The Gallaghers of Ballinrobe

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ANN GALLAGHER
1921-2003
Aunt Ann was a private woman with a sharp
intelligence and fierce loyalty to her family.
She was born Jan. 21, 1921, the second-to-last
child of Pat and Mary Gallagher in Cornaroya, Ballinrobe.
Her mother would have been about 43 years old at the time.
The family would soon go into mourning after the death of
the first-born son, Michael, from tuberculosis that March.
Our grandparents’ last child, Mary, was born about 13
months after Aunt Ann.
The older sibling closest in age to Aunt Ann
would have been Uncle Owen, who was then about 4 years
old. Uncle Tom was the next youngest, but he would have
been 6 at the time. Later in their lives, Uncle Tom and Aunt
Ann would develop as close a relationship as any in the
family. They lived together in Delaware, first with Aunt
Delia’s family, then with Uncle Jim in a house at 611 N.
Broom St. and finally by themselves at 41 E. Champlain
Ave. in Middleboro Crest Manor, Richardson Park.
Aunt Delia’s daughter, Patsy DeAscanis, who
cared for Aunt Ann in her later years as her health failed,
said she thought the connection between her aunt and uncle
was due in large part to the nature of Uncle Tom, who
could bring out the best in those he knew. “I don’t know,
but I think Aunt Ann’s relationship with Uncle Tom just
came from his sense of dignity and propriety,” she said. “It
was just the marvelousness of the man that everybody
seemed to bask in. … He was just exceptional in a lot of
ways.”
Aunt Ann herself was exceptional in many ways,
including her sense of justice, sense of precision and how
she would look out for those she cared for. She was a fierce
defender of all things Gallagher, and beware the man or
woman who spoke out against the family. She was ahead of
her time as a single woman in the workplace and handling
finances.
Maybe it was some of those characteristics that
led to one surprise for her brother Uncle Jim. He once
showed a picture of Ann and her sister Mary from when
they were young in Ireland to his son Owen and asked
which was prettier. Uncle Jim must have expected the
obvious answer to be Mary; in the photo she has a broad,
friendly smile compared to Ann’s tight-lipped expression
Aunt Ann, right, and Aunt Mary were the two youngest
of the children of Pat and Mary Gallagher. Ann was the
last of her generation to move to America, following
Uncle Jim by a few months in 1949. Her life was marked
by a strong independence and a devotion to her brother
Tom.
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