| Margaret Boland | |
| Birth: | 28 August 1909 Carrigaholt, Clare, Ireland |
| Death: | 7 September 2017 Rhinevilla, Carrigaholt, Clare, Ireland |
| Age: | 108 years, 10 days |
| Country: |  IRL
|
| Centenarian | |
Margaret (Maggie) Boland (neé O'Dwyer) (28 August 1909 – 7 September 2017) was an Irish centenarian who was the oldest known person in Ireland when she died.
Biography
Margaret Boland was born Margaret O'Dwyer in Carrigaholt, Clare, Ireland (then part of the UK), as the youngest of four children born to parents John and Mary (née Lyons) O'Dwyer. As a child, she never bothered visiting a hairdresser, and never needed to see a doctor. At a young age, she bade farewell to her siblings who emigrated to New York, staying behind to look after her mother, who lived to be 84.
In 1937, Margaret met farmer Thomas Boland at the Kilkee Races, and they married two years later in 1939. The couple had six children together: Mary, Bridget, Anne, Margaret Jr., Eileen, and Kathleen. Margaret and Thomas worked on a farm together not far from their house.
Thomas Boland passed away in 1973 after 34 years of marriage. Margaret still wore her wedding ring for the 44 years she was widowed. After Thomas' death, Margaret travelled to Canada (which she didn't overly like) and New York (which she was rather pleased with). She was 66 years old when she did so. In 1995, her daughter Bridget passed away aged 53 in New York from a malignant melanoma. Margaret's other daughter Margaret Finnegan says that Bridget's death had affected her mother greatly.
As a centenarian, Margaret liked to read the newspaper and report the news to her relatives. Not one grey hair was on her head even when she turned 100. As of her 103rd birthday in 2012, she had 10 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren. She played the accordion all her life, and still had a passion for it as a centenarian. On 25 March 2017, then aged 107, she became the oldest known person in Ireland, following the death of 108-year-old Elizabeth Gallagher.
Margaret Boland passed away on 7 September 2017 in Rhinevilla, Clare, Ireland, at the age of 108 years, 10 days. Her successor as the oldest known person in Ireland was Dorothea Findlater (born 26 December 1909).
References
- 1909 Birth Record
- Margaret marks a century in Rhinevilla The Clare Champion
- A life of fulfilment and happiness The Clare Champion
- Death Notice Of Margaret (Maggie) Boland RIP
- Chronicle - Ireland's Oldest People Finbarr Connolly
| Ireland's Oldest Living Person Titleholders (V • E) |
|
Elizabeth Munson • Katie Duggan • Thomas Keaveney • Patrick Ward • Kate Taheny • Peter Harte • Catherine Fitzmaurice • Bernardine O'Malley • Maryann Henthorne • Mamie Geraghty • Agnes O'Brien • Margaret Cranny • Mary Ellen Geaney • Annie Murphy • Carthage Bohan • Catherine Stapleton • Mary Murray • Mary O'Neill • John Ryan • Margaret Dolan • Eileen Richardson • Annie Callan • Bridget Conroy • Margaret Conway • Olivia Breen • Statia Kealy • Mary Kate Byrne • Margaret O'Connell • Molly Madden • Nora Canavan • Sarah Clancy • Elizabeth Gallagher • Margaret Boland • Dorothea Findlater • Elizabeth Dempsey • Mary Coyne • Alice Kelly • Kitty Byrne • Peg O'Sullivan • Michael O'Connor • Mathew Crowley • Mairin Hughes • Kitty Jeffery • Phyllis Furness |