HAMILTON of Tornamoney + LAVERTY, McKENDRY & McNEILL

HAMILTON  of Tornamoney + LAVERTY, McKENDRY & McNEILL 

I descend from Patrick and Mary (Laverty) Hamilton of the Roman Catholic Parish of Cushendun within the Civil Parish of Culfeightrin. Patrick and Mary had seven children; six of them have been identified in American records and most of them were born before the surviving Catholic parish registers commence in 1825:

https://registers.nli.ie/parishes/0409

https://registers.nli.ie/parishes/0408

As I recently learned, in 1831, the only Patrick Hamilton identified in the Tithe Applotment Records for the Civil Parish of Culfeightrin was “Pat.” in “Turnamoany”:

http://www.irishgenealogyhub.com/antrim/tithe-applotments/culfeightrin-parish.php 

With children born in Culfeightrin between 1810 and 1828, I am now 99.9% sure that it was Patrick and Mary (Laverty) Hamilton who resided in Tornamoney in 1831. The coastal townland of Tornamoney is only 181 acres; Patrick Hamilton was undoubtedly related to Alexander Hamilton and Archibald Hamilton who also resided there in 1831. Alexander McNeill was also a resident of Tornamoney in 1831. 1831 residents of townlands immediately adjacent to Tornamoney included:

Altagore Townland

Patrick Laverty

Barney McNeill

Hugh McNeill

Cushleake Townland

Daniel McNeill

Hugh McNeill

“Turnamoany” is undoubtedly a phonetic variation of Tornamoney:

https://www.townlands.ie/antrim/cary/culfeightrin/tornamoney/

In 1852, Mary (Laverty) Hamilton and most of her children settled in the Town of West Union, Steuben County, New York, in the United States. From census records, Mary (Laverty) Hamilton was born about 1775 so Patrick Hamilton was probably born about 1771. Patrick probably died before the family left Ireland but it is also possible that he died outside of Ireland before the enumeration of the New York State Census in 1855. In West Union, the Hamilton-Laverty family was closely associated with a McNeill family that I suspect may have also originated in Tornamoney or nearby.

In the 1803 Agricultural Census of Antrim,  the only Hamilton household identified in Tornamoney was headed by John Hamilton. Tornamoney was also occupied by Alexander, Daniel and John McNeill, as well as Daniel O’Neill.

http://www.billmacafee.com/1803agriculturalcensus.htm

How was John Hamilton of Tornamoney in 1803 related to the Patrick Hamilton who married Mary Laverty and probably resided in Tornamoney in 1831?

I would like to connect with any Hamiltons who may know more about the Hamilton family of Tornamoney and perhaps especially those are not online because they may be elder members of the family who know the most about its history! Old photographs of people and structures at Tornamoney would be extremely interesting.

I am also very interested in comparing Autosomal DNA results with other descendants of the Hamilton family of Tornamoney via the free site, GEDmatch.com.

Thanks for your help!

Perry Streeter (perry@streeter.com)