Mary Gillen

Some students were first generation Americans.

Mary Gillen

Born: ca. 1852
Race: White
Ethnicity: Irish (both parents born in Ireland)
Student in 1860 through 1870

Mary Gillen was born in 1852 to parents, John and Mary, who emigrated from Ireland to the United States. The family is not recorded as living in Pocopson Township by the 1850 Census, so we aren’t sure what year they emigrated. In 1860 when Mary began school, she had three younger siblings; her father, John, was a farmer who owned real estate valued at $4200. By the 1870 Census, Mary Gillen, now aged 16, had two new siblings too young for school. That year, she and her three school-aged siblings attended Locust Grove School. The 1870 Census reports that Mary’s father, John, now owned real estate valued at $17,000. Mary attended the Locust Grove School until April 1870. Mary was an above average student. In her early years, her progress outpaced her conduct, but as she matured, she achieved best marks in both conduct and progress.