person page - 1417

Ralph son of Joseph & Mary Dearnaly of Tintwistle Born Feb^y 1^st Baptized March 16^th 1817.

from a letter from Ralph's great-grandaughter:
"Great Grandfather was born in England. In a little book I found with the log of his voyage there was his name & the following address, Vale Mills, Tintwistle, Cheshire."

This is probably Ralph's workplace; Vale House Mill (a.k.a. Vale Mill) in Tintwistle - MED.

Ralph Dearnaley's log of the voyage from England to America

     April 7th. 1848
Out of the dock about one o’clock and anchor in the channel.
They examined the passengers and found 21 that had got into the holds
and amongst them 2 women. They tarred there faces and sent them
back on the tug steamer.

     8th. When we got up we where out of sight of Liverpool. The wind
was much in our way and we made good sail. About 2 o’clock
Samuel, Ruth and then Betty was sick all at once. We got tea and put
them to bed. Another passenger found in the holds. They made him pump
water and wash the deck. We was all waking in the night by the heaving
of the ship and the cans and boxes riling about

     9th. Got up at 6 o'clock was in sight of the Irish coast made
breakfast, the three standing in bed till we got dinner. Ruth and Sam
was better but Betty would eat nothing. The wind was low going at the
rate of 5 miles an hour. I had intended writing down every days
particulars but I found it a task more than I could complete. The
weather began to be very stormy on Sunday night neather Longbotton nor
myself could bear up till Wednesday.

     12th. We none of us got anything to eat till I made us some gruel
on this day, Wednesday morning from Sunday night we was all five very
sick indeed. They brought a dead child up from below and threw it over
board, a birth stillborn, this morning before daylight. I got the
three on deck in the afternoon. Betty and Ruth are a little better but
Samuel continues very bad in fact they have none of them any help for
themselves.

     13th. The sea still continues very rough. I made tea to breakfast
and got them up on deck till we cleaned our berth but Samuel can neither
eat nor drink he is by far the worse even worse than a child. I cannot
describe to you the wet dirty crowded miserable holds of the ship.
I expect scores falling victims to desease and death before we reach
New York. We have 500 on board chiefly Irish. The crew cannot make
them clean themselves. It was very fine afternoon and we all slept
well tonight.

     14th. There is a brisk wind making 10 or 12 miles per hour. Sam
is very ill today stayed in bed all day. The girls are sick at times.
They can't get on deck today it was very wet. We have got brisket for
the first time today.

     15th. It is a wet day. They never get out. It becomes quite calm
about 3 hours in the middle of the day rather stormy at night. The
three are rather better. One of the sailors got drunk last night the
captain made him go up to the top of the main mast from ten to ten
o'clock.

     16th A cold stormy day. The three never went out. Sam I can't
get to stir. I could not get to cook anything till night. I boiled
some water for tea.

     17th. It is quite calm and rained all day. I got the three on
deck in the morning for an hour. They came down on account of the wet.
The girls are a deal better but Sam is so stupid he will neither move
nor eat like others. I have no time to spare for cleaning and cooking.

     18th. Very calm. _______ dancing on all parts of the ship. We
see 2 whales during the day. We have now past by 6 ships that are
going the same way. The first mate says that we are about 1/3 of the voyage.
We are all very well at present.

     19th. Very calm going very slow we are all well and comfortable.
There are 7 ships in sight this morning. 5 Irishmen put in limbo for
fighting.

     20th. We have a brisk wind making 10 or 12 miles per hour but the
wind is too much a head of us we are all well except Ruth she has a
bad head eake.

     21st. Good Friday we got 7 Ibs. of good flour each or meal or
India meal but we have chosen flour. We have past within l/2 mile
the ship named Richard Alsop, that set out from Liverpool on the 28th
March, 10 days before us. We go past every ship we come in sight of
us with ease. We have undoughtedly the best sailing ship on the line.

     22nd. I called the doctor in to see Ruth this morning. He has
not given her anything but ordered her on deck as much as posible and
if no better, he will give her medicine. I got them up on deck twice
during the day but it was rather stormy it blew the water over. They
are obliged to come down sooner than I had intended. I have met with
several parties on board that has been in America and have come over
for there families they recommend differant parts of the country but
I have not fixed where to go first as yet.

     23rd. Been a very rough night and is very rough this morning.
Ruth is rather better but as I cannot get them out on account of the
weather. There is two in the fever in the bottom already and some
say if it was not stormy it would be very hot and that would be worse
tor the ship. The first mate has sounded and found a bottom. We
have reached what they call the banks. We are supposed to be 1100
miles from New York.

