tidbitmisc - LoftusWeb Registry

Tidbits - Miscellaneous

Tidbits – Miscellaneous

St Ninnidh Church Ireland

Marquess of Ely Info (Wikipedia)

It is necessary to go back a generation to his uncle, Henry, Earl of Ely, who was an Irish M.P from 1747-1769. He was the first head of the family to establish a separate Loftus party in the Irish House of Commons which comprised at least 8 MPs and was thus a major grouping in the parliament.

Henry, Earl of Ely, died, with no surviving issue, in 1783, and all his peerages became extinct. The heir to all his estates was his sister’s son, Charles Tottenham, who assumed the name of Loftus, and began the process of using his electoral interest to secure the recreation of the family honours. He was initially undecided about the merits of the Act of Union. However, during the summer of 1799 he and his political following decided to back the measure . His support and loyalty were rewarded by his promotion to the marquessate and a U.K barony in 1801. The Duke of Portland, the British Home Secretary, wrote to Marquess Cornwallis, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, that if any marquessates were created, ‘…that it should be confined to Lord Ely, whose influence is so extensive, and has of late been so usefully employed.

Compliments of Lord Timothy Craig Tottenham, son of the 8th Marquess of Ely.

More on the Marquess 1-8

A Loftus and Ireland History by Simon Loftus – Warts and all!

Link to Book on Amazon

From the arrival of Adam Loftus in Dublin in 1560, Simon Loftus traces the story of his family, piecing together fragments of history and legend spanning 350 years of Ireland’s history. The background is the colonial conquest of Ireland and the harsh confrontations of religious and national identity but the focus is close at hand, familial. The passions and eccentricities, the daily concerns and relationships of individuals in this Ascendancy family, over eleven generations, combine to form an enthralling memoir of shifting moods and viewpoints. This beautifully written book is a meditation on the nature of memory, set against the ancient landscape of Ireland, and shaped by experience and time. ‘A heartfelt, witty prescription for a life worth aspiring to and genuinely well-written.

A “Loftus” sign made at an art fair. Each letter (you can choose from lots of different images) is a black and white photo of something that resembles the letter. Then all are encased in glass and mounted on a couple wooden rails. Very “artsy”. The artist is Brian Smith and his Facebook page is: Brian Smith – Artist

Thomas J Loftus – Baseball

For the sporting lovers!!!

Thanks to John W. Loftus for this information:

Don’t know if you have a place for famous to somewhat famous Loftus’s but my great grandfather was the first American major league baseball player to develop the bunt:

See the following links (each open in a new window)

Thomas J. Loftus – Link 1
Link 2

John W. Loftus (author)

Dr. Micky Loftus from Crossmollina

My wife Nanette and I just got back from a few weeks in Western Ireland and had a wonderful time in Galway and County Mayo. There was an interesting individual we met while visiting – Dr. Micky Loftus from Crossmollina in County Mayo. It seems that everyone we met from North to Southern Ireland was stating the Dr. Loftus was more famous than the Irish President. His stature was established having been President of the Gaelic Athletic Association – but then subsequently stepping down due to his belief that drinking and sports should not mix – this was when Guiness came to be a corporate sponsor for the GAA games.

All of the best,

Joe Loftus

Fethard Castle

Thought you might be interested to know that I just came back from a trip to Ireland. We came across a huge house that I found fascinating. It looked like the kind of house that Miss Havisham from Great Expectations would live in!! I wanted to go and have a look but the gates were locked and there was a notice saying “Trespassers will be prosecuted. Guard dogs on Patrol”. There was a plaque outside the gates saying that this mansion belonged to a family in the 13 th centruy and then in the sixteenth or seventeenth came into the possesion of the Loftus Family. The present Mansion which was in Hook, County Wexford/Wicklow was built in 1872 and has a lot of ghost stories attached to it apparently. A lttle furthur away we went to see the remains of Fethard Castle which was abandoned in 1922 by the Loftus family when they moved to Loftus Hall. I got really interested in this family which is why I was looking info up on the internet and came across your site.

Hope this was of some interest. Any information would be gratefully received. I’m fascinated.

Lucy Ramsden – queenl@madasafish.com

New friendships

The Loftus homepage is responsible for a delightful evening that took place on October 29, 1996 in Amsterdam, Netherlands. After sharing information from the Loftus homepage, I began communicating from Dallas, Texas with Dr. Barbara Loftus-Coll and her husband, Irish sculptor John Coll. They graciously invited my companion and I to dinner at their home where we met their brilliant daughter Becky.

It was a delightful evening. Meeting these charming people from Ireland [Barbara works in Amsterdam but they are returning to Ireland], was like a burst of sunshine in a cold country filled with rude natives. Though we live 5000 miles apart, a new friendship was formed — and it all began in cyberspace.

11th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment in the Civil War

Hi Duane,

You and I are acquainted with each other via Pub Games, where we meet by chance from time to time (I’m the one that’s raising the German Shepherd guide dog puppy, Zelda).

