Quote from John Hollingsworth in reference to the latest
DNA test results dated: 12/08/2003
I believe from a genealogical point of view there are several options:
The most probable is that you descended from one of Henry's
children or possibly one of Henry's brothers since there seems to be an
Irish connection. However, we cannot completely rule out the other male
Hollingsworth relatives of Henry (i.e., uncles or cousins) back to
around
1400-1500 (plus or minus) since there is an excellent chance that their
descendants will also match 25 of 25 markers.
Some researchers think Henry was probably born in Ireland. Others
say he was born in Cheshire, England. He was in an English militia and
went with them to the Ulster Plantation in Ireland for the purpose of
planting. This activity was often arranged by the
"undertakers" or landed gentry between 1609 and 1630. Henry
is listed in the 1630 muster roll for Onealland Barony, Ulster
Plantation in County Armagh.
Under James I both Englishmen and Scottish men were planted to
produce loyal populace in place of the "mere Irish". Henry
might have been planted as an English soldier or as a Scottish
lowlandman.
The terms "sword and calleuer (caliver)" appear after his
name telling what arms he owned. This suggests that he was a man of
more than average means. The caliver was a calibrated gun for which
standard bullets could be made. He actually lived on Richard Cope's
half of the 2000 acre estate. He, wife Katherine and family might have
returned to England during the 1641 Irish Rebellion. In 1632, Henry
received 120 acres of land in the Co. Armagh. Sometime between 1641 and
1660 during the Irish Rebellion, the the Blackers took possession of
it. His son, Valentine, legally took issue with the Blackers ownership
of the land in 1674, and was favorably received. A semi-shared
arrangement of the land occured.
Henry is listed as lately deceased in an Oct. 27, 1675 record around
this event. Previous to that he was a witness to a marriage in 1671 in
the Lurgan Friends Book. (C-956) Some theorize that Henry Hollingsworth
was killed in the mass murders of the Irish Rebellion and that the
Henry in the 1671 and 1674 records are referring to a Henry
Hollingsworth who was married to an Elizabeth and settled in County
Down before 1693. It is believed that it is likely Henry and his family
fled to England during the massacres of the Rebellion.
In Ireland, land was the symbol of power as well as the source of
wealth. The idea behind plantation was to take the land away from the
Catholic Irish, replacing them with English and Scottish settlers. This
meant that a new Protestant community could be established quickly to
weaken Catholic Irish resistance to English rule. Plantation had been
implemented on a limited basis in Ireland during the reign of the
Tudors in the midlands and Munster during the 1550s and 1580s. The
early seventeenth century plans for the Ulster Plantation were the most
ambitious undertaken so far. The native Irish were to be moved from the
planted lands to segregated areas. Most of the land in the counties of
Armagh, Cavan, Donegal, Fermanagh, Tyrone and Coleraine (now Derry) was
confiscated. It was granted at low rents to English and Lowland Scots
settlers in portions of one to two thousand acres. The colonists had to
let the land to Protestant tenants who would cultivate it and defend it
against the native Irish.
When Catholic landowners rebelled in the Great Rebellion of 1641,
thousands were killed. The revolt was violently put down by Oliver
Cromwell, whose troops slaughtered thousands. The English confiscated
about 45,000 square kilometers (over 11 million acres) of land from
Catholic landowners, and prohibited all Catholics from practicing law,
holding public office, teaching, or bearing arms.
It seems fairly clear that James (b:1811) is a blood relative to
Valentine, but can not possibly be one of his descendants. The obvious
possibility that needs to be checked is that Valentine's father, Henry
Hollingsworth, moved from Warwickshire (or Winwickshire)( or maybe
Scotland, Ed.) to County Armagh, Ireland, some time before 1632 when
Valentine was born, and that James is the descendant of a brother or
cousin who remained behind after Valentine left for America. by Doug
Hollingsworth
Feb 11, 2004
I have not been in contact with British Researchers.
My difficulty is that I wouldn't know where to tell them where to look,
and I think that it would be fruitless to engage a researcher without
at least knowing which shire to point him toward.
Thanks to DNA testing, we can pretty certain that Valentine was not
from the Cheshire/Manchester area nor was he from the Cambridge/Essex
area. But that leaves York, Derby, Nottingham, Lincoln, Leicester,
Stafford, Warwick, London, Essex and Kent as places where Valentine
could have come from. We are awaiting DNA test results for
Hollingsworths from Derby and Essex, but that still leaves a lot of
possibilities.
To complicate the issue further, the County Down Hollingsworths, which
is adjacent to County Armagh, insist that their ancestors are from
Scotland. Since 2/3 of the settlers at the Ulster Plantation were
Scots, their tradition can not be dismissed out of hand. Again, we are
awaiting DNA results for a descendant of the County Down family to see
if they match our descendants of Valentine.
(The Census of Ireland for 1659, has given the Seago Parish (often
written Sego in ancient records means "House of Gobha"), as
having only 396 people. Among them Valentine's family, 251 were English
and Scots, and the remaining 145 were Irish.)
Our only lead so far is the link between Valentine and the County
Wexford clan. I am aware that this is much more likely to yield a
brother of Valentine than a grandfather for him, but it is the only
concrete possibility that we have unearthed to date.
