Peter Greenen and Mary Conway were both born of Irish Catholic peasants ("renters") in King's County Ireland!
King's County was later re-named and is currently known as County Offaly.  Peter and Mary are known to have begun their family in Durrow parish and attended St. Columba's church.  There were, in fact, several Greenen families and several Conway families in Durrow parish at the time Peter and Mary were growing up.  Unfortunately, the records of this parish were sketchy or non-existent for the years 1800 - 1825.  During our visit there in September, 2000, we searched all the available records for those years and could find no entries for Peter or Mary.  So we shall probably never learn their exact dates of birth or who their parents were.  Based on the names of baptismal sponsors of their children, it appears that related families were Quinn and Kain.

Peter Greenen was  born in 1810.  This year of birth is corroborated by the 1850 U.S. Census as well as his court testimony of 1849 when he filed for U.S. citizenship. Mary Conway was born in either 1810 or 1811, as the 1850 Census and the Greenen-Ryan-Poirier bible entries both attest.  These dates would have made them "contemporaries;" and it is quite possible that they attended school (and many other functions) together.  Perhaps they even met at one of the primitive "hedge schools" which were all that was available before 1830.  At any rate, it appears they attended the same church and their families would have known each other that way.

It is known that they originated in Durrow parish; but it appears the exact townland of their origin has not been passed down.  There are several Greenen (Grennan & Grinnan) gravestones in the graveyard of St. Columba's (Durrow) church; and several indicate that there was a "clan" of Grennan's in a townland called AHARNEY.  It is therefore possible that Aharney may have been the actual ancestral Greenen home, although Aharney Township is in the neighboring "civil parish" called Kilbride.  Nonetheless, it appears that the Aharney residents attended church in Durrow.

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THE GREENEN ANCESTRAL HOME

The focal point of Durrow parish is the town of Durrow and church of Saint Columba, about three miles north of the city of Tullamore.  As one enters the town from Tullamore, the striking view of the church and graveyard is seen in the photo at the right. Tullamore (and Durrow) are located about 50 miles WSW of Dublin.

Click on the photo to see it in full size.

Among the significant activities in the parish during the years Peter and Mary  were growing up was the building of a new church.  Pictured at right is the front of the church, completed in 1831 and dedicated to St. Columba, a 6th Century Irish-Scottish saint.  The inscription reads PASTOR JO RAFFERTY 1831.  [JO being a common abbreviation for John.]  This photo was taken during our visit in the year 2000, at which time the church is still in good condition and in daily use.

Click on the photo to see it full size

When this church was dedicated, Peter would have been 21 years old; and thus it is possible that he actually helped with its construction.

The graveyard of this church was not used till about 1880; and one of the very first burials was a Columb Greenan... Columb (or "Colm") still being a common Irish given name.

As for the location of the previous church and graveyard, there was not time to research this question during our 2000 trip; but it is research that would be interesting to do.  Greenan and Conway headstones would probably be there; but would be very old and hard to read.

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THE MARRIAGE OF PETER GREENEN AND MARY CONWAY

Click on the photo to see it in full size

Unfortunately, the birth records of this church are scanty and incomplete before 1825; and thus we have been unable to document the baptisms of either Peter Greenen or Mary Conway. Peter and Mary were married in 1841.  Both were about 31 years old... not uncommon in those days of scarcity and hardship.  There can be no doubt that the wedding took place at St. Columba's church in Durrow... pictured again at left. The parish registry has been found and examined and the marriage is confirmed to have occurred on Sepember 18, 1841.  The witnesses were John Colgan and Margaret Byrne. Click here  to see photos of the Greenen entries in the Durrow parish registry.

CLICK ON THE DOCUMENT ICON at left to see it in full size Though the marriage record is on file at Assumption Church in Tullamore, the marriage most certainly occurred in Durrow which was the family's home and a subordinate (mission) church of the Tullamore parish.... as is explained in the link above.

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CHILDREN BORN IN IRELAND

After some hard work and careful research, it was our good fortune to locate the ancestral Catholic parish of the Greenen family (St. Columba's) and to study the church registry of marriages and baptisms.  The discovery of these records allowed us to clarify, and verify what had been a very uncertain (and sometimes conflicting) set of traditions regarding the marriage and children of Peter Greenen and Mary Conway.

