Thomas and Mary Tracy Foy (Hunt) and Their Five Children

From The Surnames of Ireland by Edward MacLysaght, Barnes & Noble, Inc., 1969.

From Irish Names and Surnames by Rev. Patrick Woulfe, Dublin,1923. Reprinted by Genealogical Publishing Co. in 1967, 1969, 1993.

Thomas was born in County Mayo, north Connacht, Ireland, sometime around the year 1795 or 1800. He married Mary Tracy (based on daughter Margaret's death certificate) sometime before the year 1820 and lived on a farm in the townland of Derreennascooba in County Mayo, which is situated on a hillside in the Partry Mountains, just south of Killavally (also called Killawala) and eight miles south of Castlebar, the county seat of Mayo.

They say that the name Foy comes from the ancient Irish word for raven and has been anglicized as Hunt. In the 1833 Tithe Applotment for the Parish of Ballintubber, Page 20, the name of the lessor of the Foy farm is given as Thos. Hunt. The farm at that time consisted of 589 acres owned by George H. Moore.

Thomas and Mary had at least five children born 22 years apart in Derreennascooba. Four children emigrated to Chicago, and one stayed on the farm in Derreennascooba. Of the four Foys who emigrated, two married in Ireland and then emigrated. The other two emigrated while still single and married later. All five had children. Two had spouses who died young, and they remarried.

• Dominick Foy, born in 1820, married Anne Walsh in 1843, emigrated in 1849, married Mary Breen in 1850, married Ellen Graham in 1856.
• Bridget Foy, born in 1825, married Thomas O'Malley, emigrated in 1871.
• Thomas Foy, born in 1830, emigrated in 1850, married Mary Higgins in 1855.
• John Foy, born in 1836, married Bridget Gibbons in 1858, stayed in Derreennascooba.
• Margaret Foy, born in 1842, emigrated in 1863, married Thomas Tracey in 1866, married Cornelius Conway in 1869.

Dominick Foy

Derreennascooba, 1820-1849. Dominick Foy was born in 1820 and married Anne Walsh in Kiltarsaghaun on February 21, 1843. Witnesses were Thomas Walsh and Mary Foy.

Dominick and Anne had two children born in Ireland: Patrick Foy in 1847 and John Foy in 1848. Patrick died young because he did not appear in the 1850 U.S. census.

Nunda, 1849-1853. Dominick was the first of the four Foys to immigrate. He immigrated around 1849 at age 29 with his wife, Anne Walsh, and their one-year old baby, John. The U.S. flag had 30 stars, the most recent one being for Wisconsin. The President was Zachary Taylor. Dominick and Nancy settled initially in Nunda, which is in Western New York State. Two construction projects were underway at that time: the 100-mile Genesee Valley Canal connecting the Erie Canal with the Allegheny River, and the Erie Railroad connecting New York City with Buffalo.

Dominick could not read or write in the 1850 census, but he could do both in the 1900 census.

Anne Walsh Foy died in 1850, and Dominick married Mary Breen. They had one child in New York, Mary Foy (1851-1911).

Chicago, Near North Side, 1853-1871. Sometime between 1851 and 1856, Mary Breen died, and Dominick married Ellen Graham (1830-1900). They had three children, all born in Chicago: Bridget Foy Rowland (1857-1936), Margaret Foy Kane (1859-1910), and Thomas Foy (1862-1907). The 1866-70 Chicago directories show Dominick living in Holy Name parish on the Near North Side of Chicago at 56 Ohio Street (377 W. Ohio Street after 1909) in Chicago and working as a laborer. This area was in the path of the Chicago Fire that started at 9:30 p.m. on October 9, 1871, on the Near West Side, just north of where Dominick's brother Thomas lived, and spread north and east. By 7 a.m. the next morning the fire reached the Near North Side where Dominick and his family lived. Holy Name cathedral was destroyed. During the nine months that followed, the Relief and Aid Society provided assistance to virtually half the population of Chicago.

