Matthew B. Govern, our great-grandfather, emigrated to the U.S. in the 1850's as a young man, from the small village of Moynalty in County Meath. Jim will correct all of the genealogy details I am sure to get wrong. Today, the village of Moynalty is very quiet, with a coffee shop, a village store, two bars, a Catholic Church, and a decommissioned Church of Ireland that is now a credit union. It is set in the beautiful Irish countryside we have enjoyed throughout this trip.
County Meath is seen as a prosperous county, both now and in the past. One woman on the west of Ireland mentioned that Meath was not touched by the famine as significantly as other parts of Ireland. One of our distant cousins thought that might have been because Meath had Catholic landowners who fed their tenants during the famine years.
Jim had contacted Peter Govern and arranged to meet him in the village. Peter was quite a character, with colorful language, amazing stories, and willing to spend the afternoon with us traipsing around showing us family landmarks. We wish we could have taped some of our visit with him as it was so memorable yet hard to capture in words.
After a pint of Guiness, or two, at the bar, Peter took us to the house that he believes Matthew B. built as a young man. Ned and Nani (brother and sister) lived here, and Peter regaled us with stories. Look closely below and you will see a coat rack win hooks on the left side of the photos where the walls meet the roof - you will see that later as Peter ripped it off the wall and we are all coming home with brass hooks from the building. Several of us were thankful the house didn't collapse when he jerked the rack off the wall!
On a later visit to the village graveyard, we saw Ned and Nani's grave - Peter says someone always makes sure Nani's grave has fresh flowers - she always gave the children in the village sweets she kept in a jar on the mantelpiece Peter is standing in front of in the picture above. In fact, when we spoke with Sandra, Peter's daughter, she remembers getting sweets from Nani, as well as an Irish pound that she received from Nani for her first communion.
Above is an altar stone, used in the days when the practice of the Catholic religion was outlawed. It stands today outside the current church.
Peter took us down a lane to see a plaque erected by his father in memory of Irish rebels who had died at that spot in the late 1700's. He shared the lore of the lone tree - trees believed to mark places where patriots were killed and left in fields to honor their memory.
Above, Peter and his younger brother Willie, with the coat rack. Willie removed the hooks, and the hand-made nails, so we would have a memento from the village. Breda made us a lovely afternoon meal of salad sandwiches, homemade scones and tea.
Above, the Governs! I believe Jim has figured out the family connection is from Matthew B.'s father, James. It is likely that one of James' brothers was the ancestor of the family gathered in Willie and Breda's kitchen, making us something in the neighborhood of 4th cousins. From left, Jim, Breda, Celine, Willie, Kweva, Peter, Amanda, Sandra and Agnes. Celine and Amanda are both Peter's nieces, Kweva is Amanda's daughter, and Celine is holding Sandra's baby, Peter's newest grandchild.
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