Murder in Culdaff: New book shines fresh light on shocking 19th-century crime

A new book attempts to shed some fresh light on the horrific 19th-century murder of a teenage girl in a farmhouse near Culdaff.

‘Finding Mary: The untold story of an Inishowen murder, 1844’ focuses on the shocking slaying of 14-year-old servant Mary Doherty, and how there was insufficient evidence to ever convict her suspected killer.

Written by Angela Byrne, the book is based on original research and it reconstructs the world of an Inishowen village on the eve of the Famine to explore the approaches to justice taken by the local community and agents of the State.

It also examines the survival of the murder in local folklore to reflect on memory, remembrance, and whose stories get to be told.

Author Angela is well-placed to retell the story. She’s originally from Donegal Town, but her family roots are in Bunagee, Culdaff, stretching back at least 250 years, and she has lived in Bunagee for many years.

She explains how she became drawn to write about what happened to Mary Doherty, and how her murder remains little-known more than 180 years on from her brutal death.

“I first came across the story of Mary's murder several years ago when I was browsing historic newspapers online. I was shocked and surprised to see a headline about a dreadful murder in Bunagee, Culdaff,” Angela explains.

“I soon found out by checking other historical records that it happened just a few hundred metres from where I was living. Initially, I was going to write an article or essay about Mary Doherty and her murder, but, as I dug deeper, so many intriguing details emerged about the case, the investigation and the court proceedings, that I realised the whole story needed to be told in a book.”

“Mary's name is only recorded in a few historical sources and it's not even known where she was buried. So little was known about her that I made it my mission to try to paint as complete a picture of her short life as I could,” she says.

Professional historian Angela – who is currently working with the Dictionary of Irish Biography, based in the Royal Irish Academy – has published widely on women's history, the Irish diaspora, and Donegal local history.

She feels her latest book provides a rare insight into the era, and highlights how people dealt with disputes and problems at a community level during pre-Famine times.

“The man who murdered Mary had stolen sheep from a neighbour the previous summer, but no official complaint was made, and the owner of the animals was compensated informally,” Angela explains.

“But when he became a murder suspect, the matter of the sheep-stealing was raised again to strengthen the case against him. It was interesting to unpick this chain of events.”

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She adds: “Another thing that comes through is the strength of community – everyone was appalled by what had happened and locals seem to have been keen to help with the investigation.”

“The landlord, George Young, of Culdaff, was very invested in trying to get the suspect convicted and had an important role in the investigation. Policing and investigation techniques were so different back then – there were no forensics, fingerprinting, or photography, so eyewitness testimonies and physical evidence were key.”

‘Finding Mary: The untold story of an Inishowen murder, 1844’ has been published in paperback by Four Courts Press, with an RRP of €12.95.

It is available online from www.fourcourtspress.ie and will be on sale in all good bookshops over the coming days.

There will also be local events to mark the publication, and these will be further advertised once details are confirmed.