Rathfriland

[littleorme]

In which graveyard would Catholics have been buried between 1850 & 1900?
Does anyone know of an index of headstones?
For the same period where would they have gone to school?
Thanks.

[ruggles]

There was a school in Newry Street, just above 2nd Rathfriland Presby. Church.  It may well have been the R.C. one, as the former National School was further up that road.
As for the graveyards, your best bet would be R.S.J Clarke's "Gravestone Inscriptions" which come in a plethora of volumes, none of which specifically mention Rathfriland, but cover the small, older graveyards in each district.  You just have to look via townland names, but these cover both R.C. and Protestant graveyards.

[littleorme]

Hello Ruggles,
Thanks for the response. I suppose the volumes you're referring to are to be found in Dublin or Belfast and the major libraries?

[ruggles]

R S J Clarke's books can be ordered by any library anywhere in N.I. - we are now one single Library Board, so you could look at stuff from Enniskillen area, even though you may now be living in Belfast.  The old school I mentioned seems to be the one (with some further research) - Iveagh school was only opened around 1930.

[littleorme]

Thanks again.
Not living in NI, I'm not likely to get my local library to order the right volume. Thanks anyway.

[OzJane]

Just thought I'd mention that I'm in Australia and have been able to obtain the Clarke Gravestone books at State and National Libraries, perhaps the UK equivalents would have copies?
OzJane

[ruggles]

Glad to hear you could access the Gravestone Inscription books.  Depending on who you are looking for, some sites have copied the relevant names from these books and you can view them online.   For general interest in Rathfriland, there are a couple of books you could try for - "Rathfriland in Bygone Days" by John A McCracken  or "City Set on a Hill" by Edith M. Clarke.  Both of these deal with Rathfriland from its inception but unfortunately are so old as to have been printed before the use of ISBN numbers, which would have made them easier to trace world wide.  However you might be lucky and get copies on Ebay or some out of print book site.  For photos and layout of Rathfriland, try getting a copy of the Ulster Architectural Heritage Society's book on Rathfriland and Hilltown.  It lists all the buildings of importance in the town,  with good descriptions and a little history.  Hope some of this is of use to you.  Good luck.

[sam cantley]

 For info on the Rathfriland area and the south Down area have a look at http://www.raymondscountydownwebsite.com/