Catherine, I don't know if you had any luck with Crebilly or All Saints, but could I also suggest that you look at the records for St Patrick's Roman Catholic Church, The Braid. These are lodged(along with those for Glenravel Catholic Church) in The Public Record Office of Northern Ireland (PRONI), on microfilm, at MIC1D/69/1 & MIC1D/70. The Braid Catholic Church is located at the Eastern end of the Braid Valley, about five miles from Broughshane and was dedicated in its present location in Autumn 1855. I recorded the gravestone inscriptions in the Braid in the late 90s. There are two Bell stones, both fairly recent and these read as follows : (1) Sacred Heart of Jesus have mercy on the soul of Robert Bell, Killyharn, died 22nd July 1965. And of his wife Mary died 8th Dec 1934. RIP. Bell (2)Jesus have mercy on the soul of Charles Bell died 6th December 1981. Also his sister Catherine Alice died 11th July 1987 RIP Your ancestors may be interred in this yard, without stones, or, more likely, be buried in Skerry Churchyard, which surrounds a ruined church further down the Braid Valley, closer to Broughshane. Until recently christian names tended to be repeated across the generations, so the above Robert may be a descendant of your greatgrandfather. I also recorded the stones in Crebilly Catholic Churchyard (the most likely burying place for your McAuley ancestors) and these, along with those for the Braid, are listed on Ballymena Museum's website at www.thebraid, click on museum, then genealogy. Other research I have done would suggest that all the Bell families in the Braid Valley would originally have been adherents of the Presbyterian Church, or more specifically of Buckna Presbyterian Church, which is located close to Braid Catholic Church. I worked some time ago on the visitation records of the Rev Samuel Hamilton, who was minister of Buckna Church for a long period in the mid-late 19th century. In an entry for 18&19 March 1857 he records "William Bell and wife - 2 or 3 children at home - not"church going". n.b. A son of theirs' married a R.C. and goes with her to mass" I believe this marriage to be the origin of the Catholic Bell families of the Upper Braid Valley. Unfortunately he does not name the son or his wife, but I would make an educated guess that they may have been Robert Bell and Ellen O'Hara. If that is the case then you should be able to trace the Bell line further back through the records of Buckna Pres Church, also held on microfilm in PRONI at MIC1P/322. I hope this makes sense and is of some help to you. All the best.
|
