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The Blennerhassett Challenge
The Blennerhassett Challenge
by Mark Humphrys
humphrysfamilytree.com/challenge.html
Open genealogy competition launched May 2008,
to tackle genealogy problem unsolved since 1985.
Keywords - "Hard problems in genealogy",
"Unsolved problems in genealogy",
"Genealogy competitions".
There is one epic problem in all of my family trees
- the Blennerhassett problem.
For
23 years
I have been searching for the link of the Cashel family
with the Blennerhassett family.
I have gathered circumstantial evidence, but have yet to prove the link.
So I have decided to throw this open to the world
as
The Blennerhassett Challenge.
I invite anybody
who wants to tackle
a hard problem in genealogy to have a go at this.
This competition is open to both
amateur and professional genealogists.
I offer a
Reward of € 1000
for the first person to solve this problem.
If you are a professional genealogist, I also offer
4.2 million views of your ad
by family tree enthusiasts for free, for five years. Details below.
23 years
so far I have spent trying to extract the Blennerhassett descent
implied in the notes of my grand-aunt
Pat Lavelle
above,
but the Blennerhassett descent remains unproven.
Note above that Pat gives credence to an
offhand remark
that our Blennerhassett ancestor
"must have been"
the daughter of the famous
Sir Rowland Blennerhassett, 1st Baronet
(who Pat erroneously writes as "Ronald").
No evidence was provided for this remark,
and I do not take it seriously.
Rewards
- 1st prize:
I offer a
Reward of € 1000
for the first person who solves this problem
(i.e. finding the link of the Cashel family
with the Blennerhassett family).
I will pay by cheque
or by PayPal
or any other way you prefer.
Pat Almond
will top up the prize money
with
an extra 500 Canadian dollars
to the winner!
So using
current exchange rates,
1st prize is now about
€ 1,300
=
£ 1,050
=
$ 2,050
|
- Kudos and publicity:
I plan to get some publicity for this.
I have already had considerable
media coverage
of my genealogy work
(in
Nature, The Atlantic Monthly,
The Wall Street Journal,
The Washington Post, Newsweek, Forbes,
Wired,
The Boston Globe,
USA Today
and
The Irish Times,
and on
National Public Radio, CBS News, ABC News, MSNBC, Fox News, CTV
and the
Australian Broadcasting Corporation).
I am confident that I can get the Blennerhassett Challenge
covered by the media also.
Amateur and professional genealogists alike,
this is a chance to
demonstrate your prowess
by cracking a hard problem in genealogy.
There are few if any comparable competitions in which to
demonstrate your skill.
Whoever cracks the problem
will be celebrated
on my popular (90,000 page views per month)
genealogy website indefinitely
(for as long as the site exists).
- Millions of free ads:
If you are a professional genealogist,
I can offer something further.
As well as the money and the kudos,
I will give you
A free large ad at the top of every single one of my web pages for 5 years.
I have around 1,100 pages
which get
around 70,000 page views per month.
That's
4.2 million views of your ad
by family tree enthusiasts for free.
Note that this would be the same exposure as
over 1 month on the front page of the Irish Times every day,
except my readers are mostly genealogy enthusiasts
rather than just anyone.
No other ads will be displayed on my website other than yours.
The ad will of course link to your site.
The ad placement will mention that you won the Blennerhassett Challenge.
You may change the ad regularly over the course of the 5 years.
|
My site is now running at 90,000 page views per month.
So the projection is now
5.4 million views of your ad
over five years.
|
- Interim prizes:
I offer
Multiple rewards of € 100
for important interim contributions to this problem,
short of solving it
(i.e. short of finding the link of the Cashel family
with the Blennerhassett family).
I will pay by cheque
or by PayPal
or any other way you prefer.
Interim reward winners will also be celebrated on my website.
Terms and Conditions
-
1st prize:
The 1st prize will be awarded to the
first person who solves the problem - i.e. finds
the link of the Cashel family with the Blennerhassett family.
To be precise, the winner needs to prove, step by step,
the exact family relationship of
George Cashel
to
the 3 Arthur Blennerhassetts
that are discussed below.
