My Great Great Great Grandparents James SULLIVAN and Ann SULLIVAN (nee McDAVID or McDEVITT) came to New Zealand in 1848 as part of the Fencible military force sent to settle NZ and defend the towns. James was an ex soldier and Chelsea Pensioner. His military record states that he was from Londonderry and other documents state that his wife was also. They were born around 1806 and 1811 respectively. James served in the British army (77th Regiment) from 1826 to 1847. Four of their six (or more) children were supposedly born in Ireland, some possible birth dates for these children are 1828, 1837 and 1840. In 1841 they are recorded as living in the Chatham Barracks, England.
Interestingly James made the newspapers in NZ, December 1862 with his death, as he fell from the main Auckland wharf and drowned, as attested by witnesses!
I would love to learn more about James and Ann, and my Irish roots. Can anyone help me please?
Thursday 6th Jun 2013, 12:49AM
Message Board Replies
-
When you say the couple came from Londonderry, do you know whether that was the city or the county? Also, what denomination were they?
Ahoghill Antrim
Thursday 6th Jun 2013, 06:47AM -
I'm afraid I don't know whether it meant the city or the county. They were Roman Catholic
Thursday 6th Jun 2013, 07:54AM -
If they could have come from anywhere in the county it will be tricky finding their births. They were born long before the start of statutory birth registration in Ireland (1864) so you are reliant on church records. Outside the big cities, few RC parishes have records before the 1820s, so if they came from a rural area the records may simply not exist. You can see what RC records do exist for the county (and where copies are held) on the attached link:
http://www.irishtimes.com/ancestor/browse/counties/rcmaps/
If James was in the army when his children were born, they could be born all over the place, depending on where he was posted. However it would be worth checking to see if any of them have been registered. Though in general births weren?t registered in Ireland until 1864, and in England till 1837, births to persons serving in the British Army were recorded in regimental records from 1761 onwards. It may well be therefore that the children?s births (anywhere in the world) have been recorded there. These records are held by the UK Passport & Identity Service in England. See this link for details of how to obtain such a record (Q1 in particular):
https://www.gro.gov.uk/gro/content/certificates/most_customers_want_to_…
Ahoghill Antrim
Thursday 6th Jun 2013, 10:12AM -
Thanks for your suggestions. I will follow up on them.
Thursday 6th Jun 2013, 11:36AM