Birth Record or Baptism Record for John Bell

See seventh record for an unknown Bell with parents William and Nancy Crooks. Could this be John

https://civilrecords.irishgenealogy.ie/churchrecords/images/birth_returns/births_1866/03522/2295956.pdf

Attached Files

Hello Shandog,

The 1866 civil registration birth record link provided by IrelandXO Volunteer Castlemore Roscommon for the Bell child with no first name, shows the family were living in the townland of Turnaface, County Londonderry. Turnaface is just west of Moneymore and was in the civil parish of Lissan. This civil parish of Lissan also crossed over the border into County Tyrone.

Castlemore Roscommon uncovered the birth record at the irishgenealogy.ie website.

The Bell child’s baptism record may provide you with his first name. His parents, William Bell and Nancy Crooks belonged to the Presbyterian Church, as I found their civil registration marriage record at the free irishgenealogy.ie website.

William Bell and Nancy Crooks were married in the 3rd Presbyterian Church, Cookstown, civil parish of “Derriloran,” (actually spelled Derryloran), County Tyrone, on 15 June 1859. At the time of marriage William was a “Bachelor,” and Nancy a “Spinster.” William’s occupation was “Farmer.” His residence at the time of marriage was “Tornaface,” which would be an alternate spelling for Turnaface. His father was Rober Bell, also a “Farmer.”

No occupation was recorded for Nancy. Her residence at the time of marriage was a challenge to decipher, but it is the townland of Dunman. Dunman was in the civil parish of Derryloran, County Londonderry. Nancy’s father is William Crooks, a “Farmer.”

The marriage record is attached to this reply.

William and Nancy’s child born in 1866, may have been baptized in Presbyterian churches near Turnaface and Dunman.

One of the churches is the 3rd Presbyterian Church in Cookstown, where the Bell-Crooks marriage took place in 1859.

According to the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland's, "An Irish Genealogical Source: A Guide To Church Records (2019), the 3rd Cookstown Presbyterian Church is located in Molesworth Street, Cookstown. Baptisms are available for the years 1835 to 1969, and marriages from 1866 to1953.

The baptisms and marriages are held by the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland (PRONI) in Belfast. The reference number for the baptisms and marriages is T2750/1 MIC1P/460.

You can search the microfilm of the 3rd Cookstown Presbyterian Church parish registers in person at PRONI. If you cannot make it to PRONI to do the research, the PRONI Enquiry Service can look for the 1866 baptism record of the Bell child for you in the 3rd Presbyterian Church registers. If the child born in 1866 is not John, PRONI will look for his baptism record over a 10 year period, say for example, from 1859, when John’s parents were married, to 1869.

You can make up to five individual requests for a PRONI search.

This is a fee-based service, with the fee dependent on how long the search takes place. For more information about this service, go to the PRONI link at: https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/articles/proni-enquiry-service

If you engage PRONI to search for 3rd Cookstown Presbyterian Church baptisms, provide the reference number for the parish registers: T2750/1 MIC1P/460.

PRONI does not guarantee that any results will be found concerning the search.

The townlands of Turnaface, where William was living at the time of marriage, and the townland of Denman, where Nancy Crooks was living at the time of marriage, were in the civil parish of Lissan, which was one of those civil parishes that spanned portions of County Londonderry and County Tyrone.

PRONI’s A Guide To Church Records shows the Presbyterian Church for the Lissan civil parish was Claggan, which you may also see spelled “Clagan,” in some records.

The Claggan Presbyterian Church baptisms cover the years 1846 to 1916, and marriages from 1848 to 1931.

If PRONI does not find John Bell’s baptism in the 3rd Presbyterian Church, Cookstown, registers, you can make another request that they search for his baptism, circa 1866, in the Claggan Presbyterian Church registers.

The following map, from the townlands.ie website, shows the location of the townland of Turnaface, highlighted in blue:
https://www.townlands.ie/londonderry/loughinsholin/lissan-derry-portion…

If you decrease the size of the map you’ll see that Moneymore is just to the east of Turnaface, and Cookstown to the southwest.

A map from Microsoft Bing, attached to this reply, shows the location of the F T Bell farm, Turnaface Road, Moneymoore. As far as I can determine, this farm is just east of the townland of Turnaface. But the map also shows the farm is west of Moneymore.

