The Family of Lendrick Sproule of Caugherty / Caherty, Ballyclug, Antrim

 LENDRICK SPROULE OF CAUGHERTY was born in 1785 in Caherty, Ballyclug, Antrim, Ireland. Caugherty is the old name for this townland in Ballyclug, Caherty is the modern name. Lendrick died on 05 Dec 1896 in Caherty, Ballyclug at the age of 111.  (Broughshane Grave Inscription and Irishgenealogy.ie)

Lendrick Sproule's father was John Sproule of Caherty, who died in 1825, and his mother was Martha. (The Parents of Lendrick Sproule, Kate Tammemagi) Lendrick married AGNES who died on 01 Apr 1886 in Caherty, Ballyclug, at age 70. (Irishgenealogy.ie)

Lendrick Sproule of Caugherty and Agnes had the following children:

AGNES SPROULE died on 31 Aug 1904 in Caherty, Ballyclug. (Irishgenealogy.ie) Agnes was aged 69 not married. She appears in the 1901 Census living in Caherty with her brothers.

JOHN SPROULE OF CAHERTY was born in 1836 in Caherty, Ballyclug. He died on 16 Oct 1902 in Caherty aged 66. He married Margaret Boyd, daughter of James Boyd, on 31 Jul 1860 in Broughshane, Racavan, Antrim. I could not find Margaret after this wedding. She is not with the family in the 1901 or 1911 Census and there nor is she anywhere else in Antrim. There is no death record for her. John is in Caherty in the 1911 census, and he is listed as ‘married’ at his death in 1901.  John’s son James Sproule, was present with John at his death, and James is named on his probate record. I haven’t found a birth for James, nor have I found a death for him. The only James Sproule of the right age in the neighbourhood in the 1901 and 1911 census returns was a James who worked in the Ballymena Workhouse.

ROBERT SPROULE BOOKKEEPER was born in 1840 in Caherty, Ballyclug. He died on 09 Nov 1909 in Broughshane St, Ballymena and his son Samuel Sproule was present at his death. (Irishgenealogy.ie) At the time of his death, Robert was a House Furnisher, but in his earlier working life he was a Clerk and Bookkeeper. Robert married Elizabeth (Lizzie) Hanna, daughter of William Hanna, of Balee Cottage, Ballymena, on 08 Aug 1865 in Broughshane, Antrim. Robert and Lizzie went to live in Liverpool shortly after this, and were there until after the 1901 census. They had 6 children that I know of, Jane Maria and William, both born in Linen Hall St. Ballymena. Rogert Lendrick, Maria, Samuel Patrick and Jane isablella all born in Lancashire, England. I have not found the record of Lizzie Hanna’s death. Two of Robert’s children, William and Jane Isabella, were living with the family in Caherty in the 1901 census and William inherited the Caherty farm.

PATRICK SPROULE OF CAUGHERTY was born in 1841 in Caherty, Ballyclug, and he died on 09 Mar 1903 in Caherty, Ballyclug. Patrick was a bachelor, and he lived with his brothers on the Caherty farm.

HUGH SPROULE OF CAUGHERTY was born about 1852 in Caherty, Ballyclug, Antrim, Ireland. He died on 13 Jul 1921 aged 71, in Caherty, Ballyclug. He was not married.

LENDRICK SPROULE OF CAHERTY was born about 1855 in Caherty, and he was a Shoemaker. He died on 24 Jul 1894 in Caherty and William, son of Robert, was present at his death.

Other Posts on this Family:

1. The Mystery Picture - R. Sproule Shop

2. Robert Sproule the Saddler – the Lendrick Connection 

3. The Family of Hugh Sproule of Ballycreggy and Bridge St Ballymena, and Mary Ann 

4. The Parents of Lendrick Sproule of Caugherty

The Crumkill Sproules – are they Caugherty/Caherty Sproules?

 Near to Ballymena, County Antrim, there is one more townland, Crumkill or Cromkill, which has Sproule families. Is it possible that these Cromkill Sproules are in the same family as Lendrick Sproule of Caugherty / Caherty?

As we can see from the map, the three townlands are certainly close to each other, so a relationship between these Sproules is possible, even likely.