You and others have studied Valentine's parentage--where do you think
that he came from?
Doug Hollingsworth
West Rasen, Lincolnshire Registers
(1) Anthony Hollingworth & Ellen Foster, married 11 May 1606.
(2) Elizabeth Hollingworth, of Anthony, baptized 25 June 1607.
(3) Henry Hollingworth, son of Anthony, baptised 21 Sept 1608.
(4) William Hollinworth, of Anthony & Ellen, 18 June 1614.
(5) Thomas Hollingworth, of Antho., 25 Oct 1615.
(6) Antho, of Antho Hollinworth, baptised 4 July 1618, West Rasen.
The above family is the best candidate thus far to be the origin of
Henry Hollinworth, father of Valentine. These entries, except for the
marriage (1) and Henry (3) which are from the original registers, come
from the International Genealogical Index (IGI), not alwary reliable.
But in this case there is no reason for skepticism. More children may
have been born between (3) and (4). But caution: Thomas, son of a Henry
Hollingworth was baptised 19 March 1643 at Bottesford, Lincolnshire.
Should this Henry be the one baptised in 1608 it would probably
eliminate this man from any further consideration. Finally, a
christening of Anthonie Hollingewoorth, son of Raphe, 6 Jan 1631 at St
Margaret in the Close, City of Lincoln, may be the identical man who
administered his father's estate in Ireland in 1662 (see p. 38 of the
Sept 1991 HR).
HENRY HOLLINGSWORTH has been found in the Subsidy Rolls for the
Liberties of Donore, County Dublin, in the years 1665, 1666 and 1668!
(Mormon film roll 258503, Tenison Groves collec-tion, Record Office,
Belfast, Northern Ireland, Box 12, section15036.)
In the 1665 Subsidy, the name is entered as "Hen
Hollyworth."
The 1666 roll (which was the first item I encountered) lists the name
as Henry Hollingsworth.
This man could easily be the father of Valentine, the Henry
Hollinworth of 1630-32, Ballyvickcrannell, Co Armagh. History proves
all the Protestants around Portadown had to flee their homes or face
a horrible death at O'Neill's bloody hands.
There are no Portadown records until the
Hearth Tax of 1664 when Valentine Hollinsworth (sic) appears at Bally-
vickcrannell, and we know he repurchased the 120 acre farm there from
Michael Harrison of Co Antrim in 1665 - and that it was an outright
purchase, not a lease, a very surprising thing in Ireland. The 1674
documents we found in 1970 and the 1632 award we published here a few
years ago, do not say when Henry, Valentine's father, died. Therefore,
This man in Dublin could be him, or another younger son named Henry.
In a document recently discovered by John Hollingsworth during his
trip to Ireland, the document dated December 1674, refers to Henry
Hollingsworth as "deceased", proving at this point in time
Valentine's father Henry, Henery as he called him was deceased.
In September 1983 Harry Hollingsworth published what he called
"one of the most outstanding documents and finds ever presented
here (HR), insofar as the family of Valentine Hollingsworth Sr. is
concerned." It was an agreement dated 1632 between Valentine
Blacker and Henry Hollingsworth. Harry said, "if only such a
document could be discovered for our County Wexford Hollingsworth
family".
HARRY, I AM SORRY YOU ARE NOT WITH US TO FIND OUT, IT IS A COUNTY
WEXFORD DOCUMENT TOO, BECAUSE THE COUNTY WEXFORD HOLLINGSWORTH ARE
RELATED TO THE COUNTY ARMAGH CLAN.
It is safe to make the statement that Henry and Katheran
could have dwelt in Ballyvickcrannell throughout the rebellion of 1641,
and in the Commonwealth into the Restoration in 1660.
Katheran was living as late as August 1632 and her name appears but
once in any record we know of, the Birth and Death Record Book of
Lurgan Quaker Monthly Meeting. There, the couple are called "Henry
and Katheran Hollingsworth."
Everything points to the logical conclusion that Katheran parents
were Blackers, and it is even possible that Valentine was named after
Katheran's father. (Valentine Blacker)
Katheran's father and mother were believed to be Valentine Blacker
and Judith Harrison. It is even possible Valentine was named after
Katheran's father. A Cache of documents - grants, settlements, deeds
from the period 1632-1675, lodged up in the front attic of the offices
of a long established firm of solicitors in Northern Ireland. These are
of the Blacker family of Carrobracke, alias Carrickblacker, County
Armagh and the calendar reference states that they are of
"Valentine Hollingsworth to Valentine Blacker." Settlements
usually mean nuptial settlements arranged before or after the wedding.
It is not known if Henry and Katheran had any daughters, if so one
surely would have been name Judith.
It is refreshing to note that I am not the only Hollingsworth to
think Katheran was a "Blacker" and not a "Cornish"
John Hollingsworth ....John of Giles also thinks it is possible. The
following is from an email he sent me.
Quote: "There is some speculation that Kathryn wife of Henry
was a "Blacker" and that Valentine was named after her father
Valentine Blacker. I wonder if Valentine escaped with the
"Blackers" and Henry and Kathryn died during the
rebellion.....just a thought. Maybe you will find some answers in Co.
Wexford!" John (Hollingswoth)
