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Bernary or Barney Owens Family

LaoisMountmellick (Laois)

I am working on the family of Barney and Julia Owens. I know they were born in Ireland the only children that I have are John Owens born March 12, 1868 possibly Laois Ireland and his brother Barney Owens Jr. born March1872 in Ireland. John and his brother Barney came to the United States between 1880 and 1892 and lived in Oil City, Vanango County Pennsylvania. Barney died there in 1903 but John moved to Lake County Indiana and died there in 1937. I am trying to locate their parents that on their marriage application were listed as Barney and Julia born in Ireland. I don't think the parents ever left Ireland but have not been able to locate their graves. Are there census records before 1900 that I might find the parents? I have a lot of information on John and his family in Indiana. Thanks for your help.

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11 replies

A probable lead on your Owens family - there's a baptism of a John Owens in Mountmellick RC parish on the 25th May 1861, a little earlier than the estimate you had which is not unusual, as ages are often inaccurate. Parents are Bernard Owens and Julia/Judith Reilly. 

In the same parish there's also baptisms of likely siblings including Mary 04 Mar 1860, Bernard on the 22 Dec 1864, Margaret 25 Feb 1868, Ellen 05 Nov 1870, and Bridget 12 Mar 1877..

You can view an image of the baptism register on the website of the National Library here  John's baptism is third down on the left page. This section of the register has the records grouped by surname, so several of the other Owens children also appear on the same page.

The earliest civil birth I was able to locate was for Margaret see here  (IrishGenealogy/GRO),  reportedly born 7th March 1868 at Chapel Lane Mountmellick, parents Bernard Owens & Julia Reilly, Bernard's occupation is shown as Labourer, and the birth was reported by Julia with her mark. The registration only took place in April, and it appears the date of birth was fudged slightly..

There's a good match for the death for Bernard snr. listed in the civil records, age 80 see here , the 8th entry on the register page. Residence and place of death are Mountmellick, his occupation is Labourer, and informant is his wife Julia (with her mark).

p.s. The earliest complete census of Ireland is the one for 1901, only fragments of earlier census returns (1821-1851) exist.

shanew147IrelandXO Volunteer

 

Thank you so much for the informaton.  I think this may be just what I am looking for.  I really appreciate your help.       Bob Law                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        

 

IrelandXO member

 

The Montmellick RC Parish register of Baptisms was a big help to me.  The problem that I have is that all of the headings are in Latin, some I can read and some I can't.  I was wondering when they change to English if the form is the same and I could get a copy of the English headings?  This is one of the problems that I have.  In the information for Mary Owens, 1860 daughter of Bernard Owens and Judity Reilly she was baptized March 4, then in the small column that begins Circumstanti it has May 24, 1874 and in the next column, Confirmation  it has Bernard and Julia and the date  __ May 1874.  I do not understand why the date of birth and these last two dates are so far apart.  If I knew what the headings were it might answer my question.  Thanks for your help.

 

IrelandXO member

Which section of the register did you see this comment ?

If you are on the NLI website the reference is at the top of the page - e.g. 04204 / 02, and the page number if there is one
or if you have a direct have a link

The Mountmellick register duplicates entries, so there's often an original and an index, the last columns after the sponsors, sometimes include the name of the priest, or comment, and in some of the registers there seems to be notes of payments. This may account for a date.

On later registers notes were added to baptisms when the person married, particularly in another parish, but that doesn't seem to apply here.

shanew147IrelandXO Volunteer

 

 

Shanew147: From your first reply to me I clicked on the "here" that you told me was from the National Library.  The pages do not have any page numbers on them at all.  At the top of the page is "Liber Baptizatorum".  I looked at a lot of the pages and they seem to be somewhat in alphabetical order but the Owens information seems to just be mixed in with other names.  When you click on the Here you sent Mary Owens is the first name at the top of the page. It says she was Baptized March 4 1860 but in the column next to the last one they have the date 1874 and in the narrow column just before that is May 1874.  I can't figure out why the two dates.  I clocked on the "havea link" you just sent and I have never seen those pages before.  I noticed they were some marriages.  Would there be a marriage for Bernard Owens and Julia Reilly around or before 1860?  Hope this will help you.  Could we correspond by e-mail?  Thanks for your help.  Bob Law

 

 

