Trying to trace actual birthplace of Robert Hardcastle Johnston born 1818.
On marriage certificate of 1885 (Paddington, London) says of Newtown, Westmeath.
Father listed as William.Johnston,..occupation Steward.
Robert had 3 sons all born Gloucestershire, U.K. 1869,70,72...his marriage to Annie Elizabeth some 10 years later. I have also recently discovered he had a daughter born in Ireland 1838 (assume by a previous marriage) Maria Johnston, of Rochfortbridge, Westmeath. this information on her marriage certificate to a Frederick Gibbs...1885 in Cirencester, Gloucestershire. I have tried over several years to establish a real connection and a definite birthplace on some record. Incidently I am now in close contact with a branch of the family who emigrated to Canada, they also have the name Rochfortbridge as a birthplace on a tombstone of a Johnston.
If anyone has any suggestions that would move me any nearer, would be most grateful.
Thanks
Jilly
Jill Hales
Monday 8th Apr 2013, 05:08PMMessage Board Replies
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Hi Jilly,
Thank you for your message.
As civil registration did not begin until 1864 in Ireland, for all births, marriages and deaths prior to this you have to look in church records. Unfortunately, church records for Newtown do not begin until 1829. (Newtown belongs to the Catholic parish of Castletown-Geoghegan) You can see this on the Irish Times website:
This is too late a date to find Robert?s birth record which would prove he was born there.
However, in the19th century new Catholic parishes were created so starting dates can sometimes be misleading. Many parishes changed their geographical spread so you may find earlier records relating to your family in the records of adjoining parishes:
http://www.irishtimes.com/ancestor/browse/counties/rcmaps/westmeathrc.htm
I did a search for Johnstons in Newtown in Griffith?s Valuation. This is a property valuation survey that was carried out in Ireland 1848-1864. It doesn?t give any genealogical information but can sometimes be used to tie a person to a specific place. One result came back for a William Johnston who is listed as a landlord in Newtown parish, townland of Ballykilmore in 1854. It is possible that this is Robert?s father,although there is no way to prove so.
Some other websites that you may find helpful are:
The National Archives of Ireland http://www.nationalarchives.ie/genealogy1/genealogy-records/introduction/
The National Library of Ireland http://www.nli.ie/en/family-history-introduction.aspx
The National Archives UK ? genealogy search: http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/records/looking-for-person/
Genealogy Links: http://www.genealogylinks.net/uk/ireland/westmeath/index.html
Family Search: www.familysearch.org
You may also want to contact the heritage centre in Westmeath to see if they can offer anymore advice, however a fee may apply. Here is their email:dunnasimoate@eircom.net
Please be patient - as our programme has only begun to rollout across the island of Ireland and volunteers in some areas may not yet be organized.
Kind regards,
Genealogy Support
Wednesday 22nd May 2013, 09:38AM