Sneem, Ireland - It's a Small World

In October at The Genealogy Event, a lady, Patricia, came up to my exhibit table.  After hearing that I was located in Rochester, NY, she told me her ancestor lived in Rochester briefly before going back home to Ireland, and that he worked on the trolleys.  My great-grandfather also worked on the trolleys, and we both followed up with details to see if they might have been colleagues.  Unfortunately, her ancestor was there while mine were still in Amsterdam, NY.  But I did mention to her that my great-great grandmother was Irish and born in Sneem.  Although I had been in Kerry and on the Dingle Peninsula in Ireland, I did not know I had roots there at that time, and I was not in Sneem.  Patricia was, and she sent me this picture:

The boxer is not John L. Sullivan, but it does reinforce the legacy of the sport in Ireland.  Patricia also told me that Charles de Gaulle's wife's governess was from Sneem and was a McCarthy, as was my great-great-grandmother.  I have to do further research to see if they are indeed related.  And to see if Patricia and I are related...

Staying in a Tenement

Last weekend I was an exhibitor at The Genealogy Event in Lower Manhattan.  I needed a place to stay, and while searching for a hotel I ran across the Blue Moon Hotel in the Lower East Side.  Built in an old tenement building and directly across the street from the Tenement Museum on Orchard Street, I knew this was the dream location for a genealogist (especially one whose ancestors were poor immigrants and surely stayed in a similar building)!  

The Blue Moon Hotel is a perfect blend of the good sides of both worlds- my stay there was like stepping back 125 years but with all the modern amenities.  My room probably housed a family of 12 in 1880, but was huge for just me!  In the evenings I could open the window and sit on the wide sill and watch the bustle on Orchard Street, yet the new windows were sound-proof at night.  Much of the old wood trim and tiles have been salvaged to decorate the hotel. 

The view from my window.

The neighborhood is filled with little restaurants and shops.  I was able to attend the Lower East Side Pickle Day, too, and sample all sorts of pickles including a pickle cupcake and a pickle ice cream sandwich! 

 

For any historian or genealogist, or just someone looking for a unique hotel, I would recommend a stay at the Blue Moon Hotel.  It is a little piece of history.