My great-great-uncle was in the 11th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment in the Civil War. I was browsing the regimental roster and noticed a Loftus, which you might want to include in the tidbits section of your web page.

Loftus, Martin – Priv. – Res. Abington; 24; shoemaker; enl. and must.
June 13, 1861; re-enlist. Dec. 29, 1863; wounded June 16, 1864,
Petersburg, Va.; died of wounds, June 29, 1864, at Washington, D.C.

Martin Loftus was a member of Company C of the 11th Massachusetts.

Bob Morss

The Loftus Special

Tropical Bar Book
Drinks and Stories
by Charles Schumann

Crushed Ice
Juice of 1 1/2 Limes
3/4 oz. Grenadine
3/4 oz. Cherry Heering
3/4 oz. Apricot Brandy
3/4 oz. White Rum
1 1/2 oz. Brown Rum
1 1/2 oz. High-Proof Rum

Mix in a shaker with 1 scoop of crushed ice. Strain into a highball glass filled with fresh crushed ice.

Garnish with an orange slice, maraschino cherry and mint sprig.

Enjoy!

More Loftus Trivia

Did you know that a former Lord Mayor of Dublin was Sean ‘Dublin Bay’ Loftus? He was also a Barrister at Law and a well known environmentalist (he officially changed his middle name to ‘Dublin Bay’). I believe his family is originally from County Mayo.

He lectured in Law at the Dublin Institute of Technology.

Best regards,
Kathy Hall

And a former U.S. Ambassador to Norway was the Hon. Thomas Loftus

The rugby Stadium in Pretoria, South Africa is called Loftus.

Odd little Loftus things

Jas. E. Loftus, S.P. CO. FIREMAN

This may not be of interest, but you can probably link it to your search for the Lofthus family. Last year my father gave me an old pocket watch he had once found in his father’s house. My father is not sure where it came from or how it ended up in my grandfather’s pocket in Denmark! My grandfather was a sailor and could have received it on one of his tours. He passed away in 1978.

Now the watch is in bad condition and the front cover is gone. The watch case appears to be gold and in good condition. The clockwork is an Elgin, 21 Jewels and with a separate second hand.

Inside the watch case there is an inscription:
Jas. E. Loftus, S.P. CO. FIREMAN

It is not much, but I hope you can use it.

Yours

Allan Sten Nielsen
Denmark, Europe

The Royal Loftus Hydrometer

Years ago ( the mid 1970’s), I lived in San Francisco. I purchased a wooden (mahogany I believe) box which had what appeared to be an ivory inset engraved with the Loftus name & per order of the queen etc….the inside contained brass instruments which were engraved with the Loftus name…believe it to be a hydrometer set used in beer making.

The date on this was 1700 in England. I gave it to my father. The description is from my memory. Thanks for the opportunity to increase my knowledge of myself through knowing more about my family.

Regards,
Noreen Loftus-Spilman
Cincinnati, Ohio, USA

My father, Edward G. Loftus, would often talk about how he and his brothers used to run up and down “Goat Hill” in Raton, NM. Here’s a pic of what’s left of their old home and Goat Hill behind it. Subsequently, after the death of my grandparents, Patrick and Marciana (1931/1932), all the young kids had to support themselves with whatever job they could get to bring in food (this was during the Great Depression). The two oldest kids had moved out (Mary and Bill) and the rest were raised by the second eldest sister, Lucy. The other kids were Thomas, Sam, Charles, James, Edward and Joe who was only 11 years old. They ate a lot of soup.

Ruby Loftus

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ruby Loftus Screwing a Breech-ring
Artist Laura Knight
Year 1943
Medium Oil on canvas
Dimensions 86 cm × 100 cm (34 in × 40 in)[1]
Location The Imperial War Museum Collection

Ruby Loftus Screwing a Breech-ring is a 1943 painting by the British artist Laura Knight depicting a young woman, Ruby Loftus, working at an industrial lathe cutting the screw of a breech-ring for a Bofors anti-aircraft gun. The painting was commissioned by the War Artists’ Advisory Committee as part of the British war effort in the Second World War.

Loftus was a 21-year-old woman who had quickly become an expert in the production of breech-rings—in seven months, rather than the several years it normally took. The painting was commissioned to promote women’s work in factories; women dominate the picture, and only one man is visible, in the background. When unveiled at the 1943 Royal Academy Summer Exhibition, the painting was extremely popular, and was voted the picture of the exhibition. The image was reproduced in a large-scale poster version by the WAAC for display in factories across the country.

Loftus Hotsprings

Loftus Hot Springs is a secluded little spot on the Middle Fork tributary of the Boise River. It’s located about two and half hours northeast of Boise, Idaho.

Do you have any interesting items relating to the Loftus Family?
Please send me details and I’ll post it on this page.

Tidbits - Miscellaneous

Tidbits – Miscellaneous