Author Topic: Irish Protestant birth records  (Read 450 times)

Offline prendeseek

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Irish Protestant birth records
« on: Sunday 09 March 25 10:05 GMT (UK) »
Hi all - I'm trying to trace a Mary Rafferty, born c1848/1849, daughter of John and Ann/e Rafferty.

I can't find a good match in the Irish Catholic records and she married Michael Prendergast in Oct 1879 in a Protestant church in Liverpool despite him being a Catholic, so I'm thinking she may have been a Protestant.

Is there any way of searching Protestant/Church of Ireland records online, or do you have to go to Ireland?

I have no idea of where to start - no idea of where in Ireland she was born.

Any tips?

Thanks in advance

Offline scotmum

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Re: Irish Protestant birth records
« Reply #1 on: Sunday 09 March 25 10:36 GMT (UK) »
Your dates are too early for Civil Registration of births in Ireland, so unfortunately you would need to rely on church records, which may or may not exist and of any that do, may or may not be online.

Needle and haystack unfortunately comes to mind, as to look for church records that might exist, you need to know which church.

Do you have Mary in any English census records with a place of birth noted, rather than just 'Ireland' (particularly if she lived to the 1921 census)?.
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Offline aghadowey

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Re: Irish Protestant birth records
« Reply #3 on: Sunday 09 March 25 11:30 GMT (UK) »
Did a bit of a survey with 1901 Irish census.
2434 people named Rafferty (did not look into spelling variations) and of those 2343 were Catholic.
Only 60 were Church of Ireland (23 in Antrim (many born Belfast), 25 in Armagh (23 born in Armagh), 1 in Clare, 2 in Cork (both born Galway), 7 in Dublin (6 born Dublin), 1 in Kilkenny (born Sligo) and 1 in Londonderry (born Armagh))
Also one Church of England (a married woman born Tipperary), 10 Presbyterians. 1 Methodist (born Armagh) and 14 'other' (8 Catholics, 5 basically Church of Ireland, 1 Presbyterian)

Now, onto the records. Many Church of Ireland registers were destroyed after being sent to Dublin for safekeeping to if Mary was baptised COI in Ireland there many not be a surviving record.

Did Mary have any siblings? (especially younger ones born in England) as this might be a way to find mother's maiden name.
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Offline Milliepede

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Re: Irish Protestant birth records
« Reply #4 on: Sunday 09 March 25 15:42 GMT (UK) »
Do you know when she died?  Not finding her post marriage or the correct Michael with a wife Mary.
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Offline prendeseek

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Re: Irish Protestant birth records
« Reply #5 on: Sunday 09 March 25 16:38 GMT (UK) »
Hi all

Thanks for your replies.

I don't think the posted birth record is correct as that Mary's parents are down as Patrick and Margaret and mine is the daughter of John and Ann/Anne/Annie.

I have now found an extract from an 1851 census that lists a Mary Rafferty age 1, daughter of John Rafferty and Annie (nee McNichols) in Drummasloveen, Mayo. This is as close a match as I've found, but I'm not sure if it's the right one.

The info I have is that she was born C1849 in Ireland - no clue as to where.

She may have been living in Liverpool with the Glove family as their servant on the 1871 census. However she also had a son George Prendergast that year so that may be a different Mary Rafferty.

My Mary may also have had a son Thomas (father unknown) in C1868.

She married Michael Prendergast in St Alban's C of E church in Bevington, Liverpool, on 21st Oct 1979 when she was 30 and subsequently had other children - Margaret Anna in 1880, John Joseph in 1884.

At the time of their marriage they were living at 24 Maddox St, Liverpool.

She may have died in 1900, buried in Ford Cemetery as Mary Prendergast but the age is wrong - 56 when my Mary would have been 61.

It's also possible that she died and was buried under an incorrect name as the names Pender, Pendergress and Pendergast have all cropped up.




Offline aghadowey

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Re: Irish Protestant birth records
« Reply #6 on: Sunday 09 March 25 18:49 GMT (UK) »
Quote
Quote
I don't think the posted birth record is correct as that Mary's parents are down as Patrick and Margaret and mine is the daughter of John and Ann/Anne/Annie.
I can't see that birth record posted- am I missing something?

Quote
I have now found an extract from an 1851 census that lists a Mary Rafferty age 1, daughter of John Rafferty and Annie (nee McNichols) in Drummasloveen, Mayo. This is as close a match as I've found, but I'm not sure if it's the right one.
I can't see the record on the National Archives site but I wasn't getting the same results using the old and new sites.
Away sorting out DNA matches... I may be gone for some time many years!

Offline Kiltaglassan

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Re: Irish Protestant birth records
« Reply #7 on: Sunday 09 March 25 19:03 GMT (UK) »
Quote
I have now found an extract from an 1851 census that lists a Mary Rafferty age 1, daughter of John Rafferty and Annie (nee McNichols) in Drummasloveen, Mayo. This is as close a match as I've found, but I'm not sure if it's the right one.
I can't see the record on the National Archives site but I wasn't getting the same results using the old and new sites.

The townland was Drumnaslooeen and the extract from the census return of 1851 is below.
https://censussearchforms.nationalarchives.ie/reels/c19/007246695/007246695_00667.pdf

https://www.townlands.ie/mayo/carra/manulla/manulla/drumnaslooeen/

Researching: Cuthbertson – Co. Derry, Scotland & Australia; Hunter – Co. Derry; Jackson – Co. Derry, Scotland & Canada; Scott – Co. Derry; Neilly – Co. Antrim & USA; McCurdy – Co. Antrim; Nixon – Co. Cavan, Co. Donegal, Canada & USA; Ryan & Noble – Co. Sligo

Offline prendeseek

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Re: Irish Protestant birth records
« Reply #8 on: Sunday 09 March 25 19:05 GMT (UK) »
This was the link that was posted https://www.churchofireland.org/cmsfiles/pdf/AboutUs/library/registers/ParishRegisters/PARISHREGISTERS.pdf

Confusingly when I click it from my computer it brings up a massive PDF but when I click it from my phone it brings up a single photocopied page with the birth entry for a Mary Rafferty.

The Mary Rafferty daughter of John Rafferty and Annie McNicholas possibly married and died in Ireland so it might not be mine (and i'm not sure where I got Annie as her mother's name - I know her father is definitely listed as John Rafferty on her marriage certificate to Michael Prendergast).

Also the birth record I found links up with an entry in Irish Catholic records which would make it a puzzle as to why she married in a C of E church....