Author Topic: Burials in Kerry  (Read 4013 times)

Offline dragonlady403

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Burials in Kerry
« on: Tuesday 31 January 17 15:28 GMT (UK) »
I will be heading to Kerry in a few weeks and have a fair bit of information about two branches of my family.  What I haven't yet identified is where they were buried. 

Is it still necessary to contact the local priest e.g. Castleisland and Killarney to obtain that information?  It must be quite onerous for them if so.

Thanks for your help as always
Regards, Carol
Johnston - New Zealand; Scotland
Brookes - New Zealand; England
Morris- Liverpool Lancs, UK; New Zealand
Hatter - Wiltshire UK; Otago New Zealand
Ainslie & Strachan - Midlothian, Scotland; New Zealand
Paull -St Agnes, St Columb Minor Parish Cornwall; South Africa; New Zealand
Gould & Reece- Stroud, Gloucestershire UK; New Zealand
Oakly - Australia, NZ; UK
Downes -UK; Australia; NZ
Kinghorn - Jamaica; England; Scotland
Murphy - County Kerry, Ireland; NZ

Offline ballydw

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Re: Burials in Kerry
« Reply #1 on: Tuesday 31 January 17 23:04 GMT (UK) »
I will be heading to Kerry in a few weeks and have a fair bit of information about two branches of my family.  What I haven't yet identified is where they were buried. 

Is it still necessary to contact the local priest e.g. Castleisland and Killarney to obtain that information?  It must be quite onerous for them if so.

Thanks for your help as always
Regards, Carol
Hello Carol you could try www.historicgraves.ie (a work in progress ) so not all transcriptions/graveyards covered.  I also know that Kerry County Council has a database of burials in various cemeteries www.kerrycoco.ie   Good luck

Offline myluck!

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Re: Burials in Kerry
« Reply #2 on: Wednesday 01 February 17 10:51 GMT (UK) »
In some Irish towns the county councils now own the cemeteries and in others they are still privately owned
Contacting the local church will at least give you a point to start with
Local Gravediggers have a lot of knowledge that isn't written down
Also some people know where families are buried even if there isn't a headstone
Don't forget a quick word in the oldest pub etc. too!

My Granddad would always walk into the cemetery; he'd name who was where as he went to his parents' grave which was unmarked. We are unable to put up a stone as the rural cemetery that many of my family are buried in has records that go back to only the 1960s. There was a fire in the home of the Head Gravedigger.  He lived in a house attached to the cemetery which came with the job (as does the current Head Gravedigger). As they cannot state who is where they won't allow old graves be marked.
Kearney & Bourke/ Johns & Fox/ Mannion & Finan/ Donohoe & Curley
Byrne [Carthy], Keeffe/ Germaine, Butler/ McDermott, Giblin/ Lally, Dolan
Toole, Doran; Dowling, Grogan/ Reilly, Burke; Warren, Kidd [Lawless]/ Smith, Scally; Mangan, Rodgers/ Fahy, Calday; Staunton, Miller
Further generations:
Brophy Coleman Eathorn(e) Fahy Fitzpatrick Geraghty Haverty Keane Keogh Nowlan Rowe Walder

Offline mikechristopher

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Re: Burials in Kerry
« Reply #3 on: Wednesday 01 February 17 11:47 GMT (UK) »
Take a look on http://www.kerrylaburials.ie/en/Browse.aspx

There are a lot of graveyards listed on there and may find some records. 

If they are from Castleisland - I know it well and are quite a few graveyards in the local area.

This map will also help give you the names to search against: http://atomik.kerrycoco.ie/map_pages/map_burial_grounds.htm

However you can just run the names your looking for through kerry burials and will return any they have listed.  Please note however this is not all of them from what I have seen so you may still need to speak to local church/graveyards as per required.
Nolan, Cremins & O'Connor - County Kerry, Ireland.
Keogh - Queen's County (Laois)
Stack - Limerick & Clare


Offline dragonlady403

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Re: Burials in Kerry
« Reply #4 on: Wednesday 01 February 17 13:11 GMT (UK) »
Thanks very much everyone.  I'm not having a lot of success finding any "rellies" grave sites on the Kerry County or the HistoricGraves sites.

I think I am going to have to work more from a geographic perspective... i.e. they were all RC and would have been buried in the nearest graveyard to the church or the town? 

For the Murphy's I know for sure they were from CastleIsland.  So I assume St Stephens Church?  If that is any help at all to nail down the likely graveyard in the early to mid 1800"s?

