Donegal Ancestry .....

[scooter]

Hello,

I was thinking of getting the Donegal Ancestry Centre (http://www.donegalancestry.com/index.shtml) to do a location search for me in an effort to track down my McDonald past. However, I filled out their questionnaire form which subsequently led to a dead link. I then e-mailed to ask if they still offer this service, but as yet have had no reply. Has anyone here used this organisation in the past, and if so, do you know if they are still in operation? I'd nip across the water and root around myself, but as usual, time is the stumbling block and I'm a good thirty-plus years away from hanging up my working clogs.

Thanks in advance,

Scott

[IanS]

Scott, I can't comment on the Donegalancestry site, as I've never used it, but why don't you post a few details here and see what happens. Any names, dates , ages from census etc.

[scooter]

Hi Ian,

The people I'm trying to track down an exact location of origin in Donegal are as follows:

George McDonald (b.~1811 - Donegal, Ireland)
Margaret (Kane) McDonald (b.~1807 - Donegal, Ireland)

George and Margaret must have been married around or before 1833, presumably in Donegal where they had the following children: Elisabeth (b.~1833), Catherine (b.~1838 d. 04/10/1914 Stanley, Perthshire) and Sarah (b.~1844). The couple also had John (1849 - 1918), Margaret (~1853 - 1855) and George (~1854 - 1921) in Camelon, Falkirk. All the ages for the Donegal born members of the family are based on the 1851 census. Both George and Margaret died in Falkirk and Camelon (1879 & 1862 respectively) and I have a reasonably complete picture of all their dates etc. in Scotland, including the vast majority of descendants, up until the present day. George's father was a James McDonald (Quarryman) and mother an Elizabeth Quail (b.~1783 - Ireland). Elizabeth joined her son in Camelon sometime after 1861 and died in the Falkirk Poorhouse in 1876.

Unfortunately George and Margaret don't seem to have had any children in Scotland post-1854 which of course may have offered up some idea of where they came from. The only Donegal McDonald I found in Griffiths was a James McDonald in Buncrana. He could be related, however I couldn't say for sure. Oddly enough my Granny McDonald took my father and his brothers on holiday there once because of a 'family link'. However, this may have been related to her mother's side, who were also from Donegal.

The family were RC so the Irish indexes prior to the estimated year of emigration to central Scotland in 1849 aren't of use.

I hope that gives you some idea of the task at hand. I had planned at leaving this strand of my research as above, but as I'm sure you know, these things have a habit of niggling away and it's hard to put it down!

Best,

Scott

[IanS]

Scott, You've probably already thought to see if any McDonalds(sp) are on the tithes for Lower Fahan, but if not, you can order them at your Local Family History Centre. (Donagh too, the adjoining Parish has a 'Quill' in G.V. also Cain (sp)).

Though you say the family were Catholic, I wouldn't discount their early records being recorded in the Church of Ireland.

http://www.dun-na-ngall.com/churchoi.html

OR indeed any other denomination- My mother was disbelieving ,at first, to be told her early Donegal ancestors were Presbyterian

[Andy]

When you're searching for Irish McDonalds you've got to include the Irish versions of the name, McDonall, McDonnell, O'Donall and O'Donnell.

Griffith's is a bit too late to be helpful for your lot, try the Tithe Applotment books instead. Some (very few) are available online

In the Ballehan (Balleeghan) townland in the Moville area in 1825 there are four McDonnells:

McDonnell Eimar
McDonnell James
McDonnell John
McDonnell Michael

Ballymacarter (Ballymacarthur)

O'Donnell Edward

Drumaweer

O'Donnell Widow

Shrove (Stroove / Shroove)

O'Donnell Bryan
O'Donnell Conn
O'Donnell James
O'Donnell John
O'Donnell Patrick

Quayle/Quail isn't a common name in Donegal but is found readily in Down. Quail can also be McHale and McPhail/McFaul/McFall there are some of these names in Donegal but more commonly in Mayo.

Killymard Parish in Donegal is one of the few places to have extant 1821 census returns.

BALLYWEEL

O’DONNELL. Rachael [widow 52] William [16]

O’DONNELL. Isaac [29] Constable and census taker. Elizabeth [24] James [4 months] Margaret [Aunt age 48] had wood p/c Dr Kerr Foster?

