John Burke died on December 31st 1908 and Mary on December 28th 1930. They had led remarkable lives in many ways. Both of them lived through the Famine in which over a million people died of hunger and disease. They had 13 children, nine of whom left to live and work in America. Only three of them ever returned to visit. (John only ever met one of his emigrant children as Margaret and Jack returned after he died). Mary outlived three of her children who died in the US and also her son Michael who took over the family farm. Michael was my grand-father and he died in 1928. My Dad (born 1919) grew up in Kilmacow with his widowed mother and grand-mother. The fact that my Dad lived with a woman who had lived through the Famine really brings home how far we have travelled in terms of prosperity and opportunity.
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| The Burke Family Plot in Kilmacow Graveyard |
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The inscription on the gravestone
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