Mary Quinn was born on February 24, 1825, in Glenavy, Antrim, Northern Ireland.
She was the fifth child and second daughter of William Harold Quinn (1789-1850)
who was 36 and Elizabeth "Betsy" Saunders (1798-1863) who was 27. As
their family tree shows, Betsy and William Quinn had 10 children (6 sons and 4
daughters) in 23 years. Two of their children died in infancy.
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| William Harold Quinn and Elizabeth Saunders - Family Tree |
Mary
grew up in Ireland and was educated in a one-room schoolhouse (see photo below). At
the age of 17, with her parents, four brothers and three sisters, she left
Belfast harbour for Canada. They were six weeks crossing the Atlantic Ocean in
a sailing vessel. Mary’s father was a Navy Captain, who retired to Canada in
1841. He bargained for a 100-acre farm in Percy Township, Northumberland
County, Ontario, about five miles from the village of Hastings, then known as
Crook's Rapids.
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| Schoolhouse in Glenavy, Ireland attended by Mary Quinn |
When
she was 19 years old, Mary Quinn married James Allen McConnell on August 6,
1844, in Peterborough, Ontario. Mary and James settled on a farm across the
creek from the home of Mary’s parents. In 1847, they bought this farm and their
two older sons, Robert and William, were born in this home. Soon after, Mary
and James moved to Belmont Township, where they established the McConnell
Homestead.
By
the time of the 1871 Canada Census, they had ten children: Robert Henry (1845),
William (1846), Marjorie (1849), Mary Elizabeth (1852), Samuel John (1854),
Annie Isabel (1858), Thomas James (1859), Edith Margaret (1861), George
Alexander (1864) and Charles Joseph (1868). In 1879, they suffered a fatality
when their youngest son, Charles Joseph (Joey), died of diphtheria.
Mary
had a very busy life. She was a midwife and had helped start many a child on
life’s pathway. She was a very sympathetic, kind person. Whenever there was any
need, she lent a hand. She helped her brother, Thomas Quinn, when he was left
with two motherless young children, although her own younger children were
still a care.
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| Mary Quinn |
The
1901 Canada Census states that Mary Quinn lived with her daughter, Annie Isabel, who was
married to Samuel Thompson. On September 18, 1905, she passed away in Norwood, Ontario, having
lived a long life of 80 years, and was buried at the Norwood Cemetery.
The
preceding ancestry data presents Part 2 of the Story of James Allen McConnell
(1824-1892) and Mary Quinn (1825-1905). The beginning of their story ispresented in Part 1 of the McConnell ancestry.
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