Our Society wishes to thank David Baker who recently retired from our committee for which he tirelessly performed the role of scribe and minute taker. In the picture we see our current chairperson Helena Gamble presenting David with some gifts

We had over 70 attendees tonight entertained with a very interesting Talk by Jason Diamond about one of our local residents Major General Paddy Beaumont-Nesbitt of Lisnabrague (Union Lodge). The Major General was born in Tubberdaly, Co. Offaly and had a colourful career in the army starting in WW1 before retiring to the Poyntzpass area after WWII. Everyone attending seemed to have their own stories about Paddy, and some had recollection of a visit by the Queen Mother, although this is unproven.

Don’t forget – next Talk to tomorrow evening (Thursday 3rd April) at 8pm in The Meeting Place. The subject of the Talk is Major-General Paddy Beaumont-Nesbitt of Lisnabrague – by Jason Diamond. Hope to see you there.

Very interesting talk tonight by Brian McDonnell about letters written by his ancestor Michael Haughey in the 19th century. Interesting and colourful insight into life in county Armagh during the second half of that century. Did you know that after an arranged marriage (which many of them were) the bride was forbidden to visit her parents for the first month? And when she did visit her parents, it was accepted that she might not return to her new husband.

Next Talk is on Thursday 6th March. See you all there!

Useful website with good resources from our neighbours in Markethill http://www.bygonesandbyways.com/mainmenu.htm

We received this message from Michael Coglin in Australia, regarding the Society Presentation on the Redpaths and Point Pass in November 2009. ==================================== What a marvellous piece of work. Heartiest congratulations! I don’t know if you have access to ancestry.com. My family history contains information on my great great grandparents William and Lettitia nee Redpath Greenfield. This includes her newspaper death notice and a photo of her headstone. The latter is interesting on a number of counts – the version of the spelling of her Christian name and the incorrectly stated age (all other evidence points to her birth in Co Armagh in 1832). Most interestingly she died and is buried on the Greenfield property and the headstone (no doubt erected by her sons by Henry, William Henry and George Hutchinson) makes no reference to her second marriage. Henry whom she married within 6 months of her arrival in 1854 died in 1872. In 1877 she married George Brewster, a man 14 years her junior. The wedding took place in the home she had shared with her late husband. She outlived George too – he died in 1890, she in 1919. What a life for a simple farmer’s daughter from rural Ireland including seeing out the Great War! One can only admire the bravery of those intrepid sisters as they set out from home all those years ago. There is a great short bio of Henry and Lettitia attached to my ancestry.com.au tree. I can’t attach it to this email (my limited iPad skills) but when I get home to Melbourne from my holiday in Spain on 15 March I can send it to you if necessary. Cheers for now and thanks again Michael.

Ireland’s Memorial Records for the Great War are now available online. A search for Poyntzpass returns 13 results http://imr.inflandersfields.be/index.html

Very interesting talk last Thursday by young Alexander Cupples, who studied archaeology at Queens University. Alex told us about the early medieval archaeology in Aghaderg Parish, covering the period 400AD to 1200AD. A note of thanks was made by John Lennon from Ballyvarley. John presented on a similar subject in the first ever edition of “Before I Forget”.

Next Talk is on Thursday 9th January at 8pm in the Meeting Place Poyntzpass. Hopefully see you all there.