Driscoll - Neil - Rineen, Castlehaven to Rotherhithe

[kezd]

Hi - I have been pointed to a family of John Driscoll (abt 1832) and Catherine Neil (1835) who have Thomas (1855) somewhere, possibly Kinsale but this is the only matching birth record I have? but then Mary 1857, James 1858, Catherine 1860, Ellen 1864 and Johanna 1862 of Rineen and baptised in the Castlehaven and Myross parish.  I think I have them tracked in the 1871 census where they have Anne 1867(although I am not sure where she was born), then a Laura, Bridget and Margaret in Rotherhithe, Surrey. John was a dock labourer and they can be found in 3 Princes St in 1881 and under Duicel (Ancestry mistranslation) of Hanover St in 1871, both St Olaves, Rotherhithe.
I am trying to track where John and Catherine both came from, as well as try to confirm the Irish link to the UK family.  I wonder if John's father might have been Thomas, given the first son's name?
Does anyone know anything about the Driscoll's of Rineen?  Or the Neil's (or O'Neill?).
I am also trying to track down Thomas's son, also Thomas, born in Rotherhithe in 1880 to Susanna Dudley.
kind regards

[Sonas]

Some of the children have both Driscoll and Neill sponsors on their baptisms so I would guess that both John and Catherine are local to the area. The Kinsale one might be a red herring - Kinsale is a fair enough distance from there. Also, I am missing a baptism record in this parish from around that 1855 timeframe and wonder if there might be a problem with a page missing from baptism register or illegible entries (I haven't gone through the pdfs).

[kezd]

Thank you, most useful.  What do you mean by the pdfs....are there files available anywhere to see?  Could there be a wedding for John and Catherine recorded?  Does anyone know about the births of John 1832 or Catherine 1835? I need to confirm if this is the same family as that in Rotherhithe.  In a small community like Rineen do you think that there might be any records kept?  John Driscoll is recorded in the land records (Griffiths?) as Island, Rineen, but I need to confirm if this is my John. 
All a little hard, particularly not knowing the area.  Sorry, lots of questions.

[Sonas]

Sorry Kezd, I thought you had seen the baptism records when you had all the details. RC parish records for this area are available at www.irishgenealogy.ie. When you click into the individual record there is a link at the bottom of the page to a pdf of the original register page (usually). I just had a look there at the Kinsale entry and wonder if I was too quick to dismiss it. When you look at the original and the couple of entries around it, there is a notation that looks like W[est] Cork or an abbreviation of West County maybe. Not sure.

The Griffith's entry for Island, Rineen is not the right John Driscoll. Rineen/Rinneen, Castlehaven, is not an official townland and so there won't be a listing for it. Rineen, Castlehaven, is an area in the townlands of Carrigtishane and Forenaght. If you search in Griffith's for these and go in and look at the map you will see Rineen mill at the boundaries of these townlands. Was the family ever involved in milling? I wish there were, but there are no marriage records for Castlehaven & Myross and whatever RIneen records there are would have been among these. You could look at marriages in the surrounding parishes though. Castlehaven & Myross baptisms begin in 1842.

[kezd]

Thank you for that.  Now I know what you are referring to, yes, I have seen them.  I shall go and have another look at that Kinsale birth.  I know it is a long way away, so wonder why they would be there if there are so many Neil and Driscoll sponsors for the other children in Rineen?  It made me wonder if he might be a sailor and travelled.  In the UK, if this is the right John, he worked on the docks and Thomas, and Thomas's son were involved in boat building. Mind you, this family looked like they desperately would do anything to survive.  They must have been absolute paupers in London, and lived in the hard slums.

Could someone have an objective look at the 1871 UK Census for me and give feedback on whether this looks like the same family?  They were in Hanover St, St Olaves, Rotherhithe.  I could attach this?  Not sure about copyright?
I also cannot find Annie's birth in either place although it says Rotherhithe. 1867 abt.

I don't know if they were involved in milling, but I am going to see that mill in June..... sheer luck to have someone offer to show me it.

[Sonas]

I just looked the Kinsale records again and the W. Cork there actually means West Cork Milita I think as in this entry http://churchrecords.irishgenealogy.ie/churchrecords/details/771c820145923. It was kind of bothering me that W. Cork could just mean plain West Cork.

[kezd]

So is Milita a place?
And this could be the right Thomas after all?
http://churchrecords.irishgenealogy.ie/reels/cork%20%26%20ross.kinsale.p4800.00589.pdf

Why might they be so far away from Rineen?
I shall start hunting through the sponsors - I wonder what are the family links?

Thanks

[Sonas]

Militia - refers to army unit I think. There are other army units listed for Kinsale as well as there was a fort there.

[kezd]

Oh, tricky times to be in an Army unit were they not?  Gosh, I can see a good history lesson about to be undertaken.