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Irish John Smith Children, William's 65th Birthday, 1947

Complete Tithe Records

Kilmore Civil Parish

County Monaghan

Smith Family Genealogy

Introduction 

Ireland began collecting census records in the early part of the nineteenth century.  Unfortunately for us most of the nineteenth century records were destroyed or burned in a fire.  Genealogists use other records such as Tithe Applotment records and Griffith Valuation surveys as census substitutes. Irish John Smith and his family lived in Kilmore’s neighbor to the west, Aghabog Civil Parish.  Irish John’s family lived in Rossnaglogh East townland.  Corravilla was east of and adjacent to Rossnaglogh. Corravilla was the townland where Susan McPhillips was born.  Susan later married Irish John Smith in Wisconsin.  Corravilla’s neighbor to the east is Kilmore Civil Parish.  

There was no standardization for spelling surnames or locations.  The spelling you see is as it appeared in the tithe lists.  In the lists below you will see the term ‘Denomination’ as one of the column headers.  In this case, ‘Denomination’ refers to ‘Townland’. 

Kilmore Civil Parish

(Description from Lewis's Topographical Dictionary of Ireland, 1837) 

KILMORE, a parish, in the barony and county of MONAGHAN, province of ULSTER, 2½ miles (w. by N.) from Monaghan town, on the road to Clones ; containing 5095 inhabitants.  

According to the Ordnance survey it comprises 8689½ statute acres, including a detached portion of 334¼ acres, several small lakes, and some bog.  

The principal estates are Ballyleck, the residence of the Hon. R. Westenra ; Brandrim, of Owen Blayney Cole, Esq. ; and Rosefield, of Ralph Dudgeon, Esq.  

The Ulster Canal will pass through the northern part of the parish. 

The living is a rectory and vicarage, in the diocese of Clogher, and in the patronage of the Bishop. The tithes amount to £286. 3s. There is a glebe-house, towards the erection of Which the late Board of First Fruits gave £100 in 1792 ; the glebe comprises 43 acres. The church is a plain edifice with an elegant tower, erected in 1788, and for the repair of which £109 was lately granted by the Ecclesiastical Commissioners.  

In the Roman Catholic divisions the parish forms part of the union or district of Drumsnat, and has a chapel at Corcahan. 

There are eight public schools, in which about 520 children are educated ; and two private schools, in which are 60 children ; also a Sunday school supported by the curate. 

What is the Tithe Applotment? 

While the Irish census began in 1810, most records were lost in a fire. The Tithe Applotment records from 1823-1837 are therefore extremely important.

The Composition Act of 1823 specified that tithes due to the Established Church (Church of Ireland), which before had been payable in kind should now be paid in money.   As a result, it was necessary to carry out a valuation of the entire country, civil parish by civil parish, to determine how much would be payable by each landholder.  This continued for 15 years before ending in 1838.  No one was exempt and the tithe was required payable by Catholics and Protestants alike.  As the British took control of Ireland the Church of Ireland began to push in on the Catholic Church which had held sway in Ireland for centuries. The Church of Ireland wanted landholders to pay tithes to the church, and worked on this applotment in order to ensure that everyone paid.

A book still exists for almost every civil parish in Ireland. It lists the land in that parish, how it is broken down, who is on each plot of land, and the amount of money owed.  Anyone who leased land had to pay the tithe.  Catholics and non-Anglicans hated the tithe; however, many paid it to maintain their leasehold.  

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 Click to View Census Information

Aghabogy - Anniervy

Annaglough - Clonavarn

Crumlin - Drumacaslin

Drumclan - Gortnana

Killeen - Lisnalee

Lossett - Ternadown

Tullynarney - Point