William GILLIAN - History

GILLIAN, MINSER, DUNSHEE, RIDELDAFFER, STUCK, SNOOK, RIHELDAFFER, THOMPSON

Posted By: Joey Stark
Date: 6/28/2006 at 22:03:41

From the Prill transcriptions ~~

William GILLIAN of Stronoken Bridge, Antrim, Ireland, came to America about 1773, having participated in a rebellion against the English, fled from his home and came to the American Colonies, leaving his wife and daughter.

Either deliberately or believing his wife dead, because of the uncertainty of communication, he married an American girl, Katherine MINSER. They had six children. His first wife was Sarah DUNSHEE.

One evening two callers appeared at his home -- a woman, whom he introduced as his cousin from Ireland, and her daughter. The "cousin" talked most of the night, and something aroused the American wife's suspicion. Upon confronting them in the morning, she learned the truth -- the "cousin" was in reality his wife, so she left, taking her children with her. The oldest one, Amy, was adopted, taken west, and lost sight of. John RIDELDAFFER, a son of Katherine, was a minister in St. Paul, Minn.. Phoebe and her husband, George STUCK, are buried in Evergreen Cemetery beside Casper and Easther SNOOK.

The Irish wife went back to him and they had another daughter, Sarah, so that the oldest and youngest children were children of the Irish wife.

William GILLIAN married in Ireland Sarah DUNSHEE, and had a daughter, born before 1773.

William GILLIAN married, second, in America, Katherine MINSER and had:
2 - Amy GILLIAN, adopted and went west
3 - Katherine GILLIAN, married _______ RIHELDAFFER
4 - Phoebe, twin of Katherine, married George STUCK
5 - Easther GILLIAN, born Oct. 13, 1783; died June 25, 1846, Fairfield, Iowa, married Casper SNOOK, born May 5, 1781; died June 13, 1851

6 - John GILLIAN
7 - William GILLIAN

William and Sarah (DUNSHEE) GILLIAN had in America another daughter:
8 - Sarah GILLIAN, born after 1788, married ______ THOMPSON

Copy of an old paper written in 1851, handed me by my grandmother about 1860. -- S. B THOMPSON, Eureka, Calif., Oct. 16, 1913.

John GILLIAN of the parish of Killraglds, County of Antrim, Ireland, died about 1838 - 27 years ago, leaving his property to be divided between his heirs in Ireland and America; the heirs were two sisters of said JOHN GILLIAN then living in Ireland, and Mrs. Sarah THOMPSON of Fairfield, Iowa, Jefferson County, who is the niece of said John GILLIAN and the daughter of William GILLIAN, brother of John, and Sarah GILLIAN formerly Sarah DUNSHEE.

*Transcribed for genealogy purposes; I have no relation to the person(s) mentioned.