THE PARISH REGISTRY CONFIRMS THE FOLLOWING EVENTS:
September 18, 1841: Marriage of Peter Greenen and Mary Conway
      Witnesses: John Colgan and Margaret Byrne.
December 9, 1842:  Baptism of Joseph, Son of Peter Greenen & Mary Conway
  Sponsors:  Michael Conway and Anne Quinn
June 2, 1844:  Baptism of Michael, Son of Peter Greenen & Mary Conway
      Sponsors:   Thomas Conway and Mary Conway
March 29, 1846:  Baptism of Mary,  Daughter of Peter Greenen & Mary Conway
      Sponsors:  Christopher Quinn  and  Mary Kain

It must be noted that several family records indicate that another daughter, Anna, was born in Ireland.  Tradition and calculations indicated that her birth would have been in 1848; however our search of the records at Durrow did not uncover such a baptism, even though we searched all the way to 1850... which is two years after the date that Peter Greenen arrived in the U.S.   A later document, (the 1850 U.S. Census) does confirm that Anna was indeed born in Ireland in 1848.  The absence of a baptismal document for Anna at Durrow suggests that Peter left his family in the care of relatives in another parish when he left Ireland for America.... or that the priest simply failed to record her baptism.

Furthermore, in all fairness (and to avoid possible embarassment later) it must be admitted that a scenario of the ENTIRE Peter Greenen family coming to America together is not totally ruled out.  Indeed, the History of Catholicity in Indiana (published in 1898) asserts that "Peter came to the U.S. with his wife and four children."  This source, and the language of the assertion, however (to me) lacks the authority to mean that they actually all came on one ship.

Click here to see photos of the Greenen entries in the Durrow parish registry.

     Click here to see adulthood photos of Joseph, Michael, Mary, and Anna.

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There is no documentation or detailed tradition of how Peter Greenen and Mary Conway Greenen carried out their decision to emigrate to the United States.  The documents, evidence, and tradition that is available, however, all indicate that Peter made the trip first and then "sent back" for his family.  As mentioned above, it would appear that Peter left a family of four children (or three and a pregnant wife) in safekeeping somewhere NOT in Durrow parish.  As mentioned above, the evidence for this is that the baptism of their fourth child, Anna, does not appear in the Durrow record even though later records (the 1850 U.S. census) and other documents declare that she was born in Ireland in 1848.

To obtain more evidence that Peter's wife and children did not accompany him to the U.S.A., one needs to "leap forward" to 1918 and read the obituary of Peter's son, Joseph.  The obituary states clearly that Joseph came to America at age 7... an age which he would not have achieved until November of 1849... which is almost a year after the date of his father's sworn arrival date.

Meanwhile, we can report with confidence, that Peter himself arrived in the United States on December 24, 1848... a fact which he swore to when filing for Citizenship in 1849.   Peter would have been 38 years old at the time of his voyage to the U.S.  We do not know what ship he sailed on or which port he landed at.   At this age, with a family back home and waiting to be called for; Peter Greenen would NOT have been the paradigmatic "young man seeking adventure" that movies and novels describe.  It is my belief that he may have been responding to (or already had) one of the many "Railroad deals" or similar "calls for workers" that were available at the time.  If not he would have disembarked with full intentions of procuring one as soon as possible... which he did.

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USA CITIZENSHIP GRANTED

On October 24, 1849, Peter Greenen presented himself in Champaign County Probate Court and applied for U.S. Citizenship.  It was on this occasion that he swore an oath that his age was 39 years and that his date of arrival in the U.S. was December 24, 1848.   His application was recorded and, by law, a period of five years of residency were required to obtain citizenship.  He was formally granted citizenship on August 19, 1856 as is recorded on pages 194-195 of the Champaign County Probate Court Records.  Note that in these proceedings, Peter's name was spelled "Peter Grannin" by the clerk of the Court.

Thorough and careful research by Andy Sauer and our professional genealogist, Arnold Dean, has revealed that the laws in effect in the 1850's (and later) granted "automatic citizenship" to wives and children as soon as a male head-of-household obtained citizenship.  For this reason, we now know that Mary Conway Greenen and the four children born in Ireland were NOT required to go through court proceedings for citizenship.  This also explains why no citizenship papers have ever turned up in any of the hundreds of records and keepsakes that have been searched and researched by Peter and Mary's descendants.

