Portarlington, Rorke family

[Emma R]

I am searching for any information relating to the baptism of my 2x great grandfather John Samuel RORKE. I know he was born on the 16th June 1856 in Portarlington and his parents were Michael & Annie of Portarlington (from his grave & a military list). I can't find his baptism or anything about any of his family in the Roman Catholic records. But I can't find other church baptism records.
Can anyone help?

[Sinann]

This link will give you the list of Anglican Parishes in Ireland, if their records survive and where they are, note the colour code at the top.
https://www.ireland.anglican.org/cmsfiles/pdf/AboutUs/library/registers/ParishRegisters/PARISHREGISTERS.pdf

There is a project to put them online but no word of when.

[heywood]

There is a civil marriage which may be Michael and Annie.

1852 Mountmellick Vol 8 pg 259
Michael Rourke and Anna/Anne Pratt are on the same page.

Unfortunately, this site https://www.irishgenealogy.ie/en/ is not working at the moment but you can look the marriage up when it is working if you do not have it.
Catholic civil marriage records began in 1864 so this would indicate the family were not Catholic.

[MonicaL]

Hi Emma

Welcome to RootsChat 

One likely brother John is a Thomas. Thomas married Luciud (Lucinda) Hill on 11 Dec 1895 in Ruth, Huron, Michigan, USA. His parents showing as Michael and Annie (Pratt). Ancestry have indexed the marriage as Bourk. Possible shipping manifest entry for him in 1888 on the "British King" arriving in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on 29 May 1888 .

He died in 1911. Burial details here www.findagrave.com/memorial/41567401/thomas-rourk Birth date is included on the bio.

As heywood mentioned, once https://www.irishgenealogy.ie/en/ is up an running again, you will be able to check this birth registration along with other possible siblings' registrations.

Monica

[aghadowey]

Here's a bit more detail extracted from the marriage record (all you can easily tell from here is that it was a non-Catholic ceremony so could be in a Protestant church or Registry Office) -
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FGCV-9T4
Marriages usually take place in the bride's church so even if was a church ceremony you can't be entirely sure of their religion. If Protestant but not Anglican they could have been Presbyterian, Methodist, Congregationalist, etc.

[Emma R]

Wow. All of these replies have been very helpful. So much to go on. It is difficult to be sure whether the Michael ROURK & Anna PRATT is the right marriage though does seem possible. The spelling of the name RORKE with all its variables is making it a lot harder to feel I am on the right track.
My mother said that John Samuel RORKE had 2 sisters who lived in Dublin and she thought they never married. I have found a couple of possibles - Mary & Susan but the records are inconsistent.

[aghadowey]

Death certificate of the Thomas Rorke that Monica found earlier gives birthdate of 5 Apr.1860-
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:8WR7-SF6Z

[Emma R]

Thank you for this accumulating information about Michael ROURK & Annie PRATT. I am hopeful this is becoming a likely link. I notice that a couple of family trees on Ancestry show Thomas ROURK as born In Portarlington, County Laois (the same location as my great grandfather John Samuel RORKE who I am investigating). I am trying to find out why the trees mention Portarlington specifically as Thomas's
birthplace. I wonder what the evidence is. It could help me. Maybe?
Emma R

[heywood]

It’s back online now so here is the marriage for Michael and Annie.
https://civilrecords.irishgenealogy.ie/churchrecords/images/marriage_returns/marriages_1852/09435/5418274.pdf

Does it fit?
What is John Samuel’s father’s occupation on the marriage of J S?