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Frain Family Tree - Illinois BranchPaternal SideBy Joseph R. Frain
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Family Name
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Frain, Luke and Mary SweeneyInformation on this page includes: Luke Frain and Mary Sweeney Marriage Certificate
Luke Frain was born in County Mayo, Ireland to Luke Frain and Mary Duffy about 1836/1837/1838. Mary Sweeney was born in County Leitrim, Ireland to Patrick Sweeney and Honora Gallagher about 1826/1836/1837. Birth years vary according to marriage registration, census', obituaries, and death certificates. They both moved to County Durham, England prior to their marriage on March 8, 1859 in St.Cuthbert's chapel in Lanchester, County Durham, England. They lived in Leadgate/Medomsley at the time. They moved to several places around the Durham County area. It is presumed, by me, that Luke and his sons worked in the area coal mines. Luke Frain and Mary Sweeney Marriage Certificate
According to the marriage document Mary would have been born in 1839 which clashes with her obituary which places her birth in 1826. Should I believe that the marriage certificate is more correct since that would make her a year younger than her husband or believe the obituary which makes her several years older than her husband? I tend to believe that incorrect information was provided for the obituary. This belief is also backed by the 1861 and 1881 British Census' that has her birth year as 1837. Leadgate and Medomsley are two towns approximately 15 miles northwest of the city of Durham. Lanchester is a town about halfway between Leadgate and Durham. The ages on the marriage certificate vary from those given on their obituaries and death certificates. According to the marriage certificate Luke would have been born in 1837/1838 and Mary would have been born in 1836/1837. His death certificate says he was born in 1836 and hers says she was born in 1826. To confuse the issue even more, the 1900 census has both birth years as 1842 which I would say is obviously incorrect.. Luke Frayne and Mary are found on the 1861 census of England. They were enumerated while living in Brooms, Lanchester Parish, Durham. He is 26, a coal miner, born in County Mayo Ireland. She is 26 and was born in County Leitrim, Ireland. Their son John is 1 year old and was born in Lanchester, Durham, England. Their daughter Mary is 6 months old and was born in Lanchester, Durham, England. Luke Frayne and family are found on the 1881 census of England. The locale was 33 South Street, Helmington Row, Durham. Luke is age 43, was born in Ireland, is the Head of Household and a coal miner. Mary Frayne is his wife, age 44 and born in Ireland. Luke Frayne, a son, is age 17, born in Durham Spennymoor Parish and is a coal miner. Martin Frayne, a son, is age 11, born in Sunnybrow Parish and is a scholar. John Frayne, a son, is age 21, born in Leadgate Parish and is a coal miner. Patrick Frayne, a son, is age 13, born in Spennymoor Parish and is a coal miner. Daughter, Mary, is not listed, because she married Michael Foy a year earlier. Spennymoor is about 10 miles south of the city of Durham. Sunnybrow is about 7 miles Southwest of Durham. Extracts from Research by Godfrey Duffy From research by Godfrey Duffy of the Durham Records Office: born 13 August 1863, bapt 06 September 1863, Luke Frain son of Luke Frain & Mary Sweeney. Godparents Owen Frain & Sarah Queenan From research by Godfrey Duffy: On a point of detail The Frains were actually living in Sunnybrow on the 1881 census which is within the registration district of Helmington Row. From the research by Godfrey Duffy of the Durham Records Office: born 28 May 1874, bapt 14 June 1874, Catherine Frain daughter of Luke Frain & Mary Sweeney. Godparents William Proctor & Margaret Riley. Died in infancy ? Also: born 31 October 1865, bapt 12 November 1865, Martin Frayne son of Luke Frayne & Mary Sweeney. Godparents Thomas & Catherine Hunt. Must have died in infancy . See later baptism of 2nd Martin. Frain Family in County Durham, England One wonders if the parents moved to England on their own in the 1850s at their young ages or if they moved with their families. It was only 5 to ten years earlier when the potato famine was in full swing in Ireland and many families or parts of families left for England, Australia and America. In any case, it most likely was a difficult journey from County Mayo to County Durham, England. Luke and Mary lived in County Durham, England until 1886 when they and their family moved to the United States. During that time they raised 5 children who were all born in Durham; John born on May 13,1859, Luke born on 13 Aug. 1863, Patrick born on Jan. 12 1868, Martin born pn Oct. 31, 1870 and Mary born on 15 Aug. 1860. Tragically, they had 2 children that died very young. Martin born on Oct. 31, 1865 and Catherine born on May 28, 1874. It is certain Martin died before the birth of his brother Martin in Oct. 1870 and Catherine died before they immigrated in 1886. The births are on baptismal records recorded in County Durham, England. From "Prince Bishop Country, The people, history and folklore of County Durham and the River Wear" by David A. Simpson, Illustrated by Fred M. Atkinson:
