So interesting, thank you. Are you able to trace the generation before your Joseph Stinson? My Olivia Stinson, b. ca 1821, married one of the many Hugh Devlins in Ardboe,Tyrone in 1835 — yes, extremely young, and the ceremony was Protestant, he Catholic. Their first child was named Peter, which might help in tracing, but the child died soon, it would seem, since he did not come with them to Canada when they emigrated in 1839.
Katie Green > On Sep 13, 2021, at 5:31 AM, Bruce Newport via CoTyroneList > <[email protected]> wrote: > > Last year I was researching the ancestry of Joseph Irvine STEPHENSON > (1878-1935) of Newtownstewart, Tyrone for a branch of my family. Despite > knowing he was from Fermanagh and the names of some of his siblings I found > no trace of his origins and had almost given up the search until I found a > single mention of the surname STINSON in connection with the family. Then > they all tumbled out of the records. > > Joseph STINSON (1844-1927) and his wife Elizabeth (nee WEIR) had a total of > 13 children at Agho, Fermanagh, 11 of whom were named STINSON on birth > registrations, 1 named STENSON and one record I was unable to find. The > children were: Letitia Elizabeth (1874), Harriet Jane (1875), James “Jim” > Henry (1877), Joseph Irvine (1878), Emily Katherine (1881), Bamford John > (1882), Charlie E (1884), Mary Alice “Lily” (1886), Annie Frances (1888), > Rebecca Susan (1890), Robert Edmund (1892), William Wallace (1892), George > Reginald (1897). > > The first record I found of anyone in the family being recorded as STEPHENSON > was the passenger list showing one of the girls returning from New York to > Liverpool in 1900. The following year the family at Agho were all recorded as > STEPHENSON in the 1901 census despite the last child having been recorded as > STINSON at birth only four years earlier. I found two more records of > children being recorded as STINSON in the early 1900’s on travel documents > but other than that, all later records I found have stated STEPHENSON. > > Of the 13 children, the eldest son remained in Fermanagh, 3 children > relocated to Tyrone, 7 emigrated to the US, and the destiny of two is unknown. > > The oldest surviving descendant of this line, born 1934 in Newtownstewart and > the source of all my original information about some of those 13 children, > told me she had never heard any reference to the name STINSON and was quite > shocked by the revelation. > > > From: Elwyn Soutter via CoTyroneList > <mailto:[email protected]> > Sent: Monday, September 13, 2021 4:34 AM > To: CoTyroneIreland.com Mailing List > <mailto:[email protected]> > Cc: Elwyn Soutter <mailto:[email protected]> > Subject: [CoTyroneMailingList] Re: Stevenson, Stinson > > Katie, > > The idea of a single or correct spelling for a surname or a place name in > Ireland is very much a recent phenomenon designed to meet the needs of modern > officialdom. Before that there was no consistency. Names were spelled > phonetically and each variation was down to the whim of the particular person > recording the information. You will often see the spelling change as the > records go back. This rarely indicates a deliberate decision to alter the > name, nor even a mistake. Not everyone was literate, but even when they were, > exact and consistent spelling simply wasn’t something they bothered about. In > addition to varying the actual spelling, O’ or Mac prefixes were optional and > were often omitted. > > In 1899, the Rev Smith reviewed the early records of Antrim 1st Presbyterian > church (covering the years 1674 to c 1736). He noted: “Even the same word is > not always spelled alike by the same hand. Indeed spelling with most of the > recording officials (and they must have been fairly numerous) was a matter of > the most sublime indifference. The name William, for instance, is spelled 3 > different ways in as many lines; while Donegore, a neighbouring parish, is > spelled 10 different ways; but these extend over a good number of years. Many > families names are spelled phonetically, while others are given in the most > round-about fashion.” > > There are also many interchangeable names in Ireland and you can expect to > see either version feature in the same family. So it’s wise to search Irish > records using both versions. > > Examples of interchangeable surnames are: McDowell & Madole, Robertson & > Robinson, Kilpatrick and Kirkpatrick, Nogher & Connor, Patterson & Pattison, > Faulkner & Falconer, McConnell & McDonnell, Kerr & Carr, Stewart & Stuart, > McKinney & Mackenzie, plus obviously Stevenson & Steenson. > > Many forenames are also interchangeable eg Jean & Jane, Jenny & Janet, Nancy, > Agnes & Ann are all interchangeable, Sally & Sarah, Sheila & Julia, Mary & > May, Peggy & Margaret, Peter & Patrick, Sean & John, John & Jack, Edward & > Edmund, Henry & Harry, Robin & Robert, Roy & Robert, Kathleen & Catherine. > (The famous Scottish poet Robert Burns was never known as Robert to his > friends. He was always Robin to them). It’s just something that needs to be > taken into account when searching Irish and Scottish records. > > As far as Stevenson and Steenson is concerned, you might find it helpful to > think about how that name is pronounced and spoken here in Ulster. We speak > quickly with the emphasis on the first syllable. So Stevenson & Steenson > sound much the same. In the same way, McDowell is pronounced Madole here, so > leading to the alternative spelling. > > Expect spelling to vary. That was the norm. No caste implications, just the > way we speak. > > > > > Elwyn > > > > > > > > > On Sunday, 12 September 2021, 19:16:33 BST, Katie Green via CoTyroneList > <[email protected]> wrote: > > > Hello folks, > > I have long wondered how the name Stinson or Stenson came to be a version of > Stevenson and what the import of that fore-shortening was. (There are > Stinsons in my ancestry.) Was there caste implications involved? Anybody know? > > Katie Green > ================================= > Send a Message to the List - [email protected] > <mailto:[email protected]> > List Archive - > https://list.cotyroneireland.com/empathy/list/cotyronelist.list.cotyroneireland.com > > <https://list.cotyroneireland.com/empathy/list/cotyronelist.list.cotyroneireland.com> > Join the list by sending an email to - > [email protected] > <mailto:[email protected]> > To receive the Digest version, send an email to - > [email protected] > <mailto:[email protected]> > Unsubscribe by sending an email to - > [email protected] > <mailto:[email protected]> > ================================= > > ================================= > Send a Message to the List - [email protected] > List Archive - > https://list.cotyroneireland.com/empathy/list/cotyronelist.list.cotyroneireland.com > Join the list by sending an email to - > [email protected] > To receive the Digest version, send an email to - > [email protected] > Unsubscribe by sending an email to - > [email protected] > ================================= > ================================= > Send a Message to the List - [email protected] > List Archive - > https://list.cotyroneireland.com/empathy/list/cotyronelist.list.cotyroneireland.com > Join the list by sending an email to - > [email protected] > To receive the Digest version, send an email to - > [email protected] > Unsubscribe by sending an email to - > [email protected] > =================================
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