The Michael Dooley and Hannah Farrell Family of South Bend, St Joseph County, Indiana: An Analysis of their Irish Ancestry and their Journey from New York to South Bend, Indiana and Beyond in St Joseph Church, Census and Other Records
The Michael Dooley and Hanna Farrel Family were present in South Bend, St Joseph County, Indiana at least as early as 1873 when their daughter Hannah Maria was born. They were members of St Joseph Catholic Church in South Bend and were noted in both the 1876 and 1880 Church Census. The only U.S. Census that I have found them in thus far is from 1880, but they clearly remained in South Bend through at least 1894 as documented by the South Bend City Directory.
The objective of this compilation is to try to establish the earliest possible evidence of this family in the United States through all available resources.
This will most definitely be a work in progress and all findings I speculate on would have to be proven for accuracy with Ireland and U.S. marriage records, church baptismal records and death records among other genealogical resources. Please use this information with that caveat in mind so that nothing is assumed and no stones are left unturned to assure it's your family and the connection is accurate. Please contact me if you feel that you are descended from this family or another South Bend, Indiana Irish Family so that we can share information, see if there were common migration trails followed and delve further back into their origins in Ireland!
Research Observations: This page needs a lot of work. There was a Charles Henry Dooley born May 13, 1866 to a Michael Dooley and Hannah Farrel Dooley in Manhattan, New York who may or may not be a child of this couple. There were other Dooleys and Farrels in the area at the time (this was in a NY Births/Christenings 1640-1962 compilation) and would need to be ruled out as a possible record. A Franciscum Dooley died in South Bend, Indiana on November 15, 1882 and was buried on November 16, 1882 at the age of 13 years and 8 months. Could this be another child of Michael and Hannah- could it be Frank who was born around 1869?
| Census, Church or other Record | Date Born, Baptized, Married | Father/ Husband | Mother/ Wife | Child | Occupation; Misc. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St Joseph Church Baptismal Record | March 27, 1873 Birth and April 18, 1873 Baptism | Dooley, Michael | Dooley, Hanna | Dooley, Hannam Maria | Joseph Murphy and Honora Hoban Sponsors; P Louth CSC |
| St Joseph Church Baptismal Record | June 19, 1875 Birth and July 4, 1875 Baptism | Dooley, Michael | Farrell, Hannah | Dooley, Magdalene | Michael Brennan (my ancestor) and Margaret Fraan; S Letourneau CSC |
| St Joseph Church Baptismal Record | Baptized December 25, 1876 | Dooley, Michael | Farrell, Anna | Dooley, Mary Sophia | Edward Murphy and C-? Kelly; G Demers CSC |
| City of South Bend, St Joseph County, IN Census for 1880, Ward 4 District 162 | Census conducted June 2, 1880 | Dooley, Michael 38 bornin New York; parents born in Ireland | Dooley, Hannah, 38 yr old wife born in New York, parents born in Ireland | Dooley, John 14 yr old son born in Indiana; parents born in New York | Michael was a Varnisher at Singer Mfg; John is home |
| " | " | " | " | Dooley, Frank 10 yr old son born in IN; parents born in NY | Frank is home |
| " | " | " | " | Dooley, Anna 7 yr old daughter born in IN, parents born in NY | Anna is at home |
| " | " | " | " | Dooley, Sophy, 2 yr old daughter born in IN, parents born in NY | Sophy is at home |
| St Joseph Church, South Bend IN Census 1876 | 1876 | Dooley, Michael age 33 | Dooley, Hanna age 30 | Dooley, Jno Joseph age 9 | |
| " | " | " | " | Dooley, James age 8 | |
| " | " | " | " | Dooley, Franck age 6 | |
| " | " | " | " | Dooley, Cecillia age 4 | |
| " | " | " | " | Dooley, Anna M age 2? | |
| " | " | " | " | Dooley, Magdaline age 6 mos | |
| St Joseph Church Baptismal Record | June 20, 1879 Birth and July 6, 1879 Baptismal record | Dooley, Michaelis | Farrel, Annae | Dooley, Charolum Eduardum? | Patrick Dooley and Brigitta Brenen Sponsors |
| St Joseph Church, South Bend, IN Census 1880 | 1880 | Dooley, Michael age 36 | Farroll, Hanna age 36 | Dooley, John Joseph age 14 | |
| " | " | " | " | Dooley, James age 12 | |
| " | " | " | " | Dooley, Frank age 11 | |
| " | " | " | " | Dooley, Cecelia age 9 | |
| " | " | " | " | Dooley, Anna age 7 | |
| " | " | " | " | Dooley, Magdaline age 5 | |
| " | " | " | " | Dooley, Sophia age 3 | |
| " | " | " | " | Dooley, Charles age 1 | |
| St Joseph Church Baptismal Record | August 31, 1881 Birth and September 11, 1881 Baptism | Dooley, Michaeli | Farrell, Hanna | Dooley, William Ernest (Gulielmum Ernest) | |
| St Joseph Church Baptismal Record | January 9, 1884 Birth and June 20, 1884 Baptism | Dooley, Michael | Farrell, Hanna | Dooley, Thomas Henricus | Edwardus Howard and Anna Fogarty Sp; M Fallize CSC |