Monday 5 January 2015

Irish genealogy and history events, 5–17 January 2015

The first full week back at work after the festivities is usually a little sluggish in terms of events and this year is no exception. Part of the reason is that organisations don't publish their lecture programmes in advance. I will add to the list any events notified during the period.

Monday 5 January: Ulster Scots and the Ulster Rhyming Weavers, with Laura Spence. Host: North of Ireland Family History Society, Killyleagh Branch. Venue: Killyleagh Masonic Hall, 50 High Street, Killyleagh, Co Down. 8pm–10pm.

Tuesday 6 January: Seeking your Scots-Irish ancestors, with Donna Moughty.  Host: Manatee Genealogical Society. Venue: Manatee County Central Library Auditorium, Bradenton, Florida, USA. 9:30am–Noon. Details (pdf).

Thursday 8 January: Coughs and Sneezes Spread Diseases – Medical and Coroners’ Records, with David Huddleston. Host: Belfast Branch of the North of Ireland Family History Society. Venue: Holywood Arches Library, Holywood Road, Belfast, BT4 1NT. 7:30–9:30pm. Details.

Friday 9 January: Marks of Time – the buildings of Derry-Londonderry, with Manus Deery. Part of the MBR Public Lectures Series. Host: Monuments and Buidings Record. Venue: Pat Collins Reading Room, Waterman House, 5-33 Hill Street, Belfast, BT1 2LA. 1pm–2pm. Free. First come, first served.

Friday 9 January: Who became an officer? Irish recruitment to the British Armed Forces 1922–49, with Dr Steven O'Connor. Host: Military History Society of Ireland. Venue: Griffith College, South Circular Road, Dublin 8. Non-members welcome. 8pm.

Friday 9 January: Discover Your Family History, with Emma Elliot of GRONI. Venue: Lisburn City Library, 23 Linenhall Street, Belfast BT28 1FJ10. Free. Everyone welcome. 10:30am to 12:30pm. For more information, telephone 028 9263 3350.

Saturday 10 January: Stories from the backstairs – domestic service in the Big House with Jennifer McCrea. Venue: Tipperary County Museum, Mick Delahunty Square, Clonmel, Co Tipperary. 10am to Noon, with refreshments provided. €5 per session. Bookings: julia.walsh@tipperarycoco.ie or 076 106 5564.

Saturday 10 January:  The British in India, a family history research workshop. Host:  Families in British India Society (FIBIS). Venue: The Herbert Art Gallery & Museum, Jordan Well, Coventry CV1 5QP, UK. 10am-4pm. Details and booking.

Saturday 10 January: Drop-in Genealogy workshop, with Mayo Genealogy Group. Venue: NMI, Country Life, Turlough Park, Castlebar, Co Mayo. Free. No booking required and new researchers welcome. 11:30–1pm.

Monday 12 January: Emigration from Ulster, with John Bradley. Host: North of Ireland Family History Society, Foyle Branch. Venue: Central Library, 35 Foyle Street, LondonDerry. 7pm. Details: foyle@nifhs.org.

Monday 12 January: St Catherine's Priory at Aughrim, with Patrick Larkin. Host: Galway Archaeological and Historical Society. Venue: Harbour Hotel, Dock Road, Galway. 8pm.

Tuesday 13 January: Matchmaking and marriage customs in 19th-century Ireland, with Seán Ó Duill. Host: Genealogical Society of Ireland. Venue: Dún Laoghaire FE Institute, Cumberland Street, Dún Laoghaire, Co Dublin. 8pm. Admission: €3.

Tuesday 13 January: The Huguenots, with Elizabeth Bicker. Host: North of Ireland Family History Society, Lisburn Branch. Venue: Bridge Community Centre, 50 Railway Street, Lisburn. 7:30pm – 9:30pm. Details.

Tuesday 13 January: The Road to Blessington, with John Hussey. Host: Tallaght Historical Society. Venue: County Library, Tallaght, Co Dublin. 7pm.

Wednesday 14 January: The Irish Language and the Foundation of the Northern Ireland State, by Liam Andrews. Host and Venue: Public Record Office of Northern Ireland, 2 Titanic Boulevard, Belfast, BT3 9HQ (Lecture Theatre). Free. 1pm. Need to reserve your place; email proni@dcalni.gov.uk or telephone 028 90 534800.

Wednesday 14 January:  Joining up for what? Irish recruitment in WW1, with Professor Keith Jeffery. Host and Venue: Newry & Mourne Museum, Bagenal's Castle , Castle Street/1A Bank Parade, Newry BT34 2BY. 7:30pm. Light refreshments served. Free but need to book by phone to 028 3031 3173 or email

Friday 15 January: Bearing all kinds of witness to war: finding violence in revolutionary Ireland, with Dr Anne Dolan. Host: Department of History, TCD. Venue: Neill Hoey Seminar Room, Trinity Long Room Hub Arts & Humanities Research Institute, Trinity College Dublin. 4pm–4:45pm. Free and open to all.

Friday 16 January: Irish policing, 1814–2014, a HistoryIreland Hedge School. The panel will include Jim Herlihy, Dr Sarah-Anne Buckley, John Cunningham and Dr Conor McNamara. Venue: National Museum of Ireland, Country Life, Turlough, Castlebar, Co Mayo. 7–9pm. Free. Those attending will also be able to visit the Museum's Irish policing exhibition, Preserving the Peace. Need to book.

Friday 16 January: Giant's Causeway: Frederick Douglass's Irish Odyssey and the Making of an American Visionary, with Professor Tom Chaffin. Host: Glasnevin Trust. Venue: Milestone Gallery, Glasnevin Cemetery Museum, Finglas Road, Glasnevin, Dublin 11. 7:15pm, following refreshments from 6:45pm. Free but places restricted to 30 general public tickets. First come, first served allocation via booking@glasnevintrust.ie.

Saturday 17 January: Pinpointing Your Irish Origins Using Commercial Ancestral DNA Testing, with Dr Tyrone Bowes. Host: North of Ireland Family History Society, Fermanagh Branch. Venue: Enniskillen Library in the Seminar Room upstairs. 2:15pm–4:15pm. Details.

Saturday 17 January: Irish Genealogy help session, with Kathleen McGee, at 10am; Researching at the Registry of Deeds, with Nora Galvin, at 11am. Host: Irish Family History Forum. Venue: Bethpage Public Library, 47 Powell Avenue, Bethpage, NY, 11714, USA. Details.