Irish Roots Magazine - Issue No 126

Irish Roots A few words from the editor

Welcome to our summer issue. Summer is of course a time for journeys of all kinds and in this issue we hope you will join us on our trip to county Clare where James G. Ryan uncovers more Local Resources for Family History Research, pages 10-11. James has been busy in this issue and we are delighted to have a most informative second article from him where he examines variants of family names, pp 16-17.

My daughter Julie surprised me with a treasured photograph which she used alongside James’s article. This nostalgic photo from my childhood of happy smiling children always takes me back to the day a birthday party was hosted by a good neighbour, Mrs Kathleen O’Donoghue in 1951. It features Hickeys, O’Donoghues and O’Riordans - all close neighbours. Several of us had birthdays around the same date so a group celebration consisting of delicious jelly and custard washed down with a mug of sweet hot cocoa marked the auspicious occasion. To further mark the importance of the gathering we then had our photograph taken together. In later years, life would scatter us in many different directions across the world. Sadly, the three pictured on the right row of the photo have now gone to their eternal reward, but great memories and stories remain.

When family history researchers have as much of their work completed as possible, it is a worthwhile endeavour to record the hard work for posterity and future generations in a physical book format. Barry Kinane kindly takes the time to explain how he transformed his research from notes and figures into a published book, copies of which can now be proudly shared with grateful family members, pp 18-19. Steven Smyrl’s article introduces us to ‘gateway ancestors’, page 5. Donna Rutherford helps us to connect DNA dots, pp 8-9 and Claire Santry brings us some good news in her What’s New Review column, pp 20-21. Continuing the theme of Irish surnames, Séan O Murchadha compiles Surnames of County Clare to peruse, pp 22-23.

Jennifer Harrison lures us to 1850s Victoria, Australia in search of immigrants who sought golden treasures, pp 26-27. Speaking of treasures I would like to congratulate Jennifer as the recipient of the prestigious ‘Wallace Clare’ award from the Council of the Irish Genealogical Research Society. Jennifer has been a wonderful contributor to Irish Roots magazine, garnering us with valuable nuggets of family history wisdom, ever since the magazine was first founded by Tony McCarthy in 1992. Well done Jennifer and take a most deserved bow on receiving the esteemed award.

I was saddened to hear of the sudden passing of professional genealogist Roz McCutcheon in London recently. Roz was a Fellow of the Society of Genealogists and Vice President of the Irish Genealogical Research Society. One of her many outstanding contributions to Irish Genealogical research was her free-to-all, Early Irish Marriages Index. A great character and a renowned genealogist, she will be dearly missed by her wide circle of friends involved in Irish Genealogy. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a hanam dílis.

Quin Abbey, Co. Clare. Image courtesy Patryk Kosmider.

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126

Maureen

Eternal Heart Sculpture To Honor Choctaw/Ireland Relationship To Be Unveiled At Choctaw Nation Capitol, USA

A sculpture honoring the relationship between the Choctaw Nation and the people of Ireland will soon be erected on the Choctaw Capitol grounds in Tuskahoma, Oklahoma. The project is funded jointly by the Choctaw Nation and the Government of Ireland. The piece, titled “Eternal Heart,” was selected after a call for submissions was initiated last year.

Samuel Stitt, of Spokane Valley, Washington, a member of the Choctaw Nation, submitted the winning entry. “Eternal Heart” which combines a Celtic trinity shape intertwined with a heart. “There is no beginning or end to the overall piece – thus, it is eternal,” Stitt said. The sculpture will have a very specific orientation, with the heart –representing the Choctaw Nation – facing towards Ireland.

March marked the 176th anniversary of the Choctaw people mustering a gift of $170 to ease suffering of the Irish people during the potato famine. The gift was even more significant due to the Choctaws having just completed their trek on the Trail of Tears to Oklahoma. The sculpture display will include an informational sign and winding path. “All the elements are symbolic and created with specific references in mind,” Stitt said. The concrete base for the 8-foot-tall piece is edged with diamond shapes, a Choctaw symbol of reverence to the diamondback snake. The sculpture will sit atop a mound, honoring the heritage of mound-building of the Choctaw ancestors as well as the ancient “hill forts” and mounds found in Ireland. Even the winding footpath represents the Trail of Tears, with the exact orientation mirroring the arduous route from the Mississippi homelands to Indian Country.

