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James Kenney

Male 1836 - 1915  (79 years)

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  • Name James Kenney 
    Birth 1836  England Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Gender Male 
    Occupation Carpenter 
    Death 2 Feb 1915  O'Hare Twp, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania Find all individuals with events at this location 
    • Kidney Failure
    Death Certificate of James Kenney (1837-1915)
    Death Certificate of James Kenney (1837-1915)
    Burial Calvary Cemetery, Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Notes 
    • James Kenney was a mid-Victorian immigrant who put his carpentry skills to use building the mills and row-houses of industrial Pittsburgh. He and Mary Ann Shearn raised a large North-Side family whose sons and daughters rode the crest of the city’s steel-age prosperity, even as James himself slipped in and out of the Allegheny County Workhouse. His 1915 death closed a life that—while hardly polished—mirrors the gritty realities and modest aspirations of countless 19th-century laborers who turned Pittsburgh from river junction to “Workshop of the World."
    • 1870 census, Pittsburgh,PA "James Kenny" -
    • 1871 - Sentenced to 20 days in the Workhouse for 'disorderly conduct', served 1 day. Occupation, Planer, born England.
    • 1874 - Pittsburgh,PA City Directory - "Kenney, James, carpenter, Scott, 21st Ward"
    • 1880 census, Pittsburgh,PA "James Kinney" - parents born in Ireland
    • 1890 - Sentenced to 60 days in the Alleghany County Workhouse for 'keeping a disorderly house' - served 4 days. Record notes 8 children living, occupation: Carpenter, both parents were living when he was 16 years old, 13 years old when left school.
    • 1907 - Sentenced to 6 months in the Alleghany County Workhouse for 'Indecent Exposure' - served 44 days. Record notes 6 living children, occupation: Carpenter (5'7"; weighted 160lbs during discharge)
    • Dec1914 - Entered the Workhouse according to his death certificate and died there 1 month and 6 days later.
    Person ID I39426  OurNorthernRoots | Rebecca's Ancestor
    Last Modified 16 Aug 2026 

    Family Mary Ann Shearn,   b. Dec 1844, Ireland Find all individuals with events at this locationd. 13 Oct 1909, Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania Find all individuals with events at this location (Age ~ 64 years) 
    Marriage ca 1861 
    • From Patricia Doyle (1998) "supposedly met on board the ship that brought them to the states,they went to the Cleveland, Ohio area for awhile, then moved to Pittsburgh, Pa.She was born in Ireland, possibly Londonderry"
    Children 
    >1. Alice Kenney,   b. 4 Mar 1864, Cincinnati, Hamilton County, Ohio Find all individuals with events at this locationd. 9 May 1902, Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania Find all individuals with events at this location (Age 38 years)
    +2. James Colin Kenney,   b. 20 Jul 1866, Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania Find all individuals with events at this locationd. 3 Apr 1927, Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania Find all individuals with events at this location (Age 60 years)
    +3. Frank Henry Kenney,   b. 15 Aug 1868, Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania Find all individuals with events at this locationd. 10 Jun 1946, Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania Find all individuals with events at this location (Age 77 years)
    >4. William J. Kenney,   b. 10 Oct 1870, Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania Find all individuals with events at this locationd. 21 Oct 1961, Hampton, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania Find all individuals with events at this location (Age 91 years)
    >5. Catherine Kenney,   b. 13 May 1873, Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania Find all individuals with events at this location
    >6. Ida Emma Kenney,   b. 1 Oct 1876, Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania Find all individuals with events at this locationd. 21 Mar 1919, Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania Find all individuals with events at this location (Age 42 years)
     7. Robert Charles Kenney,   b. 23 Sep 1877, Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania Find all individuals with events at this location
    >8. Celia Kenney,   b. 7 Jan 1880, Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania Find all individuals with events at this location
    Family ID F13993  Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
    Last Modified 17 Oct 2020 

  • Event Map
    Link to Google MapsBirth - 1836 - England Link to Google Earth
    Link to Google MapsDeath - 2 Feb 1915 - O'Hare Twp, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania Link to Google Earth
    Link to Google MapsBurial - - Calvary Cemetery, Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania Link to Google Earth
     = Link to Google Earth 
    Pin Legend  : Address       : Location       : City/Town       : County/Shire       : State/Province       : Country       : Not Set