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Hi. I have just joined the Society. I have obtained all the births and many marriages of the McCarthy family from Kilfeighney North and Ballincreehan near Lixnaw Co Kerry. I have scoured the church registers but still am mystified. My Gt G Father John McCarthy was born 6 Feb 1856, records from Met Police in London, and is supposed to be a brother of William, Thomas and Denis. I can find a possible match for William and Thomas, but that is it. John fathers an illegitimate son with a Mary Enright in Leampreaghane in 1876, but cannot find her birth either. Any ideas as to why some children do not appear anywhere in the records and where else I can search? I have papers connecting them all as owners of farms / properties. Thanks for any help. Anthony
Hi Anthony,
Is the family Catholic or CoI?
There may be gaps in the register – very common, especially if the parish merged with another at some stage or if a new church was built. Books easily lost. Also, if there was more than one church in the parish and the priest travelled around, again easy to lose that day’s page of records.
Hi Claire. Thanks for reply. They all appear to be Catholic. As far as I aware there were no amalgamations of parishes and I cannot see any gaps. I believe their parents are right, but a mother will be somewhat unusual in having two babies in three months. Regards anthony
Heck, in the US census records, there are gaps like that. I have searched and searched the 1850 US census for New Orleans, La. and cannot find persons I know to be alive and living in New Orleans at the time. I think, at least in the US, some census takers just did not find everyone. Or, sometimes, the records are so faded or illegible, the software cannot read them. In one case, an ancestor did not turn up on the index because the census record was so faded.
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