My Irish ancestors are Michael (Mack) and Honora Driscoll. I do not know Honora's maiden name. Their immigration took place in 1825 leaving Cork Harbor on the Peter Robinson resettlement ship, Brunswick, in May and arrinving in Ennismore, Peterborough, Ontario, Canada in fall 1825. My great grandfather, their son, was William D. Driscoll who was born in Peterborough, Ontario, Canada in December 1825. The ship manifest says Michael and Honora were originating from Cape Clear. This is all I know of the Irish history, but I would like to find out more before visiting Ireland in May of 2013. Thank you.
Charles Driscoll
Sunday 27th Jan 2013, 11:23PM
Message Board Replies
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HI Charles
Thank you for your query. It is clear that you have carried out some research to date, It is helpful if you include what sources you have used up to this point, Including this information makes it easier for our volunteers to advise and assist you.
It seems that Cape Clear (Cl?ire) has a history of the Driscoll (O Driscoll) family. Firstly do you know what the religious denomination of your family was? you can view what Roman Catholic records exist for Cape Clear through the link below:
http://www.irishtimes.com/ancestor/ (Browse Roman Catholic Parish Map)
When your browsing click the South Cork section of the map and 'Rath & The Islands' this includes cape clear.
For Church of Ireland records see: http://ireland.anglican.org/about/42 and http://www.nationalarchives.ie/. The Anglican Record Project is has created an index to their records: http://ireland.anglican.org/cmsfiles/pdf/AboutUs/library/AngRecord/bunclodyunionindex.pdf
You can also browse Surnames on the same site which will give you an indication of the distribution of the Driscoll name in the mid 19th century.
You could try checking the land records called the Tithe Applotment Books (1823-38) http://titheapplotmentbooks.nationalarchives.ie/search/tab/home.jsp or the later Griffith's Valuation (1848-64) http://www.askaboutireland.ie/griffith-valuation/ or the Church of Latter Day Saints (LDS) https://familysearch.org/
The Tithe Applotment List might be of use to you, or at least interesting for you. These lists constitute the only nationwide survey for the period, and are valuable because the heaviest burden of the tithes to the Established Church, the Church of Ireland, fell on the poorest, for whom few other records survive.
You have a place of origin Charles so this is half the battle over in your research. I would recommend that you make contact with the local Heritage Centre and they may be able to help you find the exact records you are looking for. Delighted to hear that you are visiting Ireland in May . We hope that you have a holiday of a life time while you are here and hopefully get some nice weather too. We have a new tab at the top of our website for people visiting Ireland in 2013. If you have the time we would be very greatfulf if you could fill it out.
Here are some additional websites that we hope will be of help to you:
http://www.capeclearisland.eu/tp/index.php
http://www.capeclearmuseum.ie/news.php
http://www.skibbheritage.com/census.htm
http://www.nationalarchives.ie/genealogy1/genealogy-records/introduction/
http://www.nli.ie/en/family-history-introduction.aspx
http://ifhf.rootsireland.ie/?gclid=CKLT_Pa4wrUCFYUf4Qod4EoA.
Please do not hesitate to contact us again. All the best in your future research. We hope you find a family connection in Cape Clear.
Kind regards,
Genealogy Support
Monday 11th Mar 2013, 10:16AM