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James O'Keefe1860

James O'Keefe 1860

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I'm looking to receive and share information about my dad's paternal grandfather and his family.  James O'Keefe (earlier spellings include O'Keeffe and Keeffe) was born in Mahoonagh Parish, Co. Limerick, probably in 1860, and died in Montreal, Quebec, Canada in 1929.  His brother Patrick (1863-1899) was baptized in Mahoonagh Parish in April 1863; their parents were James O'Keeffe (1830-1878) and Ellen Reidy (1834-1905), who married in Ballingary in Nov. 1859 and were living in Walshestown at the time of their deaths.

Unlike most Irish emigrants, who left primarily for economic reasons, my great-grandfather and his future wife came to North America in order to marry, or at least that's the family story.  James arrived in Montreal probably in or around 1880; his wife-to-be, Johanna (Hannah) O'Connor (1863-1933) of Kerry (?) came over in July 1882.  They married in Montreal in April 1883.  The profile picture (I'm sorry it's so small) shows James and Hannah and their first two children in 1885.  The baby is my grandfather, James Henry O'Keefe (1885-1950). 

Great-grandfather James began working in Canada as a laborer. Then, like many Irish in North America, he joined the police force and worked his way up through the ranks of the Montreal Police Department, becoming a detective.  His obituary in 1929 refers to him as an inspector.

Thanks in advance to anyone who can tell me something about this branch of the O'Keeffes, and please let me know if you have any questions that I might be able to answer.
 

Additional Information
Date of Birth 1st Jan 1860 (circa)
Date of Death 2nd Dec 1929

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