Author Topic: Beattie, Hillis - East Belfast, Ballymacarret  (Read 4036 times)

haleasdollclothes

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Beattie, Hillis - East Belfast, Ballymacarret
« on: October 11, 2006, 12:39:03 PM »
I'm look for the following names and any information anyone can find about them:

James Hillis - b. poss. circa 1845; may have been married to Esther Shaw, but not sure.   My family remembers the name Shaw, but they do not know why.

Alexander Hillis - b. poss. circa 1865; son of James Hillis; d. circa 1923 of complications of diabetes; bur. East Belfast cemetery (may be St. Patrick's or something like that).   Alexander was a fancy molder, owned his own business, and worked on many public buildings.  Two of his sons worked on fancy molding in the Titanic.   He may have been mentioned in the Glenravel Historical Society Project in late 1800's along with John Beattie as having beaten up and murdered someone; he was let go and John Beattie was charged and encarcerated.   Alexander Hillis and Mary Jane (Beattie) Hillis had several children.   I believe their children were Alexander, Thomas, George, Danny (died very young), Agnes, Annie (died in her twenties from arthritis).   I could be wrong about one of the names, but I'm pretty sure that's all of them.   I have the Alexander Hillis and Mary Jane Beattie marriage certification information.

John Beattie - b. poss. circa 1845; wife unknown.   May have been mentioned in the Glenravel Historical Society Project with Alexander Hillis.

Mary Jane/Jane Beattie - dau. of John Beattie.   Married Alexander Hillis.   See above information.   After a family altercation with the local police, she moved to Canada with sons Alexander, George and Thomas Hillis, and passed away in the early 1970's.

James Hillis - b. 1907, Belfast, Ireland.   Billiards champion of Ireland 1921, 1922 and 1923.   He may have been mentioned in the 1923 Glenravel Historical Society Project.   He and a friend (the friend mentioned as having something to do with billiards) were arrested in a restaurant.   James Hillis also played football.   He played soccer for a short period of time after coming to the U.S., until he became sick from lead poisoning.   He worked with his father in Belfast and was downwind from spray paint.   James Hillis married Harriet Dineley of Dublin (my father was born in Dublin) and came to the USA around 1930.   James Hillis worked for Cluett Peabody on Peebles Island in Waterford, New York,  for years, running their sanforizing machine.   He then worked for Teledyne Gurley in Troy, New York making mahogany boxes for instruments.   James Hillis is my grandfather.

I would absolutely love to know if there are any Beattie or Hillis relatives out there!   And, I would love to know any further information about their ancestors.   Money is tight right now, so I can only afford to send to GRONI over the Internet for records.

My father, mother and brother traveled around the entire outside of Ireland in a recreational vehicle a few years ago and loved their trip, but they didn't go into any record offices.

TIA for any information.

Kathy (Hillis) Dickinson

eddiec

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Re: Beattie, Hillis - East Belfast, Ballymacarret
« Reply #1 on: October 11, 2006, 03:59:55 PM »
Alexander Hillis - b. poss. circa 1865; son of James Hillis; d. circa 1923 of complications of diabetes; bur. East Belfast cemetery (may be St. Patrick's or something like that).   

Hi Kathy

If Alex died in 1923 and was buried in EAST Belfast cemetery it is more than likely this was Dundonald which was the main Cemetery for that part of Belfast.

I am curious as to why you say several times "may have been mentioned in the Glenravel Project"

I have this on my website which may be of interest:

HILLIS--In loving memory of our dear mother, MARY J, HILLIS, who died 18th June, 1942. At Home with the Lord. Always remembered by her Son and Daughter-in-law, James and Kathleen Hillis, 13 York Crescent.
Get your facts first, and then you can distort them as much as you please.  <i>Mark Twain</i>

haleasdollclothes

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Re: Beattie, Hillis - East Belfast, Ballymacarret
« Reply #2 on: October 11, 2006, 05:07:25 PM »
Hi, eddiec.

I found the names in the Glenravel Historical Society Project online, but I have no way of verifying that it was actually them.   I'm very particular about claiming information as the truth and part of my family until I can verify the accuracy.   I'm only guessing from the family stories of the violent nature of our Hillis and Beattie ancestors that it probably was them.   The name Hillis is relatively rare, so it's pretty likely I hit pay dirt, but I still can't count on it. unless I saw addresses from police records; and I'm sure they must be long gone.

The Mary Jane, James and Kathleen Hillis info looks interesting, but I'm pretty sure it isn't the Mary Jane I'm looking for.   Thank you, though.

I forgot, too.   There is mention of the murder of a James Hillis by a gang in Belfast in the Glenravel Project.   I have it stored somewhere, but couldn't plug it into my info.

