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 

Part 1 – The Big Breakthough in Sproule DNA

 Like all of us, I get a great thrill when there is a big breakthrough on my family tree. But lately, I have been getting an even bigger buzz from helping Sproules from all over the world to get closer to their breakthough. So it was with huge pleasure that I wrote this email to Tommy, a man who had searched for many, many years to find his family’s home...

This was the reason I had become involved with Joe Sprowl on the Sproule DNA Project - this was the dream. Could we find a specific piece of Sproule DNA that would allow us link a Sproule somewhere in the world to a specific family? Something like a  magic DNA diagnostic tool to help those Sproules who had no clue where their family came from. And here it was.

The Sproule DNA Project had been going for some years. The late Philip Sprowl had begun working with Sproule folk, collecting their Y-DNA, and this mantle was then taken up by Joe Sprowl. Joe does trojan work canvassing project members, analysing the data and managing the whole project.

Joe had made contact with me, and we quickly realised that we shared the same aims. Y-DNA is the male DNA, passed down from male to male, from Sproule to Sproule. But there are problems in making use of this, even with this special Y-DNA, and I had very strong feelings on the topic. I found that Joe shared the same views.

It is terrific to have this Y-DNA. However, DNA on its own is useless. We need a database to compare it to. It’s like the police having the DNA of a suspect, but then find they have no database to turn to to search for him/her. 

Only, in our case in genealogy, the situation is much worse! We have databases online, family trees. The problem is that a lot of the early information, the pre-1850 information, on many of these trees is just plain wrong.  It is like the police having a database that is full of forgeries, mistakes, or incorrect information. We needed validated exemplars of family trees to compare the DNA to.

So we worked together, Joe on the DNA side and me working on the different family trees.

And then came that special day. Joe emailed me:

“Kate we have found a mutation BY105178, it is shared by just 4 project members. The others do not have it. What does this mean? They are:

1. Fred Jun
2. Ben
3. George
4. Tommy

When I looked at that first name, Fred Jun, I knew we were in business – we had found something special. I was very familiar with Fred Jun's family tree, it is the family tree of Fred Sproule who passed away in 1998. Fred was a meticulous Sproule researcher, he loved facts and figures, and he double checked everything. His tree was totally validated. 

We had a single, specific mutation for someone who had a validated Sproule family tree - and not just any Sproule family tree. 

This is the family that Elder made famous - this is the Grennan Sproules.

(The names of our project members have been changed in this post)

Part 2 – The Big Breakthough in Sproule DNA, the Timeline

Part 3 – The Big Breakthough in Sproule DNA, Using the Mutation

 

The Golan Sproules

This is the family tree of the Golan Spoules of County Tyrone, Ireland.This tree was originally named 'the Nabob Spoules' by Jack Elder. The tree is now updated, with verified information from Deeds and Wills. I have managed to get further back than Elder, so I have changed the family name to reflect the first Sproules of this line in  County Tyrone, Ireland - the Golan Sproules. For more information on this see The Ancestors of The Nabob – the Golan Sproules.

1.       THOMAS SPREULL OF GOLAN was born about 1680 in Golan, south-east of Castlederg in County Tyrone, the son of Samuel Sproule of Golan. Thomas of Golan first appears on a deed in 1718 witnessing a deed for Cornet Andrew Spreull.  He is called a distiller in some documents and as owner of a bleachgreen in others. Thomas Spreull died in 1761 in Golan and left a will naming  his wife MARY and his three sons, James, Samuel and John the Apocethary. The land in Golan and Drumnabeigh had already passed to Oliver, the son of Thomas'  oldest son Robert. The name is spelt ‘Spreull’ on most of the early documents. It is worth noting that the name is spelt 'Sproull' on most of the documents from the 1800s.

Thomas Sproule of Golan and Mary had the following children:

1.1   ROBERT SPREULL OF GOLAN was born about 1700 in Golan, Ardstraw, Tyrone, Ireland. He died in 1734. He married MARTHA EDWARDS, born about 1707, the daughter of Robert Edwards of Kilcroagh and Martha La Vie  and they had at least two children:

1.1.1  OLIVER SPROULE OF GOLAN was born in 1723 in Ardstraw, Tyrone, Northern Ireland. In a deed dated 1764 Oliver is confirmed as owning all of the land owned by his grandfather, Thomas of Golan. Oliver’s son Andrew Sproule moved to Spamount and he is the father of all the Spamount Sproules.

1.1.1.1  ANDREW SPROULE OF SPAMOUNT was born on 26 Apr 1741 in Golan, Co Tyrone, Northern Ireland.  He married twice, first to REBECCA who was born about 1741 and she died on 06 Jan 1776. He then married ISABELLA on 07 Jan 1781. Isabella was born in 1742 and she died on 17 Jul 1812 in Spamount, Ardstraw, County Tyrone (Aged 70).  Andrew of Spamount died on 21 Feb 1798 in Dublin. 

