Rice's from Offaly

[domo]

HI
I have new info on my greatgran father William Rice born 1853 Eglish/Offaly/Ireland
father Thomas
mother E.Neil(Niel)
He joined army in 1873 when he was living in FIVEALLEY near Birr and I was wondering if any one lives near there or if any one can help find more about him(before he came to UK around 1878) and his parents
any help please
Dom

[Mary from Italy]

It looks like his baptism's listed here, but you'll need to buy some credits to view it:

http://ifhf.rootsireland.ie

[domo]

Mary I already have his baptism from this site cost $5.00
look to find sibling or his parents marriage
and any thing going back on Thomas
Dom

[Elwyn]

If the family were RC, then it appears that Eglish parish records go back to 1809. You can see on this link what records exist and where they can be accessed:

http://www.irishtimes.com/ancestor/browse/counties/rcmaps/

You may be able to find siblings listed there. You might find the parents marriage, but only if Eglish was the bride’s parish too. Tradition was to marry in the bride’s church so if she came from another parish, the marriage may not be listed.

I note that Griffiths Valuation for 1854 has just one Thomas Rice listed in Eglish, in the townland of Ballynacard. He had a house and 3 acres (bare subsistence farming). Plot 4 in Griffiths. I wonder if this might be where the family lived. (The farm would be alongside the modern N52 road).

http://www.askaboutireland.ie/griffith-valuation/index.xml?action=nameSearch

There was a Rice working there as a farm servant in the 1901 census. Don’t know if it’s the same family but it was a small townland with only about 9 houses so there might be a connection:

http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/pages/1901/King_s_Co_/Derryad/Ballynacaro/1463712/