California Connections

Helena (O'Sullivan) (Councilman) Mueller (1852-1895)

What I've learned about the short life of my great-great aunt, Helena O'Sullivan.

Fact 1: Helena was baptized in October 1852 at Bantry, County Cork

Helena was baptized at Bantry, County Cork, Ireland in October 1852.  The clipping below is from a church register page, Bantry, Diocese of Cork & Ross at the website Irish Genealogy, which has many baptisms and marriages from County Cork and County Kerry.   These counties were not included in the pay-per-view site RootsIreland and since most of my Irish ancestry is from these two counties I had pretty much given up on finding records on line.  Thanks to a collaboration between the Diocese of Kerry, the Diocese of Cork & Ross and the Irish government, there are nearly 3 million records now available at this website.

I found Helena's baptism listed as Ellen, of Jeremiah Sullen and Honora Daly, (sponsors) John McCarthy and Ellen Harrington.  The names Helena, Helen, Ellen and Nellie are often used interchangeably by the Irish.  Helena used Helen and Ellen, but I haven't found any record of her using Nellie.

Bantry Parish Register

The church in Bantry is St Finbarr's, shown on a postcard from 1905 at left.  This church was built in 1825 and looks much the same today, shown below.



St Finbarr's, Bantry, County Cork












Fact 2: Helena moved from Massachusetts to California around 1868 



Daily Alta California, September 1, 1886

This was determined from an article in the Daily Alta California dated September1, 1886 (left).  The article states that she "came to this State (California) from Massachusetts eighteen years ago."  which would have been approximately 1868.  Her aunt and uncle (William and Mary Anne (Dealy) Haggerty) also moved to California some time between October 1866, when their son William Richard was born in Boston, and August 17, 1870, when they were counted in the census in San Francisco.  Helena may have made the journey with them.

Fact 3: Helena was a servant living in California on the 1870 census

1870 Census

In the 1870 Census Ellen O'Sullivan was living as a domestic servant with H and Rosa Newbaur, and their six month old son Julian.  H. Newbaur was born in Bohemia and was a manufacturer of matches.  His wife Rosa was born in Hamburg.  Both of the men Helena eventually married were German.

Fact 4: Helena married George Councilman in San Francisco in 1873

Helena married her first husband, George Councilman, on February 2, 1873 in San Francisco, California.  I found this out from the marriage notice below in the Sacramento Daily Union.

Sacramento Daily Union, February 8, 1873

I'll have more on Helena next week.  I haven't found any her living descendants yet although I believe there may be some descendants of her son George living in California.


Copyright 2012 Kathleen Sullivan. All Rights Reserved