1.1.1.2    ROBERT SPROULE OF GOLAN was born in 1747.

1.1.1.3    SARAH SPROULE OF SPAMOUNT was born in 1747. She married a man named WETHERALL.

1.1.1.4    JAMES SPROULE was born in 1752.

1.1.1.5    UNKNOWN SPROULE She married HUGH KELSO. He was born in Ardstraw, Tyrone, Ireland. He died in 1797 in Ardstraw, Tyrone, Ireland.

1.1.2  MARTHA SPROULE OF GOLAN was born about 1730 in Golan. She married JOHN "JACK ROE" SPROULE of Curraghamulkin, son of  of Joseph Sproule and grandson of Cornet Andrew Spreull.

1.1.2.1    JOSEPH SPROULE OF CLOVER HILL, Kirlish, County Tyrone was born about 1750 and he married REBECCA PORTER, born in 1756 in Strabane, County Tyrone, Ireland. Joseph was the father of the Kirlish Sproules. His wife Rebecca died in Kirlish 1850 in, County Tryone, Ireland (Aged 94).

1.1.2.2    MARTHA SPROULE OF CURRAGHAMULKIN was born about 15 May 1766. She married George Sproule, son of Charles Sproule of Upper Grennan and Ann Wallace, on 28 Jan 1787. George was born on 17 Nov 1755. They moved to Crillan, County Fermanagh, and they are the ancestors of this line of the family. George  died on 03 May 1838 in Crillan and Martha Sproule died on 22 Apr 1844 in Crillan.

1.1.2.3    ANNE SPROULE OF CURRAGHAMULKIN was born in 1771 and she married three husbands. First she married LEONARD INCH in 1792. He was born in 1770 and died in 1798 in Ederney Bridge, Fermanagh, Irleland. (Buried at Drumquin). She next married WILLIAM JOHNSTON in 1800 and he died in 1801. Anne married JOHN HOLMES on 15 Oct 1802 in St. Marys Church, Ardess, Magheraculmoney. Both John Holmes and his wife Anne Sproule died in 1813.

1.1.2.4    ELIZABETH "BETTY" SPROULE OF CURRAGHAMULKIN was born in 1775 and she married her first cousin, NEHEMIAH EDWARDS of Kilcroagh House, Castlederg, Co. Tyrone who was born in 1761.  Nehemiah died on 05 Apr 1846 in Kilcroagh House (Aged 85). Betty Sproule died on 24 Nov 1859 in Kilcroagh House, Castlederg, Co. Tyrone  aged 84.

1.1.2.5    ROBERT SPROULE OF CURRAGHAMULKIN  married PEGGY WALLACE

1.1.2.6    THOMAS SPROULE OF CURRAGHMULKIN married MARY MCCOLGAN.

1.1.2.7    CAPTAIN EDWARD SPROULE OF GLENVALE DROMORE married ANN HARPER OF AGHADULLA.

1.1.2.8    HENRY SPROULE OF CURRAGHAMULKIN.

1.1.2.9    JOHN SPROULE OF ADVARNEY WEST died between 1851-1855 in Ormstown, Quebec, Canada. He married   a woman called Ann.

1.1.2.10 ANDREW SPROULE OF CURRAGHAMULKIN owned the lands of Curraghmulkin, Screen and Cooel. He died in 1799 and his wife’s name was Ann.  His son Andrew Sproule bought the Magheracrigan land and he became Andrew of Magheracrigan that is on the Elder Tree.

1.2   JAMES SPROULE OF NEWTONSTEWART was born in Golan. I know very little of James as yet. He is mentioned in leases of 1733, also in the Will of Thomas of Golan of 1761, and later when the inherritance was divided up between the three brothers Samuel, John and James. He had a son Edward who is mentioned in a 1733 deed, and is later identified in a deed as having died in America. 

1.3   JOHN SPROULE THE APOTHECARY was born on 11 Oct 1713 in Golan, Ardstraw, County Tyrone. He studied as an Apocethary in Strabane and then went into the Army. He came back to Strabane to his own Apocethary practice. He also was a Provost in Strabane. He died on 21 May 1787. He married REBECCA CUNNINGHAM. She was born on 21 Mar 1720 and died on 06 Nov 1772 in Strabane.

1.3.1   JOHN  SPROULE was born on 09 Jul 1747. He was also a doctor and went to live in Beresford Street, and then Marlborough Street in Dublin where he died in Nov 1814. He married ELIZABETH BOSQUET in 1773 who came from Enniskillen.

1.3.2    JANE SPROULE was born in 1748. She died on 22 Jul 1828 in Castletown, Tyrone (Aged 80). She married her first cousin Robert Sproule the Nabob, son of Samuel Sproule of Coolnacruniagh on 27 Sep 1785.  They had one child, Rebecca Jane born on the 16 December 1790  in India, who died in 1810 in Exeter, England.