The “Kindred Spirit” sculpture, unveiled in 2015 in Cork, Ireland, symbolizes the connection and appreciation of the Irish for the Choctaw people. “I want to congratulate Samuel Stitt on being awarded the commission,” said Ireland’s Tánaiste (Deputy Prime Minister), and Minister for Foreign Affairs, Micheál Martin T.D. “Last year, as Taoiseach, and together with Chief Gary Baton, I announced the launch of this new project, which is intended to serve as a permanent

legacy in Tuskahoma of the solidarity that exists between our peoples, just like the sculpture in Bailick Park, Midleton in County Cork.”

The Choctaw Nation is the third-largest Indian Nation in the United States with more than 220,000 tribal members and 12,000-plus associates. This ancient people has an oral tradition dating back over 13,000 years. The first tribe over the Trail of Tears, its historic reservation boundaries are in the southeast corner of Oklahoma, covering 10,923 square miles. The Choctaw Nation’s vision, “Living out the Chahta Spirit of faith, family and culture,” is evident as it continues to focus on providing opportunities for growth and prosperity. For more information about the Choctaw Nation, its culture, heritage and traditions, please go to www.choctawnation.com

Journal Of The Irish Memorials Association - A Valuable Resource

The Journal of the Association for the Preservation of the Memorials of the Dead in Ireland (also known as the Journal of the Irish Memorials Association) is a

valuable source for Irish genealogy. Produced in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, these journals record gravestone inscriptions from all parts of Ireland, including many gravestones that are no longer legible. Additionally, they contain transcripts of parish registers, funeral entries and other records, as well as snippets of family history and local history.

Even though the journals can be viewed freely online, they have been relatively little-known and under-used because it was not straightforward to find them and navigate them, until recently. It is now much easier for researchers to use this source thanks to Mems Dead - a resource developed by Ciara Chivers (genealogist at Shamrock Roots) to make the journals more accessible.

Mems Dead provides a directory with links to online images of the journals and explains how to search for relevant information within them. Find out more at https://memsdead.com.

An image of the 'Eternal Heart' sculpture to honor the special relationship between the Choctaw Nation and the people of Ireland soon be erected on the Choctaw Capitol grounds in Tuskahoma, Oklahoma, USA.

Steven Smyrl Was Surprised To Recently Discover A 'Gateway Ancestor' Which Led To A Very Exciting Find In His Family History. Perhaps You Just Might Be Lucky Enough To Discover One In Your Research Also!

…andanotherthing…

Iwouldn’t for a moment suggest anyone should wish to impress others by their discovery of historic ancestral links to, say, an Irish chieftain, a British aristocrat, or a well-known or high-profile person or family. But what I would say is that for any family historian, such a discovery opens up a hitherto inaccessible world of families whose history is a matter of public record, or which have already been extensively researched. Given the destruction of the Public Record Office of Ireland a century ago, the existence of well-documented pedigrees compiled before then is of great assistance.

The numbers in Ireland, and internationally, who claim descent from significant historic figures who have played important roles in Irish and British history is great. Such figures include the fifth-century Irish chieftain Niall of the Nine Hostages, the medieval Irish High King Brian Boru, or the ‘earls’ who fled Ireland in 1607 after their defeat by King James I of England (VI of Scotland).

But in reality, few (outside of notable families) can document such claims. Where this can be done, it’s generally through what is called a ‘gateway ancestor’. This is an ancestor who can be connected to an already well-documented family, which by its nature will be one of historic importance. Needless to say, such a discovery is exciting by reason of the connections that might then be made to many other notable and interesting historic families.

No doubt I now have you thinking, “just how likely is that in my case?”. Well, think about this. People naturally tend to think in terms of their male ancestral line and conclude that a gateway ancestor is unlikely. But yet, we all have four sets of great grandparents (eight individuals), and as we go further back the number keeps multiplying. Go back seven generations (starting from yourself) and you have 64 sets of fourth great grandparents (128 people). At eleven generations back you reach 512 sets of eighth great grandparents (a mind boggling 1,024 people). Of course, given that many of our ancestors lived out their lives in one locality over generations, then it naturally follows that some of these ancestors will be people we are descended from several times over.

