Prior, Ballinamore

Peggy:

Welcome to Ireland Reaching Out!

The parish register for Oughteragh/Ballinamore starts in 1869 but Roots Ireland has records back to 1841. The only way to determine if a record was lost or mistranscribed would be to contact the church http://www.stbrigidspastoralarea.ie/ or to contact the Leitrim Genealogy Center which is part of the Roots Ireland network.

Roger McDonnell

Genealogy Centre Contact Details
Leitrim Genealogy Centre
Ballinamore, Co. Leitrim, Ireland.
Tel: ++353 71 9644012
Email: leitrimgenealogy@eircom.net 

Thank you!

I've scoured Roots Ireland several times and extracted every possible baptism - none of which fit - so I think this might be a good excuse for a visit!

Hi Peggy,

My grandfather was also from Oughteragh.  His name was Patrick Fox.  Earlier this year I used the Leitrim Genealogy Centre to do research for me on my family as my great-grandmother's maiden name was Smith.  I didn't want to tackle that project on my own!  They did an outstanding job for me and I have found so much information on the Smith family I can't believe it.  In May we visited Ballinamore and there is a pub in town called Prior's.  Perhaps you can do a Google and see if they have a way for you to contact them.  We went into a pub called Smyth's and met the owner.  He put me in touch with people in the area who are relations of mine and we are exchanging emails!!  I highly recommend the Leitrim Genealogy Centre if you would like to have some research done.  I worked with a woman named Patricia Mc Cartin and met her when we were in Leitrim.  She did a great job for me and seems to know everyone in the area.  BTW....I have an obituary from around 1909 that mentions a Prior.  The obituary was for someone from the Ballinamore area.  I would be happy to share it with you if I can figure out how to post it on here, or if you'd like to give me your email I can send it to you.

Mary Todd

Hi Peggy,

I am thinking there is probably a volume missing.  I haven't been able to find a baptismal record for my Great grandfather born circa 1858/1860 but did find his older siblings pre 1855.  I also couldn't find my great grandmothers and her sisters baptismal record same period 1858 / 1860 but I was able to find their younger siblings.  Have you considered trying AncestryDNA or  FamilytreeDNA ?  I have had a lot of success with AncestryDNA.

Hi Mary,

I am curious about your Fox / Smith family.   My great great grandparents were Michael Cannon and Catherine Fox on my grandfathers fathers side - Dernahyltemore.  Then on my grandfathers mothers side my great great grandparents were Owen Smyth and Catherine Keegan - Miskaun Glebe.  Anything look familiar?  What newspaper was the obituary in?  I have a DNA match to a Fox relative that had an obituary from 1901 (I think) and it listed the relation of everyone who attended!  it then listed Town mourners!  It was from a scrapbook he inherited and it didn't have the name of the paper.  I have subscribed to many online newspaper archives and I haven't been able to find any obituaries for my Leitrim relatives.

Regards,

Lynn Cannon-Dohna

Hi Lynn,  there was an Owen Smyth in my family but I'm not sure exactly how he fits in.  I just learned my 2nd great-grandfather, Patrick Smith married Mary Smith (or Smyth).  When I find information for Smith I don't know if the person belongs to my 2nd great-grandfather's family or my 2nd great-grandmother's family.  It seems the spelling Smith/Smyth is interchangeable.  I don't know what paper the obituary was in but I just had the Leitrim Genealogy Centre do some research for me on the obituary and I leanred the obituary was for Michael Fox who died on 28-Sep-1908. 

Please click on the Obituary file above.  You will see there are many names listed and one of them is Prior.  I found Priors in the 1900 Rhode Island Census and graves for Priors in St. Francis Cemetery in Pawtucket, Rhode Island.  The stone says natives of Leitrim, Ireland.  My great-grandparents and their children are buried there too.

Mary Todd

Funny this is the same obituary that my DNA match had in his scrapbook. You must be a relative of Tim's and possibly mine. I had contacted the Public library in Ballinamore to try to find an obituary for my GG grandparents. They just referred me to an online newspaper subscription which had nothing.

These are my relatives:

Owen Smyth/Smith  born about 1803 died 2 April 1875 Miskaun Glebe, Leitrim

wife of Above Catherine Keegan born about 1802 died 6 November 1890 Miskaun Glebe, Leitrim

They had the following children:

1)Mary Smith married Patrick Stretton (9 Feb 1860) she died 23 June 1920 he died 10 March 1911 

2)Rose Smith married Bartley Hoey (8 Feb 1869) Rose died 2 Dec 1921 Miskaun Glebe, Leitrim, Barley died 19 June 1925 Miskaun Glebe, Leitrim

3) John Smith - Too common a name to track him.

