Gortbrack

An Gort Breac

Roger Harrison

Gortbrack / An Gort Breac                                     Irish Grid M 63897 36641

 

Author: Roger Harrison

 

Gortbrack is a townland in the Civil Parish of Ballymacward in the barony of Tiaquin and the County of Galway.

 

Description:

(John O’Donovan 1806-1861)

This townland is the property of Lord Clancarty who holds it under a deed for ever. It contains 199a. 0r. 22p. about ½ of which is bog the remainder arable and of bad quality. The houses are in bad repair. Amount of County Cess £10. 6 9.

 

Situation:

(John O’Donovan 1806-1861)

Is situated in the western side of this parish in the barony of Tiaquin bunded by Ballygreany, Kinreask and Creeraun in said barony and by Garrymore in the parish of Kilconnel in this parish by Killooaun in the parish of Cloonkeen in Tiaquin barony.

 

This is a list of townlands that share a border with Gortbrack.

 

 

Census of Ireland (1821- 1911)

The first full population census of Ireland was taken in 1821 and the first four Irish censuses were arranged by county, barony, civil parish and townland.

 

1821: Only some fragments for small parts of county Galway survive. There are no records     for Ballymacward.

1831: The only surviving records are from Counties Antrim and Derry.

1841: There are no surviving records for County Galway.

1851:   There are no surviving records for County Galway.

1861: Census records for 1861 and 1871 were deliberately destroyed by the government

1881: The records for 1881 and 1891 were pulped as waster paper during the shortages of World War I.

1901: Full Census records are available   See below.

1911:   Full Census records are available   See below.

 

1911 Census

Overview of the townland

The census of 1911 shows that there were a total of 5 houses in Gortbrack and the they were all occupied and were listed as private dwellings. They were all built of stone, brick or concrete walls with thatch, wood or other perishable materials for roofing. Houses 1 and 2 were 3rd class dwellings and the others were 2nd class. House 2 had 2 rooms and 1 window, House 1 had 2 rooms and 2 windows in the front and houses 3, 4 and 5 all had 2 rooms and 3 windows in the front. The out-offices and farm-steadings return (form B.2) shows that there were a total of 20 out buildings and they consisted of 3 stables, 4 cow houses, a calf house, 3 piggeries, 2 fowl houses, 4 barns and 3 sheds. The enumerator’s abstract return shows that there were a total of 23 people in the townland at the time of the census and that there were 13 male and 10 female. The enumerator for the area was Const. Daniel Fitzpatrick.

 

House 1: Kelly / Melvin

The head of the family in the first house in Gortbrack was Patrick (72) and he had been married to Maria (65) for 40 years and in that time they had had 9 children and 8 of those had survived. They shared the house with 2 of those children and they were John (32) and Bessie (17) and a servant, John Melvin (23). They were all born in Co. Galway and were Roman Catholic. Patrick and Maria spoke Irish and English but there was nothing entered for the others which probably meant that they only spoke English. Patrick could read only, John Melvin could not read and the others could all read and write. Patrick was a farmer, John (32) was a farmer’s son and John Melvin was a farm servant. The house they all lived in was a 2 roomed, 3rd class dwelling with a stable, a cow house, a piggery, a barn and a shed. The landholder was Patrick Kelly.

 

House 2: Malloy

The head of this family was Thomas (65) and he had been married to Mary (50) for 30 years and in that time they had had only 1 child. They shared the house with their son James (20). They were all born in Co. Galway and were Roman Catholic. All of the family could speak both Irish and English but only James could read and write. Thomas was a farmer and James was listed as being a farmer’s son. They all lived in a 2 roomed, 3rd class house and they had a cow house and a piggery. Thomas Malloy was the landholder.

 

House 3: Moran

Patrick (66) was the head of this family and he was married to Mary (56) and had been for 28 years and they had had 8 children but only 5 of those had survived. They shred the house with Patrick’s brother, Martin (77), a widower, their daughter Julia (15) and their son, John (7). They were all born in Co. Galway and were Roman Catholic. Patrick, Mary and Martin spoke Irish and English and Julia and John spoke only English. Mary could read only, Patrick and Julia could read and write and Martin and John could not read. Patrick and Martin were tailors. They all lived in a 2 roomed, 2nd class dwelling with a fowl house and a barn. Patrick Moran was the landholder.

 

House 4: Flannery

The sole occupant of house 4 was Thomas (51) who was a Roman Catholic and born in Co. Galway. He spoke Irish and English and could read and write and was a farmer. The house was a 2 roomed, 2nd class dwelling and he had a stable, a cow house, a calf house, a fowl house, a barn and a shed. Thomas Flannery was the landholder.

 

House 5: Burns

The head of the last household in Gortbrack was Patrick (63) and he was listed as being married but there was no entry for his wife. He lived with his son, Michael J. (31), who was married to Bridget T. and had been for 12 years and they had 6 children, all of whom had survived. Those children also lived in the house and they were, Patrick J. (12), Mary (10), Delia (9), Eileen (7), Annie (5) and William Nevil (3). They were all born in Co. Galway, apart from Michael J., who was born in Co. Mayo, and all were Roman Catholic. All of the family could speak both Irish and English except for Annie and William Nevil, who only spoke English. With the exception of Annie and William Nevil, they could all read and write. Patrick was a farmer and ex sergeant in the R.I.C., Michael J. was a farmer’s son and, apart from William Nevil, the grandchildren were all scholars. They all lived in a 2 roomed, 2nd class dwelling and they had a stable, a cow house, a piggery, a barn and a shed. Patrick Burns was the landholder.

