This land survey is a record of all land owners who owned at least one acre at the time.[1] It was commissioned by the Lord Lieutenant in 1872.[2] The survey was conducted before the wholesale transfer of land to the majority Catholic renters which was brought on by Land League agitation and various Land Acts. Of every county in Ireland there are only two landowners listed with the Buggy name, both owning land in Kilkenny.
Eliza Buggy is listed as owning 826 acres, 2 roods and 5 perches. The total valuation of this land is 352 pounds and 10 shillings. Her address is listed as Cantwell’s Court, Kilkenny. This is in the townland of Sandford’s Court on the outskirts of Kilkenny City.
Patrick Buggy is listed as owning 64 acres, 0 acres and 10 perches. The valuation of this land is 22 pounds and 10 shillings. His address is listed as Bilboa, Coolcullen, Leighlinbridge, which is in county Carlow.
Extracts from the survey, page 35, are below
[1] Local Government Board. Return of Owners of Land of One Acre and Upwards, In the Several Counties, Counties of Cities and Counties of Towns in Ireland. 1876. Print.
[2] Ibid. p. iii
It would be most unusual to to research a Clancy name when researching a Buggy name particularly if there was no relationship! I too am a descendent of the same Buggy family and find it all most interesting.
Eliza (Rourke) Buggy was my great grandma (and Michelle, as she has already said above, is also part of our family). Eliza (related to the Rourke, Madden & Comerford families) stayed on at Cantwells Court long after my great grandfather (an alderman, farmer, and ex-mayor of the city) died. All of their offspring were well educated becoming doctors and lawyers (solicitors). For some strange reason, going back many generations, well before the famine years, this branch of the Buggy family became relatively successful and escaped poverty and the affects of the famine. They were NOT involved in any of the Georgian or Victorian emigration diasporas to Britain or USA and mostly remained in the Kilkenny area.
One of great gradfather John’s brothers, K T (Kyran Thomas, but sometimes missnamed Kevin T) worked with Daniel O’Connell for the cause of Irish freedom and catholic emancipation. He was training as a lawyer, but was also a journalist and rally/protest organiser. He also wrote poems and songs including ‘The Saxon Shilling’ which still can be heard. He died very young however, and there is a monument to him in the old graveyard in Belfast.
There is also a small monument to John Buggy in the graveyard at Johnswell, Co Kilkenny, whose little parish church he had provided the altar for.
Very interesting.My granfather Sam Harper bought Cantwell’s Court from Ken Buggy in the 1930s for my father Robert Harper.Eliza Buggy had left the farm of 265 acres to her son Michael Buggy a solicitor in Kilkenny,on her death.He lived in Kilkenny city and his farm stewart Pearse Grace and wife lived in Cantwells Court house.His nephew Ken Buggy inherited Cantwells Court and returned from America to live and farm at Cantwells Court.
I grew up in Cantwells Court and my brother Edwin farms there today.
Cantwells Court is not a townland and never was…….only the house is Cantwells Court.The farm is part of the townland of Sandsford Court.John Mc Namara Cantwell built Cantwells Court house around1860 and sold house and farm to John and Eliza Buggy.
Mr. Harper,
Thank you very much for you comments on the article. The error has been changed. Anymore info on the Buggy connection, house history or general history of the area is most welcome.
Regards,
Joe Buggy
Wow, cool to see I’m related to one of these entries! I didn’t know there were only 2 land-owning Buggys at that time. I’m from the Cantwell’s Court family. Eliza was my great, great grandmother! She would be the owner, since her husband, John (who was mayor of Kilkenny at some point), died in 1870. There’s stories of her feeding the hungry at Cantwell’s Court.
There’s some mystery as to how members our family were able to be doctors and lawyers, as I’ve heard that the native Irish weren’t to be educated. Is this true? John’s father, Michael (1769-1838) was a lawyer. Just one of the mysteries of the family!
Dear Sir,
it is with great interest and nostalgia that I read your semi regular musings on Irish families. However it is with a heavy heart and more than a tinge of sadness that I am forced to complain about the downright bias that you seem intent to showing one particular family name, namely “Buggy”.
I can’t help but feel your blog would be altogether a more inclusive affair if you were to consider mentioning other Irish names from time to time?
Might I be so bold as to suggest that Clancy would be a most worthy name for you to research?
Is Mise Le Meas,
Aodhain Mac Lancaidh