| Susan McPhillips. See Bear Creek. She was the daughter of Patrick McPhillips and Catherine Smyth. She was a first cousin to Bill Smith, Stickney. |
| Susan McPhillips and Irvin Marklin. See Big Hollow and Patrick McPhillips family. |
| We have seen Susan and Irvin before on these web pages, however, these photos are new. The McPhillips girls were close to the Irish John Smith girls from Kimball, S. Dakota. |
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Click on icon (left) to enlarge town land map of Monaghan. | ||||||||||
Missing McPhillips Children
Our great grandmother, Susan (McPhillips) Smith, was one of eight children born to Michael McPhillips and Mary Smyth. Only five children immigrated to America in 1867 with their parents. They were Patrick Patrick (aged 9), Susan (aged 7), John (aged 6), Mary (aged 5) and Owen (Infant). The names of the other three children were listed as ‘unknown’.
Susan McPhillips married “Irish” John Smith. Mary died in 1870 from Scarlet Fever. Owen married Alice Shanahan and lived in Kimball, SD. John married Katherine Agnes Powers, and this family lived in St. Paul, Minnesota. Patrick Jr. married Catherine Burns and this family stayed in Sauk County, Wisconsin.
Recently I found an old Irish birth record which showed a son born to Michael McPhillips and Mary Smith previously unknown to us. His name was Peter and he died before the McPhillips immigrated to America.
We have discussed the Irish Naming Convention which our ancestors may have used in naming their children.
The 1st son was usually named after the father's
father
The 2nd son was usually named after the mother's father
The 3rd son was usually named after the father
The 4th son was usually named after the father's eldest brother
The 5th son was usually named after the mother's eldest brother
The 1st daughter was usually named after the mother's mother
The 2nd daughter was usually named after the father's mother
The 3rd daughter was usually named after the mother
The 4th daughter was usually named after the mother's eldest sister
The 5th daughter was usually named after the father's eldest sister
Sometimes if one of these children died, the name was re-used later.
Michael McPhillips’ father was Patrick McPhillips; however, the mother’s name is unknown. Mary’s parents were William and Mary Smyth. We know Peter was the name of one of the unidentified children. Perhaps we can infer the remaining two missing children. One name definitely missing is ‘William’ which was Mary Smyth’s father. My guess is this would be another of the unidentified children. Another possible unidentified child would be ‘Michael’.
What was the name of the third unidentified child? The child could have been female and still unidentified. Perhaps there was an earlier ’Mary’ who died at birth. However, if the child was male then the boy’s name could have been ‘Michael’. Of course this depends on if the McPhillips family strongly adhered to the Irish Naming Convention.
(Top) Rossmore Castle
(Right) Dawson Grove