The people at the Bell farm may be related to your Bell ancestors, either directly, or collaterally.

Also on the map is the location of the townland of Dunman, where Nancy Crooks was living when she married in 1859. In addition the map shows the location for the Presbyterian Church in Molesworth Street, Cookstown, and the Cleggan Presbyterian Church. The map is attached to this reply, and is simply labeled, “Map.”

Turnaface is the English spelling for the townland. The Irish spelling is, “Tornafeis,” meaning Craig (Crag) of the Festivals. That could be one translation from the Irish of the townland, though there could be others.

MORE CIVIL REGISTRATION BIRTH RECORDS

I located the birth records for four more children of William Bell and Nancy/Ann Crooks. All the children were born in Turnaface. See below to access the births from the irishgenealogy.ie website. I’ve included the 1866 birth of the son without a first name to show the full chronology of the births:

1864, 7 September, born in Turnaface, Londonderry, Bell, no first name, female, Number 179: 2331649.pdf (irishgenealogy.ie)

1866, 21 August, born in Turnaface, Londonderry, Bell, no first name, male, Number 232, birth found by Ireland Reaching Out Volunteer, Castlemore Roscommon: 2295956.pdf (irishgenealogy.ie)

1870, 17 June, born in Turnaface, Londonderry, Thomas Bell, Number 294: 2228962.pdf (irishgenealogy.ie)

1872, 17 April, born in Turnaface, Londonderry, Mary Bell, Number 270: 2192128.pdf (irishgenealogy.ie)

1875, 11 April, born in Turnaface, Londonderry, Bell, no first name, female, Number: 476: 2139232.pdf (irishgenealogy.ie)

THE TITHE APPLOTMENT BOOKS

One of the earliest records I could find for a Bell in Turnaface who likely is related to your great great grandfather John, is an Irish agricultural land record known as the Tithe Applotment Books. The tithe books were compiled in the 32 counties of Ireland from 1823 to 1837.

The tithe books for the year 1827 show that a John Bell and a Robert Bell leased agricultural land in Turnaface, civil parish of Lissan. I didn’t locate a copy of the original tithe records for John and Robert Bell, but an index at: https://www.cotyroneireland.com/tithe/lissan.html

The Robert Bell in the Tithe Applotment Books for Turnaface was probably William’s father. John Bell may have been Robert’s brother.

I next looked for William Crooks in the tithe indexes for the townland of Dunman. Dunman, though not far from Turnaface, was located in the civil parish of Derryloran, where Cookstown was also situated.

At the https://www.cotyroneireland.com website I found an Alexander, Robert, Samuel, and William Crooks, recorded in the Tithe Applotment Books in 1827. William was likely Nancy’s father. See:
https://www.cotyroneireland.com/tithe/derryloran_A_L.html

For a comprehensive explanation of the Tithe Applotment Books, go to the National Archives of Ireland website links at:

https://titheapplotmentbooks.nationalarchives.ie/search/tab/home.jsp
https://titheapplotmentbooks.nationalarchives.ie/search/tab/about.jsp
https://titheapplotmentbooks.nationalarchives.ie/search/tab/aboutmore.j…

NANCY CROOKS AND FAMILY

After locating the Tithe Applotment Book indexes I did a bit more research at the cotyroneireland.com website, and found indexes for Nancy Crooks and family. Nancy was born or baptized on 2 January 1837, and that she was, “Mar to Wm Bell,” of “Torniface.”

The indexes also show that Nancy’s parents were William Crooks and
Elizabeth Hogg. Nancy also had seven siblings. The family were residing in “Dunman, Parish of Derriloran, Drapers Company Estate.”

See below:

Page 89 Dunman Parish of Derriloran Drapers Company Estate

William Crooks
Elizabeth Hogg w.

James 17-Jan 1827, Mar. 8 Feby. 1852 lives in Ballymeehan
William 11 Jan 1829, Mar. to Elizabeth Anderson
John 8 Nov 1830, Gone to Australia 2 August 1856
Samuel 2 Dec 1832, Do. 7 April 1857
Margaret 16 Dec 1834, Mar. to Gordon Bell 22 Sepr. 1857
Nancy 2 Jan 1837, Mar. to Wm. Bell, Torniface
Robert 11 Aug 1839, Died 20th July 1855 [earlier record shows 28th]
Rachel 11 Mar 1842, Mar. to Jas. Lyle

Source: https://cotyroneireland.com/places/Congregationof3rdCookstown1842-1843…
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The 3rd Presbyterian Church baptisms are available from the year 1835 at PRONI. Nancy’s 1837 baptism may be in the church’s baptism registers.

