I will be starting a new project....a stand alone blog to publish Charles King's memoirs of his 1884-1885 trip to Egypt and back. You are invited to come on this journey with me (and my Great Great Grandfather...)! The new blog address is:
toegyptandback1884.blogspot.com
Adam Burrows was born sometime around 1842 and was the older brother of my Great Great Grandfather Alexander Burrows. I know a bit of his life history from the previous letters I have shared in earlier posts. For some reason, Adam was not able to live by himself and was dependent on his family to take care of his needs. He ended up living and working in the Sligo Union Workhouse after his father, Alexander Burrows of Drum, died in 1889. Adam lived there until his death in 1915. How did he end up there? What kind of life did he experience? I was fortunately able to find quite a bit of information online and DNA cousins added other resources to help with Adam's story.
Adam was at home in Drum as late as August of 1890 when both Jane White and Emy Burrows wrote to Alexander in Grass Valley, California. Drum House was in a state of disarray and Adam was not able to get his meals; he went to Crawford's farm next to Drum House to eat. He was sleeping alone at night. At this point, it looks like the family had no one to take care of him at home, and the house was to be sold. Adam's appointed guardian, his brother Tom, was not in the area and though expected home, apparently never came back to take over his responsibilities. Sister Emy was already planning on going back to New York. Sisters Jane White and Margaret Porteus lived a distance from Drum and had homes of their own to take care of. Adam's brothers Alexander and John had been living in America for quite some time. Adam's life was in the hands of the Reverend Thomas Moulsdale, the executor of Alexander of Drum's will and the Rector of Ballysumaghan Church.
By December 1890, when Jane White last wrote to Alexander, Adam was "in the poor house..his legacy is doing him little good...Moulsdale won't allow anyone to interfere with him..". The Reverend Moulsdale had placed Adam in the Sligo Union Workhouse.
The new Sligo Union Workhouse was erected in 1840-2 on a nine acre site a mile to the north of Sligo. Designed by the Poor Law Commisioner's architect George Wilkinson, the building was based on one of his standard plans to accommodate 1,200 inmates. (see map above). The buildings in the Sligo Workhouse followed Wilkinson's typical layout. An entrance and administrative block at the south contained a porter's room and waiting room at the center with the Guardian's board room on the first floor above. The main accommodation block had the Master's quarters at the center, with male and female wings to each side. At the rear, a range of single story utility rooms such as the bakerhouse and the washhouse connected through to the infirmary and idiots' wards via a central spine containing the chapel and dining hall. Adam was most likely living in the idiots' ward.
The Workhouse housed the poor, sick and starving of Sligo during the Great Famine in the mid-1840's, and there is now a memorial to those buried in the workhouse graveyard that you can visit. The fever hospital is the only building left of the workhouse. The site is now the home of St. John's Hospital. (Information taken from The Workhouse in Sligo, Co.Sligo https://www.workhouses.org.uk/Sligo/).
Note the location of the Famine Graveyard in the map below (in green letters). I also noticed the location of the St. Joseph's Special School nearby. It currently serves children ages 5-18 with profound to moderate to mild learning disabilities. Also note the location of the Clayton Hotel Sligo to the right. It was the location of St. Columba's Hospital in the mid to late 1800's through 1922 and was the county asylum.
By the second half of the 19th century the makeup of the workhouse population reflected the changing role of the institution. At the end of the 1800's around 75% of the inmates in Ireland's workhouses were officially classified as sick or as "other", a group which probably comprised mostly the elderly and the infirm. (thestoryofireland.blogspot.com). Adam was around 48 years old when he went into the workhouse at the end of 1890 and was 73 years old when he died there in 1915. What exactly was his infirmity?
