The Kennys of Newmarket, County Cork
by Graham Coward © 2003 - 2006
Sincere thanks to Catherine Culloty and
Kevin
O'Leary, both of Newmarket for their assistance
This is a brief history of the Kenny family
from the
town of Newmarket in County Cork, Ireland. Three brothers and a
sister emigrated to Australia in the 1870s and 80s. Another branch
emigrated to America in the early 20th century. There are no known
living descendants still in Ireland.
Early Kenny ancestors
|

Stoneville
in 2005.
The centre section is believed to have been built in the 1830s or
1840s by Arthur and Maria Kenny.
The section on the far right was added in the 1940s by Arthur
Kenny, the son of Frederick and Catherine.
On the left are the ruins of an earlier house, probably that
occupied by Arthur and Elizabeth Kenny in the 1820s.
Photo: Catherine Culloty
|
Arthur Kenny, Nursery and Seedsman of Stoneville,
Newmarket was named in the 1824 edition of Piggot's
Directory of
Newmarket.
The Tithe
Applotment Books of
1826 showed an Arthur Kenny to be living on a small rented
farm at Garraunawarrig Upper, on the Western outskirts of
Newmarket.
A headstone in the Church of
Ireland
(Anglican) graveyard in Newmarket (transcribed in 1850 and
no longer readable) read that Arthur Kenny died on 17th April 1831
and his wife Elizabeth on 8th August 1835.
The National
Archives of
Ireland hold an extract from the Will (unfortunately
incomplete) of an Arthur Kenny of Stoneville,
Newmarket who died in 1831. His entire estate was left to his wife
Eliza also of Stoneville.
These records probably all refer to the
same two
people, an Arthur Kenny and his wife Elizabeth.
The Baptism
Register for Castlehyde Church of Ireland Parish in Co.
Cork
includes an entry on 8th April 1781 for Arthur Kenney, son of Luke
Kenney. This might also refer to the same Arthur Kenny but at
present there is no confirming evidence.
It is not known how many children Arthur and Elizabeth had.
Slater's
National Commercial Directory of Ireland of 1846 (Newmarket)
lists an Arthur Kenny, Nurseryman, Pound Hill
(the
road from Newmarket to Garraunawarrig Upper is still known as
Pound
Hill). It is probable that this is the son of the first
Arthur Kenny. Griffith's
Valuation of
Ireland of 1852 shows him to be living at Garraunawarrig
Upper. According to the inscription on his headstone, the second
Arthur Kenny was born about 1818 in Nottingham, England. A note in
the parish burial register reads, "Buried by the Curate of
Castlebar Co. Mayo." Arthur and his wife Maria (née Worsley)
had eight known children, four of whom emigrated to Australia.
Slater's
Directory (1846) also mentions the Rev. Simon Kenny,
curate
of the local Church of Ireland. It is not known if the Rev. Simon
is related.
It seems likely that Arthur and Elizabeth Kenny with their
infant
son Arthur arrived in Newmarket around 1820. Whether they came from
Castlehyde, Nottingham or elsewhere is unknown. No evidence can be
found of them ever living in Nottingham. It is not known whether
they had any other children.
The next generation
Louisa Kenny was born
about 1835 and died on
the 12th August 1879, presumably single. No more is known about her
life.
Elizabeth Anne Kenny was
born about 1841. On
29th January 1874 she married Thomas Pepler Gregory, an Englishman,
in the Newmarket Church of Ireland. They lived the rest of their
lives in England. Their only son Frederick Arthur Thomas Gregory
was born in Walworth, Surrey in 1878 and died at his home called
Stoneville,
in
Sidmouth, Devon in 1949. Frederick had no children.
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Ballarat Orphanage about 1900
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Arthur Kenny (yes,
another one) was born
about 1846 or 1847 in Newmarket. In 1872 he emigrated to Melbourne,
in the then British Crown Colony of Victoria (Australia) aboard the
Star
Queen. On the same ship were an Irish born brother and
sister of Scottish descent. They were 19 year old James McMurtrie
and his 28 year old sister Jean. Arthur and Jean were married at
Pyrmont in the adjoining colony of New South Wales on 27th December
1873.