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For many reasons, the most credible history is that Peter went to work for the railroad immediately following his arrival in the Urbana Ohio area.  The Columbus, Piqua, & Indiana Railroad had just been organized in 1849 and was building track to serve Urbana at that time.  As will be documented later, it appears almost certain that Peter went to work for that railroad.  We also know that Peter... and later all his sons and several grandsons had full careers in railroading.  In addition, as we will see, Peter experienced many family and personal tradgedies as a result of railroad accidents which were all too prevalent in those days.   It is known that Peter and all his sons worked for the "forerunners" of what later became the Pennsylvania Railroad.

Peter and his wife Mary (Conway) had a child, Martin Greenen for whom we have no documents; but it is believed that he was born within a year or two of the family's arrival in the Urbana area.  It is also believed that he died in early childhood.   Another child, Thomas E. Greenen (1852 - 1873) was born in Urbana and raised to adulthood but died in a railroad accident at age 21.   In 1855, another child, Ella Greenen was born but died at age 6 of a childhood illness.

An interesting but confusing document has been kept by several of Peter's descendents in connection with the death of "little Ella" in 1861.  It is clear that on the date of her death, September 12, 1861, Peter purchased and received title to a gravesite in Urbana.  Nonetheless, little Ella also has a gravesite at Holy Cross Cemetery in Indianapolis which asserts (according to cousin Andy Sauer) that she was buried there at the time of her death in 1861. CLICK HERE to see photos and learn more about the "MYSTERY" of Little Ella's death and burial.

 

CLICK HERE or on the thumbnail at left to see the 1850 census in full size. The 1850 census, though a little difficult to read in this photo, has been reviewed carefully and is considered to be accurate and to concur with all the information we have.  The 1860 census, however, contains numerous errors and will not be posted though it is available in our files.

Reviewing the 1850 census provides, first and foremost, an absolutely complete confirmation of the birth dates of all the family members at that time, as calculated from other records and as entered in the baptismal records of Durrow Parish, King's County, Ireland.  In addition, this 1850 Census report, tracked down and researched by Cousin Andy Sauer, locates the Peter Greenen homestead in Union Township, Champaign County, Ohio... the township just east of the city of Urbana.  For historical accuracy I shall recite that the census entries for this family occur on page 306 of the Census for that County, and that the census entries were made by a Colin McDonald.  The "date of enumeration" [Date on which the enumerator signed the page] was October 21, 1850.  However, because J.W. Greenen (with a late November birthday) is listed as being already 8, it is possible that the actual interview with this family occurred later than October 21.  As can be seen in the table above, our great grandfather, Joseph, was already attending grammar school.  Michael, however, who turned six in June of that year, was still listed as "at home" ...thus indicating that age 7 was probably thought to be the age to begin schooling at that time.

Also included in this census were questions as to whether persons could read and write the English language.  It is neither surprising nor at odds with tradition (and the numerous different spellings of the family name) that both Peter Greenen and Mary Conway Greenen are listed as unable to read and write.  It is also important to notice that Peter is listed as a "laborer" and not a farmer... even though he homesteaded a large tract of land on which he was living.  When one thinks this through, it seems to be further evidence that Peter was working for the Railroad and that his land grant was one of the prevalent land-for-service schemes that Congress had made available as an incentive to develop railroads.

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To view the available baptismal documents, click on the thumbnails at left.

	Joseph William Greenen: 1842 - 1918           Married Sara Catherine ("Katie") Ryan   Many descendants.       CLICK HERE to see the website of "J.W." Greenen and "Katie" Ryan
	Michael H. Greenen:  1844 - 1919           Married Ellen Coffield.  Many Descendants.         CLICK HERE to read more about Michael H. Greenen & the Peter Greenen family.
	Mary Greenen Graham:  1846 - 1921           Married Patrick Graham.  Many Descendants.
NO DOCUMENT	Anna Greenen Ryan:  1848 - 1923           Married Martin Vincent Ryan... then John McGroarty.  Ryan and Poirier descendants.
NO DOCUMENT	Thomas E. Greenen:  1852 - 1873          Died in railroad accident at age 21.  No descendants
NO DOCUMENT	Ella Greenen:  1855 - 1861  Died in childhood.
NO DOCUMENT	Martin Greenen:          It is assumed he was born in the "gap" between Anna and Thomas.         It is also assumed that Martin died in childhood.   No documentation is at hand as of 2000.

