John O'Brien was born Abt. 1785 in County Cork, Ireland, and died date unknown in Ireland. He married Katherine Haley on Abt. 1815 in County Cork, Ireland.
Notes for John O'Brien: Very Little is known of John and Katherine O'Brien. The only reference to them is the death certificates of Maurice O'Brien. He listed John and Katherine as his parents and that they were born and married in Ireland. The marriage certificate of Timothy O'Brien (one of John's sons and a brother of Maurice) to Elizabeth Thompson states that Timothy's father's name was Timothy. Either Maurice and Timothy were not brother's (least probable) or, there is an error in their father's first name (more probable). Family records and lore assert that Timothy and Maurice were brothers. The marriage records from Wales, UK could be an error. Or the death records of Maurice could be in error as they were filled out by his descendants, most probably his daughter, Elizabeth (O'Brien) Shean. Knowing her grandfather's first name could have become obscured due to literacy problems, her youth, or simply the passage of time. It is also possible that John O'Brien's full name was Timothy John and his son was also named Timothy John (a common practise). To avoid confusion the father was called John and the son Timothy. I believe that John O'Brien lived in the southeast of Ireland, County of Cork, in the Province of Munster: a Province where the O'Brien name/Clan is known to have originated. The Counties of Clare, Cork, Limmerick, Tipperary and Waterford have generally been accepted as heavily populated with the name O"Brien. The best indication I have of where in Ireland, comes from the Naturalization records of another John O'Brien, the son of Maurice(also spelled as "Morris" in various census records) O'Brien, who states on his Naturalization Records that he immigrated to USA from County Cork, Ireland on 12 July 1864. This information supports other data of the Shean and O'Brien clans and the move to the USA. John O'Brien married Katherine Haley and they were the earliest know origins of our clan. I am guessing that the marriage occurred about 1815-1818. Their known children (Maurice and Timothy) have birth dates of 1820 and 1822 respectively. I also believe that there may have been another, perhaps older, son named Edward and possibly a daughter, Margret or Mary, However. I have no written records to support this theory. On both Maurice and Timothy side of the progeney there is a prevelance of sons named Edward, i.e., Timothy's first son was named John J. (after Timothy's father) and John J.'s first son was named John Edward. Timothy's second son is William Edward and William named his first son Edward William. Maurice O'Brien's daughter, Elizabeth R. who married P.T. Shean had a son Maurice Edward. This may have been after Maurice, the elder, or a combination of Maurice and his brother (Edward). We'll never know for sure. What is interesting is the proclivity of our ancestors to carry on family given names through several generations. Consider the era that all this occured: The Great Irish Famine began in 1845 and by 1848 it had decimated the Irish population. Timothy migrated to Wales circa 1850 and Maurice immigrated to USA sometime in the 1860's. This migration most probably due to the famine. There is little chance of locating ancestors further back than John and Katherine as the record keeping at this time was limited and kept in the Church Parishes. Elsewhere in my research records, you will find letters from the Finn side (John J. O'Brien's wife was Celia Ann Finn) of their ancestory explaining the Finn data base. What is apparrent, is, that prior to 1864, little or no records exist except in the Church parrish records. If you do not know the Province/County and town/parish where the ancestor lived then the search will hit a wall. I have gleaned from the records that Timothy migrated to Wales about the early 1850's and Maurice to USA circa 1863 or 1867 (these are the two dates given in the census records...but don't overlook the Naturalization Records of Maurice's son, John, who says July 1864). As mentioned elsewhere in this history, Maurice's name may also have been spelled Morris.
More About John O'Brien: Burial: Unknown, Ireland.
More About John O'Brien and Katherine Haley: Marriage: Abt. 1815, County Cork, Ireland.
Children of John O'Brien and Katherine Haley are:
+Maurice O'Brien, b. 1818, County Cork, Ireland, d. 11 July 1893, Belmont, MA.
+Timothy J. O'Brien, b. 1822, County Cork, Ireland, d. Abt. 1898, Massachusetts, USA.
John O'Brien (b. Abt. 1785, d. date unknown)
Notes for John O'Brien: