Since my Keatings are from the Dublin area going back to at least the 1700’s, I’ve started a project to identify Dublin Keatings in a variety of sources. I’m starting with the various Almanac(k)s and Directories that are available on Google Books (and possibly Ancestry.com and others). I’d also like to do the same for the various baptismal records that are available for viewing online.
I’m not going to guarantee that I’ve caught every instance in each of these books — I rely on the search tools within Google Books, which can be spotty with the worn and stained print from these old books. My own fingers have been known to mangle spellings, dates, and page numbers. If you do have any corrections or additions, please let me know and I’ll make the changes.
Within the Almanacs and Directories, I’ve noticed that the spelling seems to be either Keating or Keatinge, without many other variations. I’m not sure if this was the choice of the editors, or whether the “gentlemen and citizens” themselves preferred these spellings. I have noticed a tendency for attorneys and barristers to prefer the Keatinge spelling, while the citizens (i.e., business owners) tended towards the Keating spelling. This might be due to a particular family group, however. I’ve also seen the same individual spelled both ways over time as well as within the same book.
What’s the difference between this and an index or searching? My hope is to start to see patterns develop. This might be a pattern over time or geography. For example, one Mrs. Elizabeth Keating ran a French and English boarding school at 113 Upper Dorset street in the 1830 directory. She continued at this location in the 1835, 1837, and 1842 directories before moving to 116 Upper Dorset street by the 1847 directory. She was no longer listed by the 1849 directory. This Mrs. Keating may be my g-g-g-g-grandmother, Elizabeth (Kilmartin) Keating, who was a teacher according to family lore. If this is my ancestor, it gives me a range of dates in which she may show up in the records of a local church. It may provide clues to when events happened in her life (e.g., the disappearance of her husband, her death, etc.)
Since many of these records provide some geographical data (addresses, church records), it may be possible to show it on a map and see how various groups were concentrated in Dublin neighborhoods.
If you find someone you believe is a relative in one or more of these listings, please let me know. I’ll try to keep track of these cases, and if multiple people “claim” the same person, I’ll put them in touch with each other.