IRWIN - MOFFAT - County Cavan, Ireland: 12th Edition, Carnival of Irish Heritage and Culture

From your right: James IRWIN, 1821-1910, born County Cavan, Ireland, his grandson Charles Ellery Irwin, his son William Irwin (my great grandpa) with baby great grandson Clarence Campbell Irwin. Photograph: W.B. St. John, Neepawa and Minnedosa, Manitoba, Canada (William Berthour St. John. He operated photographic studios in Minnedosa and Neepawa from about 1887-1925.)

This photograph, showing four generations of IRWIN men, is the same image as the first old family photograph I ever owned, other than photos of my parents. My own copy is not this nice - the mat had been 'chewed' by some little creature - and so my Na was happy to give it to me one summer when she & I went through her photos and I labelled as she identified the people in them.

There is a similar photograph showing four generations of IRWIN women, also all related to me. It seems likely to me that it was take at about the same time but the women's photograph has no information identifying a date or photographer.

From your right: Mary Jane (MOFFAT) IRWIN ( 1824-1909) born County Cavan, Ireland, with her granddaughter Ella (Murchison) Mcguire, her daughter Mary Ellen (Irwin) Murchison, and baby great grand daughter, Grace Mcguire.

Mary Ellen (Irwin) Murchison and my great grandfather, William Irwin, were brother and sister.

Note:

William Irwin's wife was Janet Carmichael.

Charles Ellery Irwin's wife was Henrietta Scott Campbell.

Mary Ellen Irwin's husband was Malcolm 'Mac' Murchison.

Sarah Ellen 'Ella' Murchison's husband was Frederick 'Fred' Adam Mcguire.

Posted for Small-leaved Shamrock's St. Patrick's Day parade - the 12th Edition of the Carnival of Irish Heritage and Culture. I'm not too sure what my Irish ancestors would really think of our modern St Patrick's day, but I hope they'd appreciate my thinking of them.

A previous post at the Cemetery Rabbit of British Columbia shows photographs of James and Mary Jane's grave at Neepawa, Manitoba, Canada.

If you are interested in the history of St Patrick's Day, I recommend The wearing of the green: a history of St. Patrick's Day by Mike Cronin and Daryl Adair (Abingdon, Oxford, England & New York, USA: Routledge, 2006)