For the O'Connors - I am still unable to nail down the exact town but working on that.  All I know for sure is they lived approx 7 miles from Killarney.  Patrick b 1818 d 1878 married Ellen Fenighty (Fenton) or various other spellings -also b around 1818.  They were also RC

MYLUCK  - I take your point on local knowledge!  I will write to the church and definitely try to meet some local folk..my husband would certainly not be adverse to sharing a Guinness (or two or three!) for the cause.
Regards, Carol

Johnston - New Zealand; Scotland
Brookes - New Zealand; England
Morris- Liverpool Lancs, UK; New Zealand
Hatter - Wiltshire UK; Otago New Zealand
Ainslie & Strachan - Midlothian, Scotland; New Zealand
Paull -St Agnes, St Columb Minor Parish Cornwall; South Africa; New Zealand
Gould & Reece- Stroud, Gloucestershire UK; New Zealand
Oakly - Australia, NZ; UK
Downes -UK; Australia; NZ
Kinghorn - Jamaica; England; Scotland
Murphy - County Kerry, Ireland; NZ

Offline myluck!

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Re: Burials in Kerry
« Reply #5 on: Wednesday 01 February 17 13:37 GMT (UK) »

MYLUCK  - I take your point on local knowledge!  I will write to the church and definitely try to meet some local folk..my husband would certainly not be adverse to sharing a Guinness (or two or three!) for the cause.
Regards, Carol

Enjoy!  ;)
Kearney & Bourke/ Johns & Fox/ Mannion & Finan/ Donohoe & Curley
Byrne [Carthy], Keeffe/ Germaine, Butler/ McDermott, Giblin/ Lally, Dolan
Toole, Doran; Dowling, Grogan/ Reilly, Burke; Warren, Kidd [Lawless]/ Smith, Scally; Mangan, Rodgers/ Fahy, Calday; Staunton, Miller
Further generations:
Brophy Coleman Eathorn(e) Fahy Fitzpatrick Geraghty Haverty Keane Keogh Nowlan Rowe Walder

Offline Sinann

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Re: Burials in Kerry
« Reply #6 on: Wednesday 01 February 17 18:55 GMT (UK) »
You have to keep in mind they may not have headstones, many couldn't afford them, and RC churches didn't all keep burial records.
They may be interned in a grave with only later generations marked on the headstone.

One set of my great grandparents only got a head stone when their youngest daughter died, no one earlier than them is on a headstone although it almost certain they are buried in the same grave. Similar story for the other great grandparents.

Offline dragonlady403

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Re: Burials in Kerry
« Reply #7 on: Wednesday 01 February 17 19:46 GMT (UK) »
Ok Sinaan, thanks for that heads-up.  That makes sense... I located English gr gr grandparents who were in unmarked graves in Gloucestershire so I can certainly understand how that might be the case in Ireland, especially given the times.

Regards, Carol
Johnston - New Zealand; Scotland
Brookes - New Zealand; England
Morris- Liverpool Lancs, UK; New Zealand
Hatter - Wiltshire UK; Otago New Zealand
Ainslie & Strachan - Midlothian, Scotland; New Zealand
Paull -St Agnes, St Columb Minor Parish Cornwall; South Africa; New Zealand
Gould & Reece- Stroud, Gloucestershire UK; New Zealand
Oakly - Australia, NZ; UK
Downes -UK; Australia; NZ
Kinghorn - Jamaica; England; Scotland
Murphy - County Kerry, Ireland; NZ

Offline mikechristopher

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Re: Burials in Kerry
« Reply #8 on: Thursday 02 February 17 08:13 GMT (UK) »
For the Murphy's I know for sure they were from CastleIsland.  So I assume St Stephens Church?  If that is any help at all to nail down the likely graveyard in the early to mid 1800"s?
St Stephens & St Johns Church in Church St was built in 1884 and I don't believe there is any graves on site - Don't recall seeing any anyway.

St Stephens Church in Church Lane was built in 1840 but remains there going back to about 1600s.  There are some graves on site there.

The main graveyards that were used were the Kilbannivane graveyards (Maher, Pembroke, Old & St Johns) and dependant on where abouts in Castleisland they lived it could have spurred out to the Cordal, Currow or even Knocknagoshel ones.  You may find it difficult to trace back graves from early to mid 1800s as they may not be in a good state due to erosion and therefore not transcribed - or like it was said previously a lot of people couldnt afford headstones and therefore just didnt have them.  I know a lot of my family in Castleisland didn't.

Another good place to check is http://www.kerryburials.com/ this gives a map of the graveyards and pictures of the graves there.  Have you managed to find the death records of these people as it may help understand where they were recorded as having died.

For the O'Connors - I am still unable to nail down the exact town but working on that.  All I know for sure is they lived approx 7 miles from Killarney.  Patrick b 1818 d 1878 married Ellen Fenighty (Fenton) or various other spellings -also b around 1818.  They were also RC
Have you managed to find the Marriage details of this couple?  That would help point you on your way - am guessing not as of yet as you would know where they were from initially.  There were lots of O'Connors about as im sure you will know so again may be a difficult one to trace back.

If you havent found the marriage could it be this one?  http://www.rootschat.com/links/01jeu/

Firies is not far from Farranfore - about 9-10 miles out from Killarney.
Nolan, Cremins & O'Connor - County Kerry, Ireland.
Keogh - Queen's County (Laois)
Stack - Limerick & Clare