July 25, 2010:

I am a descendant of Johanna Hickey, widow (possibly of John Hickey) who 
came to Ennismore, Peterborough County Ontario, with the Peter Robinson 
Settlers in 1825. In the 1830's or 40's, Johanna's oldest son, John and his 
wife, Bridgit Hennessey (dau. of (Nancy) Anne Carroll and Thomas Hennessey 
also Peter Robinson settlers, went to Pennsylvania, USA, first for a couple 
of years, then settled in Buffalo, Erie Co. NY, USA.
I am descended through their son, William Francis Hickey.
Am interested in contacting any other Hickeys with connections to these and 
to Mallow, Co. Cork, Ireland.

Elsie Hickey Wilson
ehwilson@charter.net
____________________________________

Hi, Al,
Thanks so much for getting back to me! Yes, I am familiar with the books 
about the Peterborough settlement, including Carol Bennett's. I have quite 
a lot on my Hickey's, Hennessey's and Flaherty's etc. as they were around 
that area. I noticed the posting at your sight by a William Hickey who is 
descended from John Hickey of Peterborough and was hoping to connect with 
him. His posting was in 2004, but it gave no way to contact him.
Since my family and his probably are very closely related, I was hoping to 
find out more from him.
We are still a bit in the "mystery" stages as to Johanna's husband. It 
"appears" (without proof) that he was named John.
Betty Flaherty, another Hickey/Flaherty researcher thought he was a Maurice 
John Hickey, but that turned out to be another person who came later after 
the 1823 and 1825 bunch.
Back in the Mallow/Doneraile area of Co. Cork, Ireland, there was a sort of 
"notorious" John Hickey who was involved in a
Whiteboys action that resulted in him being hanged in 1823. This would have 
been about when Johanna's husband died, calculating from the birth of 
little Michael, her youngest child. This fellow was a very interesting 
chap. According to the English, he would have been an outlaw, a criminal, 
but to the Irish, he would have been a patriotic hero.
It happens that John Hickey was a gardener at Carker Lodge, next to Carker 
House and across from Carker Beg (field). The owner of Carker Lodge seemst 
to have turned out some tenants unable to pay rent (same old story!) and 
the Whiteboys decided to burn Carker Lodge. In the attack on Carker Lodge, 
John Hickey had a gun and it went off in his hand, in which he lost several 
fingers....literally caught "red-handed". One newspaper account states that 
in a house to house search, John was found in his cottage with the injured 
hand. He was brought to trial and hanged across the road from the burned 
Carker Lodge in the field Carker Beg in April of 1823.
We have absolutely no proof that Johanna's husband was this John Hickey, 
but since her first son is named John and the dates are right it could be. 
I have not found any other John Hickey's (or other Hickey males that died 
about that time in the Mallow area. It would also make it a good idea to 
get Johanna and her teen age sons out of the area before they could be 
involved in such activity.
Johanna is spoken for in references regarding her being a good person and 
to come to Peterborough etc. with the settlers by a manor owner in the 
Mallow area and by the parish priest of Kilworth. She travels with an older 
son of James and Mary Flaherty, James, Jr. (who later marries someone else, 
so that was not the reason to be with her), probably to help her and the 
children. Because of the close relationship with the Flahertys before and 
after coming to Canada, and the Kilworth reference (Flaherty's are from 
Kilworth) we believe she is closely related to the Flahertys and possibly 
their daughter.
Thanks for the offer on adding a web page. I'm sort of in the process of 
doing that. My husband, a retired math prof. and computer engineer, is 
helping with that.
Do you have any contact information for the William Hickey who posted on 
your site regarding Johanna and her family?

Thanks so much,
Elsie Hickey Wilson