Arthur and Jean's first child, another
Arthur was
born in Warragul, Victoria in 1875. In 1876 the family moved to
Ballarat, a small but prosperous city in the Victorian goldfields
west of Melbourne and Arthur senior took up a position as gardener
at the Ballarat
Orphanage.
About 1884 Arthur was appointed as Superintendent
of
the orphanage, a position he held until his death in 1925.
Arthur and Jean had nine children
altogether with
four reaching adulthood. Only Arthur, the eldest married. He had no
children.
(Read
Arthur Kenny's
Obituary from The Ballarat Courier)
I. Arthur Kenny, born 1875 in Warragul,
Victoria,
married 1911, Florence Hull in Sydney,
died 1939 in North Sydney, N.S.W.
II. Jeannie Kenny, born 1877 in Ballarat
East
Victoria,
died after 1925.
III. Maria Kenny, born 1878 in Ballarat
Victoria
Probably died in infancy.
IV. Minnie Kenny, born about 1878, might
have been
twin to Maria.
died 1884 in Ballarat East Victoria
V. James Kenny, born 1880 in Ballarat East,
Victoria,
died 1880.
VI. Louisa (Lulu) Kenny, born 1881 in
Ballarat
Victoria,
died 1932 in Kew Victoria
VII. Jessie Kenny, born 1883 in Ballarat
Victoria,
died 1884 in Ballarat East, Victoria
VIII. Frederick William Kenny, born 1886 in
Ballarat
Victoria,
died 1888 in Ballarat East, Victoria
IX. Worsley Muir Kenny, born 1889 in
Ballarat East
Victoria,
died 1914 in Ballarat Victoria
Strange Kenny was also
born about 1847. She
was possibly Arthur's twin although this is by no means certain.
She may have visited her relations in Australia sometime about
1900. The family still has a silver thimble believed to have been
given to her Australian born niece Florence by an "Aunt Strange".
At the time of the 1911 census, Strange was living with her younger
brother Frederick at the family farm near Newmarket.
Sarah Kenny was born
about 1850 in County
Cork. On 2nd December 1877 she married in Kanturk, County Cork,
James Ellard Wren, son of the Rev. George Wren. They are believed
to have had a child in Ireland who died in infancy. In March 1880,
James and Sarah arrived in Melbourne aboard the True Briton.
They
were living in Ballarat East later that year when a second child,
also James Ellard Wren was born. James junior died in Maffra,
Victoria the following year. Their third and only surviving child,
Louisa Ellard Wren was born in 1881, also in Maffra. They later
moved to Sydney N.S.W.
|

Arthur Kenny (left),
Superintendent of Ballarat
Orphanage and Henry
Coward
|

Robert
Henry Kenny
|

Mary Ann
King Kenny née Coward
|
Robert Henry Kenny was
born in Newmarket on
4th December 1854. He emigrated to Melbourne on the True Briton
with
his sister Sarah and her husband. Robert also settled in Ballarat.
On 5th September 1882 in St Paul's
Church of
England, Ballarat East he married Mary Ann King Coward,
daughter of Henry Coward, a
close friend of
his brother Arthur. They had seven children, five of them reaching
adulthood. Between 1884 and 1889 Robert is believed to have
operated a photographic studio in Bridge Street Ballarat East.
According to family legend he gave up photography and moved to
Melbourne after his studio burned down.
On 2nd March 1897 Mary Ann gave birth to
Edith Ann
their seventh child and twenty five days later died of
complications. Edith died on 29th September of the same year.
I. Arthur Henry Kenny, born 1883 in
Ballarat
Victoria,
died 1960
married 1911 in St. John's Church of England, Footscray, Daisy
Hortense Peelman.
