A brown envelope with the date stamp 3 March 1960 appeared on Irish man, Ken Kavanagh’s doorstep following a windy night last week. 

In the envelope was a great deal of information relating to a Ms Rose Ellen Maguire, Lisnaskea. The documents enclosed included, medical and midwifery documents, along with her birth certificate, a post card and a prayer book.

The bricklayer, originally from Ireland but working in London, contacted RTE’s Joe Duffy Show in a bid to locate Rose Ellen, or her family and return the documents. Rose Ellen’s family were swiftly informed of the radio appeal and came forward. 

Speaking the Herald from Lisnaskea, Vera Maguire, Rose Ellen’s sister-in-law, said, “We can’t understand how they happened to be there in the first place but it is marvellous to get them back. Rosie passed away in December and how they happened to leave her house I have absolutely no idea.” 

Describing her late sister-in-law as a ‘michievous person’ Vera said Rose Ellen was always ‘up for the craic’. 

“She’d be having a laugh at us now on the radio and all. It was wonderful that with 10 million people in London, that it was an Irishman that happened to find them. Ken said it was the writing on the envelope that attracted him. It was such beautiful hand writing, old fashioned, he said it was like his mother’s. When he picked it up and saw such personal details he thought that the family would like to have them back.

“Someone texted my son in England and asked if it was anyone related to him. My son then texted me and said ‘mum would this be Auntie Rosie?’ and I thought it sounds like her. He then contacted Joe Duffy and it went on from there. 

“The letter was from 59 years ago, it’s just unbelievable. There’s Rosie, she’s acting up again. She’s definitely going to make sure that we don’t forget about her anyway.” 

The documents are now on their way back to Fermanagh to Rose Ellen’s family home in Lisnaskea.