Oliver Murphy (Beara) → Luke Murphy email: full Ballycrovane Murphy genealogy back to John Murphy b.1720; confirms PJM = Patrick 'Paddy' Murphy son of Seamus Mor
Email correspondence — Oliver Murphy (Beara-side researcher) to Luke Murphy (user) · private email correspondence (Gmail PDF export) · 2026-05-11
Summary
Extraordinary email correspondence from **Oliver Murphy of Beara/Cork** (a distant cousin) to the user **Luke Murphy**, laying out the deep Ballycrovane Murphy genealogy across SIX GENERATIONS back to John Murphy b. 1720 of Boherbue, Co. Cork. This is the **single most important Murphy-family-tree document** in the archive — anchors PJM (the user's paternal great-great-grandfather) into a documented 6-generation Ballycrovane / Eyeries / Beara Murphy lineage. ## OLIVER MURPHY'S MURPHY-LINE TREE (Ballycrovane, Beara, West Cork) ### Generation -5 (b. ~1720) - **John Murphy (1720–1790)** of **Boherbue, Co. Cork**; d. 9 May 1790. ### Generation -4 (b. 1752) - **Jeremiah "Yarb" Murphy** (b. 1752) — son of John. m. **Ellen Kelly** (native of **Lurgan, County Galway**). ### Generation -3 (b. 1796) - **Crohur (Cornelius) "Yarb" Murphy** (b. 1796 **Clonglaskan [= Clounaglaskin], Castletownbeare, West Cork**; d. 27 Oct 1870 **Upper Cahirkeem, Eyeries**) — son of Jeremiah. m. **Catherine (Kate) Power** (b. 1784 **Rodeen, Castletownbeare**; d. Upper Cahirkeem, Eyeries) — daughter of **Edward (Rodeen) Power** + **Nellie Enright**. Kate's siblings: Edward, William, Gour, Mary, Ellen, Margaret, John. Their children: Mary, **Seamus Mor**, Jeremiah, ?? Yarb Murphy (sister), Peig (Yarb), Margaret (Peig) Yarb, Nell (Yarb), Joan (Yarb) [m. Timothy Harrington]. ### Generation -2 (PJM's parents) - **Seamus Mor (Big James) Murphy** — son of Crohur. m. **Peig Uonhi (Harrington)** of **Point Ranna, Fay, Eyeries**; daughter of **Andrew Harrington (Uonhi)**. Their children: John, **James (Jim)** [= Oliver's grandfather], Mary, Catherine (Kate), Michael, **Patrick (Paddy)** [= PJM the bartender, USER'S 2x-GREAT-GRANDFATHER]. ### Generation -1 (PJM = Paddy) - **Patrick "Paddy" Murphy (= person_patrick_j_murphy_ bartender_1908 = PJM)** — son of Seamus Mor; emigrated Butte ND then MT; married Lyne; sons James (b. ~1883 Beara) + Daniel (Montana-born), daughter Theresa (Montana-born). Wife "Lyne" = Ellen Lyne, daughter of Myles Lyne + Margaret (née O'Shea). Worked as miner then bartender; head injury in mine accident; 2 strokes of paralysis; 1908 PJC poor-farm commission per the Butte Daily Post Jan 7 1908. ## OLIVER'S RELATIONSHIP TO PJM (and to the user) Oliver Murphy is the **GRANDSON OF JAMES (JIM) MURPHY** — Patrick "Paddy" PJM's BROTHER. So Oliver's father was a NEPHEW of PJM. Oliver himself is therefore a **first cousin twice removed** of the user's father Dan Murphy (= the user's ~2nd or 3rd cousin via the Beara Murphy line; cousin distance shifted one generation closer per user's 2026-05-27 framework correction that Dan is father, not grandfather). Oliver's grandfather **James (Jim) Murphy** (PJM's brother) stayed in Beara, married **Julia Sullivan** of Scrahan on 11 Feb 1890. Julia was the daughter of Daniel O'Sullivan (Seer) of Scrahan / Urhan / Eyeries (a weaver; b.~1840, d. 1 Mar 1924 age 84) + Mary Goggin (m. 21 Feb 1860). Their 14 children documented in the 1911/1926 Censuses of Ireland. ## CRITICAL CROSS-LINKS WITH THE EXISTING ARCHIVE 1. **PJM's father = Seamus Mor Murphy** (replaces the existing archive's hypothesis person_timothy_tady_murphy_ 1825 as PJM's father per the 1992 Donald V. Murphy reader's letter's "Clounaglaskin" Murphy ancestry). The Tady-tree-1992 hypothesis was based on the Donald letter; Oliver's 2026 email proposes a DIFFERENT Murphy line (Crohur-Jeremiah-John of Boherbue → Beara). The two theories diverge at the Crohur (1796 Clounaglaskan b.) vs Tady (b. 1825 Clounaglaskan) generation. Both emigrated-to-Butte-via-Clounaglaskin frameworks — likely the SAME Murphy clan but two different family branches within it. Oliver's tree has been confirmed via Ancestry DNA tests and contact with cousins in 2025. 