From Ballyboyle to Corglass... a Boyle family's story
Part 1 - Ballyboyle - our ancient ancestors
Boyle of Washington - Claimants?
Unlike some other Irish families, there are no records to confirm direct descent from the chieftains of old. The Office of the Chief Herald of Ireland only recognises[1] about thirty lines of lineal descent dating back to the Gaelic period, and this does not include any Boyle lines. This means that no-one has been able or willing to provide convincing proof of their descent from the chiefs of the name to claim the traditional title of An Baoighilleach (The O'Boyle).
In any case, the concept of leadership by direct lineal descent is alien to the Gaelic way of doing things. Leadership of the sept was by election from within an extended family group (the derbhfhine). Membership of the derbhfhine was determined by descent from a previous Taoiseach within three generations, and this created quite a large pool of potential candidates, resulting in frequent conflict and often bloodshed.
​
However, O'Hart's Irish Pedigrees, published in 1876, does list lines of descent for many families down to his own day, including one for O’Boyle. O'Hart's work is not taken very seriously by modern genealogists - he made extensive use of old genealogical sources which are more myth than fact, and he may have been uncritical in accepting his contemporaries' claims to ancient origins.
​
For most families, the absence of 18th century records makes any claim to descent highly speculative. Nevertheless, O’Hart, having started from Adam (No, 1, obviously!) reaches Turlough Roe at generation no. 121, and continues to list his descendants up to his date of publication, 1876:
​
121. Tirlogh Roe, the last Chief of his name
122. Neal Boyle, his son; the first of the direct line of this family that omitted the prefix 'O'.
123. John Boyle, of Largey, Portglenone, County Antrim, his son. This John was exiled to America in 1801, in consequence of his having taken part in the rebellion of 1798. He died in 1849.
124. Junius J. Boyle, his son; Commodore, US Navy. Died 1870 aged 62. He had four brothers - 1. John Franklin; 2. Eugene; 3. Cornelius; 4. Nicholas Bourke; and two sisters - 1. Lavinia; 2.Catherine-Anne.
125. Juan Boyle, of Washington DC, his son. He had 5 sisters.
126. Juan-Ashton Boyle, his son, born 1876.
​
Having achieved some prominence and success, it is possible that this Boyle family may have wished to claim an ancient Irish lineage, which O'Hart readily provided, but he offers no definitive evidence. In fact, Turlough Roe was born before 1600 so could not have been the grandfather of John Boyle, born in 1777.
​
But it has already been noted that following Turlough Roe’s dispossession in 1656 for his part in the wars of the 1640s some of his family obtained leaseholds from the Earl of Antrim, Randal MacDonnell (one of the very few Catholic nobles to retain their estates). Indeed Antrim has one of the largest clusters of Boyles and O’Boyles outside of Donegal to this day. So it is possible John Boyle was a descendant of Turlough Roe but a few generations removed.
​
Whether or not there is any validity to the claim, this family's story is interesting enough to repeat, culled from a variety of sources[2]. (It is noticeable that this story does not make any claim of lineal descent from Turlough):
​
“One of the noteworthy Americans of Irish birth whose careers were described by Thomas D'Arcy McGee in his book, Irish Settlers in America, published in 1850, was John Boyle of Washington city. Mr. Boyle, he says, was a United Irishman in his youth and lost his fortune in that good cause: landed unknown and friendless in Philadelphia in 1801, afterwards removed to Baltimore where he married, and thence to Washington to accept a position in the Navy Department in which he served for nearly thirty years. "The United States Navy for many years owed much to the abilities of the late John Boyle, who was for nearly thirty years the soul of the department," wrote Mr. McGee, who may have placed a somewhat extravagant estimate on the services of an intelligent, faithful and loyal public servant.
​
By 1798 the Boyle clan, like others which resisted the invaders, had been robbed of its land, broken and dispersed. It is probable, therefore, that no great fortune, or the smallest chance of acquiring one, was lost by John Boyle through participation in the rising of 1798. But he risked all he had including his life in the attempt to secure liberty his native land.
​
His first work in America was as a laborer on the docks of Philadelphia, but he soon moved to Baltimore where his ability, character and educational acquirements became known and procured for him the position of professor in a seminary that was attended by the daughters of prominent families. He became acquainted in the city, and among the friends he made were the Burke family, who were descendants of one of Lord Baltimore's Irish settlers of an early colonial period. He was married to Catherine-Anne Burke in Baltimore by Bishop Carroll.