But even allowing for a duplication in ancestors, it’s clear that the further we go back the more the chances increase that we will come across an elusive gateway ancestor. This is what happened for Danny Dyer, an actor who until recently played a character in the BBC soap EastEnders. His family history was featured on another BBC TV show, Who Do You Think You Are? As the generations unfolded, he was left staggered and open-mouthed as first he found he was connected to a gentry

family, then aristocrats, and finally that he was descended from two English kings, Edward III (1312-1377), and then earlier still, William the Conqueror (1028-1087).

When President Obama visited Ireland in 2011, research appeared in the media highlighting how numerous living people in Ireland were related to him via his maternal ancestor, Fulmouth Kearney, who was born to a prosperous Protestant family from the Irish midlands around 1830. The various ancestors claimed for Obama rang a bell in my own home too when my husband realised that some of the same people appeared in his own family tree, which when reviewed suggested that the President was his fifth cousin once removed. When the late British Queen Elizabeth made a state visit to Ireland in May 2011, just days before that of President Obama, the media was keen to highlight how she too, along with Obama, was a descendant of Ireland’s medieval Irish High King, Brian Boru. Of course, they were both in good company. It is claimed that former US president, John F. Kennedy, is a descendant of Dunchaun, a brother of Brian Boru. While Kate Middleton (who had married the then Duke of Cambridge, now Prince of Wales, just a month before the Queen’s state visit) is connected to Brian Boru through two of her ancestral lines: the Lupton family of Yorkshire, and the Fitzmaurice family from County Kerry.

Though I work as a professional genealogist, I have to confess that I’ve never really fully explored the ancestry of many of my great great grandparents, all of whom would have been born in the nineteenth century. I’ve certainly never put any effort into seeking out a gateway ancestor. Yet, for the first time I fell across one recently after contact with a distant cousin who alluded to a relationship with a Scottish aristocratic family. I was intrigued and followed it up.

I ended up just as open-mouthed as Danny Dyer had been when I established that a third cousin of my late paternal grandfather, James Christie Smyrl, had married the son of Queen Elizabeth’s cousin, Rosemary Luisa Bowes-Lyons. What a pity my granny Smyrl (James’ wife) hadn’t lived to learn this. As a Protestant royalist from Belfast, she’d have dined out on that for all it was worth!

Steven Smyrl is former President of Accredited Genealogists Ireland. www.accreditedgenealogists.ie and chairman of the Irish Genealogical Research Society. www.irishancestors.ie

Visiting The Public Record Office Of Northern Ireland (PRONI)

By Dr. Mary Hatfield

The Public Record Office of Northern Ireland (PRONI) is the main repository for family history sources in Northern Ireland. It contains a vast collection of documents essential for anyone researching their family history. These documents include census returns, birth, marriage and death certificates, church records, wills, deeds and much more.

PRONI was established as an institution in 1923, following the creation of Northern Ireland as a separate political entity. The office was established to serve as the central repository for public records in Northern Ireland, and to provide access to those records to researchers and members of the public. The original PRONI was located at the Assembly’s College in Belfast, now part of Queen’s University Belfast. In 1933, the Public Record office relocated to Hill Street in the Cathedral Quarter, which served as the headquarters for nearly 40 years. In 1972 a fire, rumoured to have been caused by loyalist paramilitaries, destroyed an estimated 70% of the records held at PRONI as well as heavily damaging the building. Following the fire, PRONI was temporarily relocated to a former linen mill on Balmoral Avenue in Belfast.

In 2011, PRONI moved to its current location in the Titanic Quarter of Belfast. The new building, which was purposebuilt for PRONI, includes state-of-the-art storage and preservation facilities, as well as research and exhibition spaces for visitors. It is a short walk or a quick bus journey from Belfast city centre.

Births, Marriages, And Deaths

PRONI has access to the all-Ireland census returns for 1901 and 1911, in addition they have fragmentary returns form earlier censuses, beginning in 1821. They also have a large, but not comprehensive collection of birth, marriage and death certificates. These certificates provide vital information including names, ages, occupations, and places of birth. After the establishment of Northern Ireland in 1922, the General Register Office for Northern Ireland (GRONI) took over the responsibility of registering births, deaths, and marriages. If you are looking for certificates post-1922 you can visit the GRONI website to order certificates online for a fee or visit their premises in person. https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/ services/go-groni-online.

