Background & Early Life
In 2014, my cousin Michael
McDermott asked me, "Whatever happened to Mrs. Butterworth?"
He was referring to his aunt, who had returned to America, leaving her young
son behind in Ireland to be raised by her parents.
Mary McDermott was born in
Ballycoskery, County Cork, on February 26, 1865, and was baptized in Ballyhea
on March 5, 1865. Her godparents were Mary Roche and David Lynch.
Castlewrixon
House and Travel to America
In 1894, Mary’s brother
David and his wife Nora purchased Castlewrixon House, a large property in
County Cork. They furnished the home with works of art and furniture
transported from London via boat, train, and horse-drawn wagon. David moved his
family—including his sisters, Mary (age 29) and Catherine (age 24)—from the
townland of Ballycoskery in the Ballyhoura Mountains to a smaller house on the
new property.
It appears Mary and
Catherine traveled to the United States shortly after. They boarded the Cephalonia
at Queenstown and arrived in Boston on May 20, 1894.[1]
From there, they traveled west to California, where Mary likely met and married
James Henry Butterworth, a stained glass maker.
Evidence
from Sister Catherine's Travels
·
Visit to Westfield: In 1895, Catherine returned to
Ireland, stopping in Westfield, Massachusetts, to visit their brother John. A
local newspaper noted that John had not seen Catherine in six years. This
suggests Mary and Catherine did not stop in Westfield during their initial
arrival in Boston in 1894. Their last meeting with John would have been when he
left Ireland prior to his November 1888 marriage in Westfield.[2]
· Family Stories: Two family stories support this timeline:
1. Catherine surprised John
by knocking on his door posing as a Singer sewing machine salesperson. When
John declined and closed the door, she knocked again and asked if he would buy
one from his sister.
2. The kitchen clock at
Castlewrixon House—which still hung on the wall as of 2014—was purchased by
Catherine in America and brought home for the family.
·
Confirmation of California: Newspaper reports
confirming Catherine was visiting from California further support that Mary was
living there as a married woman during this period.
The
Birth of Peter Butterworth & Travel Back to the US
Mary returned to Ireland
aboard the Campania from New York, arriving in Queenstown on May 27,
1898.[3]
Her son, Peter James Butterworth, was born shortly after at Castlewrixon on
July 23, 1898. The birth record lists his father as James Butterworth of San
Francisco, US America, a stained glass maker.
Following the birth of her
son, immigration records confirm that Mary returned to the US at least twice:
1.
Departure on July 27, 1899 (Wiesland)
Mary departed Queenstown
on the Wiesland and arrived in Philadelphia on August 6, 1899. The
passenger log records:[4]
"Mary Butterworth, 35, Irish, Married, husband in
California, heard from him 2 months ago. Has been in the U.S. Before, 9 years,
one year ago heard from husband regularly, father paid for her passage, husband
did not have money enough as he did not have steady work to send for her and
father helped her out, she is 6 years married, has no children, bound to Mr.
Thos. Clarke."
A note attached to the record clarifies that Thomas Clarke
was contacted at the landing station. He stated that his sister (who arrived on
the same ship) was a friend of Mary's, and that he was willing to host Mary
until she could earn enough money to travel to California.
·
Timeline Analysis: Mary's statements on this manifest are somewhat
unreliable—most notably her claim that she had "no children," despite
having given birth to Peter a year prior. While her statements imply she had
been in the US since 1890 and married around 1893, the timeline suggests she
and James more likely met and married between 1894 and 1897.
·
1900 Census: It is unclear how long she stayed with the Clarke family,
but Mary likely found work as a servant. She may be the Mary Butterworth listed
in the 1900 Census as living with the Anderson family in Sharon Hill,
Pennsylvania.[5]
2.
Departure in April 1906 (Celtic)
Mary returned to Ireland
at some point before crossing back to the US again. She arrived in New York
aboard the Celtic on April 16, 1906, alongside her younger brother,
Richard. This trip was paid for by her brother John in Westfield.
