Rebecca McSorley

Rebecca’s marriage looks to have been before the start of statutory marriage registration (1864 for RC & April 1845 for non RC marriages) and so to trace it you would need to know the church she was married in. Killen is in Longfield West (Langfield RC parish). The local church of Ireland’s pre 1845 records were destroyed in the 1922 fire in Dublin. The RC records only start in 1846. I am not sure what other denominations churches there are in the area, but if the records survive, they are likely to be in PRONI in Belfast. But if that’s the parish where she married, there’s obviously a fair chance that there is no record of the marriage.

Thanks Elwyn, 

                 I have been told that all the Armstrong records are at the Anglican Church in Omagh

                  but dont know how correct that is but as you said they have probally been moved to PRONI

                                                                    Cheers Denise

If the records are in the church in Omagh (which is in the parish of Drumragh), then presumably the family must have moved to live in that parish. If husband and wife did not attend the same church, tradition was to marry in the bride’s church after which she would attend her husband’s. So sometimes the marriage and childrens baptisms are not in the same church. I notice that all the McSorleys in Tyrone in the 1901 census were RC, so possibly this was  a mixed marriage.

According to my guide to Church of Ireland records, the originals for Omagh are still held by the church. PRONI hold a microfilm copy. However you normally have to pay to see the originals (typically £12 an hour) whereas the copy in PRONI is free to view. The PRONI records contain the following:

Baptisms, 1801-1947; marriages, 1802-1950; marriage notice books, 1905-26 and 1941- 84; burials, 1830-95 and 1904-74; vestry minutes,1792-1871, 1874-82 and 1894-1931; register of members, c.1880; marriage notice books, 1905-26 and 1941-84.

Thank you Elwyn, might need to go back for a visit

Ps seems they moved around a bit i have my GG Grandmothers Baptism Cert and they where in Murnie . ( Munie) Later on William can be found in Killen Near,