Ancestor Report
generation I

1 (0)
womanEllen "Ellie on tombstone" Rooney‏
Born ‎15 Oct 1872 Avon, Stearns County, Minnesota, died ‎22 Jun 1902 Sedan, Pope County, Minnesota Event Description: St. Anthony of Padua Cemetery, Padua, Stearns, MN‎, age 29 years, buried Padua, Stearns County, Minnesota
Ellen's grandfather John, given his date of birth, was very probably a brother to Michael Rooney ("Daddy Mick"), making her and her husband Thomas second cousins.

Tim Ahles says: "The Ellen Rooney that married Thomas T Rooney (grandson of Daddy Mick), is from the Rooney branch that we often refer to as the "Avon Rooneys." Ellen's parents are William Rooney and Bridget Hartigan. I do not have any records of Ellen's grandparents, but they might be the John Rooney and Helen Hennigan that you mentioned. We have often suspected a connection between our Rooneys and those from Avon but have not yet proven it."

2017: We have now "proven it" through at least two DNA matches in Ancestry between persons on the Padua Rooney branch and one or two on the Avon Rooney Branch (Andrew Minzghor and perhaps one other).

Cause of Death: Childbirth.


Originally published August 1998, Padua Cemetery, by Ginny Walz Borgerding

Thomas T. Rooney was born Jan 5, 1859 in Canada, the son of John and Mary (McCool) Rooney. He was ninth child of twelve children.

Ellen (Ellie) Rooney was born October 26, 1872, the daughter of William and Bridget (Hartigan) Rooney, of Avon, MN.

Thomas married Ellie and they had the following children:
Agatha - married Henry Murphy and had three children
Bridget Stella - married Frank Cowen
Clarinda - married Andrew Murphy
William Ryan - adopted son, married Mary Raden
William Joseph - died as an infant
Ellen - died as an infant

Ellie died on June 22, 1902 from blood poisoning (bacterial infection), according to church records.

In 1903 Thomas T. married Anna Murphy, the daughter of Bernard and Honora Murphy.

Thomas T. died on November 28, 1925 from heart disease? as best deciphered from church records.

Ellie, Wm Jos, and Ellen are listed on the tombstone with Thomas R. listed on the grave marker beside them.

Thomas T.'s second wife Anna Murphy Rooney, parents, brothers Michael J., James, William, and sisters Catherine Martin, MaryAnn Egan, Elizabeth Egan, grandmother Catharine Rooney, and many other relatives are buried in Padua
generation II (Parents)

2 (1)
manWilliam B Rooney‏
Born ‎15 Mar 1841 Montreal, Quebec, Canada Event Description: or 5 Dec 1839, died ‎8 Dec 1914 Avon, Stearns County, Minnesota Event Description: Old Saint Benedict's Cemetery, Avon‎, age 73 years
Tombstone reads born March 15, 1841. He died of carcinoma of the face. He first arrived in the U. S. 1 Nov 1865 from Pig's Eye, Quebec.

An 1896 map of Avon Township, Stearns County shows that William Rooney owned about 96.4 acres in Section 10 of Avon Township (about 3 miles NNW of the city of Avon), and his son J. P. Rooney owned 63.5 acres adjacent to that, including an abode.

The 1900 census shows they had 8 children of which 5 are alive. The 1905 census has an 8-year-old John Rooney living with them, born in New York, his parents born in Canada. He is probably one of the orphan train children; the 1910 census says he is an adopted son.

They also have a William Murphy, age 10, living with them. This may be their deceased daughter Elizabeth's son, though he's back with his family in 1910.

