Thomas Fitzgerald born c1834 Tarbert

[Sunglen]

Hi,
I am looking for a Thomas Fitzgerald (RC) who lists his native place as Tarbert, Co. Limerick on his son's birth cert. in 1859 in Victoria.  While I know that Tarbert is in Kerry but on the border with Limerick, maybe some of the townslands were in Co. Limerick back then.  The Civil Parish seems to have been called Kilnaughtin.  There is just 1 possible Thomas Fitzpatricks listed for Tarbert (Ballylongford) on the Irishgenealogy website, one in 1825.  What would have been the closest Limerick parish to Tarbert?

Unfortunately, his marriage record of 1855 in Victoria could not be located.
Thanks

[shanew147]

.....
What would have been the closest Limerick parish to Tarbert?
...

Nearest Co. Limerick parish to Tarbert is Glin - but problem with dates (baptisms only available from 1851)...  You can view some details and a map of adjacent parishes on the Irish Times website : Co. Kerry RC Parishes

As far as I can see the town of Tarbert and the townlands it's contained in (Tieraclea Lower & Doonard Lower) have always been in Co. Kerry. The townland of Tieraclea Lower, which contains the bulk of the town, is right next to the county border. RC parishes often covered areas in more than one county, so Tarbert/Kilnaughten could easily have included some areas in Co. Limerick. This might explain why he gave his 'mixed' location - e.g. they lived in Co. Limerick, but his parish church was just across the border in Tarbert, Co. Kerry.

I think the main problem is likely the dates of available records - the RC parish of Tarbert/Kilnaughten only has baptism records back to 1859, so could cause problems locating your Fitzgeralds if they lived in or near the town.

It might be worth trying adjacent parishes e.g. Ballylongford, Listowel, Moyvane etc but given how common the surname Fitzgerald is in the southwest it might be worth first searching for a death cert, or a 2nd go at a marriage cert, for your Thomas to see if either might show any details of parents, as there are likely a number of 'incorrect' Thomas Fitzgeralds in the area at the same sort of timeframe as your Thomas.


Shane

[Sunglen]

Thank you very much for your comprehensive reply, Shane.

Unlikely then, that I will get anywhere with the baptism records.  The marriage record doesn't appear on any Australian index unfortunately.  I have his wife's immigration record and she was single at that time so they must have married either NSW or Victoria (maybe they never married).  As the family moved from Victoria to NZ and back to Sydney, there are many Thomas Fitzgerald deaths to check out but will try that route in any case.  Many thanks for your help.