Chicago, Bridgeport, 1871-1901. Sometime around 1871, probably as a result of the Chicago Fire, Dominick, Ellen, and their four younger children moved four miles south to St. Bridget's parish in the Bridgeport section of Chicago. This area had not been affected by the Chicago Fire. There they purchased a one-story house at 216 Main Street (2925 S. Throop Street after 1909). The house is still there.

Ellen died in 1900 and Dominick in 1901. Both are buried at Calvary Cemetery in a plot purchased in 1867 by Dominick’s brother Thomas (Section D, Block 6, Lot 28).

Death Certificate-Ellen     Death Certificate-Dominick     Cemetery Record

Chicago Daily News Obituary, January 8, 1900
FOY—HELEN (nee Graham), beloved wife of Dominick Foy, at her residence, 2925 Main-st. Funeral Tuesday, at 9:30 a. m., to St. Bridget’s church, where high mass will be celebrated, thence by carriages to Calvary.

Chicago Daily News Obituary, December 26, 1901
FOY—DOMINICK, beloved husband of the late Ellen Foy, father of John, Thomas, Mary, Mrs. Rowland and Mrs. Kane. Funeral Friday, at 9 a. m., from his residence, 2925 Throop-st. (formerly Main-st.), to St. Bridget’s church, where high mass will be celebrated, thence by carriage to Calvary.

One of Dominick and Anne Walsh Foy's great great grandchildren, John Foy Coverdale, would become a Professor of Law at Seton Hall University in New Jersey, and a lay member of Opus Dei. One of Dominick and Ellen Graham Foy's great great grandchildren, Rev. John P. Minogue, C.M., would become President of DePaul University from 1993 to 2004.

Home of Dominick and Ellen Graham Foy, a one-story house in the Bridgeport section of Chicago at 216 Main Street (2925 S. Throop Street after 1909). Photo in 2000.

Margaret "Maggie" Foy Kane 1859-1910, daughter of Dominick and Ellen Graham Foy, married Patrick Kane 1864-1892.

Children of Patrick and Maggie Foy Kane: John, Joseph, and Helen Kane. Helen Kane 1888-1976 married Rufus Minogue 1885-1935, and they are grandparents of Father Minogue (right).

Rev. John P. Minogue, C.M., president of DePaul University from 1993 to 2004. Great great grandson of Dominick and Ellen Graham Foy.

Thomas Foy

Chicago, Near North Side, 1850-1861. Thomas was the second of the four Foys to immigrate to America, arriving around 1850. He was age 20 and single. The U.S. flag had 30 stars, the most recent one being for Wisconsin. The President was Zachary Taylor.

In 1855, Thomas married Mary Higgins (1833-1907), who had been born in Ireland and immigrated to Chicago in 1851. Thomas and Mary had two children: John Foy (1857- ) and Thomas Foy (1859-1876) before moving to Sycamore, Illinois. The 1860 census shows Thomas and his family living on the Near North Side in Holy Name parish in Chicago's 7th Ward. The 7th Ward at that time was bounded by Fullerton on the north, LaSalle on the east, and the Chicago River on the south and west.

Thomas could not read or write, but Mary could.

Sycamore, Illinois, 1861-1864. In 1860 or 1861, Thomas and Mary moved to Sycamore, Illinois, 70 miles west of Chicago. There they had two more children, James Aloysius Foy (1862-1943) and Patrick Foy (1863-1931).

Chicago, Near West Side, 1864-1878. In 1864, Thomas and Mary moved to 17 O'Brien Street (620 W. O'Brien Street after 1909) on the Near West Side of Chicago, just south of 12th Street, west of Jefferson Street and the Chicago River, where Thomas worked as an ostler (groom). They were in Holy Family parish. The church was at 1080 West 12th Street (now Roosevelt Road). The church was built from 1857 to 1874.

O'Leary house, after the Chicago Fire.