My Great grandmother was Bridget Stretton daughter of Pat and Mary Smith. She married Michael Cannon Bridget died 17 Nov 1897. Then Michael remarried he died 22 December 1917. His second wife was margaret Creamer, the daughter of John Creamer and Julia Prior.  Margaret died 20 Jan 1951.

Michaels parents were Michael Cannon (died 1 Oct 1893) and Catherine McShanaghy (Fox) died 31 March 1895.  

Seeing the 1908 obituary I thought I would be able to find an obituary for my recent death dates, but I haven't any luck.

I would like to find an obituary for:

Patrick (Pat) Stretton death date 10 March 1911 

Mary Smith Stretton death date 23 June 1920

Michael Cannon death date 22 December 1917

Margaret (Maggie) Creamer Cannon death date 20 January 1951

I think I will contact the Leitrim Centre and ask for an estimate, I don't want to spend a lot of money and get nothing.  Was your search expensive?

Regards,

Lynn

Hi Lynn,

Please contact me via email.  My email address is:      mary.todd1226@gmail.com

Don't forget the . between mary and todd.  To answer your question about cost with the Leitrim Genealogy Centre, I found them to be very reasonable.  I received a 21 page report (which I will send to you once I have your email address) and they only charged me 160 pounds.  I thought that was very reasonable for all the work they did.  Since they were researching the name Smith I really didn't expect much but was very pleasantly surprised. 

I take it you had your DNA tested by Ancestry.  Please tell me your user name (in an email) so I can check to see if we were a match.  I did have a match to Tim's mother but we have not been able to make a connection.  Please email me directly so we can make a comparrison. 

Mary Todd

Hi Peggy,

I took a look at the records.  When you can't find a birth record to find and exact year and mothers name - best thing to do is try to prove yourself wrong.  I looked through and I couldn't find any marriages for a James Prior son of Thaddeus Thady Thadie ect.  I also looked through to the death records and didn't find anything that would fit.  I did find these possible sons of Thaddeus -  I found a marriage record for Felix Prior address Camagh to Mary Carrigan 16 Feb 1882

There is also a John Prior and Mary MacGolrick and a Francis Prior and Margaret Darcy in the same village (Francis is not listed in the census but Margaret is listed as Married not Widowed.  I could not find a death record for Francis Prior and Margaret is listed as a widow in the 1911 census.

John and Mary are in the 1911 census and there is a Rose McTierney I believe she is Mary's sister.  

So I would think you are correct and James' parents would be Thaddeus Prior and Rose Gilheany.  I strongly recommend AncestryDNA if you have not done so already,  It has helped me tremendously to sort out the inferred records.   

Best of Luck in your search.

Lynn

Hi Peggy,
I am another great great grandchild of Thadeus Prior and Rose Gilheany - through Thadeus' son John Thady and Margaret Mc Gol(d)rick. John Thady's son Francis John Thady was my grandfather, who built a number of houses in Ballinamore and elsewhere. My father Killian was the 5th of their 6 children.
The oldest child of Francis and Margaret Conlon. who was his wife and my granny, died only last year at 99, having lived in Ballinamore all her life. My cousins tell me that we are not in fact related to the Priors who still live in Ballinamore (Priors Pub). It is fascinating to see how far Thadeus and Rose's descendants have spread! Killian had 2 sons (my brothers) with a total of four sons being born to them to continue the Prior name. All live in Surrey, England, the youngest being just 24.
Jane S.

P.s to message above - I am on the Ancestry.com DNA database, so if you do a test and get a 3rd cousin link with me, this would confirm your relationship with James Prior and thus to Thadeus and Rose
Jane

Hi Peggy,

I went through Ancestry.com family trees looking for clues - I think you may be correct about Rose Gilheeny.  There is a tree online that has a Thaddeus Prior / Rose Gilheeny and the mother of Thaddeus is listed as Kate Harvey.  So I am thinking that lodger is your James' relative by his grandmothers family.

Hope this helps.  Lynn

Thanks for all the replies, everybody - you've certainly given me a lot to follow up! I'm a bit pushed for time right now, but will get on to it all as soon as things at work calm down, including renewing a couple of subscriptions so I can look at these trees