Hickey of County Laois

Hi Evan,

Thank you very much for your message. I hope that others researching the Hickey?s make a connection with you.

Unfortunately, it may be difficult to find information without a more specific place of origin. Most Irish record sources- church records, land records, census records- are based on specific locations. Until you know a specific location within Ireland, preferably a parish or placename, it may be difficult to do anything more with these records.

Do you have any documentation pertaining to the family that mentions any place names at all? This can include wills, marriage/death records,census records, letters, diary entries etc.

There are some places where you can search online, however it may be difficult to discern whether the results are relevant to your family or not without more information:

www.familysearch.org has a huge database of genealogical records including some church records for Ireland.

www.rootsireland.ie have a large collection of Irish Church records, however you have to pay to use this site.

You can use the Tithe Applotment Books (1823-1838) to see what Hickey?s were recorded in the county for the period. These are land records compiled between 1823 and 1837 in order to determine the amount which occupiers of agricultural holdings should pay in tithes to the Church of Ireland (the main Protestant church, and the church established by the state until its disestablishment in 1871). There is a manuscript book for almost every parish, giving the names of occupiers, the amount of land held, and the sums to be paid in tithes.

http://titheapplotmentbooks.nationalarchives.ie/search/tab/results.jsp?surname=hickey&firstname=&county=Queen%27s&townland=&parish=&search=Search&sort=parish_sort&pageSize=10&pager.offset=0

Griffith?s Valuation is a later land record, 1848-64:

http://www.askaboutireland.ie/griffith-valuation/index.xml?action=doNameSearch&Submit.x=34&Submit.y=10&Submit=Submit&familyname=hickey&firstname=First+Name&countyname=QUEEN%27S

You could also use the 1901/1911 census records to see what Hickey?s were living in the county at the turn of the century:

http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/search/

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

Irish Times: http://www.irishtimes.com/ancestor/index.htm

Genealogy links: http://www.genealogylinks.net/uk/ireland/laois/index.html

I hope some of this is helpful. Remember to post any new information you find here, particularly in relation to place of orign. The more information you post, the more likely it is that one of our volunteers will be able to advise or assist you. Also include information concerning which sources you may have already used so others may further your search.

Kind regards,    

Genealogy Support