II. Edgar William Kenny, born 1885,
died 1958.
married 1908 in St. Patrick's Roman Catholic Cathedral Ballarat,
Mary Ann Dooley.
III. James Frederick Kenny, born 1887,
died 1887.
IV. Mary Louisa Kenny, known as May, born
1889,
died 1968 in Strathfield N.S.W.
married 1935 in Leichhardt N.S.W., Albert Lovering.
V. Florence Fanny Kenny, born 1891 in
Clifton Hill
Victoria,
died 1964 in Essendon, Victoria,
(1) Married 1918 in Richmond, Victoria, Thomas Henry (Harry)
Riley.
(2) Married 1931, Frederick Thomas Coward
VI. Minnie Kenny, born 1893,
died 1912.
VII. Edith Ann Kenny, born 1897 in
Footscray,
Victoria,
died 1897 in Footscray, Victoria.
On 19th February 1903 Robert married Mary
Jane
Richardson, fifteen years his junior and on 10th February 1904
another son was born.
VIII. Leslie Edward Kenny, born 1904 in
Footscray,
Victoria,
died 1979 in Heidelberg Victoria
Frederick Kenny was born
in Newmarket about
1855. In 1884 he married Catherine (Kate) O'Leary in the Newmarket
Roman
Catholic
Chapel. Frederick remained on the family farm near
Newmarket
where he and Kate had eleven children. Frederick died in 1914 and
Kate about 1946. Several of their children emigrated to the United
States.
A History of
Newmarket by
D.H. Allen, published in 1972 mentions a "Bob Kenny,
Stoneville" who circa 1920, fought against the British with the
Newmarket Battalion of the Irish
Volunteers.
This probably refers to Frederick and Catherine's son Robert Henry
Kenny.
I. Elizabeth (Liley) Kenny, born
17 Sep
1884,
died about 1905 in Ireland
II. Margaret Kenny, born 13 Aug
1886
emigrated to New York in October 1902 aboard Teutonic, aged 16
married about 1910, Alfred Ohmberger
died in 1968 in New York
III. Arthur Kenny, born 24 Oct
1888,
died about 1959 in Ireland
IV. Daniel Kenny, born 18 Nov 1889
emigrated to New York in May 1908
married about 1912, Catherine, surname unknown
V. Maria Worsley Kenny, born 13
May 1892
probably died in infancy
VI. Mary May Kenny, born 1 May
1893,
died 25 August 1973 in Ireland
VII. Edward John Kenny, born 22
Jun 1895
emigrated to New York in April 1914.aboard Cedric
married about 1924, Sarah Tyrell
was a Police Officer in New York
VIII. Frederick Thomas Kenny,
born 12 Aug 1897
IX. Robert Henry Kenny, born 22 Sept 1899
emigrated to New York.
X. Louisa Christina Kenny, born 17 Dec 1901
emigrated to New York in Aug 1927 aboard Carinthia
died Nov
1990 in New York
XI. Sarah (Sally) Kenny, born 23 March 1904
emigrated to New York in March 1925 aboard Caronia
died April 1983 in New York
Edward Luke Kenny was
born in Newmarket about
1857. He arrived in the colony of New South Wales about 1881 and in
1898 married Amy Ezzy. They had five children, three of whom
reached adulthood.
I. Arthur Edward Kenny, born April 1899 in
Millthorpe N.S.W.,
died Dec 1899 in Millthorpe N.S.W.,
II. Harry Kenny, born 1900 in Millthorpe
N.S.W.
married in 1932, Alma Hood
died 1944 in Hornsby N.S.W.
III. Mary Kenny, born in 1902,
died 1902 in Millthorpe N.S.W.
IV. Edward Stanley Kenny born in
1906
married in 1933, Janet Simpson
died Jan 1973
V. Ronald Frederick Kenny born in 1911
Married in 1948, Josephine Elizabeth Kemp
died Jan 1985
This page was last changed on 3rd
December,
2006