O’DONNELL. William [76] bedridden Fanny [daughter age 19]

SUMMERHILL

O’DONNELL. Thomas [32] Eleanor [30] Charles [8] John [6 ½] Catherine [4] Mary 1 ½]

Unfortunately only three Catholic churches in Donegal have records prior to 1840:

Clonleigh - Lifford 1773
Templecarn - Pettigo 1836
Culdaff 1838

[scooter]

Hi Andy & Ian,

Thanks for the very useful pieces of advice. Unless they were resident in the parishes you listed, it sounds as if pursuing the Catholic church records is a no-go. I'll check out what the LDS in Kensington have in the way of Tithe records, and perhaps it might be worth looking at all the James McDonald (and variants) who died after the introduction of civil registration (about 1864 for deaths?). I had read somewhere that the O'Donnells were not related to McDonnells and McDonalds etc. Is there a definitive answer to this?

Best to you both.

Scott

P.S. Margaret Kane's father was called Edward. I've seen the surname written as Cain, Kane, Keane, Kayne - and probably a few others to boot!

[Andy]

Generally O'Donnells aren't of the same lines as the McDonnall, MacDonald but on moving to Scotland and elsewhere loads of "O" names became Mac or dropped completely. All these names have the same Gaelic patronymic root, Domhnall.

The reason why I lumped in the O'Donnells is the fact that by FAR the biggest sept of this massive clan occurs in Donegal (950 odd in Griffith's) whereas the McDonnell, McDonald names aren't nearly as well represented in Donegal, 38 McDonnell 3 McDonald.

I hope they were McDonalds they'll be easier to find in Donegal. But there is a real possibility that they started out with the other spellings.

[scooter]

Hi Andy,

Many thanks for that. Would the fact that the family consistently used M(a)cDonald in Scotland from 1851 onwards suggest that they weren't O'Donnells? If I remember, I saw O'Donnells on the 1851 census living in the same locale as the McDonalds so there seems to have been a distinction between the two.

From looking at the records, I get a strong impression that the Falkirk area had a high concentration of Irish during the mid nineteenth century. Everyone my McDonalds married were first or second generation.

Thanks again for your help,

Scott

[Andy]

Unfortunately there is no way of knowing, regardless of how consistently they used the McDonald spelling. I just pointed out the possiblity that they COULD have been any version on the name and it's as well to keep an VERY open mind when searching between Scotland and Ireland.

I've had a heated debate going with a very tenuous Wilkinson relation who insists that his Rathlin Island Wilkinsons who went to America were always called Wilkinson NEVER McQuilkin.

I have comprehensive records for Rathlin Island from the Mid 18th century to date but can find no reference to Wilkinson.

1766

Names of Protestant families: Walker 1; McQuilkin 4; McAhargey 1; McArthur 2; McKey 1; McQuoig 6; McCausland 1; Horaghan 1; McCully 1; Weir 4; Hunter 1; McKinley 1; Rankin 1.

Names of Catholic families: McGillachrist 6; McCurdy 35; Morrison 6; McQuilkin 6; McFall 4; Roy 1; Millar 3; Rankin 1; Andrewson 6; McCay 1; Brallachan, 1; McKermud 1; McCargey 3; McKinley 1; McCurrey 1; McGowan 2; Walsh 1; McGrigor 1; McKeernan 1; Black 14.

1803

McCurdy 31, Anderson 13, Morrison 13, McQuig 8, Black 7, McFall 6, McQuilk 6, McLhargy 5, Horan 4, McKinley 3, Wier 3, Lamont 3, McCarter 3, Hunter 2, McCay 2, McKey 2, McQuilk(in) 1, McQuilkan 1, Bradley 1, Cresly 1, Gage 1, Grimes 1, McCormack 1, Miller 1, Moore 1, Ritchurson 1, Wrenkin 1.

1834

McQuilken, Alexr. Townland : Craigmacagan
McQuilken, Danl. Townland : Ballycarry
McQuilken, Danl. Townland : Mallandress
McQuilken, Jno. Townland : Ballycarry
McQuilken, Michl. Townland : Coolnagrock
McQuinland, Allan Townland : Ballycarry [sic McQuilken]

In my own family in the early 1860's, Allan and sons John and Joseph McQuilkin changed their name (very briefly) to Wilkinson. I can be fairly precise about when the change occurred.

John McQuilkin married Mary McCurdy in 1861.

Helpfully, his brother, Joseph Wilkinson married in Greenock in 1862 giving the father's name as Allan McQuilkin. Three of the children were born Wilkinson three others McQuilkin. Joseph's first wife died a McQuilkin and Joseph remarried as McQuilkin.

John and James, Grandfather and Great Grandfather are buried in the same plot, the headstone, carved in 1863, names them Wilkinson.

So despite the chap in America being 100% sure that his Wilkinsons (who arrived in America between 1848 and 1854) were a separate family and have consistently been called Wilkinson all the evidence points to them being McQuilkins.

[scooter]

Hi Andy,

That was an excellent illustration of the point you were making. Perhaps it's a good idea for me to attack this family from all directions.

Good luck with the stubborn American cousin. You convinced me!

Best,

Scott