2. **1918 KILCATHERINE FISHING DROWNING** = the deaths of **John and Patrick Murphy, sons of James (Jim) Murphy of Beara** (PJM's brother). The existing archive's 1918-12-10 Butte Miner clipping ("M'Carthy's nephew drowned, Dwyers cousins of James Murphy of the Hennessy company") = the SAME 1918 Kilcatherine fishing tragedy but with a different family-coverage angle (the Butte paper covered it from Hennessy-employee James Murphy's Dwyer-cousins perspective; Oliver's tree clarifies the Murphy brothers were John + Patrick of Ballycrovane 5th Battalion Cork 5th Brigade IRA). 3. **PJM's 1908 Butte Daily Post commitment text** is quoted by Oliver almost verbatim — he had researched the same primary source. 4. **Cornelius Murphy headstone in Cork** (existing archive's _unknown-cemetery-cork_cornelius-murphy-1879- family-stone) — POSSIBLY = Crohur (Cornelius) "Yarb" Murphy of Oliver's tree but DATES DON'T MATCH (Crohur d. 27 Oct 1870 per Oliver; Cornelius on stone d. 2 Feb 1879). Two different Cornelius Murphys of Beara, OR Oliver has the wrong date, OR the headstone has the wrong date. Held as open question. 5. **PJM's wife Lyne** — Oliver consistently calls her "Lyne" (her maiden name) rather than "Ellen." Suggests family-of-origin nicknamed her by her maiden name. Reconciles with the archive's Ellen Lyne identification. 6. **Stephen Murphy** (Oliver's uncle, eldest of James-Jim Murphy's 14 children) emigrated Quebec; m. Hanna Clifford 26 Oct 1927 St. Augustine of Canterbury; d. 2 Mar 1983. Hanna's parents: John Clifford + Johannes (Joan) Boyd, Tralee Kerry. Hanna was Church of England (an inter- denominational Catholic-Protestant marriage). 7 children. Oliver's father + uncle Denis did not know about Stephen until Stephen's wife called Denis's house in Calinafercy, Milltown, Co. Kerry in the early 1970s. ## USER'S RESPONSE (Luke → Oliver, May 11 2026 11:09 PM) Luke acknowledges Oliver's research broadly matches his own ("about half"). Pushes back on the 1887 Liverpool-Yarmouth- Quebec voyage entry — that's NOT his Patrick (Luke's Patrick emigrated Jamestown Dakota Territory first, then Butte). Luke confirms the 1918 fishing accident match. ## OLIVER'S CLARIFICATION (Tue May 12 2026 3:20 AM) Oliver acknowledges the 1887 voyage Patrick was incorrect; popped up on Ancestry as a "possible relative." Confirms the REAL shared Patrick is PJM (his uncle, the user's 2x-great- grandfather), son of his (Oliver's) great-grandfather Seamus Mor. Asks Luke to keep posted on "your Dad's project to mark Patrick's grave with a headstone" — references an in-progress family project to mark PJM's previously-unmarked Butte grave. Asks where John + Patrick Murphy (1918 fishing victims) were buried — outstanding question for the user's research. ## SIGNIFICANCE TO THE BOOK PROJECT This document is the **deepest documented Murphy genealogy artifact** in the archive. Pushes PJM's male-line ancestry back to John Murphy b.1720 — over 300 years of documented Murphy ancestry on PJM's paternal line. Adds Beara-family context (Seamus Mor Murphy's other children, the Sullivan in-law branch via Julia, the IRA brothers John + Patrick, the Quebec-Stephen and Park-City-Utah-Mary-Ann diaspora) that ties PJM's emigration into a 19th-century Beara Murphy clan story rather than an isolated journey.