In Cromkill in Griffiths Valuation of the mid 1850s we find two Sproule households. One is Samuel Sproule, and he is a farmer, but his holding is tiny, just 3 acres.

The second is Jane Sproule, and she simply has a house. 

Griffiths Valuation, Cromkill, Ask About Ireland

Samuel Sproule of Cromkill

Samuel Sproule died on 17 June 1871 and we learn from his death record that he is married, and that he is 72 years old. So Samuel Sproule of Crumkill was born about 1799ish, and he is the same generation as our 3 brothers in Caherty. If you look at his death record you will see that an Elizabeth McClelland was present at his death. Often this person will be a close relative and therefore I thought she might be a daughter. 

Samuel Sproule of Cromkill, Irishgenealogy.ie

I hunted Irishgenalogy.ie for the death of the wife of Samuel Sproule of Cromkill. There it was in 1872, she was called Mary, ‘farmer’s wife’ and she died just over a year after Samuel, on 23 Dec 1872. This time, a William John McClelland was present at the death.

Mary Sproule of Cromkill, Irish Genealogy.ie

Surely this must mean that Elizabeth McClelland, who was with Samuel Sproule at his death, is the daughter of Samuel and Mary Sproule. Elizabeth’s husband must be this William John McClelland who was with Mary at her death? I would have said that this was a certainty - I would have been totally wrong!

In the marriage record of this couple on Irishgenealogy.ie there was no Elizabeth Sproule there at all! William McClelland of Cromkill/Crumkill had married Elizabeth Bartholomew, also of Crumkill in 1864, and Eliza was a spinster then.

The McClelland wedding, Irishgenealgy.ie

In addition, when Samuel Sproule died, his small bit of land went to this same William John McClelland.

What this tells us is that Samuel Sproule of Cromkill and his wife Mary had no children, or if they did have children, none of them lived in the area or maybe they had no children in Ireland.

This means that we have no way of connecting Samuel Sproule of Cromkill to the family of Sproules of Caugherty at this point in time. He might be, or he might not be, related.

The chances are higher, however, that Samuel is related to his neighbour, Jane Sproule of Cromkill. Can we learn anything by looking at her?

Jane Sproule of Cromkill

Jane Sproule is living in a house with no land in Crumkill in Griffiths Valuation. We find Jane Sproule of Crumkill's death in Irishgenealogy.ie. She died on 26 Dec 1875, and on this record we learn that Jane is a widow and that she is a weaver. Like Samuel Sproule above, it is not a Sproule who is present at her death, but a lady called Elizabeth Dempster.

Jane Sproule, Cromkill, Widow, Irishgenealogy.ie

The widow Jane Sproule of Crumkill was 73 years old at the time of her death, so she was born around 1802. Again, Jane is that same generation as Samuel above, and as the Caugherty Sproule brothers.

I could not find any record of the death of Jane Sproule’s husband – no other male Sproule death in Crumkill. But I did find a very interesting record indeed!

The last record that I found of Sproules in Crumkill was the one that finally brought some certainty. It was a marriage record, which I thought at first gave us the name of the husband of the Widow Jane Sproule. The record was of a marriage on 7 Nov 1848 when a Jane Sproule of Cromkill married a William Reilly, Weaver. Her father was named as John Sproule of Cromkill, Weaver. I was thrilled – this had to be the daughter of my widow Jane Sproule, and I had found her husband, John Sproule the Weaver!

Jane Sproule of Crumkill's wedding Irishgenealogy.ie

It took a while to focus one important detail on the record. We can see the age of the happy couple. Jane Sproule was 47 years old at the time of her wedding! The wedding was in 1848. Jane Sproule of the Wedding was born about 1801 – so she wasn’t a daughter of these Cromkill Spoules! She was another sibling.

Jane Sproule who married William Reilly had to be a sister of either, or both, Samuel Sproule and the husband of the Widow Jane Sproule.

And John Sproule the Weaver of Crumkill was their father. This John Sproule the Weaver is the same generation as John Sproule of Caugherty, father of Lendrick.  Two John Sproules in the same generation are definitely not brothers!