     24th. Been a very rough night and is the roughest day we have
had. The sea breaks over the ship and some times leaves scores without
a dry thread that are aware of it it is evidant by the countenance
of experianced heads that our fate is rather alarming but very little
is said. We greatly see the necessity of a good ship. The worst for
us is that our room is made opposite the hatch way where all the
pasengers go up and down. The Irish go scrambling like criples on all
fours up and down the ladder with there pans full of stir abouts and all
sorts of nast and ten to one on such a day as this but they come tumbling
down to our door. We made a serious error when we engaged with the
clerk at Liverpool. He showed us where he would put us if he could
if not he would make us a room so and so and when we got out of the
dock he plainly told us he would put us where he liked and did so. We
had a serious row when he removed us but we could not help it. Any one
that comes should leave it out of there power of iffs and buts or the
scamps will take every advantage of them. He charged as much as [£?]14
each the day we started out for room next to us. If they have there
berth distinctly marked I told them they can apply to authorities for
rights but there was iffs in our engagement. We are all pretty well
thank God but the wind is greatly against us and we make very poor way
towards our jorney’s end in fact we have had very little fair wind and
our passage as yet is considered very rough for the time of the year.
It continued so till about 12 o’clock P.M.

     25th. It is calm and fine and what wind there is is against us
so that we are going very slow. We are all very well and all pretty
good apetites. I fry ham and boil potatoes for dinner and we relish
them very well I assure you with a few pickles which is very valuable
on board. We are the worst off for something to drink. They allow
2 quarts of water in staid of 3 though 3 was in the certificate but
they say the yankeys are not wither that if they can run off a bargain
to there advantage they will. Some of the passengers buy porter off
the steward of the ship. They give 2sh^ss per bottle which holds a
pint. We pas by another ship going the same way as us. The wind
rises about 9 o’clock and was very strong till 3. We seem to be going
very fast but we have to keep alternately tacking the ship on account
of the wind being ahead of us we have never had more than 2 days fair
wind since we started.

     26th. We have given 2 more ships the go by this morning. The
captain has only hoisted his flag to one of them since we set out. He
conslderes them below his dignity. It must be agravating to pasengers
on board them.to see us pas them so quick. We see scores and I believe
hundreds of sea pigs coming towards us this morning in all directions.
We are all pretty well in health. We pas by 3 more ships tonight going
the same way.

     27th. Very fine but cold. We have a fair wind but low. We are
going very steady about 6 miles per hour. There is all sorts of mirth
on some parts of the ship and fighting on other parts. There are 4
Irish men put in irons for fighting. We are all well except Ruth, she
has the tooth heach.

     28th. We have a fair wind going at a good rate. It is fine but
cold. The ship is very steady. We see plenty of porpoise or sea pigs.
Samuel is laying in bed sulky at his breakfast. I have made tea &
coffee, herrings & eggs but he wants something else so he goes without.
He will not get that indulgence from me. It is a difficult job to boil
water. Mostly Ruth is almost as bad. She has not been up these two days.
Longbotten has difered with them and is for having nothing more
to do with them and such stupidness he says he will write back and
expose them in his letters. We are all well and might be comfortable
but for this stupidness. Longbotton has sent the boatman down to make
them get up so they are obliged to make a move. We have got 7 lbs. of
flour each today. All on the uper deck look healthy and all sorts of
meryment going on.

     29th. Fine and calm going very slow. It is warm this morning.
The wind turns rather against us. We are all well. We have to watch
in our turns. There has been several roberies comitted of ham and
potatoes and I expect the great part of the Irish are getting short
of provisions.

     30th. We have a strong wind ahead of us this morning so that we
are not making much way to our destination. We are all very well and
we have boild some ham and dumplings for Sunday dinner which is very
good. There is a child died next door of an inflammation. They
bury it at 12 tonight. The mother takes it very hard. She is going
over to see her parents. There has been a birth in the first cabin
still born.

     May 1st. We are going nicely this morning supposed to be 500 miles
from New York. The weather is fine but cold. We are all well. There
has been a fight betwixt an Irish & English man over the cooking.
The 1 & 2 mates makes them room and lets them fight it out. The son of
Erin gets the worst of it. They put them both in Irons 4 hours after.
It becomes quite calm this afternoon till night.

     2nd. It is a fine morning and a fair steady wind. We are all very
well. We see 2 whales this morning. We are in sight of 4 ships at
long distance. I have got very intimate with many on board getting
every information but has not fixed on any place to set down as yet.
It is the best day we have had for sailing since we started. It is my
watch to night as I said we have to watch our luggage. There has been
several roberies.

     3rd. Very misty but fair wind. We are all well and most of the
pasengers looks very cheerful and anxious. The preparation on board
indicates not far from shore but unfortunately it is very misty. They
have reefed some sails and are going slower and keeping a sharp look out
for either pilot or light house. The wind drops and there is a dense
fog all day and night. They send up some fire rockets at dark.