​
​
[1] Following the MacCarthy Mor scandal, where bogus claims to Gaelic titles were uncritically accepted, the Chief Herald no longer gives such recognition.
[2] Primarily from here, though I have not been able to find the original: https://www.genealogy.com/ftm/s/t/u/Christopher-Micheal-Stubbs/WEBSITE-0001/UHP-0599.html
​
​
Mr. Boyle was offered and accepted a clerkship in the Navy Department at Washington. He was promoted to be chief clerk and served in that capacity for many years; Secretaries of State came and went but the chief clerk stayed during many administrations, a bulwark of the department and an authority on all matters connected with the navy. Life was simpler then than now for when President Jackson wanted to confer with the head of the Navy Department he took his pen in hand and himself wrote a note asking him to call. A grandson, John Boyle of Washington, has in his possession a note which President Andrew Jackson wrote and signed asking John Boyle to call at the White House.
​
Mr. Boyle resigned from the Navy Department in 1839 after nearly thirty years of service. During his residence in Washington he had become an active participant in the life of the city. He was one of the leading laymen of St. Patrick's Church, the first Roman Catholic Church in Washington. He acquired large holdings of real estate, some parcels of which are now among the most valuable in the city. After his resignation he devoted himself chiefly to his business interests. He was a director of the predecessor of the Metropolitan National Bank, one of the leading financial institutions of the national capital. He was on terms of intimacy with many naval officers and men prominent in official life.
​
John Boyle was a personal and political friend of Andrew Jackson and when a meeting was called to form an organization to perpetuate the principles of General Jackson he was called upon to be the presiding officer. The Jackson Democratic Association of Washington, which was then organized, has been in continuous existence ever since and, with the exception of the Tammany Society is the oldest political organization in the United States. Dr. Cornelius Boyle, John Boyle's son, was the president of this association at the zenith of its influence in 1860, and the latter's son. John Boyle, has been chairman of the Democratic Central Committee of the District of Columbia, and was a delegate to the Democratic National Convention of 1896. Others of the family have been active and influential workers in Democratic party organizations.
Five sons and two daughters of John and Catherine Boyle grew to maturity. The sons were Junius I., John F., Eugene, N(icholas) Burke and Cornelius; the daughters Lavinia and Catherine. Eugene, Burke and Lavinia never married; there are numerous descendants of the other children most of whom reside in or near Washington."
​
This family went on to achieve some prominence:
​
Cornelius Boyle (1817-1878) gave up a lucrative medical practice to join the Confederate Army during the US Civil War, attaining the rank of Major. Boyle was an acquaintance of Gen. Robert E. Lee, was "trusted at the highest levels in the Confederate Army, and played some special role in the conduct of clandestine operations".
Due to his role in founding the Knights of the Golden Circle, and control of what amounted to a clandestine "Intelligence
Center" during the war, he was named in conspiracies surrounding the assassination of Abraham Lincoln and Thomas F. Harney's April 1865 effort to bomb the White House[1].
​
Another son was Junius Ignatius Boyle, a commodore in the United States Navy. As was the custom before the establishment of the Naval Academy he was put into the navy as a midshipman when about twelve years of age and learned practical seamanship in the old sailing war ships. During his long service he visited most of the ports of the world. In the Mexican War he was in the blockading squadron and took part in the bombardment and capture of Vera Cruz. In Commodore Perry's famous expedition to Japan he was commandant of the Southampton. His daughter Esmerelda (1840-1928) achieved some fame as an author and poet[2]. His grand-son Juan-Ashton died tragically in the Philippines in 1905 [3]
​
Another grand-son of Junius, Lieutenant Junius I. Boyle (1878-1918), was killed in France at the end of the Great War, on 11th October 1918, after a series of daring exploits in raiding the enemy's lines for which he was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross. He voluntarily and alone made a reconnaissance of the Bois Dommartin, a strongly fortified enemy position northwest of Thiacourt, and returned with valuable information.
​
Later, accompanied by another soldier, he again made a reconnaissance, and while returning with valuable information was attacked by a superior enemy force and killed[4].
[1] His activities are describe in detail here:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cornelius_Boyle
https://www.genealogy.com/ftm/s/t/u/Christopher-Micheal-Stubbs/WEBSITE-0001/UHP-0623.html
[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Esmeralda_Boyle