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PETER GREENEN LAND IN URBANA  [Union Township, Champaigne County, Ohio]

Several of his grandchildren had "family notes" which indicated that Peter "homesteaded" a 160 (or at least 120) acre tract of land in Union Township, Champaign County Ohio, which is located west of Columbus and north of Springfield, Ohio.  The county seat is Urbana; and numerous family notes and traditions speak of the family's "time in Urbana."  More recent research has shown that Peter's land holdings may have been far less than 120 acres.  As of 1874 Peter's holdings appear to be about 60+ acres... in two separate plots.

Research is underway to locate documents regarding Peter's land holdings prior to 1874... which is the earliest date for which we have located a document which shows his land.  Click here to see the 1874 plat of Union Township which shows two separate plots of land owned by Peter.  It is interesting to note that the northernmost of these two plots became part of the Urbana Country Club golf course... a course which carries the prestigious title: "Designed by Pete Dye."   It was even more interesting to learn that the Pete Dye family is from Urbana.  The initial 9 hole course was designed by Pete's father... and the second 9 hole course, by his son. Click here  for more info and pictures.

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THE FAMILY MOVES TO INDIANAPOLIS

It seems valid to assume that the geographic movements of this family would have been governed primarily by opportunities for assignments and promotions offered by the railroad... to which this family was probably very loyal.

It is not at all certain exactly when the family moved to Indianapolis; but the "tale of the unused gravesite" once seemed to be evidence that they were in the process in 1861... after about 12 years in Urbana.   The 1870 census and other research have essentially changed everyone's mind, however; and it appears that the family lived on their Urbana farm for many years after 1861.   By 1861, however, Joseph (19) and Michael (17) would have "come of age" and it is thought they took jobs and/or promotions with the railroad which took them west to Indianapolis in the early 1860's.

 

CLICK HEREor on the thumbnail to see the 1870 census in full size. According to the 1870 U.S. census,  Peter and Mary were still living on their farm in Urbana and Mary (24) and Thomas (18) were still living at home.

As of the present writing, the earliest defensible date for Peter and Mary to have actually been living in Indianapolis is 1873... when they buried their son Thomas.  At that time, according to Charles D. Greenen's research, Peter and Mary were living on South Noble Street.  AND... (?confusing) it must be recalled that Peter still owned the two plots of land in Union Township, Ohio, as of the 1874 survey plat.

It is, however, quite likely that Peter's sons Joseph and Michael moved west to Indianapolis "with the railroad" well before their parents.  We are "storying" somewhat (for lack of exact dates) but it is known that Indianapolis was a "boom town" by 1861... and the entire state was well entrenched in the "Abraham Lincoln" abolitionist-unionist camp.  Lincoln, of course, was president during these years; and Indiana's Governor  Morton was his staunch supporter.  Even though the date cannot be established; it is a very good calculation to say that Joseph and Michael Greenen moved to Indianapolis sometime during the civil war... and participated in the city's well known "behind the lines" support of the Union cause... mostly by keeping the railroads running.

Between 1870 and 1875, Peter and Mary Greenen would have attended the weddings of their four eldest children, beginning with "JW's" marriage to Katie Ryan in 1870.   Peter and Mary were in their 60's now and enjoying the well deserved pleasure of grandchildren.

Then, suddenly, on July 23, 1873, tradgedy struck again.  Their youngest son, Thomas E. Greenen was killed in a railroad accident at age 21.  Of their seven children, only four survived... and the four survivors were the four oldest... the four who had been born in Ireland.

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There are still many unanswered questions regarding the details of Peter Greeen's employment with the Railroad.  It is known that Peter has been defined in various U.S. census reports as "farmer" and "laborer" ...and it is believed that he did devoted substantial time to both "careers."  It is also known that all of his sons followed in his footsteps in pursuing careers in Railroading.  Difficult and painstaking research finally paid off in November of 2000 and a great deal of the Greenen Railroad history can now be tracked with certainty.