The Cromkill Sproules

The Caugherty/Caherty Sproules

So the bottom line is:

• The Cromkill Sproules are not siblings of Lendrick, Thomas and John Sproule of Caugherty. This is assuming that Samuel Sproule is a brother of the husband of Jane Sproule the Widow, a fairly good assumption.
• The Cromkill Sproules are not first cousins of the Caugherty brothers, for their fathers are both called John Sproule.

If they are related, and we don’t have evidence that they are, it is much further back in the generations.

Important Footnote:

I found another member of the Cromkill family, a son of one of the two households. Unfortunately, I don't know which house that he belongs to.

 His name is Robert John Sproule and I found him in the Military Records in Findmypast.ie. Robert gave his birth year as 1829, and says he is from the Parish of Connor, near the town of Ballymena. Crumkill is the only Connor townland which had Sproules at that time, so Robert John Sproule is a Crumkill Sproule.

Robert had a very distinguished career during his 21 years of service in the Royal Regiment of Artillery - he was Corporal, Sergeant and finished as Master Gunner 1st Class. He served in Gibraltar and the Crimea.

Robert John Sproule said he would live in Ballymena at his discharge on 12 Oct 1875, and he gave his trade as Weaver. 

He is definitely one of the Cromkill Sproules. 

Information on the other family, the Sproules of Caherty/Caugherty:

1. The Mystery Picture - R. Sproule Shop

2. Robert Sproule the Saddler – the Lendrick Connection 

3. The Family of Hugh Sproule of Ballycreggy and Bridge St Ballymena, and Mary Ann 

4. The Parents of Lendrick Sproule of Caugherty 

The Parents of Lendrick Sproule of Caugherty, Ballyclug, Antrim

 We now have Lendrick Sproule of Caugherty who died on 5 Dec 1896, and we also have his two brothers.

We have his brother Thomas Sproule of Caugherty who died on 29 Aug 1871, aged 75, and his brother John Sproule of Ballycreggy, who died on 20 Jul 1866.

In order to get further back, the place to look is, of course, at the land.

In Griffiths Valuation in the mid 1850s we have the two brothers in Caherty, as it is now spelt. We have Thomas, who has 17 acres of land in Caherty, and Lendrick, who has 16 acres. These two holdings are side-by-side. This often happens if the father splits the land between the two sons.

Caherty in Griffiths Valuation, Ask About Ireland

Now let’s look in the Tithe Applotment of Ballyclug Parish which was carried out in 1825. We can see 'Caugherty' and there appears to be only one person, John Sproule. 

Tithe Applotment for Ballyclug, PRONI FIN/5/30

The numbers on the Tithe record show money paid rather than acres. So John Sproule paid about 12 shillings. However, the first name on the list there above John is William O’Hara, and this is certainly the owner of the land, this can be seen in the Griffiths entry above. So the owner has put his own name for a piece of land that was the same size as John Sproule’s. This piece of land could well also have been being farmed by John Sproule, which would reflect the later Griffiths entry.

So now in 1825, we have John Sproule of Caugherty, and this John Sproule was almost certainly the father of Lendrick Sproule and his two brothers.

It is very rare in Ireland to get definitive proof of anything in the 1700s or early 1800s. But here, in this case, I found very definite proof! John Sproule of Caugherty is the father of Lendrick Sproule of Caugherty and his two brothers.

The Prerogative Wills books of Ireland usually only list a name and a year, and, if you are very lucky, they add a place. I have never seen one that also has the executors of a will, but the record of the probate of the will John Sproule of Ballyclug in 1825 does just that.

Probate Record for John Sproule of Ballyclug

The probate was granted on 29 Jan 1825, so John Sproule of Ballyclug must have died in 1824 or shortly before. The Executors are given in the entry of probate, and they are  Lendrick & Martha Sproule.

So John Sproule of Caugherty, who had the land there in the Tithe Applotment, died round 1824, and his eldest son, Lendrick Sproule, was an executor of the Will.

But who was the other executor, who was Martha Sproule?

Martha was unlikely to be a sister. There were at least 2 other brothers, and the brothers would be named as executors before a sister.

Martha could not be Lendrick’s wife for the same reason – there were male sons.

