Priestly/Prestly/Pressley/Priestley

jlm,

This looks to be Mary Priestly’s death in 1875, aged 75. She was a widow at that date:

https://civilrecords.irishgenealogy.ie/churchrecords/images/deaths_returns/deaths_1875/020637/7240328.pdf

Death registration didn’t start in Ireland till 1864. I don’t see a death for Joseph 1864 – 1875 so suspect he died in the early 1860s. The Valuation revision records for Cloghskelt show he was renting a labourer’s cottage 75c from John Priestly. John only had land (ie no house) and so must have lived in some other nearby property. They were all deleted in 1870.

You didn’t say what the family denomination was but looking at the 1901 census for Co. Down all but 2 of the Priestlys there then were Presbyterian, so assume yours were too. There are 3 Presbyterian churches in the area. Drumgooland has records from 1836, Drumless 1826 and Leitrim 1839. If you are looking for siblings for  Agnes, you could search those baptism records. There are copies of them all in PRONI in Belfast.  Drumgooland Presbyterian church  is in Cloghskelt itself so I would start with it. Chances are that Joseph & Mary married before records begin and so there may be no record of that event.

Thank you so much for your reply. Unfortunately, I don't know what their denomination was. We are Presbyterian and have been for subsequent generations. Their daughter Agnes moved to Scotland where she married my 2x great grandfather. They were married at the High Church in Paisley, which is a Church of Scotland, in 1866. Their marriage record states her parents were both deceased by then, so I don't think the Mary Priestly you discovered, who died in 1875, is the same one. Perhaps she's a sister to Agnes ? I agree Joseph likely died in the early 1860s.

Thank you also for the names and locations of Presbyterian churches close by. I will definitely research them.

My best to you