PRONI’s real strength for family history researchers is in their church records. The majority date from the early-mid 1800s, with some covering the 1700s and even a few from the 1600s. They cover the counties of present-day Northern Ireland, as well as the three counties of Ulster now situated in the Republic of Ireland (Cavan, Donegal, Monaghan), while a smaller number cover some

denominations across the island. Some denominations include communion rolls, vestry minutes, and account books. The level of detail differs from parish to parish, but if you have some idea of the location of your ancestors it is worth a viewing.

Links To Local Place

PRONI holds a vast collection of wills and deeds covering several centuries. The earliest wills in the collection date back to the 16th century, while the majority of the wills and deeds date from the 19th and 20th centuries. Their collections include wills and administrations for the whole of Ireland from 1858 to the present day, which were proved in the district probate registries of Armagh, Belfast and Londonderry. The collection also includes pre-1858 wills, which were proved in the diocesan courts of Armagh, Clogher, Derry, Down, Connor and Dromore. In addition, PRONI also holds a vast collection of deeds, including leases, conveyances, mortgages, and marriage settlements. These documents provide information about property ownership, land use, and family relationships. Another valuable set of documents for genealogists are the Tithe Applotment

Books. These books were created in the mid-19th century to record the payment of tithes, which were a tax paid to the Church of Ireland. The books list the names of landholders in each parish and the amount of land they owned, as well as the amount of tithe they were required to pay. The Tithe Applotment Books are available to view in their original form or on microfilm, and are arranged by county, parish, and townland. The books cover the period from 1823 to 1837 and some parishes are missing or incomplete. In addition to these primary sources, PRONI also has a vast collection of secondary sources that can be used creatively to supplement life event records. These sources include directories, maps, newspapers, and photographs. Directories can be used to trace the movements of our ancestors and to discover more about their occupations and social status. Maps can be used to locate ancestors’ homes or the development of local communities over time. Newspapers can provide valuable information about birth, marriage, and death notices, as well as reports of their achievements and social activities.

Royal Irish Constabulary

If you are at a later stage of fleshing out your family tree, a number of PRONI collections can be utilised for getting more detail about the lives and society our ancestors inhabited.

PRONI has several collections related to the Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC), which was the police force in Ireland from the early 19th century until 1922, including RIC Service Records. These records contain information on individual members of the RIC, including their service history, promotions, transfers, and pension details, covering the period from 1816 to 1922. The RIC Personnel Files contain information on individual members of the RIC, including their personal details, medical history, disciplinary records, and other information, covering the period from 1842 to 1922. The RIC County Inspector Reports contain information on the administration and operation of the RIC at the county level, including details on crime rates, public disturbances, and other issues. The reports cover the period from 1840 to 1922.

The Irish Poor Law- Board Of Guardian Records

The Poor Law system was introduced to Ireland in 1838, following the passage of the Irish Poor Law Act. The Act established a system of poor relief based on workhouses, which were intended to provide relief only to the most destitute and to discourage able-bodied people from seeking assistance. The system

While many of the key records for family researchers, like the census records, church records, and some government records are digitised, the majority of PRONI’s collections are still only available by visiting the research rooms in Belfast.

was modeled on the English Poor Law system, which had been in place since the 17th century. PRONI houses the records for 28 Poor Law Unions. The Board of Guardian records include minutes of meetings, admission and discharge registers, dietary and clothing registers, and other administrative records. These records can provide information like names, ages, occupations, and places of birth. They can also provide information about the inmate’s families, including their spouses, children, and parents.

Other Important Collections

PRONI holds patient records for mental hospitals, committal papers, case books and admission registers. Due to privacy laws, these records are closed for 100 years from their last date of entry. The records of the Crown and Peace Courts for each county in Northern Ireland contain some of the earliest criminal records, summarising cases and recording the outcome of trials dating back to 1822, with the majority dating from the 1880s and 1890s. The order books of the Petty Sessions’ courts, which record minor misdemeanours, and Grand Jury Presentments, are the chief records of the county administration before 1898. PRONI also houses a number of business archives from the many businesses and employers engaged in the linen, shipbuilding, and engineering sector. There are also company records, account books, and business-related materials from smaller shops, pub, bakeries, and mills which may contain details about former employees.

