Thomas Wilson from Irvinestown

[Valsgirl]

Thomas Wilson married Mary Bell 18th June 1856 at Irvinestown Civil Registars Office - Parish: Derryvullan Civil District: Irvinestown.
Groom, Thomas's Father's name given as Robert Wilson. Bride's father named as William Bell.
Sourced from "Emerald Ancestors" & "Family Search" sites.

Three children, that I'm aware of, migrated to New Zealand.
Isabella Wilson born  abt 1857.
John Wilson born abt 1858.
Elizabeth Wilson born March 1864.

Any help in finding more about this Wilson clan, from Fermanagh, would be appreciated. I can find little on line to help me determine which Thomas / Robert Wilson line I should follow.
Cheers, Valsgirl (Brisbane Australia)

[aghadowey]

The marriage record will list residences of bride and groom (which may be where their families lived) and occupations of both fathers which may also help you locate the correct Wilson family.
Civil registration of births started in 1864 and many early ones were not registered so there may not be a certificate for their daughter Elizabeth.

[Valsgirl]

Thanks for your reply, Aghadowey.
Thomas & Mary's son John (my husband's Grandfather) told the family his hometown was Kesh, Fermanagh. His immigration record states his occupation as farm labourer. It's thought his parents were Ag Labs, too.

I wonder why Thomas & Mary chose to marry in the Civil RegistryOffice rather than the parish church. Could this suggest they did not normally reside in the Derryvullan Parish?

Does anyone know of any online sites for Fermanagh graveyards, please? Mr. Google isn't helping me much today.
We hope to revisit Northern Ireland next year, so I'm trying to do some homework before our trip.

Thank you,
Valsgirl
 

[aghadowey]

"... told the family his hometown was Kesh, Fermanagh."
He may have lived near Kesh- people in the country often gave the name of the nearest town or village as their place of origin. The marriage certificate will give the exact location (townland).

"I wonder why Thomas & Mary chose to marry in the Civil RegistryOffice rather than the parish church. Could this suggest they did not normally reside in the Derryvullan Parish?"
There are many reasons for marrying in a Registry Office- mixed marriage, bride pregnant, wanting a quiet wedding (recent family death, parental disapproval), own minister not licensed to perform marriages), etc.
The record you have purchased is a bit confusing but the town of Kesh is in Lowtherstown Poor Law Union (Lowtherstown is the old name for Irvinestown). Derryvullen civil parish covers parts of Lowtherstown and Enniskillen poor law unions.
http://www.thecore.com/seanruad to find details of places in Ireland

"Does anyone know of any online sites for Fermanagh graveyards, please?"
There are links to lots of churches and graveyards under FERMANAGH RESOURCES at the top of this board-
http://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php/topic,366887.0.html
However, most will probably not be online.
To search for church records you'll need to know what religion the family was and for gravestones (remember not everyone put them up or they might not survive) it will depend on the denominations. If Protestant be sure to check Church of Ireland buryhing ground even if they were Methodist, Presbyterian, etc.

[Valsgirl]

You have been very helpful, again, Aghadowey. I will follow your suggestions.
Many thanks,
Valsgirl

[Rosaparks]

hi Valsgirl
I too have been researching my family tree based on the only info That seems to have been passed on through our family that John Wilson, my great grandfather came from Kesh.  we visited County Fermanagh in July and it was wonderful finding out more.  if you would like to talk further please contact me by text. Phone number and age removed by moderator, please use the private message system to swap sensitive information.  sue

[Valsgirl]

Hello Rosaparks,
Welcome to this great site, and thank you for replying to my query.
You can send me a Personal Message (PM) by clicking on Valsgirl & seeing the options that appear. I am happy to swap Wilson family information, should we be researching the same clan. My husband & I were in Kesh, early July, this year, also.
Valsgirl

[sarah]

Hi Rosa,

You will be able to send Val a private Message when you have made one more post 

Sorry I had to remove your phone number and age as a security measure.

Regards

Sarah

[Rosaparks]

hi Valsgirl, it is so exciting to get your quick response. as a new user of Roostchat I am not sure how best we communicate. It was great to visit Kesh, and to meet a geneologist in Enniskillen who was able to give us copies of ancient landmaps. We were able to find the land that John and his father Thomas worked on as tenant farmers. Also to see where Mary Bell lived nearby. John came to NZ in 1878 and settled in the Hook area, near Waimate in Sth Canterbury.  He and his wife Jane Cunningham went on to have 13 children and my grandfather Tom Wilson, was among them. I would love to know what you found out and how we can share more. I am Sue and live in Auckland.