I so wish I could travel to Northern Ireland and Ireland to do my own research!   My brother said it was very eery when he stepped off the ferry.   Everywhere he looked he could see my Dad in the faces surrounding him.

Kathy (Hillis) Dickinson

haleasdollclothes

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Re: Beattie, Hillis - East Belfast, Ballymacarret
« Reply #3 on: October 11, 2006, 05:14:33 PM »
Hi, again, Eddie.

I love your web page!

I notice you have a John Beattie who died Jan. 25 1912.

Kathy (Hillis) Dickinson

eastender

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Re: Beattie, Hillis - East Belfast, Ballymacarret
« Reply #4 on: October 11, 2006, 06:22:51 PM »
Kathy,

For what it's worth, I went to Strandtown school in east Belfast with a Rosemary Hillis, back in the early 60s.

This is her at 9.  :)
People want to know how much you care, before they care how much you know.

Christopher

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Re: Beattie, Hillis - East Belfast, Ballymacarret
« Reply #5 on: October 11, 2006, 06:26:35 PM »
I was at school in Dublin with a guy called Hillis and my young sister married a guy called Jimmy Hillis.

haleasdollclothes

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Re: Beattie, Hillis - East Belfast, Ballymacarret
« Reply #6 on: October 11, 2006, 11:54:41 PM »
I'm sure they are probably all somehow related because the name is relatively rare.   I wish I could get family histories from all Hillis' in case something resonated.

Wow!   Rosemary Hillis looks like she could be part of our family!   My face was shaped like hers when I was a child.   I still have a very round full face.

Kathy (Hillis) Dickinson

haleasdollclothes

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Re: Beattie, Hillis - East Belfast, Ballymacarret
« Reply #7 on: October 11, 2006, 11:59:15 PM »
I also forgot to mention that someone in the family, may have been either James Hillis or Alexander Hillis served in (I think) the Royal Army in East India.   I thought it would have been James, but I read that the army was in existence after 1900.

My grandfather, James Hillis, attended the Church of England.

Kathy (Hillis) Dickinson

haleasdollclothes

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Re: Beattie, Hillis - East Belfast, Ballymacarret
« Reply #8 on: October 12, 2006, 12:02:54 AM »
Okay, I just read that and it sounded silly.   It had to be James Hillis because it was some sort of rebellion where they bit the heads off the ends of bullets or something like that.   I really need to look in my records!   This stuff has become dim!

Kathy (Hillis) Dickinson

Christopher

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Re: Beattie, Hillis - East Belfast, Ballymacarret
« Reply #9 on: March 17, 2008, 02:14:59 AM »
Hello Kathy,

I looked for Alexander Hillis on www.paddi.net but he's not mentioned. I thought there might have been a chance of him being listed on that site as you mentioned that he worked on public buildings.

Christopher 


OTTO

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Re: Beattie, Hillis - East Belfast, Ballymacarret
« Reply #10 on: March 17, 2008, 08:56:07 AM »
Hi Kathy,
On St Patricks Day here is some info for you :

from www.emeraldancestors.com

10 July 1846 James Hillis Married Esther Shaw at York Street Presbyterian Church in the Parish of Shankill Civil District Belfast County Antrim.

8th July 1888  Alexander Hillis married Jane Beatty at Saint Patricks Ballymacarrett Church of Ireland in the Parish of Knockbreda Civil District Belfast County Down.

Also I have the details of a newspaper article from the Belfast Newsletter from Wed August 1892 regarding the Alexander Hillis/ John Beattie incident, which is too large to attach, but I will try to email it to you. here is the link which will be accessible until the end of March free.

http://find.galegroup.com/bncn/retrieve.do?subjectParam=Locale%2528en%252C%252C%2529%253AFQE%253D%2528tx%252CNone%252C17%2529alexander%2Bhillis%2B%2524&contentSet=LTO&sort=DateAscend&tabID=T012&sgCurrentPosition=0&subjectAction=DISPLAY_SUBJECTS&prodId=BNCN&retrieveFormat=MULTIPAGE_DOCUMENT&searchId=R2&currentPosition=1&userGroupName=palci07&resultListType=RESULT_LIST&sgHitCountType=None&qrySerId=Locale%28en%2C%2C%29%3AFQE%3D%28tx%2CNone%2C17%29alexander+hillis+%24&inPS=true&searchType=BasicSearchForm&displaySubject=&&docId=&docLevel=FASCIMILE&workId=&relevancePageBatch=BC3202218090&contentSet=BNCN&callistoContentSet=BNCN&docPage=article&hilite=y

OTTO


haleasdollclothes

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Re: Beattie, Hillis - East Belfast, Ballymacarret
« Reply #11 on: March 17, 2008, 03:15:00 PM »
Hi, Christopher.