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According to this newspaper article written on the 7th of November, 1896, Adam was classified as an imbecile as well as a lunatic. The term imbecile implied someone of limited mental ability who was unable to manage themselves or their own affairs (comparable now to an IQ of 25-50 or someone with a moderate learning disability). In the 1911 Irish Census, Adam was classified as someone with dementia. Dementia was also used interchangeably with the term imbecile on that census. (Ireland Census 1911). We can safely say that Adam had some kind of mental deficiency which prevented him from living by himself or taking care of himself. The court was being petitioned to have him declared a lunatic. According to the Lunacy Regulation (Ireland) Act of 1871 ..."the word 'lunatic' shall be construed to mean any person found by inquisition idiot, lunatic or of unsound mind and incapable of managing himself or his affairs.." (www.irishstatutebook). Robert Porteus, the husband of Margaret Burrows, was asking the court to take control of Adam as a lunatic and that his trust be used by the court for his continued maintenance. As of 1896 Robert had become Adam's guardian, most likely because Tom was in South America.
Why had the family given up responsibility for Adam? In the letters of 1890 both Emy and Jane mentioned the difficult circumstances at Drum after their father had died. Emy mentioned her "sufferings in Drum" and how she suffered as her "poor mother did, which you are well aware of". Perhaps she was referring to taking care of Adam at home. Adam asked her to stay, but she said "that I dare not do". Taking care of a family member with disabilities can be extremely difficult, especially without help. She also mentioned that her older sister Margaret wanted Adam to go to the asylum. Once Emy left for New York, there was only the Rev. Moulsdale looking out for Adam's interests. Why wasn't Moulsdale fulfilling his duties pertaining to the will?
Two years earlier, the Sligo Champion Newspaper reported the death of Reverend T H P Moulsdale on the 26th of May, 1894. He unfortunately met with a serious accident at cemetery hill in Carraroe Townland as his trap overturned while he was passing another horse and cart on the lane on the 19th of May. Thomas did not survive the accident. His wife Amy Moulsdale was injured in the fall, but survived. The newspaper article described Thomas Henry Platt Moulsdale as being "exceedingly popular in Ballysumaghan where he had resided for more than eight years past. He had previously been in Manorhamilton for a considerable time and was there also much respected and esteemed". He was buried in the Ballysumaghan graveyard along with several other Burrows family members. (Thank you, KKelley for sharing this article).
It is sad to think that after all the planning Adam's father had done to make sure he would be taken care of Adam would end up living in the workhouse with provisions from the will under control of the court. His family was no longer willing to watch over him and the Rev. Moulsdale was dead. What little legacy Adam had left to him was just enough to maintain him in the workhouse, the place where the most vulnerable in society ended up.
What were conditions like there? The British Medical Journal published reports on workhouse conditions in Ireland in 1895-6, including the Sligo Workhouse Infirmary. Adam would have been housed there during their commission visit. I have taken excerpts from the report to share here (you can see the entire report on the Sligo Workhouse at workhouses.org.uk/Sligo/ under BMJ Reports on the Nursing and Administration of Irish Workhouses and Infirmaries, 1895-6). Using our modern era to compare levels of care it was very difficult to read this report.
..."There is an average of 140 patients, who were thus distributed: the men in the hospital proper, where also we found the female lunatics placed at one end of the block and the male lunatics at the other. In this block there were about 70 beds....At the time of our visit there were 70 women and 38 men...."
..."The patients in this hospital included a cretin of 23 years of age, who in size and general appearance resembled a child of 5 or 6. The poor little creature seemed to be a general pet in the ward, or perhaps we should rather say that he furnished some amusement to the inmates.....The bedsteads in this division are "harrow" frames, with straw ticks and pillows; a board let into the wall forms the bed head. The majority of the cases were helpless old age and chronic diseases..."
....."There is no night nurse for these patients. The day staff is quite inadequate, and, in the words of Dr. Murray's report, 'the night nursing is in the hands of paupers.' ....The listless, apathetic air of the idiots and epileptics (in the female ward) showed that nothing was done in the way of occupation for the lightening of their unhappy lot. The male lunatics are slightly better off; they have the use of an airing court, such as it is, some of them find occupation about the house, and they are not so overcrowded. As the workhouse is close to the county asylum the more dangerous inmates are removed thither as there is room in the asylum..."
