My great grandfather Patrick O’Brien was born about 1843 in the parish of Aghnamullen, County Monaghan. He was a Roman Catholic and was the son of Francis O’Brien, a farmer, and Ann(ie) or Agnes Connachan or Cunningham.
I’ve estimated that he emigrated to Glasgow, Scotland some time during the early to mid-1860s. In February 1868 he married Mary Ann McCann, a native of County Tyrone, in Glasgow. His first son, Patrick, was born in June of that year followed by a daughter, Annie born in July 1869. His wife Mary Ann died in December 1871 and he remarried to Mary Doran in April 1875.
His children from this second marriage were Mary, born 1878, died 1881; Philip, born 1880; Francis, born 1883 and another child named Mary, born 1886. Patrick was employed as a coal miner at Govan Colliery, Glasgow where he worked for about 28 years until he died at Hutchesontown, Glasgow in February 1892.
The Griffith’s Valuation of 1861 records 4 O’Brien (sic) householders in Aghnamullen parish, all located in townlands within the Laragh District and to the north of Lough Egish.
Patrick O’Brien of Tullynahinnera; Francis O’Brien of Cargaghdoo; Philip O’Brien of Cargaghdoo and Peter O’Brien of Cargaghdoo/ Lagan.
I understand that parochial registers for Aughnamullen East (Lough Egish) Parish commence in 1857 which would be too late to find a record of Patrick’s birth. I believe there were also a number of variant spellings of the O’Brien (Brien, Briens, Brines etc.) I would be extremely grateful if I you could help me find any further information to confirm or deny my family connections with the Lough Egish O’Briens.
Wednesday 12th Jun 2013, 09:45PM
Message Board Replies
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Hi,
Thank you very much for your message. I hope that someone with information makes a connection with you.
Yes you are right, the parish registers for Aghnamullen East do not begin until 1857. However, in the19th century new Catholic parishes were created so starting dates can sometimes be misleading. Many parishes changed their geographical spread so you may find earlier records relating to your family in the records of adjoining parishes. records for Aghnamullen West start in 1841 so it may be no harm to see if you can find records their:
It may be an idea to contact the local parish priest for possible assistance.
Here are some other websites that you may find helpful in your research:
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
Family Search: www.familysearch.org
Monaghan: http://www.monaghantourism.com/people.aspx
Genealogy Links: http://www.genealogylinks.net/uk/ireland/monaghan/index.html
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
Wednesday 3rd Jul 2013, 11:27AM