Sheelin

Based on a true story of two young women from rural Ireland in the late 1800s. They lived near Lough Sheelin, and this story is based on Newspaper reports at the time. Both women wanted to 'better their prospects' one by marriage and the other by emigration. Life was hard in Ireland at this time, poverty was rife and prospects were bleak. Mary Jane married a Roman Catholic and was consequently shunned by her family, so she elected to emigrate to Connecticut with her alcoholic new husband. They tried to start a new life, but soon the alcoholism took its toll and both were regularly arrested and jailed (despite having 6 kids along the way). Very soon the American dream became a nightmare with bleak prospects to escape from the vicious cycle of drink, fighting and incarceration. Her cousin Elizabeth tried a different tactic, eloping with a rich (much older) local Gent who became estranged from his first wife. Despite objections from her Doctor father, they 'lived in sin' in Rural Donegal until his first wife died. However, Elizabeth got dumped on Grafton Street, the day before the wedding, with her prospective husband developing cold feet and disappearing off to England. She was distraught, but tracked him down to reconcile. Elizabeth persuaded her new husband Thomas to alter his will in her favour, however soon his children discover this and a literal 'battle of wills' ensued. Her father was then forced to flee the country at the age of 64 along with the rest of his family to Australia to escape the ordeal and shame. Elizabeth remained.