Lars Dalstrom, great grandson of Thomas and Mary Higgins Foy, relates that Thomas and Mary were friends of Patrick and Catherine “Kate” O’Leary. The O’Learys were fellow parishioners at Holy Family parish and lived only a few blocks north. The O’Learys had five children, the oldest a girl, age 14. They lived in the rear of the small house at 137 DeKoven Street (558 W. DeKoven Street after 1909), just north of 12th Street and east of Jefferson Street. The house was on the north side of the street. There was a barn in back where the family operated a neighborhood milk business with six cows, a horse, a wagon, a harness, two tons of coal, and two tons of hay. The barn was lost to the fire on Sunday night, October 9, 1871. But the wind spread the fire north and east, saving the house and the O'Learys. Kate O’Leary testified before a board of Chicago police and fire commissioners that she and her family were asleep in bed when the fire struck around 9 p.m. There was a widespread rumor that Mrs. O'Leary's cow kicked over a lantern and started the fire, but the board was unable to conclude what caused the Chicago Fire.

Thomas and Mary had the last four of their eight children while living on O'Brien Street: Stephen F. Foy (1869-1942), Mary A. “Mayme” Foy (1873-1857), and Catherine Ann “Kate” Foy (1877-1951).

The 1877 Chicago city directory shows an Edwin Foy living with the Foys. This is believed to be the famous vaudevillian Eddie Foy who, according to an August 24, 1935 Chicago Daily News article, shortened his name to Foy from Fitzgerald based on his association with the Thomas and Mary Higgins Foy family. See How Eddie Foy Got His Name.

Dawson, Iowa, 1878-1900. Around 1878, Thomas and Mary Higgins Foy moved to a farm in Dawson, Iowa, 370 miles west of Chicago and 45 miles northwest of Des Moines. All except their two oldest children went with them.

Chicago, Bridgeport, 1900-1902. In 1900, after 22 years in Iowa, they returned to Chicago and lived in Bridgeport at 3602 S. Union Avenue. Their son, John D. Foy, however, had married and stayed in Iowa with his family.

1152 Wesley Avenue, Oak Park, 2000.

Oak Park, 1902-1903. Later Thomas and Mary Higgins Foy and their grown children, Stephen, Mayme, and Kate, moved to St. Luke's parish in River Forest. Their address was 1152 Wesley Avenue in Oak Park.

Thomas died in 1903 and Mary in 1907. Both are buried in a plot at Calvary Cemetery that Thomas had purchased in 1867 for the burial of his sister Margaret’s husband (Section D, Block 6, Lot 28).

Cemetery Record

Chicago Daily News Obituary, September 24, 1903
FOY—Thomas, aged 73 years, beloved husband of Mary Foy (nee Higgins), native of Castle Bar, County Mayo, Ireland; father of the late John and Thomas Foy, James, P. J., J. D., S. F. and Mary and Katy Foy. Funeral from residence, 1152 Wesley-av., near 12th-st., Oak Park, Ill., Friday, Sept. 25, 9 o’clock sharp, to St. Luke’s church at River Forest, thence C. & N. W. R, R. to Calvary.

Chicago Daily News Obituary, August 24, 1907
FOY—Mrs. Mary Foy (nee Higgins), aged 74 years, beloved wife of the late Thomas Foy, mother of James, Patrick, John, Stephen, Mary, Catherine and the late John and Thomas Foy; native of County Mayo, Ireland. Funeral from residence, 1152 S. Wesley-av., near 12th-st., Oak Park, Ill., Monday, Aug. 26, at 10 a. m., to Ascension church, thence by carriages to Calvary.

In 1907, Ascension parish was carved out of St. Luke's parish to serve the south section of Oak Park.

Bessie Foy, 52. Photo from 1922 passport.

Frances Foy, 31. Photo from 1922 passport.

Gus Dalstrom and Frances Foy 1923 wedding photo.

"Advent of the Pioneers, 1851"  Mural 15' x 5' painted in 1938 by Frances Foy, second cousin of Emily Foy Biggins. In East Lobby of Chicago Main Post Office, 433 W. Harrison Street. Commissioned by U.S. Department of Treasury, Section of Fine Arts, for the Chestnut Street Post Office, where it hung opposite a mural entitled "Great Indian Council, Chicago—1833" by Gustaf Dalstrom, husband of Frances Foy. Photo by Mikal J. Sutherlin, A/Communications Specialist, U.S. Postal Service, Chicago District. Large image.