Thank you for looking in that site.   I didn't know it existed!

Kathy

haleasdollclothes

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Re: Beattie, Hillis - East Belfast, Ballymacarret
« Reply #12 on: March 17, 2008, 03:47:45 PM »
Hi, Otto.

Is St. Patrick's day really an Irish thing?   :o)   I heard somewhere along the line we Americans made it up.   Either way, I'm happy.   We get a free ice cream cone at every Stewart's shop if we wear something green into the store.

I joined the Emerald Isle web site for a month.   I believe it has already helped because I got information that I didn't get from http://www.lds.org.

I believe I found Mary Jane Beattie's parents - John Beattie and Mary Jane Hanna.

It is more likely that James Hillis and Agnes Drummond are Alexander's parents.   The name Agnes has gone through at least two generations of our family.   I wish I could find a way to verify it.   Although my grandmother had Dineley family in Dublin, she did not name any of her children with their first names.   She tended to use their names for middle names.   I could be a tradition to give name that way, though.   

There is a story in our family that her father was not happy with her and disowned her for marrying someone from Belfast.   I do not know if it is true or not.   Her parents were divorced.   She did visit her brothers and sisters later on.

Before his stroke about 12 years ago my father kept mentioning something about "Gavin", but I'm wondering if it's really Cavan.   He thought Gavin was a last name in our family.   My uncle keeps mentioning Sligo, but I could never find anything that made any sense in Sligo.

Would it be possible to convert the newspaper article into a .pdf file and send it directly to my email address at haleasdollclothes@yahoo.com?   If you don't have a converter you can get a free converter/printer; Google Primo PDF.

Do you visit PRONI?   I will be happy to pay you to try to find Alexander's exact birth date, his mother's name, and if he has any brothers or sisters.   There is a story in the family that he said he would take care of two spinster sisters.   I'm wondering if he really said he would marry Mary Jane Beattie because her father was in jail.   

I would give anything to visit both Ireland and Northern Ireland, but I get seizures that are set off by vibrations and other triggers.   Can't get off a plane or boat when I would need to.   I would either be very ill or dead by the time I got there.

If I said this before, just ignore it.   My brother lived in Thetford, England for a few years.   He bought a used Mercedes Benz delivery truck, renovated it into a recreational vehicle, and took my parents around the entire outside of Northern Ireland and Ireland for a couple of weeks.   

He said it was very strange and exciting to step off the ferry.   He got goosebumps because a lot of people looked like they could be our relatives.   I thought that was interesting.   

He also got goosebumps visiting the docks at the Belfast shipyard.   Two or three of Alexander's sons worked on the Titanic doing fancy molding there, too.    I was able to Google Earth the docks and the street where my grandfather grew up.   Unfortunately, the home where he grew up was torn down and rebuilt, so I didn't see anything really exciting.   I believe it's Hornby Street. 

And, my brother got goosebumps visiting the grave of Alexander Hillis.   There was a headstone of a woman next to him.   It may have been his daughter, Agnes or Annie.   She died of arthritis very early.   I'll have to look in my files again.

Kathy (Hillis) Dickinson


haleasdollclothes

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Re: Beattie, Hillis - East Belfast, Ballymacarret
« Reply #13 on: February 09, 2009, 07:41:32 PM »
Otto, I should have made a public thank you long ago for this article!   It definitely connected my great-grandfather to his father-in-law, John Beattie.

Thank you so much!

Kathy (Hillis) Dickinson

haleasdollclothes

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Re: Beattie, Hillis - East Belfast, Ballymacarret
« Reply #14 on: February 09, 2009, 07:52:05 PM »
I have another request that I will be willing to pay for.

I believe that at the signing of the Ulster Covenant (was it 1912?) my possible great-great-grandfather James Hillis and his wife Agnes (possibly Drummond) Hillis were living on Hornby Street, with a daughter Sarah Hillis.   If anyone is able to get the dates of death certificates somehow for all three I will greatly appreciate it.

Sarah Hillis is probably one spinster sister whom Alexander promised to be responsible for after his parents' death.

I could also use the exact date of death for Alexander Hillis in 1923, and I would love to be able to get a copy of his certificate from PRONI.   I know it won't tell me his parents' names, but it would be nice to have it anyway.

Unfortunately, there doesn't seem to be a birth record for Alexander Hillis at all.   I have even tried England, Wales and Scotland, but to no avail.   My uncle has said many times he heard the Hillis' came from either Sligo or Scotland.

Also, does anyone know exactly where Hillis Fort in County Down is, and would they be willing to get a photograph of it for me?   It is supposedly a farmhouse originally owned by a William Hillis.

TIA,

Kathy (Hillis) Dickinson


 

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