---Edward Hay's "History of the Irish Insurrection of 1798" , published about 1850, located in the National Library of Ireland (Reference Number: IR 94107 H10) Ward Maynard shared all the photos below, the map I used as a background, as well as the above transcript. THANKS, WARD! |
| "Thomas and a cousin (Leybourne) were chased two miles by rebels with pikes during the Irish Rebellion of 1798. (battle of Ballyroheen) When they came to a river, Thomas jumped a millrace and in so doing received a back injury that was to cause his death 32 years later (/). The cousin that was not able to jump the millrace so he turned and shot the rebels with a pistol. The girl who Thomas was to marry was 12 years old at the time of the Rebellion. Her name was Elinor Kersey. A friendly Catholic family told her father James of the plot and they were able to escape. Thomas and Elinor had seven children when he died in 1830. Elinor remained on the farm (the Wood) which was on the estate of Earl of Fitzwilliam (William Wentworth) not far from the town of Carlow. She was a good manager, raising most of the family's needs on the farm. She raised flax and made their clothes from the linen. In the Irish Famine of 1847 when the potato rot destroyed the crops, the family did well because they had some of their farm in oats. To each of her daughters she gave a purse of money and household furnishings when they married. To three of her sons she gave an education and kept Elisha with her on the farm. In 1855 these two came to Canada. At first they stayed with Elinor's daughter Elizabeth, but after a time Elisha bought his own farm near Drayton, Ontario. His mother joined him there and it was on Elisha's farm that she died March 10, 1878." --Carma Astleford, posted at her database (mccoy2000) @ Rootsweb |
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| ^^^Looking south from the Chamney house |
| note: Thomas was on the side of the English in this battle. The rebels in the rebellion were Irish Catholics, the Astlefords were Protestant. dsr |