Thursday 15 March 2012

Irish genealogy and historical research: 24/7

Doncha just love the round the clock availability of lectures, debates, interviews and programmes! Here's a selection to click into:

Exploring Local History: Crime
The fifth lecture in the PRONI/OU Exploring Local History series focussed on Crime and is now available on YouTube. Delivered by Dr Barry Sheehan, it can be accessed by typing in PRONIonline in the YouTube search bar or by opening the following links: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6.

Back to Hedge School!
Time for edification through a number of Hedge Schools, hosted by Tommy Graham, editor of the brilliant History Ireland magazine. The format of lively round-table discussions with historians and well-known personalities works well and the subjects covered are diverse.

Subjects include the 1641 Depositions, Brian Boru and the War of Independence and pose deliberately controversial questions to stimulate debate. Great stuff.

Limerick 1912
A Twitter account with the hashtag @Limerick1912 is tracking life, day by day, in Limerick 100 years ago. It's the brainchild of Limerick City Library Local Studies Team, and worth following if you've got ancestors from the city.

Dublin Heritage
Podcasts and videos galore at the Dublin Heritage site, which is run by Dublin City Libraries. If you missed any of the lunchtime lectures sponsored by the Friends of Medieval Dublin over the last I-don't-know-how-long, here's your chance to watch and listen at your leisure.

There's also a collection of other lectures on subjects as diverse as the history of Dublin's trams to 19th-century Catholic architecture via the life and times of Charles Wesley.

The Greening of Chicago
Since the madness of St Patrick's is almost upon us, here's a timelapse video of how those Crazy Chicago folks turn their river green to kick-start the celebrations.

Powdered vegetable dye is used to colour this central stretch of the city's river and canal network in an event that is sponsored by the local plumbers union. The tradition is now 40-odd years old.

Bonkers!