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At a barn raising bee on Saturday, June 27, 1857, James Donnelly and Farrell fought. There are various accounts of what transpired, but in the end Farrell suffered a blow to the head from a handspike thrown by Donnelly, and died two days later. James Donnelly then went into hiding.
On February 4,1880 the Donnelly farm was burned to the ground. The bodies of James, his beloved Johannah, son Tom and niece Bridget were in the ashes, the victims of a cruel and vicious mob. Another son lay dead in a separate murder the same night.
The family became involved in a series of personal and business disputes which frequently escalated to violence, culminating in the 1880 burning of the family home by an armed vigilante mob, resulting in the deaths of five family members. The following is a timeline of key events in the lives of the family.
Massacre. When thirteen year-old Johnny O’Connor went to the Donnelly homestead on February 3, 1880, his life would be forever changed. He was supposed to spend the night so that the next day he could “feed the pigs and things” when the Donnellys went to the nearby town of Granton.
The constables go to Thomas Ryder’s wedding to arrest the Donnellys for a variety of crimes. A riot ensues and shots are fired. The Donnellys escape and a group of townspeople go in search of them.
Apr 9, 2020 · The story of the Black Donnellys has become a fabled piece of Ontario history. The Donnelly family emigrated from Ireland to the township of Lucan Biddulph in the Ontario countryside. They found...
Oct 29, 2021 · The 1880 massacre that killed five Donnellys remains etched in the history of Lucan -- and Canadiana -- 140 years later. Little says his fascination with the story began as a child in the...
