I'm looking for the parents of Catherine McLaughlin 1906-24 Sep 1948

Question

Researching in Northern Ireland seems very difficult...to me at least! Catherine McLaughlin was born about 1906 in Northern Ireland. She married a James Magill 1906-17 Jan 1982. Catherine died on 24 Sep 1948. I believe she was buried in a cemetery in Lavey, Northern Ireland. One of the problems I've encountered is that the name Magill often seems to flip back and forth with the spelling McGill. Catherine and James had at least 4 children ie Brigid Magill 1927-2014, Patrick Magill 1930-2005, James Henry Magill 1933-1996, and Francis Magill 1940-2008. I can't find anything on the boys and nothing at all on their mother Catherine.  I did find a bit on Brigid who married John Francis Convery but even there I found nothing on Brigid's mother. I believe this family lived in the Donegal area of Northern Ireland. I thought I would find Catherine on a census but even there it is difficult since there doesn't seem to be and centralized place for census data.  I do hope someone can find this family for me please. If you do don't make it sound too easy so I can retain a wee bit of pride!!

Answer 1

Ireland was partitioned in the early 1920s into Northern Ireland and the Irish Free State.

County Donegal is not part of Northern Ireland, although it contains the northernmost point of Ireland.

There are two parishes known as Lavey, one in County Derry/Londonderry in Northern Ireland and another in County Cavan, which is not in Northern Ireland.  The former has a comprehensive website at
https://www.laveyparish.com/

If the four M*gill children were born in County Cavan or Donegal, then their birth records should be in Ireland Civil Registration Indexes, 1845-1958 at
https://www.familysearch.org/search/collection/1408347#count=75
but they do not appear to be there.  Using the wildcard (*) in the surname will pick up both spelling variants, but may not pick up Mc Gill (with a space) which is another possible spelling variant.  Similarly with Cat* or Kat* M*L*ghl*n.

If they were born in Northern Ireland, then the birth records should be findable from
https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/articles/search-gronis-online-records

If Catherine and James were married before 1948 in what is now the Republic of Ireland, then the marriage record should be findable from
http://civilrecords.irishgenealogy.ie/churchrecords/advanced-civil.jsp
but I can find no sign of it there.

You should be able to find Catherine and James in the 1911 census at
http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/search/#searchmore
but both names are very common and you haven't given enough information to identify the individuals that you are looking for.

Some members of the family that you are looking for appear in four user-donated family trees at ancestry.com, including one that appears to have been compiled by a grandson of James and Catherine at
https://www.ancestry.com/family-tree/tree/117517116/family/pedigree?cfpid=360165631406

Answer 2

You say Catherine and James were married 16th Sept 1926. What information did you get about Catherine's fathers name from the marriage record? https://www.wikitree.com/g2g/1758103/like-know-who-the-parents-catherine-cassie-malaughlin-were

Some good links posted by Paddy Waldron above. Northern Irish records after 1922 are on GRONI but are behind a paywall. https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/services/go-groni-online

On Lavey parish link posted by Paddy, I don't see Catherine's headstone. https://www.laveyparish.com/graveyardslaveynames.html