The family tradition passed on to the twentieth century Greenen Descendants is that Peter Greenen and his sons "all worked for the Pennsylvania Railroad."  Although the "Pensy" (Pennsylvania Railroad) was not formed till the 1920's, research has shown that the railroads they worked for were all forerunners of the Pennsylvania.
 

This history goes back to the formation of the Columbus, Piqua, and Indiana Railroad which was incorporated in 1849, less than a year following Peter's arrival in the Urbana Ohio area.  Since the Greenen family geographic movements can be seen to correspond exactly to the expansion of this railroad (via "buy outs" by parent railroads over time) there can be no doubt that the study of this expansion and general westward progression is also a study of this family's work history as we will see.

Click on the photo to see it full size

To follow this progression of railroad "buy outs" and expansions, we need to follow the "corporate genealogy" of the "Panhandle Railroads"... which the later and larger "mergers" were affectionately called... probably because their real names were all long winded tongue twisters.  This corporate genealogy is organized into an excellent table which we shall follow beginning with number 14 along the left border, i.e. the Columbus Piqua and Indiana Railroad.  As stated, the progression of mergers and buy-outs goes like this:

In 1849 the Columbus, Piqua and Indiana was formed.

It is my suspicion that Peter Greenen was connected to them from the very beginning; and his aquiring of his land near Urbana may have represented one of the many "land for service" deals that were available in those times. (unproven, of course)

In 1863, the Columbus, Piqua and Indiana was SOLD to

The Columbus & Indianapolis Railroad Company. It is my theory that this "buy out" by a bigger raiload during the Civil war could have been the stimulus for Peter... or at least the older boys, J.W. and Michael, to move west to Indianapolis.    By this time, Mary and Peter were both 53 years old and, as far as we know, they had had all their children.

In 1864 a "Consolidation" occurred and the name was changed to

The Columbus and Indianapolis Central Railway Company. This was a further consolidation, with the railroad becoming bigger as Indianapolis was becoming a bigger rail center and playing an important role in the Civil war.

In 1868, two consolidation/mergers occurred to form

The Columbus, Chicago and Indiana Central Railway Company.

This merger would have greatly expanded the Railroad and resulted in divisions operating to Chicago and to Logansport, Indiana, a major canal terminal and rail center.  The nation was recovering from the Civil war which had now been over for three years.
 

Based on his obituary, we are 100% sure that Peter Greenen worked for this railroad, and that it was called "The Panhandle" at this time.  This is the earliest date we are sure about the name; but it is believed that some of the earlier forerunners of this railroad were also called "The Panhandle."   The name refers to the "panhandle" of West Virginia... and was based on those early railroads having accomplished the technical feat of bridging the wide Ohio and the mountains of the panhandle to bring coal out of the West Virginia and Virginia mountains.

vv Click on the photo to see it FULL SIZE

The photo just above shows the geography of West Virginia's panhandle.  It is an 1851 railroad map from the National Archives.

By this time (1868) Peter and Mary Greenen were still living in Urbana; but it is VERY likely that both their sons J.W. and Michael also worked for this
railroad... and most likely lived in Indianapolis.

During this period, Peter and Mary's youngest son died, in 1873, and then Peter himself in 1878.

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PETER GREENEN'S DEATH

CLICK HERE to see Peter's death certificate in full size. Click here to see Peter's obituary notices

Peter Greenen's death occurred July 9, 1878 at age 68.  He had spent a life of hard work and died in service to the railroad.  Several obituary articles appeared and are posted HERE.   Thanks are due to Gloria Greenen Bixler for tracking down these articles from the archives of the Indianapolis Public Library.  The obituaries are (excessively?) vivid and eliminate the need to write further about his death.  Besides being "a good man" and "a good Catholic" as the obituaries attest, Peter's reputation as a hard working, dutiful, loyal, and loving husband and father has been passed down through the generations.  He was spoken of often and with admiration even by his grandsons and great grandsons who were known to those of us producing this history document 120 years after his death.

