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Ireland (Historical Counties) => Ireland => Mayo => Topic started by: texplc on Friday 08 November 24 00:58 GMT (UK)
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I have been unsuccessful in finding a death record for Thomas Meehan, my 2x great grandfather. He was likely born about 1832. He married Catherine Kelly, 22 Feb 1858 in Swineford, Kilconduff, County Mayo. I have found the marriage record in the Catholic Parish Registers. I have also found Catherine's death record via Irishgenealogy.ie and Find My Past. She died a widower in 1897 with the registrars entry indicating she was a "widow of a landholder". Thomas and Catherine's last child , Ellen, was born in 1871. So, Thomas must have died between 1871 and 1897. However, no searches I've made have resulted in a death record for Thomas. If I could access the Swinford registrar's database, I would be willing to go page-by-page looking for his name. But I can only pull up individual pages based on a search. I've looked at many Thomas Meehan individual entries with no luck. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks.
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On Irishgenealogy you can refine your search for the dates posted and just Swineford deaths, but nothing appears for Thomas Meehan. Therefore I would extend your search in a larger area, and later than the 1897 date you have given.
The other possibility is that the name has been transcribed with a different spelling - the original record may have been poorly written and hard to decipher. I tried a few options but without success.
Did any of his children live abroad, and could he have been visiting them when he died?
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Here is daughter Ellen’s marriage certificate in 1894
https://civilrecords.irishgenealogy.ie/churchrecords/images/marriage_returns/marriages_1895/10520/5831741.pdf
There is no occupation for her father. Her father is not noted as deceased. This is not usually significant as it is not always recorded.
However, on this page and pages either side, ‘deceased’ has been recorded where applicable.
It may not be of any consequence but also may be worth noting.
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Thank you, Neale and Heywood. I had not found the marriage record for daughter, Ellen.
Also, Heywood, how do you view the pages on either side? The Irishgenealogy site only shows me a single page for the name I am searching for. What am I missing?
Thanks for all the help. Rootschat is a valuable resource. Paul
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I find it fiddly and it may be easier on a laptop or desktop.
You change the last number i.e. the ‘1’ to ‘2’ or ‘0’.
On my iPad, I copy the link and paste it, change the number, copy and paste again - laborious. However, I do find that once it is done it is easier to change as I see the whole link.
I hope that makes sense.
https://civilrecords.irishgenealogy.ie/churchrecords/images/marriage_returns/marriages_1895/10520/5831741.pdf
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Heywood, perfect sense. Great hack that works. Yes, more labor intensive that being able to just arrow or swipe to next page but it works! Thanks for the tip. Paul
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I haven’t used this for ages so hope it still works.
If you have Firefox you can use Shane Wilson’s browse tool, it can work on other browsers but the captcha can show up and cause problems.
https://www.swilson.info/tools/
If I remember correctly it won’t include the images of the 2, 3, etc pages where there are several pages grouped together on a result.
Just paste in an image url and you can work back and forth from there.
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Do keep in mind it is not at all unusual in Ireland for a death not to be registered.
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Here is the record of death of Catherine Meehan from Irish Genealogy. NB it says she is a widow of a land holder...not widower (males are widowers)
Then the registration of the daughter, Ellen, has both of their names spelt as Mechan
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QGYH-VWK9
Then yet another spelling for the birth of a son Thomas to Thomas Moraghan and catherine kelly Moraghan
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FRMH-HJ9
Then other spellings for the same couple/man on Family Search
Meeghan
Monaghan
Morahan
The a son's death in the US
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:2WBG-SHP
Is this it?
yet another spelling Thomas Moughan in 1878
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FR1T-33T
ETA or this?
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FT8H-B68 Thomas Meehan in 1895.
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It is difficult with spellings and transcripts and Thomas’ death may well be wrongly transcribed somewhere.
I wondered if he might have died in USA or England, although Ellen presumably moved after her mothers death. She is in Middlesbrough in 1901.
Ellen’s birth registration is likely to be Meehan, rather than Mechan.
https://civilrecords.irishgenealogy.ie/churchrecords/images/birth_returns/births_1871/03282/2202617.pdf
There is a baptism of a son, Thomas Meehan in 1858 but he may have died if there is one with a later birth.
If he is the one in Braddock, Pennsylvania and married to Rose his year of birth varies.
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Thank you all. I will check out the links you have provided. I do have Catherine's death record and the records for daughter Ellen. Perhaps I'll be able to find the actual record for Thomas based on the spellings and dates y'all have provided. I'll let you know what I find. Paul
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Re the spellings what I have done with 'my lot' is to keep an Excel spreadsheet list of all the spellings i have come across for their names. I add to it as I find more. Then if any lists/databases come out or existing ones updated I then search under all the names to find 'hits'.
Best of luck with your researching and come back again if you stuck. :)
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Shanreagh, son Thomas actually died in Braddock, PA USA in 1932. Several family members ended up in Pennsylvania but not parents Thomas and Catherine. The Killala death record for Thomas has a likely birth year (1895) except this Thomas is shown to be a widower and we know Catherine was a widow when she died in 1897. I'll keep looking but thank you for the information. Paul