James
Butterworth & Business Troubles in San Francisco
While searching for James
Butterworth in San Francisco, records reveal a stained glass company named T.
C. Butterworth, owned by Thomas C. Butterworth. Thomas was the son of James
and Sarah Butterworth and had two brothers: John and James. Newspaper archives
mention Thomas’s stained glass installations, as well as an 1895 robbery at the
business where a safe was blown open and $500 plus jewelry were stolen.
In November 1900, Thomas
C. Butterworth filed a petition for insolvency in the US District Court,
listing liabilities of $17,761.28 against assets of $11,818.40. Given Mary's
statement in 1899 that she had not heard regularly from her husband since 1898 due
to work issues, this insolvency filing may mark the culmination of the
business's financial troubles.[6]
Deaths
of James and Mary (1909)
It is unknown whether Mary
and James ever reunited after the birth of their son. However, both passed away
within months of each other in 1909.
Death of
James H. Butterworth
James passed away in San
Francisco on February 5, 1909. His obituary reads:
"BUTTERWORTH – In this city, February 5, 1909, at his
late residence, 850 Treat avenue, James H. Butterworth, beloved son of the late
James and Sarah Butterworth, and brother of Mrs. F. Sanderson and Thomas C.
Butterworth, and the late John W. Butterworth, a native of San Francisco, Cal.,
aged 41 years 2 months and 23 days. Mass will be celebrated for the repose of
his soul tomorrow (Monday), February 8, 1909, at 9 o'clock a.m. at St Peter's
church, Alabama street between Twenty-fourth and Twenty-fifth. Interment
private.”[7]
Funeral records list the expenses charged to his brother,
Thomas C. Butterworth. A letter attached from Thomas, dated December 19, 1910,
states he had moved to Monterey, California, and would pay once his house in
San Francisco sold. The record makes no mention of a surviving widow or son.[8]
Death of
Mary Butterworth
Mary passed away in August
1909. Newspaper notices record:
"Mrs Mary Butterworth of New York City, who was
spending the summer at Barryville, NY, died at the latter place at eight
o'clock Wednesday morning. The remains will be taken in New York City today by
Undertaker C. I. Terwillinger & Son."[9]
"The funeral of Mrs Mary Butterworth, who died in Barryville, Pa., will be held tomorrow afternoon in St. Mary's church. Mrs Butterworth was a sister of Police Officer John McDermott. She died yesterday. Mr. and Mrs McDermott brought the body from Barryville late last night. She leaves, besides Mr. McDermott, her parents, several brothers and a son 12 years of age. The burial will be in St Mary's cemetery."[10]
[1] The
National Archives in Washington, DC; Washington, DC; Series Title: Passenger
Lists of Vessels Arriving At Boston, Massachusetts, 1891-1943; NAI Number:
4319742; Record Group Title: Records of the Immigration and Naturalization
Service, 1787-2004; Record Group Number: 85; Series Number: T843; NARA Roll
Number: 010
[3] UK
and Ireland, Incoming Passenger Lists, 1878-1960 The National Archives in
Washington, DC; London, England, UK; Board of Trade: Commercial and Statistical
Department and Successors: Inwards Passenger Lists; Class: Bt26; Piece: 131;
Item: 64
[4] Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Immigration Records, Special Boards of Inquiry, 1893-1909
[5] Year: 1900; Census Place: Sharon Hill, Delaware, Pennsylvania; Roll: 1405; Page: 4B; Enumeration District: 0166; FHL microfilm: 1241405
[6] San Francisco Call, Volume 87, number 174, 21 November 1900
[7] San Francisco Call, Volume 105, Number 69, 7 February 1909
[8] San
Francisco, California, United States records," images, FamilySearch
(https://
www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HT-DZD8-RM?view=fullText : Jul 23, 2026), image 344 of 378; San Francisco Public Library. History Department. Image Group Number: 004192906
[9] The Evening Gazette, Port Jervis, NY Thursday, August 19, 1909
[10] Springfield Republican, August 21, 1909, page 10
Copyright Kathleen Sullivan 2026 All rights reserved
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