Annabella McGinnes, Belfast 1824??

[phillie]

It is my understanding that my great great grandmother Annabella McGinnes was born in Belfast in around 1824 (I may have missed out a 'great' there). She married Andrew Aitken in about 1840. I have been trying for several years to track her down in Ireland but can find no trace of her, or any famiy of that name. Am I flogging a dead horse here do you think, are all the records destroyed? I have all I need on her after her marriage, although I can't find any proof of that either, but would like to track down her earlier life and family. I hope that someone can help me with this.

[aghadowey]

The dates you are looking for are before the start of civil registration in Ireland. Not all church records for this period survive and of those that do exist not all are found online. You need to know both the family's religion and where they lived (Belfast can be the city or near it) and then check to see what's available.
Another matter is the spelling of the surname- could be Maginnis, McGuinness, Megennes, etc.

[phillie]

Thank you for that, but I have no idea about any of those things I'm afraid and I've used every format of the name I could think of. So I guess that's a 'give up now while I'm still sane'.
Thanks for the infor about civil registration though, i didn't know that.

[aghadowey]

Registration of births, deaths and Catholic marriages started in 1864, non-Catholic marriages from 1845.

Other possible surnames are MacInnes, McInnes...

[phillie]

I've resigned myself to not finding anything about her, that you for your information though