This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Surnames: McCabe, Murphy Classification: Query Message Board URL: http://boards.ancestry.com/mbexec/msg/rw/YWC.2ACI/4955.1 Message Board Post: Donna, Since you know Patrick McCabe was born in Co. Armagh, and Alice Murphy was born in Co. Monaghan, you next need to determine where in each county they originated, the townland or civil parish. Civil records in Ireland didn't begin until 1864 (except Protestant marriages were recorded starting in 1845) and generally no census records from the nineteenth century survive. Your main resource, therefore, would be church records. You would also need to know also who Patrick McCabe and Alice Murphy McCabe's parents were for your research. In order to find this information, you will need to research US records. Church and civil records for their marriage, death, naturalization, children's birth records, cemetery records, obituaries, wills, tombstones, as well as sponsors for religious events, who were often relatives or neighbours from the home area in Ireland, should help in identifying their specific location. You may also want to post another notice on the Co. Armagh and Co. Monaghan message boards seeking their information. This is the Co. Leitrim message board which is focused on Co. Leitrim emigrants and generally wouldn't include those with knowledge of or looking for ancestors in Co. Armagh or Co. Monaghan. Irish emigrants generally referred to their townland or civil parish as their place of origination. For a fuller description of these civil divisions, please see http://www.ancestry.com/library/view/news/articles/2435.asp Eilis O'Hara