Clugstons from Ballylinny

Your blog mentions the family attending Ballylinny Presbyterian church.

Ballylinny Presbyterian church was first established as a congregation in 1834. Their church building opened in 1837 and they have baptism & marriage records from that year onwards. So Andrew, if born in 1838, may scrape in. (There’s a copy of the baptism & marriage records in PRONI in Belfast). Prior to 1834 the congregation would have attended some other Presbyterian church in the area eg Carnmoney or Ballynure.

Thank you for replying Elwyn. I will take a look. 

Hello Grayfox80,

I'm not related, but to add to the information kindly provided IrelandXO Volunteer Elwyn in his reply of 13 September 2024, you will be able to search the Ballylinny Presbyterian Church records of baptism and marriage at the Public Record of Northern Ireland (PRONI) next year if you plan to visit County Antrim.

According to the website, "PRONI's Guide To Church Records," Ballylinny baptisms are available from the years 1837 to 1922. Marriage are available from 1837 to 1900. These records can be found in PRONI references, MIC1P/327; CR3/16; CR3/64, which include microfilms or hard copies. See: PRONI's Guide to Church Records (nidirect.gov.uk)

If you plan to research at PRONI, you may want to set aside time in your itinerary so that you can undertake a thorough search of the Ballylinny Presbyterian Church records of baptisms and marriages.

Your information shows that Andrew Clugston was born in 1838. But ages in old records can be off by a few years, and sometimes by several years. If you search at PRONI, you'll want to look at baptisms for the years 1837 and into the 1840s. You can also look for the baptism of a James Clugston, who may have been Andrew's brother.

Andrew's parents however, may have been married before 1837, the year the Ballylinny marriages are first recorded in the register.

Elwyn had mentioned that prior to 1834, the Ballylinny congregation may have attended other Presbyterian churches in the area, such as the Ballynure congregation or the Carnmony Congregation.

Baptisms and marriages at these two congregations are also available in PRONI references. See below the years baptisms and marriage are covered and reference numbers for the Ballynure and Carnmoney congregations:

P Ballynure
Baptisms, 1819-1918; 
marriages, 1819­- 99; MIC1P/103; CR3/64
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P. Carnmoney
Baptisms, 1708-60, 1767-1807 and 1819-1968; 
marriages, 1708-58, 1767­-89 and 1819-41; 
notebook giving marriages, births and deaths of various 
families, with an index, 1708-1917. MIC1P/37; T1013; CR3/15; MIC86
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The Carmony PRONI References also include other parish information, such as minutes of session and committee; names of those who transferred from other congregations; registers of seat holders and pew rents; extracts from wills recording bequests to the church, and more.

When our ancestors left Ireland for England, the U.S., Canada, and Australia, they often would have specified either a civil parish or church parish as the place of their birth, rather than a specific townland. See Ireland Reaching Out's "What Is A Parish" at: https://www.irelandxo.com/ireland-xo/news/what-parish

Ballylinny was a civil parish as well as a Presbyterian parish and a townland. To see those townlands that were situated in the civil parish of Ballylinny, go to the IreAtlas Townland Data Base entry at: https://tinyurl.com/yz3357s4

THE TITHE APPLOTMENT BOOKS

Concerning the civil parish of Ballylinny, I looked for any landholders named Clugston who were recorded in an Irish agricultural record known as the Tithe Applotment Books. The Tithe Applotment Books were compiled in the 32 counties of Ireland from 1823 to 1837. I specifically wanted to see if Clugstons were recorded in any townlands in the civil parish of Ballylinny, in the tithe books. To do this I went to the Irish Genealogy Hub website at: https://www.irishgenealogyhub.com/

I found two landholders named Clugston in the Tithe Applotment Book indices for the civil parish of Ballylinny. One is Catherine Clugston in the townland of Ballygallaugh, and the other is Hugh Clugston in the townland of Ballyhone. The year of these tithe entries is 1835.

If you go back to the IreAtlas entry for townlands in the civil parish of Ballylinny, you will see there is not a townland named Ballyhone, but there is a townland spelled, "Ballyhowne." It looks like Ballyhone may be an error in the index or the tithe books themselves, and that Hugh Clugston actually lived in Ballyhowne.

In any case, the townland of Ballyhone was not in the civil parish of Ballylinny, but in the civil parish of Glynn. See the IreAtlas entry: https://tinyurl.com/yne7r27b

The civil parishes of Ballylinny and Glynn do not border one another.

