Discovering the True Story of Mary Shirley McGuire
My Dad’s maternal line climbs the tree from, Ballard, Coats, then Elizabeth McGuire, the daughter of Thomas, the son of William and Mary.
An Early Source of Confusion
Mary’s niece, Mary Shirley-Daily, daughter of Charles (Charlie) was 97 years old when she passed down the family story to an unknown granddaughter. The granddaughter published it in an unknown Kentucky history newspaper in 1897, “…hoping some member of the family may confirm its accuracy.” 1
Over a hundred years later, “some member of the family”—me, found the answers, uncovered new information, and untangled the confusion. I also learned the complete story of why and how Mary became a POW during the American Revolutionary War.
The Story Contained 5 Statements:
- The name Shirley was spelled by our ancestors “Shawnee.” (No)
- My great-great-grandfather as a native of Spain and his wife, Katie Franz or Frants or France, was a native of Paris, France. (No)
- They saw each other whilst he was marching; fell in love and were married at Washington City, when it was a fort. (Not the correct name and not D.C)
- He was a lieutenant in the Continental army. He had been sent for supplies at the time of Gen. Wayne’s defeat or possibly would have been captured with the rest of that army. (No)
- He was killed by the Indians at Station Camp, Kentucky. They lived at Boonesboro [sic]. (16 miles south of)
1. The source was Sandi Gorin found here: Scroll down to find. https://www.shirleyassociation.com/NewShirleySite/NonMembers/UnitedStates/Lineages/Michaelbranch30.html
Note: Much of the Shirley Association’s information about Michael Shirley is incorrect because the original poster trusted the family story without researching.
Have you found errors in your family tree stories?
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