1.3.3    MARY SPROULE was born on 16 Oct 1749. Mary did not marry. She lived in Exeter with her sister Jane and Robert the Nabob  when they came home from India.

1.3.4    REBECCA SPROULE was born in 1750 in Strabane, Tyrone, Ireland. She married John Barclay, son of Robert Barclay of Strabane, on 18 Jan 1774. He was born about 1750 in Strabane, Tyrone.

1.3.5    JAMES SPROULE MD was doctor in Omagh. He was born on 28 Aug 1754 in Strabane and he died in 1791. His wife was Ann and she died on 15 Mar 1858 in Omagh (Aged 76).  Based on information on deeds, I believe that they had no children.

1.3.6    CATHERINE SPROULE was born in 1756 in Strabane, Tyrone, Ireland. She married Frederick Porter of Strabane on 16 May 1785. He was born about 1750 .

1.4   SAMUEL SPROULE OF COOLNACRUNIAGH was born about 1711 in Golan, south-east of Castlederg, County Tyrone. He died about 1779 in Coolnacrunaght.

1.4.1   THOMAS SPROULE OF BRIDGEHILL was born about 1730 in Coolnacrunaght, he lived in the nearby Bridgehill farm.

1.4.1.1. SARAH SPROULE (SALLY) was born about 1762 in Bridgehill, Ardstraw, Tyrone. She lived at Bridgehill in her later years.

1.4.1.2.  SAMUEL SPROULE OF BRIDGEHILL was born in 1759 in Bridgehill, Ardstraw, Tyrone and he married FRANCIS LEITCH (Fanny). They  raised 9 children at Bridgehill . Samuel of Bridgehill died on 05 Nov 1845.

1.4.1.3.  JAMES SPROULE OF INCHANEY was born in Bridgehill. He married Sarah in 1800 (From 1802 Robert of Ohio Letter). They had 11 children including Robert Sproule who built the Kildevin House in County Meath. Sarah died on 08 Feb 1840. James of Inchaney died in 1827 in Inchaney, Tyrone, Ireland.

1.4.1.4.  FRANCIS SPROULE was born in 1755 in Bridgehill, Ardstraw, Tyrone.. She married  a man named JAMES HAYS. He was born in 1746 in Tyrone and he had a child called Isabella by his first marriage. They emigrated to America, to  South Carolina.  Here James Hays  died in 1799 in Newberry, South Carolina, USA leaving Francis Sproule with three children, Isabella, James Jn and Sara Hays. Isabella Hays married Robert Sproule, brother of her step-mother Francis. Francis Sproule died in 1811 in Union Township, Ohio, USA.

1.4.1.5.  ROBERT SPROULE OF OHIO was born on 13 Feb 1775 in Bridgehill, Tyrone, Ireland. He married Isabella Hays, daughter of James Hays, on 04 Apr 1801 in Newberry County, South Carolina. Isabella Hays was born on 25 Nov 1782 in Tyrone, Ireland. Robert and Isabella had 12 children and I believe they have the most descendants of all of the Sproules. Isabella died on 02 Apr 1868 in Miami County, Ohio (Age: 76). Robert of Ohio died on 14 Jun 1858 in Elizabeth, Miami, Ohio, United States (Age at Death: 83).

1.4.1.6.  ANN (NANCY)  KERR was born about 1760 in Bridgehill, County Tyrone. She married  JAMES KERR who was born about 1755 in Tyrone. They went to live in Pitsburg, Pennsylvania where he died on 14 Jul 1845 (Age: 90). Nancy Sproule died in May 1850 in Pitsburg.

1.4.2     ROBERT SPROULE THE NABOB was born in 1746 in Coolnacrunaght, Ardstraw, Tyrone, Ireland. He married his first cousin Jane Sproule, daughter of his uncle John Sproule the Apothecary  on 27 Sep 1785.  Robert was a surgeon in India and he came back in 1785 to marry Jane. They then travelled back to India. Eventually they retired to a mansion in Exeter in England, but Robert the Nabob died shortly afterwards in 1807. They had one daughter, Rebecca Jane, who was born in India. Rebecca died in 1810 in Exeter. Jane Sproule sold up and came back to Ireland where she lived in Castletown, County Tyrone. She died there on 22 Jul 1828, aged 80.

1.4.3   ELIZABETH SPROULE was born in Coolnacrunaght, Ardstraw, Tyrone, Ireland. She married a  MISTER RANKIN.

1.4.4     MARTHA SPROULE OF COOLNACRUNIAGH was born about 1750 in Coolnacrunaght, Ardstraw, Tyrone, Ireland. She married ANDREW SPROULE OF TULLYMOAN, son of William Sproule. He was born about 1740 in Tullymoan, Urney, County Tyrone. Martha died in 1820 in Tullymoan, Urney, County Tyrone, Ireland. They had five sons.