Access To The Archive

To use PRONI’s reading rooms, you need to register for a reader’s ticket. You can do this online (https://www.nidirect. gov.uk/campaigns/public-record-officenorthern-ireland-proni) or in person at PRONI. You will need to provide two

forms of identification, one with your name and address, and one with your signature. Due to limited capacity in the reading rooms, it’s essential to book a seat in advance. You can do this online or by contacting PRONI’s booking team. It’s worth noting that some records are not available for public access due to legal or privacy restrictions. If you’re unsure about the availability of a specific record, contact PRONI’s reference team for guidance.

While many of the key records for family researchers, like the census records, church records, and some government records are digitised, the majority of PRONI’s collections are still only available by visiting the research rooms in Belfast. It is worthwhile to contact staff ahead of your visit to see if the material you are looking for has been digitised or if it is possible to get a copy of it sent to you.

Public Record Office of Northern Ireland

2 Titanic Boulevard Titanic Quarter, Belfast BT3 9HQ

https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/campaigns/ public-record-office-northern-irelandproni

Dr. Mary Hatfield is the author of Growing Up in Nineteenth-Century Ireland: A Cultural History of Middle-Class Childhood and Gender. She is on the history team for the Museum of Irish Childhood. For more information about the museum and its work go to https:// museumofchildhood.ie/

By Donna Rutherford

Connecting the Dots The Role of Clustering and Shared Matches in DNA Research for Genealogy

DNA testing has become increasingly popular among people interested in solving their ancestry, finding relatives, or solving family mysteries. One of the big challenges of DNA testing is organising and making sense of the large amount of data and the complex network of relationships it can reveal. However, a simple and effective technique that many genetic genealogists use is to connect matches by assigning coloured dots to them. It’s important to understand that DNA testing on its own is not enough to trace your family tree. You need to combine your DNA results with traditional genealogical research to build a complete picture of your family’s history.

Once you have as much as possible of your family tree in place, DNA testing can confirm or refute your research. Shared matches can be incredibly helpful in this regard, as they can help determine which branch of your family tree a particular DNA match belongs to. For example, let’s say you’ve identified a DNA match named John Smith. You’ve done some research and found that your great-grandmother was a Smith, but you’re not sure how John Smith is related to you. By looking at your shared matches, you might find that John Smith shares a significant amount of DNA with you and another DNA match named Sarah Jones. You’ve also done some research on Sarah Jones and found that she is a second cousin on your mother’s side. This means that John Smith is likely related to you through your great-grandmother’s family.

To maximise the benefit of shared matches, genetic genealogists use a method called “Clustering”. Clustering means identifying and grouping together multiple DNA matches that all share DNA with each other. Ancestry and My Heritage have a labelling tool that uses coloured dots. You can assign a group of shared matches all the same-coloured dot which allows you to visually identify

them as a cluster. Each cluster of shared matches likely comes from the same branch of your family tree. Although other test sites do not have coloured dots you can download your match list to a spreadsheet and colour code them there using the same process.

There is a variety of clustering methods which all work in the same way but might achieve slightly different results in terms of the number of clusters you have to work with. The key to clustering is to know where to start the process in your match list. For example, if you have your mother tested and you assign her and her shared matches a pink dot, you will have two large clusters, a paternal one with no dots and a maternal one with pink dots. This is not going to be the most beneficial way of viewing your DNA matches for research. It is better to start your clustering process further down the match list which will create a larger number of groups.

A well-known method for clustering is ‘The Leeds Method’ named after the genetic genealogist Dana Leeds who is based in the USA. She first formulated an idea to cluster your matches into 4 groups representing each of your grandparent branches. The idea is to cluster your matches starting at the first match under 400 cM (centimorgans),

assign them and their shared matches a coloured dot, and then move to the next match without a dot and repeat the process using a different colour. You have now created clusters within your match list, each cluster assigned a different coloured dot. Within those grandparent clusters you will have smaller groups of shared matches, not yet identified, who would descend from your great grandparents or more distant ancestors.

The documented Leeds Method of clustering suggests working with matches from 400 cM down to 90 cM to create the 4 grandparent groups of matches. Generally, testers outside of the USA will have far fewer matches so the method needs to be expanded further to about 40 cM or lower, and you should expect 6 or more groups to form. The numbers of groups you will identify depends on your start and stop centimorgan amounts, as well as the number of matches you have to work with. You may prefer to work to a method of identifying 8 great grandparent clusters in which case you would start around about the 3rd cousin mark or around 100 cM as your beginning match. For example, if you want 4 grandparent groups, you need to start with a match that is only from one of your grandparents, so first