My maternal grandmother was Annie Carroll. Originally from Sallynoggin, Co. Dublin, her father was Patrick Doyle and her mother was Martha (nee Byrne). For as long as I can remember, my grandmother’s family shared an unusually tragic set of coincidences. Separated by the Atlantic Ocean and almost three decades apart, two members of my grandmother’s family were accidentally and fatally shot, while at a sporting event (or so we thought).
The first of these tragic accidents involved my grandmother’s uncle, William Byrne, the sister of Martha. In 1922, at the age of 13, William was caddying on a South County Dublin golf course when he was killed by an accidental gunshot. The details surrounding the accident are unclear but the civil record states the cause of death as ‘internal haemorrhage from accidental gun shot wound’[1].
The first of these tragic accidents involved my grandmother’s uncle, William Byrne, the sister of Martha. In 1922, at the age of 13, William was caddying on a South County Dublin golf course when he was killed by an accidental gunshot. The details surrounding the accident are unclear but the civil record states the cause of death as ‘internal haemorrhage from accidental gun shot wound’[1].
The second tragic event took place on the 4th July 1950. A man called Bernard L. Doyle went to see a baseball game between the New York Giants and Brooklyn Dodgers. He had brought along his neighbour’s son Otto Flaig. Otto’s view of the game was obstructed by a man sitting in front of him; Bernard (Barney) swapped seats with Otto. Moments later on a nearby rooftop, another boy, Robert Peebles, fired a pistol into the sky for fun. Out of a crowd of 49,000 spectators, the bullet from that pistol struck Barney Doyle in the left temple, killing him instantly.
(Image source: https://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/ok-so-some-things-in-the-golden-era-were-not-too-cool.61425/page-67 accessed 09.09.2018)
For years, our family has believed that the Bernard Doyle shot in New York was related to us. My maternal great-grandfather Patrick Doyle (the son of Christopher) had both a brother and a cousin called Bernard Doyle. Patrick’s cousin Bernard was the son of Andrew Doyle from Co. Meath, who had emigrated to the U.S.A. sometime around the turn of the 20th Century. A letter had been sent many years ago informing the family that it was Andrew’s son Bernard who had been shot at that baseball game.
However, some recent genealogical research suggests there may have been a mix up. Bernard L. Doyle (who was tragically killed at the baseball game in 1950) was the son of Andrew Doyle and Ellen (Helen) C. Meade[2]. Andrew and Ellen were married on the 11thSeptember 1895 in Lowell, Massachusetts, U.S.A. On Andrew and Ellen’s marriage record, Andrew’s father is named Patrick Doyle[3].
This means that Bernard’s father Andrew is not a relation of ours. Our ancestor Andrew Doyle, the brother of Christopher, was the son of Michael Doyle from Co. Meath. I know that Andrew and Christopher’s father was Michael, as it is stated on the marriage record of Christopher Doyle and Kate Meara[4].
The two Doyle family trees share a number of similarities that allowed this mix up to occur. Each family has an Andrew Doyle[5], born around the same time, each hailing from the Kells area in Co. Meath, Ireland, who emigrated to the U.S.A. Each Andrew Doyle had a son called Bernard around the mid 1890’s. However, based on the marriage records of Andrew Doyle and Ellen C. Meade, and of Christopher Doyle and Kate Meara, it is clear that these two Doyle’s are not related.
What remains a mystery is what happened to our Bernard Doyle? Our family obviously lost touch with him. When our relatives heard the news about Bernard L. Doyle (and the similarities in lineage) did they assume it was our Bernard Doyle? Despite my genealogical research I have been unable to find our Bernard Doyle. This mystery remains buried with him, wherever he is.
What remains a mystery is what happened to our Bernard Doyle? Our family obviously lost touch with him. When our relatives heard the news about Bernard L. Doyle (and the similarities in lineage) did they assume it was our Bernard Doyle? Despite my genealogical research I have been unable to find our Bernard Doyle. This mystery remains buried with him, wherever he is.
Footnotes
[1] Civil Death Record of William Byrne, 13yrs, 7 Longford Villas Sallynoggin, on 10thApril 1922, District of Dun Laoghaire in the Union of Rathdown in the County of Dublin, 04391923.
[2] See 1900 Census, Lowell, Middlesex, Massachusetts, Nara Series #1240659.
[3] See Pg. 89 Marriages Solemnized in the City of Lowell in the Year 1895. Familysearch film #001651224 – Record Set: United States Marriages.
[4] See Civil Marriage Record of Christopher Doyle and Kate Meara on 05.07.1891, Record #05891329 (219).
[5] However, I have yet to find a record of an Andrew Doyle, son of Michael Doyle, from the Kells area of Co. Meath.
[6] I examined the following U.S. Census records in order to compile Bernard L. Doyle Family Tree: 1900 Census Lowell, Middlesex Massachusetts, Nara Series #1240659; 1920 Census Hudson, New Jersey, Supervisor District #9, Enumerator District #299, Sheet 8(A); 1920 Census Hudson, new Jersey, Supervisor District #9, Enumerator District #333; 1930 Census, New Jersey, Nara
[2] See 1900 Census, Lowell, Middlesex, Massachusetts, Nara Series #1240659.
[3] See Pg. 89 Marriages Solemnized in the City of Lowell in the Year 1895. Familysearch film #001651224 – Record Set: United States Marriages.
[4] See Civil Marriage Record of Christopher Doyle and Kate Meara on 05.07.1891, Record #05891329 (219).
[5] However, I have yet to find a record of an Andrew Doyle, son of Michael Doyle, from the Kells area of Co. Meath.
[6] I examined the following U.S. Census records in order to compile Bernard L. Doyle Family Tree: 1900 Census Lowell, Middlesex Massachusetts, Nara Series #1240659; 1920 Census Hudson, New Jersey, Supervisor District #9, Enumerator District #299, Sheet 8(A); 1920 Census Hudson, new Jersey, Supervisor District #9, Enumerator District #333; 1930 Census, New Jersey, Nara
