| In the 1850s, while still in Ireland, Barney married Ann Quinn and together they began their trip to America. Probably leaving the port of Dundock or Drogheda in County Louth they crossed the Irish Sea. Poverty stricken, their only escape was the free shuttle which encouraged cheap Irish labor to relocate to England. There, they could raise the money for a trans-Atlantic voyage. In 1859 while waiting in England for passage to America, the couple's only child John was born. The Irish in Britain were isolated from the rest of British society. Described as "a hard working, a hard drinking, and a reckless", the"Paddies" were blamed for many of the problems of the nation. Around 1860 the family finally arrived in Massachusetts.
As a young man Barney stood five feet seven inches tall. His eyes were blue, his hair sandy and he had a colorful ruddy complexion so typical of the Irish. (Civil War Muster Roll to the right.) Upon reaching the United States Bernard moved to Bristol County, Massachusetts near the city of Taunton. He probably looked for work in the textile mills. Mary McKnight joined her son and his family in Massachusetts in August of 1861. Her husband had died in Ireland 1848 and Barney was now her sole means of support. Mary was 55 years of age upon her arrival in America. |
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