Mullen Claffey

My family came from Greystones and Bray. My Catholic Great-great Grandfather William Mullen (Mullin) married a Protestant Eliza Claffey, who was immediately disinherited. They came to Keighley in England with their infant son, James Mullen, my Great Grandfather, who later became the first Catholic alderman in Keighley and quite a wealthy man.. I’m 67 now and visited the area for the first time this year. I couldn’t find Great-great-great Grandfather James Claffey’s house, which tradition says was called Claffey’s Orchard, but we did find the house of his landlord, Charles Toole, which happens to be on the market (for a lot more money than I could afford). We also found that there had been a 1921 “Battle of Claffey’s Grove”, which I guess must have had something to do with the family property. I have a copy of James Claffey’s will. I believe (and this may not be accurate) that my grandfather, James Arthur Mullen, spent many years in litigation or at least investigation to recover “Claffey’s Orchard” which had been forfeited due to non-payment of ground rent. Plenty of research to do in the future. I’ve also traced a Claffey in Boston around 1805 who may have been related. He was being chased by an irate father with a shotgun.

 Maybe someone knows more?

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