The Casey Family
The Casey diaries and memorabilia have been a major source of first-hand information for our publications and Facebook page. The following is a synopsis of the Casey family.
James Casey from Poulnadaree, Killimer, was the son of Thomas and Ellen Casey. Ellen died, a widow, at home in Poulnadaree on 11th May 1875. Document to prove. James was married on the 4th March 1862 to Kate Cunningham, who was born in 1842 in Molougha. James died on 9th November 1890. She died on 17th May 1909, of chronic cirrhosis of the liver. We have documents relating to the value of the estate and a will written by Kate, on 2nd Oct. 1908, signed by Michael Doyle and her brother Sinon Cunningham.
James and Kate Casey had eight children:
Mary was born on 30th March 1863.
James (Jamsie) was born on 18th February 1865, emigrated to U.S.A. A Certificate of Naturalization was granted to him on 17th Feb. 1911. He later returned to Kilkee.
John (Jack) was born on 7th October 1866, emigrated to Australia but returned and took over his uncle John’s shop and business in Moore St. Kilrush.
Margaret was born on 16th December 1869.
Ellen was born on 21st January 1873.
Bridget was born on 10th January 1875.
Patrick (Pat) was born on 8th August 1876.
Catherine (Kate) was born on 18th August 1883. She emigrated to Australia.
Pat, the youngest son, was in 1896, a valued member of the Killimer Senior Football team who won the Co. Championship. Later he emigrated to Australia. There he worked in the Kalgoorlie, goldmine. While there he became a champion athlete and won many awards. He later returned to Poulnadaree to take over the family farm. Pat married Molly Hedderman, from Rahona, Carrigaholt, c,1910. He was then aged 34. She was aged 25. They had three surviving children. Molly died in childbirth, as did her baby, on 23rd September 1923. Pat reared the three children. When they were of an age they worked side by side with him on the family farm. He had a keen interest in sport and attended all the local matches and sporting activities. He bought the daily newspaper where possible to keep up with current affairs. He passed these same interests to his children and shared many happy days at sporting events with them. He died o 22nd November 1953, aged 77 years.
Pat Casey’s children:
Mary (Baby) was born on 7th March 1912. We are very fortunate to have her diaries which give a daily report on happenings and goings on in Poulnadaree. She lived all her life there. She spent the last 10 years in the hospital in Kilrush before she died on St. Stephen’s day (26th Dec.) 1998, and is buried in the family vault in the Church of Ireland graveyard in Crawford St., Kilrush.
Patrick was born on 4th March 1913. Like his sister Mary he never left Poulnadaree, where he farmed, except for his trips to Kilrush and the many sport fixtures. He had a keen interest in all sports and kept wonderful records of the many local and county matches, coursing meetings and sporting results. He had a keen interest in cycling and was in the happy position of shopping for his favourite model. In his latter years he found the farming too difficult and retired to the same hospital his sister Baby was in. He died there on 5th May 1996 and is buried in the same vault as Baby.
James was born on 10th Nov. 1918. James worked on the family farm. He went to London in the 60’s and worked in the hotel industry for a number of years. His address there was 52 Lower Camden St. London. He returned in 1967 to take over his first cousins’ place, that of Pat and May Doyle in Poulnadaree.
Their father Michael Doyle was married to Pat Casey’s sister Mary and they had inherited a farm from Mary’s grand-uncle John Casey and his wife. (We have the agreement document drawn up by a solicitor Thomas Ryan, Kilrush.- previously owned by Patrick Casey, probably John’ s father.) They died within 8 days of one another, in May 1967. He farmed and also helped on the home farm. He married Nancy Nugent, Trellig on 13th April 1971. He spent the latter years of his life in Trellig and died on 6th June 1997, He is buried in the Nugent family grave in Knockerra. Like his siblings James has left impeccable accounting records of his farm and everyday expenses, which depict for us the price changes that has occurred.
Ellen Mary was born May 30th 1921, but did not live long.
Their mother Molly died in childbirth, as did her baby, on 23rd September 1923, aged 38 years. Pat farmed and reared his family in Poulnadaree. He never lost his interest in sport and shared many happy days at sporting events with his sons Patrick and James. He died on 22nd November 1953, aged 77 years.
Casey’s shop Kilrush
Pat’s brother John returned from Australia and inherited his uncle John’s thriving business in Moore St. Kirush. He was joined by his sister Ellen to help run the shop and household. When they died their brother James (Jamsie) who had returned from the U.S.A. took over the business in Moore St. He had lived in America for a number of years and was married to a Lucas girl who died young. He remarried Sean O’Grady’s sister. They lived in Kilkee. They then ran the business in Moore St.
John and Ellen got pneumonia around the same time. They were admitted to the hospital in Kilrush. Ellen died first and John died the next day, not before willing all his property in Moore St. and their house and pub in Kilkee to his nephew James Casey.
The Casey shop and business in Moore St. Kilrush.