IrelandXO member

I think what you are seeing is possibly the record at the top on the second page of this section of the register - on the left page is the baptism of Mary Owens on the 4th March 1860, and at the top of the right hand page is the baptism of a Julia Owens to the same parents on the 18th May 1874. This pre-printed columns and headings, e.g. those relating to confirmation & marriage, dont apply, as the priest has used this section of the register to record baptisms grouped by the initial letter of the surname, ordered by date - in this case mostly 'O' surnames , althjough he has a few 'U' and 'J' on the right hand page (there's probably some sort of index towards the front or back of the book). Due to the printed column layout he has altered the format slightly for the left and right pages :

on the left - year - only when it changes, name of child, date of birth[?] (not consistently recorded), parents full names, date of baptism, godparents

on the right - name of child, date of birth[?], parents full names, date of baptism, godparents.

I believe I already had a look for possible marriage for Bernard and Julia in Montmellick & adjacent parishes and didn't find anything promising .. will have another look later on..

shanew147IrelandXO Volunteer

Shanew147:  Thanks again for your help.  I have not yet had time to compare the charts with the information you have sent.  I did find a marraige for Bernard Owenes to Julid Reilly i Montmellick Parish in Laois County, Roman Catholic Date of Marriage January 1, 1859.  At the bottom of the page is 2015 Copyright Irish Midlands Ancestry (Laois + Offaly) .  Bob

 

 

IrelandXO member

well done finding that - RootsIreland seem to find some of the more difficut to read records to transcibe. I finally found that marriage on a damaged, out of sequence section of the register in the NLI films - I think the date might be the 7th - see here (abt a third of the way down on the right hand page, 2nd record after the start of the new year)

 

shanew147IrelandXO Volunteer

Shanew147:  I always thought that Ireland did not have many records, but it seems that I just didn't know how to locate them.  Thanks for the marriage of Bernard and Julia, thank you so much for your help.  I also have a death date for Bernard and Julia is listed as his widow. This is from Superintendant Registar's District Montmellick Registar's Districe Montmellick 1898 deaths Registered in the District of Montmellick in the Union of Montmellick in the County of Queens (I know Queens was the early name for Montmellick) Number: 411, Date and place of death: Twelfth February Montmellick, Name and Surname: Bernard Owens, Sex: M, Condition: Married, Age Lat Birthday: 80 Year, Occupation: Laborer, Certified Cause of Death: Senile Sebrlity no medical attendant, Signiture and Qualifications of informant: Julia + mark Owens, Wiidow, present at death , Montmellick, When Registered:  Eighteenth of February 1898. Siognmiture of Registrar: W. W Nesk.  There is a number 408 stamped in the left corner of the page and the number 04653776 printed in the right corner of the page.  I have found a Julia that died in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1924 that might be Bernard's wife.  I was wondering if since he died in Ireland in Montmellica where he seems to have lived for a long time, would there be a cemetery record for him, and possibly his wife julia?                      

IrelandXO member

Unfortunately Catholic Parishes rarely kept records of Death/Burial, no mention of any for Mountmellick that I see, so I think it's unlikely there's any written record for Bernard's burial. There might be a headstone, but many people could not afford one.

There is a graveyard adjacent to the Catholic Church in the town of Mountmellick, so probably where the burial took place if this was in use at the time.

p.s. Queen's County is the old name for Co. Laois, where the town of Mountmellick is located.

shanew147IrelandXO Volunteer

 

shanew147:  Thanks to all of the work you did for me I have found the Julia or Judith Owens that is the mother of the family I am looking for. She died June 19, 1924 in USA Pennsylvania.  I think after her husband Bernard died in 1898 she may have come to USA where her children lived.  What I would like to have is a record that gives her age.  In her obituary it states that she was 88 which wold make her born in 1836 and in her death cetificate her age was given as 74 which would make her born in 1850.  I think the 1836 is the correct age .If she was born in 1836 wold there be a census with her age or before 1898 when her husband died in Mt Mellick. Maybe there would be a emmigration record between 1898 and 1924 from Ireland to USA .  Her parents were Barkley Reilly and Mary   both born in Ireland possibly in early 1800's that would give her age.  I have looked in all of the records that I could find but with no luck anything you can find would be a big help.  Thank you.

Bob Law

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