     4th. The fog still continues up to 10 o'clock when the wind gets
up and we go on. We are in sight of 4 ships. We are all well except
some of us a slight cold. The wind drops again at 2 o’clock and I
cannot see that we are going at all. There is and old man dies at
11 o’clock to night. There is six of his family with him. He is 89
years of age.

     5th. It is a fine morning and the wind in our favour. We are all
pretty well. The old man is buried this morning at 8 o'clock in the
Catholick style as he was an Irish man of respectability. 2 of his
daughters was in the first cabin. There is a large whale on the other
side of the ship the same time the old man whent over board. There are
2 ships in sight this morning and 6 small ships during the day. We have
a fair wind but low. They throw up rockets at night but no pilot
appears.

     6th. We saw land in the morning but unfortunately it was very
misty but very fine and warm. The sight of land brought most of them
pasengers out of there holds. The sun broke out and about 12 o'clock
we get a pilot and a steam tug. We was about 26 miles from New York.
It was the most beautiful sight ever I saw, the coast and the buildings
is past my describing. We got into the dock at New York about 8 o’clock
The doctor came on board and whent through the examinations. He past
them all but 6 and them whent to the hospital. We saw a great many
ships lying in quarentine 2 miles from New York. One of' the sailors
whent over board but they got him again. We came off and left our
luggage on board and got lodging at the place where Barbers of Padfield
had been. We was oblidged to get over 6 vessels to get to shore.

     7th. Sunday We got breakfast and dinner. We enjoyed it very
well but they charged us 3 dollars. I thought best to go on
board again to save expenses as we got refreshed and had plenty of
provision left. Longbotton and myself whent to see his unkle. He
promised me a reccomend to a friend of his at Newburgh 76 miles from
New York a cotton manufacturer. We came back and whent on board and
Longbotton got on spree with a sailor. They got drunk with brandy
that cost about 2s per quart.

     8th. Monday The ship begun to be a bustle with packing up. The
custom house officer came onboard about 9 o’clock. I employed 2 men
to help me with our boxes. It was one of the hardest jobs I ever
had. We had to get them over 6 ships and some of the decks was 3 or 4
yards higher than others. We had the heavy boxes to lift over. Long-
botton had the greedy fit on him with being drunk the night before
he would not employ any help and he lost his tub with a quantity of cloth
he said 5 pounds worth.

Many thanks to the Buckmaster family for sending us this fascinating account.

****************
Ancestry indexes this entry as:
     Ship Name: Constitution
     Port of Departure: Liverpool, England
     Port of Arrival: New York, New York
     Arrival Date:      8 May 1848
Ralph Longbottom     25     Lab^r
Ralph Dineraly           25     Lab^r
Betty Dineraly           24
Ruth Dineraly           20
Saml Dineraly           16     Lab^r
FamilySearch shows the same but indexed as "Dinersly'
part of original ship's manifest.

M.I. (from photo)
Ralph Dearnaley, 1818-1894
His Wife Mary 1829-1884
see findagrave.com.

from a letter from Ralph's great-grandaughter:
"On the MacAllister side, they had several daughters and one son named John who never married. Two older Aunts, Dad can't remember their names. One had a daughter named Agate, I remember hearing of her. The other one didn't marry..."
"I think the rest of the family goes in this order John MacAllister, Charlotte (our grandmother, Alice who married Herbert Freeman, Eleanor, the beauty with the auburn hair who became a doctor, she never married, Laura, became a nurse and she never married & Annie who also never married. I remember Aunt Alice and little Aunt Annie."

from another family letter:
"John MacAllister was their father and he fought on the Union side during the Civil War. He was born in Glasgow, Scotland. He was a Scotch Catholic and he was married to Nancy Hughes who was born in NY state, probably either in Orange or Dutchess County. "

"I believe John was wounded in the battle of Chancellorville May 2 or 3, 1863. He served with the 1^st National Defenders." - family member.

"Nancy Hughes was a Quaker. John was a Roman Catholic. All the older children, born prior to the Civil War, were christened in the Catholic faith. After John returned from the war, he attended St. Patrick's Church in Newburgh. He took exception to something the priest said and was bodily thrown out of the church. He went home and told Nancy she could bring up the children any way she wanted to, he was never going back to that church. Perhaps that is why they became of the Episcopal faith." - EDM (family member.)

"He went to an upstate NY Old Soldiers Home and was buried there I believe." - family member.

'Born Sept.1, 1900; John Arthur [son of] Alfred & Agnes Dearnley; abode 146 Regent Terrace, Deighton; occupation Weaver'
Christ Church Woodhouse Baptisms 1901.

Believed to be the John A Dearnley found in the 1924 Enfield, Connecticut, City Directory.