1.4.4.1.  ROBERT SPROULE OF STRABANE was born about 1773 in Tullymoan, Urney, County Tyrone. He died in Jun 1834 in Strabane. He married ANN LECKY who was born in Altamullen, Tyrone, Ireland. They had two children, Robert of Jamaica and Mulvin, and Matila who married William Gwynne of Strabane.

1.4.4.2.  SAMUEL SPROULE MD was born in 1774 in Tullymoan, Tyrone, Northern Ireland. He was a surgeon in the East India Company and was based in Bombay, India. He married Eliza Walker, daughter of William Walker, on 10 Nov 1818 in Bowland (Samuel 42 , Eliza 22).  Eliza  was born in 1796 and she died on 06 Nov 1827 in Cheltenham.  (Aged 31). Samuel died on 30 May 1829 in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, United Kingdom (Aged 53). They had one daughter Ann Jane Sproule who married Sir John Rivett-Carnac.

1.4.4.3.  WILLIAM SPROULE was born about 1785 in Tullymoan, Urney, County Tyrone, Ireland. He died about 1827 in Glentimon,  County Tyrone. He married  ANN KNOX who was born in Glentimon, Tyrone, Ireland. She died on 12 Jun 1847 in Glentimon, Tyrone. They had one son Samuel Sproule who became a surgeon in the East India Company. Samuel married his first cousin Margaret Madden Sproule, daughter of James Sproule of Mellmount..

1.4.4.4.  ANDREW SPROULE OF TULLYMOAN was born about 1770 in Tullymoan, Urney, County Tyrone, Ireland. He died after 1840. He married  REBECCA MACKEY who was born in 1774 in Lismontigley, Raphoe, Donegal. She died on 01 Feb 1858 in Tullymoan, Urney, County Tyrone, Ireland (Aged 84).  Andrew and Rebecca had eight children.

1.4.4.5.  JAMES SPROULE OF MELLMOUNT was born in Tullymoan, Urney, County Tyrone, Ireland.  He lived most of his adult live as a planter in Jamaica. He met his lady,  CHARLOTTE E TAYLOR, daughter of Simon Taylor, in Jamaica and they had nine children. Charlotte was born in 1795 in Jamaica and she died on 17 Apr 1849 in their home in Mellmount, Strabane, Tyrone. James died on 01 Aug 1840 in a shipwreck in Jamaica.

1.4.5   ANNE SPROULE was born about 1740  and she married Oliver Lecky of Melmount, Strabane, County Tyrone  who was born about 1740.

1.4.5.1  ISABELLA LECKY was born in Mellmount, Strabane, Co Tyrone. She died in Apr 1837 in Sandy Mills, Donegal, Ireland. She married James Mathewson, son of James Mathewson of Ardstraw and Martha Sproule Curraghamulkin, about 1799. He was born in 1770 in Kirlish, Drumquin, County Tryone, Ireland. He died on 08 Oct 1836 in Donegal.

1.4.5.2  OLIVER LECKY was born about 1771 in Mellmount, Strabane, Co Tyrone. He died on 06 Feb 1840. He married  REBECCA PORTER.

1.4.5.3    NANCY LECKY was born in Mellmount, Strabane, Co Tyrone. She died in 1856. She married a man called KILPATRICK.

1.4.5.4    JANE LECKY was born in Mellmount, Strabane, Co Tyrone. She married  RICHARD HENDERSON. He was born in Laught, Donegal. He died on 22 Apr 1835.

1.4.6    REBECCA SPROULE  was born in 1745. She married  ROBERT SPROULE OF UPPER GRENNAN. He was born about 1735 in Grennan, Dromore, Tyrone. Rebecca died there in 1815.  

1.4.6.1    ROBERT SPROULE OF UPPER GRENNAN was born in Grennan, Dromore, Tyrone, Ireland (Died unmarried).

1.4.6.2    JOHN SPROULE OF UPPER GRENNAN was born in Grennan, Dromore, Tyrone, Ireland (Died unmarried).

1.4.6.3    SAMUEL SPROULE was born in Grennan, Dromore, Tyrone, Ireland.

1.4.6.4    CHARLES SPROULE OF UPPER GRENNAN was born in Grennan, Dromore, Tyrone, Ireland (Died unmarried).

1.4.6.5   JENNIE SPROULE OF UPPER GRENNAN was born in Grennan, Dromore, Tyrone, Ireland. She married  WALLACE BRATTON.

1.4.7    JANE SPROULE was born in Coolnacrunaght, Ardstraw, Tyrone, Ireland. She married a MR LECKY.

1.4.8     MARY SPROULE was born in Coolnacrunaght, Ardstraw, Tyrone, Ireland. She married a  MR JOHNSTON.

1.5   REBECCA SPROULE was born in Golan, Ardstraw, Tyrone, Ireland. She married  ROBERT PORTER the postman of Strabane who died in 1772. Their daughter Rebecca (1756-1850) married Joseph Sproule of Clover Hill.

