I am trying to find further information on the first of my brickwall ancestors who lived in or around Derryaghy in County Antrim. William would have been my 3xgreat grandfather on my maternal side. What I have is:
William Sinclair born around 1796 died 27/07/1862 (County Antrim)
He married Jane McNeight around 1821, although Jane may have been previously married as her maiden name is recorded as Jane Carson (b. before 1800 d. ??)
I have a possible baptism for William, although unconfirmed, on 18/01/1801 at St. Paul's, Dublin. Godparents are recorded as Mary O'John, Eleanor Flinn, Mary McChat, Ellen Bourridu.
https://churchrecords.irishgenealogy.ie/churchrecords/display-pdf.jsp?pdfName=d-273-1-4-163
I have a possible, but can't find my notes, mother and father for William: John Sinclair and Margaret (Sinclair) (m.s. unknown).
We have no siblings recorded for William, but I have their children listed as:
William Sinclair (b. circa 1822 Ireland - d. 20/02/1887 Carfin, Scotland)
Elizabeth (Eliza) Sinclair (b. 1826 Belfast, Ireland - d. 10/02/1878 Belfast) (Married names - Welsh and Crone)
Joseph Sinclair (b. 1827 County Antrim - d. 21/09/1877 Auckland, New Zealand)
I am looking for any information that could help build up this family. I would expect that William was not an only child and that he had siblings. I have done a DNA test on Ancestry, MyHeritage, FTDNA etc, and have my trees built on these platforms, although in need of some tidying up. There are no male Sinclair family alive in my mother's family to take a YDNA test.
Any information appreciated.
Thanks
George
Geo
Wednesday 10th May 2023, 09:38AMMessage Board Replies
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George,
Tradition was to marry in the bride’s church (after which she’d usually attend her husband’s). Elizabeth Sinclair first married in Derryaghy Church of Ireland in 1845:
She lived in the townland of Lagmore. Her father was a bleacher (an occupation in the linen industry. Very common around Lisburn).
So if you are looking for the Sinclair family’s baptisms, I would search Derryaghy Church of Ireland records. They start in 1696 and there’s a copy in PRONI in Belfast. I don’t think the records are on-line anywhere. If you are unable to go yourself, you could employ a researcher. Researchers in the PRONI area: http://sgni.net
I don’t think that the baptism in Dublin you have found is the same family. A bleacher in Lisburn would not go to Dublin 90 miles away to baptise a child. It just happens that some Dublin records are on-line and that this one superficially appears to fit. But most Church of Ireland records are not on-line, including Derryaghy’s.
William Sinclair is listed in Lagmore in Griffiths Valuation of 1862. He appears to have lived on plot 40 which was a house and 4 acres and he also had a further 2 acres on plot 10. There was a Thomas and a Robert Sinclair living nearby so they may be related. Plot 40 today is mostly in a modern housing estate, part of Lisburn.
Death of Robert here:
Informant for above was George. Death of George:
According to the Valuation revision records on the PRONI website, William Sinclair’s property is shown as passing to George Sinclair (in the records for 1870). Then it passed to Eliza Jane Sinclair in 1898 and to Mary McFarland in 1910. (The McFarlands appear to be related to the Sinclairs by marriage).
Sinclair families still in the townland in the 1901 census:
http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/pages/1901/Antrim/Derryaghey/Lagmore/997060/
http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/pages/1901/Antrim/Derryaghey/Lagmore/997064/
http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/pages/1901/Antrim/Derryaghey/Lagmore/997067/
http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/pages/1901/Antrim/Derryaghey/Lagmore/997077/
This may be the McFarland household in 1911:
http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/pages/1911/Antrim/Derryaghy/Lagmore/197374/
Elwyn, IrelandXO Volunteer ☘
Wednesday 10th May 2023, 11:51AM -
Thanks you for the reply. I did think that the baptism may have been incorrect, but was clutching at straws to find anything else.
It's great to have something like this to go look at and hopefully some day soon I can either visit the PRONI or they eventually bring the records online.
I'll have look through the links and see what I can dd to my family tree.
Thanks again.Geo
Thursday 11th May 2023, 03:55PM