There are two Gortatlea townlands in Kerry:

Townland Acres Barony Parish PLU
Gortatlea 458 Iveragh Dromod Cahersiveen
Gortatlea 699 Trughanacmy Ballymacelligott Tralee

Search results for Connell/O'Connell heads of household in Gortatlea according to the CD -Index to Griffith's Valuation of Ireland, 1848-1864, done in Kerry 1851/52:

Connell, Bridget County : Kerry
Parish : Ballymacelligott
Location : Gortatlea
Connell, James County : Kerry
Parish : Ballymacelligott
Location : Gortatlea
Connell, John County : Kerry
Parish : Ballymacelligott
Location : Gortatlea
Connell, Patrick County : Kerry
Parish : Ballymacelligott
Location : Gortatlea
Connell, Thomas County : Kerry
Parish : Ballymacelligott
Location : Gortatlea

As there were no Connell names in the civil parish of Dromod, I would concentrate my query toward Ballymac.

Dont be concerned about the difference in spelling of Gortatlea.

You might contact the local priest for marriage and baptisms,who still has the parish registers in local custody:

Ballymacelligott Roman Catholic parish
Earliest Record:
b 10 1868
m 11 1868

Parish Priest
Catholic Church
Ballymacelligot, Co Kerry
Ireland

You can start your letter with:
Dear Reverend Father,

**Please** be patient and considerate when contacting the parish priests ... they are very over worked and do not have enough time for their own parishioners. Some cover more than thier own parish. It is NOT their job to do research for you. A donation to the church would surely be appreciated and may be a justification to the priest to take the time away from his usual duties to do this for you as it would be helping his church. Be as precise as possible... i.e. do not ask him to look up "all the O'Connors" in his parish! Remember pouring over their record books in Latin is very time consuming for them.

If you have any marriage, birth or death dates after 1864 you can search the Civil registration index films:

http://community-2.webtv.net/mpetzolt2/irishcivilreg/

mary