1.6   DAUGHTER SPROULE  married WILLIAM JOHNSTON OF COOLNACRUNIAGH. This Sproule daughter must have died young as her two sons were in the care of their Grandfather Thomas Spreull of Golan – this is mentioned in the 1733 deed. The sons were named as Arthur Johnston and James Johnston

_______________________________________________

The Ancestors of The Nabob – the Golan Sproules

There are many Sproules, Leckys, Crocketts and others out there who are, like me, descended from the Tyrone family that Jack Elder called ‘The Nabob Sproules’.  It is not really a very good name for this family tree for many reasons, and in this post I am going to have the temerity to launch a new, updated name for our line of Sproules!

The Origin of the Name

'Nabob' was a term used at the time for someone who worked for the East India Company and became very wealthy -  usually by corrupt means. Our Nabob, Robert Sproule, was born in 1746 and he was a surgeon with the East India Company. There is no hint that he was corrupt in any way, but he did indeed return from India with a vast fortune, and this earned him the nickname 'the Nabob' Sproule.

Robert the Nabob was an interesting character, but he really should not have had a family tree named after him - as he had no descendants! Well actually, he did have one daughter, Rebecca Jane, but the poor lass died in 1810 at twenty years old, without issue.  

Our tree got its name from the fame of Robert the Nabob, as he was by far the best known member of his generation.  In the late 1800s, when Elder was trying to identify the origins of this line of Sproules, Robert the Nabob was still being talked about in the neighbourhood. The Nabob’s older brother had been long forgotten and he is incorrectly named on Elder's tree as ‘James’. Ironically, it was he who was the father of many Sproule families -  the Bridgehill Sproules, the Inchaney Sproules and the most prolific line of all,  the Ohio Sproules. ( I learnt this through the will of Robert the Nabob himself - more on him in later posts.)

Grennan vs the Nabob Tree

Elder knew that this line of Sproules was important as it was a different line from the others that he had already identified. But he was stuck at this generation of the Nabob – it was his big genealogical roadblock. The family trees that Elder had successfully completed had all led loosely back to the Sproules of Grennan and Curraghamulkin.  These families were all descendants of one man, Cornet Andrew Spreull who was born in Tyrone between 1670 and 1680.  Elder seemed to know that the Nabob family tree would not lead there, but he could not get past the Nabob’s generation.

The Ancestors of The Nabob

The ancestors of the Nabob were indeed different from the other lines, they were the Golan Sproules. I found this out through a tortuous tracing of deeds and inheritances, which I wrote about in a previous post. The father of the Nabob's generation was Samuel, son of  Thomas Spreull of Golan. (Abt 1680 to 1761)¹

We even know the father of Thomas Spreull of Golan, as he is named in deed dated 1733 – Samuel Spreull of Golan.²  The Golan lands are to the south and east of Castlederg, and it is obvious from Samuel of Golan’s name that the Golan Sproules were on this land from at least 1680. An area of their land carries their name to this day - Golan Sproul.

Thomas Spreull of Golan

Thomas  Spreull of Golan was an affluent man who had extensive lands in Golan, Drumnabeigh, and Altamullan, County Tyrone. He owned corn mills, a bleach green and was also a distiller. He was a friend of the local gentry, the Edwards of  Castlegore, and his son married into this family. Thomas’ eldest son, Robert, married Martha Edwards daughter of Robert Edwards of Kilcroagh. Thomas' son died young in 1740 and it was his grandson, Oliver, who was heir to the Golan land and mills.³  Oliver’s son Andrew built the house at Spamount, and he was father to the Spamount Sproules.

The Nabob was another grandson of Thomas Spreull of Golan. His father was  Samuel and he is named on a later deed as Samuel of Coolnacruniagh (Coolnacrunaght). It is Samuel's children who are are at the top of Elder's 'Nabob Sproules' family tree. Elder actually did reasonably well naming these children, though we get a much more accurate picture from the Will of Robert Sproule the Nabob. The Nabob’s only brother was actually called Thomas, and he inherited the Coolnacrunaght land. He set up the home at the farm called Bridgehill and it is he who is the father of the Bridgehill Sproules and the Ohio Sproules.

Thomas of Golan and Cornet Andrew

Thomas Spreull of Golan first appears on a deed  dated 1719, where he is the witness for  Cornet Andrew Spreull  who is buying the Grennan land.⁴ Thomas of Golan also went to Omagh to register these deeds. The two were obviously close, but  I have not yet established the relationship between Cornet Andrew and Thomas Spreull of Golan. It is possible that they were brothers, or that Cornet Andrew was an uncle of Thomas Spreull of Golan, as he seems to be older.

