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Domestic details
Apr. 11th, 2007 02:38 pmI've started poking at the family tree, in response to earlier comments by ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
mizkit and tavella that convinced me I finally ought to get off my butt and apply for Irish citizenship.
Earlier today I found the 1925 immigration records for my grandparents--my grandmother was listed as a domestic, and my grandfather as a laborer. As per the family stories, she came first, in April, having issued the ultimatum that they would be married in America or not at all. He followed in September.
One of her main reasons for coming to America was that "In America, a woman can own land." It was a sore point with her--the family farm was land that had come to the family through her mother but it was her younger brother who inherited. Years later, when asked how she had been able to leave such a beautiful place, she told her daughters "You can't eat scenery."
My grandfather had fought with the IRA, but of the two, she was the braver. She was the one who learned how to drive a car, and adapted to modern life. She was never afraid of trying anything new--a quality that I sometimes lack. I suspect I'm more like my grandfather, who was a great storyteller, and could chat for hours without giving away any personal information.
mizkit and tavella that convinced me I finally ought to get off my butt and apply for Irish citizenship. Earlier today I found the 1925 immigration records for my grandparents--my grandmother was listed as a domestic, and my grandfather as a laborer. As per the family stories, she came first, in April, having issued the ultimatum that they would be married in America or not at all. He followed in September.
One of her main reasons for coming to America was that "In America, a woman can own land." It was a sore point with her--the family farm was land that had come to the family through her mother but it was her younger brother who inherited. Years later, when asked how she had been able to leave such a beautiful place, she told her daughters "You can't eat scenery."
My grandfather had fought with the IRA, but of the two, she was the braver. She was the one who learned how to drive a car, and adapted to modern life. She was never afraid of trying anything new--a quality that I sometimes lack. I suspect I'm more like my grandfather, who was a great storyteller, and could chat for hours without giving away any personal information.
