1838 Shea-Sullivan marriage at Allihies (Beara peninsula)

Irish Family History Foundation — Cork South West Roots Ireland · Allihies parish, Co. Cork, Ireland · 1838-02-09

parish record marriagesecondary focus

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The scan of the original record, as filed in the archive. Zoom in to read it against the transcription below.

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Summary

Roman Catholic parish marriage record from Allihies, west Beara peninsula. **Date is 1838, not 1938** (the inbox filename mislabel led to a quick re-check; original parish register entry is 9 Feb 1838). - Husband: **Timothy Shea** of **Cluane** (Allihies area), RC; father surname Shea (first name not recorded) - Wife: **Margaret Sullivan**, RC; father surname Sullivan (first name not recorded) - Witnesses: **Patrick Shea** + **Denis Neil** - Priest: **James Devine** - Note: "4 et 4 cons grad" = Latin for **4th-and-4th-degree consanguinity dispensation granted** — the couple were related in the 4th degree (i.e., 3rd cousins) and required a Vatican dispensation to marry under canon law. Common in tight rural Catholic communities like 1830s Beara. Relationship to JJM's lineage: PROVISIONAL background-Shea record. JJM's maternal grandmother was Margaret Shea (b. ~1830s Eyeries area). This 1838 Timothy Shea + Margaret Sullivan marriage is **NOT** Margaret Shea's marriage (she married John Sullivan in 1855 per the corresponding 1855 cert; she would have been a child in 1838). But the 1838 marriage could plausibly involve JJM's maternal-Shea great-uncles or great-grandparents' generation. Held at low confidence pending further Shea-family research.

Parties named in the record

groom
Timothy Shea(= Timothy Shea (bapt. 16 July 1820 Rusacussane, Kenmare; m. Margaret Sullivan 1838 Allihies; father of Margaret Shea in the family tree))75
residence: Cluane
bride
Margaret Sullivan(= Margaret Sullivan (b. c. 1820; m. Timothy Shea 1838 Allihies; mother of Margaret Shea in the family tree))75

People — link detail

Timothy Shea (bapt. 16 July 1820 Rusacussane, Kenmare; m. Margaret Sullivan 1838 Allihies; father of Margaret Shea in the family tree)(as printed: Timothy Shea)
role: groom · family confidence: 75 strong
residence: Cluane
Background Shea family record from Allihies parish (west Beara, ~10 miles west of Ardgroom). Possibly a great-uncle of Margaret Shea (JJM's maternal grandmother). Not yet directly linked. [2026-10-03: merged on the user's instruction with the Timothy Shea baptised at Kenmare in 1820 and the family tree's Timothy Shea, father of Margaret Shea (b. 7 May 1839, Cluin); confidence raised from 10 to the merged record's 75.]
Margaret Sullivan (b. c. 1820; m. Timothy Shea 1838 Allihies; mother of Margaret Shea in the family tree)(as printed: Margaret Sullivan)
role: bride · family confidence: 75 strong
Different Margaret Sullivan from the user's family lines — this Margaret was a Sullivan by birth marrying a Shea in 1838. JJM's maternal grandmother Margaret Shea was the mirror — Shea by birth marrying a Sullivan in 1855. [2026-10-03: merged on the user's instruction with the family tree's Margaret Sullivan, wife of Timothy Shea and mother of Margaret Shea, JJM's maternal grandmother; the note above predates that. Confidence raised from 10 to the merged record's 75.]

Also mentioned

Patrick Shea · witness
Could be brother of the groom Timothy Shea.
Denis Neil · witness
James Devine · officiating_priest
Parish priest at Allihies in 1838.

Places

Castletownbere, County Cork (primary)
County Cork (primary)
Beara Peninsula (primary)
Ireland (primary)

Themes

Irish American community

Story threads

The Pat-and-Ellen Murphy household — Butte 1887 to LA 1980

Related sources

Transcription

transcription: complete · confidence high

--- newspaper: Roots Ireland "Church Marriage Record" (Cork South West / Irish Family History Foundation online index abstract, as a screenshot of the web page); a typed database abstract, not a newspaper and not an image of the parish register date: 1838-02-09 (date of marriage as given) page: single screenshot of one record; no register book, page or entry number is shown transcribed_by: claude-sonnet-5-5 (Claude Code subagent), 2026-10-04 method: source.jpg (1233 x 908 px, a browser screenshot showing the site's dark-green header band; JFIF 96 dpi). Viewed whole, then cut into six tiles (two columns x three rows, 60 px overlap), each upscaled 3x with LANCZOS; the small monospace Notes line was re-cut and upscaled 5x. There is no text layer. Each two-box name field is written forename | surname. Bands are listed left-hand band first, then right-hand band, as on the form. Empty boxes are marked [blank]. Printed text, including "Not Recorded" and the capitals of the Notes line, is kept exactly. proofed_by: claude-opus-5-5, 2026-10-04 --- # Church Marriage Record [logo] - **Date of Marriage:** 09-Feb-1838 - **Parish / District:** ALLIHIES - **County:** Co. Cork ## Husband - **Name:** Timothy | Shea - **Address:** Cluane - **Denomination:** Roman Catholic - **Occupation:** Not Recorded - **Age:** Not Recorded - **Status:** Not Recorded ## Wife - **Name:** Margaret | Sullivan - **Address:** Not Recorded - **Denomination:** Roman Catholic - **Occupation:** Not Recorded - **Age:** Not Recorded - **Status:** Not Recorded ## Husband's Father - **Name:** Not Recorded | Shea - **Address:** [blank] - **Denomination:** [blank] - **Occupation:** Not Recorded ## Wife's Father - **Name:** Not Recorded | Sullivan - **Address:** [blank] - **Denomination:** [blank] - **Occupation:** Not Recorded ## Husband's Mother - **Name:** Not Recorded | Not Recorded - **Address:** [blank] - **Denomination:** [blank] - **Occupation:** [blank] ## Wife's Mother - **Name:** Not Recorded | Not Recorded - **Address:** [blank] - **Denomination:** [blank] - **Occupation:** [blank] ## Witness 1 - **Name:** Patrick | Shea - **Address:** [blank] ## Witness 2 - **Name:** Denis | Neil - **Address:** [blank] **Notes:** `PRIEST: JAMES DEVINE. 4 ET 4 CONS GRAD.` © 2022 Copyright Cork South West www.rootsireland.ie

Dotted underlines mark key terms on first mention — hover or tab to one for a reference note. The wording is the source’s own.

Open questions

Relationship of THIS Timothy Shea + Margaret Sullivan 1838 to JJM's maternal Shea lineage — needs systematic Beara Shea- family tracking. The Allihies / Eyeries / Ardgroom Sheas were almost certainly all kin within 2-3 degrees.