Aghalurcher Graveyard Burial Register

[Rustyscupp]

Does your name start with an "I" or "D"?

After you reply you should be on the PM system, I'll get back to you there.

Rusty

[Rustyscupp]

***Update***

For anyone searching for info on Aghalurcher Graveyard, It is still in use, and as previously mentioned family lines seem to be the general rule. I could find no specific Register when I visited in August, however the Sallaghy Church burial register does have a lot of entries relating to burials at Aghalurcher (pronounced localy as Ah-Ha-Loch-Her). Although I never had time to check any other church burial registers in the area like Lisnaskea, I would assume they would enter similar information refering to the person "buried at Aghalurcher".  See attached pic.

Rusty

[fermanaghroots]

Hi Rusty,

Where did you get the image of the Sallaghy Burial Register?

[Rustyscupp]

KDDA,

From the Sallaghy Burial register. (With Permission)

Rusty

[fermanaghroots]

KDDA,

From the Sallaghy Burial register. (With Permission)

Rusty

Sorry I meant, was it via a camera and the book?  Could you PM me the person who gave you access to the book?

[Kessa]

Hi Rusty

I have just found out that my husband's Rutledge family lived in Aghalurcher.  Would you be able to check your list of burials for this graveyard for any mention of them please?

Thanks

[Rustyscupp]

Hi Kessa,

Aghalurcher Burial ground dates back to around the 12 century, most burials are as traditional "old families". As there is no actual church there it tends to be used by all churches in the area. The service would be conducted at the host Church with the burial taking place at Aghalurcher. The register of the host church would record the burial and note in the register "Buried at Aghalurcher"

Sallaghy Church (COI) since 1840 has been one of them. I can confirm there are no Rutledge entries in the Sallaghy registers that still exist, the burial registers prior to 1884 were lost in the Dublin records office fire. It is possible that any records wherever the service was conducted has been lost. Early Irish burial records at best were pretty poor, if recorded at all.

There were other churches/chapels that also use Aghalurcher Burial ground, Among them Newtownbutler, Lisnaskea, Clones & I believe even Aghavea. I would guess they would be COI, but Aghalurcher has historically been multi denominational. It is still in use today, and I am told some new "Family names" have appeared.

My next port of call would be COI Lisnaskea, but remember there are also a couple of Methodist Chapels in the area also.

Attached a low res pic

Rusty

[Kessa]

Many thanks Rusty for your quick reply and for all the information you have sent.  I will think it through carefully and work out what my next step should be.  Thank you also for the lovely photo of the cemetery.

Kerrie

[Rustyscupp]

Stone Carving, Aghalurcher

Sculptured headstones in Aghalurcher cemetery as well as those in Galloon, Drumully and Donagh have carved on the reverse, sometimes in relief, symbols of the skull and crossed-bones, bell, hourglass and coffin. The bell was the usual method of telling or announcing the death. The hourglass reminds us that time passes for us all. The coffin represents the resting place of the body within the grave and replaced the system of uncoffined burials of earlier times. The skull and crossed-bones remind us starkly of man’s mortality.

In her publication "Images of Stone" (Belfast, 1976, p. 97) Helen Hickey states:

In the east part of Fermanagh, at Pubble, Aghalurcher and Galloon, the stone-carvers produced a very distinctive type of grave-slab bearing the emblems    of man’s mortality---skull, crossed bones, sand-timer, bell and coffin.

Just a little info for those interested.

Rusty