A discussion of the possibility that Walter Bowles of Clonmel may be the same person as Walter Croker Boles of the Thomas Boles family of Cork.
We have a baptism at Castletownroche, co. Cork:
17 July 1751 Walter Croker Bolles, son of Jonathan Bolles ref.
and a baptism in Clonmel, co. Tipperary:
Feb. 21, 1781 BOWLES, Walter, son of Walter & Mary, Clonmell ref.
We
know the first entry to be for Walter Boles the son of 3.3.1 Jonathan
Boles of Tallow, co. Waterford in the
Thomas Boles of Cork
Family Tree who had a son Walter. This is based on deed
memorial #182052 for a lease of land by Jonathan Boles of Tallow in 1770
which specifies that the term of the lease is for the length of the
lives of his children Walter, Elizabeth and Martha. Other references in
the Castletownroche registry have an Elizabeth Bolls baptized in 1749
with parents Jonathan and Mary Bolls and a Martha Boles baptized in 1756
with parents Jonathan and Jane Boles. Tallow is quite close to
Castletownroche.
In Clonmel we have several references for a Walter Bowles, painter and glazer, in Clonmel from 1833 and we can then trace that family right to modern times. It's very likely that this would be the one baptized there in 1781. 52 is not an unlikely age for a tradesman.
Several
family trees found on the Internet identify this Walter Croker Boles of
Tallow as the father of the Walter Boles baptized at Clonmel in 1781 but
without specifying any sources for this conclusion. It might just
be an assumption based on his being about the right age, not too far
away from Clonmel and there being no sign of any other Walter Boles in
this area at the time.
The given name Walter is almost unheard of in the early Bowles family references in Ireland. I have not found any other reference for a Walter Bowles prior to this anywhere in Ireland other than the above entry which provides some support for this theory.
It is entirely possible but it would be nice to have some proof. One problem with this would be that Walter Croker Boles was born in 1751 while there was a Mrs. Walter Bowles in Clonmel who would have been born about 1735 based on her claimed age at her death. It's possible that they were 16 years apart in age but unlikely or that her age at death was a guess by whoever wrote the entry in the parish record which was out by 10 years or more. It wouldn't be the worst estimate of age that we have found in burial records in Ireland. It's also unlikely that the eldest son of a landowner in Cork would have become a painter/glazer but family rifts did occur. In fact such a rift would be quite likely if Walter married a Catholic and there is another memorial in the same cemetery for a family of Boles in Clonmel which we know to have been Catholic.
At this point we need more proof.