Agnes Doherty m. John Sands 25 Nov 1848, Larne, Larne, County Antrim, Ireland

Mary,

Not sure you have found the correct marriage for your couple. The Agnes Doherty who married on 25.11.1848 married John Hefferan, not John Sands. (You are correct that the ceremony was Protestant. It was in Larne 1^stPresbyterian church). Copy here:

https://civilrecords.irishgenealogy.ie/churchrecords/images/marriage_returns/marriages_1848/09351/5386104.pdf

Statutory registration of non RC marriages started in Ireland in 1845. RC marriages were only recorded from 1864 onwards. Prior to those dates we need to know the denomination and church location to locate the relevant records.

The RC records for the area (Carrickfergus RC parish) start in 1821 for both baptisms and marriages. However they have not all been put on-line on Ancestry or on the nli site. Those 2 sites have a gap between 1841 & 1852.  According to the John Grenham site, PRONI has a microfilm copy of the missing years (and an index to the parish baptisms). Free to view at PRONI. Also the Ulster Historical Foundation (pay to view) has the missing years on-line.

https://www.johngrenham.com/records/rc_church.php?search_type=like&county=Antrim&parish=Larne

Sands is not a common name in the Larne area. In the period 1845 – 1900 there were only 2 marriages with that surname. Do you have information linking the family to Larne? And if so, what denomination do you think the children were baptised into?

So sorry, Elwyn, I miss-typed!!!  It is John Hefferan and Agnes Doherty, m. 25 Nov 1848 , Larne, Larne, County Antrim, at the Presbyterian Church meeting house of ___ Larne. I

got the physical marriage licence, the groom is from Raloo, and the bride from Kilwaughter, if that is any help.  I am looking for their children, especially a "John" and a "Anna".

Anna is my great grandmother.

Thank you

Mary Kitzerow

Mary,

Birth registration didn’t start in Ireland till 1864. Prior to that you need to search church baptism records (which may not be on-line).

If John Hefferan lived in Raloo and was Presbyterian then Raloo Presbyterian has baptisms from 1842 onwards. The Non Subscribing Presbyterian church for the area has records from 1859.

Tradition was to marry in the bride’s church which was Larne 1^st Presbyterian, so that'd be the records to search for her baptism and siblings. Copies of the above records are in PRONI in Belfast. If you are unable to go yourself, you could employ a researcher. Researchers in the PRONI area: http://sgni.net

Thank you, Elwyn!  Thant is a big help.  I am sure John Hefferan (or Heffernan) was born way before 1842.  I did not know it was tradition to marry in the bride's church!  And that the name of it was (is) Larne 1st Presbyterian.  I cannot go myself to Belfast.  I will check out the researchers.  Thanks again, Mary Kitzerow