A thriving shop and business was run by John Casey, in Moore St. Kilrush, brother of James (senior) from Poulnadaree in Killimer. It was located next to the Family Store and was part of the Colleen Bawn pub. Mangan’s butcher stall was next door. We are very fortunate to have a number of ledgers from that store, dating 1870’s to 1930’s. They give a great insight into life and people then, in West Clare and the changes that occurred from the turn of the 19th to the early 20th centuries.
John Casey was a Grocer and a Spirit Merchant. That he was a Grocer and Spirit Merchant is a little misleading, as he dealt in a larger and more widespread business in that he was a big importer and exporter.
John Casey the shopkeeper
He must have been well liked as well as possessing a brilliant business brain as seen by the places that people travelled from in order to do business with him. People travelled from Loop Head to Miltown Malbay and South to Kilmihil, Tullycrine and Killimer, to name but afew. Even by today’s standards, that was a very big catchment area. He used a “tick” system, which enabled customers to buy groceries and then pay on a weekly or monthly basis. This was ideal for country people, as sometimes they would order groceries with a neighbour who was going to town shopping and they in turn would take them home for their neighbour. It also suited town people who worked and had a weekly or a monthly wage.
At times only part of the bill was paid in cash and the balance in goods like winkles, feathers and rabbits.
The following is an example of a customer’s bill at the time, noting that 12d.was 1 shilling and 20 shillings was £1.
Mrs Keane, Dec 6th 1900.
Purchases
L. s. d.
4 Gallons of Oil 0 3 0
4 Thread 0 0 6
½ st Soap 0 0 9
½ st Sugar 0 0 9
1lb Tea 0 0 9
1lb of Tobacco 0 3 6
Cash 1 0 0
Her supplies to John Casey
Eggs ½ ha a 5/-; 10 9
Winkles ;9 ; 5 9
Balance ; 5/ ;
Paid ; 5/ ;
This is an example of people that paid their bill with both cash and goods.
Mrs Poole from Cappa, on the 7th Oct 1900, paid her weekly bill for milk in Gold and Silver. Along with her husband William Poole, a marine engineer, they owned a pub and hostel. They dealt with Henry Supple, a shipping agent. He would be paid by the ships captain a fee to cover everything from docking fees to the care of his crew. As a lot of ships travelled to many countries, gold and silver was the easiest currency to carry. The Americans preferred this transaction. This is how Mrs Poole came to be paying some of her bills in gold and silver, as sailors would have eaten, drank or slept in her pub/hostel.
During John Casey’s import and export business years, he had dealings with companies and merchants in all the cities in Ireland, as well as those in England and Scotland. His main dealings were in feathers, hides, skins, bone and rags. He always had his main providers locally, who would supply him with goods that would fill his quota for export. His main local suppliers were Pat Houlihan from Miltown Malbay who is recorded in the 1901 census as a dealer in feathers, rags and bottles. Pat O’Shea from Grace Street is recorded as a feather monger; there was also a Michael McMahon from Labasheeda and a Michael McMahon from Carrigaholt. Both of these dealt mainly in hides, skins and winkles.
Feather account for 1900.
£ s d
August 18th, Pat O`Shea 1st 3lb cost 17/6 1 0 0
“ 21 M Reilly 11 5 cost “ 10 4 0
“ 21 2 Women 11 cost “ 0 15 0
“ 23 Houlihan 2 11 cost “ 2 10 0
“ 25 Shea 2 4 “ 2 0 0
“ 25 Man ; 4 cost “ 0 4 0
“ 27 Houlihan 4 0 cost “ 3 6 6
“ 27 McMahon 4 0 cost “ 2 10 0
“ 27 McMahon 4 0 cost “ 3 5 0
“ 29 Lillis 7 10 cost “ 6 13 6
Total 38st. cost “ £ 32 8 0
Lillis 1 7 cost “ 0 2 0
Total 39 7 cost “ £ 32 10 0
M Reilly 6 4 @ 18/(s.) 5 13 0
P Shea 2 8 @ 17/6 2 5 0
P Houlihan 4 0 @ 17/ 3 8 0
Total 52.5 £ 43 16 0
Sept 1st 1900 .
Shipped 4 Bales (Rags) 14st 11lb
Received cheque, £50 . 0 . 0
An example of his exports from his ledgers are as follows.
Sept 14th 1886.
Lyons and Co. Ushers Quay, Dublin.
Pelt of Dry Skins.
Contents Under:
Goat Skins 3 & 9 goods 11/
Kid Skins 5 & 1 only 6/
Rabbit Skins 9 & 5 only 8/
Sept 24th Paid by cheque £4 – 9 – 6
The following year he had a major export to the same company, which showed how fast he was progressing in this market.
January 25th 1887
Hides and skins stock.
Hides 170 about /tencut ( 4 . 5 . 0 . 0) 28/ £ 119
Calfs 83 2/6 10 7 6
Kep 50 * 20 7 6
Ass 32 3/ 4 16 6
Horse 4 10/ 2 16 6
Balance 156 – 3 – 6
*Kep was an animal skin that was dried. It would be then coated with salt and left to cure in the sun. This left it waterproof.