The 1910 census says they arrived in the U.S. in 1886, but it was perhaps meant to be 1866.
  Married ‎1864 Canada, age 22 or 23 years
or 1871 per 1900 census
(married 49 or 50 years) to:
3 (1)
womanBridget Hartigan‏
Born ‎4 Sep 1842 Vaudreuil, Vaudreuil-Soulanges, Quebec, Canada, died ‎28 May 1917 Avon, Stearns County, Minnesota Event Description: Old Saint Benedict's Cemetery, Avon‎, age 74 years
Her 1842 date of birth is on her tombstone, which differs from her death record of 1840. In the 1900 Federal census states that her birth month and year were September 1842. Her Minnesota death record says her year of birth was 1840; she should have known better than anyone, while she was alive, what her birth date was.
generation III (Grandparents)

4 (2)
manJohn Rooney‏
Born ‎between 1792 and 1796 Ireland, died ‎between 1871 and 1874 Avon Township, Stearns, Minnesota, USA‎
My observation: Could this John Rooney be a brother to "Daddy Mick?" John's descendants coincidentally fit into the Michael and Catherine Rooney line when a granddaughter married married a Daddy Mick Rooney grandson: Ellen E. Rooney (1872-1902) married Thomas T. Rooney (185 4-1925).

I emailed Tim Ahles to ask him what he knew.
Tim says: "The Ellen Rooney that married Thomas T Rooney (grandson of Daddy Mick), is from the Rooney branch that we often refer to as the "Avon Rooneys." Ellen's parents are William Rooney and Bridget Hartigan. I do not have any records of Ellen's grandparents, but they might be the John Rooney and Helen Hennigan that you mentioned. We have often suspected a connection between our Rooneys and those from Avon but have not yet proven it."

Best online tree so far seems to be "Mally."

March 24, 2017 email from Randy Rooney:

David - the DNA match with Evie [Rooney Kukowski] is a grandson of George Steven Rooney. Below is what they have in their tree for Rooney males.

Ellen and Thomas T. would have been 2nd cousins, if John and Daddy Mick were brothers.

"Avon Rooneys":

John Rooney, b. ~1796 in Ireland, d. Avon?, m. Helen (Anna) Hennigan

John had two sons:
2. a. John Rooney, b. 1834 in Quebec, d. 1859-1860 in Canada
2. b. William Rooney, b. 1841 in Quebec, d. 1914 in Avon, m. Bridget Hartigan

William had four daughters (including Ellen "Ellie" who married Thomas T.) and one son:

3. John Patrick Rooney, b. 1871 in Avon, d. 1942 in Stearns Co, m. Alice Keenan

John Patrick had four daughters and three sons:

4. a. William Edward Rooney, b. 1897 in Stearns Co, d. 1980 in Stearns Co, family unknown
4. b. Daniel John Rooney, b, 1900 in Stearns Co, d. 1972 in CA, family unknown
4. c. George Steven Rooney, b. 1904 in Avon, d. 1969 in Los Angeles

George Steven had two daughters, one is the mother of the DNA match with Evie - which still needs confirmed if it is due to Rooney DNA or someone else. The match is with "T.R. (administered by kathleenriedel1)," if you want to check your results. I have contacted Kathleen, and she is supposed to be passing on my contact info to a Rooney aunt of her husband, T.R.

April 11, 2017

I now have my own match to a descendant on the Avon Rooney branch, Andrew Minzghor! We are 5C1R and share 7.2 cM of DNA on one segment, and no shared matches (even though I think Tim Ahles independently matches him). His line, as he shows it: Andrew > mother > father > Agnes Cecelia Voit (b. 1908) > Gertrude B. Rooney > William Rooney.

John Rooney is in the 1861 Canada census at Rigaud, Vaudreuil, Canada.
  Married ‎before 1830 Ireland (married 43 or 44 years) to:
5 (2)
womanHelen Anna "Anna; HENEGAN; HANAHAN" Hennigan‏
Born ‎1801 Ireland, died ‎between 1871 and 1874 Avon Township, Stearns, Minnesota, USA‎, age 72 or 73 years
Her name in the 1851 Canada census is listed as Anna Henegan. In her son John's baptismal record it's Hanahan. In the 1861 census it's Helen Hennigan.