RMS Titanic Book 2

Kate Connolly

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August 25th, 1870 - April 15th, 1912

She is a Virgo.

Kate Connolly was born on Meeting Street in Tipperary, Co Tipperary, Ireland to John Connolly (born 1849), a cutler, and Catherine Madden (born 1846), a shopkeeper, who had married around 1864. One of 6 children (2 of whom were lost in infancy), Kate's siblings were: Mary (April 9th, 1864), Margaret (December 23rd, 1865), John (March 24th, 1868), Edward Joseph (October 18th, 1873), and Richard (February 3rd, 1881). Her father died at their home at Bank Place, Co Tipperary on September 14th, 1892 and her mother never remarried.

Kate appears on the 1901 census, listed erroneously as a 24-year-old and residing with her widowed mother, still a shopkeeper, at Main Street, Tipperary town. Listed on the 1911 census at Main Street, Tipperary, Katie was described as a housekeeper whilst her mother was again described as a shopkeeper.

Aboard Titanic/April 14th-15th, 1912:
Kate boarded the RMS Titanic at Queenstown as a 3rd class passenger, her passage having been paid for by a cousin in New York, and whilst aboard she roomed with 2 other Tipperary girls, Catherine McCarthy and Katherine Peters. She was traveling to Dobb's Ferry, New York, hoping to gain employment to help her impoverished and aging family in Ireland. Maggie, a music teacher, was stricken with tuberculosis.

On the night of the sinking, Catherine McCarthy, the only surviving member of their group, recalled that Roger Tobin called by their cabin and told them to get up and dressed and to bring lifebelts but assured them there was no danger. McCarthy said that only she sensed any urgency and whilst she implored the other 2 girls to follow her, she ended up leaving alone and never saw the other 2 Kates again. Kate was lost in the sinking, her body, if recovered, was never identified. The presence of 2 women named Kate Connelly travelling in 3rd class initially caused confusion; Kate Connelly, from Co Cavan, was saved but an initial mix-up reported the Tipperary Kate to be among the rescued.

Kate's estate, worth £20, was administered to her mother on December 16th, 1912. Kate's family received £40 from a Relief Committee in England. The American Red Cross offered a sum equivalent to the price of Katie's ticket to her cousin living in America who paid it, who agreed that this money also should be sent to her relatives in Ireland. Her mother continued to live at Bank Place, Tipperary but her health declined a short while after. She died on February 5th, 1927. Margaret rallied for years to come and continued to work as a music teacher; she died in Bank Place on August 9th, 1934.

Sources:
www.encyclopedia-titanica.org

Rest In Peace Kate Connolly.