...."It is the same old tale, almost nauseating in its iteration, of the entire absence of anything like decency or sanitation, when we come to the conveniences provided for the inmates. Outside are privies on the waggon system; indoors, bucket, pails and commodes are used in the infirm wards...a basin and a round towel are provided for common service among the sick, and a bath or two, without hot water. Every drop of water has to be carried to the wards for use, and carried away when used, and when warm water is required it must be heated in a kettle or fetched from the main kitchen..."
Starting in 1899 the Sisters of Mercy provided the nursing staff in the workhouse infirmary in Sligo. The Roman Catholic Religious Order was associated with their care for the poor and sick, and were also employed as teachers. They were used in other workhouses around Ireland as well. Hopefully, the conditions in the workhouse improved with the addition of the more qualified nursing staff.
What was Adam doing in 1901? The 1901 Census of Ireland is the earliest complete census to survive the Public Records Office explosion during the Irish Civil War. Adam was listed on this census, number 28 at the bottom....
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(Page 1 front, right hand side)
383 10th St.
March 20th "93"
My Dear Niece,
Words cannot express how happie [sic] glad (crossed out) I was to receive your letter also photo which I can never tire looking at. You look very much
(Page 1 back, right side)
like your cousins some Fanny Porteus and Jane White. I would [?] think you so like your papa. [?] your fair head, I must say you make a lovely picture. I only wish I could have the pleasure of seeing you personaly [sic]. I wish you would come to New York for a while. I would be so glad to see you[.] please tell papa send me his picture he is promising it [to me?]
(Page 1 front, left hand side)
this [?] time when I get [mine?] [taken?] I will send it to you. please write to me soon & many thanks for your photo.
With love to papa & all thy[?] family
I remain your fond Aunt E. Bucher
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This letter was written by someone I initially thought was Elizabeth Butcher, based on information I discovered when researching Adam Burrows. In an 1896 Irish newspaper article describing the court action for Adam Burrows his next of kin were listed as... "Thomas R. Burrows, residing in South America, John Burrows of St. Louis USA, Alexander Burrows of California, Jane White, wife of Elliott Adam White of Whitehall, Dromahair, Elizabeth Butcher Burrows, wife of Haman Butcher of New York, and Margaret Porteus, the wife of Robert Porteus of Clara"....
Hermann Bucher had initially written to Alexander Burrows in 1905 to inform him that his wife, Alexander's sister, Emma, had passed away. He was obviously the Haman Butcher in the article. Who was Emma? Was she the E. Bucher that signed the above letter? Was she also the Elizabeth in the newspaper story? The newspaper had obviously gotten Hermann Bucher's name wrong (referring to him as Haman Butcher). So, the possibility of getting Elizabeth's name wrong was strong also. I suppose Ismena could be construed as Elizabeth by a lazy reporter or court recorder. Or, Haman used Emma as his nickname for Elizabeth.
Here was the mystery. I thought it was interesting that the article did not mention an Ismena or Emy Burrows, who I knew had gone back to America in September of 1890. When I looked at the 1889 will of Alexander Burrows of Drum, I could not find mention of an Elizabeth or Emma Burrows. 300 pounds was willed to Esmenia or Amy (that is how these names were transcribed; they referred to Ismena or Emy), but an Elizabeth was never mentioned. I knew from previous letters signed by Ismena/Emy that she did indeed exist, as she wrote about going back to Ireland from America to claim her inheritance. Who was Elizabeth? I was working on the theory that she was another Burrows sister, living in New York with her husband Haman, and was not listed in the will for some reason. Who was Ismena/Emy? I was working on the theory that she was a separate Burrows sister who was a spinster taking care of her father until she left for America. Sometimes theories get in the way of reexamining what clues you have right in front of you....
As I looked more closely at the above letter (as in enlarging certain letters and words), it became clear to me that the writing in this letter matched the writing in the letters written by Ismena/Emy in 1890. Could Ismena/Emy and Elizabeth/Emma be one in the same person??
These are just a few samples comparing handwriting styles. Many more letter formations are similar. I believe that Esmenia/Amy/Ismena/Emy/Elizabeth/Emma are one in the same person. The only mention of Elizabeth is in the newspaper article, which also got her husbands name wrong. She may have never gone by Elizabeth.
