Kane family of Circleville, Ohio, USA

I am searching for information regarding the Kane family of Circleville, Ohio. This name is often spelled Kain, Cane, Cain, Keane and other variants. For the purposes of this message I will use the name Kane and not the other variant spellings. I have strong reason to believe that virtually all of the Kane branches of Circleville, Ohio originated in County Clare, Ireland.

My great great great grandfather was James Welch, born in County Kerry Ireland around 1831. He came to Circleville, Ohio around 1853 and eventually married a woman named Ellen Kane. I do not believe that they first settled in Circleville, but were initially married and had children elsewhere in Ohio (their second son Edward Welch was born in Fayette County, Ohio).There are many other Kanes in Circleville that appear during the lifetime of James Welch and Ellen Kane Welch, but I cannot connect them definitively. Therfore, I list them all here with the hope that someone out there may have more information.

In 1870, in Circleville, Ohio, USA, James Welch and Ellen Kane Welch (and their three children John, Edward and Mary) are neighbors to a Kane family. They are as follows: Michael Kane, 35 year old maleJohanna Kane, 60 year old femaleCatharine Malone, 32 year old female Patrick Malone, 5 year old maleMary E. Malone, 2 year old female Maggie Malone, 1 year old female Michael Kane’s fate is undetermined. He is a witness to affidavit’s in the pension file of James Welch as late at 1883-1884.

According to church records from St. Joseph’s Church in Circleville he may have married a woman named Margaret Heally 3 November 1865, witnessed by James Welch and Mary Kane. His ultimate fate is unknownJohannah Kane may be the mother for this family. It is possible that her spouse was named Jeremiah Kane. They both have been located in records from County Clare, Ireland. The ultimate fate of Jeremiah Kane is unknown. Catherine Malone was born Catharine Kane. She married Michael Malone around 1863. On 31 Oct 1876 she married a man in Circleville named John Lyons. Catharine Kane Malone died 1 March 1918 in Circleville, Ohio. Her obituary reads “Mrs. Catherine Lyons, mother of Patrick H. Malone, Sergeant-at-Arms of the Ohio Senate died March 1st at 10:30 p.m. Deceased was a native of Ireland, a daughter of Jeremiah and Johanah (Lennon) Kane; she has been a resident of Circleville since 1852; she was twice married, first to Michael Malone in 1863, to this union were born two children, Patrick H., and Mary E. Malone, who survive; in 1876 she was married to John Lyons.”

The obituary for Mary E. Malone indicates that Catharine Kane Malone and Michael Malone were both originally from County Clare Ireland. The obituary for Patrick Malone indicates that he is survived by “three cousins, Mrs. John Crawford, Circleville, Mrs. Alice Routt and James Pinnix, both Chillicothe.”Also living on this same block is David Sweeney and his wife Mary Kane. The obituary for Mary Kane Sweeney indicates that her parents were Jeremiah Kane and Johanna Leonard Kane. Their daughter Mary Elizabeth Sweeney married James Pinnix.This concludes general information of what is known about this one branch of the Kane family in Circleville, Ohio.

Another prominent Kane woman in Circleville was Honora Kane (or Elnora, Nora etc), widow of Timothy Kane. One of her obituaries reads as follows:“February 5, 1886 Democrat and Watchman (Circleville, Ohio newspaper) Mrs. Honoria Kane died at the residence of her daughter, Mrs. Patrick Lennon, East Main street, on Sunday morning, January 31st, aged 93 years.The deceased was born near Kilrush, County Clare, Ireland, in 1793, and emigrated to this country in 1853, permanently locating in this city.  She was a sufferer from paralysis for two years, and though she bore it with an edifying patience, the Angel of Death was to her a welcome visitor.  She had no dread of the mystic future, and closed her earthly career with the soothing hope of enjoying the beautific vision of her dear Redeemer in the Celestial Paradise.  She died fortified by the rites of the Catholic Church, receiving all the consolations of her holy faith.  May her soul rest in peace. She leaves several children and grandchildren to mourn their loss. Eighteen more of her longevity would reach back to Christ. The funeral services were held at St. Joseph’s Church, and were largely attended. Many friends of the family were present from Columbus.”

An entry from the book “Sketch of St. Josephs’ Parish” reads as follows: “Mrs. Timothy Kane was a widow, with seven children, when she came here, in 1845. She lived to be ninety-eight years of age and was a strong and vigorous woman until 1885, when she received a fall which caused her death, a year later. One of her daughters married Patrick Lennon, and another became the wife of Michael Noonan. A number of her descendants live in Circleville.”

The one daughter mentioned name Mary Kane did marry Michael Noonan around 1858. They had several children including John, Michael, William, Ella, Margaret, James, Mary, EdwardWhen Mary Kane Noonan died her obituary indicates “She was born in county Claire, Ireland.” Indicating a strong connection with the other aforementioned Kane family. This also indicates that Honora Kane, wife of Timothy Kane was from Clare. Michael Noonan was from County Limerick and his parents were Jeremiah Noonan and Anna Kane. Michael Noonan signed many affidavits in the pension file of James Welch, husband to Ellen Kane.When Margaret Kane Lennon (wife of Patrick Lennon) died, her obituary also makes mention of a connection to County Clare Ireland.

This obituary makes mention of her arriving in Circleville in 1850 and also notes that she is the last of her immediate family in 1905, when the obituary was published.Even though Honora Kane apparently arrived with 7 children (as indicated by her obituary) none of the others have been identified, if they survived at all. Another Kane in Circleville that is not linked to either of these families is Ann Kane. She married Christopher Connelly (or McConnelly) on 08 Nov 1868. It appears that this family eventually had about 12 children and settled in Kansas and Missouri. Their ultimate date and connection to the others listed here is unknown, but a connection is highly suspected.

Other Kanes appear in Circleville church records, but do not appear in census documentation. They are as follows:

1. Baptism, St. Joseph’s Church Circleville Ohio 28 July 1854 Jacobum Keane, son of Bernardi Keane and Catharina Keane with witnesses Jacobus Hughes and Margarita Camping

2. Baptism, St. Joseph’s Church Circleville 8 May 1864 Mary Cane, daughter of Danl and Winnef. Cane with witnesses Timothy Lynch and Mary Noonan (likely Mary Kane Noonan).Note that Daniel and Winnifred Kane can be found in Truro, Franklin County, Ohio in 1860 national census, but not found again. They are listed with Michael Cane, mother “Elnora” (could this be Honora Kane?), and children Margaret, Ann and John. Also listed is a John Welch, a five year old male.

In conclusion, I have never been able to determine how my great great great grandmother Ellen Kane Welch (born: 1834 in Ireland – died: 27 Feb 1879 Circleville, Ohio), is connected to the people that I have listed here. I haven’t listed all the reasons, but I have plenty of evidence that suggests that Ellen Kane Welch is connected to all of the people listed here. I post this information in hope that someone out there might have more information for me.

Please don’t hesitate to contact me with any questions of information. I am reachable here or on ancestry.com. A quick search or the web for James Welch or Ellen Kane Welch of Circleville, Ohio will reveal many posts. I look forward to hearing from anyone with further information.