The Murrins of Belvidere

The Murrins were an early family of Belvidere, Illinois.  Some may have arrived in Illinois as early as the Eighteen Fifties.  Did this family move to Belvidere directly from Killybegs, County Donegal, Ireland?  Perhaps some did.  More likely this family lived in other parts of the USA on their way to Illinois, before finally settling in Belvidere’s Irish Patch.

The Smith siblings are related to the Murrin family in at least two ways: (1) Smith siblings -> Ruth (Ryan) Smith -> Adelaide (McGonigle) Ryan -> Catherine (Murrin) McGonigle -> James Murrin, or (2) Smith siblings -> Ruth (Ryan) Smith -> Francis Sylvester Ryan -> Eliza (Hill) Ryan -> Eliza’s sister, Anne Hill, who married Patrick Murrin.

What follows are various news articles about this family. You will read about their deaths, weddings and activities.. Some deaths happened under odd circumstances. Adelaide McGonigle's sister worked with the telephone company. So did a Murrin cousin.  One article dated 1919 announces the death of May Quinn. May's sisters include Anne (Hill) Murrin, Margaret (Hill) Fitzgerald and Liza (Hill) Ryan.

Patrick Murrin Family

Patrick Murrin‘s family ties into the McGonigle, King and Ryan families.  Patrick’s wife, Anne, had several sisters.  One sister, Margaret Hill, married a Kennedy and had one child, Catharine or Kitt.  Kitt Kennedy married Michael Smith of Kimball, South Dakota.  Michael’s parents are “Irish” John Smith and Susan McPhillips.  Michael and Kitt Smith had three children: Susan, Mary Margaret and James.  Susan King married Dr. Bernard King and lived in Aberdeen, South Dakota, where they raised their family.

Patrick Murrin Obituary

Patrick Murrin died in 1903 at the Northern Illinois Hospital for the Insane at Elgin (pictured below), Illinois, after a long illness which affected his mental health.

 

Eliza Murrin Morris Death

In early 1913 Ella Morris, daughter of Anne and Patrick Murrin, died from tuberculosis (TB).  At least two Murrins died from TB.  Anne and her daughter, Teresa, visited Ella in Chicago.  Teresa Murrin and Carrie McGonigle both worked for the telephone company.  Ben Murrin, of Chicago, also contracted this disease and died young.  Ella’s obituary  appeared in the Rockford Daily Star dated May 30, 1913.

 

Ben Murrin Dies

Ben Murrin was a well known Belvidere High School athlete during the mid Eighteen Nineties. He played Left Guard in football, and was a popular young man in his school.  Ben also died of Tuberculosis.  Ben’s parents were Anne and Patrick Murrin.  Were there other Murrins in this family who also contracted TB?

 

John Murrin Death Notice

John Murrin, son of Patrick and Anne Murrin, died young too.  Although cause of death is not cited, the following article suggests he had a lingering illness.  Perhaps he too had tuberculosis. 

  

 

Paul Murrin’s Mysterious Death

Patrick and Anne Murrin’s family suffered through numerous tragedies.  In 1917, their 23 year old son, Paul, died mysteriously after visiting relatives around Christmas time.  His body washed ashore off Jackson Park, and his brother, Francis Murrin, identified the remains.  The Coroner’s office concluded Paul had drowned.

 

Willie Murrin dies in Train Accident

William Murrin, son of Anne and Patrick Murrin, died in 1901.  He lost his life after falling between the wheels of a freight train near Rockford, Illinois. Willie attempted to board a freight train illegally and hitch a ride.  This was known as 'flipping a train'.  Willie’s death appears to be the first tragic event I found for this family.

 

From census records we see the following children for Patrick and Anne Murrin:  Edward, Ben, Willie, Francis, Eliza, Theresa, Paul, Patrick and Mary Ann.  Of this group only Edward, Francis, Theresa, Patrick and Mary Ann survived young adulthood.

John Murrin

The following obituary appeared in the Rockford Star on May 17, 1924, for John Murrin.  John Murrin lived with the Patrick Murrin Sr. family in Belvidere before moving to Chicago.  Before retiring John worked as an Iron Moulder in Belvidere. 

According to the census records, John immigrated from Ireland to American in 1864.  His brother, Patrick Murrin Sr., immigrated to America a year earlier in 1863.

  

Edward Murrin Obituary

Edward Murrin, son of Patrick and Anne Murrin, died March 23, 1939, in Belvidere, Illinois.  He never married.

According to Edward’s obituary he was hired as the first office boy at National Sewing Machine in Belvidere, Illinois.  This company no longer exists.  In 1953 National Sewing Machine Company merged with Free Sewing Machine Co., but could not compete with foreign sewing machine companies.  It finally closed in 1959.

Theresa Murrin Weds

Now on a lighter note we report Theresa Murrin’s wedding to Michael Bingenheimer in 1918.  Theresa’s parents were Patrick Murrin and Anne Hill.  Bingenheimer descendants still live in Belvidere today. 

 

 

Anne Hill Murrin Obituary

Anne died on February 18, 1933, at home.  Two sisters survived her and both lived in Kimball, South Dakota.  Her sisters were our ancestor Eliza Hill Ryan and Margaret Hill Fitzgerald.  Margaret‘s first husband, James Kennedy, died and she later married John Fitzgerald.  It would be interesting to know if either Eliza or Margaret attended their sister’s funeral in Belvidere. 

   

Mary Hill Quinn

Mary (aka May) Quinn died in 1919 at her home in Chicago.  The following death notice appeared in the Rockford Morning Star dated October 8, 1919.  Mary’s sisters were Eliza Ryan, Margaret Fitzgerald and Anne Murrin.

 

  

James Haggerty, Confederate Soldier

This is one of the more fascinating Murrin stories.  James Haggerty immigrated to America about 1855 and settled in Alabama.  James joined the Confederacy, fought at Shiloh where he was wounded.  James’s half brothers, Patrick Murrin (Sr.) and John Murrin lived in Belvidere. Neither Patrick or John joined the military.  At the time of his death, James was survived by the following siblings:  Nancy Haggerty McNellis, Mary Murrin Mulloy, Patrick Murrin and John Murrin.

  

ODDS & ENDS 

Newspapers were one way to let other people know what was happening with the family.  The following articles describe several incidents that happened to Anne Hill Murrin.  In one case an illness left her bedridden.  In another case, she severely burned her hand.

  

One article describes a visit by Mary Carey in Belvidere (June 23, 1913).  The other article reports P. D. Murrin (Patrick Jr.) was elected President for the Sunshine Club (October 15, 1913).

 

This last group of articles show Ben Murrin’s sporting ability.  Earlier you read several articles which described Ben’s young death due to tuberculosis.  Incidentally, the ‘Crescents’ were Belvidere’s baseball team.  Ben Murrin was a well-rounded athlete.