James Carr (1876-c1950)

James Carr (1876-c1950) aka Jimmy Carr; Emigrated to USA after 1901, possibly 1903; Bartender; Chauffeur (b. July 28, 1876, Coalpits, Athleague, Killeroran, County Galway, Ireland - d. circa 1950, Bronx or Brooklyn, or Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA)

Parents

 * Thomas Carr (c1840-before1901)
 * Bridget Conboy (c1840-c1905)

Birth
James was born in 1876 in Coalpits, Killeroran, County Roscommon, Ireland.

Siblings
James had the following siblings: Sarah Jane Carr (1866-1950) aka Sadie Carr, who emigrated to the US and married Patrick J. Norton (1856-1905); Katherine Carr (1865-1952) aka Kitty Carr, aka Kate Carr, who emigrated to the US and married James Joseph Kennedy (1870-1926); Thomas Carr II (1876-?) who stayed in Coalpits in Ireland and married Mary Kelly; Mary Carr (1873-?) who stayed in Coalpits in Ireland; and Andrew Carr who may have emigrated to Australia.

Emigration
James appears in the 1901 Census living in Ireland. He emigrated to New York on October 24, 1904 from Roscommon. He arrived with his cousin Bridget Conboy (1879-?) and said he was going to live with his brother Michael Carr who lived at 64 2nd Avenue, New York. James said he was born in 1874 when he arrived. He emigrated almost 20 years after his siblings arrived. He still had a thick Irish accent.

World War I draft
He filled out his draft card on September 12, 1918 and listed his birthday as July 28, 1876. He listed his next of kin as "sister, Mrs. Kate Kennedy, 556 West 60th Street". He was working as a chauffeur and living at 358 West 41st Street "c/o Kelly".

Memories of James Carr

 * Christopher Aloysius Enright II (1927- ) says: "We called him uncle Jimmy. He had a saloon in the Bronx and later drove a taxi. He never moved to New Jersey."
 * Anne Elizabeth O'Malley (1933- ) says: "James Carr visited us once during World War II, Katherine Carr Kennedy wasn't thrilled that he was visiting. This was on 77nd Street in Manhattan in New York. She never mentioned our uncle Jimmy again. He didn't look very prosperous."
 * Thomas Patrick Norton II (1920- ) says: "Uncle Jimmy was a pleasant little guy. He was very successful running a speakeasy in New York. After prohibition was repealed he went out of business. He had a strong Irish brogue. He used to give out $5 gold pieces that were smaller than a dime. He gave one to each child. Giving out the coins was his trademark whenever we saw him. My dad would take away the coins and say 'I'll take care of them for you', and I would never see them again. Jimmy was a thin wispy guy who looked like Barry Fitzgerald, the actor. He probably took the tube train into Jersey City, from New York where he lived [when he visited us]. He never had a car. The train was eight cents to get into New York City from Jersey City. My grandmother, Nana, was very proud of him, he was very enterprising at his illegal saloon."

Coalpits, Ireland
Ann Elizabeth O'Malley (1933- ) writes: "On September 28, 1982 Fred and I drove to Roscommon in search of [the birthplace of Katherine (Kitty) Carr (1865-1952)]. We asked the postmaster for directions to Holly Grove or Coal Pits. Before leaving the U.S., I spoke to Joe Kennedy, Catherine Carr's son, who suggested that we speak to Postmaster Flannigan in Roscommon. Unfortunately he had been transferred to another office. In Athleague, the closest town of any size to Coal Pits, we asked the first elderly man we saw if he had ever met Thomas Carr. He said if it is the Thomas Carr who married Mary Kelly then he had. That was our lucky day. He directed us to the Holly Grove/Coal Pits area. We stopped in front of a two story granite house and asked a middle aged man if he knew whether this was the former residence of Thomas and Mary Carr. As luck would have it, once again he said that it was not, but that he owned the old Thomas Carr estate. His name was Mr. McCann and he said that the property had been divided and the Rourkes had built a house on a portion of the original property. He stated further that the house was in bad condition because no one was living in it and that cows had roamed through it. He also said that the house was hard to spot because it was very far back from the road. Mr. McCann also said that his mother would love to talk with us but unfortunately we could not find her house. We drove back and forth several times and finally saw an elderly woman who had known Tom and Mary. She said that they frequently cycled into Athleague. The neighbor also said that Mary loved children and often gave them sweets. We turned the car around and spotted the house high on the hill. It is hard to say how much property was originally with the house. It might be as little as twenty acres or more than one hundred. It would have been an interesting question to ask Mr. McCann. At the entrance to the property there were two stone posts. We walked approximately 600 feet straight ahead and then turned to the left and continued up a slight grade approximately 200 feet. It was a stone house with a door framed in an interlacing pattern of diamonds and ovals. There were quoins on the two front corners of the house. The front door was boarded up so we climbed through a back window into the kitchen which still had only a mud floor. At the front entry hall there was a staircase straight ahead and a hallway to the left of the staircase leading to the kitchen. There were two large rooms, one on each side of the entry hall both with interesting fireplaces. A stairway with nicely carved banisters, still intact, led to the second floor. The second floor like the first consisted of two large rooms, both with a fireplace. To the left of the house was a stone shed. There was also a spring on the property and someone said that many years ago it was used as a community spring. It was a great thrill to see the house where my grandmother was born and grew up. If only the cows had not roamed through it and destroyed the floors it would still be a picturesque house on a hill. After dinner that evening we went to a general store in Athleague and mentioned that my grandmother, Catherine Carr, was born in Coal Pits. They said that Mary Kelly's sister, Mrs. Haughey, was still alive and lived in Athleague right next to the church. We also learned that there were Carrs in neighboring Fuerty Parish. We went to see Mrs. Haughey the next day and her son came to the door and said that his mother was very low. He asked if we could come back later. Unfortunately our schedule was tight and we reluctantly headed for Donegal."

Death
He died some time between 1948 and 1951. He doesn't appear in the New York City Death Index which covers up to 1947 and he isn't mentioned in his sister's funeral notice in 1951. The last time he was seen alive by a family member who remembers him was during World War II.

Burial
James Carr is most likely buried in the Bronx, New York or Hudson County, New Jersey.

Unfinished tasks
He has not been found in the US census and his death date and burial place have not been determined. He died sometime after WWII between 1947 and 1952.