Martha Sproule has to be the widow of John Sproule of Caugherty!

So now we have both the parents of Lendrick Sproule and his brothers, they were John Sproule of Caugherty, who died about 1824, and his wife Martha.

Will entry for John Sproule, Ireland, Diocesan and Prerogative Wills & Administrations Indexes, 1595-1858, Familysearch.org

Other Posts on this Family:

1. The Mystery Picture - R. Sproule Shop
2. Robert Sproule the Saddler – the Lendrick Connection 
3. The Family of Hugh Sproule of Ballycreggy and Bridge St Ballymena, and Mary Ann 

 

The Family of Hugh Sproule of Ballycreggy and Bridge St Ballymena, and Mary Ann

 HUGH SPROULE THE CARPENTER was probably born in Ballycreggy, Antrim, and he was the son of John Sproule of Ballycreggy who died 20 Jul 1866. (PRONI Will Calandars) Hugh married MARY ANN who was born about 1825 in Antrim, Ireland. Hugh and Mary Ann had a lease for a farm in Ballycreggy, Antrim, and they also had a house in Bridge St, Ballymena. She died on 06 Jun 1893 in Bridge St.  “6 June 1893 Bridge St Ballymena, Mary Anne Sproule widow 68 Carpenter’s widow, Alexander Hodge present at death Ballymena” (Irishgenealogy.ie)

Hugh Sproule the Carpenter and Mary Ann Sproule had the following children:

1.     HUGH SPROULE OF WHISHAW was born about 1839 in Ballymena, Antrim, Ireland. Hugh is mentioned in his mother’s will. He married Margaret Wilson on 12 Jul 1862 in Ballymena, Antrim, Ireland, the daughter of Nathaniel Wilson of  Dunnyvadden, Ballyclug, Antrim. (Irishgenealogy.ie) Margaret Wilson was born about 1834 in Dunnyvadden, and she was the sister of Mary who married William John Sproule. Hugh Sproule and Margaret lived in the New Monkland area of Lanarkshire and are there from the 1871 Census on. They had at least 4 children, Hugh, Margaret, Mary and Sarah.

2.     WILLIAM JOHN SPROULE William was a weaver when he married Mary Wilson, daughter of Nathaniel Wilson, on 22 Oct 1862 in Ballymena, Ireland. She was born in 1837, her age came from the 1901 census of  Dunnyvadden, Ballyclug, Antrim, where Mary Sproule is a widow, living with her sister Ellen Wilson. I could find no record of William’s death, but there is a record of one child, Margaret, born 6 April 1866 in Dunnyvadden, Ballyclug, Antrim

3.     MATILDA SPROULE was baptised 07 Mar 1841 in Ballymena, Antrim and she was mentioned in her mother’s will of 1893.

4.     ROBERT SPROULE THE SADDLER was born in 1850 in Ballymena, Antrim, Ireland. He died on 25 Feb 1906 in Belfast, Antrim, Ireland. He married (1) MARY JANE MCILROY, daughter of Robert McIlroy, on 10 Sep 1877 in Ballymena, Antrim, Ireland. She was born in 1851 in Ballylig, Skerry, Antrim. She died on 11 Jan 1890 in Ballylig, Skerry, Antrim, Ireland. (Irishgenealogy.ie)  Robert then married ELLEN HENRY, daughter of James Henry and Catherine, on 12 Jul 1892 in Ballymena, Antrim. (Irishgenealogy.ie) Ellen was born in 1871. She died on 10 Jul 1905 in Old Lodge Rd, Belfast, Antrim, Northern Ireland (Catherine Henry, her Mother was present at her death). Robert had 4 children with his first wife Mary Jane, but only one of these survived childhood, Robert born 11 Sep 1880. This son Robert was a soldier and he died in Woolwich England, where he died in 1950. Robert had 6 children with his second wife Ellen Henry, but again I believe he lost 3 of these in childhood. The 3 that survived were Joseph, Hugh and Edward.