One of the children of Thomas and Mary Higgins Foy was James Aloysius Foy. He married Bessie Nora Murray in 1889. They had five children, one of whom was Frances Foy. Frances, and her husband Gus Dalstrom, were well-known Chicago artists. In 1938, 31 years after the death of Mary Higgins Foy, Frances painted the mural pictured below under a commission by the U.S. Department of the Treasury, Section of Fine Arts. The mural is entitled "Advent of the Pioneers, 1851." Mary Higgins Foy immigrated to Chicago in 1851. The mural is 15'x5' and hangs at the east end of first floor of the Main Post Office at 433 W. Harrison Street in Chicago. See Mural in the the Chicago Main Post Office. It was originally hung in the Chestnut Street Post Office in Chicago. The October 10, 1943 edition of the Chicago Tribune contains a nice article about Frances Foy and Gus Dalstrom entitled "Art, Marriage Double Ties for North Side Pair."

Margaret Foy

Derreennascooba, 1842-1863. Margaret Foy was born in Derreennascooba in 1842.

Chicago, Near North Side, 1863-1914. Margaret was the third of the four Foys to emigrate to Chicago.

Around 1860, Margaret married Thomas Tracey in Irleand. In 1861 they had a daughter Mary in Ireland. In 1864 (based on Margaret's death certificate), the family emigrated to Chicago. In 1866-67 they had a son John in Chicago. Thomas Tracey died in 1867. Margaret’s brother Thomas Foy purchased a plot at Calvary Cemetery to bury her husband Thomas (Section D, Block 6, Lot 28).

Around 1869, Margaret married Cornelius Conway (1826-1891). Cornelius was born in Ireland, immigrated to Pennsylvania, married, and had at least four children in Pennsylvania from 1852 to 1863: Peter, James, Cornelius, and Anthony. In Chicago, Cornelius worked as a day laborer and an express man. In the 1870 census, Margaret and her family were living on the Near North Side in the 18th Ward of Chicago, which is bounded by the Chicago River on the west and south, by Division Street on the north, and by Franklin Street on the east. In the 1880 census and the 1890 voter rolls, they were living at 59 Erie Street (430 W. Erie Street after 1911).

Margaret and Cornelius could neither read nor write.

Margaret and Cornelius had three children: Mary Ann Conway LaVelle (1870-1918), Catherine Conway O'Brien (1872-1948), and Honora Conway (1879- ).

Margaret O'Brien Steinfels. Source: Fordham University.

In the 1880 census, and in 1891 when Cornelius died, they were living in Holy Name parish on the Near North Side of Chicago at 59 Erie Street (430 W. Erie Street after 1909).

In 1900 Margaret was living on the Near North Side a few short blocks north at 95 Townsend Street (825 N. Hudson Avenue after 1909 and a street name change).

In 1904, Margaret became a member of St. Dominic parish, which was carved out of Holy Name parish. In 1910, Margaret was living two blocks east at 355 W. Chicago Avenue. When Margaret died, she was living a block east at 876 N. Franklin Street.

Cornelius Conway died of bronchitis in 1891 and was buried at Calvary cemetery. Margaret died in 1914 and was buried at Calvary Cemetery in a lot purchased in 1867 by Evan T. Rees (Section B, Block 5, Lot 19). Also buried there are her daughter Mary Ann LaVelle and Mary Ann’s husband John, both of whom died in 1918.

Chicago Tribune Obituary, June 10, 1914
Margaret Conway, nee Foy, June 8, 1914, at her residence, 876 Franklin-st., beloved wife of the late Cornelius Conway, mother of Mrs. John LaVelle and Mrs. Edward O'Brien. Funeral Thursday at 9 a.m. to St. Dominic's church, where high mass will be celebrated, carriages to Calvary. Member of Holy Name court No. 10, W. C. O. F.