The competition will end when the 1st prize is awarded.
Joint or simultaneous contributors will share the prize.
I will need to see your sources and verify your work
before I pay out.
My decision as to whether you have solved the problem or not will be final.
- If the line is disproved:
If our Blennerhassett line turns out not to be connected to
the 3 Arthur Blennerhassetts discussed below,
then no one will win the 1st prize.
However:
- Any construction of another Blennerhassett ancestry for our line
will win interim prizes.
- I will offer
a
Reward of € 500
for a definite proof that we are not connected to
the 3 Arthur Blennerhassetts.
Again, I will need to see your sources and verify your work
before I pay out.
My decision as to whether you have achieved the above will be final.
-
Millions of free ads:
The ad size, design and text should fit in with my site and will be subject to my final approval.
There may be a handful of pages on which an ad is not appropriate.
My decision will be final as to what these
pages are.
The figure of 4.2 million views is based on current traffic.
No absolute guarantee can be made as to future number of views
other than an undertaking to display the ad for 5 years.
-
Interim prizes:
My decision will be final on whether a contribution merits an interim reward.
I will need to see your sources and verify your work
before I pay out.
- General:
I will not accept responsibility for expenses incurred by competitors.
The sole rewards in this competition are as detailed above.
There will be no other rewards or payments.
I reserve the right to amend these terms and conditions at any time
at my discretion.
If any amendments are made they will be
highlighted
on this page.
I reserve the right to end this competition at any future date
if the problem is not solved.
Competitors must agree to these terms and conditions.
OK, now you are hopefully interested,
here is a description of the problem.
It is a problem in late 18th - early 19th century Irish genealogy, both Catholic and Protestant,
probably in Co.Kerry.
Summary:
- Our family descend from
George Cashel
(George Blennerhassett Cashel, born about 1807, Co.Kerry, Catholic).
- George Cashel's mother was said to be
Letitia Blennerhassett,
of the prominent Protestant Co.Kerry family of Blennerhassett.
She was said to be
disinherited for running away with a Catholic,
Edward Cashel.
"Her family disowned her but the Cashels all thought it very romantic."
Note that while George Cashel's name is certain,
his parents' names should be regarded as not certain.
-
The Blennerhassetts have a fantastic family tree,
including a Royal Descent,
which is why I am so interested in finding out if our Cashels
descend from them.
- When George Cashel joined the County Constabulary
(which later became the RIC)
in 1828
he was recommended by "A. Blennerhassett, J.P.".
This must be a relation of his,
and must be one of
these 3 Arthur Blennerhassetts,
all of whom are related to each other.
- The challenge is to find the link of the Cashel family with the Blennerhassett family.
That is, what is the exact relationship of George Cashel
to those 3 Arthur Blennerhassetts?
Read these first!
George Cashel's RIC record.
Showing that he was recommended by
"A. Blennerhassett, J.P."
when he joined the County Constabulary in 1828.
See full size.
George Blennerhassett Cashel's middle name
displayed on mar cert of his son
Blennerhassett Cashel in 1869.
See larger
and full size.
Detail from grave of George Cashel's son
Blennerhassett Cashel.
Unfortunately, he neglected to write down exactly why he was called Blennerhassett,
thus leaving it as a challenge for his descendants.
This brief note
in the BLENNERHASSETT entry in
[Burkes Irish, 1976]
by Brian Fitzelle
first made me realise in 1985
that my Blennerhassett line might connect to the World family tree.
Good luck!
If you are having a go at this challenge, good luck!
I will be delighted to pay out if you solve it.
And don't forget the interim prizes discussed above.
If you are having a try at this, feel free to let me know.
I will be happy to answer any questions that I can to help you.
I will help competitors as much as I can.
And you don't have to commit to any lengthy period of research.
You can just dip in and out.
For
€1000
why not give it an afternoon and see if you get anywhere?
Why not keep the Blennerhassett Challenge in mind
every time you visit a library or archive?
I'll give
€1000
to whoever cracks this,
even if it only took them 10 minutes.
Good luck!
Dr. Mark Humphrys,
Lecturer,
Dublin City University,
Ireland.
How to contact me.
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