EARLY COAL MINING IN DURHAM AND THE NORTH EAST ....As early as the mid 1300s, mines were recorded at Cockfield, Coundon, Hett, Lanchester and Ferryhill, along with others further east at Lumley and Rainton near Houghton le Spring..... About life in County, Durham - Circa 1800 to 1886 The lives of miners and their families were not comfortable in England in the 1800's. The pay was just a couple shillings per day, the living conditions were squalid and sanitation was terrible. It was common for very young children to be employed in the mines to perform menial tasks. In most cases, the living quarters for the miners amounted to a small kitchen and 1 bedroom for the whole family. Outdoor plumbing facilities were crude and unsanitary and, in the worst cases, shared by up to 150 other people. Is it any wonder that Luke chose to immigrate with his family in 1886? A quote from "The Coalminers of Durham" by Norman Emery.... 'In 1879 the Enginemen's Mutual Protection Society established an emigration scheme to assist any of its members who wished to leave Durham for North America or Australia. Several miners and their families left for Illinois and the coalfields of Pennsylvania, or Brisbane in Australia." Frain Family Immigration - 1886 Research of New York ship passenger lists shows the Fraine family were passengers on the HMS City of Berlin. The HMS City of Berlin was skippered by Capt. Francis S. Land. The ship's log confirmed the Durham area as the Luke Fraine family residence before emigration to the U.S. Interesting note: Capt. Land skippered the HMS City of Berlin in May, 1885 when it hit an iceberg. No serious danger was encountered. As of this writing, John Fraine along with Patrick and Martin were found. The parents, Luke and Mary, plus their brother Luke and sister Mary were not listed. Either the ship's log was incorrect, or the names were illegible like many other names. Their ages were shown as 26, 17 and 16, respectively. The ages for John, Patrick and Martin are very close to correct according to their birth records.. They sailed from the Liverpool and Queenstown ports and arrived in New York on July 25, 1886. They were listed as laborers, most recent residence was Durham, England and were citizens of England. They were in No. 3 steerage class with 1 bag each. Unfortunately, their destination was not readable. The ship carried 497 steerage passengers, 47 intermediate and 43 cabin passengers. Cobh, Ireland was called Queenstown at one time. Frain Family in Bureau County, Illinois, USA Upon arrival in the United States, the Frain family settled in Bureau County, Illinois. Luke first obtained work as a coal miner, but retired from the mines in 1892. He then opened and operated a news stand for many years with his son Patrick. Luke and Mary died in Bureau County, Illinois. Mary in 1920 and Luke in 1922. They are buried in a family plot in Mt. Olivet Cemetery in Spring Valley, Bureau County, Illinois. Their son Patrick, who died in 1950, is also buried in the same family plot. His son Luke and his wife Elizabeth are buried a few yards from them. Major sources of information about Luke and Mary were their obituaries which I quote: THE DAILY TRIBUNE, LA SALLE, ILLINOIS, THURSDAY, SEPT. 7, 1922 THE LA SALLE DAILY TRIBUNE AND PERU EVENING PRESS, SEPT. 9, 1922 Comment: Birthplace of Ballyherine was named in Luke's obituary, however, I can find no town called Ballyherine in Ireland either on current maps or maps from 100 years ago. Ballaghaderreen exists in County Roscommon near the border of County Mayo." A Topographical Dictionary of Ireland" by Samuel Lewis written in 1837 includes a map of Mayo County which includes the town of Ballaghaderreen. The county line was realigned and shifted Ballaghaderreen into County Roscommon in 1898. Perhaps this is the town and the town name in the obituary was a phonetic rendition of the name. That is, the person who did the obituary may have only heard the name and not have seen it spelled out. Residents of the town pronounce the name as 'Bal la ha' dreen'. BUREAU COUNTY REPUBLICAN, JANUARY 29, 1920 Comment: We find that Mary's birthplace was written as it sounds, that is, County Lathram is County Leitrim and Drimkerin is Drumkeeran which is in County Leitrim. This is the same kind of mistake encountered when Luke's birth town was misspelled. Luke and Mary Frain Death Certificates Other pertinent information on Luke and Mary was obtained from their death certificates.
The marriage certificate shows Luke's father as Patrick Frain while his death certificate shows Luke Frain. From one of Luke's obituaries, we see a discrepancy in the reported number of sons. My research has identified 4 sons. According to the 1900 census, Luke and Mary had been married 40 years (they were married in 1859). The 1900 census shows Luke, Mary and son Patrick living at 205 W. Cleveland St. in Spring Valley, Hall Township, Bureau County, Ill. They owned their home free of mortgage. Luke and son Patrick ran a news stand in Spring Valley. According to the census, they had 10 children by 1900, but only 5 were living. There are records indicating that there had been 2 other children that died young in England. The 1910 census shows that Luke, Mary and Patrick immigrated in 1886. Mary's obituary claims she immigrated in 1885. Patrick's obituary claims he immigrated with his family in 1886. The 1920 U.S. Census Index and census record shows Luke Frain born in Ireland, white male, 82 years old living with his wife at 205 W. Cleveland Street, Spring Valley, Bureau County, IL. They own their home free and clear. His wife Mary was born in Ireland and was 83 years old. Both Luke and Mary's parents were born in Ireland and spoke English as their native tongue (compare to Martin Frain's census data that claims their father and mother's native tongue was Irish). Patrick, their son born in England, age 46 was living with them as were John Foy, a great grandson age 13 and Eleanor Foster a grand daughter age 19, both born in Illinois. These are children of their daughter, Mary, Who married first a Foy, then a Foster. Patrick is the proprietor of a news stand. As usual, some information conflicts with previous census' and documentation. Luke, Mary and Patrick's emigration dates are shown as 1888 when we have found that 1886 is the correct date. They claim naturalization as being done in 1890. There is no corroboration of that date, yet. The following found at http://www.theshipslist.com/index.html
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