A Guide to Tracing Your Mayo Ancestors
Dedication
To the memory of my father
Oliver Smith
1925-2009
A Guide to Tracing Your Mayo Ancestors
First published in 1997
Second Edition 2010
Flyleaf Press
4 Spencer Villas
Glenageary
Co. Dublin, Ireland
www.flyleaf.ie
© 2010 Flyleaf Press
British Library cataloguing in Publications Data available
ISBN 978-0-9563624-3-8
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the copyright owner.
The information in this book is subject to change without notice.
Cover Illustration:
Eoin Ryan
www.eoinryanart.com
Layout:
Brian Smith
Contents
Abbreviations
Chapter 1 Introduction
Chapter 2 How to use this Book
Chapter 3 Administrative Divisions
Chapter 4 Civil Registration
Chapter 5 Census and Census Substitutes
Chapter 6 Church Records
Chapter 7 Wills, Administrations and Marriage Licences
Chapter 8 Land Records
Chapter 9 Commercial and Social Directories
Chapter 10 Newspapers
Chapter 11 Gravestone Inscriptions
Chapter 12 Surnames, Family Names and Histories
Chapter 13 Mayo in 1798
Chapter 14 Further Reading
Chapter 15 Library, Archive and Society Addresses
Index
Abbreviations Used
| aka | also known as |
| APMDI | Association for the Preservation of the Memorials of the Dead in Ireland |
| Arch. | Archaeological |
| A.R.P | Acres Roods Perches |
| b. | birth/born |
| bapt. | Baptism |
| BELB | Belfast Education and Library Board |
| BL | British Library |
| BNL | British Newspaper Library |
| Bo. | Barony |
| c. | circa |
| Co. | County |
| CoI | Church of Ireland |
| d. | death/died |
| ed. | editor/edited (by) |
| DCLA | Dublin City Library and Archive |
| DCPL | Dublin City Public Libraries |
| DHG | Dublin Heritage Group |
| DKPRI | (Reports of the) Deputy Keeper of Public Records of Ireland |
| DLGS | Dun Laoghaire Genealogical Society |
| DLHS | Dun Laoghaire Heritage Society |
| DU | Dublin (Diocese) |
| Dublin Hist. Rec. | Dublin Historical Record |
| FHS | Family History Society |
| Gen. | Genealogical |
| GO | Genealogical Office |
| GRO | General Register Office |
| Hc | Hard copy |
| Hist. | Historical |
| IGI | International Genealogical Index |
| IGP | Irish Genealogical Project |
| IMA Par. Reg. Sect. | Irish Memorials Assoc. Parish Register Section |
| IMC | Irish Manuscripts Commission |
| Ir. | Irish |
| Ir. Anc. | Irish Ancestor |
| Ir. Gen. | Irish Genealogist |
| J. or Jnl. | Journal |
| JAPMD | Journal of Association for the Preservation of Memorials of the Dead |
| J. Gen. Soc. I. | Journal of Genealogical Society of Ireland |
| LC | Local Custody |
| LDS | Latter Day Saints (Family History Centre) |
| Lib. | Library |
| Lon. | London |
| MCL | Mayo County Library |
| m. or marr. | marriage/married |
| mf. | microfilm |
| MNFHRC | Mayo North Family History Research Centre |
| Ms/Mss | Manuscript/s |
| NAI | National Archives of Ireland (formerly PRO) |
| n/a | not available/none available |
| n.d. | not dated |
| Nee | Formerly |
| NLI | National Library of Ireland |
| N or Nth. | North |
| OP | Official Papers |
| p./pp. | page/pages |
| PHSI | Presbyterian Historical Society of Ireland |
| Pos. | Positive (microfilm) |
| PRO | Public Record Office (now National Archives of Ireland) |
| PRONI | Public Record Office of Northern Ireland |
| Pub. | published/publisher |
| RC | Roman Catholic |
| RCB(L) | Representative Church Body (Library) |
| RIA | Royal Irish Academy |
| RSAI | Royal Society of Antiquarians in Ireland (J. of) |
| SMFHRC | South Mayo Family History Research Centre |
| SLC | Family History Library, Salt Lake City (and branches) |
| Soc. | Society |
| SOG | Society of Genealogists (London) |
| SPO | State Paper Office |
A page from ‘The History of County Mayo to the Close of the 16th Century’ by Herbert Thomas Knox, Dublin (1908)
Chapter 1
Introduction
Mayo is situated on the northwest coast of Ireland and is the second largest county in the province of Connaught, covering an area of 1.3 million acres. It is bordered by Sligo, Roscommon and Galway.
The major towns of Mayo are Castlebar, Crossmolina, Ballinrobe, Ballina, Killala and Westport and the current population is 123,829, a drop of 215,058 since the 1841 census of Ireland.