You can read more about “Derryloran in the 1830s” at Ireland Reaching Out, which also mentions the “Drapers Company of London.” The information at Ireland Reaching Out comes from the 1837 edition of Lewis’s Topographical Dictionary of Ireland. See:
https://irelandxo.com/ireland-xo/history-and-genealogy/timeline/derrylo…

Back at the cotyroneireland.com website I uncovered an interesting death announcement for a Mary Crooks of Dunman, who died, “aged 106.” The announcement and sources are quoted below:

Cookstown (Derryloran Parish), Co. Tyrone, Northern Ireland Death Announcements, 1780-1850.

Deaths Announcements relating to residents of Cookstown and Derryloran Parish, Co. Tyrone, extracted from personal notices inserted in the Dublin Evening Post, Hibernian Journal, Saunders’ News letter, Enniskillen Packet & Lough Erne Packet, Newry Telegraph, Belfast News Letter, Belfast Commercial Chronicle, Strabane Morning Post, Londonderry Standard & Londonderry Sentinel.

February 18 1837, CROOKS – On 19th January, Mary Crooks, of Dunman, near Cookstown, aged 106, about 3 months before her death she had 8 new teeth, four on each jaw (Londonderry Sentinel).
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Unfortunately I didn’t find indexes for the parents and siblings of your great great grandfather John Bell’s father William at the cotyroneireland.com website. We know from William’s 1859 marriage to Nancy Crooks that his father was Robert Bell.

GRIFFITHS VALUATION

I next looked for your John’s father, William Bell, and Nancy Crooks’s father, William, in an Irish property tax record called Griffiths Valuation at the Ask About Ireland website at: https://www.askaboutireland.ie/griffith-valuation/

Griffiths Valuation was compiled in the 32 counties of Ireland from 1847 to 1864. The valuation for the civil parishes of Lissan and Derryloran were completed by the year 1859, which is the year William Bell and Nancy Crooks were married in the 3rd Presbyterian Church, Cookstown, County Tyrone.

Unlike a census, Griffiths Valuation did not enumerate individual members of a family, such as husband, wife, and children in a household residence. An exception to this is that agnomens were recorded to differentiate occupiers with the same first and last names, but with different parents. More on agnomens later.

Those named in Griffiths Valuation were individuals who paid to lease property, such as land, houses, and outbuildings. Each person who paid to lease the property was called an “Occupier.” The other person listed in Griffiths Valuation was the person who owned the property, or who worked as the middleman collecting the rent for the owner. This middleman was called the “Immediate Lessor.”

WILLIAM BELL

The Griffiths Valuation entry for William Bell in Turnaface, civil parish of Lissan, is attached to this reply. He is the first occupier recorded in Turnaface at map reference 1a. After his name you see in parenthesis the first name “Robert.” Robert would be William Bell’s father, as noted above.

If you go down to map reference 4a, you’ll see another entry for a William Bell (John). John would be this William Bell’s father.

The first names in parenthesis are called “agnomens,” which is Latin for “other name.” They tell you that the two William Bells in Turnaface came are not the same person,but come from different parents.

Griffiths Valuation shows that William Bell (Robert) leased a house, offices, and over 34 acres of land from the owners of the property, which were the Worshipful Company of Drapers, who were mentioned in the Ireland Reaching Out blog seen earlier.

The 34 acres of land were valued at 26 Pounds and 10 Shillings. The house and offices were valued at 2 Pounds. The total valuation for William Bell’s lease was 28 Pounds and 10 Shillings. He would have paid a percentage of this amount toward the property tax.

An office in a Griffiths Valuation entry could refer to a barn, stable, blacksmith shop, etc.

The map reference 1a pertains to the location of William’s lease on a Griffiths Valuation map. More on this map later.

