The Cannons of Cooilshellagh

This week we made a trip--no, a pilgrimage--to the Isle of Man, which is a beautiful, self-governing island between England and Ireland in the Irish Sea. The reason for the trip is that my Grandma's family, the Cannons, originally came from the Isle of Man, and she's always wanted to visit. We had some fun experiences tracking down Cannon-related places, and this post is dedicated to everyone on the side of the family related to the Cannons. I'll include page references in the Cannon Family book for those who have a copy and want more information. (I'm including lots of details and pictures, so if you aren't related but still care, read the other IoM post--or risk boredom with this one.)

For me, the highlight was finding the Cannon ancestral home/farm Cooilshellagh, translated from the Manx language as Willow Nook. (see page 4) It wasn't easy to find, and I was glad I had done some research before we went or it might have been impossible. It was so exciting to see the farm where my ancestors lived and worked for many generations! Here are some photos of it. (The old stone barn was converted to holiday cottages, but any house once occupied by Cannon ancestors is long gone--see page 5.)

Near Cooilshellagh is the village of Kirk Michael where many of our ancestors are buried. The current church is too new to have been the actual building where our ancestors were christened or married, but the churchyard contains several graves of our ancestors. There was a very helpful man there who showed us around the church and let us examine parish records. I love this photo of actual sheep running between graves there.


We were also fortunate to have found the still-standing home of one of our ancestors, Captain George Cannon (father of the George Cannon who moved the family to America). He's not buried on the island because he died at sea, but we knew his house was still standing in Peel. We knew the street name from pre-trip research, but the SatNav didn't work on the island, and we had terrible maps. Thankfully we bumped into a local who personally escorted us to Orry Lane, where we saw his house. (see page 16)


At the entrance to Cooilshellagh is a plaque dedicated in 1990 by Elder George I. Cannon. It commemorates the 150th anniversary of the family's conversion to the gospel, which led them to join the LDS Church and emigrate to America. Read the plaque's inscription on page 81, and see the photo from September 1990 on page 82.