5.     LENDRICK SPROULE THE SHOEMAKER was born in 1854 in Bridge St, Ballymena, Antrim,  Ireland. He married Ellizabeth McFetrick on 19 Jul 1875, the daughter of James McFetrick of Gloonan, Ahoghill, Antrim. (Irishgenealogy.ie) She was born about 1853 in Gloonan, Ahoghill, Antrim, Ireland. Lendrick and Elizabeth were living in Pollokshaws, Lanarkshire from at least the 1881 Census on. They had at least 3 children, Hugh, Robert and Mary. Lendrick died after 1931 in Glasgow, Lanarkshire, Scotland.

6.     JANE SPROULE was born in 1855 in Ballymena, Antrim (Born in Ireland on census). She died in Belfast. She married Alexander Hodge, son of James Hodge and Jane Dodds, on 09 Jun 1879 in Ballymena, Antrim, Ireland (Alexander was a widower). He was born in 1847 in Limavady, Derry,  Ireland and he was a Saddler. He died on 13 Dec 1904 in Upper Meadow St, Belfast, Antrim (age 57).  Jane and Alexander Hodge had 2 children, a son who died the day he was born, on 14 Jan 1889, and another son John who was born 19 Mar 1883 and died on 7 Dec 1903.

7.     MARY SPROULE was born in 1867 in Ballymena Town, Antrim, Ireland (Born in Ireland on census). She died (Living with her sister Jane in 1911 Census in Cambridge St., Belfast, unmarried).

8.     SARAH SPROULE is named in the mother’s will, but I could find no information on her as yet.

The Will of Mary Ann Sproule, wife of Hugh Sproule the Carpenter, from PRONI Will Calendars.

Other Posts on this Antrim Sproule Family:

1. The Mystery Picture - R. Sproule Shop
2. Robert Sproule the Saddler – the Lendrick Connection  
3. The Parents of Lendrick Sproule of Caugherty, Ballyclug, Antrim  

Robert Sproule the Saddler – the Lendrick Connection

The Robert Sproule who had been in the lovely photograph standing in front of his shop had some connection to the family of Lendrick Sproule of Caherty, Ballyclug, Antrim. 

I knew this for certain as a grandson of this Robert Sproule the Saddler was given the name, Lendrick Sproule. Could I find the connection between Robert the Saddler and the family of Lendrick Sproule of Caugherty?

I had come across Lendrick Sproule and his family just a few months ago, when I saw the record of his gravestone in the Ulster Historical Foundation’s list of Gravestone Inscriptions. It was in Broughshane 1st Presbyterian Graveyard in Racavan, Antrim. The inscription read:

Ulster Historical Foundation, Northern Irish Gravestone Inscriptions

Lendrick Sproule lived in Caugherty, a townland near Ballymena that is now spelt Caherty. Lendrick had died in 1896 at the astounding age of 111 years old! 

And here with him in this grave were his family, or some of them at least;

John died in 1902 at age 66 born 1836

Robert died 1909 at age 69 born 1840

Patrick died 1903 at age 62 born 1841

Lendrick died 1894 at age 39 born 1855

I knew that the father of my Robert Sproule the Saddler was called Hugh Sproule and that he had been a carpenter. This information appeared on the records of Robert's two weddings. Robert was born in 1850, so his father Hugh Sproule the Carpenter would be born 1825ish or before this. It looked at first as if my Hugh the father of Robert the Saddler would fit nicely into the family of Lendrick Sproule of Caughterty, but this quickly proved to be untrue.

Lendrick Sproule had not mentioned a son called Hugh in his grave inscription, Hugh was not in that grave. However, Lendrick did, indeed, have a son called Hugh Sproule. He is there with his brothers in the 1901 census on the Caugherty farm:

1901 Census National Archives of Ireland

I also found the death record of Hugh Sproule of Caugherty in Irishgenealogy.ie.  Hugh died in 1921 aged 71 – so he was born in 1850. He definitely couldn't be the father of my Robert the Saddler, also born in 1850! The death record confirmed the census in telling us that Hugh Sproule of Caugherty was a bachelor! Now to hunt for another Hugh Sproule.

I had been through all of the Antrim Sproules in Irish Genealogy.ie when putting together the family of Lendrick Sproule of Caugherty and I had found no other Hugh Sproule in this area. There were no other leads.

