Genealogy

Plotting the Locations

ByTerri November 6, 2014November 4, 2014

Looking through the Connell / O’Connell family records from Ireland, I know the area they lived in for the birth of each of their children.

1840 – Dromahoe
1841 – Dromalour
1843 – Paill (could be Paal)
1845 – Park
1849 – Fairy Hill
1854-1857 – Garraveasoig

Plotting each of these locations on Google Maps gives us an idea of where the family lived.

Map_Connell Family — Source: https://www.google.com/maps

Looking closely (click map to enlarge), you can see that Paill is the only place that is not notated on the map. This is because Paill is not listed as a townland. I wonder if Paill is Paal?

I find it interesting to see how far the family moved through the years. In 1840, they started in Dromahoe (red point on the map). In 1841 it looks like they are about two townlands over in Dromalour. In 1845, the family is in Park, which is the bottom right of the map. In 1849 the family is in Fairy Hill which is the lower center of the map. By 1854, they are in Garraveasoge with is located between Dromahoe and Dromalour, the first two townlands the family lived in.

There is a birth of another child in this family, unfortunately I have not found his birth record. This record would bring us a bit closer to when the family emigrates to the United States. Looking at the map, it is obvious that they are not far from Cobh which would most likely be their place of departure.

Comments

comments

Terri

Terri O’Connell is a professional genealogist in the Chicago area, focusing on Midwestern United States Genealogy, with a main focus in Illinois and a special interest in Irish research. She is also the owner of Cruise Planners – O’Connell Cruise and Travel, a full service travel company. Their mission is to encompass the full family: vacations, reunions, and history travel. Terri is a travel enthusiast with a passion for genealogy and enjoys bringing the two together to assist her clients in their travel needs. You can find Terri online at www.facebook.com/cruiseplannersoconnell, www.facebook.com/tracingmyfamily.

2 Comments

M says:

November 6, 2014 at 7:56 am

This is very interesting and something I haven’t thought of in regards to genealogy research, plotting where your ancestors lived on a map. It really helps visualize it and put it into perspective. Great idea!

Reply
1. Terri says:
  
  November 6, 2014 at 12:13 pm
  
  Thanks, Mark. It is not something I normally do. But that is because most of the ancestors I have researched have all been in the US. Anything in the US is fair game to go and visit before the trip to Ireland happens. When I prepare for a genealogy road trip, I would then put it all on a map to make sure I “see” everything I can.
  
  The Irish ancestors are different, I am not sure when I will get there. So, letting me see these places (even just on the map) makes it easier to look into their lives. By looking at the map, and seeing that the these places are not all close together. This leaves me with some more questions, which I will be blogging about soon.
  
  Thanks for reading, and taking the time to comment.
  
  Reply