So, the mystery of what happened to Emy after September 1890 has been solved!
Now that I knew who Haman Butcher really was, I could go back and research Hermann Bucher in New York. I found a marriage record for a Herman Bucher and an Emma Burrows. Emy had gone back to New York, married Hermann Bucher on 7 November 1892 as Emma Burrows in Manhattan (Ancestry New York, New York US Extracted Marriage Index 1866-1937) and wrote this letter to her niece Vere Burrows on March 20th of 1893. She signed it E. Bucher. Emma Bucher. Or, did she still think of herself as Emy? Ismena was a name from her past; possibly Emy was too. Emma was her new identity in a new country.
The next two letters help finish the story of Emma Burrows Bucher.
Dec. 26th '05
A. Burrows, Esq.
Grass Valley, Cal.
Dear Sir,
I am very sorry to let you know, that my wife, your sister Emma, died last Monday, Dec. 14th---Had I known your address, I would have let you know before, but I only found letters of you lately. She had a complication of diseases, and although I had two physicians
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(Page 1 front, right hand side)
WhiteHall
Dec 4th
My dear Brother
It grieves me to think that we may never meet on earth as you [suggest?] but it is one great [consolation?] & hope [certain?] that we all shall meet in that [celestial?] home where we never
(Page 1 back, left hand side)
more shall part [,] away from toil and trouble [.] I got Toms address[.] I wrote to him about 5 weeks ago[.] no one knows whither he will come home or not I don't know[.] where is Adam[?] he was in the poor house[.] his legacy is doing him little good[.] Moulsdale wont allow
(Page 1 back, right hand side)
any one to interfere with him[.] poor Emy is not certain what she will do[.] I wanted her to stay here until the winter would be out[.] so did [R.?] Porteus want her to stay with himself[.] Margaret I think did not care about her for leaving father[.] some thought she would get married when
(Page 1 front, left hand side)
she returned to [W?] [?]---you did not send your photograph here so I'll be expecting it along with some of your childrens[.] you made a [mistake?] Tom has no trouble his oldest son died at the age of 4 months[.] the next was a [premature?] birth in which his wife died[.] now excuse me for taken up so much of your time! I remain your ever fond sister J. W.
(Text on Page 1 right side vertically overlaying main horizontal text)
You ought to advise Tom to come home if it was only to look after Adam I send you his address
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As always, brother Adam was at the forefront of Jane's thoughts. Jane was still pleading with Alexander to contact Tom and remind him of his obligations towards his brother. The Reverend Moulsdale had complete control over Adam's future as no one was nearby to watch over his wellbeing. Why was Adam in the poorhouse when he had money from the will to guarantee his upkeep? Jane once again sought help from her brother in America. In future posts I will try to delve more into Adam's story.
In this letter we learn the outcome of Tom's marriage. Sadly, his oldest son, his wife and another baby had just recently died. It looks like Tom handled the situation by leaving the country. As Drum House was to be his per the will of 1889, Tom took it upon himself to sell the property sometime in the early 1890's. More research is needed into the land deeds and sales of the time to find out what exactly happened. What happened to the proceeds of the sale? Did Tom take it with him to America and eventually South America? It seemed like the Burrows wealth in terms of land and properties was slowly dwindling to nothing by the turn of the century.
Emy had left her father several months before his death to go to America and make her own way. Jane seemed to think that their older sister Margaret disapproved of this decision. Emmy came back to Ireland only to claim her inheritance. Margaret's husband Robert Porteus made the offer to have Emy come and live with them at Clara, but Emy had other ideas. She got on another ship and went back to America.
These letters are a priceless and very personal window into my Great Great Grandfather's family. I feel profoundly thankful that they survived intact for over 130 years. The letters have provided clues and have confirmed relationships so that the Burrows Family Tree has expanded with more certainty. With the help of DNA cousins, the tree continues to grow as we put together a broader picture of the lives of our ancestors in Ireland. There is so much more work to be done!
Next post...one last letter from Elizabeth Burrows Bucher written to my Great Grandmother from New York in 1893. Stay tuned!
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