I seem to have drawn a blank in finding a birth record for my maternal grandfather Patrick Power and would like some help if possible. His gravestone in Kill Church cemetery has his date of death as 19 Jan 1959 aged 71. Meaning he was born in 1888 + or - a year. I have what I think is the marriage record for him marrying my grandmother Margaret Cunningham on 26 July 1916 and he is shown as being 25 and nanny as 20. That would mean he was born in 1891 + or -. His occupation is shown as sailor and his father, Laurance Power is shown as a "smith" which I assume is a blacksmith. His residence was in Kill and nanny's as Carrigeen. They lived in a little cottage just beyond the "new houses" in Kill on the road to Carrolls cross. I have no idea if being a sailor means he was in the navy, a fisherman or had some job on the rivers. The witnesses to the wedding were James Power and Bridget Whelan.
Any help in finding a birth record for grandad would be appreciated.
John Dunphy
Friday 13th Jan 2023, 11:26PMMessage Board Replies
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John, You should be able to find his birth in the birth registers at the free site irishgenealogy.ie. Good luck.
Patricia
Saturday 14th Jan 2023, 12:04AM -
I have tried that site Patricia and have found lots of other ancestors. However, I have not been able to find a Patrick Power with Father Laurence in those date limits. I have found a couple of births in Carrick on Suir that might be him. Will have another go at irishgeneralogy.ie, which is a great source.
John
John Dunphy
Saturday 14th Jan 2023, 01:00AM -
Dear John, It's possible the birth was registered but isn't on irishgenealogy.ie. If so, you should find it by searching the indices in the General Register Office on Werburgh Street, Dublin. It's also possible the birth was not registered. If so, your best bet would be the baptismal register for Kill, which would be in the care of the parish priest. This should give your grandfather's date of birth as well as date of baptism - and even if it doesn't, the date of baptism should give you a good idea of when he was born, as baptisms in this period were usually performed within a couple of days of birth. If none of that yields any results, it might be worth considering if he was born in a neighbouring parish or further afield. Best wishes with your research,
C Flaherty, IrelandXO Volunteer ☘
Sunday 22nd Jan 2023, 12:39PM -
Thank you for that additional information, C, Flaherty. I have so many questions for the parish Priest in Kill and am hoping I can make a visit, (from Australia), sometime this year to ask them all. I also want to find out exactly where my paternal ancestors are buried in Kill Church cemetery, and who is buried in the communal grave that simply has the inscription Dunphy Family of Rathanny. It would be great if I could get a new memorial done with all the names and dates on it. I have tried a number of alternative parishes for Patrick Power without success, but I did find one entry that could be him, going to America from Derry in 1909. I will keep trying! I have a brother in Dublin so might call on him for help too.
John Dunphy
Wednesday 25th Jan 2023, 04:19AM -
No problem John. Many Catholic parishes do not keep burial registers - I'm not sure if Kill does or not. If you'd like to send me an email - cianflaherty96@gmail.com - I could put you in contact with someone who knows the area and its families much better than I do.
Best wishes,
C Flaherty, IrelandXO Volunteer ☘
Thursday 26th Jan 2023, 10:41AM