Sarah Highlands was my 4xgreat-grandmother, born in Ireland.
My only clue as to where she was born is that two of her children were born in Co Antrim according to censuses, She married John Hall in Ireland. Her first child Eliza was born there in about 1839 and her last in 1845. She died in Seagate, Irvine, Scotland on 28 July 1864 at the age of 59, so born about 1805. The 1851 and 1861 censuses in Scotland indicate her birth date to be about 1803.
The registration of Sarah's death states that her father's surname is HIGHLAND, forename left blank, a gentleman. Her mother is Rose HIGHLAND MS SLOAN. As Sarah's husband, John Hall, was an Ag Lab, it seems to me unlikely that Rose Sloan and Mr Highland were married, him being a gentleman!
I would be very grateful if someone could cast their expert eye at the above and perhaps suggest how I could take it further. I have been able to find out nothing about Rose or her 'husband' or a birth document for Sarah.
Many thanks for reading.
SusanSh
Wednesday 27th Oct 2021, 01:41PMMessage Board Replies
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Statutory birth, death and marriage registration (in some jurisdictions called Vital Records) only started in Ireland in 1864, save for non RC marriages which were recorded from 1845 onwards. So you probably won’t find statutory birth, death or marriage certificates in Ireland for this family. For earlier years you usually need to rely on church records, where they exist. Ideally you need to know the precise denomination and have some idea of where the person was born in order to search the correct records. Not all churches have records for that period and not all are on-line.
RC records are mostly on-line on the nli site:
https://www.nli.ie/en/family-history-introduction.aspx
For other denominations, the churches usually hold the originals but there are also copies in PRONI, the public record office, in Belfast. A personal visit is required to access them. Access to the records there is free. This link explains what records exist, parish by parish:
https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/publications/proni-guide-church-records
If you are unable to go yourself, you could employ a researcher. Researchers in the PRONI area: http://sgni.net
Possibly DNA testing may be a way of matching with others who have additional information about where the family originate. Family Tree DNA reportedly has more people with Ulster roots than any other company. That obviously increases the chances of finding a match. You might want to try them or, if you have already tested, you can transfer your results to them for no fee.
The North of Ireland Family History Society is running an Ulster DNA project in conjunction with FTDNA and can offer testing kits at a reduced price. http://www.nifhs.org (Go to DNA project on the website).
Elwyn, IrelandXO Volunteer ☘
Wednesday 3rd Nov 2021, 05:30AM -
Elwyn, Thank you so much for your helpful advice.
I have uploaded my DNA results to FamilyTreeDNA so I shall explore my matches further.
The list of researchers could prove to be very helpful.
Many thanks again for taking the time to offer your help.
Susan Sherman
SusanSh
Wednesday 3rd Nov 2021, 06:15PM