Three Lines of Sproules

This now identifies three distinct lines of Sproules in County Tyrone:

1. The Golan Sproules
2. The Grennan Sproules 
3. Tullymoan Sproules

 As far back as 1680 they are three quite separate lines.

The name ‘the Nabob Sproules’ now fades into history, and I can give an updated version of this family tree with its new name, the THE GOLAN SPROULES.

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References:

¹ Finding the father of the Nabob - The Big Breakthrough on the Sproule Family Tree

² Deed dated 5^th Nov 1733 between Hugh Edwards of Castlegore to Thomas Spruell of Golan Reg of Deeds,  44 481 52279

³ Deed dated 5th Nov 1764 Edward Loftus of Dublin and Oliver Sprowle of Golan giving Oliver the Golan lands which he already has possession. Reg of Deeds 235  609 155913. Thomas of Golan’s will was proved in 1761.

⁴ Deed dated between Thomas Edwards of Castlegore & Cornet Andrew Spreull  for the lands of Dressog, Dernaser and Grennan in the Parish of Dromore.  Witnessed by Thomas Spreull of Drumnabeigh. Reg of Deeds 41 289 25944.

Light on the Last Mysteries

I was nearing the end of the amazing story of James Sproule and his lady Charlotte Taylor, but there were a few more puzzles yet to be solved. One was the mystery of the children’s names – why did James Sproule call their first child Margaret Madden Sproule? And of course there was the big question - how did Charlotte Taylor make the extraordinary move from slave in Jamaica, to lady of the Mellmount Mansion in Ireland? How was this possible?

I found two very precious pieces of information that helped shed some light on both of these remaining puzzles. 

Charlotte Taylor’s Appearance

The diary of Lady Maria Nugent held the first key to the  life of this remarkable woman, Charlotte Taylor. Lady Maria Nugent was the wife of the Governer of Jamaica, and she visited Golden Grove, one of Simon Taylor's homes, in 1803. She recorded vivid descriptions of the visit in her journal, and she related one incident  that is very relevant to our story.¹

Lady Maria was early for dinner one day and she passed the time by walking round the Golden Grove house.  The housekeeper sent a child, who Lady Maria identifies as a ‘mulatto child’,  into the living room  to amuse her.  Simon Taylor arrived and was anxious that she dismiss this child. Lady Maria discovered later from the housekeeper that this mulatto child was, in fact, Simon Taylor’s daughter. Taylor's other children lived in Trelawny, his main home. The little mulatto daughter on Golden Grove was almost certainly an 8 year old Charlotte Taylor! Lady Maria actually gives us a brief description of her:

“She was a sickly, delicate child, with straight light-brown hair, and very black eyes.”

Mixing with the Ladies

This little snippet also gives an important insight into the status of Charlotte on Golden Grove. Lady Maria Nugent was the most distinguished lady in the whole of Jamaica at that time and yet it was obviously quite normal for the housekeeper to send Charlotte in alone to amuse her.  Even as a slave child, Charlotte was apparently mixing with the best.

Another thought struck me on reading this little story. Much later, Charlotte and James Sproule gave their children some unusual names, and one of these was that of their daughter, Jane Nugent Sproule. Could Jane Nugent have been named for Lady Maria Nugent? Possibly, but I think it much more likely that she is named in memory of ‘the housekeeper’ in this incident. According to Lady Maria, she was called Nelly Nugent! I strongly suspect that Nelly Nugent, the ‘housekeeper’ of Simon Taylor,  had been proudly displaying her own daughter to the distinguished visitor!

Charlotte after Simon Taylor

Simon Taylor died in 1813, and he left Charlotte as a slave on Golden Grove at that time. I knew that she had her first child by James Sproule in 1814, the daughter named Margaret Madden Sproule. In 1816, they had their first boy and Charlotte was recorded there as being a free person. So James Sproule must have arranged his lady’s freedom some time in 1815.

And that was it, I had no more information on Charlotte Taylor  – or so I thought until I was writing up this story! There was one little fact that I had overlooked, Charlotte had owned a slave! She had been bequeathed a slave in the will of her father, the Honourable Simon Taylor.  Would her name appear  in the Slave Registers as a slave owner?

I looked this up on Ancestry, and I was quite stunned at what I found.  In 1817, Charlotte Taylor, former slave, was now a slave owner. As I looked at the names of her two slaves, and at the long declaration that followed this tiny entry in the Slave Registers, it suddenly dawned! Charlotte Taylor had written the entry herself! ² 

Charlotte’s Writing

Charlotte had written a long declaration in the most beautiful handwriting. I checked later entries to ensure that this was definitely her writing, and every entry is consistent. Charlotte Taylor, a slave in Jamaica in the early 1800s, could read and write beautifully! 

