LOOKING FOR KEOWNS IN DOWNPATRICK AND WESTS OF KILLOUGH

Killough is in the civil parish of Rathmullan. Griffiths Valuation for 1863 has several Wests listed (Thomas, Alexander, Samuel & John). The 1901 census has 12 people of that name in the Killough area. Some were Church of Ireland and some RC.

http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/search/results.jsp?census_year=19…

You don?t say what denomination Joseph was. Unfortunately neither the Church of Ireland nor RC baptism for Rathmullan records go back to 1829. However you may be able to obtain information from gravestones, stat death records (1864 onwards) and wills. Some Wests in Killough on this Co Down site:

http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~rosdavies/

Thanks so much for your reply! Er, I don't know what denominations were available in Ireland back then and since they were married at Kirk Braddan on the IOM, I assume it was whatever that place is.

I'd like to add that this is a wonderful project and we in the colonies are so grateful for this valuable source of info and of the volunteers' help, but it's a pity this website is so clunky! I went around in a circle a few times before it'd let me post a message. And also, as we aren't familiar with counties, parishes etc and how it's all laid out over there, perhaps the managers could be thinking about creating a page about the structure of place names for us eejits over here. E.g., is Downpatrick the same as Seapatrick? Is Co. Down the same as just Down, and Downpatrick? It's all a bit confusing if you don't live there! (By the way, is Killyleagh the same as Killough?)

Many thanks,

Celie

PS I have no idea what the buttons below are for:

Message posts in Down (Down)

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Dear Elwyn,

You have done such a brilliant job! An embarassment of riches! Thanks so very much for your extemely patient and detailed reply. Hilarious! What a marvellous country you live in and I can't wait to get there hopefully next year and do a personal search. Once again many thanks!

Cheers!

Celie

Celie,

The smallest administrative unit of land in Ireland is a townland. Townlands vary in size and can be anything from 1 to 5000 acres, though most are between 50 and 500.

A group of townlands forms a parish, and a group of parishes forms a county. (There are 32 counties in Ireland). A few parishes cross county borders but that?s the basic structure. You can see a complete list of townlands,  parishes and counties on this link:

http://www.thecore.com/seanruad/

Here?s a map of Co Down showing all the civil parishes:

http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~rosdavies/MAPS/CoDown…

Just to make it a bit more interesting, sometimes a townland can have the same name as a parish, and parishes can have the same name as the county. So, for example, the parish of Down is one parish within the county of Down. (The county of Down may be called Co. Down, Down or even Downshire). So the townland of Downpatrick, is in the parish of Down within Co. Down.

Seapatrick is the name of a parish; Downpatrick is the name of a town, so they are not the same thing. Killough and Killyleagh are not the same either. Killough is a townland in Rathmullan parish. Killyleagh is a townland and a parish.

Once you have the hang of all that, then you need to know that the RC church uses slightly different boundaries, and frequently different names for its parishes. See map:

http://www.irishtimes.com/ancestor/browse/counties/rcmaps/

So it?s all absolutely straight forward. No scope for any confusion at all.

Knowing what denomination your ancestors were is pretty critical for tracing them in Ireland. Prior to statutory registration of births, deaths & marriages (1864, save for non RC marriages, which started in 1845) you are heavily reliant on church records for tracing your family. So you do need to know what they were.

Registration of marriages only became compulsory in the Isle of Man in 1878, so I can?t find your ancestors marriage in the civil records. Kirk Braddan is Church of England. So that?s Church of Ireland, in Ireland. If you want to confirm the marriage or obtain any details about it, you probably need to write to the vicar:

http://www.gumbley.net/

You can see what church records exist for Co. Down, parish by parish, all denominations, using this link:

http://www.proni.gov.uk/index/research_and_records_held/catalogues_guides_indexes_and_leaflets/online_guides_and_indexes.htm

For Rathmullan (ie Joseph West?s parish) all early Church of Ireland records were destroyed in a fire in 1922, during the civil war. For the parish of Down (ie Eliza Jane?s parish), the main church is Downpatrick cathedral and its records go back to 1733 (with some gaps). There was also a separate congregation at Hollymount but its early records were destroyed in the 1922 fire too.

The Church of Ireland records are not on-line anywhere a s far as I am aware. A copy is held in PRONI (the public record office) in Belfast as well as in the RCB library in Dublin. A personal visit is required to inspect them.

I'd be inclined to check out the Presbyterian records too, just in case Joseph or Eliza Jane were born into that denomination, and married in the C of E in the Isle of Man because there wasn't a convenient Presbyterian church on the island.

Elwyn

Celie

You might also find the lecale history society useful.

http://www.lecalehistory.co.uk

i use it most for the griffiths valuation and 1901 and 1911 census.

Killough is  south of downpatrick and killyleagh is north, so not the same place. But they are both coastal. You seem to have a common denominator and with the Isle of Man involved they are all connected to the sea. Killough was a port at one time. Potatoes and coal would have been transported between all these places. And travel would have been easier by boat than going by road in the early 1800s.

hi Celia, yes Wests came from killough county Down , Some lived in the parish ofRathmullan , your ancestors West lived in Quoile Castle and Ballyduggan Castle both in the town of Downpatrick County Down Northern Ireland ,Some of the Wests changed their religion , which is why you are getting Killyleagh Johnson West and William West and some of the family are buried in Pesprtyrian church in Killyleagh .i cannot find your ancestor Joseph 1829, im still trying to trace the rest off the Wests,. The Parish you would be looking for is the Parish off Ballee, Bright , Killough ,Rathmullan ,one parish does the connecting parishes . my 3rd great grandfather is William West (1832/1893) married to Susan Crangle (1841/1907) His father was Johnston West (1790/1845) married Mary Lawther (1802/1878), there is a Eliza West 1841 married John Lamont ,a Mary West (1833/1850) doesnt say who she married , hopefully this gaves u a bit off help .