This civil parish map of County Antrim shows the location of both the civil parish of Ballylinny and the civil parish of Glynn. Ballylinny is in the bottom central portion of the map, and Glynn in the upper right-hand portion of the map. The map is from the johngrenham.com website: 
https://www.johngrenham.com/c_parish/c_parish_main.php?civilparishid=27…

The Tithe Applotment Books also record five Ross landholders in the civil parish of Ballylinny in 1835. These are: 

Alexander Ross, in the townland of "Ballylinney" 
John Ross in the townland of Lisnalinchy 
Thomas Ross in the townland of Ballywalter 
William Ross in the townland of "Ballylinney" 
William Ross in the townland of Lisnalinchy

Source: Irish Genealogy Hub
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The two entries for William Ross may refer to the same landholder.

For a comprehensive explanation of the Tithe Applotment Books, go to the National Archives of Ireland links at: 

https://titheapplotmentbooks.nationalarchives.ie/search/tab/home.jsp 
https://titheapplotmentbooks.nationalarchives.ie/search/tab/about.jsp 
https://titheapplotmentbooks.nationalarchives.ie/search/tab/aboutmore.j…
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THE IRISH FAMINE

If Andrew remained in Ireland up to his early teens, he would have experienced the effects of the Irish Famine. Depending on what historical source you read, the famine took place in the 32 counties of Ireland from 1845 to 1849, or 1845 to 1851, or 1845 to 1852.

But historians estimate that during the famine years, over a million people left Ireland for England, the U.S., Canada, Australia, and Van Diemen’s Land, which is modern-day Tasmania. Another 1 million died of disease and starvation. For a very good account of the Irish Famine, known as "an Gorta Mór" in the Irish language, see the Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Famine_(Ireland)

GRIFFITHS VALUATION

Griffiths Valuation was an Irish property tax record enumerated in the 32 counties of Ireland from 1847 to 1864. The valuation for the civil parish of Ballylinny was completed by the year 1862. 

Griffiths Valuation can be searched for free at the Ask About Ireland website: https://www.askaboutireland.ie/griffith-valuation/ 

I only found one Clugston in the civil parish of Ballylinny. This is for Hugh Clugston, who leased a house and small garden from John Cunningham in the townland of Ballygallagh.

If you recall, Catherine Clugston was recorded in the townland of Ballygallagh in the Tithe Applotment Books in 1835, while the tithe books show that Hugh Clugston was recorded in "Ballyhone."

The Hugh Clugston in Griffiths Valuation in 1862, may or may not be the same Hugh Clugston in the Tithe Applotment Books in 1835.

Hugh Clugston may have been related to Catherine Clugston, as he is now recorded in Ballygallagh, where she was leasing farmland in 1835. 

According to your message to Ireland Reaching Out, Hugh Clugston was John Clugston's father, but I don't know if the Hugh Clugston in Griffiths Valuation is John's father. I think Hugh Clugston would have been up in years by 1862 if he was John's father, as Hugh would likely have been born in the 1700s. 

The Lessor immediately following Hugh Clugston in Griffiths Valuation is Alexander Ross. After Alexander Ross is Thomas Ross. They may be related to Andrew Clugston's mother, Mary Ross.

Griffiths Valuation for Hugh Clugston, Alexander Ross, and Thomas Ross in Ballygallagh, is attached to this reply.

Hugh Clugston leased a house and a small garden, but no farmland, which is an indication he may have been in one of the trades. On the other hand Alexander and Thomas Ross both leased an appreciable amount of land, Alexander over 19 acres, and Thomas over 17 acres. Thomas also leased a house. 

Hugh's leasehold is at Map Reference b. This is actually Map Reference 9b. Map Reference 9 and subdivision a, begin on the previous page. 

Alexander Ross's property is at Map Reference 10 and Thomas Ross's land at Map Reference 11. These are map coordinates on a Griffiths Valuation Map of Ballygallagh. The map is also attached to this reply.

Map Reference 9 for Hugh Clugston can be seen just to the left of reference 10 for Alexander Ross, and reference 11 for Thomas Ross, toward the middle of the Griffiths Valuation map.    

I've also attached a Griffiths Valuation Map for Ballylinny, showing the location of the Presbyterian Meeting House and Graveyard, indicated by the blue arrow. To the left of the Meeting House is the Ballylinny National School.

Here is a Google Street View of the Ballylinny Presbyterian Meeting House and Grave Yard, along the Ballylinny Road: https://tinyurl.com/bdfrz9ej

Andrew Clugston may have been baptized in this Meeting House, which opened in 1837, according to Ireland Reaching Out Volunteer, Elwyn.

AUSTRALIA

Your records show that Andrew Clugston died on 25 January 1926 in Cosgrove, Victoria, at the age of 88. I found what I believe is his wife Ellen at the FamilySearch website's collection called, "Australia, Victoria, Index to Probate Registers, 1841-1989." The probate index shows that Ellen Clugston died on 21 May 1926 in Cosgrove, Victoria. She died almost four months to the day after Andrew died. 

