Eliza Fitzgerald Lahiff

A photo of Eliza Fitzgerald, who married John Lahiff in 1864 in the Catholic Chapel of Carron, County Clare, Ireland. He was a Herd in the Barron and she a Herd’s daughter. She was a strong hard working woman. In her 55 years, she traveled from Ireland to Australia, back to Ireland, on to America, back to Ireland again and finally came to rest in Newport Rhode Island. She was the mother of 10 children all of whom made it to adulthood save one young Patrick who died of meningitis on her first trip to America. All of her children were baptized in the Catholic Church and most of them in St Columba church in Carron in the Burren County Clare. There must have been some entertainer in the family genes as many of her children and grandchildren were known for their musical and acting ability. Eliza died not long after arriving in America the second time and is buried on St Columba’s cemetery in Middletown, Newport, Rhode Island.
Her children included Bridget, Catherine (Kate), Thomas, Patrick, Mary Ellen, Peter, Honora, Michael, William and James Joseph.