Looking for location of Keelkneedan referenced in Casey Collection of where my great grandmother was baptized in 1874. She was 9 when family immigrated to Canada 140 years ago. I think in County Kerry as more records from area for family including her birth record. Lots of Clifford’s from what can see from that area. Thanks for any response.
You can see more info about Kilkneedan township (note current spelling) at this link, which includes an interactive map to help you see its location (north of Killarney) in relation to other places:
https://www.townlands.ie/kerry/magunihy/kilcredane/ballyhar/kilkneedan/
It's hard to tell from the map in which Catholic parish Kilkneedan is located, but it appears to be in the general area of where the parishes of Killarney and Kilcummin border one another, so you might check the parish registers for both of them, You might want to check Killarney first, at this link, because it has records going further back:
https://registers.nli.ie/parishes/0675
You can see an interactive map there which will link you to the Kilcummin records.
Hello Mack4Lloyd,
The Catholic parish for those parishioners living in the civil parishes of Kilcredane, Kilnanare, and Molahiff was the Catholic Parish of Molahiff, also known as the Catholic Parish of Firies.
Molahiff is also spelled, “Molahiffe” in some records.
The townland of Kilkneedan was located in the civil parish of Kilcredane, as you can see in IreAtlas link at: https://rebrand.ly/djceclr
The National Library of Ireland also shows that the baptisms for the Molahiff/Firies Catholic parish go back to 1 January 1830 and are available until 28 January 1881. Marriages are available from 13 January 1830 to 7 March 1872.
Notations by the National Library of Ireland describe some of these parish registers as, “In very bad condition,” or, “Several pages wanting and many mutilated.”
In addition, baptisms from October 1872 to 28 January 1881 also include “some marriages,” which are “In damaged condition,” according to the National Library of Ireland.
To see the availability of these registers and for a map of the Molahiff Catholic Parish and surrounding Catholic parishes, go to the National Library of Ireland link at: https://registers.nli.ie/parishes/0646
Genealogist Shane Wilson shows two churches or chapels located in the Catholic Parish of Molahiff/Firies. One was in the townland of Ballyhar, and the other in Firies Village. See: https://rebrand.ly/raolejt
Scroll down the page to view the full map of the area, with Firies being letter A on the map and Ballyhar Townland letter B.
This Google Map shows that Firies and Molahiffe are 1 mile apart: https://rebrand.ly/sfjlfqd
The townland of Kilkneedan however, is closer to the church in Ballyhar, and so the Ballyhar church is likely the church your ancestors attended. This Google Map shows the Catholic Church in Ballyhar is called the Church of the Sacred Heart, and is 3.2 miles southwest of Kilkneedan by the shortest route: https://rebrand.ly/rsrlwuy
Here is a Google Street View of the Church of the Sacred Heart: https://rebrand.ly/1xqza9r
Here is another view of the church from a different angle: https://rebrand.ly/baz2hzk
Information from Fearghal O’Muineachain’s Facebook page for, “Ireland’s Churches, Cathedrals and Abbeys,” notes that the Catholic Church in Ballyhar, was constructed in 1826: https://rebrand.ly/flmj4aj
The following link takes you to a Google Map showing that Kilkneedan is a little over 6 miles north of Killarney: https://rebrand.ly/s5s1o5x
I found an Ordnance Survey Map of Kilkneedan in color at the GeoHive website. The map, according to GeoHive, is from the 1829 to 1841 time period. You can view the map at: https://rebrand.ly/ogf0o4t
I also located an Ordnance Survey Map of Ballyhar in color, which shows the location of the R.C. Chapel. This would be today’s Sacred Heart Catholic Church: https://rebrand.ly/6d7qhx8
What was your great grandmother’s name? Also, what was the name of her father and the first and maiden names of her mother?
Regards,
Dave Boylan