Looking for parents of Francis James Nolan and Margaret Ryan

Hi Paddy,

Thanks for your message. I'm afraid I don't have many answers to your questions. I received the family information in the records of the Archdiocese of Cashel and Emly through research conducted for me by the Tipperary Family History Research office. They are the ones who gave me 2 separate families with similar children's names and dates but with different parents' names. All of them were in the Thurles parish. 

Through Ancestry.com I have been able to contact some other descendants of the family who also live in the U.S., and they are just as confused as to which family to follow as I am. I'm afraid none of us know anything about knicknames to identify the families. Some of the people in the Ancestry.com list later died in the Grange and Mullanbrack areas. I don't know if this is any help.

There are so many John, William, Thomas, Margaret, Ellen, and Bridget names that it is hard to keep them straight. I know our great-grandmother Margaret Ethel Birmingham Burke always went by the name of "Maggie" and her mother, Bridget Nolan Birmingham was listed on the immigrant ship records as "Biddy". In the baptismal records, the mother, Margaret, was sometimes referred to as "Peggy" and the father as "Frank" instead of Francis. I'm sure these are not the knicknames to which you are referring as they are pretty commonly used by everyone.

If you are able to come up with anyone there who may know something about these families, I would greatly appreciate it. Also, if needed, I can email copies of the baptismal records given to me through the research. I did not get any certificates, only a listing of the information in the Archdiiocese records. Perhaps the sponsors for the baptisms could help with identification.

Thanks again for your message. I appreciate your willingness to try to help.

Darline Burke

Hi Paddy,

Thanks for your message. I'm afraid I don't have many answers to your questions. I received the family information in the records of the Archdiocese of Cashel and Emly through research conducted for me by the Tipperary Family History Research office. They are the ones who gave me 2 separate families with similar children's names and dates but with different parents' names. All of them were in the Thurles parish. 

Through Ancestry.com I have been able to contact some other descendants of the family who also live in the U.S., and they are just as confused as to which family to follow as I am. I'm afraid none of us know anything about knicknames to identify the families. Some of the people in the Ancestry.com list later died in the Grange and Mullanbrack areas. I don't know if this is any help.

There are so many John, William, Thomas, Margaret, Ellen, and Bridget names that it is hard to keep them straight. I know our great-grandmother Margaret Ethel Birmingham Burke always went by the name of "Maggie" and her mother, Bridget Nolan Birmingham was listed on the immigrant ship records as "Biddy". In the baptismal records, the mother, Margaret, was sometimes referred to as "Peggy" and the father as "Frank" instead of Francis. I'm sure these are not the knicknames to which you are referring as they are pretty commonly used by everyone.

If you are able to come up with anyone there who may know something about these families, I would greatly appreciate it. Also, if needed, I can email copies of the baptismal records given to me through the research. I did not get any certificates, only a listing of the information in the Archdiiocese records. Perhaps the sponsors for the baptisms could help with identification.

Thanks again for your message. I appreciate your willingness to try to help.

Darline Burke

Hi there Darline

I too have been tracking a Ryan family and have hit a brick wall.  My original info said they were from Thurles, but it turned out that Thurles was the largest nearby town and that their baptisms were in the Holycross parish nearby.  Then the plot thickened further to Holycross also holding the Ballycahill Parish records. From there I hit the wall with a plethora of Michael Ryans.  His wife was Margaret Tynan, which one might think helped, but no so.  Tynans are also represented in different townlands, but I think Newtown or Moneydass the most likely.  Trying to find my Ryans has been impossible to date, and I have resorted to DNA testing via FtDna.  I just thought you might like to consider this option as the more 'Ryans' from this area that test increase the chance of being able to place the different families.

I have come across 2 families that 'match' but as yet we have not been able to clearly identify the common ancestors, however it is early days yet.

My people went from 'Thurles' (according to shipping records) to Australia originally, and then my GGG grandmother emigrated again to New Zealand.  So, these Ryans are a long way from home.

I hope you are able to find your missing ancestors.

Kerry

Hi Darline

Sorry for the late reply Ihave been working on a project and writing a book on my ancestors and the famine in Thurles. They are still Nolans living in the Mullanbrack area of Thurles and Birmingham was also linked to Thurles. I will visit the cemetery near where I live and send you on details of the Nolans and Birminghamsburied there.