Irish orphan: Eliza Stewart/McLaren - Dungannon, Tyrone

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

You haven’t said what denomination Eliza was. Dungannon is in the parish of Drumglass. RC records start in 1821 and are on-line above. Church of Ireland (Anglican) start in 1665, 1st Dungannon Presbyterian start in 1790, 2ndDungannon Presbyterian in 1830 and Methodists 1819. Apart from the RC records, the rest are probably not on-line anywhere so a visit to PRONI would be required to view them.

As you know, Eliza left Ireland in 1848 on the ROMAN EMPEROR. This voyage was part of the Earl Grey scheme to resettle orphaned "paupers." One site I found noted that all of the orphans were from workhouses in the north of Ireland and all were Protestants. You seem to have information that Eliza was from Dungannon; perhaps you might see if there are any Dungannon workhouse records available.

It is possible, because Eliza went by her mother's maiden name, that she was born out of wedlock.

Finally, there are two Stewarts shown on this partial list of passengers for the ROMAN EMPEROR:

https://bound-for-south-australia.collections.slsa.sa.gov.au/1848RomanE…

I hope something here is helpful.

Hi Elwyn and Patricia,

I was overwhelmed by your speedy and detailed responses which I was not expecting - thank you! I did not have the information previously, but yesterday obtained Eliza's death certificate which stated that a Presbyterian minister presided at her funeral, so a visit to PRONI might assist with any baptism records. Thanks for the tip about obtaining a researcher; I live in Melbourne, Australia, and am not planning a trip to Europe in the near future, so I will give that some thought.

I checked out the link to the Catholic records you so kindly provided, as I have another Irish female ancestor - Mary Neil, a Catholic convict from Limerick about the same age as Eliza. The records are a challenge to decipher online and I don't have any information about Mary's parents, so that might be another task for a future trip.

I had a look at the Stewarts who were on the Roman Emperor with Eliza. They came from towns that seemed a good distance from Dungannon, Coleraine and Newry. Could the sisters have been split up like that back then? I'm guessing too that Stewart was a very common surname?

Thanks for the information that Eliza might have been illegitimate - I did wonder. She herself lived de facto for 19 years and had eight children illegitimately with her second husband before they married, presumably after word reached her that her first husband had died.

My other Irish ancestors were vague about where in Ireland they were from, but Eliza particularly mentioned Dungannon Parish on her marriage certificate, so I think she must have felt strong ties to her birth place. You must too to be volunteering in this role. Thanks again for the help. Regards, Julie Brown.

Yes Stewart/Stuart (the two are interchangeable) is a common surname in Ireland. In the 1901 census there were 9858 in Ireland, of which 618 were in Co Tyrone. Many were Presbyterian.

MacLysaght’s “The Surnames of Ireland” says of Stewart/Stuart: “This Scottish name is one of the most numerous non indigenous names in Ireland. More than 90 percent of the families so called are located in Ulster.”

So you have a Scottish surname, you believe the family probably lived in Tyrone (Ulster), and they were apparently Presbyterian. All 3 are indicators pointing to Scots origins (in the 1600s). Presbyterianism was brought to Ireland by Scots settlers in the 1600s, most of whom settled in Ulster.

McLaren/McLellan have the same origins too.