 

Peter Greenen lived to see twelve grandchildren, including: five grandsons from Joseph (Charles, John Joseph, Alfred, Thomas, and Frank) three grandchildren from Michael  (Daisy, Nettie, and Frank)  one grandaughter from Anna Greenen Ryan (Anna Alvirney,) and  three grandchildren from Mary Greenen Graham  (Jane, Nellie, & William.) The obituaries attest to the fact that his wife, Mary Conway Greenen survived him.  Later documents also confirm that.  It is not known where Mary spent her "last years" after the death of Peter.  It is likely she would have gone to live with one of her children.  She died April 15, 1883, at age 73; and one of the biggest "mysteries" of the Greenen family history is the uncertainty as to where she is buried.

Click on the photo to see it full size.

The photo above, (labelled "Grandma Greenen") is believed to be Mary Conway Greenen taken with two of her granddaughters; but it is not certain who they are.  A very good guess would be that the two little girls are Jane (1871) and Nellie (1873) ...daughters of Mary Greenen Graham.  If so that would give the picture a date of about 1876.  There are many other possibilities, however, as Mary Conway Greenen lived till 1883.

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A RARE LIBRARY FIND

Most recently (June, 2001) a non-Greenen cousin, Andy Weidekamp, identified an 1898 publication, A History of Catholicity in Indiana, which contains a detailed entry regarding the family of Peter Greenen and Mary Conway.  CLICK HERE to see the Greenen entry in that publication.  It has contributed considerably to the preparation of this Greenen history.  It was very re-assuring to discover that this History of Catholicity publication agreed completely with all the information gathered in Ireland as well as all our other research... right down to the very details!

 

THE GREENEN HISTORY CONTINUES

At the time of Peter Greenen's death in 1878, his eldest son, Joseph W. Greenen, our ancestor, was living in Piqua Ohio and had a management job with the railroad there.  His tour in Piqua was from about 1876 till 1883.  Both Joseph and Peter's other son, Michael, had long since put down roots in Indianapolis and both were married and raising families and enjoying successful careers with the railroad.

In 1883 and 84 two consolidations occurred resulting in the formation of

The Chicago St. Louis and Pittsburgh Railway Company

At the time of this merger, Joseph W. (J.W.) had worked his way well up the ranks of the railroad management heirarchy; and it was probably during this time that he became terminal manager at Indianapolis.  CLICK HERE to see the website of "J.W." Greenen and "Katie" Ryan   He would have just finished a 5 or 6 year (we aren't sure) tour of duty in Piqua, also a major four directional crossing with a round house, maintenance facilities and switchyards.
 

Click on photo to see it full size

Evidence for his having achieved high rank by this time is the large exquisite home he purchased and raised his family in following their return from Piqua.  The home is at 120 N. Arsenal Ave. in Indianapolis.

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During 1890 two consolidations occurred resulting in the formation of

The Pittsburgh Cincinnati Chicago & St. Louis Railroad Company

Although not documented, family tradition is that Joseph William Greenen worked for this railroad (through its many mergers and name changes) for 50 years; so the assumption is that he would not have retired till well after 1890.  If he began work at 18, he would have achieved this in the year 1910 at age 68.  Regardless of exactly when he retired, it is known that he was presented with a very nice watch which (as of the year 2000) is in the posession of Cousin Andy Sauer.  It is a well known fact (also documented in pictures) that he was wheel-chair bound for the last several years of his life.  His wife Katie died in September of 1913... but not before the two of them enjoyed a few years of railroad travel.  His granddaughters have reported their recollections of those days when JW had free passes for railroad travel anywhere he wanted to go... with all the priviledges of high rank... and special attention to his wheel chair.  A detailed history of the life and family of J.W. Greenen is posted at http://netdirect.net/~dandrew/Genealogy/Greenen/1842JWGreenen/1842JWGreenen.html
 

Click on the photo to see it in full size

Joseph William Greenen continued to travel and visit his children and grandchildren even after the death of his wife.  And, most importantly for this section of the Greenen history, his decendents have kept many letters he wrote on railroad stationery with the letterhead of the Pittsburgh Cincinnati Chicago & St. Louis Railroad Company.

More details are being sought regarding the family and work history of Peter's other son, Michael... and his two daughters, Mary and Anna.  When more is learned about the railroad history of Michael and his sons, it will be posted here.

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CLICK HERE to see the website of "J.W." Greenen and "Katie" Ryan

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