Finding my 2x great-grandfathers family

Hi, I'm seeking information on my 2x great-grandfather Morris (Maurice) Flynn. According to information I have from Ancestry Hints he was born in Abbeyfeale, County Clare, Limerick, Ireland in 1840 and died tragically in a fire with his son William James Flynn, 17 April 1925 in Waipawa, Central Hawkes` Bay, New Zealand aged 85.
He married Charlotte Douglass in 1876 (B: 28 Aug 1856, Ahuriri, Napier, Hawkes` Bay, NZ & D: 23 April 1886 in Waipawa, CHB, NZ). Charlotte passed away at age 30 and they had six children, one of which died as an infant.
I'd like to find who Morris's parents and siblings were, where he lived and why & when they left Ireland (assuming they all immigrated) Could they have travelled to America during the potato famine as many did? It seems about the right era and Morris would have been a young child. Maybe then as a young man Morris made his way to New Zealand? Or perhaps the entire family immigrated directly to NZ? I just don't know. On my search I found a few Maurice Flynn's from Abbeyfeale but they appear to have died in Ireland, therefore not the person I was looking for. They could have been relations, however, with the limited info at my disposal I couldn't make a connection. 
Thanks in advance for any information relating to my search.
Sharon

Hi Sharon,

It’s great to hear that you are tracing your Irish Family History!

Before 1864 records were kept in the form of church and parish records, all the surviving records have been sorted into county based genealogical centres. It looks like your Morris was born in 1840 and if he came from Abbeyfeale, County Limerick then Limerick Genealogy may be a good place to start looking for some information.

It would be strange to leave for America and then travel to New Zealand sometime later. He may well have left on a convict ship as this was something that happened to many for the slightest thing during the famine years. Roots Ireland has a passenger lists page which may be worth a look!

Hopefully, our members and industry partners can help you with your quest to find out more about Maurice (Morris)!

Martin

Hello.  My name is Catherine Anne Killough-Little.  I live in Alvarado Texas USA.   Did a family ancestry test.  My 12X great-grandfather came from Killough, Ireland.  There is Killough Castle.  I'm very interested in any information anybody has regarding my great-grandfather and the castle ...
Thank You so much 💚🍀💚

Hello Catherine,

Many thanks for joining us here with some information about your ancestors!

As with many town names, there are many of the same on the island of Ireland, but as you mention Killough Castle, I will assume that you know it to be Killough, County Tipperary you are looking for.

How far back in time would your 12x great-grandfather have been here and what was his name?

Good Morning Martin,
This is Catherine Killough-Little.  I'm responding to your email.  First, thank you for responding to me.
I went thru ancestry.com.  Results showed that this page is provided by "The Kalloch Family Home Page, Website of the Kalloch Family Reunion Association, founded in 1867.  The information in this database is based primarily from: The Killough/Kellough family in Ireland, Canada and The United States.  by Zora (Killough) Cunningham.
According to Ancestry.com, it was able to go back to my 13X great-grandfather John, CA. 1630-1689.

As I stated before, Thank You for responding to me.  I look forward to any information you provide to me.

Please research :The Killough Family Massacre" ... this area is approximately 150 from where I live here in Texas.

Thank You for taking the time to visit with me.

Most Gratefully,
Catherine Killough Little

Hi Catherine,

Thanks so much for getting back to us with this wonderful information, you have been able to get quite far back in time!

The name Killough is a rare surname and seems to be most prevalent in County Antrim, with Ballymoney being the most popular for the families.

Before 1864 records were kept in the form of church and parish records, all the surviving records have been sorted into county-based genealogical centres. In 1864 civil registration was introduced in Ireland, which is when we started seeing the formal registration of births, marriages, adoptions, and deaths. These records have been kept at the General Register Office of Ireland (GRO), through the Irish Genealogy website, to this day. Records for Northern Ireland would be found here until 1921 when GRONI was set up.

The Ulster Historical Foundation runs a webpage that may be of interest. It has some pay-per-view records so please check it out if you feel it would be helpful.

Hopefully, you can find some additional information about your family here.

Best wishes,
Martin