Patricia Trainor O'Malley collection of Donovan and McCarthy family papers
Scope and Contents
Collection primarily consists of original letters of the Donovan and McCarthy families, Irish immigrants who settled in Haverhill, Massachusetts in the late nineteenth century. Topics consist of family affairs in both Ireland and Massachusetts, including community events and gossip, health updates, potato farming difficulties, and more. The donor, Patricia Trainor O'Malley, transcribed the letters and provided indexes with item-level dates and correspondents listed for each letter. Transcriptions also contain brief histories of the two families, which include personal anecdotes from O'Malley's time spent in Ireland conducting research.
Papers also include biographical materials such as baptismal records, deeds, and financial papers, as well as ephemera like autograph books, household bills, and a scrapbook. Photographs document family members in Haverhill, Massachusetts and in Ireland, as well as unidentified Irish immigrants in the late nineteenth century.
Dates
- Creation: 1872 - 2021
- Creation: Majority of material found within 1884 - 1929
Creator
- O'Malley, Patricia Trainor, 1937-2024 (Person)
- Donovan family (Haverhill, Mass.) (Family)
- McCarthy family (Haverhill, Mass.) (Family)
Access Note
Collection is open for research.
Letters in Shared box 1823 Folder 1 and Shared box 2524 Folder 1 are restricted due to fragility.
Conditions Governing Use
These materials are made available for use in research, teaching and private study, pursuant to U.S. Copyright Law. The user must assume full responsibility for any use of the materials, including but not limited to, infringement of copyright and publication rights of reproduced materials. Any materials used for academic research or otherwise should be fully credited with the source. The original authors may retain copyright to the materials.
Biographical note: Donovan family
Cornelius and Julia (Mahoney) Donovan married in the 1830's, lived in Dreenlamane, Ballydehob, Ireland, and had ten children: Ellen, John, Mary, Honora, Michael, Julia, Timothy, Cornelius, Thomas, and Daniel. The Donovan family had a farm in Dreenlamane and also bred horses and cattle.
Ellen Donovan (1836-1878) married Henry Schofield and died in childbirth in 1878.
John Donovan (1841-1914) married Mary Murphy, with whom he had three children: Ellen, Julia, and Cornelius. After Murphy's death, John Donovan married Ellen Mahoney.
Mary Donovan (1844-1908) married Mike Hodnett and had daughter Julia Agnes Hodnett in 1881.
Julia Donovan (1851-1929) married John Minihane and lived in the neighboring town, Cussovina.
Tim Donovan (1855-1902) married Kate McDonnell and was known in town as "The Saddler" for his trade of saddle-making.
Cornelius Donovan Jr. (1857-1929) married Brigid Donohue and inherited the family farm.
Honora Donovan (1847-1902) married Patrick Driscoll and emigrated to Lawrence, Massachusetts in 1865. The Driscoll family later moved to Haverhill, Massachusetts and opened a saloon and a boarding house.
Michael Donovan (1849-1914) emigrated to Haverhill to live with his sister's family in the 1870s.
Daniel Donovan (1864-1947) was the youngest of the Donovan family. In April 1885, he emigrated to Haverhill, Massachusetts. Ellen Donovan (b. 1868), John Donovan's daughter and Daniel Donovan's niece, accompanied him with her childhood friend, Mary O'Brien. They initially stayed with the Driscoll family, who had already settled in Haverhill.
Daniel Donovan married Mary McCarthy from Ballinglough, Leap, Ireland on November 6, 1890, in Haverhill. They had two daughters, J. Agnes Donovan (1893-1977) and C. Marion Donovan (b. 1898). Mary McCarthy Donovan died on September 9, 1900, and Daniel Donovan married Mary's sister, Honora "Nora" McCarthy (1876-1953), on May 12, 1903. They had three children, Lenora Marie (1903-1999), Daniel Harold (1906-1962), and Cornelius Patrick (1911-1911). Daniel Donovan died on January 11, 1947 in Haverhill, Massachusetts.
Sources:
"Daniel David Donovan." Ancestry, https://www.ancestrylibrary.com/family-tree/person/tree/46207632/person/102420963633/facts
"John Donovan." Ancestry, https://www.ancestrylibrary.com/family-tree/person/tree/46380801/person/172374869592/facts
"Julia Mahoney." Ancestry, https://www.ancestrylibrary.com/family-tree/person/tree/176519301/person/152631224230/facts
Index and transcriptions (1885-1929), Box 1, Folder 20, Patricia Trainor O'Malley collection of Donovan and McCarthy family papers, BC.2021.008, John J. Burns Library, Boston College.
