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Courtney from Rathfriland

DownDrumgath (Down)

My great grandfather was Samuel Bell Courtney born in Rathfriland in 1861. He is in the US in the 1870 census with a James and Margaret Courtney in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania. His death certificate lists his father as John Bell Courtney. He marries and lives out his days in the Pittsburgh area. I have no other information on this man. I do not know his mother's name. I do not know who the James and Margaret Courtney are that he is with as a child. Did his father, John, die? I have tried to find church records in Rathfriland with no success. I hope someone recognizes this name.

I keep wondering if the name Bell is significant since it is given as the middle name for both him and his father and he also gave two of his children a middle name of Bell.

Thank you

Barbara in Sacramento California

Barbara Grace

1 reply

Barbara,

A birth in 1861 is before the start of statutory birth registration in Ireland (1864) so you won’t find a birth certificate for him (nor death certificates for his parents if they died before 1864).

To find his baptism, you need to know what denomination he was? Do you know that? If he was Church of Ireland then unfortunately their records prior to 1881 were all destroyed in the 1922 fire in Dublin. If Presbyterian, then Rathfriland 1st’s records start in 1827; Rathfriland 2nds in 1804 & Rathfriland 3rd’s in 1834. If RC then Drumgath records start in 1829. The RC records are on-line on the NLI site and Ancestry. If Presbyterian, they are not on-line so far as I am aware, but there are copies of all 3 churches records in PRONI (the public record office) in Belfast. A personal visit is required to view the records.

Elwyn, IrelandXO Volunteer ☘IrelandXO Volunteer

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