Shanaghan Native of Thurles

Dear David

There are only 2 marriage records on www.rootsireland.ie for a John Shanaghan (and variants of the spelling). The 1^st is in Co. Offaly in 1828, 2^nd in Co. Westmeath in 1828, 3^rd in Co. Armagh in 1838 and 4^th in Co. Tyrone in 1850. Going by your possible date of birth for Catherine of 1834 (give or take) then the Co. Westmeath and Co. Offaly are possibly relevant. If you log on to the site you will be able to see the details (it is a subscription site).

There are a number of John Shanaghan entries listed on Griffith?s Valuation (below) but given the little information we have it would be impossible to say, which if any, are your ancestors. I think what you will have to do is gather as much information as possible, so that at some point you will be able to make a more informed decision about the records you find. Even though this source only records the head of the household, the information is very important and can be valuable:

http://www.askaboutireland.ie/griffith-valuation/index.xml?action=doNam…

There are 7 matches on rootsireland for a baptism for a Catherine Shanaghan, as you will see on that site. However the dates are either too early or too late for a match. It may be that she was baptised in a parish and at a time that predates the records available. Have a look at the marriages and let me know what you think.

Best wishes

Clare Doyle

Genealogy Support