People
- Patrick "Pat" J. Murphy (Cork-born bartender / shoemaker; d. 1912 Warm Springs MT)(as printed: Patrick "Paddy" Murphy)role: subject identified as paddy murphy uncle of olivers father · family confidence: 100 certain
- Luke D. Murphy(as printed: Luke Murphy)role: correspondence recipient · family confidence: 100 certain
- role: correspondence sender · family confidence: 100 certain
- Catherine Murphy Sullivan (b. ~1864; sister of Patrick Murphy; m. Patrick "Tailor" Sullivan 1884; JJM's godmother 1883)(as printed: Catherine)role: sibling of patrick in seamus mor family · family confidence: 95 certain
- James "Jim" Murphy (PJM's brother; Oliver Murphy's grandfather; stayed in Beara; m. Julia Sullivan 1890)(as printed: James)role: olivers grandfather · family confidence: 95 certain
- Julia Sullivan (Scrahan; m. James "Jim" Murphy 11 Feb 1890; Oliver's grandmother)(as printed: Julia Sullivan of Scrahan)role: olivers grandmother · family confidence: 75 strong
- John Murphy (1720–1790) of Boherbue, Co. Cork — PJM's GGG-grandfather(as printed: John Murphy. (1720-1790) of Boherbue, County Cork)role: named in olivers genealogy · family confidence: 75 strong
- Jeremiah "Yarb" Murphy (b. 1752) — PJM's GG-grandfather(as printed: Jeremiah Murphy (Yarb) D.O.B. 1752)role: named in olivers genealogy · family confidence: 75 strong
- Ellen Kelly of Lurgan, County Galway — PJM's GG-grandmother(as printed: Ellen Kelly, a native of Lurgan, County Galway)role: named in olivers genealogy · family confidence: 75 strong
- Crohur (Cornelius) "Yarb" Murphy (b. 1796 Clounaglaskin; d. 27 Oct 1870 Upper Cahirkeem) — PJM's grandfather(as printed: Crohur (Cornelius) (Yarb) Murphy)role: claimed grandfather of patrick · family confidence: 75 strong
- Catherine "Kate" Power (b. 1784 Rodeen Castletownbere; d. Upper Cahirkeem) — PJM's grandmother(as printed: Catherine (Kate) Power)role: claimed grandmother of patrick · family confidence: 75 strong
- John Murphy (Ballycrovane, 1891–1918; drowned off Pointe Ranna; James's first cousin)(as printed: John Murphy (b. 02/12/1891))role: jjm cousin died 1918 fishing · family confidence: 95 certain
- Patie (Patrick) Murphy (Ballycrovane, 1895–1918; drowned with his brother John; James's first cousin)(as printed: Patrick Murphy (b. 05/04/1895))role: jjm cousin died 1918 fishing · family confidence: 95 certain
- Michael Murphy (bapt. 28 May 1864, Ballycrovane; went to San Francisco; Patrick's brother)(as printed: Michael Murphy (PJM's brother))role: pjm brother emigrated sf · family confidence: 95 certain
- John Murphy (Ballycrovane; Seamus Mór's son; died before 1890; Patrick's brother)(as printed: John Murphy (PJM's brother))role: pjm brother seamus mors son · family confidence: 85 strong
- Seamus Mór (Big James) Murphy — PJM's father, of Ballycrovane Beara(as printed: Seamus Mor (Big James) Murphy)role: pjm father · family confidence: 95 certain
- Peig Uonhi (Harrington) — PJM's mother, of Point Ranna, Fay, Eyeries(as printed: Peig Uonhi (Harrington))role: pjm mother · family confidence: 95 certain
- Mary Murphy O'Sullivan (b. Dec 1846 Ballycrovane; Patrick's sister; first wife of Jack "Dorohy" O'Sullivan)(as printed: Mary)role: sibling of patrick in seamus mor family · family confidence: 95 certain
Also mentioned
- John Murphy (1720-1790) · pjm_ggg_grandfather
Of Boherbue, Co. Cork. d. 9 May 1790. PJM's great-great-great-grandfather (= user's 5x-great-grandfather).
- Jeremiah 'Yarb' Murphy (b. 1752) · pjm_gg_grandfather
Son of John Murphy 1720; m. Ellen Kelly of Lurgan, Co. Galway.
- Ellen Kelly (Lurgan Galway) · pjm_gg_grandmother_kelly_line
- Crohur (Cornelius) 'Yarb' Murphy (1796-27 Oct 1870) · pjm_grandfather
B. Clonglaskan Castletownbeare; d. Upper Cahirkeem Eyeries. Son of Jeremiah.
- Catherine (Kate) Power (b. 1784 Rodeen) · pjm_grandmother_power_line
Daughter of Edward (Rodeen) Power + Nellie Enright. M. Crohur Murphy. Power-Murphy in-law tie.
- Edward (Rodeen) Power · pjm_great_grandfather_power_line
- Nellie Enright · pjm_great_grandmother_enright_line
- Andrew Harrington (Uonhi) · pjm_grandfather_harrington_line
- James (Jim) Murphy (PJM's brother) · olivers_grandfather_pjm_brother
= Oliver Murphy's grandfather. Stayed in Beara. M. Julia Sullivan 11 Feb 1890.
- Mary Murphy (PJM's sister) · pjm_sister_per_olivers_email
- Catherine (Kate) Murphy (PJM's sister) · pjm_sister_per_olivers_email
Catherine = Kate Murphy. Could be the Catherine Murphy who m. Patrick 'Tailor' Sullivan 1884 Eyeries (existing archive's 1884 marriage cert).
