OLaughlin Family Northern Ireland

[Ragtim]

I am trying to locate records on John Olaughlin and his brother Archibald.  We know they were born in Scotland ,  Highlands.. suspect their mother was from Scotland and their father Ireland.   It is supposed that the father and mother are Thomas and Mary (Haley) OLaughlin.  Johns birthdate is May 15, 1827 and Archibald abt 1838.  I would like to find more siblings and a verification of the parents.We think John came to the US about 1833 with a brother and possibly an uncle.  I can not find the passenger records to comfirm that.  Archibald came later .. possibly about 1848.  Again no records to comfirm that.  Would appreciate any help I can get.   Thank you,  Becky

[Christopher]

Hei Becky,

I suggest you accept a variation in the spelling of this surname. The name O'Laughlin showed a Nil result whereas O'Loughlin gave a good return, mainly in Co. Clare. The name Haley also appears in Ireland although in a much smaller number than does the name O'Loughlin.

I did a cross check on the two surnames and found that between 1848 - 64 families of both names lived in Limerick City. This could mean that the families were there at the time Thomas married Mary. There was a lot of coming and going between the west of Ireland and Scotland. They may have left Ireland to marry in Scotland because of an objection by Mary's parents about her being too young to marry. This moves us from the realms of certainty to possibility. When the boys were born they then did the natural thing and returned home so that their parents could see their grandchildren. When the boys left Ireland there were sailings from Limerick to Canada. Have you looked at Canadian immigration records or just American records ? It probably means a fair amount more searching for you but it just might produce something positive.  I accept that this looks a bit like a story but sometime reasoning plus hard facts can produce positive results

Best Wishes,

Christopher
http://scripts.ireland.com/ancestor/surname/index.cfm - Surname Search

[Ragtim]

Thank you so much for the suggestions.  Sometimes we get in a groove thats hard to get past.  New ideas always help.

Thanks again,  Becky