 

1901 Census

Overview of the townland

The census of 1901 shows that there were 7 houses and they were all occupied and listed as being private dwellings. They were all constructed of stone, brick or concrete and all had thatch, wood or other perishable materials for roofing. Houses 2, 3 and 7 were 2nd class dwellings and the others were 3rd class. Houses 1, 4 ,5 and 6 had 2 rooms and 2 windows in the front and houses 2, 3 and 7 had 2 rooms and 3 windows. There were a total of 18 out buildings in the townland and they consisted of 3 stables, 6 cow houses, 3 calf houses, 2 piggeries and 4 barns. A total of 26 people lived in Gortbrack at that time, 12 male and 14 female. The enumerator for the area was Const. Patrick Duffy.

 

House 1: Fitzpatrick

The widow Mary (53) was the head of this family and she shared then house with her daughter, Kate (19). They were both born in Co. Galway and were Roman Catholic. They both spoke Irish and English but only Kate could read and write. Both were listed as being general domestic servants. They lived in a 2 roomed, 3rd class dwelling and Mary Fitzpatrick was the landholder.

 

House 2: Burns

Patrick (53) was the head of the family and he was married but there were no entries for his wife. He shared then house with his son, Michael (21) and he was married to Bridget (21) and 2 of his grandchildren, Patrick Jo (2) and Mary (1). They were all born in Co. Galway and were Roman Catholic. Only Patrick and Bridget could speak Irish and English. Patrick Michael and Bridget could all read and write. Patrick was a farmer, Michael was a farmer’s son, Bridget was a housekeeper, Patrick Jo was listed as a grandson and Mary was a granddaughter. The house was a 2 roomed, 2nd class dwelling with a stable, cow house, calf house, a piggery and a barn. Patrick Burns was the landholder.

 

House 3: Moran

The head of this family was Patrick (45) and he was married to Mary (35) and they shared the house with Patrick’s brother, Martin (63), a widower, and 4 of their daughters, Bridget (8), Mary (6), Julia (4) and Margaret (4mths). They were all born in Co. Galway and were Roman Catholic. Patrick, Mary (35) and Martin spoke Irish and English. Patrick, Julia and Margaret could not read and the others could all read and write. Patrick was a farmer and tailor, Martin was a tailor and Bridget and Mary (6) were scholars. The house they all lived in was a 2 roomed, 2nd class dwelling and they had a cow house and a barn. Patrick Moran was the landholder.

 

House 4: Malloy

Thomas (50) and he was married to Mary (35) and they shared the house with their son James (10). They were all born in Co. Galway and were Roman Catholic. Thomas and Mary spoke Irish and English but there was nothing entered for James which probably meant that he only spoke English. Thomas could not read, Mary could read only and James could read and write. Thomas was a farmer and James was a scholar. The house was a 2 roomed, 3rd class dwelling and they had a cow house. Thomas Molloy was listed as the landholder.

 

House 5: Kelly

The head of this family was Patrick (60) and he was married to Maria (51) and they shared the house with 4 of their children, John (22), Bridget (16), Patrick (12) and Bessie (6). They were all born in Co. Galway and were Roman Catholic. Patrick (60) and Maria spoke Irish and English and the children spoke only English. Patrick could read only and the other members of the family could all read and write. Patrick (60) was a farmer John was a farmer’s son, Bridget was a farmer’s daughter and Patrick (12) and Bessie were listed as being attending school. The house was a 2 roomed, 3rd class dwelling and they had a stable, a cow house and calf house, a piggery and a barn. Patrick Kelly was the landholder.

 

House 6: Moran

The head of this Moran family was Bryan (41) and he lived with his sister Anne (51). They were both born in Co. Galway and were Roman Catholic. They both spoke Irish and English but could not read. Bryan was a farmer and Anne was a housekeeper. The house they lived in was a 2 roomed, 3rd class dwelling with a cow house. Bryan Moran was the landholder.

 

House 7: Flannery

The sole occupant of house 7 was Thomas (40) and he was born in Co. Galway and was a Roman Catholic. He spoke Irish and English and could read and write. His occupation was listed as a farmer. The house was a 2 roomed, 2nd class house with a stable, a cow house, a calf house and a barn. Thomas was the landholder.

 

Griffith’s Valuation

The Griffith’s Valuation (1847-1864) shows that the main immediate lessor in Gortbrack at that time was Robert M. Eyre and leased tenements to a number of people. Michael Mannion leased a house and offices on 56 acres, 3 roods and 27 perches of land for £5 10s for the land and 15s for the buildings, John Kelly leased a house and offices on 43 acres, 2 roods and 3 perches of land for £8 for the land and £1 5s for the buildings. Patrick Molloy leased 3 tenements, the first was 6 acres and 12 perches of land for £2 5s, the second was a house and offices on 25 acres, 2 roods and 23 perches of land for £7 for the land and 10s for the buildings and lastly, 3 cottiers’ houses for £1. Patrick Smyth leased 3 roods of land for 5s and also a house on 4 acres, 3 roods and 30 perches of land for £1 15s for the land and 10s for the house. Michael Moran Jun. leased a house on 4acres, 1 rood and 20 perches of land for £1 5s for the land and 10s for the house, Michael Moran leased a house on 1 acre, 1 rood and 20 perches of land for 15s for the land and 5s for the house. William Burns leased a house and offices on 41 acres, 1 rood and 23 perches of land for £6 10s for the land and 10s for the buildings and also he leased a cottiers’ house for 5s annually. Patrick Finn leased 9 acres and 4 perches of land for £2 10s and also a separate house on 1 acre and 1 rood of land for 3s for the land and 17s for the house. Lastly, Anthony O’Kelly leased 3 acres, 3 roods and 20 perches of land for £1.

 

 

 

 

This page was added on 20/01/2020.

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