The landscape varies from relatively flat land in east Mayo, through large island-studded lakes, like Loch Conn, Loch Carra and Loch Mask to the naked quartzite peaks along the Atlantic coast. This coast has both rugged cliffs and sandy beaches. North Mayo has extensive tracts of blanket bog and some good agricultural land, while south Mayo is more mountainous. It is a county with many scenic landscapes and has a rich archaeological and historical heritage. It is a popular tourism county with amenities of interest to the naturalist, family historian and sportsman alike. Although picturesque, the land is mainly poor, much of the land is bog or mountain.
Although Mayo was probably first inhabited around 7000 BC, the earliest evidence is from the fourth millennium BC. In this, the Neolithic period, the first farmers arrived introducing agriculture, animal husbandry, pottery-making and weaving skills. Around 160 megalithic tombs were built by these people. The earliest surviving architectural structures in the country, are in Mayo. As this is over 10% of the total number of such tombs found in all of Ireland, the Mayo region was clearly of importance during the Neolithic period. It retained this importance into the Bronze Age (c.2000-400BC) when this phase of tomb-building came to an end.
The blanket bog which covered parts of Ireland from the late 3rd Millennium BC onwards also covered, in some places, the field systems, habitation sites and tombs of these early farmers. Extensive pre-bog field-systems with stone walls have been discovered embedded in the bog in many parts of Mayo. The Behy/Glenulra region, west of Ballycastle in County Mayo, contains a 1,500 hectare archaeological site of this type, known as the ‘Céide Fields’. This is the most extensive Stone Age monument in the world.
County Mayo got its name from a diocese of that name which evolved from a 7th century monastery of Maigh Eo, established by Saint Colmán. The Irish name Maigh Eo, meaning ‘plain of Yew trees’ was later anglicised to Mayo. When the county was established by the English around 1570, it was called ‘Mayo’ after this monastery and diocese.
The families of county Mayo are a mix of native Gaelic, Norman and immigrant Gaelic from Northern Ireland. There is also a small number of other immigrants from other places. The major original Gaelic inhabitants included the families of Gallagher, Moran, O’Malley and Duffy. From the 12th century, there was also the Norman occupation of the county, in particular by the families of Burke, Barrett and Walsh.
The 16th century sectarian struggle in Northern Ireland resulted in the enforced migration of many thousands of Catholics to Mayo. These migrants were settled as tenants on several of the major estates in the county.
The county was predominantly involved in agriculture and fisheries and had few industries. In 1798 the Irish rebelled against English rule and Mayo became the battleground for one of the major events of that war. The French General Humbert and 11,000 men landed at Killala to assist the Irish Rebels. This army was defeated after a brief campaign, significant imprisonments and land confiscations in the county resulted. Sources and records of this period are detailed in Chapter 13.
The county was significantly affected by the Great Famine of 1845-47 resulting in the death or emigration of 30% of the population by 1851.
Population statistics for County Mayo 1841-1891 arranged by Barony
Chapter 2
How to Use this Book
Tracing a family history normally requires the researcher to consult many different historical sources, in some, or hopefully all of which details of the family will be found. Sufficient details, when pieced together, can form a comprehensive picture of a family’s existence. The final picture depends on number and quality of these details.
Mayo, like many other western Irish counties, does not have a rich store of records. Therefore it is important that the full range of sources available are used effectively. These sources vary widely in their genealogical content and are described as Primary Sources (e.g. Civil registration of births, marriages and deaths; church records; census records; Wills and administrations) and Secondary Sources (i.e. records that assist the researcher to locate an ancestors existence in an area at a particular time, e.g. Tithe Applotments, Griffiths Valuations). Some of the above sources will also provide the researcher with interesting background details.
Other sources can also be of great assistance in providing information about the lifestyle of an ancestor. They can, in some cases, be used to define a timeframe in which a primary source can be consulted. They include newspapers, journals, published family histories and documents.
There is no magic formula for successful research. However, initial research should be based on the following principles:
Having gathered as much details as possible from your family members and papers/documents, you should plan to verify and expand this information using the available records and sources. This book is designed to help you do this. The nature, timeframes and locations of the available sources are described in the following chapters. Descriptions of the available sources are arranged by chapter according to the source type, i.e. civil registration, church records, census returns, newspapers, directories etc.
For the optimal use of these records, it is important to understand the system of administrative divisions used in Ireland. These divisions or areas are described in Chapter 3. They are vital in determining an ancestor’s address or location. Many, if not most, sources are arranged according to such divisions, and an understanding of the different elements of an ancestor’s address is therefore important.
The abbreviations used throughout the book are explained on page 6 and contact details for the organisations, libraries and archives cited can be found in Chapter 15. Most publications cited are to be found in most major libraries and archives.
While County Mayo is not as wealthy in genealogical sources as some other counties, the collection of primary, secondary and other sources covered will help provide the researcher with a fascinating insight as to how and where an ancestor lived.