The Goderich Signal-Star, 1985-07-10, Page 86(k:
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The vestrymen of the Kilcooley ,'hurcb m
le�diirtle wire John° -Holmes,.` John' -yew
Mr . r• n fMin) Lobb is one of • l chat°d Dr ►es, .4 ' I.: YBaker, Sanmu
Gotderieh ..Township's . most devoted
�.: She -hes • spent years searching ; 1 'n list Of names of pew -holder's
Olde
�:. I'Com a
herIcishanrestu
Hers reseal "h <.not ocflY. eomeeted,her
own past,. but has..tineovered the names of
many other Goderich. Township families.
The Holmes; the reeves, Ginns, Cantelons,
Stu dys, Potters, Porters, Whitelys, Thomp-+
sons and Elhotts are some of the familiar+
names that Mrs. Lobb. has found in her
painstaking research.
Mrs. Lobb's search for her Irish ancestors
is best told in her own words.
MY IRISH ANCESTORS
BY JEAN LOBB
It all started when trying to write about
my father's family, the Websters. Accor-
ding to an obituary in The Lucknow Sentinel
one of grandfather's family was unknown.
My story had a missing link.
Hours were spent reading books_ about
Ireland..Diseovering there°was:a:Tipperary
Church in our township, I made' a list of
names from the 1828 map. Then I found I
had cousins in the Parish of Kilcooley, Co.
Tipperary, Ireland. I wrote to the rector,
Rev. Warren Wilson and he verified that it
was the right area.
So, I made my maiden flight to the
Emerald Isle. The rector's home was my
headquarters for the next four weeks. He
provided me with records belonging to
Kilcooley Parish Church and others nearby
and I spent many hours copying notes about
the people with familiar names from these
books.
The parish of Fennor, Urlingford, Co. Tip-
perary records Wm. Holmes as church
warden, 1819. On April 4, 1855 Mr. Fredrick
Holmes was warden, signed by Mr. John
Churchill. In 1869 Wap, Churchill was
warden.
This' church was closed:.in 1875 with some
of the congregation changing to the
Kilcooley Church. My greatgrandmother
Margaret Churchill ( Dempsey) had lived in
this parish.
oQ the„neW 101Caoley ChM* r 1829
those frown. the. Met o Goderich
Township. There wee 'several' families' of'
each name - Miller, Sppaarrling, Cooke,
Sineltzer, Young, Glazier, Cantillon, 'Magee,
beeves, Steep, Cole and others. My great-
grandfather John Semple was listed. He
married Anne Cooke, daughter of Peter
Cooke. This gentleman is mentioned in the
"History of Methodism in Ireland" Vol. II,
for his outstanding leadership, 1794, in the
Bawnlea Methodist Church.
But there was no mention of my great-
grandparents, Thos. and Mary . Webster.
After all, the Methodist Church was just up
the road from the Websters and why would
you take a gang of children in a two -wheeled
donkey cart several miles away?
In the 1872 seating plan. of Kilcooley.,
Chu h. ,TAA% Webster ts`.ulelutleckaLso tile,'
Swrtzers. There had been: weddings. in Ate
Webster•family and' these took place at the
legal church. It puzzles me that no baptisms
or Webster burials were mentioned. All
these secrets must be with the little
Methodist Church, and these records have
not been located.
Records from the 1861 Census at the Ar-
chives in Toronto reveal that all the Webster
men in Ashfield Township, Huron County,
listed themselves as Church of Ireland or
Church of England, one was New Connec-
tion Methodist. My Dad said they were
Methodist. Now I understood.
The Parish Church was the legal church,
but many of them attended the Methodist as
well. There were four Cantillon families in
the Kilcooley Parish Church, Ireland, but in
Goderich Township they were faithful suo-
porters of the Tipperary, Wesleyan
Methodist Church.
The Parish Church itself is interesting. It
has a two -room transcept on the north side.
Turn to page 4
Mrs. Jean Lobb is a -devout la
derich To!wnsip..
ENJOY CELEBRATING
GODERICH TOWNSHIP 1-5-0 WITH US!
OU F' n
til'F:1:I Al TIF:%
Arrangements or Bouquets
in fresh, silk or cornhusk
for Weddings, Home, or Special Occasions
Other Gifts and Supplies
Wicker, ceramics, glass vases, brass planters,
organic plant food and more
By Appointment Please
Mrs. Jeannette Martin
R.R. 2 Clinton, NOM ILO
519-482-3536
Congratulations
Goderich Township
on your
150th Birthday
Sesquicentennial
County of Huron
Bill G. Hanly
CLERK -TREASURER
AND ADMINISTRATOR
Paul D. Steckle
WARDEN