Donnelly from Parish of Clonfeacle, BLackwatertown

Dear Roy

You could have a look on the free webiste for the Girffith's Valuation here:

http://www.askaboutireland.ie/griffith-valuation/

If you could find them there you may be able to follow-up on the PRONI Valuation records also freely available here:

www.nidirect.gov.uk/information-and-services/search-archives-online/val…

I haven''t been able to locate a marriage record for John and Catherine nor baptsims for any of their children. You may want to see if you can subscribe to rootsireland.ie (or have a look at familysearch.org) to see which, (if any), of the 9 John Donnelly baptism listings there between 1790 and 1810 is yours.

Clare Doyle

Genealogy Support 

NOTE 9th May 2016:

I re-checked dates and the John Donnelly and Mary Muldoon and children are probably not directly related to my Donnelly.  I have however traced a Peter Donnelly through Griffiths and the Revisions - living in a house (no land which seems right if he was a weaver) living in the T/L of Annaghmore in Parish of Loughgall and the Revision shows he left the house in 1866 or 1867 which would fit with my Peter moving to Belfast.  I can't find a baptism!  How do I kown for sure he is my Peter Donnelly and is there any other material I can research to find out something about him?????????

Roy Irvine

Hi Roy

The only way to know for sure if he is your Peter is if you can cross reference with info you already know about him, a father's name or other info, until then it will be questionable. Have you had a look at the Early Birth Index, it is updated frequently:

http://www.irishancestors.ie/?page_id=6328

Any sign of this Peter on Find My Past, a Commercial Directory, for example?

You may have to undergo an information gathering exercise and treat this as an entirely new search with a tick off list - baptism, marriage, death, children etc etc to see what info you can use to cross reference with what you may already know.

Clare

IrelandXO

Well... found Church Marriage Record for Peter Donnelly's second marriage in St.Peter's Belfast on 7 Aug 1875 when he married Bridget Farrell.  The record lists his father as John (farmer) and mother is Catherine Connolly and they lived in Moy Co.Armagh. This seems to be Clonfeacle Parish.  I cannot find a marriage for John and Catherine or a baptism for Peter who was born 1834-36??  In the 1901 Census he is 65 (b.1836) and in 1911 is 77 (b.1834).  What I also found were baptisms for Margaret 15/12/1835, Mary 1/1/1842 and Michael 10/5/1845 and all from John Donnelly and Catherine Connolly in Clonfeacle Parish.

Hi again

RC records for the parish of Clonfeacle begin in 1814 but there are gaps for baptisms between March and Aug 1840. The couple may have married in a neighbouring parish (the parish of the bride usually) and the event may have pre-dated the parish records there. This may account for the lack of records.

Clare

Genealogy Support

Hi Roy,

I think we may be related in some very distant way. I.E. as descendants of John Donnelly and Catherine Connolly.

They had a son Ambrose who would be my Great Great Grandfather. His brother John or Peter John would be your Great Grandfather from what I am reading above.

There is a birth record on ancestry that confirms your Grandfather Ambrose's parent as John Donnelly and Mary Lavery.

I'm not sure how much other help I can be but feel free to contact me at conlonm1@gmail.com if you have any other questions.

M

Michael,

Can you please confirm if you got my email of 3 Oct setting out my Donnelly history which I had found to date.  I want to know if it ties into your research, what pieces of information I am missing etc.  I am also very keen to know the location in Blackwatertown town the Donnelly family lived and if descendants still live there - I know my mother visited relatives there in the 70s or 80s.   Please respond.

Roy Irvine

Hi Roy

Let me know within a few days if you don't receive a reply

Best wishes

Clare 

Genealogy Support

Hi Jonathan,

The Donnellys...... what can I say!!!!!

From the start and fully checked out..... Peter Donnelly was my G Grandfather.  I am unable to trace a baptism but think he was born around 1840. He married Mary Lavery in Feb 1863 in Loughgall.  They had the following children before moving to Belfast around 1866 -----Michael b Dec 1863 and bapt in Clonfeacle Tyrone, Margaret b.Jan 1865 in Kilmore Blackwatertown and Peter b.March 1866 in Charlemont, Blackwatertown.  Mary Lavery died in Belfast in Feb 1875.  Peter remarried Bridget Farrell, Charlemont, in Aug 1875, in St Peter's Belfast.  The registerer lists Peter's parents as John Donnelly (who was alive at the time) and Catherine Connolly and they lived at Moy, Co.Armagh.  I traced the following baptisms in Clonfeacle parish and all with parents John Donnelly and Catherine (Cat and Kitty) Connolly :-

Margaret 1835, Alice 1837, Patrick 1839, Mary 1842, John 1842, Michael 1845, William 1848, Sara 1850, Ambrose 1853, Catherine 1855 and Mary Jane 1857. I was able to trace marriages for most.

Are we on the same track?

Roy

Hi Jonathan and thank you for the info.  I never thought of tracing John D through Griffith's.  It also ties in with a death of John D, in Kilmore in Aug 1876 were the informant was Catherine D, the householder.  I had traced Peter D (John's son) living in Annaghmore T/L until 1866 which tied in with his move to Belfast that year.  I loved the more general info on the Donnellys and I will add this to my doc.  I have info on Patrick, his marriage and birth of Sarah.  You recorded Ambrose in Plot 9, Kilmore - it is a very unusual name (rarely seen in church and census records) but appears in every generation of my Donnellys!!!   I came across your Killeeshil & Clonaneese HS so I was wondering if you can further help....  I am trying to connect to Sarah O'Hare who married Owen Hughes in Tynan RC 1st June 1882.  They were servants living in Lissagally.  Her father was John O'Hare, a farmer and her witness was Mary O'Hare.  John O'Hare is recorded in Griffiths in Kilmore - Ballytrue TL. I traced 3 siblings, Samuel Nov 1865, Bridget June 1870 and Joseph Oct 1872 (all Kilmore, Blackwatertown).  Owen and Sarah moved to East Calder, Edinburgh  (before 1887) and worked as a shale coal miner.  His sons would also work as miners  and in the 1920s would move to Pennsyvania and continue as miners.  Sarah's brothers also moved to the east of Scotland and worked as shale miners and would move with their families to Penns and New Jersey respectively.  I am trying to make a connection between Sarah O'Hare who married Owen Hughes in Tynan and Sarah O'Hare bapt, 4 Sept 1858 in Clonfeacle of John O'Hare and Mary Donnelly (the digital copy is really poor and I had to call off my visit to Moy RC this week due to the weather).  If I can prove they are the same then it is likely that Sarah's mother is likely Mary Donnelly, a sister of my Peter!!!  There is a sizable Irish/Polish connection now in the USA  from the O'Hares and Hughes who immigrated.  Is there a way I can test any of this?  Re Sarah working as a Sevant..... is it likely she could have worked in Fellows Hall which is near Lissagally Road ..... did the "big houses keep records on their staff such as where there came from???  A day in PRONI????

Thank you again.

Roy Irvine