Nora's memories: The family of James Reilly and Bridget Lawlor

We continue this week with the memories of Nora Reilly Hill about the Reillys of Stragella. From the same clan, we now turn to the family of James Reilly and his wife Bridget Reilly (née Lawlor), who were married on February 4, 1855. James and Bridget’s children were Johnny, called Big Johnny, born in 1855; Thomas Francis, called T.F., born in 1861; and Kathy (Catherine), born 1864. Records from Cavan Genealogy Centre reveal that there were another two children, named James, born in 1857; and Mary, born in 1859.

Kathy Reilly married a Mr Brady, a farmer from Shankill townland. He was in possession of 26 acres of land, but according to Nora, the land was only ever used for spade work. None-the-less, he had a reputation for growing great crops of cabbage and vegetables, which he sold in Cavan on market days. His wife was said to be a character, spreading ‘cheer and laughter’ wherever she went.

Nora remembers Kathy bringing a basket laden with eggs to town to sell to the local shopkeepers and, by the time she’d be ready to head for home, the basket was filled to the throat with groceries; sales of good hen’s eggs have always been a winner.

Brady’s home was a great spot for music and a bit of craic and many a welcome was given to the musicians who came to play the flute, violin, and other instruments. Of a Sunday evening, they’d be in full flight as the young men and women gathered to dance around Kathy’s kitchen where she herself often showed off her famed lilting skills. In 1932, the Brady household and surrounding community were in shock when poor Kathy contracted pneumonia and died unexpectedly.

Big Johnny

Kathy’s brother ‘Big Johnny’ Reilly who was willed most of the ‘Pensioners’ farm was married to a Stragella woman called Biddy Brady and they had a family of three children. They were Jemmy, Susan and ‘Long Johnny’ (a sensible name you might suppose for a man who in adulthood stood over six feet tall). Nora thought that ‘Big Johnny’ was incredibly indecisive, and would always consult Biddy on every matter, down to the most ‘trivial of things’.

His brother T.F. had left behind the green fields of Cavan to seek his fortune in America where he established himself in the building trade. Business was good and T.F. became a success. He was to become a millionaire. This allowed him to send money home to Johnny to put back into the farm. Nora acknowledged the importance of the extra income and said that Big Johnny was the first farmer in the area to ‘have horses, ploughs and a mowing machine’ and that he was an industrious individual who ‘worked on his own farm as well as his aunts, Mrs Coyle’s cousin, and others.’

T.F. Reilly Incorporated

Thomas Francis Reilly otherwise known as T.F., began work in Philadelphia in 1890 firstly, as a general contractor, contracted to conduct work for the Philadelphia Railroad.

T.F. got his big break when his half-brother Jemmy sponsored his stay in America allowing him to join relatives in Philadelphia. Both teamed up as contractors working on the Pennsylvania railroad; bringing needed materials to the site by horse and wagon. The job earned good money, and in fact, it earned enough for T.F. to start his own company.

But for whatever reason, Jemmy disappeared from public view and Nora speculated that he may have died. With improved prospects, T.F. sent for his love Catherine to join him in Philadelphia. She had been a teacher in Drumcrave NS back in Ireland and, as soon as she went to the States, they were married. Catherine and T.F. had a family of six children. They were, Mrs Edward L. Wingert, Mrs Catherine R. Greany, Mrs Monica R. Whelan, Mrs Daniel J. McNichol, Rev Mother Mary Fintan, S.H.J.C., and Charles E. Reilly. The Reilly family lived comfortably at 2400 Bryn Mawr Avenue, a street with which they had a lot in common.

Like the roaring tiger from the old ESSO advertisements, T.F.’s company went from strength to strength, and he began working on bigger projects. For example they were asked to build the famous Bryn Mawr Avenue in Philadelphia. It was an immense achievement and one of which the Reilly family were justifiably proud as it was no mean feat to succeed in America unless you had plenty of nerve and endurance to work hard. In addition to those attributes, T.F. Reilly’s company constructed high quality buildings, which cemented the reputation of T.F. Reilly Incorporated throughout the State of Pennsylvania.

Killygarry

Catherine and T.F.’s oldest boy Fintan went on to university to become a medical doctor. The Reillys were very proud of their son who sadly died very shortly after graduating because of food poisoning. His parents returned home to Cavan and had an altar made from marble in his honour and it was installed in the beautiful Church dedicated to St Brigid, Killygarry. An inscription on the altar read: ‘To the memory of Fintan Reilly who died in 1900, erected by his parents T.F. and Catherine.

For many years, his photograph was displayed in the Reilly relatives’ household at the Hollow, in Cavan.

St Brigid’s Church is designed in a gothic revivalist style and bears all the hallmarks of the great Cavan architect William Hague, a designer of many fine churches in Cavan and across the country. The fine-cut stonework of the building and its prominent location on a raised site made an imposing statement to worshippers who first celebrated mass within its walls for the first time when the building was dedicated by Bishop Nicholas Conaty, in 1868. The church was still relatively new and was a focus for good deeds by the Reilly family and their relatives, the Lawlors, who wanted to keep the connection with their homeland and to give back to the community they loved.

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