Biographical note: McCarthy family
Patrick McCarthy (1831-1910) of Ballinlough, Leap, Ireland, was the son of Jeremiah and Honora McCarthy and the youngest of six children. He married Kate Keane in 1855, and they had eight children: Jeremiah "Jerry" (1856-1883), Dennis "Dinny" (1859-1935), Mary (1862-1900), Ellen "Elly" (1865-1940), Honora I (b. 1867, died in infancy), Timothy "Tady" (1868-1909), Katherine "Katie" (1872-1896), and Honora II "Nora" (1876-1953).
Nora McCarthy was baptized in the Kilmacabea Parish church on February 17, 1876. She attended the Knockskagh National School and worked at Sheehan's Hotel in Leap Village. She emigrated to Bradford, Massachusetts in May 1895 with her sister Ellen McCarthy. Their destination was the home of another sister, Mary McCarthy Donovan, who was married to Daniel Donovan of Dreenlamane, Ireland. Once in Massachusetts, Nora McCarthy worked as a housekeeper for numerous families in the area.
After Mary McCarthy Donovan died in 1900, Daniel Donovan married Nora McCarthy on May 12, 1903. They had three children, Lenora Marie (1903-1999), Daniel Harold (1906-1962), and Cornelius Patrick (1911-1911). Nora McCarthy Donovan died in 1953 in Haverhill, Massachusetts.
Sources:
"Honora McCarthy Donovan." Find A Grave, https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/251577172/honora-donovan
"Honoria McCarthy in the Massachusetts, U.S., Marriage Records, 1840-1915." Ancestry, https://www.ancestrylibrary.com/search/collections/2511/records/12787857
Index and transcriptions (1884-1918), Box 1, Folder 25, Patricia Trainor O'Malley collection of Donovan and McCarthy family papers, BC.2021.008, John J. Burns Library, Boston College.
Biographical note: Patricia Trainor O'Malley
Patricia Trainor O'Malley was born in Haverhill, Massachusetts on February 12, 1937, to Peter and Marie (Donovan) Trainor. She was the granddaughter of Daniel and Nora McCarthy Donovan. O'Malley graduated from Merrimack College where she sang in the Chorale. After college, she continued to sing with the Merrimack Alumni Chorale and the Valley Singers.
O'Malley began her graduate studies at Georgetown University in Washington, DC, where she met Jim O'Malley. They married in Bradford, Massachusetts in June 1960, and had three children: Kathleen, Terrence, and Patricia. O'Malley continued her graduate studies at Boston College and received her MA in Medieval Culture and her PhD in Modern English History. She taught classes at Rivier College, Northern Essex Community College, and Merrimack College, and, in 1975, joined the faculty at Bradford College. O'Malley held the position of Division Chair of Humanities and taught a variety of history courses at Bradford until it closed in 2000.
O'Malley was a member of the Bay State Historical League and American Association for State and Local History. She wrote several books in the "Images of America" paperback series by Arcadia Books, including: Haverhill, Massachusetts: A New England City (1987), The Irish in Haverhill, Massachusetts, volumes 1 (1998) and 2 (1999), and Haverhill's Immigrants at the Turn of the Century (1999). She also published So Far From Home: Letters From Ireland to Family In America in 2021, a collection of letters with her annotations. O'Malley died on November 23, 2024 in North Andover, Massachusetts.
Sources:
"West End Museum Revs Up Irish Heritage Celebration: Patricia Trainor O'Malley of Haverhill to be Honored". The West End Museum. https://thewestendmuseum.org/news/west-end-museum-revs-up-irish-heritage-celebration-patricia-trainor-omalley-of-haverhill-to-be-honored/.
Official Obituary of Patricia Trainor O'Malley. November 2024. https://www.driscollcares.com/obituary/Patricia-TrainorOMalley.
Full Extent
9.5 Linear Feet (13 containers)
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
Collection primarily consists of correspondence of the Donovan and McCarthy families, Irish immigrants who settled in Haverhill, Massachusetts in the late nineteenth century. Also included are biographical records, ephemera, and photographs.
Arrangement
Arranged into three series: I. Biographical records and ephemera; II. Correspondence; and III. Photographs.
Series II. is arranged into two subseries: A. Donovan family; and B. McCarthy family.
Provenance
Gift of Patricia Trainor O'Malley, 2019.
Gift of Terrence O'Malley, son of Patricia Trainor O'Malley, 2022.
Processing Information
Patricia Trainor O'Malley filed notecards with identifying information with many of the items, particularly in the biographical records and ephemera series. These cards were retained during processing.
Source
- Title
- Patricia Trainor O'Malley Collection of Donovan and McCarthy Family Papers
- Subtitle
- 1872-2021 (bulk 1884-1929)
- Author
- Molly Aleshire
- Date
- 2025
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the John J. Burns Library Repository
John J. Burns Library
Boston College
140 Commonwealth Avenue
Chestnut Hill MA 02467 USA
617-552-4861
burns@bc.libanswers.com