Daniel McGovern, born out of Wedlock (poss. County Cavan)

My Great Grandfather Daniel McGovern was born illegitimately after his mother (name unknown) was taken advantage of at the home of an affluent family where she worked. His surname was McGovern, after the man who fathered him. They may have been from County Cavan, but I don't know if this is confirmed or an assumption based on the frequency of the name there. I would be so grateful if anyone knows of the wealthy family that owned the house. It may have been a manor, but again, I can't be certain as I don't know how common it was to have a housemaid. I don't have any indication of dates, other than that my Grandad was born in 1942, so his father would've been born before then. Any information or advice on where to find record etc, would be much appreciated, as I'd like to know more about this tragic story. I believe she also went with him to a 'poor house'.

Hello Rosie,

I'm happy to hear you are looking into your great grandfather's family tree, even though his story seems quite tragic.

I'd suggest you have a look at the civil records in Co. Cavan. (they were introduced in 1864 and since your grandfather was born in 1942, your great grandfather could be in it). While you might not find his birth certificate from what you told us, you could find a marriage or a death certificate with the name McGovern. These records have been kept at the General Register Office of Ireland(GRO).

I really hope our fellow members will have some advice about the McGovern family as well.

I hope this helps a little bit.

Antoine

Hi Rosie, 

I would recommend that you obtain your great grandfather's marriage record which should have his age and perhaps his father's name on it. This will give you a better idea of the year when he may have been born. The website Antoine highlighted in the previous message has marriage records for the Republic of Ireland up to 1945. If you know when he died, I would also recommend obtaining his death record as this will also contain his age at death (although death records are not always 100% accurate in terms of ages as it depends on the informant's knowledge of the deceased's age). This website www.irishgenealogy.ie also has death records up to 1970.

Please note that the father's name on the birth record of an illegitimate child could not be included unless the father himself was present at the registering of the birth to prevent women from naming individuals who were not the actual father. The child therefore takes the surname of the mother. I have seen some illegitimate children being given their father's surname as a middle name.

Online birth records are only available at the moment up to 1920. 

I would recommend you contact Cavan Genealogy - Email: cavangenealogy@eircom.net

Best wishes for your search,

Ulster Historical Foundation