Free access to Ancestry's 'New Global Collection'

Ancestry is offering five days of free access to its New Global Collection, which includes some one billion new records added in the last week or so.

These new records cover 67 countries, more than half of them brand-new to the Ancestry stable. Given the widely-travelled nature of the Irish Diaspora, this new collection is one all Irish family historians should rummage about in.

I've just done a free access search for 'Santry' and found unexpected entries in 'Slovakia, Church and Synagogue Books, 1592-1910', 'U.S. Naval Enlistment Rendezvous, 1855-1891' and the' Belgium, Antwerp Police Immigration Index, 1840-1930'. Less surprising were around 150 entries in regular US, English, Welsh and Irish collections. There were also a few from Argentina that I knew I'd seen before; sure enough, the Argentinian entries, along with most, if not all, of these 'new' global collections, are shared from FamilySearch.

To gain free access to these records, you'll need an account with Ancestry. If you already have one, you can search and view straightaway. If you don't have one, you'll need to create a free account when you want to view a record. You don't have to provide any financial details; just sign up with your name, email address and your chosen password. That's it.

The free access to these records is live now and will continue until midnight (presumably a US time zone), Monday 1 September.