My grand mother Elizabeth Shannon (ca 1956-1935) emigrated fromCounty Cavan to New Zealand as a servant girl - she said when she was16 years old. She married Peter Johnston in 1878 at the church of the Blessed Scrament In Chrstchurch,and afterhis death married John William Wilson in the Kaiapoi Wesleyan Church in 1882.From her nine children there are a goodly clan carrying her DNA. Wedo not know ifshehad any siblings in Ireland, but her mother was Catherine Saunderson (a washerwoman) or married Peter Shannon (a labourer). We were told in Co Cavan in 2000 thatthis is a most unusual combination ofnames, as the Saundersons were Church of Ireland gentry (Castle Saunderson, etc) and the Shannons Irish Catholics. The only link I have been able to find to date is that a Peter Shannonis listed in Griffiths valuations as the occupant of a tenement at Curraghanoe. Grandmothersaid that she attended a school where girls learnt to be servants - she learnt how to handle money and how to knit curtains in a lacy pattern. We were alsotoldby a gentleman at Black Lion that that type of knitting is traditional in the north of County Cavan. I would love to know more of Castleterra, and particularly to find outmore about grandmother's family.
Elaine BOLITHO
Saturday 27th Apr 2013, 04:49AMMessage Board Replies
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Hi Elaine,
Have you tried looking at church records in Castleterra for more information? Most Catholic records are held locally so you may need to write to the local parish priest for possible assistance. One website that you may find useful is the Irish Times where they give an overview of what records are available in specific parishes. It also shows you where copies of the records are available. For Castleterra parish, follow this link:
Most surviving Church of Ireland records are still held by the local clergy, although some are in the National Archives of Ireland and others are in the Representative Church Body Library in Dublin. Here are their websites: http://www.nationalarchives.ie/ and http://ireland.anglican.org/about/42
Lists of these surviving registers can also be found at the National Library of Ireland.
Also,civil registration began in Ireland in 1864 so any births, deaths or marriages in the family after this date would be recorded in these records. Civil records are available from the General Register?s Office in Dublin. Here is their website:
http://www.groireland.ie/research.htm
You can search the indexes to these records online at:
https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1408347
Have you checked in the 1901/1911 census records to see if you can find any family still in the area there? http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/search/
For more information on the parish itself, you should try contacting the Local Studies Department of Cavan Library to see if they can advise you. Here is a link to their webpage:
http://www.cavanlibrary.ie/Default.aspx?StructureID_str=17
Some other websites that you may find useful are:
The National Archives of Ireland http://www.nationalarchives.ie/genealogy1/genealogy-records/introduction/
The National Library of Ireland http://www.nli.ie/en/family-history-introduction.aspx
The National Archives UK ? genealogy search: http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/records/looking-for-person/
The Public Records Office of Northern Ireland http://www.proni.gov.uk/index/family_history.htm
Familysearch: www.familysearch.org
Genealogy Links: http://www.genealogylinks.net/uk/ireland/cavan/index.html
I hope some of this is helpful. Please be patient - as our programme has only begun to rollout across the island of Ireland and volunteers in some areas may not yet be organized.
Kind regards,
Genealogy Support
Tuesday 4th Jun 2013, 03:13PM