This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Author: oceanstrands Surnames: Classification: queries Message Board URL: http://boards.rootsweb.com/localities.britisles.ireland.may.general/7855.2.1.1/mb.ashx Message Board Post: Hi Ljay, Because there are no complete records surviving in Ireland and no records in Ireland about who left, where they went or what happened to them after emigration, records for the emigrants wherever they went would be the sources to search to identify where in Ireland they were born and their parents names. There are no surviving census records in Ireland before 1901. Not all the 1901 census records are even online yet. The 1911 census records aren't online either. Civil registration/vital records in Ireland which began in 1864 aren't complete because all births weren't registered. All deaths weren't registered either. The Irish Government hasn't put the Irish civil registration records online. County Heritage Centres have some of them but not all. All church records in Ireland don't survive either and there are thousands of parishes. Many parishes don't have complete surviving records and many of the records that survive have gaps in many years. Their civil and church records in the US as well as their obituaries, cemetery records, tombstones, wills, US Naturalisation records are sources to search to find their birthplaces in Ireland. There are 32 counties in Ireland with 64,000 towns and townlands. You can see the names of all the towns and townlands in all the counties of Ireland at the Ireland Townland Database http://www.seanruad.com There are complete census records in the US which you can search to find records locally where the emigrants lived. The 1900 US census for example contains month and year of birth of emigrants as well as when they were naturalized and when they emigrated to the US. There are complete census records in England as well as completre civil registration and church records which you can search for any family members who went there. Their children's civil and church birth/baptism, marriage records are more sources that may include their parents' birthplaces in Ireland. With 66 Hanley families in the 1901 County Roscommon census alone, there is little likelihood any descendants of any of those families who may or may not still be in County Roscommon and didn't emigrate would have any idea about whether or not they were even related to your Rhode Island Hanleys because there's no way here in Ireland to connect to anyone who may have emigrated through civil or church records. Oceanstrands Important Note: The author of this message may not be subscribed to this list. If you would like to reply to them, please click on the Message Board URL link above and respond on the board.