The probate index is below: 

Probate • Australia, Victoria, Index to Probate Registers, 1841-1989

Name Ellen Clugston
Residence Place    Cosgrove
Death Date 21 May 1926
Event Type Probate
Event Date 19 Jul 1926
Event Place Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Record Number 842
Series Number 208
Volume Beginning Year 1920
Volume Ending Year 1939
Microfilm Number 4104679
Indexing Batch G01095-3

"Australia, Victoria, Index to Probate Registers, 1841-1989", , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:JVWW-JZ2 : Sat Jul 13 15:11:57 UTC 2024), Entry for Ellen Clugston, 19 Jul 1926.
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Attached to this reply is the hand-written probate index page for Ellen Clugston, downloaded from the FamilySearch website. There are several other people recorded alphabetically by surname on the index page. Ellen is at Series 208, Number 842 on the index page.

You can search the Australia, Victoria, Index to Probate Registers, 1841-1989, at the FamilySearch link here: https://www.familysearch.org/search/collection/1393345

You'll have to establish a free account at FamilySearch to perform a search of the probate indices.

The original will for Ellen is held by the Public Records Office Victoria, Melbourne, Australia. To find original probate records, I searched the Public Records Office archive’s website here: https://www.prov.vic.gov.au/explore-collection/explore-topic/wills-and-….

At the above website link I accessed Ellen's two page will, though the first page is blank. The second page shows that Ellen, of Cosgrove, left all her property to her daughter, Margaret Gawne, wife of John Gawne. The will was signed by Ellen on 8 March 1926. The names of the witnesses appear to be J.W. Norris and T.P Church. Your records show that Ellen Clugston's maiden name was Church, and that one of Andrew and Ellen's children was Margaret "Maggie" Clugston, born in 1873. Maggie was your great grandmother who died in 1956. Ellen's will is attached to this reply.

I didn't find a probate index for Andrew Clugston at the FamilySearch website, or a will for him at Public Records Office Victoria website, which indicates he died without leaving a will.

Also concerning Andrew Clugston I looked for him in a ship's passenger lists but did not find a record of him arriving in Australia. 

For example, I looked for him at the "Public Record Office Victoria Assisted passenger lists (1839-1871) Record Series Number (VPRS): 14 collection;" and the "Public Record Office Victoria Unassisted passenger lists (1852-1923) Record Series Number (VPRS): 947." 

In addition I looked for him at the FamilySearch collection, " Australia, Victoria, Inward Passenger Lists, 1839-1923," as well as at Ancestry.com's, "Australia, Coastal Passenger Records, 1852-1924," and "Victoria, Australia, Assisted and Unassisted Passenger Lists, 1839-1923." 

In case he arrived in Sydney, I also looked for his arrival at Ancestry.com's, "All New South Wales, Australia, Assisted Immigrant Passenger Lists, 1828-1896," and "All New South Wales, Australia, Unassisted Immigrant Passenger Lists, 1826-1922," but without results. There's always the possibility I missed locating him in the ships' passenger lists for Australia.

CONCLUSION

Because there is not a lot of information about Andrew Clugston in Ireland, outside the names of his parents, the course of action that may help you discover more about him (baptism and siblings) would be the Ballylinny Presbyterian Church registers held at the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland (PRONI), 2 Titanic Boulevard, Belfast BT3 9HQ

If you decide to visit PRONI go to the following links for information about getting there, and registering and preparing for a visit to PRONI:

https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/articles/getting-proni-and-opening-hours

https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/articles/registration-and-preparing-visit

Also, Ireland Reaching Out has a Meet and Greet form you can fill out to see if a volunteer guide is available to meet you if you plan to visit the Ballylinny, Ballyhowne, and Ballygallagh areas of County Antrim during the time period you would be there. There is no charge for the volunteer guide. 

To download the Meet and Greet form, go to: https://irelandxo.com/meet-and-greet

With Kind Regards,

Dave Boylan

SOURCES IN THIS REPLY

Ireland Reaching Out Volunteer Elwyn’s reply to Grayfox80 on 13 September 2024
PRONI's Guide To Church Records
Ireland Reaching Out: "What Is A Parish"
IreAtlas Townland Data Base
Irish Genealogy Hub: Tithe Applotment Books
johngrenham.com: County Antrim Civil Parish Map
National Archives of Ireland: Tithe Applotment Books
Wikipedia: Great Famine Ireland
Ask About Ireland: Griffiths Valuation
Ask About Ireland: Griffiths Valuation Map
Google Street View
FamilySearch: "Australia, Victoria, Index to Probate Registers, 1841-1989."
Public Record Office Victoria, Melbourne, Australia: Probate, Wills, and Passenger Lists
Ancestry.com: "All New South Wales, Australia, Assisted Immigrant Passenger Lists, 1828-1896," and "All New South Wales, Australia, Unassisted Immigrant Passenger Lists, 1826-1922." 
Ireland Reaching Out Meet and Greet Form