Other main merchants that he dealt with, whether exporting or importing were:
P Cranshaws, Waterford, Hides and Skins
John Mcglaughlin, Limerick.
McEvoys and Sons, Liverpool.
A Betty Newyork Buildings, Liverpool.
Benshain Bros Manchester, Provision Merchants.
Sometimes with some of these companies he would send out the raw material and then buy back the finished product, like exporting feathers and buying back hats, pillows etc.
At times you would see in his ledgers very unusual stock for export, unusual to us but probably normal in 1886.
Nov 3rd 1886.
Shipped per Steamer to Broome, London, via Hollyhead.
Box Fowls, labelled Perishable Box Fowls.
Mrs Studdarts; 20 Snipe
6 Woodcock
1 cock and hen Pheasant
In Store
sh d. * sh (shilling), d. (old penny), 12 d. =1 shilling. 20 sh= £1 (pound)
20 Snipe cost 16 8
1 Curlew cost 4
9 Rabbit cost 6 4
2 Hens cost 1 4
Total Value £ 1 4 sh. 8d.
People were creative, in that they made money out of anything that was available from rags and feathers, to rabbits, fowl and winkles. Times were very tough and very few had a solid job, unless they were fortunate to be working for the main merchants in Kilrush, like Glynns, Ryans and maybe the dockers. Not that the wages would be great but like the rag and feather dealers, the money received for their items were often the difference between poverty, and a meagre living. It was a fine line back then.
Along with the prices changing, so too did the items being bought. In the late 1880’s up to 1900, small items like thread, Blacking, (Black lead used for cleaning cast iron ranges), starch, half heads, and bottled sweets started disappearing from the lists. By 1925, things like, sacks of flour were bought, instead of by the pound.
Also bags of Pollard, Bran, X-fine meal, by the 1930’s, were sold in John Casey’s shop. Very little had changed in the grocery department, but a new system appeared in the way accounts were paid. If you were to pay your account monthly, and you were short a few shillings, the few shillings would be lent to you and the account marked paid. But at the start of your new account in the first line would be the word, “Lent”, with the said amount carried over. So, by the 1930’s very few people paid with cash and goods. Lots of candles and oil for the lamps were still bought as this was the pre-electricity era in this area.
John Casey was also a supplier to the Asylum in Limerick and also to the Workhouse in Kilrush.
Meat delivered to the Kilrush Workhouse in April 1901:
Sample Pieces 8 lbs.
do 224 lbs.
do 19 lbs.
do 85 lbs.
336 lbs @ 5 1/2 £7 14s 0d
3 Bags of Turnip ; 12 ;
About 5 cut £8 6 0
Meal, and lime were documented in the accounts of farmers. A big rise in the sale of
alcohol and cigarettes in peoples accounts is visible :
1925;
1/2 barrel of porter £4 15s 0d
2 bottles Whiskey 1 12 0
1 1/2 oz snuff ; 1 3
4 pk Woodbine ; 2 ;
6 0
May 11th 1925 by Cheque Paid £8 6 0.
In reading through the ledgers, great detail is given, to : weight, cost and the means in which the goods were transported, such as steamer, carriage and the West Clare Railway when launched in Kilrush in the 1890’s.
March 4th 1889.
Per Hopewell Mak J. G. K.
17 Bales for Tait Bros, Glasgow
cwt. St. lbs.*
4 Bales of Baggon 15 . 0 . 0 @ 5/6
6 Bales of Seconds 24 . 2 . 4 @ 7/6
2 Bales of Supers 7 . 1 . 7 @ 12/-
4 Skin Cloth 15 . 1 . 14 @ 6/-
1 Bale Blues 3 . 3 . 0 @ 3/6
£ 22 . 10 . 4
less Freight 1 . 18 .1
£20 . 2 . 3
*cwt (Hundred weight) = 8 st. ( stone). 14 lbs.( pounds)=1 stone
March 29th 1889 By Cheque £20 . 2 . 3
The “Hopewell” was one of many steamers used by John Casey. (It was off the Hopewell, owned by Mr. Shannon, that the Black n Tans forcibly took the rope from, that was used in pulling down the Maid of Erin in 1921.)
The wide range of products that John Casey dealt with, from normal groceries like flour, tea, sugar, tobacco, to farmers’ needs, i.e. lime, pollard, bran and other feeds for their animals and fowl. Then he also traded in the buying and selling of metals, iron, lead, and brass. To the export/import of feathers, hides, skins and bone. Trading of winkles, eggs, rabbits and fowl that people used to balance their accounts, along with cash. He was definitely one of a kind, and a person in whom a lot of customers and agents’ livelihoods depended on.
If any family has any similar records relating to bygone events that they would like to share with us we would be more than happy to receive them and publish them.
Killimer Local History 