Irish chauffeurdrive tour

Alison with her cousin Martin Feerick at the site of the old ancestral
home.


Alison and husband Andrew with John Mc Nulty (centre)

What a great day we had yesterday as we went to try to discover the ancestral homes of both sides of Alison's family. The first one was located near Foxford in North County Mayo. I had made contact the previous day with John Mc Nulty seen above in this photo. I just looked for any Mc Nulty listed in the phone directory in this region and what a nice man i discovered when i found John. This man is 88 yrs of age and was a fountain of knowledge and was able to bring us to this old ruin of a cottage where Alison's cousins lived many years ago. This was once upon a time a thatched cottage and in a place that would have been impossible to find on our own. John himself was not a direct relation but knew many of Alison's relatives. Then we moved south to the Ballinrobe region where the other side of her family came from. These were the Feerick's and we just had the name of the townland and nothing else. As we drew near to the area i found a postman who directed us to the only Feerick family now living in this area and what a find we made. We were welcomed with open arms by Martin Feerick and his family who had given up all hope of ever meeting any of their long-lost relatives who had emigrated so many years ago. Martin had all of the names of those who left (all his own, and Alison's also)and there was no doubt that Alison had found her home. We shared tea and cakes with this lovely family and Alison and Martin enjoyed a couple of hours of memory sharing. One of Martin's sons produced a photo of Alison's great-grandfather as a gift for her and this really made her day. I always believe that nothing happens by accident and the ease with which we discovered Alison's relatives today just confirms this belief. It was as though an unseen hand had led us to this home and if Alison was delighted to meet Martin then i believe that Martin was even more delighted to meet Alison as he said that he had given up all hope of ever finding any of them. He said it was the best day of his life. I can only say that these type of occurrences are a part of my job which i really enjoy. Today we head for Connemara and once more the sun is shining. Who says it always in Ireland. Comments or questions welcome.

Dave

P.S. I would like to add a special word of sympathy to a dear friend who has lost her grand-mother. She knows who she is.

1st June 2010