• Charles J. Pierce (1919-2000), would become Deputy Fire Commissioner of the City of Chicago in 1978.
• Margaret O'Brien, would become an author and be editor of Commonweal from 1988 to 2002. Her husband Peter Steinfels would become an author and be religion columnist for The New York Times from 1990 to 2009. Peggy and Peter also would be founding co-directors of the Fordham University Center on Religion and Culture in New York.

Three children of Thomas and Mary Foy Kerrigan: Mary, John, and Norah. The building in the background is the stone cottage with thatched roof where our Foy ancestors were born in Derreennascooba. Source: Charles Kerrigan.

John Foy

Derreennascooba, 1836-1918. John Foy was born in Derreennascooba in 1836 and married Bridget Gibbons in 1858. They remained on the Foy farm in Derreennascooba. John and Bridget had five children in Derreennascooba: Mary in 1860, Dominick in 1863, Patrick in 1866, Thomas in 1869, and Catherine in 1871.

Mary Foy married Anthony O'Malley. They lived on a farm in Killadeer, not far from Derreennascooba. They had six children, two of whom, Mary and Kate married Carr brothers and emigrated to Boston.

Dominick Foy emigrated to Philadelphia, married, and had eight children.

Patrick Foy stayed on the farm in Derreennascooba and married Mary Gibbons. They had one child, Mary "Maisie" Foy, who married Thomas Kerrigan in 1929. In 1918, Patrick replaced his father as tenant of the Foy farm. In 1939, Patrick became the owner of the farm. In 1970, ownership of the Foy farm was transferred to Thomas and Mary Foy Kerrigan. In 1880, ownership was transferred to their son, the late Thomas Joseph Kerrigan, who was married to Margaret Kelly.

A grandson of Thomas and Mary Foy Kerrigan, Thomas Brady, is a priest. Father Brady was ordained in the Archdiocese of Tuam in Killawalla in 1981 and is now the Chaplain to the Forces at Mellows Barracks in Renmore in the Diocese of Galway. Chaplains do not carry rank. Instead they are given the title "Chaplain to the Forces" (CF). Father Brady also is on the Vocations Team for the Diocese of Galway.

Bridget Foy

Ireland, 1820-1871. Bridget Foy was born in Derreennascooba in 1820 and married Thomas O'Malley in Co. Mayo. They had six children in Ireland: Mary O'Malley (b. 1840), Michael O'Malley, John O'Malley, Anne O'Malley (1852-1929), Margaret O'Malley, and Catherine O'Malley (1857-1930).

Chicago, Near North Side, 1871-1902. Bridget was the last of the four Foys to immigrate to Chicago. She immigrated in 1871, in the year of the Great Chicago Fire. The U.S. flag had 37 stars, the most recent one being for Nebraska. The President was Ulysses S. Grant. Bridget was age 46 when she came to Chicago, with husband and children. She had married Thomas O'Malley in Castlebar. Thomas was a laborer.

Bridget could read and write.

Thomas O'Malley died in 1890.

In 1900 census, Bridget lived a few short blocks north at 57 E. Superior Street (440 W. Superior Street after 1909), where she was running a boarding house.

Bridget Foy O'Malley died in 1902 at age 82.

Death Certificate     Cemetery Record - One     Cemetery Record - Two

Chicago Daily News Obituary, March 21, 1902
O’MALLEY—BRIDGET, at residence, 57 E. Superior-st., beloved mother of Michael, John, Annie, Marguerite and Kitty O’Malley; sister of Thomas Foy and the late Dominick Foy and Mrs. Conway. Funeral notice hereafter.

After Bridget's daughter Catherine died in 1930, The Little Sisters of the Poor sent Emily Foy Biggins the deed to the cemetery plot at Calvary where Catherine, her sisters, and her mother Bridget were buried. Emily was Catherine's first cousin, once removed. The Little Sisters of the Poor had an old people's home in the building next the the University Apartments on Sheffield Avenue, which the Biggins family built and where they lived.

Thomas and Mary Tracy Foy: 5 children, 28 grandchildren, 47 great grandchildren