Paradoxically, the best place to begin an account of John2 Boyle and his family is with the headstone on his grave in Tobarpatrick cemetery, not far from his home in Corglass. It is the only physical evidence of his existence, but it provides us with some of the detail needed to flesh out his story and that of the family for the next few generations.

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Unfortunately, the parish records are missing or incomplete for this period, with only a couple of references to the family. So we do not know from that source when he was married, how many children he had or when they were born. Only towards the end of his life can we find information the Civil Registration system, which commenced to register all births marriages and deaths from 1864.

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The original inscription on the large marble headstone of simple gothic design, reads:

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O Lord have mercy on the soul of

JOHN BOYLE

who died March 21st 1880

aged 75 years

 

also on the souls of his son

TERENCE

who died February 12th 1871

aged 18 years

 

his daughter

CATHERINE

who died September 7th 1881

aged 27 years

 

and his son

PATRICK

who died December 15th 1890

aged 35 years

R.I.P.

Erected by Bridget and John Boyle

of Corglass

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The Brigid and John who erected the headstone, are John2’s wife Brigid2 Harte, and their son John3. It is likely to have been erected between the death of Patrick3 in 1890 and the deaths of Bridget2 Harte and John3 in 1896 (otherwise their deaths would also have been inscribed). 

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No further inscriptions were made on the tombstone until the 1970s, when the names of John2’s grandson Patrick4 who died in 1970 and Patrick’s wife Katie (Higgins) who died in 1938 were added. An additional plaque was placed on the grave to mark the burial of their son John5

In Loving Memory of

JOHN BOYLE

Killeen, Granard

and formerly Corglass

Died 21st March 1995

Aged 73 years

Rest in Peace

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In addition to the people named on the headstone it is likely that other family members are buried here, as there are no known graves for them elsewhere:

Bridget2 (née Harte) died 11 May 1896, aged 77

her son John3 Boyle died 9 December 1896, aged 38

his wife Bridget3 (née Brady) died 12 April 1935, aged 77

their son John Boyle4 died 1 August 1917, aged 25

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Comparing the ages and dates on the headstone with the entries in the Civil Register of Deaths reveals a number of discrepancies:

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Headstone                                                Register

 age                                                         age

John2               21 March 1880           75                    19 March 1881           76

Terence3       12 Feb 1871                   18                      6 Feb 1871                  23

Catherine3    7 Sept 1881                 27                      8 Sept 1882               36

Patrick3          15 Dec 1890                35                    19 Dec 1890                33

Katie4              30 Jan 1938                 47                    26 Feb 1938                47

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It is likely that the ages and dates of death in the official register are more accurate than the headstone, as these were recorded within weeks of the events whereas the stone was erected many years later.  However, ages in all 19th century records are notoriously inaccurate.  At a time when most ordinary people had little contact with bureaucracy, it was not important to know one's age exactly