At map reference 1b is the entry for George Hamilton. He only leased a house. His house was valued at 10 Shillings. His Immediate Lessor was William Bell (Robert). This means that William collected the rent from George Hamilton for the owners of the property, the Worshipful Company of Drapers.

Also leasing property in Turnaface are John Bell at map reference 3, and William Bell (John), at map reference 4a. The two William Bells and John Bell were probably related.

The Griffiths Valuation map for Turnaface is attached to this reply. Map references 1 for William Bell (Robert) and George Hamilton, as well as map references 3 for John Bell and 4 for William Bell (John), are attached to this reply. Map references 1, 3, and 4 are indicated by the blue arrows, but the subdivisions in lower-case letters a and b, are not recorded on the map.

WILLIAM CROOKES SR AND WILLIAM CROOKES JR.

Griffiths Valuation spells William Sr. and Jr’s surname as “Crookes.” William Sr. leased a house, offices, and over 23 acres of land in Dunman, civil parish of Derryloran. The Immediate Lessors were the Worshipful Company of Drapers. He is the first Occupier recorded in Dunman at map reference 1. His land was valued at 18 Pounds and his house and offices at 5 Pounds. The total valuation for his lease was 23 Pounds.

William Crookes Jr. leased a house, office and over 23 acres of land, also from the Worshipful Company of Drapers at map reference 4. His land was valued at 18 Pounds and his house and office valued at 3 Pounds. The total valuation for his lease was 21 Pounds.

This is the William Crooks Jr. who was Nancy’s brother. He, along with his sister Nancy, their siblings, and parents William and Elizabeth Hogg, were seen earlier from the indexes at the cotyroneireland.com website.

The indexes show that William Jr. was born on 11 January 1829 and that he married Elizabeth Anderson.

Also recorded in Dunman in Griffiths Valuation was Alexander Crookes at map reference 5A and 5B. In one parcel he leased a house, office and over 21 acres of land from the Worshipful Company of Drapers.

The land was valued at 17 Pounds and 12 shillings. The house was valued at 2 Pounds and 5 Shillings.

In the second parcel he did not lease a house but leased under an acre of land at 2 Roods and 10 Perches in size. This land was valued at 8 Shillings. The total value of the two leaseholds was 20 Pounds and 5 Shillings.

For an explanation of Acres, Roods, and Perches in land ownership and taxation, go to the Lochista website link at: https://tinyurl.com/38j6mc6n

Alexander was not recorded as a child of William Crooks and Elizabeth Hogg in the cotyroneireland.com website indexes, but he was probably related to William Sr and William Jr.

You can see the locations of the Dunman leases in a Griffiths Valuation map attached to this reply. See the blue arrows showing the location of map references 1, 4, 5A, and 5B on the map.

Lastly, as an aside, I went back to the irishgenealogy.ie website where I found the civil registration marriage record for William Crooks Jr. and Eliza Anderson.

They were married in the Maghera Tyrone Presbyterian Meeting House, civil parish of Maghera, County Derry, on 5 June 1856. Both William and Eliza were of full age when they were married by license.

William was a “Bachelor” and Eliza a “Spinster.”

At the time of marriage William’s occupation was “Farmer.” He was living in Dunman. His father is William Crooks, also a “Farmer.”

No occupation is recorded for Eliza. Her residence at the time of marriage was Curragh. Her father is John Anderson, also a “Farmer.”

Best of Luck with your research,

Dave Boylan

SOURCES

Reply from Ireland Reaching Out Volunteer Castlemore Roscommon to Shandog on 13 September 2024
irishgenealogy.ie
Public Record Office of Northern Ireland's, "An Irish Genealogical Source: A Guide To Church Records (2019)"
PRONI Enquiry Service: https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/articles/proni-enquiry-servicetownlands.ie
Microsoft Bing Map
Tithe Applotment Books: https://www.cotyroneireland.com/tithe/lissan.html
Tithe Applotment Books, National Archives of Ireland
Ireland Reaching Out: History and Genealogy Timeline, Derryloran
Lewis’s Topographical Dictionary of Ireland (1837)
Ask About Ireland: Griffiths Valuation and Valuation Maps: https://www.askaboutireland.ie/griffith-valuation/
Lochista, Understanding Acres, Roods, and Perches: https://tinyurl.com/38j6mc6n