Mickey~       Your ancestors year dates are after 1864.  Therefore, civil birth records are available at the General Record Office County Rosscommon on line.  Just GOOGLE it and follow the directions to order.  There is a form which must use for each request.  You can FAX or "snail" mail and use credit card.  I prefer to use "snail".  Last time (3 years ago) it was approx. $14. for each record.  The turnaround time to Cleveland, OH area is about 8 weeks.     Civil birth recording, for all Catholic & Protestant was required.  Penalty was applied if not followed.  In the early years there was little trust in English requirements but within a few years that passed.  However, because of it there may be a discrepancy re: dates.  The wily native Irish were not going to pay a fine to England, just change dates!!!       Within a few years penalties were attached to marriage and death too.  Civil record for Protestant marriages started in 1845.       If you order from the Mayo Record Office at Castlebar on North Antrim St. you cannot use a credit card.  You have to fool around with the exchange and money orders.       Have you checked out the Irish census online for 1901 and 1911??  If your ancestor was in UK before then, the English census is every 10 years starting in 1841.  They are online too.       familysearch.org has Irish civil record index and in some circumstances the actual record.  It is a free site, check it out.  If you find them on the index, you can use that data to order your certificates from the GRO.        As for sacramental records, GOOGLE the area you mentioned to check for church which would have been in existence at that time.  You could contact them with request and donation.  Allow for a long time because they are not genealogists and have other duties.      My family was in the thoroughbred/race business in the 19th/early 20th century.  They resided and still do outside of Westport.  Will "E" mail them to see if there are any county local organizations which would have records of grooms, trainers, etc.  Also my husband's family in Wexford have been in the horse & sheep business for over 100+ years and still are.  Maybe they would know about organizations and/or records for people in this type of business.         Thought.  Is there a Race track or related business in the area they migrated to in UK?  If so, subscribe on rootsweb to a list for that place.  People may be able to assist you there.   Mary Ellen Chambers Lakewood, OH   >________________________________ >   

Mary Ellen,   Thanks for your suggestions.  I have used the GRO for records in the past, but with so much coming online in the past few years, I wasn't sure whether I might be missing an easier or cheaper alternative.  I have turned up four index or summary records in Mayo on the online South Mayo site (Roots Ireland affiliated), plus I found two new ones in Galway and one in Limerick.  I'm out about $50 already just for those!  It gets expensive fast when you're successful in finding the records.    The churches are tricky and I'll probably have to rely on some geographical guidance or local knowledge from listers.  The online records have addresses and districts listed.  One lists the address as "Drumhill" in Hollymount District, and it looks to me like the nearest church is Aghagower.  Alas, no e-mail for the priest there.  The other is listed as "Garristown" which I take to mean "Garriestown," or "Ballygarries."  I can't figure out where the nearest church would be to this but if I order the records from the GRO it might be listed.  And I won't be the only person ever to struggle with sorting out civil and church parish or district nomenclature.   I do have the 1891, 1901 and 1911 census records for most of them in both Ireland and England.  Some of the older boys go missing between birth and 1891 in England, and I think they may have died.    When Martin and his family emigrated to the UK, it appears he began working in some capacity with the military as a civilian, as Aldershot is a garrison town.  But he's variously listed through all the records as a "groom" or "coachman," or later in life, "horse dealer,"   My speculation has been that for some of that time he was employed by local gentry.  In Clare, that's almost surely the case because of the proximity to the local landowner's house, and the listed job as "coachman."  But I've been wrong before.    Thanks again for your tips!   Mickey