David Alexander born 1770

Cheryl,

Births and deaths weren’t registered in Ireland till 1864. Marriages were registered from 1845 (RC marriages from 1864).

Lisnagunogue is in the parish of Billy. David’s birth and marriage are well before those years. The main option pre-statutory registration are church records. You haven’t said what denomination David was, but if Church of Ireland (ie Anglican) then their early records were destroyed in the 1922 fire in Dublin and they have no marriages before 1845 and no baptism or burials before 1882; the local Methodist church has no baptisms before 1831 and no marriages before 1871; Bushmills Presbyterian has no records before 1820; Mosside Presbyterian none before 1842 & Toberdoney Presbyterian none before 1900. (I think they had a fire too).

So sadly there are no records that might contain David’s baptism or marriage (assuming it was in the Billy area).

If he was in the tithes, then that indicates David was a farmer. Farmers were a little better off than the average labourer. They sometimes had a gravestone. That might be his only memorial, if there is one. There is a graveyard in Lisnagunogue Lower, so might be worth checking it.

I agree that David Alexander isn’t listed in Griffiths (and as you say that could suggest he was dead). However there was a Joseph Alexander in Lisnagunogue Upper. He had plot 4 which was a 14 acre farm. He could be connected. There were only about 10 farms in the townland, so a reasonable chance of a connection. He was born c 1806 and died in 1887. Son Mathew was the informant. Joseph’s wife was still alive then:

https://civilrecords.irishgenealogy.ie/churchrecords/images/deaths_returns/deaths_1887/06227/4781911.pdf

The will itself is on-line on the PRONI site. He leaves the farm to his son Matthew. He also makes provision for his wife Betty and her daughter who appears to be Martha Alexander.

Elizabeth Alexander died in 1899:

https://civilrecords.irishgenealogy.ie/churchrecords/images/deaths_returns/deaths_1899/05799/4640706.pdf

Matthew married Martha Mitchell in 1887:

https://civilrecords.irishgenealogy.ie/churchrecords/images/marriage_returns/marriages_1887/10807/5941462.pdf

I would say this is likely to be them in 1901 in Feigh, which is about a quarter of a mile north of Lisnagunogue:

http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/pages/1901/Antrim/Dunseverick/Feigh_or_Dunseverick/923060/

Note that the family was Presbyterian.

Alexander Matthew of Feigh county Antrim farmer died 11 January 1923 Probate Belfast 29 October to Martha Alexander widow Robert John Alexander and Matthew Alexander farmers. Effects £941 15s.

Hi Elwyn, many thanks for your help. David and Joseph (his son) denomination was Church of Ireland.  Joseph is buried in Dunseverick Parish Church, I have a copy of his plot, this is Church is the Church of Ireland. You said that ' Note that the family was Presbyterian", now I'm confused. Joseph was Davids son and I have alot of info on Joseph, birth, married (2) death, burial, land records etc, but I don't have much on his father David. Because of the records being burnt in the 1922 fire, does this mean that I can't go any further back than David or is there some way that I could get info on the Alexanders.  David was my G G G Grandad on my father's side.  I have look in the 9 cemeteries in Bushmills,12 cemeteries in Ballycastle (district) and 23 cemeteries in Ballymoney - all telling my "zero matches". I've also looked at Ancestryireland, ireland.gravestone index 1600 - 2012, Ireland.net, find a grave Ireland index 1300's to current and Global Gravestone 1265 - 2014.  Apart from the usual, ancestry, my heritage, family search, irish ancestors, rootsireland, genuki, find my past etc. Please give me some ideas. Cheers Cheryl

Cheryl,

How do you know David & Joseph were Church of Ireland? What records have you found to confirm that?

Church of Ireland graveyards were open to all denominations. Many other denominations often did not have their own graveyards eg Baptists, Methodists and some Presbyterians, so they often used the Church of Ireland for their burials instead. So being buried in a Church of Ireland graveyard does not necessarily mean that you were of that denomination.

David Alexander appears in the 1824 tithes for Lisnagunogue. In Griffiths c 1861, there’s 1 Alexander household out of about 10 farms. So in my opinion it’s fairly likely that it’s the same farm. Mathew Alexander appears t0 have been part of that family and in 1901 he’s down in the census as Presbyterian. So, if I am correct that it’s the same family, I suspect they were Presbyterian.

I don’t know if you are familiar with the 1803 agricultural census but it is on Bill McAfee’s website. David Alexander is listed in Lisnagunogue.  His is the only Alexander household in the parish, though there are a few others in the general area. 18 households in the townland in 1803.

http://billmacafee.com/19centurydatabases.htm

PRONI has a document T1703/1 which is papers relating to the Antrim Estate (ie the Earl of Antrim). He was the main superior landlord for that part of Co Antrim. Page 59 in that collection, is a map of Lisnagunogue compiled in 1734. (Visit to PRONI required to view it, or pay PRONI to copy it).

Brian S Turner’s book: “Family Names in the Glens of Antrim” says this about the surname Alexander in that area (page 122): “Before leaving the Clan Allister some mention should be made of the modern surname Alexander, the non Gaelic form of Alasdair. The Alexanders of Menstrie, holders of the now extinct Earldom of Stirling are also said to be descended from the eponymous Alasdair Mor through his son Gilbert who got a grant of lands in Stirlingshire in 1330. The Alexander family who arrived in Ulster with the Plantation and were later granted the Earldom of Caledon in Tyrone claim to be related to the Menstrie family, although most Alexanders, like a large proportion of other lowland settlers, probably came from Ayrshire, or adjacent counties. The MacAlexanders of Ayrshire seem to be descended from Godfrey, second son of Alasdair Mor. They dropped the Mac at the end of the seventeenth century and the MacAlexanders who appear in seventeenth century Antrim are probably of this origin.” So Turner appears to be suggesting your Alexander family probably originated in either Arran or Ayrshire, or nearby. They probably moved to Ireland in the late 1500s or early 1600s. (Arran to Dunseverick is probably about 20 miles. No big distance).

One of my colleagues has kindly reminded me that there are some Church of Ireland records for Dunseverick. The parishes of Billy and Ballintoy had their boundaries re-drawn in the 1820s and a new parish of Dunseverick was created from land removed from Billy & Ballintoy.  Dunseverick didn’t lose any records in the 1922 fire because they were stored safely in the church, and it has baptism, marriages & burials from 1832 onwards. (Copy in PRONI). Might be worth investigating for events after 1832, if the family are found to be COI. But unfortunately it’s not going to help with events in the 1700s. Whatever denomination the family was (and I think they were Presbyterian) no records exist for the 1700s in that general area.

One set of records you might want to look at is the Registry of Deeds. If the Alexanders had signed leases for their land, they may have been registered with the Registry of Deeds. Sometimes you get lucky, especially in the 1700s, and find a 3 lives lease which gives some personal information about the family. Not all leases, mortgages etc were registered, but many were. They can be found on the Familysearch site. They start around 1708 and run through to the 1930s. Search by townland name. (You can also search by surname but the index doesn’t tell you where the person lives so, townland is better.).