Newfoundland's Grand Banks Message Board

I'm looking for information on my g-gfather Francis Dillon who was married to Jane Healey. My g-gfather died in a house fire in 1910, but I have been unable to figure out who his parents were. He dies at age 43, so that means that he was born circa 1867.
Now I have seen the Will of Margaret Dillon, who left one of her houses on Southside Road in St. John's to some of the Samuelson children. Her sister Johanna was married to Alfred Samuelson. Her brother Matthew married Bride Mealey. I have not been able to find a connection, but one of the Samuelson children, Andrew, was a Sponsor at the baptism of my Uncle Frank Dillon in 1928. Can any body help me to see if there is a connection between the Dillons? I have also been unable to find out who Jane Healey's parents were. She was born abt Oct 1866 and died 27 Oct 1932 in St. John's.

I would be interested in making a connection with anyone that has the surname DILLON in their research. I have a separate file for my "lost" Dillons.

The naming pattern of the children of Francis Dillon and Jane Healey suggests
a connection with the Dillons of Tors Cove- Mobile. However Matthew, Johanna,
and Margaret Dillon appear to be descended from Thomas Dillon and Margaret
McCormick who were married at the Basilica on 14 November 1843. I believe
Thomas married for a second time to Mary Kennedy on 28 October 1859.

There is a Francis Dillon, son of Stephen Dillon and Johanna Davis baptised 29 Dec. 1867
at Mobile.

Perhaps Jane Healey was daughter of Michael Healey and Catherine Neale who was
baptised 5 July 1864 at Witless Bay.

Hi Edward,
I have a lot of data on the Dillon's from Mobile/Witless Bay. It is said that my g-gfather was from Mobile, but his Death Cert states that he was born in St. John's. I have also deduced that the names definitely passed down fit the pattern of my g-father (Matthew) married Mary Agnes Frizzell (from Big Pond).

Now, I have 2 Francis Dillon's, from the Mobile/Tors Cove/Witless Bay areas.

1. Francis Dillon bapt. 29 Dec 1867, son of Stephen Dillon and Johannah Davis.
2. Stephen Francis Dillon bapt. 12 Apr 1968, son of Matthew Dillon and Anastatia Delaney.

One of them passed away 5 Apr 1887 and is buried at Mobile. I do not know what happened to the other one. As for Jane Healey, I have a suspicion that you are correct, as I have entertained the idea for awhile. The thing is, I have no documentation that my g-gfather is indeed one of the "Francis" from Mobile, or that my g-gmother is indeed the daughter of Michael Healey and Catherine Naile (Neale).

Bay Bulls/Witless Bay Parish Baptisms
1861 - 1870

Surname: HEALY
Given Name: Jane
Place of Baptism: Witless Bay
Day-Mth: 5-Jul
Year: 1864
Father: Healy, Michael
Mother: Naile, Catherine
Sponsors: John Mullowney, Bridget Dunn
Priest: John Scott
Notes:

I was hoping that someone may have additional information, to help me make the connections. This has been a brick wall for me the past 16 years. I have even gone through the NGB and pulled out every reference of the surname DILLON and put what I could connect into another file.

I will definitely look into the Thomas Dillon and Margaret McCormick line, to see if I can get more information. I have information on Matthew.

What adds to the confusion is that my g-father and his siblings were: Matthew, Stephen, Thomas, Francis, Laura, Mary, Alice, Ellen, Alfred and Patrick. So you can see that the names could be from either group.

Thank you for replying.

Oh yeah, I think that we were in contact many years ago. I used to post a lot of stuff to the NGB and they have it posted in the "Newspaper Transcription" area.

Thomas Dillon and Margaret McCormack had the following children:

John Dillon, bapt. 27 October 1844
Mary Dillon, bapt. 4 January 1846
Johannah Dillon, bapt. 14 February 1847
Margaret Dillon, bapt. 6 October 1848
Catherine Dillon, bapt. 30 June 1850
Anne Dillon, bapt. 14 August 1853
Matthew Dillon, bapt. 11 June 1857

I have been working with the vital records for 35 years and they are full of mistakes.
The ages are often guesses and the place of birth erroneous.

Have you checked the Registry of Deeds? I have had tremendous luck there. When
someone passes away the heirs often sell the property and divide the money, or a family
member buys them out. Anyway, it provides relationships and married names. The wills filed at the court house have supporting documents in addition to the will. These documents can be a goldmine but are not on the internet.

Thank you for the information. I will add it to my research. Actually, I don't live in Newfoundland or ever been there. I live on the West Coast of the U.S., so all of my research is through the Internet, or fellow researchers such as yourself.