I am looking for the family of Francis McCloskey, born in 1840 and emigrated to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.
He lived in a Catholic parish (St Michaels) in Kensington, Philadelphia, which was primarily Donegal names. One relative (I cannot find the connection) is a McBrearty (also spelled McBrierty) who is buried in the family grave with Francis' wife and children. This McBrearty is documented as coming from Killybegs, Donegal.
I am looking in Killymard because there is a Francis McCloskey in Griffiths Valuation in Drumroosk,West. There is also a Catherine McCloskey in Griffiths in Drumroosk, West. Perhaps she is a widow? I have a Catherine McCloskey in the records in Philadelphia for St Michaels as an independent woman, not a spouse, hence the idea about a widow.
The Francis in Griffiths is would be an older generation of my Francis. Common male names in my family are James, Francis, William, Joseph, Carroll. In fact, there is an unbroken string of James Eugenes that continues to this day. That makes the poor lad James Eugene McCloskey VI, a weighty burden.
We have a unique yDNA signature that would prove or disprove any connection if male cousins could be found.
Thank you for your help!
Colleen McCloskey
Maryland, USA
Colleen McCloskey
Wednesday 19th Mar 2014, 09:04PMMessage Board Replies
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Dear Colleen
Welcome to Ireland Reaching Out and apologies for the delay in replying to your message.
As you can see from the link below, Killybegs Lower and Upper are both civil parishes located in Co. Donegal:
Records for the corresponding Roman Catholic Parishes of Killybegs Lower (Ardara) begin in 1869 and Killybegs Upper (Killybegs and Killaghtee) begin in 1845.
There are some places where you can search online, however these websites do not have complete collections and many do not cover the period after 1900:
www.familysearch.org has a huge database of genealogical records including some church records for Ireland.
www.rootsireland.ie have a large collection of Irish Church records, however you have to pay to use this site.
Other important sources include the Tithe Applotment Books and Griffith?s Valuation. Even though these sources only name the head of houehold they are still important:
Tithe Applotment Books (1823-1837): http://titheapplotmentbooks.nationalarchives.ie/search/tab/index.jsp
Griffith?s Valuation (1847-1864): http://www.askaboutireland.ie/griffith-valuation/
Some other websites that may be helpful are:
The National Archives of Ireland: http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/search/ you can search the 1901/1911 Census on the National Archives page too
Holders of Land over One Acre 1876: http://www.failteromhat.com/lo1876.php
The Donegal Diaspora Website is also very interesting: http://www.donegaldiaspora.ie/project
Remember to post any new information that you find here. The more information you post, the more likely it is that one of our volunteers will be able to advise or assist you. Also include information concerning which sources you may have already used so others may further your search.
Best of luck with your search
Clare Doyle
Genealogy Support
Tuesday 8th Apr 2014, 01:11PM