John McEneaney was born in his family home at Cara Street, Clones, County Monaghan, Ireland, on the 15th October 1888, the son of Peter and Mary McEneaney (née Mulligan). His father was a poultry dealer, and his mother died in 1893, when John was aged 5 years.
Around 1910, he had gone to the United States of America, no doubt in the hope of making his fortune, and settled in New York City, and in 1912, his eldest sibling, Annie, had joined him there.
John worked as a shipping agent for the Barker Printing Company of 355. West 26th Street, Brooklyn, New York City. On the 30th September 1914, John was arrested for burglary at his company’s premises, when he, and two others, were seen breaking into the cellar of the building, and on the arrival of investigating police officers, John was found hiding in the cellar with a package, containing $250 worth of gold leaf, in his possession. At the time of his arrest, his address was as 252. Rutledge Street, Brooklyn.
On the 12th April 1912, he was admitted to the New York City Home for the Aged and Infirm in Manhattan, New York City, in a poor condition due to sickness of illness. His address at this time was given as 137. Nassau Avenue, Brooklyn, which was the home of his sister, Annie.
Whether he made the decision to return home himself, or was told or advised to leave the country by the authorities, John McEneaney booked a third class passage on the Lusitania and joined her on the morning of 1st May 1915, with ticket number 1697, in time for her last ever sailing out of the port, just after mid-day. The liner had been scheduled to leave at 10.00, but her departure was delayed until 12,27 p.m., as she had to embark passengers, crew and cargo from the Anchor Liner the S.S. Cameronia, which the British Admiralty had requisitioned for service as a troop ship.
Almost exactly six days later, on the afternoon of 7th May, the Lusitania was torpedoed and sunk by a single torpedo fired by the German submarine U-20, under the command of Kapitänleutnant W. Schweiger. At that time she was struck, she was twelve miles off The Old Head of Kinsale in southern Ireland and only about 250 miles from her destination. John MacEneaney was killed as a result of this action, and as no trace of his body was ever found afterwards, he has no known grave. He was aged 23 years. There was some confusion after the event with John McEneaney being confused with John McSweeney, who did survive. After some investigation by the authorities, the matter was clarified and John McEneaney was confirmed as lost.
In the early summer of 1915, his father, Peter McEneaney, who was a widower, applied for help from The Lusitania Relief Fund, which had been set up after the sinking by The Lord Mayor of Liverpool and other notable Merseyside business people, to provide financial help for survivors and relatives who had been adversely affected by the events of 7th May!
Mr. McEneaney senior, who was obviously dependent on his son for financial assistance, first tried to enlist in the armed forces, no doubt in some measure to gain revenge for his son's loss, but also to provide him with a regular income. He was turned down for service on account of his extreme age and as his only source of income came from the fowls that he kept, the fund's awards committee granted him a weekly allowance of £0-3s-6d., (£0.17½p.) which would be reviewed after six months.
The correct spelling of the family surname is McEneaney, but many sources show it to be McAneny, and others McEneny!
Register of Births, Marriages and Deaths, 1911 Census of Ireland, New York U.S. Census of Inmates in Almshouses and Poorhouses 1830 – 1920, Cunard Records, Brooklyn Daily Eagle, Daily Express, Northern Whig, Liverpool Record Office, PRO BT 100/345, UniLiv D92/2/53, Deaths at Sea 1871 – 1968, Graham Maddocks, Geoff Whitfield, Michael Poirier, Jim Kalafus, Cliff Barry, Paul Latimer, Norman Gray.
Copyright © Peter Kelly.