The Fay Family: An Irish Branch: Patrick, Miles, Thomas S., Thomas J.

THE FAY FAMILY HOMEPAGE

GENEALOGIES

IRISH GUESTS

Miles Fay
and his descendants

Family Obituaries

Irish Guest directory

Miles and Catherine (Garagan) Fay came to the United States from Ireland between 1850 and 1854. With them were two children, Mary and Patrick. The family settled in Canton, Norfolk County, Massachusetts, where Miles was born on May 9, 1854. Over the years, some moved to New Bedford, Waltham, Watertown and Newton; but all remained in Massachusetts. This made it very easy to follow the family. In addition to the census evidence, the MA Vital Records cover a large proportion of their births, deaths, and marriages. The World War I records and Social Security records provide some supplementary data. And obituaries provided information for more recent events.

One example of information from the Vital Records: Miles died on November 23, 1867, in Canton. The report of his death in NEHGS lists his parents as Patrick and Mary (Riley) Fay, Ireland. Had it not been for this, we would not have been able to carry the line back beyond Miles.

map selection from S. G. Goodrich and Thomas G. Bradford, Massachusetts, 1841

image copyright by Cartography Associates and used with permission

Even with all these sources, however, mysteries remain. For example, the story of Mary A. Fay, born in Ireland about 1846, the oldest daughter of Miles and Catherine. She married a man by the name of John Kahill on November 6, 1870, according to NEHGS. The more customary spelling was Cahill, however, and it is under that spelling that we learn more. She had a daughter, Mary A. Cahill, probably born April 27, 1874, although it is not certain, since the child's parents are identified only as John and Mary, and Mary's maiden name was not given. What is certain is that Mary A. and her daughter Mary A. age 4 were in the Almshouse in Canton in 1880. There is no further sign of John, no death report. Did he die and the report is missing or did he just leave? With all the family in the area, why was Mary A. in the Almshouse? One of the Mary A.'s died in 1893, but the image that reports the death is missing, and there is no way of knowing which of them died. I can find no further record for any of the three.

A second mystery concerns Eliza, born August 31, 1861. In the census of 1900, a grandson suddenly appeared with Catherine in New Bedford. He was listed as Harry Fay, age 9, born August 1890. It wasn't clear whose SON he was, but in 1910, the question was partly answered, for he appeared with Elizabeth and Wilfred Sevigny, as Wilfred's stepson. There are two young daughters with them. A search of NEHGS revealed a marriage between Eliza and Wilfred on September 3, 1900. The situation is complicated by the fact that "Lizzie" the daughter of Miles and Catherine Fay is registered as Lizzie Fay Neal, and this is her second marriage. If NEHGS has a record of the first marriage, I have not been able to find it. My guess is that Lizzie divorced Neal, and took her maiden name back, making sure that her son had FAY and not NEAL as a last name. But then what happens to the family? I cannot find any of them after 1910.

AMERICAN DESCENDANTS OF PATRICK AND MARY (RILEY) FAY

.....2 Miles Fay 40 1812-1820 Ireland d: 11/23/1867 ........+Catherine (Kate) Garagan b: 10/1826 Ireland d: 1/9/1909 ..........3 Mary A. Fay b: 1846 Ireland .............+John Cahill b: 1845 m: 11/6/1870 ...............4 Mary A. Cahill b: 1875 ..........3 Patrick H Fay b: 1849 .............+Catharine Gallagher b: 1853 m: 1/28/1877 ...............4 Catharine Elizabeth Fay b: 12/4/1877 ...............4 John Henry Fay b: 7/1/1879 ...............4 Miles Lawrence Fay b: 2/23/1885 d: 5/1974 ..................+Gertrude W. b: 1890 ....................5 Gertrude Rita Fay b: 1919 d: 5/8/1991 .......................+Stephen F. Sullivan d: 1973 .........................6 Mary Rita Sullivan m. Beyer .........................6 Stephen Sullivan .........................6 Brian Sullivan .........................6 Kevin Sullivan ....................5 Miles Lawrence Fay, Jr. b: 1922 d: 10/1990 ...............4 Nellie Fay b: 10/18/1889 d: 12/1969 ..........3 Miles E. Fay b: 5/9/1854 .............+Ellen (Eleanor) O'Brien m: 10/25/1874 d: 4/15/1894 ...............4 Alice Heleanor Fay b: 8/22/1876 ..................+John McNeil b: 1866 m: 10/25/1898 ....................5 Chester Daniel McNeil b: 9/5/1899 ....................5 Leslie L. McNeil b: 1902 ....................5 Leo H. McNeil b: 1903 ....................5 Miles A. McNeil b: 1908 ...............4 Elizabeth Fay b: 9/23/1878 d: 3/24/1881 ...............4 Aggie Fay b: 2/6/1881 d: 7/12/1881 ...............4 John Colman Fay b: 8/28/1882 ..................+Sarah A. Cameron b: 1890 d: before 1930 ....................5 Marjorie Fay b: 1913 ....................5 Frances Fay b: 1917 ....................5 Sarah Fay b: 1923 ...............4 Mary Esther Fay b: 4/9/1886 ...............4 Ella Frances Fay b: 12/22/1887 ...............4 Loretta Fay b: 10/11/1891 ..........3 Thomas Sidney Fay b: 11/1857 .............+Elizabeth b: 10/1861 m: 1888 ...............4 Thomas Sydney Fay, Jr. b: 5/30/1892 ..................+Mary Rose Dineen b: 1895 ....................5 Thomas J. Fay b: 11/17/1922 d: 3/22/2003 .......................+Stella Solomakos b: 4/30/1924 d: 12/30/1998 .........................6 Diane Fay m. Coffin .........................6 Georgia Fay m. Lunt ....................5 Donald S. Fay b: 1927 ..........3 Catherine Fay b: 3/22/1859 ..........3 Eliza J. Fay b: 8/31/1861 .............+1)unknown Neal ...............4 Harry Fay b: 8/1890 .............+(2)Wilfred Sevigny b: 1879 m: 9/3/1900 ...............4 Marie Sevigny b: 1902 ...............4 Violette Sevigny b: 5/26/1904