How could this be? Was Simon Taylor having his slave children educated? From my reading  of Simon Taylor, he was not the type of man who would have done this.  But strangely, when I checked back  through his history I saw that his other daughter, Sarah Taylor, could also read and write. Charlotte had received some level of education at Golden Grove, and she was much better prepared to become a lady in Mellmount than I had imagined.

The Last Mystery

It was Charlotte’s last entry in the Slave Register that provided the answer to the question that had niggled me from the beginning. In Charlotte’s entry of 1832, a  name leaps straight off the page - Margaret Madden! Charlotte had acquired 3 slaves who had been formerly owned by plantation owner Margaret Madden, and now they had been ‘bequeathed’ to Charlotte. Margaret Madden, Charlotte Taylor and James Sproule had all lived in the same area, and had obviously become close friends.

Margaret Madden, the name of the couple’s first child, was the name that had opened the door to this mystery, and now this same name had helped to close it.

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* Episode 1 of this story - The Beginning of the BIG Story

* Episode 2 - In Jamaica - James and Other Sproules

* Episode 3 - The Sproule Children of Stokes Hall Jamaica

* Episode 4 - As One Door Closes… Another one Explodes!

* Episode 5 - Charlotte Taylor - Quadroon

* Episode 6 - Finding Charlotte Taylor
* Episode 7 - Simon Taylor and the Golden Grove Child

* NEXT Episode - The End of the BIG Story

References:

¹ Lady Nugent’s Journal: Jamaica One Hundred Years Ago… Lady Maria Nugent, Frank Cundall, Published by the Institute of Jamaica by Adam & Charles Black, London , 1907

² Slave Registers of former British Colonial Dependencies, 1812-1834 Ancestry.com Class: T71; Piece: 145

Finding Charlotte Taylor

I began the hunt for Charlotte Taylor in the Slave Registers of Jamaica on Ancestry. There were two and a half pages of Charlotte Taylors! They were in all different parishes, all over the island. It was a very popular name for a slave and I wondered if the Honourable Simon Taylor had anything to do with this!¹

The Slave Registers

Stokes Hall Today

Finding my Charlotte Taylor, the lady of James Sproule of Mellmount, looked at first as if it was going to be a daunting task. She did not appear on the Slave Registers of Stokes Hall, where James Sproule had worked, nor was she on his home plantation of Rosemount. As I was double checking these, I realised I was on the wrong track altogether.  

The Slave Registers of Jamaica in Ancestry begin with the year 1817. Charlotte was not a slave at this time. She had been a ‘free quadroon’ on the baptism record of her second child, William Taylor Sproule, in 1816. So none of these Charlotte Taylors were my Charlotte Taylor! Equally, it was also possible that Charlotte’s mother had been a free mulatto, in which case Charlotte would have been free when she was born – she may never have been a slave at any time.

In Familysearch

That left me with the Jamaican Parish Records on Familysearch. Again, there was a long list of Charlotte Taylors here, and I had so little to go on. I knew that Charlotte was a quadroon and that she had her first child in 1814. So I guessed that her age at that time would be anything from 14 to about 24. On a quick scan down the ‘Charlotte Taylors’ in Familysearch, there were surprisingly only two that were in the right age range.² 

One of these had been born in 1794, but her mother was a negro woman. My Charlotte’s mother would have been mulatto.  However, the other Charlotte Taylor fit perfectly!  She was one of 48 slaves baptised on the 17^th March 1798. Charlotte was in a smaller group of four slaves that had been marked with the term ‘Quadroon’.

Charlotte Taylor Born 1795

This had to be her. I couldn’t believe that I had found her so easily!  Charlotte Taylor, the lady of James Sproule of Mellmount, had definitely been born as a slave in Jamaica. Her birth year was given as 1795, so Charlotte Taylor had been 19 at the birth of her first child, Margaret Madden Sproule. But it was when I saw where she was born that I got those prickly tingles you get when you know that a story is coming together.

Charlotte Taylor was born on Golden Grove, and Golden Grove was one of the homes of the Honourable Simon Taylor. 

But much more than this, Simon Taylor himself mentions this Charlotte Taylor, quadroon child of Golden Grove, in a document dated 1813. And I might even have a description of her!

