My Irish immigrant family has long been an enigma. Not only
are there brick walls created by time, distance and availability of records,
but there are personal brick walls as well. Over the last 10 – 15 years, little
by little, some of the personal brick walls have been chipped away. I use the
word “personal” for want of a better way to describe something that was caused
by an earlier member of the family for religious reasons. But I get ahead of
myself. I’ll start with what is known and hope that it might generate new and
different avenues of research.
In or near Loughrea, Galway ,
Ireland Galway .
Patrick and Catherine had 9 children, according to baptism
records. Five of those children
immigrated to the USA ,
but apparently not all at the same time. One of their children died young but there
seems to be no information on the remaining children - John, Bridget and James.
Four of them ended up in Hyde Park MA, a bastion of Irish immigrants. It seems
likely that they settled there because other relatives lived there also, but no
proof of this theory has been found. There were other Brodericks in Hyde Park , so anything is possible.
The eldest was Michael and he seems to have taken up
residence in Boston and was living in Cambridge when he died in
1909. No marriage information has been found and his death certificate stated
he was single.
Lawrence, Mary, Matthew and Catherine Broderick also
immigrated, at different times, but settled in Hyde Park MAl. All four were
settled there by 1870 and the following time line shows how the decade from
1870-1880 unfolded for them. Except where noted, all events take place in Hyde
Park MA.
Timeline
Broderick family
1870
– 1880
As 1870 began:
1870 – Lawrence Broderick living at Hyde Park MA with his
cousin Michael Jordan . Lawrence was a laborer in
the census.
1871 – A quiet year
1872 - Lawrence Broderick married Catherine Jordan, his
cousin, Apr 30 1872
Mary
Broderick married Patrick Burke, Aug 22 1872
1873 – John Edward Burke (s/o Mary Broderick and Patrick
Burke), b. Jun 1, 1873
1874 – Patrick H. Burke (s/o Mary Broderick and Patrick
Burke), b. Jun 13 1874
Mathew Broderick married Bridget Sheehan, Sep
3 1874
1875 – Patrick Broderick (s/o Bridget Sheehan and Matthew
Broderick), b. Jun 22 1875
Michael Burke (s/o Mary Broderick and Patrick
Burke), b. Aug 5 1875
Patrick Broderick (s/o Bridget Sheehan and
Matthew Broderick), d. Aug 7 1875 COD Cholera
Catherine Broderick (d/o Catherine Jordan and Lawrence Broderick), b. 1875
Catherine Broderick married Michael O’Brien
Oct 12 1875
1876 – Martin Burke (s/o Mary Broderick and Patrick Burke),
b. Aug 1876
Matthew Broderick (s/o Bridget Sheehan and
Matthew Broderick), b. Sep 28 1876
1877 – Patrick Joseph Broderick (s/o Catherine Jordan and Lawrence Broderick), b. Mar 18 1877
Edward Burke
(s/o Mary Broderick and Patrick O’Brien), b. Sep 1877
Catherine
O’Brien (d/o Catherine Broderick and Michael O’Brien), b. 1877
1878 – Another quiet year
1879 – Patrick John Broderick (s/o Bridget Sheehan and
Matthew Broderick), b. Feb 23 1879, in Dorchester
MA
Thomas Burke
(s/o Mary Broderick and Patrick Burke), b. Dec 9 1879
Matthew
Broderick was living on Marston
Ave. in Dorchester MA at the time of his son’s birth and was
working for the Railroad.
Lawrence
Broderick, at the time of his death, was also working for the Railroad.
Over the course of ten years, all four Broderick immigrants
were married. Mary Broderick Burke gave birth to six boys. Matthew and Bridget
Broderick had three boys, but the oldest son died. Catherine Broderick O’Brien
had one daughter. Lawrence and Catherine Broderick had three children.
Lawrence Broderick met his untimely end, suddenly, on
Tuesday, Aug. 19, 1879, in the evening, Lawrence
went to a boot repair shop to check on his boots. An altercation ensued between
Lawrence and Mrs. Margaret Gibbons, the owner’s wife. Witnesses stated that
both parties had been drinking. Mrs. Gibbons apparently said something Mr.
Broderick took offense to and he slapped her. She retaliated by grabbing a shoe
knife and then lunging at him, stabbing him in the abdomen. She also lunged at
his nose, slicing it and the upper lip to the bone. Lawrence staggered out and was then carried
to his home at the corner of Central
Park Ave. and Winter St. He was attended by a
physician who stated that the wound would most likely be fatal. The Chief of
Police arrested Mrs. Gibbons who didn’t deny the attack and stated she wished
she had struck his heart.
The hearing that was held brought forth several conflicting
stories. Mrs. Gibbons maintained that she was struck 2 or 3 times and that the
knife was not hers. She claimed she acted in self defense. Broderick claimed he
never struck her. Mrs. Gibbons couldn’t post bail so was held over in the Dedham jail for Grand
Jury in September. Lawrence Broderick was still alive but in poor condition.
Lawrence Broderick died Tues., Aug 26, 1879. Mrs. Gibbons
was still being held in the Dedham
jail and the Medical Examiner will hold an inquest.
The autopsy of Lawrence Broderick showed that his small
intestine had been punctured by a knife and the resulting infection led to the
man’s death.
Margaret Gibbons was acquitted of the charge of manslaughter
in the Broderick case. In Sept 1880, Margaret Gibbons was found guilty of
assault on a Mr. Kelly and was sentenced to two years in the house of
corrections.
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