Closing In

Thanks to a lot of research done by other people we are closing in on the burial places of William and Alice Foley, my great great great grandparents, and their daughter, Bridget Carey.
Other internet researchers have shared with me the way to find burial sites.

First, we need to know what places they were living at the time of their deaths. We know this from County Waterford's online death record search. The town names when their deaths were reported were Monatra for William and Bridget, and Holy Well for Alice. Also referenced were Ballysalough and Pilltown as other places where they lived, all in County Waterford.

Then, we need to know where these are specifically located and what cemeteries are in these immediate areas. Other researchers who go to Ireland specifically to look for tomb stones have shared their methods with many others. They advise that the first thing to do is to obtain an Ordnance Survey Map of the County in question. I went online and bought such a map for less than $10.

It came in the mail today and provided the best detail of the area that I have seen so far, and it is not the first map I bought. This one has certain grave yards listed. It has all of the town names and their specific locations. I was happy to see, in particular, that Pilltown, is located on a national highway just ten kilometers east of Youghal. South of there, on the coast is Monatra with Ballysalough on the way to the coast. And I was most happy to see Holy Well listed in the area. There are an estimated 3000 Holy Wells that people used in olden times as a sort of a wishing well in tough times. Next I will have to determine if our friends in Ireland can find these places and have a look-see for us.