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* Episode 1 of this story - The Beginning of the BIG Story

* Episode 2  - In Jamaica - James and Other Sproules

* Episode 3  - The Sproule Children of Stokes Hall Jamaica

* Episode 4  - As One Door Closes… Another one Explodes!
* Episode 5  - Charlotte Taylor - Quadroon

* NEXT Episode - Simon Taylor and the Golden Grove Child

References:

¹ Slave Registers of former British Colonial Dependencies, 1812-1834 Ancestry.com Class: T71; Piece: 145

² Jamaica Church of England Parish Register Transcripts, 1664-1880, Familysearch

In Jamaica - James and Other Sproules

There were two ‘reputed’ children named in the Will of James Sproule of Jamaica and Mellmount in 1840, and I was determined to track them down.*  I was hunting for possible ‘Sproule’ slaves in Jamaica and it proved to be more productive than I had anticipated!

The Arrival in Jamaica

I learnt that the young James Sproule had arrived in Jamaica in 1801. The journey from Urney, County Tyrone, would have taken two months or more, and for James, this meant he arrived just a little too late.

James had been invited to join his rich and successful cousin, Andrew Sproule of Arnotto Bay in Jamaica. Unfortunately, while James was actually making the journey, Cousin Andrew had died.¹  Andrew Sproule was obviously not aware that James was en route when he wrote his Will in August 1801, as he had  left £50 a year  to James 'should he come' to Jamaica. The bulk of Andrew’s  wealth and property was supposed to be sold within three weeks of his death and the money distributed  to friends and family in Ireland. However, this did not happen, as Andrew’s  friends and Executors in Jamaica were quick to confiscate most of the money.² 

James Sproule arrived in 1801 to the news of Andrew’s death,  and he found that he had no claim to his cousin's fortune.

Jamaica 1820s

Slaves in Jamaica – From Ireland and Africa

James was now in a Jamaica run by rich and powerful landowners who made their money from producing sugar cane. Working with sugar cane was heavy labour, made more so by the the hot, humid conditions in Jamaica. The solution for these landowners was slaves, cheaply acquired labour run at minimum cost. I was surprised to find that the first slaves had come from Ireland – men, woman and children shipped by Cromwell’s forces to Cromwell’s captured islands in the Caribbean.

The slaves from Africa came later, and by 1800 there were over 250,000 slaves of African origin working in Jamaica. A bit like the Nazis, the landowners kept meticulous records, tracking each slave as he or she was bought, sold or died.  Amazingly, many slaves were also baptized. There are records of mass baptisms of 50 or 60 slaves at a time in each plantation, and again the names were recorded.  

James Sproule's Plantation

Was it possible, then, to find the ‘reputed’ children of James Sproule that had been named in his Will of 1840? James was a plantation owner in the Parish of St Thomas in the East. I found him recorded in the annual Jamaican Almanac every year from 1816 until his death in 1840.³  For example,  in 1816 James Sproule is recorded as having 23 slaves and five stock, indicating that his property, Rosemount, was quite small. (I was to find later that James was involved in other plantations.)

Parishes of Jamaica 1800

In 1817 there was a ‘registering’ of the slaves in St Thomas in the East. The land owner could actually get a bounty for each slave so every slave’s name in every plantation was recorded. This gave me the names of James’ slaves in his Rosemount Plantation.⁴  Were there any ‘Sproule’ names among the 23 slaves of James Sproule? Oh, yes, indeed there were!

There was Robert Sproule, John Sproule, James Sproule, Thomas Sproule and William Sproule, and that was just the men! There was also Rebecca Sproule and 'Amelia alias Eleanor Sproule'! Surely these slaves could not all be the children of James Sproule!

The Slaves Named Sproule

I looked at the original documents. All of the slaves with Sproule names on his plantation were aged between 25 and 35 years old, too old to be the children of James. Equally, they were recorded as ‘negro, African’. This meant the poor folk had come directly from Africa, as opposed to ‘creole’ which was the term at the time for those born in Jamaica. These were not the children of James Sproule. They were recently acquired slaves from Africa and James was giving  them new names. He used names that were familiar to him, like Sproule, Caldwell and Sinclair.

The Hunt Continues

I needed to find ‘creole’ Sproules, those born in Jamaica. They also needed to be mixed race,  to be ‘mulatto’ or ‘quadroon’ rather than ‘negro’ . I had not found my cousins Jane and Eleanor Sproule, reputed children of James Sproule, on his Rosemount plantation.  In fact, there were only African slaves on Rosemount, no mixed race children at all.

But I did find them in the plantation next door.

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* Episode 1 of this story The Beginning of the BIG Story

* NEXT Episode -  The Sproule Children of Stokes Hall Jamaica

References:

¹ From a letter written 12th October 1802 by Samuel Sproule of Bridgehill to Robert Sproule his Uncle who was in in Newbury South Carolina at that time. Thanks again Tim Hayes!

² From the document ‘Charitable donations and bequests, Andrew Sproule’ , Public Record Office for Northern Ireland FIN/18/2/356

³ Almanacs of Jamaica, Jamaicafamilysearch.com

⁴  Slave Registers of former British Colonial Dependencies, 1812-1834 Ancestry.com Class: T71; Piece: 145