Gen 5: Bernard Banks (1828-1858) and Catherine Burns (1833-1908)
Father’s Maternal Great Grandparents, Steele County, Minnesota
Catherine Burns, wife of Bernard Banks and mother of Margaret Banks was the grandmother of Mary Hughes. Her parents were Edward “Jack” Byrne and Margaret Mulvaney. A newspaper honored Catherine with an article celebrating her life. The editor noted that she was highly respected for her incredible strength, faith in God and resolute determination in the face of one tragedy after another. The accompanying news article provides some insight into the pioneer spirit required to survive in the wilderness of southern Minnesota. The following is taken verbatim from the newspaper.
“Speaking of early pioneers, their courage and tenacity, one must include the life story of Catherine Banks. This remarkable woman was born in Kilcullen, County Kildare, Ireland, in 1834 and died near Hartland at the home of her daughter, Mrs. M. Fitzgerald, June 8, 1907 at the age of 73 years.”
“She came to this country at the age of seven. When she was 15, she was married at Lockport NY. Arriving in Berlin Township, Steele County, MN from New York State, with her husband and three small children in the spring of 1857, she was the second white woman to take up residence in this primitive wilderness. She was then 20.”
“During the first winter the first of a chain of tragedies struck this courageous woman. Her husband had gone to Geneva with oxen and sleigh to pick up a load of provisions. Late that evening the team came home without a driver. Mrs. Banks hastily put the oxen into the rude barn and set out to retrace their trail on foot. Half a mile from the home she found the frozen body of her mate. Miles from any human habitation, to her fell the duties of priest and sexton. After the first frantic efforts to restore life to the frozen beloved form, she spent several days in fervent prayer.”
“She then assumed the duties imposed upon her, conducted the funeral service and lowered the precious clay into a grave dug with her own hands. Taking up the scattered threads of family life again, she concentrated her efforts on providing for the children. As the years went by, she succeeded in accumulating considerable land and developing a fine farm. Then death came again and claimed one of the children.”
“But this was not the end of misfortune for Catherine Banks. The climax of the tragedies was reached when her son, now a promising young man of about 20, mysteriously disappeared. He had started out one day with a team of horses to work in the field. Later the horses were found, tied to a grub root by the roadside. No clue had been left as to the young man’s fate. No one had seen him leave the country, nor was his body ever found. Nothing was ever heard of him again. Mrs. Banks spent the last three years of her life with her daughter, Mrs. Fitzgerald, who resided three miles west of Hartland (MN). She died of a heart attack there.”
Catherine Burns born in Ireland and widowed at age 25 in rural Minnesota lived the life of a single mother for another half century. Her three children Bridget, Margaret and Edward were ages 6, 3 and 1 respectively when their father, Bernard Banks, died. Discrepancies arise when weighing family lore with historical accounts and can often be dismissed as minor and inconsequential. In this case, father had listened to an account of Bernard’s tragic last day as beginning with a journey to New Ulm. The article indicates Bernard was traveling to Geneva MN. New Ulm was a 150-mile round trip journey; Geneva was a 20-mile round trip at best.
A second feature of father’s account includes the startling disclosure that Bernard was keenly aware that his life was on the line that day. Unable to proceed, bound by snow and freezing to death, Bernard had to kill his horse, disembowel it and crawl inside the carcass to try and maintain body heat for survival. His efforts failed. Pinpoint Doppler Radar in 1858 may have caused Bernard to wait another day. Per family lore he died a hero trying to bring food supplies to his starving village.
Catherine carried on in his absence and faced the tragedies outlined in the newspaper. Drama included Indian uprisings in Minnesota during the Civil War. Citizens were removed from village homes by state militia and secured in a fort for weeks. Bernard Banks was the son of John Banks who also migrated from Ireland and settled in Chicago. That completes all that we know about the paternal history of Margaret Banks.
Pedigree Chart 3: The Irish Roots
Chart 3 depicts the marriage of Mary Ann Hughes (to the left) and Lebanon Smith. Beneath Leb are their four children. Mary’s paternal lineage quickly runs out with Edward Hughes in McHenry County, Illinois. Her grandmother, Catherine Burns, leads us into ancient Irish history. JB Hughes and Margaret Banks were the first generation of our Irish born in the United States.