- Patrick 'Paddy' Murphy (PJM) · pjm_subject
= the user's PJM the bartender, son of Seamus Mor.
- James Murphy (PJM's brother who emigrated SF 1891) · pjm_brother_emigrated_sf_1891
Per Oliver: another brother named James also emigrated to San Francisco in 1891. (Distinct from James-Jim who stayed in Beara.) ESTABLISHES SF-Murphy diaspora point.
- Joan (Yarb) Murphy m. Timothy Harrington · pjm_aunt_harrington_in_law
Daughter of Crohur Murphy; PJM's aunt. Married into Harrington line.
- Julia Sullivan (m. James-Jim Murphy 1890) · olivers_grandmother
Daughter of Daniel O'Sullivan (Seer) of Scrahan + Mary Goggin.
- Daniel O'Sullivan (Seer) · olivers_maternal_grandfather
Of Scrahan, Urhan, Eyeries. Weaver. b.~1840, d. 1 Mar 1924 age 84. M. Mary Goggin 21 Feb 1860.
- Mary Goggin · olivers_maternal_grandmother
- Stephen Murphy (Quebec emigrant; eldest of James-Jim's 14 children) · olivers_uncle_quebec
Emigrated Quebec; m. Hanna Clifford 26 Oct 1927; d. 2 Mar 1983. Discovered by Oliver's father + uncle Denis only in early 1970s when Stephen's wife visited.
- Daniel (Dan) Murphy · jjm_cousin_ira_member
Son of James-Jim + Julia. IRA 5th Battalion Cork 5th Brigade. Received medals + military pension. Died 1970s.
- Mary Ann (Marieanne) Murphy · jjm_cousin_park_city_utah_emigrant
Daughter of James-Jim + Julia. Emigrated Park City Utah 28 July 1922 as guest of Mrs Felix Trainor. M. Patrick Fagen 8 July 1925. Died of breast cancer Miners Hospital. Daughter Patsy m. + 2 daughters Pamela + Paula (Pamela visited Ballycrovane 2025 — Ancestry DNA reconnection).
- Mrs James Sullivan (Mary Ann's aunt, Park City UT then San Diego) · park_city_to_san_diego_sullivan_diaspora
Per local-paper note, Mrs James Sullivan + family left Park City for Butte on a month's holiday in 1915/'16, also visited friends in Helena. SUGGESTS the Beara-Sullivan-to-Park-City-UT-to-Butte-MT migration chain.
Places
- Ballycrovane (primary)
- Clounaglaskin (primary)
- Eyeries (village + parish + RC Chapel) (primary)
- Castletownbere, County Cork (primary)
- Beara Peninsula (primary)
- County Cork (primary)
- Ireland (primary)
Themes
Story threads
Tags
Related sources
- 1908-01-07 — The Butte Daily Post, p.6 — JOHN BARLEYCORN IS VERY BUSY MAN
- 1918-12-10 — The Butte Miner, p.5 — M'CARTHY'S NEPHEW IS DROWNED NEAR IRELAND
- 1918-12-10 — The Anaconda Standard, p.7 — ONLY ONE SURVIVES IN PARTY OF SIX
- 1879-02-02 — Family headstone photograph (private) — Cornelius Murphy family headstone (Cork) — four Murphys 1879/1907/1912/1944
Open questions
- Crohur (Cornelius) "Yarb" Murphy d. 27 Oct 1870 per Oliver vs. Cornelius Murphy on the existing-archive headstone d. 2 Feb 1879 — same person with date drift, or two different Beara Cornelius Murphys?
- PJM's father Seamus Mor Murphy — exact dates of birth and death not specified in Oliver's email. Worth a focused follow-up to Oliver for vital dates.
- Oliver's claim that "Catherine (Kate)" is one of PJM's sisters — POSSIBLY = the Catherine Murphy who m. Patrick "Tailor" Sullivan 1884 Eyeries (existing 1884-02-23 marriage cert). If yes, this confirms the existing archive's Catherine Murphy → Patrick Sullivan match as part of the direct family.
- Oliver's "Michael Murphy emigrated SF 1883" and "James Murphy emigrated SF 1891" — distinct from the user's Patrick-to-Butte chain. These would add Murphy-in-SF diaspora records to the archive (Ancestry / SF Voters Registers / 1920 Census / WWII Alien Registration).
- Pamela + Paula (PJM's grand-nieces in Utah) reconnected via Ancestry DNA in 2025. Suggests the user could connect with these cousins for additional family records.
- Cross-check Oliver's tree against the existing person records that hypothesize person_timothy_tady_murphy_1825 as PJM's father. Either the Tady framework or Oliver's Seamus Mor framework is wrong, OR both trees converge at Clounaglaskin / Eyeries one generation up. Oliver's Ancestry DNA confirmation gives his tree higher weight.