There was only one thing to do at this point, and that was to back to Irishgenealogy.ie and try again – there had to be a clue somewhere.

Searching under the name ‘Sproule’ or ‘Sproul’ usually brings up the same results – usually, that is. This time I tried the 'Sproul' spelling, and up popped a brand new Lendrick Sproule! And this was the clue that I needed - exciting!

It was a marriage record of a Lendrick Sproul, Bachelor, Shoemaker, who lived in Bridge St,  Ballymena,  to an  Elizabeth McFetridge and the wedding took place in 1875. The father of this new Lendrick was Hugh Sproul Carpenter! 

From Irishgenealogy.ie

This was another son of Hugh Sproule the Carpenter! A brother of my Robert Sproule the Saddler, and a confirmation of the Lendrick connection. Things moved very fast after this.

I knew that this new Lendrick had not lived in Ireland because I would have come across him on Irishgenealogy.ie so I chased him down on Ancestry and found him living in Glasgow in Scotland – the blessings of having an unusual name.

The very first census record that I found of Lendrick Sproule was in the 1881 Census of Scotland. And here was another clue for it revealed that his mother was also there with them! Mary Ann Sproule, aged 69, was there with Lendrick, his wife Elizabeth McFeterick and their 3 children in Pollokshaws, Renfrewshire. 

1881 Scotland Census, Ancestry.com

So now we had both parents of Lendrick Sproule and his brother Robert Sproule the Saddler, and their names were Hugh Sproule and Mary Ann Sproule. 

But we have a bit more. This was her death registration in the Irishgenealogy.ie showed that Mary Ann, Carpenter's widow,  had died on 6 June 1893 in Bridge St Ballymena. Lendrick Sproule, her son, had been living in Bridge St at his wedding. 

But her death notice in the Belfast Newsletter of that week gave us even more information. This told us that Mary Ann Sproule of Bridge St. was the relict of the late Hugh Sproule of Ballycreggy.

From Belfast Newsletter, 8 Jun 1893 Ancestry.com

So we have two places now for this family, Bridge St. in Ballymena and Ballycreggy, a townland on the edge of Antrim town. 

Could we now get further back to find that connection to the Lendrick Sproules of Caugherty?

Well we have some further evidence. Mary Ann Sproule who died in 1893 left a detailed will, available in PRONI. In it she names her children, Matilda, Robert, Hugh, Lendrick, Jane, Sarah and Mary. She also tells us that she still has ownership of a farm in Ballycreggy. This must be a lease that she has sub-leased out, as the Sproule name does not appear in the Tithe or Griffiths.

In PRONI I found a will for a John Sproule of Ballycreggy, Ballyclug, County Antrim, who died on 20 July 1866.  This was granted to his son Hugh Sproule who was at that time in Lancashire in Scotland.[1]This John Sproule of Ballycreggy was a carpenter, and there is a good chance that he is the father of our Hugh Sproule the Carpenter. So if we put this together we have:

Now because of that very disctinctive name, Lendrick, we know for certain that this family is related to the Sproule family in Caughterty. Logic tells us that there is a high percentage liklihood that John Sproule of Ballycreggy is a brother of Lendrick and Thomas of Caugherty.

We are filling out this family nicely!

 

NOTE:

[1] The text of the PRONI entry for John Sproule of Ballycreggy reads:  “Letters of Administration of the personal estate of John Sproule late of Ballyeraigy County Antrim Carpenter who died 20 July 1866 at same place were granted at Belfast to Hugh Sproule of 287 Caledonia-road Wisha Lanarkshire Engineer the Son.” The letters of administration was granted on 20 Dec 1895 to Hugh Sproule in Wishaw, Lanarkshire. This was in fact the son of Hugh Sproule the Carpenter, grandson of John Sproule of Ballycreggy. The grandson Hugh was living in Wishaw with his wife, Margaret Wilson.

For more Posts on this Antrim Sproule Family:

1. The Mystery Picture - R. Sproule Shop
2. The Family of Hugh Sproule of Ballycreggy and Bridge St Ballymena, and Mary Ann 
3. The Parents of Lendrick Sproule of Caugherty, Ballyclug, Antrim