Sarah Kavanagh

Sarah Kavanagh was born on 20 June 1896 in Tinahask, Arklow, the daughter of Thomas Kavanagh and Jane Murray.

1901 Census

At four years old, Sarah is recorded with her parents and siblings at Tinahask Lower.

1911 Census

A decade later, fourteen-year-old Sarah is still residing at Tinahask Street Lower, listed as a scholar alongside her parents and older brothers William, Thomas and Laurence.

Marriage to James McDonald

On 6 January 1918, Sarah's mother, Jane, passed away at the family home in Tinahask. Just ten days later, on 16 January 1918, Sarah married James McDonald, son of John, in Arklow. James and his father were fishermen.

The witnesses were Thomas Kavanagh, and Lizzie McDonald.

Children of James and Sarah

• John

• Thomas

• Mary

• Jane

Address History

Birth records and census returns map Sarah’s movements across Arklow’s residential and maritime quarters following her marriage to James McDonald. 

At the birth of her eldest son, John, in January 1918, the family was residing at The Warrens, a coastal residential zone near the mouth of the Avoca River.  

By July 1920, for the birth of her second son, Thomas, the household had moved to Lower Main Street, one of Arklow’s main commercial and residential thoroughfares.  

By May 1922, Sarah had established the family home at Proby's Row. She remained at this address through the birth of her daughters Mary and Jane, and is formally recorded there as head of household in the 1926 Census of Ireland. 

1926 Census

Sarah is recorded as Head of Household at House 14, Proby's Row, Arklow, County Wicklow.  She is recorded as having been married for 8 years, with 4 children born alive and 4 still living.  She is enumerated alongside her four young children:  John, Thomas, Mary McDonald and Mary Jane. The dwelling is described as an urban domestic building in Arklow (Schedule No. 119). Sarah personally signed the schedule as "Mrs Sarah McDonald".  

Sarah's husband James is not recorded at House 14, Proby's Row. As a sailor, James would frequently be away from Arklow on voyage. Census instructions mandated that individuals be enumerated strictly where they slept on the night of 18 April 1926.

When Thomas Kavanagh passed away at 4 Laffans Lane on 9 March 1949, it was Sarah’s eldest son, John - then residing at Probys Row - who registered his grandfather's death.

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